Group Training, Hidden Piece Discovered!

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Liza stepped out of the goblin den and nearly jumped out of her skin.

"No way. We already finished having sex — why is it still tingling?"

It was as if her pussy were trying to remember the exact shape of the cock that had been buried inside it. A sharp jolt ran through her lower body, and she even started getting wet again. In thirty-five years of life, nothing like this had ever happened to her.

First time in thirty-five years. That kid… he's the best fuckbuddy I've ever had, isn't he?

A satisfied smile spread across her face — and then another thought crept in, slow and sticky.

But maybe he's too good to leave as just a fuckbuddy? At this level… I want him at my side entirely.

She licked her lips, then shook her head. Right now she was Liza the merchant captain. A businesswoman had to stay cold and clear-headed. That was the iron rule she had set for herself.

Think about it once I get back to the fief.

She set off down the road. And as she walked, a thought she couldn't quite bring herself to say out loud took shape.

I should find out if there's a tattooist around. I'd have to get it inked right on my womb, wouldn't I? Lashu, I'm yours…♥

The corners of her eyes curved, and Liza began to smile a dark, wet little smile.

Two days later.

The guard captain had gathered the hero candidates and was running through the briefing. Today was group training, and he looked wound up enough that he'd put himself through the drill first.

"Today we head to Pelegor Hill for group training. Your targets are the carnivorous squirrels and the carnivorous chipmunks! Don't look down on them just because they're easy. Move in teams of five and make it to the destination! Or put up an overwhelming score!"

Hell yeah. We were finally doing it — group training.

In the game, this stretch had been the prologue. The event that taught the player how to fight, then handed out a few modest rewards and a hidden piece for the trouble.

"Ah — and if any of you wander off somewhere else, I will not forgive it! Criminal activity in our fief has been on the rise lately, so be extra careful. That is all!"

The captain left first, leaving only a handful of guards to escort us as far as the road.

So we actually had to do this, then.

Group projects are not my thing. Anybody here who actually knows what they're doing?

People are the same everywhere. The moment you put them in a group, it turns into a school project. I sure as hell didn't want to get stuck carrying the whole thing. Hogging the rewards? Fine. Hogging the work? Not a chance.

I looked around — and spotted Jaira. For some reason she was already on the same team as Abeiru. I headed over to say hello.

"Jaira-nuna, good mor—"

I didn't even get the greeting out. Jaira turned her head away completely, like she was pretending I didn't exist. Huh? What?

Didn't she used to be interested in me? Was I imagining that?

That was a first. Abeiru sneered.

"What? Nobody wanted to team up with you? Loner-ass bitch."

I ignored him and asked Jaira instead.

"Are you staying with this team?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Then I'll join too."

"Abeiru's the leader. Talk to him."

"As far as I'm concerned, the leader is you, Jaira-nuna. When there's a lion standing right here, how could I treat a stray alley cat like the leader?"

Jaira covered her mouth with her hand and laughed. That was a laugh, right? Heh. Glad it landed.

Abeiru lost it.

"This fuckin' washout don't know his place-no. Time to gank him-no."

"Hey. Didn't I tell you to fix that way of talking? Goldfish brain? Is your skull filled with jizz instead of brains?"

I stared him down without blinking. Abeiru flinched, then coughed into his fist. He looked away as he spoke. What a loser.

"Ahem. Well. I suppose I can take you in, as your big bro."

"Suit yourself."

I slotted in like it was the most natural thing in the world. Jaira was the only one I actually cared about. I wanted to see how she fought. Watching someone else fight with your own two eyes? That's a rare treat.

Two more people joined us — a mage and a healer. Our team set out, and I spoke up first, the way you do when you're trying to get everyone on the same page.

"Let's give it everything we've got."

"Lashu."

Jaira called my name.

"Yeah?"

"I think you've got the wrong idea. Even if we're on the same team, we're still rivals. I'm not losing to you."

Competitive already. That was a little unexpected.

