Esme and I got on our rickshaw and headed toward where the Leaper Lizards lazed. On the way, we stopped at a merchant shack, similar to the one where I’d bought the clothes I was still wearing. The merchant had throbbing threads for sale, so we traded nine soulcores for three throbbing threads, saving us from having to collect them ourselves. That left us with about twenty soulcores and a goldcore.
After forty-five minutes of riding, we arrived at a river that winded through lush flatlands. Huge, white boulders dotted the landscape. The place was crawling with these monitor-lizard critters that had horns growing out of their heads. They weren’t aggressive, until you got near them. Then they’d leap into the air, horn forward, right at you. It was easy enough to shoot them with an Ice Blast from a safe distance, then slice and dice their frozen forms with the katana. Or hit them with two ice arrows; the first to lay them limp, and the second to end their lives.
Unfortunately, the normal version of the Leaper Lizard only dropped a single soulcore. After twenty minutes, we’d cleared out all the Leaper Lizards in the area. New ones would take their place, but the respawn rate was glacial. So we moved up the riverbank, killing lizards the while, hoping that the elite Leaper Lizard would spawn before we got too tired.
“Even if it does spawn, what’s the drop rate of the lizzy leather?” I asked.
“I think one in five.”
Ugh. We could be out here for hours. Days. Well, good rewards weren’t easy.
And it seemed we weren’t the only ones seeking out these good rewards. As we moved up the riverbank, we sighted a woman. We kept our distance and watched as she ran around the tall grass, getting the attention of a group of lizards and making them chase her. Once she had about twenty on her tail, she opened her palms and blasted them with a tornado. The tornado pulled them into its tangle, and soon the shadows of dead Leaper Lizards spurted out of it, their soulcores falling into a clump on the ground.
“She’s a curseborn,” Esme said. “Cursed with wind affinity.”
It was so strange how people in this world referred to those with powers as cursed. Sure, the Shadowsoul may have brought these powers – changed the nature of this world – but such elemental abilities were a blessing to my eyes, not a curse.
“Do you know her?” I asked.
“Her name is Ayla. Truth be told, I haven’t seen her in years. Last I heard, she’d left the island and gone to the mainland in search of better opportunities.”
“Well… seems she’s back, and treading on our farming grounds. It’s obvious she’s trying to get the elite Leaper Lizard to spawn, too. Given how low the spawn and drop rate are, this area is hardly big enough for two farming parties.”
Ayla noticed us. As she approached, I spotted long, light green locks under her black, felt-like hat. She wore tight fitting black pants – sort of like yoga pants – and a sleeveless, low-cut top that displayed a generous amount of cleavage.
And I do mean generous. She obviously wasn’t wearing a bra, so her nipples imprinted beautifully, leaving precious little to the imagination.
She put her hands on her lovely, wide hips. I waited for Esme to make the introduction.
“Been a while,” Esme said. “I had no idea you’d come back.”
Ayla smiled warmly. “You look really good, Esme. How do you manage to keep your stomach so flat?”
Ayla wasn’t showing off her midriff, like Esme did. But her clothes were just as tight, and they showed off some incredible curves, especially those hips. I yearned to get a look at her behind.
“Just diet and exercise.” Esme chuckled. “Oh, this is Remy, my soulbond.”
I held out my hand. “Nice to meet you, Ayla.”
She took my hand and shook it firmly. “What kind of degenerate would soulbond with one of us curseborn?”
“I’m not from here, so don’t really care about any of that nonsense.”
“I can tell.” She glanced down. Was she looking at my crotch? Did I have a boner, or something?
I wasn’t brave enough to check. “Uh… are you by any chance hunting the elite Leaper Lizard?”
“I happen to have a client who wants what it drops. But what business is that of yours?”
I glanced at Esme. This was getting awkward, so I hoped she’d use her familiarity with this person to make things go our way.
“Ayla, we’re also after the elite lizard,” Esme said. “We need the shoes to breach the walls of the palace on the hill.”
“That cursed place?” Ayla crossed her arms. “You really that strong now, Esme?”
