Return to Jorgaldur Volume III: blood warrior

In group: first floor's boss

Attacking first and hurting it had caused the floor's boss to focus its attention on the vampiress. However, the damage that was accumulating from other sources was higher, and the one behind the cockroach was the closest.

Krongo jumped to the side, by propelling with his tail against the body of the boss. It had consecutively executed Rotate and Ram to face and pounce at its enemy. However, the warrior wasn't only agile, but this wasn't the first time he had fought against it.

"I want a tail too," Gjaki wished after witnessing how useful it could be.

She didn't let that fleeting desire blind her. Up until now, the archer and mage attacks had caused as a side effect that she couldn't get close to the front of the cockroach, but now it was turning its back on them.

It wasn't that the front was much more vulnerable, but she wanted to test something she had discussed with the group of ezihuq.

"Impossible, that can't work," Kroquia had denied then.

"I've never heard anything like it," Kruloz had doubted.

"Isn't that a bit reckless?" Kroco had worried.

"They're flexible, but I don't know if that much," Krinia had half-accepted.

"I love the idea!" Krongo had enthused.

She waited for the warrior to step back and lure the insect over one of the crosses. Then, several Tentacles appeared, which wrapped around the insect, attacked and corroded it. Perhaps, they weren't very effective on the armor, but on the legs and the area where they are born. Furthermore, it was momentarily trapped.

Krongo took the opportunity to attack the legs from the side, and managed to sever two of them. Kroquia used Shield Bash from behind, adding some damage. Krinia and Kruloz continued their attacks, now more intense.

At that time, there were dozens of arrows stuck on the boss, and the impact of multiple Lightning Bolts was evident. Although the most peculiar thing was happening on its torso.

Gjaki had advanced over its enemy to get to its antennae. They were important for sensing its surroundings, as well as being able to cast a couple of dangerous spells. Therefore, in the past, some adventurers had tried to cut them, but they had regenerated in a few seconds.

So, instead of cutting them, the vampiress opted for an option that seemed completely absurd, and that couldn't be done in the game.

"It'd be nice to tie the antennae together," Goldmi had suggested in the past.

However, that idea that was impossible in the game could now be attempted. In a normal situation, the cockroach would have put up a strong resistance, by trying to move them, but now it was too busy trying to free itself. Besides, it was also being hit over and over again.

They were tremendously flexible, so Gjaki had little trouble tying a first knot. Then a second. A third. A fourth. A fifth. She returned to the stuck spear just as the boss seemed about to break free, after a couple of Rotate and Ram attempts.

It was soon released, although its condition wasn't enviable. It had trouble keeping its balance, as its legs didn't regenerate as quickly as its antennae. Furthermore, its injuries had drained a third of its health.

However, none of this was as decisive as its behavior. It gave the impression of being drunk, which was due to the interference in its senses. With its antennae tied and bent, its perception of its surroundings was chaotic. It even tripped over himself.

In the end, it was totally exposed, belly up, an easy prey for the party. No doubt few if any had eliminated it so quickly.

"Who would've thought that tying the antennae would be so effective! Ha, ha, ha. Great, Kigja," Krongo praised.

"Who would've imagined it..." Kruloz had been stunned, and he hadn't been the only one.

The inhabitants of the next floor were worms that shot out a kind of sticky thread, which they could set on fire. Kroquia could block much of that thread, though she still suffered a few burns. Luckily, his brother was there to heal her.

The vampiress stayed back against the first, watching it. It wasn't too different from the game, so against the next two, she fell in behind them. When they started attacking Kroquia, she attacked from behind.

Its threads attacks were too telegraphed to be effective up close, and the silkworms weren't much of a melee foe. The most dangerous thing was the liquid that came out of them when they were cut, as it was highly flammable, though useless against her. When it started to sprout, she was already cutting elsewhere.

The one who had the worst time was Krongo, as he had no chance to attack. This made the reptilians surprised, for it was the first time they had seen Gjaki laugh. She had found the bored boy's face on the reptilian quite funny.

"Next time I'll take you with me," she promised, between laughs.

So she did, by adding him to Darkness. There were three worms, and the vampiress and the warrior dealt with one each. The third concentrated ranged fire from mage and archer, while Kroquia ended up getting to it, and knocked it out with the shield.

They weren't in a hurry, so they spent a couple of days killing those level 36 worms, at Gjaki's request. They didn't quite understand how, but they could feel that she was growing stronger with unusual speed.

Seeing that it was causing some suspicion, the vampiress finally decided to confess fully. They knew she was a vampire, and they were complicit in the prince's murder, so there was no point in hiding it anymore.

"My real name is Gjaki. I'm what you call a visitor," she told them in the rest area, once another group of adventurers had left.

The reptilians stared at her for a while, amazed and overwhelmed. They had all heard about the visitors, and had even seen a blurred one long ago. They had also heard that some would return, but there was no news of them so far. At least none had reached their ears. Until now.

Although the surprises didn't end there. The little Gjakis were something they had never seen. Her tent-castle was inconceivable. Her inventory was out of common sense. The weapons she offered them were on par with theirs, or even better in some cases. Needless to say, they had access to good quality weapons, and Gjaki's were the most basics in the game.

That partly cleared up her speed when leveling up. Although, without a doubt, the most important thing was that she had trusted them, which strengthened their bond and dispelled their doubts. A few cupcakes finished smoothing things over.