Weird. She always did like a contest, but is she usually this cold?

"Sure, nuna. Whatever you say."

"Hmph."

And just like that, we arrived at Pelegor Hill. To get over the hill and reach the destination, we'd have to cross several ridges and then hit the hill path itself.

Abeiru scratched between his brows as he studied the map.

"Hmm. We'll follow that ridge over there. Once we hit the destination the captain'll be waiting, so get ready to salute."

We started walking again. Monsters showed up more than once along the way — not just carnivorous squirrels and chipmunks, but goblins and gnolls, and even things like Sonic Wolves and Forest Spiders.

Variables like that were something any hero candidate expected. We handled them without breaking stride.

"Kieeek! Humans! Kill!"

"Revenge!"

The goblins in particular came at us like they had something to prove. These little bastards had fallen apart after their boss died, and now they were charging in with their eyes rolled back.

Fine. Then I'll kill them.

I grinned and drew my sword. The instant I started to leap forward—

Thud-thud-thud. Crunch!

Jaira got there first and started butchering goblins. Light flashed, and the goblins were already dead.

"Gnolls on the flank!"

Abeiru shouted. All right then — maybe I'd go crack a few empty skulls?

Thud-thud-thud. Slash!

Jaira beat me to it again. She was starting to get on my nerves.

No — a question was spreading through me.

What the hell. It's like she's blocking me from doing anything.

Jaira, I don't care how competitive you are — this isn't it. We're supposed to be fighting together. This was basically her hogging the whole fight.

Abeiru, of all people, was cheering her on way too hard.

"Wooo! Lady Jaira! She's the GOAT-ong!"

Nobody paid him any attention, of course. I kept trying to cut monsters down. Jaira kept cutting me off.

It was almost funny. She was checking me and carving through monsters at the same time.

Why are you stopping me from doing anything, huh. We're not enemies, Jaira. What, you just can't stand to admit I'm good?

Maybe she figured it was a bloodline thing. Whatever she was thinking, I was going to have to change that impression.

The fighting finally ended. Abeiru shook the blood off his sword.

"Hah. Not that I'm struggling or anything, but the goblins are coming at us pretty hard, aren't they? Is it just me?"

"No, you're right."

"The whole pack looked high or something."

Everyone agreed. I, of course, knew exactly why.

Not because ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of me. Definitely not because of me.

The goblins would keep this up for a while. Then they'd scatter, or finish dying off.

We followed the ridge onto a path that ran along the edge of the forest. A steep hillside dropped away to the left; to the right, nothing but trees.

Maybe it was having the woods so close. The thought of an ambush was unsettling, sure — but every time the wind moved, it felt amazing. I wouldn't have minded bringing some women out here one of these days for a naked forest bath.

Phytoncide. I can't resist!

A bunch of bastards showed up to ruin my peaceful thoughts.

Gnolls poured in from every direction.

"Kihihi. Human meat, rolling right in on their own."

"Pay the toll — with your lives!"

"And the females — we cut off their limbs and fuck ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠'em! Especially that one. I wanna shove my cock in her mouth!"

They charged. We hit back. There were a filthy number of them.

This time Abeiru rushed out first.

"I'll show you my class-no!"

He gripped his longsword and threw himself in. He fought at the very front — then gradually got pushed back, and ended up cut off.

A tactic worthy of an idiot.

"Save me, fuckkkk!"

I ignored Abeiru making a fool of himself and looked at Jaira instead.

She was fighting harder than anyone, and she kept glancing sideways at me the whole time.

Checking me and fighting at the same time has to be exhausting. She really does make life hard for herself. Pride like that… I don't even know.

I understood it, though. She was the lord's daughter. She might not inherit the seat, but she still wanted the Lord Deputy to recognize her.

If you ranked the hero candidates, I was honestly ahead of Jaira.

I sighed and slipped out to the flank, cutting down every gnoll I could see.

"Short human, you're mine!"

