They walked in silence for a while, the canopy above them darkening as the sun dipped lower. Jordan, usually radiating an easy confidence, grew noticeably more cautious. His gaze darted between the rustling undergrowth and Ben, who, in turn, seemed oddly unbothered.
"Dude," Jordan finally said, his voice low, "aren't you a bit more… careless than normal?" He gestured vaguely at Ben's relaxed posture, his lack of visible weapons.
Ben glanced at him, a faint, almost imperceptible shrug. "My trait hasn't activated yet, so it's fine."
Jordan scoffed, a nervous sound. "What if an orc has an archer? You wouldn't even know what hit you, man."
"Orcs don't use archers," Ben stated, his tone flat, as if correcting a fundamental misunderstanding of monstrous taxonomy.
As they continued walking, the trees thinned, and they arrived at a large clearing in the middle of the forest. It was a camp, but not an orc one. Banners bearing the sigil of a snarling lion behind a shield fluttered lazily from makeshift poles, and dozens of tents, all a uniform red, were neatly pitched. Player gear—backpacks, bedrolls, even a few discarded energy drink cans—littered the ground.
"Is this the Red Sovereign's camp?" Ben asked, his voice betraying a hint of surprise. "Why aren't there any people here?"
Jordan's brows furrowed. "Yeah, it's them. And you're right, it's empty. The hell?" He scanned the camp, his hand instinctively going to the hilt of one of his dual sabers. "Where's everybody at?"
"They must be out patrolling or raiding the boss," Ben suggested, already moving toward the largest tent.
Jordan shook his head, starting to creep out. "Nah, man, the orc citadel's still far ahead. And you'd need a lot more than what's in this camp to clear it. I gotta admit, this shit's starting to creep me out." A strange, unnatural quiet hung over the camp, even the wind seemed to hold its breath.
Then, from the bushes ahead, Jordan stiffened. His eyes narrowed, focusing on a flicker of movement. He immediately readied his hands on his dual sabers, his body tensing for a fight. A moment later, a white dude with blonde hair, tall and clad in light armor, burst through the foliage. He wore a Red Sovereign red jersey, but his face was contorted with fear, his eyes wide with panic.
As Jordan and Ben eased slightly, recognizing him as a Player, Jordan called out, "Hey man, what's happening? Why are you looking like that? You okay?"
The man gasped, breathing hard, trying to catch his breath. "Man, you gotta be ready," he stammered, his voice ragged with terror. "There's three orcs running right behind me! Fuck, they're huge! I'll tell you after that, just… get ready!"
Just as he finished, three large, burly orcs, their hides a sickly green, burst from the trees where the man had emerged. Above their heads, luminous text glowed: [ Level 18 Elite Orcs ]. They gripped chipped axes, their light leather armor strained over powerful muscles, and massive tusks jutted from their snarling jaws.
Jordan tensed, drawing his dual sabers in a swift, practiced motion. He glanced at Ben, hoping their combined F-rank might stand a chance. But as his eyes flicked to Ben, he saw something else. Ben's briefcase shimmered, dissolved, and in its place appeared the Shortsword of Compliance and the Scales of Guilt. Ben's trait had activated, a sudden, almost overwhelming surge of power.
[ ⚖ Writ of Reprisal – Emergency Protocol Triggered ]
Ben moved the Scales of Guilt, and golden light flared, marking the three orcs with Mark of Debt. The System, in its cold efficiency, immediately revealed their unreported EXP and stats, activating a temporary boost based on the total sum of their illicit gains.
+150% Temporary Stat Boost: Active
Debuff Resistance: Active
Reprisal Mode Enabled
Ben was now more than ready, his stoic expression unchanged even as the raw power coursed through him. Jordan's eyes, and the other man's, widened slightly in surprise at Ben's weapons appearing seemingly from thin air. The fleeing Player, a mix of terror and awe on his face, thought, Who is this guy? Does he have a unique rank class? Only classes with a unique rank have their own dedicated class weapon. Holy shit, we can win this. Thank god. A desperate hope flared within him.
Jordan, a smirk finally returning to his face, said, "You set now, suit-man?"
Ben nodded, his gaze fixed on the charging orcs. "Yeah. I'll be following you. Distract them first, so I can debuff them safely."
