CHRONICLES of a PC Gamer Stuck Inside an RPG (Book One: Duelist)

Chapter 87 - The Elder's Challenge

Kalistra knelt down next to me and started examining my injuries.

I quickly pointed out the bite marks on my ankle and arm. I also had a slight bruise on my chest when two wolves jumped on me and knocked to the ground; however, I didn't bother to mention it because I didn't want to come across as a crybaby to the cat girl. Additionally, my chest armor had cushioned the blow significantly and therefore, it wasn't something that I needed treatment for. All in all, I wasn't too badly injured given the fact that I had faced three wolves attacking in unison. In fact, I was proud of the way that I stood firm and fought back against the wolves and even managed to kill one of them. Frankly, I was hoping that Kalistra would say something in this regard and perhaps, even offer a word of praise for my feat. However, I was left disappointed when my master kept silent.

Instead, Kalistra's focus was entirely on dealing with my injuries. She took a bottle out of her side pouch, opened the cap, and poured the liquid content into her right paw. I winced as my master started cleaning my wounds by rubbing the foul smelling ointment on me. When she was finished with that task, she wrapped bandages to cover my open wounds.

I took a sniff of my arm. The smell was a weird blend of citrus, honey, and . . . rotting meat. "What's in the ointment?" I asked.

"It's a secret recipe kept by the masters of the dojo," the cat girl replied mysteriously.

Huh. My eyebrows rose at her unexpected response. "I could have used Gaea's gift to cure my wounds," I remarked casually. I didn't want to offend my fickle master by suggesting that her treatment of my injuries were unnecessary. However, I also didn't want to appear helpless in her eye, either.

Kalistra folded her arms and stared harshly into my eyes. "Are you stupid? Do you have a death wish?" She started berating me. "There are monsters, as well as deities, that are drawn to the use of divine energy. If you cast your minor healing spell and there happens to be drows nearby, they will be alerted to your presence and try to locate you," she explained. "It is much safer to use my dojo's special ointment to treat your bite wounds."

"Okay," I conceded her point. I didn't realize that the use of divine abilities would be unsafe. If my use of the veil spell had inadvertently attracted this wolf pack, then I really need to avoid using my divine abilities unless it was absolutely necessary. I decided to bring some levity to the moment. "So, am I going to turn into a werewolf?" I asked her with a straight face.

Hiss! "You really are stupid, Lawrence," she huffed. Kalistra turned toward the carcass of the wolf that I had killed. "If you had killed a werewolf, the body would have turned back to human form," she explained. "And that hasn't happened," she pointed out. My master rose to her feet and, after a moment of hesitation, grabbed my arm and pulled me up, too. "We need to head to the next village for the night," she said.

"I thought we were going to camp out instead?" I asked her. For once, I didn't mind the sudden change in plan. After all, camping out in the woods wasn't exactly my idea of a good time. Back on Earth, I never went camping because I had this fear of waking up to a hungry bear going through my tent.

Kalistra shook her head. "Not when you stink like that. Originally, I was planning to have us climb trees and spend the night high above the ground in order to hide from the animals that hunt after dark, such as wolves. But your smell will give us away. The best thing to do now is to reach Burnhamm village and spend the night there instead," she said.

The cat girl walked over to examine the carcass of the wolf that I had killed. She turned the body over and saw the large cut across its belly. She also took note of the way the dead wolf's snout was broken and bent inward, suggesting that cartilage from the nose had become loose and then pierced the brain of the wolf.