(Second Book Complete!) Runeblade: A Delving & Skill Merging LitRPG

Kaius trudged along open fields, the rolling hills and scattered trees of the frontier spreading out before him. It had been over an hour since they’d left the burning pyre that contained the remains of Old Yon and his hirelings behind. Now he walked with his team, joined in their formation by Rieker, Ro and the Gold out of Grandbrook, Arc’theros.

None of them had been particularly talkative after their counter-ambush of the Onyx-aligned Silvers.

Kaius was exhausted, and he knew that his bonded companion felt the same. For all Porkchop’s great abyss of endurance, and his physique that was larger than even a dire beast’s, the fatigue they both felt went beyond the physical.

It was the drain of staying alert, on edge, for months at a time. Not only had they been certain — and correct — that they were being tracked, but even their safest camps inside of the Depths had required vigilance.

Judging by the heaviness of their brows and the dulling of their otherwise bright eyes, Ianmus and Kenva felt the same.

Kaius hadn’t expected it to set in so suddenly, but it had. A heavy yoke on his shoulders that seemed to snap into existence the second Rieker and Ro had arrived. He supposed that now, safe in the presence of three Golds, he finally allowed himself to feel the exhaustion that had built up during their long delve.

Ahead of him, Ro stalked at the head of their pack, with Kenva trudging in her shadow. As a pair, they both kept watch on their surroundings, acting as their scouts. Though, Kaius was half sure Kenva was only using it as an excuse to chat with her fellow Hiwiann.

Every few minutes Ro would glance back, her eyes settling on him for just a moment before she returned to scanning. The curiosity that blazed within the guild administrator was blatant. She hungered to know more about what he and his team had endured in the months they’d been gone.

Given that Ro was clearly familiar with Kenva’s mother, and had been utterly taken aback by her presence, Kaius found it almost shocking that the only words he picked up from the two women was idle conversations about their surroundings.

Ro was holding herself back. Hells, all of the Golds seemed to be. Not one of them seemed surprised by the fatigued silence that had fallen over him and his team. Rieker had even gone so far as to remind them aloud that some simple quiet would be good to give them a bit of time to put their heads back together before they told their tale.

Kaius supposed that anyone who pushed hard enough to reach Gold had their fair share of long campaigns, extended delves, and the sudden violence that could come at the hands of fellow men. Regardless, he appreciated the chance to just breathe and relax while he enjoyed the blessedly real sun that shone down from above him.

Besides, being patient now meant he wouldn’t have to repeat his story. To recount everything they’d endured once for Ro, only to repeat himself again when they ran into Bronwyn and his team, would have been tiresome.

Despite his tiredness, Kaius felt a glimmer of a smile tug at the corners of his lips.

“What’s got you in a good mood?” Porkchop asked, subtly bumping him with his shoulder.

“Oh, it’s nothing,” Kaius replied silently through their bond. “I’m just excited we’ll finally get to meet Bronwyn and his team.”

“I know how you feel,” Porkchop replied. “You’d think with how often his name was bandied about Deadacre’s common room, we’d have run into him by now — or at least learned the names of his teammates.”

Kaius’s smile widened — the curse of being a team leader, you caught ninety percent of the flak. “It is what it is. We can’t exactly blame the man for being busy, especially considering how chaotic the last year has been. Still, it’ll be nice to meet a more normal Silver — at least one that isn’t gunning for our throats.”

“I’d have thought you’d already have a pretty good idea of how much stronger we are than the average, considering the fight we just had.”

Kaius shook his head. “It’s not that, or at least not just that. I’m also interested in what the phase change has meant for them. If, in the year they’ve been out in the field, their levels have grown significantly — or if their level differential was already high enough that they didn’t grow all that much. I’m curious — who knows what sort of beasties have been hiding out in the wilds.”

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Inwardly, he sincerely hoped it had been good for the silver team. It was one thing for integration to bring a new generation of powerhouses to the forefront, but if the world wanted to thrive, those already established would need to take advantage of the changes too.

“I’m sure it has been,” Porkchop replied, bumping him lightly again.

As they fell back into silence, Kaius’s thoughts drifted to their final conversation with Old Yon. He wasn’t sure how he felt about the criminals final moments. He didn’t feel guilty — not about killing the Old Yon or his men. Not after the wizened Silver had tried to kill him so thoroughly, on multiple occasions. Especially not when Yon was the kind of man to kidnap those with promise, powerless against him, then torture their secrets out.

