The Forgotten Faithful: A LitRPG Adventure (UnderVerse Book 2) by Cajiao, Jez (little red riding hood ebook TXT) 📕

The rest of my party had basically spread out and gotten as comfortable as they could, and while I was busy with the notifications, someone had even arranged for the corpses to be removed. I grinned and had a little internal bet with myself over whether it was Decin and Hanau, or Flux that had done it.

“Okay,” I said, clapping my hands together, “leadership group, I need a word…that’s you, Flux, Decin, and Lydia, in case you didn’t know.” Each of the three got up and hurried over to me, and I led them out into the corridor, passing Arrin, who was sitting on watch at the entrance to the room, and I spotted Jian stationed at the far end of the corridor, watching down the next hall.

“I can move, Jax, if you want privacy…” Arrin quickly offered, starting to get up, and I waved him down.

“No, its fine. Nothing secret, just a chat here,” I said, and my little group, accompanied by Oracle and Bob, moved down to the middle of the corridor, where I sat and motioned for the others to do the same.

“We need to wait a dozen or so more hours here; basically, the first Golem will be up to charge then, and we need it and the others back at the Tower."

"They will activate over the next day or so, and once they’re all awake, we can order them to head to the Tower by foot if necessary and take up position. Until there are a few awake, though, I don’t want to leave the area. I plan to use my mana as much as possible, as soon as it regenerates, anyway, and I’ll be healing everyone up in that time. I’m not sure what use we will have for this location, but we do need to clear the bodies out regardless. The goblins can burn, as far as I care, but the crew and your own dead, Flux, we will need to remove and care for. I don’t know your customs, so what do you want to do with them?” I asked, looking from Decin to Flux and back.

“We have returned Gaul to our home already. He will be buried with honor there, with his family,” Flux said firmly, and Decin nodded, speaking up.

“I appreciate the thought, Lord…we lost dozens o’ th’ the bastards. Best iff’n we take all that ain’t goblin an’ make a pyre. I know we’re burnin’ ’em, same as the goblins, but the lads will feel th’ difference. Th’ goblins be scum, but we don’t need their diseases neither.”

“Okay, then, that’s simple enough,” I agreed. “As soon as the Golems awaken, I’ll set them to work removing the bodies. We will have to clear a way to the surface that the Golems can use. The entrance the goblins were using won’t do; it’s too narrow, so if we need to dig anyway, they might as well start clearing the passageways and shoring up the walls as they go. That will open up buried sections of the building to us, so we may yet find something worth looting. We also need to loot the goblins."

"I’ll be very clear on this, Decin, and I’m sorry if this upsets you and your people, but whatever is found belongs to my squad and Flux’s group. It will be shared equally, although I reserve the right to claim anything I feel is needed. Coin will be shared out equally between all combatants, and if anyone can use the weapons or armor they find, they can claim them. Everything else goes back to the Tower and goes into stores. We need everything, unfortunately.”

Decin grunted, and I waited.

“Aye, we understand, Lord. It just be a bit annoyin’, seein’ loot tha’ we canna take a share o’; yer know how it be.” he explained after a second, realizing I was waiting on him.

“I do, and I’ll not be stealing your ship from you entirely, to be clear. I have claimed it, as part of the Tower, and it is now my property. Fuck with me, and I WILL take it from you, but I want you to captain it for me. I’ll provide upgrades and repairs, give you missions, and reward you when you do well, but you are master aboard your ship, second only to myself and Oren. Do you understand?” Decin didn’t look happy, but he nodded, and I turned to Flux.

“I’d like to see if we can work together in the future, Flux. Our settlements, I mean,” I offered, watching him carefully. “I think we worked well today, and I could use the help in future. You’ve probably already guessed, but I’m a bit crap at all the fancy talking, so I won’t even bother. I want to try to negotiate a deal with your people. We need food, crafting, and basically all the rest of the bits that make a city work.”

I shifted, trying to get comfortable, and explained who I was, how and why I ended up in the UnderVerse, and what the current condition of the Tower was. I held little back, hedging only on the defensive capabilities of the Tower. I guessed Flux was the key to his people, by the way the others jumped when he spoke, and the way he acted without thought. I needed him and the Mer.

“…now we’re at war. It’s a war I would not have gone looking for, but if someone treats his people that badly, and tries that shit with me…it was always going to happen,” I finished with a shrug.

“Tell me truthfully…do you think you can win?” Flux asked me after a long break, while he and Decin digested what I’d said.

“I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t.” I said calmly. “If I thought I couldn’t win, I’d have gotten everyone on the warship, and we’d have looted the Tower and fucked off. I would never risk lives without reason, but we’ve found a home here. The Tower is damaged and decrepit