“Based on the information available to us, I’ve come up with the best plan I could. It will require the input of all four of us, so let’s do our best.”
All three ladies similarly become a notch more firm, listening intently as I continue. “First of all, Aurora, I need you to begin concocting a large batch of lightweight, non-lethal poison that can be dissolved in water without leaving a trace behind. Can you do that?”
Aurora’s face lights up with determination. “Yes, I can! I’ll make sure it’s potent enough to incapacitate without causing any lasting harm.”
I nod and turn to Blossom, who is still comfortably nestled in my lap, looking up at me with eager eyes. “While the poison cooks,” I begin, “you’ll rest for a while. Then, I’m afraid I must send you out in your lonesome once again.”
Blossom’s ears perk up, and she responds with enthusiasm, “Blossom doesn’t mind! Can Blossom rest in Master’s embrace?”
I chuckle softly, giving her a reassuring stroke of her head. “Sure you can. Ayame and I will sleep through the night to let you and Aurora set the scene for the perfect heist. Tomorrow morning, the two of us will move out.”
Blossom’s eyes sparkle with determination, and I can see she’s already mentally preparing herself for the tasks ahead. “Oh yeah, Blossom,” I add, “once you’re done with the poison mission, you’ll have another, more dangerous one. This one will be key in determining our success or failure.”
“Blossom won’t fail!” she declares with fierce determination, her tail wagging even more vigorously.
“I know that you won’t.”
And just like that, the day came to an end. Blossom departed after a brief nap, and I had a blissful slumber that rejuvenated my body and soul to an astounding degree. My primordial race was probably at play here, for all my bruises and pains disappeared during the night’s rest.
Now it’s time to invade the kingdom’s outpost, steal the ingredient to become a Wizard, earn XP and level up my three evil classes so that I can unlock the Primordial Villain class. freewēbnoveℓ.com
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Pov: ??? –
I wake up to the dim light filtering through the small window of my cramped quarters, and I immediately groan in frustration. My head throbs with the dull ache of another restless night, and the moment I open my eyes, that familiar wave of loathing washes over me. I hate my life here. I despise every second I spend in this forsaken outpost.
The bitterness I hold towards life itself has only grown since the day I was forced to relocate to this hellhole.
Dead End. That’s what everyone unofficially calls this place.
As for why the dark moniker?
First, there’s nothing to do here. As far as official records go, no combat situation has ever occurred in this territory, partly because of the [Veil of Aetherius], a very high quality artifact. When activated, the item projects an invisible barrier over a designated area, rendering everything within completely undetectable by any known means.
The obscuration effect is absolute: no form of magical or mundane detection can penetrate the veil. It bends light, muffles sound, and even masks the presence of magical auras, making the protected area appear as nothing more than an empty, unremarkable stretch of land to the outside world.
There’s literally no record of anyone even attempting to attack the outpost for hundreds of years, if not thousands. And why would they? There’s nothing here. Just an empty mountainous area.
Of course, I’m not naive enough to believe that the kingdom keeps wasting so many resources to protect nothing, but no one knows what we are doing here exactly, save for perhaps the Aegis Vanguard, the kingdom’s elite forces unit who are acting as the leaders of this place.
But because of no confrontations ever occurring, those of us who are stationed here are robbed of the ability to level up; which not only halts our growth but also inadvertently makes us die quicker, as reaching each tenth level increases one’s life expectancy.
Second reason for the moniker is that it’s where they send soldiers who’ve screwed up too badly to be kept in proper service but for some reason weren’t fired (executed) outright.
It’s a dumping ground for those the kingdom doesn’t want to count amongst its ranks anymore, and now, thanks to one stupid mistake, I’m stuck here too, commanding a small team that’s composed of ten worthless scum who are basically glorified versions of exiled felons.
I still remember the day it all went wrong. I was celebrating with my regiment, just another night out after a successful campaign that had us spearhead an invasion deep into the Beastman Confederation’s territories.
Two of the guys slipped something into my drink when I wasn’t looking, but, unfortunately for them, I’d built up some poison resistance thanks to my rough childhood (thanks, dad), so whatever they used didn’t knock me out completely. I felt it, though- my vision blurring, limbs going heavy. I knew something was wrong.
I didn’t let on. I played along, bided my time, and waited until they thought they had me. Then, when they least expected it, I struck back. I didn’t just kill them- no, that would’ve been too easy. I castrated them both and forced them to devour their own genitals, then I made sure that they suffered for as long as I could keep them alive until they finally bled out.
Naturally, until that moment I kept torturing them slowly to the point where they were so desperately begging for death that they were praying to the Goddess herself to appear and end their suffering.
Of course, she didn’t. She never appears.
I wanted them to feel every bit of pain I could inflict on them, to let them know they messed with the wrong woman.
… And to satisfy my slightly unusual urges.
But someone found me before I could dispose of their bodies. Some nosy idiot heard the screams and raised the alarm, and that was it for me. Instead of a commendation for ridding the world of those scum, I got relocated here, to Dead End, to command ten more pieces of human garbage.
I curse under my breath as I roll out of bed, stretching the stiffness from my muscles before equipping my armor and grabbing my greatest ally, my trusty sword, and head out of my quarters.