Esme glanced at me and smiled like a girl does at her first crush. “Remy is special. Because he’s from Earth, he’s able to amplify the power of the soulbond many times. He can smite down monsters in a single hit that would take you or me five.”
Ayla nodded as if impressed. Her green eyes were brighter than the grass around us. She gave me a penetrating look. “When I was on the mainland, I heard of folks who could do that. Guess it wasn’t just a tall tale.”
Esme nodded. “Remy respects us, too. He doesn’t look down at curseborn. And he wants to help make things better for everyone here.”
“Lucky you.” Ayla grinned and punched Esme lightly on the shoulder. “Always knew you’d bag a good one. I mean, just look at you.”
Esme blushed. “You’re nothing short of stunning yourself.”
I was pleased with how well things were going. Maybe Ayla would let us farm what we needed, and then she could come back tomorrow or something. I was about to suggest it, when Ayla said, “Tell you what. I’ll help you guys out. If we get the drop, you can have it.”
“I couldn’t do that to you,” Esme said. “We can’t even pay you.”
“You don’t have to pay me. Consider it a soulbonding gift.”
Ayla seemed like a decent person. Such a relief.
“Your wind spell is incredible,” I said. “We actually don’t have an area of effect ability, yet.”
Ayla put her hands on her wide hips as a gust of leaves blew by. “I’ve been training on the mainland. Unlocked the ability while there.”
“You can unlock abilities by training?” I asked.
“Took years. Wish there was a faster way.”
Well… I knew a faster way…
A group of horned lizards trotted toward us. Ayla palmed the air and blew their shadows out of them.
“The least we can do is let you have the soulcores,” I said.
Esme nodded. “The soulcores and goldcores are all yours.”
Ayla sighed with some trepidation. “Honestly, I’m just happy to have someone to farm with.”
Esme took Ayla’s hand and put it between hers. “Ayla, I know how lonely it can get for us curseborn.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t want to intrude.”
“It’s no intrusion.” Esme glanced at me. “Right, Remy?”
“Of course. Farm with us as long as you like. A friend of Esme’s is a friend of mine. And besides, I don’t think I’ll ever tire of seeing you fling tornadoes at lizards.”
Ayla giggled. She smiled sweetly, her emerald eyes shimmering. “He’s a charmer, too. I’m honestly jealous.”
“I haven’t forgotten, Ayla,” Esme said, her tone suddenly solemn. “Whenever I got too hungry, you used to go out of your way to bring me the kebabs you’d steal from the city vendors. I don’t ever want you to feel like you’re lacking anything. What is mine is yours.”
What did she mean by that last part?
Ayla sunk her gaze away, cheeks red. “What was I supposed to do, let you starve to death? Anyway, let’s get going. We’ve got a lot of lizards to tornado.”
Ayla continued with her incredibly efficient farming method. Meanwhile, Esme and I shot ice arrows at the lizards that she’d miss. The three of us laughed and joked and enjoyed ourselves, with Esme and Ayla reminiscing fondly on the past like the good friends they seemed to be.
Ironically enough, I was the one who felt like a third wheel, since I couldn’t share in their long history. But I was happy to see Esme reunited with someone she trusted.
After an hour, what we’d been toiling for finally appeared. The elite Leaper Lizard was the size of a velociraptor, and its horn was like that of a rhino. It had a slithering tongue, too. As it waded out of the river, it hissed at us.
Esme and I loosed ice arrows at it. Meanwhile, Ayla charged up her blast attack. Wind whirled around her as she put her hands together, then palmed the air. All the wind blew toward the elite Leaper Lizard. It hit the monster’s face. The thing flew backward into the water.
It hissed and let out a high-pitched shriek. When it got back on its feet, it was enraged. It dashed toward us, horn forward.
I jumped in the air and came down upon it with my ice katana. Slashed it across the neck, then impaled its side, as Esme fired ice arrows and Ayla blasted it with wind magic.
Finally, with shadows oozing from every hole, it dropped dead with a low growl.