"Get lost. I've got no interest in males."

Slash!

I scored the kill, then added, just to be clear:

"Oh, and I won't be playing around with any lady gnolls either. Remember that."

I pushed straight ahead, carving through more of them, gradually working my way back to where I'd started so that people would have to look at me. Having the mage and the healer supporting from the rear made it even better. They were backing us up and talking at the same time.

"Lady Jaira really is incredible!"

"But Lashu's no joke either? Was he always like that? That's actually flashy as hell."

We'd been fighting for a while when I suddenly felt a killing intent I'd never felt before. For a second I thought some ice-wielding monster had shown up.

"Huh? Look over there!"

Someone shouted. An old orc with an eyepatch over one eye had appeared.

He used the chaos of the melee to ambush Abeiru, slashing him across the side with a straight sword in a single stroke.

"Ghhhaaak!"

The orc had a body packed with muscle, and he moved like the wind in a way that body had no right to, charging straight at Jaira. She snapped her sword up to guard, but it wasn't enough.

No you don't — I still have to fuck her later! You son of a bitch orc!

Jaira had worn herself out fighting too hard, too fast. The orc was pressing her with real, ugly pressure. The distance between them opened, and the moment her stance broke—

"Die."

The orc raised his straight sword. I threw myself into the gap.

CLANG!

I just barely caught the orc's attack. But his specs were too high — I blocked it and went tumbling down the steep hillside.

"Wh— wait! Uwah!"

"No — Lashu! Tch!"

The last thing I saw was Jaira locking blades with the orc. Then I was falling, with nothing I could do about it.

"Aaaaaagh!"

Crack. Snap-snap-snap. Crunch!

I kept falling, slamming through branches the whole way down. Scratched, scraped, cut. If there was a hall of fame for getting fucked over, this would've taken the trophy. Then something caught me.

THUD!

"Ghk!"

A thick branch had snagged me, and that was the only reason I was still alive. I got my head together and climbed down.

It was an unfamiliar place, thick with undergrowth.

"I'm fine, Goddess. Thanks for not stepping in. Just sit back and masturbate while you watch me get stronger."

What a filthy goddess. So she was doing it.

Anyway — where the hell even was this?

I need to get back, fast. Otherwise I'm disqualified!

Abeiru, that piece of trash, wasn't going to wait for me. I'd have to get through this on my own somehow.

First things first: get out of here. I was trying to find a path when I came ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠across a ruined house. The place was falling apart, but I went in to rest — and sitting right in the middle of the floor was an anvil. An anvil glowing a strange, deep red.

Wait. This is a Hidden Piece. The Anvil of Evolution — it only works once, but it raises an item's rarity by chance!

Holy shit. So this is where I run into it. This thing was supposed to show up near the capital.

I checked my gear on the spot. What was I going to put on that thing?

Dawn's base rarity is already too high — the odds of it actually upgrading would tank. So it's either the boots or the talisman.

I thought it over, then set the talisman down.

I want more damage when I use skills.

The moment I placed the Goblin Shaman Talisman on it, the anvil flared, and the talisman's shape began to shift, little by little.

A moment later the anvil lost its light and crumbled to dust. I picked up the talisman.

It looked more finely worked in metal now. And it wasn't just the look that had changed.

Ohhh. The rarity went up and the specs went up! At this rate I might even be able to go toe-to-toe with that orc!

Hell yeah! Enhancement success! Heh… heh-hoooo!

I promised the anvil — and whatever other Hidden Pieces were still out there — that I'd be back, and I set off with a spring in my step.

A particularly seedy corner of Gailwards Fief.

What had once been a tavern now stood in ruins, used as a meeting place for secret dealings. A slick-looking man brought a massive Black man in with him and spoke.

"Our time is coming."

"We've nearly finished locking down the underworld as well."

"This time I'll fuck the lord's wife, Renata, make her mine, and become the new lord! Hahaha!"

Another hunger was taking root.