"Thank you. I'm ready. We have one attempt. Now you have to seriously invite me to learn this skill," said Jane.

"Just like that? You've made great progress," smiled Dan.

Then, he focused and offered Jane training.

*

[Teacher Jane asks you to teach her the skill of 'Cognition of Evil'. Do you agree to pa.s.s on the skill? Yes/No]

*

Dan agreed and joyful Jane hugged the sinner.

"Everybody's already learned the 'Feather' spell. I suggest you learn it. It's very useful! You can make your life a lot easier. All the guys make armor and weapons easy and it helps them well."

"I'm going to need the 'Feather' very much. I don't develop strength like our fighters. Of course, I want to learn the spell," said Dan.

"We have one attempt. Be serious. This is an important and serious procedure."

Dan thought she had no idea how important it was for him to get this spell.

*

[Teacher Jane wants to teach you the 'Feather' spell. Do you agree? Yes/No]

*

Dan agreed, and he was lucky. He learned the spell the first time. Turns out not everyone had been able to learn the spell. Success depends on the intellect and luck of the player. Dan thought he wasn't happy with intellect. But his luck is fine.

The spell required constant used to raise his level. The application of the spell cost 12 mana and Dan had a lot of work to do.

He wasn't surprised when he was met by Master Rune's specialty job. Jane and Richard wanted to have a wedding. Jane didn't really want to run through locations and dungeons, and Anna's magic ring made her really jealous. The opportunity to be with Richard instantly and partic.i.p.ate in the murder of the boss scientist could afford it.

An unexpected event for Dan was the oath of the Warrior and Priestess. Their alliance has long been the alliance of a couple of quiet and interesting to each other. But Dan didn't think they'd come to a new stage in their relations.h.i.+p so quickly.

Dan took the oaths of lovers. Everyone was surprised to learn that rings can be different properties. Jane and Richard's rings allowed teleportation to the partner. Alexander and Bella's rings allowed not only teleportation but also the possibility of combining and then equally dividing the two partners' health reserves.

To all questions and Bell and Dan could not give an answer, they did not understand the subtleties of the work of magic runes.

Dan found out that Samantha needed his services in Galatea. The clan accepted the 'Galatea Renaissance' Quest. Samantha had days of serious problems and difficult decisions. She met the hunters from the castle with curses. The post of Head of the city turned out to be difficult and with interesting gameplay.

The main event of the clan was the completion of the princ.i.p.al main quest. Dan arrived on time. He came back the day the clan went to clean up the last dungeon. In three groups, the hunters were able to complete the tasks in the week of the sinner's absence.

In the dungeon, everything went easily and routinely for the hunters. The main boss was another Queen of Spiders, and Emma was pleased. The web of monsters was a rare material for the tailor's craft. After killing the boss, the hunters saw the message everyone was curious to expect.

*

[Congratulations! Despite the difficulties in your way, you successfully completed your task! Attention! Your Clan is honored to fulfill its duties.

Congratulations! 300 points of 'Glory' have been received.

Your clan's overall status changes to 'You are a Man of Honor'.

Before the next general status change, dial another 2000 points of fame.

Your clan gets the fourth level of fame [4/20].

Reward: Your clan gets to choose a new feature of the Order of Hunters.

Each clan member gets +1 to all the characteristics, 5 points of skill, 5 points of Glory, +1 to Fortune.

Attention! Mission update: 'In the Footsteps of the Greats'.

Attention! Intelligent monsters living in these lands will do anything to desecrate the locations you have liberated. Regardless of the difficulties in your way, you must clean up the desecrated areas from the monsters within 1 month]

*

All the hunters were happy to receive a big award. Almost all the players of the clan gathered at the castle. Galatea players were invited to the final part of the quest. City players were already helped to score level 20. Many did not need help and already had this level, which allowed them to immediately get the transformation of the selected cla.s.s. During a dinner party at the castle, the difference between hunters and city players was immediately noticeable. Galatea players were not at all interested in the details and features of confrontation with monsters. The game offered Samantha and her team a rather complicated and tense life in the style of economic strategy. This life was fully satisfied with many players.