Esme and I got on our rickshaw and headed toward where the Leaper Lizards lazed. On the way, we stopped at a merchant shack, similar to the one where I’d bought the clothes I was still wearing. The merchant had throbbing threads for sale, so we traded nine soulcores for three throbbing threads, saving us from having to collect them ourselves. That left us with about twenty soulcores and a goldcore.
After forty-five minutes of riding, we arrived at a river that winded through lush flatlands. Huge, white boulders dotted the landscape. The place was crawling with these monitor-lizard critters that had horns growing out of their heads. They weren’t aggressive, until you got near them. Then they’d leap into the air, horn forward, right at you. It was easy enough to shoot them with an Ice Blast from a safe distance, then slice and dice their frozen forms with the katana. Or hit them with two ice arrows; the first to lay them limp, and the second to end their lives.
Unfortunately, the normal version of the Leaper Lizard only dropped a single soulcore. After twenty minutes, we’d cleared out all the Leaper Lizards in the area. New ones would take their place, but the respawn rate was glacial. So we moved up the riverbank, killing lizards the while, hoping that the elite Leaper Lizard would spawn before we got too tired.
“Even if it does spawn, what’s the drop rate of the lizzy leather?” I asked.
“I think one in five.”
Ugh. We could be out here for hours. Days. Well, good rewards weren’t easy.
And it seemed we weren’t the only ones seeking out these good rewards. As we moved up the riverbank, we sighted a woman. We kept our distance and watched as she ran around the tall grass, getting the attention of a group of lizards and making them chase her. Once she had about twenty on her tail, she opened her palms and blasted them with a tornado. The tornado pulled them into its tangle, and soon the shadows of dead Leaper Lizards spurted out of it, their soulcores falling into a clump on the ground.
“She’s a curseborn,” Esme said. “Cursed with wind affinity.”
It was so strange how people in this world referred to those with powers as cursed. Sure, the Shadowsoul may have brought these powers – changed the nature of this world – but such elemental abilities were a blessing to my eyes, not a curse.
“Do you know her?” I asked.
“Her name is Ayla. Truth be told, I haven’t seen her in years. Last I heard, she’d left the island and gone to the mainland in search of better opportunities.”
“Well… seems she’s back, and treading on our farming grounds. It’s obvious she’s trying to get the elite Leaper Lizard to spawn, too. Given how low the spawn and drop rate are, this area is hardly big enough for two farming parties.”
Ayla noticed us. As she approached, I spotted long, light green locks under her black, felt-like hat. She wore tight fitting black pants – sort of like yoga pants – and a sleeveless, low-cut top that displayed a generous amount of cleavage.
And I do mean generous. She obviously wasn’t wearing a bra, so her nipples imprinted beautifully, leaving precious little to the imagination.
She put her hands on her lovely, wide hips. I waited for Esme to make the introduction.
“Been a while,” Esme said. “I had no idea you’d come back.”
Ayla smiled warmly. “You look really good, Esme. How do you manage to keep your stomach so flat?”
Ayla wasn’t showing off her midriff, like Esme did. But her clothes were just as tight, and they showed off some incredible curves, especially those hips. I yearned to get a look at her behind.
“Just diet and exercise.” Esme chuckled. “Oh, this is Remy, my soulbond.”
I held out my hand. “Nice to meet you, Ayla.”
She took my hand and shook it firmly. “What kind of degenerate would soulbond with one of us curseborn?”
“I’m not from here, so don’t really care about any of that nonsense.”
“I can tell.” She glanced down. Was she looking at my crotch? Did I have a boner, or something?
I wasn’t brave enough to check. “Uh… are you by any chance hunting the elite Leaper Lizard?”
“I happen to have a client who wants what it drops. But what business is that of yours?”
I glanced at Esme. This was getting awkward, so I hoped she’d use her familiarity with this person to make things go our way.
“Ayla, we’re also after the elite lizard,” Esme said. “We need the shoes to breach the walls of the palace on the hill.”
“That cursed place?” Ayla crossed her arms. “You really that strong now, Esme?”
