The ogre collapsed, and dust went everywhere.
Ugh.
I hate dust.
My arm was still sticking out, shaking like crazy.
What can I say?
That last shot took everything I had.
My mana bar was a flat, blinking red line.
Empty.
Burton was standing in the busted doorway, axe at the ready.
His face was all stone-cold tough guy, but his eyes were wide.
It wasn’t fear.
It was the pure, unfiltered shock of a guy who just walked in to find the boss already dead.
His warriors were crowded behind him, looking like they’d just stumbled into the wrong raid instance.
They were all geared up and ready to fight, but the fight was already over.
Of course.
The cavalry shows up right after I solo the boss.
Just in ti to see the loot drop.
Typical.
Yael groaned and pushed herself off the wall.
She had a nasty bruise on her forehead, and her leaf bikini was looking even more shredded than before.
She looked at the dead ogre, then at , then at Gandalf’s welco party.
Her face was a perfect mix of "thank god" and "I’m going to kill you."
"Took you long enough," she grumbled.
No one answered.
They were all just staring.
Staring at the giant dead monster.
Staring at the sizzling, fist-sized hole I’d punched through its back.
And staring at .
The guy in the stupid leaf harness, covered in dust and shaking from exhaustion.
Then, just as it was getting really awkward, I heard the most beautiful sound in the world.
Ding!
Oh my god, not just one ding.
It was a whole waterfall of dings, like I’d just hit the jackpot on a heavenly slot machine.
A flood of golden notifications popped up in my face, and just like that, I wasn’t tired anymore.
Three levels.
In one kill.
Holy crap.
Hah!
A warm wave washed over , refilling my mana bar and making the aches disappear.
The shaking stopped.
My breath hitched.
This wasn’t just a level up.
This was sothing... new.
A new screen popped up.
My eyes shot to Yael.
Of course.
Who else?
I just stared.
So... the System just took my weird, dysfunctional friendship with Yael and turned it into a buff?
Seriously?
That’s ssed up.
But... a 25% EXP bonus?
Okay, maybe it’s not that ssed up.
The ga was literally hard-wiring to need her.
The universe has a sick sense of humor.
"What happened here?"
Gandalf’s voice was like gravel.
He stepped into the room, his eyes scanning the dead ogre, the wrecked furniture, and Lyra still hiding behind the sofa.
I t his gaze.
The old would’ve been scared.
The new , a Level 5 mage who was probably way better looking than him, just felt smug.
"We had an uninvited guest," I said, my voice all cool and steady.
"We dealt with it."
His eyes narrowed.
"’We’?"
His gaze flicked to Yael and back to .
"Looks like you did more than just ’deal with it’."
He pointed at the hole in the ogre.
"That’s not a sword wound."
"It’s not," I said, letting a little smirk show.
"That was a Mana Bolt."
The warriors behind him started whispering.
"Mage."
Gandalf’s face didn’t change, but I saw him recalculating.
The pretty boy was suddenly a problem he couldn’t just punch.
"You’re a mage," he stated.
Duh.
"I’m a lot of things," I shot back.
Before he could reply, Lyra finally stood up.
Her face was pale and tear-streaked.
The googly-eyed adoration was gone.
Now she was looking at with a mix of raw fear and... awe.
She’d scread for Gandalf, but I was the one who showed up.
"He... he saved us," she whispered.
"The monster... it was going to kill us all."
Her eyes were locked on .
"He just... pointed his hand, and it..."
Gandalf just grunted.
He didn’t care about her.
His focus was all on .
"The village is in chaos. The eastern barricade is down. We have Juggernauts inside the periter."
He looked up and down, like he was inspecting a new weapon.
"You’re no longer a guest. You’re a combat asset. We’re moving out."
He turned to leave, like he expected to just follow him like a dog.
As if.
"I don’t take orders from you," I said, my voice ice cold.
He stopped.
He turned back slow, a dangerous look in his eyes.
"What did you say?"
Yael tensed up next to .
"I said," I repeated, stepping forward, "that my sworn protector is injured."
I pointed at Yael’s bruised head.
"And my priority is her safety. We’ll fight," I said, my voice ringing with an authority that even surprised .
"But we’ll do it on our terms."
It was a total bluff.
A huge, stupid bluff.
We were in his village, surrounded by his soldiers.
He could kill us.
But I was betting on one thing: he needed a mage more than he needed to be a jerk.
He stared at for a long, long ti.
I could practically see the gears grinding in his head.
Finally, he snarled.
"Fine. See to your... protector. Then report to the great hall. We’re setting up a command post."
With that, he marched out, his warriors trailing behind him, all of them giving stunned looks over their shoulders.
The danger was over.
We’d won.
And we’d just changed the whole ga.
The story of what happened spread like a virus.
As we walked through the crazy streets, people were whispering.
The girls who’d been looking at with heart-eyes now looked at with a mix of "he’s so hot" and "he might kill ."
The guys who had seen as a rival now just looked scared.
Good.
We weren’t just pretty faces anymore.
When we got to the great hall, a bunch of guards were standing at the entrance.
One of them, a lieutenant, stepped forward.
He didn’t even look at Gandalf.
He looked right at .
"Commander Quinn?" he asked, his voice all respectful.
I blinked.
Commander?
?
I glanced at Yael.
She just shrugged.
"I am Quinn," I said, trying to sound like I knew what was going on.
The lieutenant bowed a little.
"A royal dispatch has arrived from the capital."
He held out a fancy-looking scroll.
"It bears the King’s own seal."
My heart started hamring.
The King?
"By order of His Majesty, King Theron," the lieutenant announced, his voice carrying over the noise, "the two strangers who single-handedly defeated an Ogre Juggernaut are hereby summoned to the royal court."
He looked straight in the eye.
"The King wishes to see you at once."
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