Circle of Hunters made a difficult choice. Hunters could expand the list of cla.s.ses and get a new cla.s.s. Hunters could increase the rank of the castle and significantly increase its protection. They could also increase the amount of experience that a member of the clan of hunters gets.

Nick and Samantha long ago shared with all the information about the possibilities of the players in different places. Not all players were able to get such an advanced castle. Players of the 'Sunrise' Clan had a choice from 7 cla.s.ses. They did not have magicians, thieves, scientists, inquisitors, and spirituals.

The question of getting a new cla.s.s didn't worry about the hunters. They just didn't have the candidates to take the opportunity. There were 5 players left in the City who wanted to live and travel in peace. They built up a reputation and were not interested in joining any clan at all.

To increase the experience also seemed uninteresting to the players who were happy with their progress.

The clan decided to strengthen the defense of the castle. Nick indicated the choice on behalf of all players.

*

[Congratulations! The Castle of the Order of Hunters has reached rank 3. The secure radius, magic protection and durability of the castle increased by 50%. The territory of the Order of Hunters has been increased by 10%]

*

"You took a big piece of land from me! I'm not paying the rent," said Samantha immediately.

The evil baroness was immediately rea.s.sured that she could continue using her former resources for free. The city of Galatea stood on the northern border of the hunting clan's property. Samantha was able to hire 100 citizens who agreed to lead the lives of farmers and fishermen in the new place. The issue of providing food for Galatea residents was the most difficult for Samantha. Its specialists handled the problems of construction and arrangement of the city life successfully.

Nick began discussing the immediate events in the clan's life:

"This week, we have a quest for the Hunters' Circle. Samantha, we invite everyone to take part. You don't have to take part in the battle, but you have to be there for them. As a reward, each member of the clan gets +1 to all the characteristics, 3 points of skill, and 3 points of Glory."

"We are interested in this offer, we will take part," replied Samantha.

"We can handle the protection of our territory. Scouts, are you ready to conduct good scouting in the west? Dan, your partic.i.p.ation is mandatory," said Alexander.

"I'll be ready an early next week. I have the opportunity to raise the level. I'd like to take advantage of that before a difficult case," answered Dan.

"In my city area, one dead body shows up every day. They scare my peasants. Alan's handling it, but I'm concerned. Are you sure you won't cause a large group of monsters to attack? And I also have rats! Do you have rats?"

"Samantha, calm down. There are always rats in town. There are no rats in the castle. You've got enough people to destroy rats. I hope they're not level 20 strong monsters?"

"Rats are small, but they're nasty. And I have to spend the city's reputation on a reward for destroying them. It's not a city, it's some crazy house," complained Samantha.

"But you have the most skilled culinary man in the clan. Guys, make sure you visit Galatea. John opened the restaurant and he cooks amazingly. I spent three gold coins, but I'm not sorry, dinner was just delicious. He can even make pizza! John has discovered many recipes that were not known in this world," said Alexander.

The hunters were aware of some of the successes of the city's players and were interested in the news about the opportunity to eat familiar dishes, the taste of which no one remembered.

Until the end of the week, the sinner tormented with the development of the level of the spell. It was very difficult, boring and took a long time. Even if you cast the spell 100.000 times in a row, it took longer than a day. Dan spent three days in his training and looked with great respect at Anna, who had chosen this way to play. He postponed the execution of the quest for the Dead Army until the spell was fully developed. He even decided to spend the points of Glory and increase the strength to 100 and become an Adept of the Strength to perform the quest in one trip to the harpy lair.

Everybody was looking forward to meeting a dangerous new opponent. The first meeting with a demon showed that the clan is weak. Players could only kill a monster at the cost of constant death and constant damage.