Esme glanced at me and smiled like a girl does at her first crush. “Remy is special. Because he’s from Earth, he’s able to amplify the power of the soulbond many times. He can smite down monsters in a single hit that would take you or me five.”
Ayla nodded as if impressed. Her green eyes were brighter than the grass around us. She gave me a penetrating look. “When I was on the mainland, I heard of folks who could do that. Guess it wasn’t just a tall tale.”
Esme nodded. “Remy respects us, too. He doesn’t look down at curseborn. And he wants to help make things better for everyone here.”
“Lucky you.” Ayla grinned and punched Esme lightly on the shoulder. “Always knew you’d bag a good one. I mean, just look at you.”
Esme blushed. “You’re nothing short of stunning yourself.”
I was pleased with how well things were going. Maybe Ayla would let us farm what we needed, and then she could come back tomorrow or something. I was about to suggest it, when Ayla said, “Tell you what. I’ll help you guys out. If we get the drop, you can have it.”
“I couldn’t do that to you,” Esme said. “We can’t even pay you.”
“You don’t have to pay me. Consider it a soulbonding gift.”
Ayla seemed like a decent person. Such a relief.
“Your wind spell is incredible,” I said. “We actually don’t have an area of effect ability, yet.”
Ayla put her hands on her wide hips as a gust of leaves blew by. “I’ve been training on the mainland. Unlocked the ability while there.”
“You can unlock abilities by training?” I asked.
“Took years. Wish there was a faster way.”
Well… I knew a faster way…
A group of horned lizards trotted toward us. Ayla palmed the air and blew their shadows out of them.
“The least we can do is let you have the soulcores,” I said.
Esme nodded. “The soulcores and goldcores are all yours.”
Ayla sighed with some trepidation. “Honestly, I’m just happy to have someone to farm with.”
Esme took Ayla’s hand and put it between hers. “Ayla, I know how lonely it can get for us curseborn.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t want to intrude.”
“It’s no intrusion.” Esme glanced at me. “Right, Remy?”
“Of course. Farm with us as long as you like. A friend of Esme’s is a friend of mine. And besides, I don’t think I’ll ever tire of seeing you fling tornadoes at lizards.”
Ayla giggled. She smiled sweetly, her emerald eyes shimmering. “He’s a charmer, too. I’m honestly jealous.”
“I haven’t forgotten, Ayla,” Esme said, her tone suddenly solemn. “Whenever I got too hungry, you used to go out of your way to bring me the kebabs you’d steal from the city vendors. I don’t ever want you to feel like you’re lacking anything. What is mine is yours.”
What did she mean by that last part?
Ayla sunk her gaze away, cheeks red. “What was I supposed to do, let you starve to death? Anyway, let’s get going. We’ve got a lot of lizards to tornado.”
Ayla continued with her incredibly efficient farming method. Meanwhile, Esme and I shot ice arrows at the lizards that she’d miss. The three of us laughed and joked and enjoyed ourselves, with Esme and Ayla reminiscing fondly on the past like the good friends they seemed to be.
Ironically enough, I was the one who felt like a third wheel, since I couldn’t share in their long history. But I was happy to see Esme reunited with someone she trusted.
After an hour, what we’d been toiling for finally appeared. The elite Leaper Lizard was the size of a velociraptor, and its horn was like that of a rhino. It had a slithering tongue, too. As it waded out of the river, it hissed at us.
Esme and I loosed ice arrows at it. Meanwhile, Ayla charged up her blast attack. Wind whirled around her as she put her hands together, then palmed the air. All the wind blew toward the elite Leaper Lizard. It hit the monster’s face. The thing flew backward into the water.
It hissed and let out a high-pitched shriek. When it got back on its feet, it was enraged. It dashed toward us, horn forward.
I jumped in the air and came down upon it with my ice katana. Slashed it across the neck, then impaled its side, as Esme fired ice arrows and Ayla blasted it with wind magic.
Finally, with shadows oozing from every hole, it dropped dead with a low growl.