No, what kept him distracted was what they had learned from the crime lord.

Kaius finally had a name to put to that scarred face — Morton, the tracker. The man who had chased him off a cliff; who had caused his father’s death. Even just thinking of that visage was enough to set his stomach burning.

And that wasn’t all — they’d also learned more about the nature of the beast Morton had aligned himself with: the Onyx Temple, and their Fangs.

Yet for all that besting Old Yon and uncovering new leads was vindicating, it was just as frustrating. There was no concrete location, no fort to siege, no public face to rally against. Just a name and a man to track down.

At the very least, it would hopefully prove fruitful with a little time and labour. With the help of the Guild, and access to the archives in the dukedom city of Banswell, they would, he hoped, find at least a thread to follow.

But that would take time, he was sure of it. For all he knew, the wise path was one where he grew his strength and gathered the information he needed. Still, he felt impatient.

“Worrying will get you nowhere,” Porkchop said. “We both know that if you rushed off now, without wrapping up our business in Deadacre, you’d fret about that just as much too.”

Kaius groaned, but he knew Porkchop was right. The brief words Rieker and Ro had shared had been tantalising. Imperial ruins beneath Deadacre? A conspicuous absence of beasts that aligned perfectly with the horde that had struck the prison they’d been held in?

Those were big mysteries, and big adventures. Ones that needed strong and capable hands to manage. Considering Rieker and Ro were needed in the city, and the only other Silver team in the region was Bronwyn’s, it stood to reason the Guild would want help with one of the issues. Likely the ruins beneath the city.

As pertinent as it would be to have them mapped and explored to ensure there was no danger, the ruins were currently stable — likely had been for thousands of years.

From what little he knew, Bronwyn’s team was simply better suited for traversing the frontier and chasing beasts — it had been their bread and butter for years.

While Kaius wasn’t egotistical enough to call himself an expert in all things runic, he was trained in them, and he knew the generalities of how they functioned like the back of his hand. An Imperial ruin was an edifice built atop a crumbling foundation of immense volumes of runework — a dangerous proposition for most. Between him and Ianmus, though, they’d be able to spot anything dangerous before it blew up in their faces.

Hopefully, at least.

Still, that was something best left for Rieker and Ro to explain for themselves. Hopefully after spending a week sleeping in, drinking beer, and eating good food.

Doing his best to quiet his mind, Kaius tuned back into his surroundings, hearing the soft crunch as he walked through the long grass of the plains.

He noticed that he and Porkchop weren’t the only ones falling into quiet conversation. Though theirs was silent thanks to their bond, he heard Ro and Kenva speaking in hushed whispers at the front of their formation.

“It’s nice to finally see you in person,” Ro said. “Last time I met your mother, you would have been a wee thing. Maybe six or seven. I didn’t get to meet you, but your mother was damn near tearing her hair out at how much energy you had. It was damn near half of what she talked about on that hunt.”

Kaius caught the flush across Kenva’s pale purple skin, darkening to almost midnight violet.

“What were you doing in the East of the Steppe?” Kenva asked.

“Rieker and my team at the time had just finished a contract against a silver beast that had wandered down onto the plains from the far eastern edge of the Drozag’s. It hadn’t had any recorded attacks, but there was a noble estate that was a bit too close to its range for the owner’s liking. After out victory, we had about two months until the autumn equinox, so I figured I’d take Rieker to see my clan home again, and enjoy a traditional pilgrimage. I announced myself, as is proper, as I passed through the Zhdan lands.”

Kenva nodded, as if what Ro aid made perfect sense.

Kaius thought it was strange to watch the two of them together. He knew what they referred to by the equinox, at least — the ritualistic festivals that the Hiwiann threw on each solstice and equinox were legendary — but there was a wealth of cultural understanding he lacked.

In hushed tones — not so much hidden as polite — the pair’s conversation shifted. Ro asked in earnest about Kenva’s path, and Kenva excitedly explained hitching a ride with her uncle to reach the Frontier.

They cut themselves off the same moment Kaius spotted the faintest plume of dust on the horizon, slowly growing larger.

There was only one thing it could be. Bronwyn and his team.

“I’ll run ahead, give them some warning. Best to let them collect themselves — they’ll be battle-ready,” Ro said, giving them all a smile.

She burst into motion, tearing towards the approaching silver team.

Kaius was happy to just wait for them to arrive.