Refusing My God’s Advances

I had made my way through three caves now, and I had made it to level 18. The last cave had been five Goblin Captains, they had been hard, but they had each dropped 20 gold pieces. I had kind of wished that I could have just farmed them for a while to gain some funds, but I didn't think they would respawn any time soon.

The cave I had just finished was a pair of Crystal Drakes, and they had both been level 21. I had focused on one, taking it down, but my first strike on the next one broke my halberd. I was forced to retreat and throw stones for a bit, but that had no effect. 

In the end, I used the Drakon Claw as a small dagger and chipped away at it while dodging its crystal breath. It took longer than I had wanted, but the beast finally went down.

And now brings me to the current. I was just walking over to the corpse I had just taken down, but I started to get light-headed. My vision started to swim, and my legs gave out as I hit the ground.

Before I opened my eyes, I instinctively put my hand up. Sure enough, as my eyes did open, the first thing I saw was my favorite idiot god shining through the gaps in my fingers. 

"What do you want this time, stupid god?" I demanded and then was promptly slapped across the face. It didn't hurt, but I was a bit shocked.

I raised an eyebrow and looked up from my kneeling position to see a dirty girl in a burlap sack dress. She had so much mud on her, that only her well-endowed chest and hips really described her sex. The rest was just a homeless swamp monster, and she had a crazy look in her eyes like some wild animal.

"You can't talk to the Great God Garland that way! He is our God and savior!" she declared, and I snorted, turning to Garland, looking smug as hell.

"She must be new around here, right?" I asked and then turned back to the girl. "You are new, right?"

The girl nodded, and I let out a sigh. "Good. Now, the first thing you need to know is, that old man over there?" I said, pointing to Garland. "Is evil."

A flurry of slaps flew my way, but my resilience was so high at this point that I didn't even try to stop her. This kept going, so I turned my head while still being slapped, to the laughing Garland. "Does this place have walls? Is this a room?" I asked, and Garland stopped, laughed, and frowned at me.

"This is an infinite space! There are no ends in-" Garland started to declare but was cut off when I cast levitate and sent the girl five miles to his left.

"So, who is the girl you brainwashed?" I asked as he just started off in the direction I sent the girl. "Don't worry, I didn't throw her."

Garland turned to me, his smile returning. "That is Misty, and she is the new hero I have appointed to work with you."

"Big no thanks, send me back," I said flatly as Misty's screams of rage could be heard from the distance.

Garland laughed hysterically. "But you seem to hit it off really well, and, just to let you know, and I can't lie to you, I didn't brainwash her. She just loves me cause I have given her the power to do the one thing that she truly wants to do! Do you know what that is?"

"No, but you're going to tell me anyway, right," I said with my arms crossed, tapping my foot. I was getting really tired of everyone wasting my time lately. 

Garland grinned. "She wants to kill demons! And with the divine blessing I gave her, her strength will grow as long as she remains a virgin. Isn't that just perfect for a hero like her?"

I couldn't help but stare at Garland in disbelief. "Are you serious? You've got to be kidding me. Virginity as a power-up? What kind of ridiculous game mechanic is that?"

Garland shrugged. "It's a divine blessing. Don't question the ways of the gods, Leon. Besides, it adds an interesting twist to her story, don't you think?"

I sighed in frustration. "Look, I don't want to hurt your feeling, but go fuck yourself, and send me back!"

"Sure, but she is going with you!" Garland laughed, and I shook my fist at him.

"Oh no, she is not! That little witch is not coming around my demons! I swear I will throw her off ember falls if you send her with me! Better yet, I will just feed her to the first monster that I see!" I snapped, and Garland shrugged.

"Whatever. While she may love me, I told her that she has to be loyal to you. She has to aid you and help you complete your mission. With her powers, she will grow just as fast as you do, as long as she stays a virgin. If not, her powers are gone, and I get to send someone more suitable," Garland explained as Misty got closer.

Misty was now within earshot, her eyes blazing with determination. "Great God Garland! I am ready to fulfill my duty as a hero and aid Leon in his quest to rid the world of demons!"

I groaned, realizing that arguing with Garland was futile. "Fine, she can tag along. But I don't want any interference with my battles, and I won't be responsible for her safety. If she gets in the way, it's on her."

Garland chuckled. "Oh, don't worry, Leon. I'm sure you two will make a great team. Now, off you go! Emberfalls awaits!"

With that, Garland waved his hand, and Misty and I found ourselves back in the cave with the Crystal Drakes.

"Why would he pick someone as rude as you to be a hero!" Misty growled at me, and I groaned as I turned to the mud clump.

"He didn't have a choice, and he isn't what you think he is," I said, and the girl turned her nose up at me, crossing her arms.

"I supposed you will try to tell me that Demons aren't bad either, right?" She snapped, and I sighed.

"I am sure there are bad demons, just like there are bad demons and bad heroes. There are also good ones. You can't just kill everything just because some of it's bad. You are supposed to be a hero, not an executioner," I said with a sigh.

Misty scoffed, clearly not pleased with my response. "I don't care about your moral lectures. My purpose is to eliminate demons, and I won't let anyone stand in my way, not even you."

"You see, that just isn't going to work," I said and bent down to pick up a rock, standing back up with it. "I have a demon that I care about a lot, and her 50 children, and another demon that is my friend," I explained, turning the rock in my hands into powder.

"Is that supposed to scare me?" Misty demanded, and I laughed, and focused, the time dilating. 

I ran over and picked the girl up, and jogged ten laps around the cave, then put her in the center of the cave. Time snapped back, and a massive gust circled in the cave as Misty dropped to her knees, emptying her stomach.

When she was done whipping her mouth off, and looked up at me, I nodded. "I am the weakest of my friends. One of them can even touch me on her own for fear of hurting me. I only jogged ten laps in the blink of an eye. If I would have run, you would have passed out."

Misty stared at me in disbelief, her confidence shaken. "How... how did you do that?"

"The more agility you have the slower time moves when you focus, but you also need strength to move faster during that time. Your body also needs resilience when you are moving that fast," I replied, tossing the now dusty rock aside. "The point is, you can't just charge into every situation thinking brute force will solve everything without using your brain. You need to be smart, and strategic, and understand that not everything is black and white."

Misty frowned but didn't respond. I could tell she was still processing the revelation. I sighed and decided to change the topic.

"You and I are going to go back, and you can go take a bath. Mary will have to settle for Legendary class materials for now." I sighed and looked at the Crystal Drakes.

 I was only at 280 points so far, but maybe I would get something from the Drakes. Walking over, I reached out to retrieve the items from the last drake I killed.

[Item Acquired: (Rare) Crystal Drake Scale]

[Item Acquired: (Rare) Crystallized Drake Hide]

[Item Acquired: (Rare) Crystalized Essence]

[Item Acquired: (Rare) Crystal Drake Heart]

The Crystal Drake had some valuable drops, especially the Crystallized Essence, which seemed to have magical properties. I made a mental note to inspect these items more closely later. As for Misty, she was still looking a bit overwhelmed.

I sighed, and darted to the other drake, smiling at the two crystals that went into my inventory.

[Item Acquired: (Rare) Experience Crystal]

[Item Acquired: (Rare) Ice Summoning Crystal]

I knew what I could make with the first one. The second one, a summoning crystal, was completely unknown to me, but it looked cool!