12 hunters gathered in the room and Nick accepted the new quest.

*

[Attention! Update the property map! A new location is available. Location type: Dungeon. Mission type: Rare. Reward: Variate. Mission time is limited to [30:23:59].

If the mission is not completed, your clan will lose 200 'Glory' points.]

*

The game did not make life harder for the players, and the new dungeon was again within an hours' walk from the castle. A large group of players went to complete the mission. The townspeople were warned. That they would receive a team and could join the hunters at the very end of the battle.

No one was surprised by the warning about the features of the new monster. Hunters with smiles received a message about the averaged level of the enemy. The clan had 52 players. But the level of 39 townspeople was half the level of hunters. Players expected to meet the monster level 28.

The first to go to the dungeon was a sinner. Kate was dissatisfied with the fact that she could not get the last levels of the skill 'Cognition of Evil'.

Richard looked at the message.

*

[Attention! Successful destruction of the Demon is possible only by a group of players. The opponent's level is equal to the average level of the group members. Did you really dare to challenge the Demon? Yes/No]

*

The clan commander accepted the terms of the battle and nodded to Dan. The sinner approached the dark spot on the ground and disappeared into a new dungeon. Everyone was waiting for his quick return, but Dan didn't appear at the temporary revival point. Kate was the first to fail and promised to unscrew the ugly sinner's stupid head. Then she took a decisive step into the dungeon. Richard didn't like it when the operation plan to change as the operation progressed. He invited the hunters to join the Inquisitors.

When the hunters got into the dungeon, they saw Kate walking around Dan and punched him constantly.

"How long can we wait for you? That creep doesn't tell me anything! He thinks I should see the demon with my own eyes," screamed Kate.

"He's right. Kate, you're going to cover your ears tight and not eavesdrop on us! Now I can see why you didn't come back. Dan tells us the information," said Richard.

The hunters found themselves in a big room that led from one corridor. Dan walked carefully down the hallway and was able to look at the enemy. The hunters liked the information.

*

Cadma

Race: Demon

Type: Elite

Status: Boss of the location

Level: 28

Life: 666600

Damage: 2000

Overview: Cadma, also known as Princess of Torment. She has reached unprecedented heights in her mastery of torture and suffering. Beware of a magical demon attack, she can destroy any player with a weak spirit.

Improved skills:

'Master of the Short Blade'. The weapon in this monster's hand is as dangerous as its master. This skill increases weapon damage and allows the use of special tricks and combat techniques on short blades. [4/10]

It opens up skills:

'Cutting through the void'. This skill increases the chance to ignore your opponent's armor and cla.s.s abilities. Cooldown: 120 seconds. [4/10]

'The Power of the Archimage'. Significantly reduces the time it takes to restore magical spells and speeds up the casting of spells in battle. [10/10]

It opens up skills:

'Pure mind'. This skill allows you to cast a spell without mana costs and instantly replicate the spell. Cooldown: 120 seconds. [10/10]

Cla.s.s skills:

'Invincible'. This skill increases protection and gives immunity from many types of damage. [6/10]

Battle skills:

'The swirl of the blade'. A demon strikes several quick hits in a row. Damage to each blow is 3000-4500. Cooldown: 30 seconds. [4/10]

'Sweet torture'. A demon strikes a magical blow that deals damage and replenishes the demon's life. Damage 2000-2500. The enemy loses 50% of his health within 20 seconds. Cooldown: 30 seconds. [4/10]

'Blow of filthy'. A magical demon attack that deals magical damage from a distance. Damage to 5500-7500. Cooldown: 30 seconds. [4/10]

Immunity to arms:

Stabbing: 50%

Cutting: 50%

Crus.h.i.+ng: 50%

The magic of fire: 50%

The magic of water: 50%

The magic of air: 50%

The magic of the earth: 50%

*

"She looks like an ordinary tall woman. Absolutely ordinary, beautiful woman. I didn't notice the weapon. I took one look and went straight away," said Dan.