Jordan grinned, drawing his dual sabers fully. "Okay, I'll be going first! Don't take too long, dude!" He charged, his feet blurring, leaving faint trails of purple outline in his wake. Ben also moved, flanking the orcs from the left, a silent, deadly shadow.
One orc, its small, pig-like eyes locking onto Ben, hesitated for a split second. Jordan, dashing towards them, capitalized on the distraction. The orc focused on Jordan launched a vertical axe attack, to which Jordan sidestepped with fluid grace, his blades a purple blur. He slashed a distracted orc's shin that had been momentarily focused on Ben, before distancing away, circling them. Another orc managed to launch a wide, horizontal axe swipe that forced Jordan to parry, absorbing the shock that rattled his teeth and shook him to his core.
Then, Ben rushed towards the distracted orcs. His blade moved with surgical precision, slashing one of them.
[ ✦ Stat Recalibration Seal: -25% to all stats ]
The orc's movement instantly turned sluggish, its furious roars slowing to strained grunts. Ben moved like a phantom to the next, dodging its slow, predictable axe swing before slashing again, delivering another precise blow.
[ ✦ Seal of Silence: Seals 2–4 random skills. ]
The orc's guttural growl turned into a choked gurgle, its attempts at casting a rudimentary battle-rage spell failing completely. Ben slashed again, a third, decisive strike.
[ ✦ Seal of Arms: Disarms and locks weapons. ]
The orc's heavy axe clattered to the ground, its powerful hand now empty and useless. The orc that had been attacking Jordan, now distracted by Ben's relentless debuffs, left an opening. Jordan seized the opportunity, sidestepping its held attack and activating his own skill. His dual sabers wrapped in a wicked purple aura, he launched a flurry of attacks that made the orc scream in pain, its thick hide tearing under his precise, rapid strikes.
The other debuffed orc, moving in agonizingly slow motion, tried to attack Ben. Ben's debuff was so effective that he could dodge it easily, almost casually. He moved in, countering the attack with a swift slash, severing its hand from its arm in a spray of dark blood. Then, Ben moved back to the orc Jordan was tearing into, slashing it.
[ ✦ Seal of Arms: Disarms and locks weapons. ]
Its weapon dropped to the ground. With Ben's debuffs crippling all three orcs, he said, his voice flat but commanding, "Finish them."
Jordan, exhilarated by the coordinated assault, grinned savagely. "With fucking pleasure!" He activated his second skill, a rapid surge of energy that combined with his first. Jordan then moved even faster, his agility a blur, his slashes quicker and more devastating.
He danced between the three hobbled orcs, a purple whirlwind of blades, before cutting their heads off in quick succession. He turned his back, wiping his saber on his forearm, a faint smirk playing on his lips. Blood spurted from the headless torsos, staining the ground, but Ben had already distanced himself, unwilling to risk a single stain on his tailored suit. Jordan seemed to be enjoying his heroic finisher, a look of pure satisfaction on his face.
Ben simply shook his head, then a System notification appeared:
[3x] Marked Debtors Terminated
[Tax Collection Executed Automatically]
EXP Seized: +3,562
Stat Gains Seized: +54
[ Debt Cleared ]
[ You earned +356 EXP and 5 stat points. ]
[ You leveled up to 7 ]
Ben allowed himself a faint, satisfied smile. It worked.
Jordan approached, wiping his blade on a cloth tied to his forearm. "I assumed it worked?"
Ben nodded, adjusting his tie, already composing himself. "Yes, it did. I'm now Level 7. What about you?"
Jordan grinned, holstering his sabers. "That's good. I'm 5% EXP left for Level 15. Almost there."
Ben opened his profile. With Level 7, he had 20 total unspent stat points. He distributed them methodically, already planning for the challenges ahead:
+5 on Agility
+5 on Magic
+10 on Charisma
With that, the immediate changes rippled through him. He felt a subtle shift, a new surge of confidence. His movements felt quicker, his intuition sharper, and his presence, somehow, even more imposing.
"Let's go and ask our neighborhood Red Sovereign what just happened," Ben said, his voice returning to its usual composed tone, a hint of steel in its depths.
"Oh, yeah, right," Jordan agreed, his earlier excitement tempered by the lingering unease of the empty camp. He put his dual sabers back in their sheaths on his back. They turned and headed deeper into the deserted Red Sovereign camp.