"An interesting blend of a.s.sa.s.sin and a magician with advanced vampire skills," summed up Richard. "Kate, let's get started. You're going to start the fight. Good luck, Judge."

"There's plenty of room, we should invite the Galatea guys," suggested to Nick.

"Notify Samantha. Hunters, prepare for battle. We're working calmly and neatly. Everyone knows what they're doing. Attention! Activate group reinforcement," said Richard.

Further events very surprised the players. Kate entered the corridor, and she had enough moments to apply her 'Judgment' skills. This skill with a guarantee of 100% deprived the enemy of one combat skill and significantly weakened all the skills and immunity of the enemy.

When the hunters joined Kate, they didn't have time to rush into battle. Demoness saw a group of opponents and laughed:

"I'm tired of waiting! Daros told me about your company. I have a suggestion. A one-on-one fight with your champion. If he wins, I'll give him one of my skills. If I win, I admit my defeat, but I'll leave my dagger with me. You won't need it. Even a fool like your sinner wouldn't want to mess with my instrument of torture. Decide quickly! I have little time and much to do in my possessions."

"You'll accept your defeat anyway," replied Richard.

"What skills are you ready to pa.s.s on?" asked the more important question, Anna.

"Important and useful to any of you. You, redheaded witch, can have the 'Power of the Archimage' or the 'Pure Mind'. But you can't beat me," answered the demoness.

"She can't drink life out of us, her immunity's down to 25%. Damage in 1000. The magic attack in 3000. I can handle it," said Dan calmly.

"I'm ready to try it, too. I've got a lot of potions. A minute of the unpleasant show and a piece of b.l.o.o.d.y meat will be left of it," Alexander rubbed his bald head.

"How long can I give you? My time is precious," laughed Cadma.

"Don't trust the gifts of demons," said Bella calmly. "We should just kill this b.i.t.c.h."

Dan saw Richard's message:

"No deals. Attack!"

The sinner immediately took the form of a draugr and activated 'Nemesis'. The Demoness was attacked by all the clan fighters. From the entrance, the arrows and spells of Anna hit the demoness. Dan struck fast and powerful with his sword. Next to him, the figure of a berserk burst into flames of red. On the other side of Dan was a blue light on the paladin figure. Demoness knew about his skill, so he felt no pain from her attacks. He made a few strikes and the enemy died. The fight to end in a few seconds.

*

[Congratulations! Demon Cadma, Princess of Torment is defeated!

Congratulations! The Hunter Circle is honored to perform its duties.

Congratulations! 100 points of Glory have been received.

Each partic.i.p.ant of the Circle of Hunters gets a new level.

Each member of the clan gets +1 to all characteristics, 3 skill points, 3 Glory points]

*

Players from Galatea clapped their hands and went out. Samantha had a thoughtful and serious look. She didn't say it very loudly:

"We're already known to demons in demon possessions we don't know. Who I contacted!"

"The clan of hunters, chérie. You're a hunter from the hunter clan," laughed Betty.

"I hope these events don't happen again often," shook the Baroness's head and went out.

The dagger was unique, but it was risky to use.

*

Tormentor

Type: unique.

Damage: 1500-2200 [Critical damage: 3400-6200]

Durability: Indestructible

Weight: 1 pound

Combat skill:

'Cutting the Void' Increases the chance to ignore the enemy's armor and cla.s.s abilities. Cooldown 120 seconds. [0/10]

'Sweet Torment'. Skills deal damage and make up for the owner's life. Damage 2000-2500. The enemy loses 50% of his health within 20 seconds. Cooldown: 30 seconds. [0/10]

*

No one doubted that using demonic skills would not do good. The dagger was deposited in the clan's stash.

Dan spent some of his glory points on developing his strength and left the castle. He had two important cases with an army of the dead. He promised to do it in a couple of days and keep the hunter's company in the exploration of western lands.