24 PALADINS

We agreed that the first experimental armor samples will be ready by tomorrow morning, so I went to visit my paladins. Boy, are they polite, waiting for me and all. What can I expect from them? To be honest, I thought that Olga and Semyon would join me. I always thought that they were the most reasonable ones. At least Olga. Semyon was a more complicated case, but he had lately shown his more sensible side. But they both preferred being my competitors. And these two... Don't tell me that Lena chose me because of her silly beliefs in liberty, equality and fraternity... What should I do with her? Cyril had an axe to grind, which was good. But I didn't understand his motivations, and this was dangerous.

Once I thought everything through, I realized that there were only two possible courses of action: one for my allies, and one for everyone else. But I would have to play my role from beginning to the very end. If everyone considers you being a paladin of Light and Justice, they won't expect you do something selfish, something contradicting to an image of Light. This could be an ace up your sleeve that could potentially save your life some day.

"Why did you join Light? Don't you dare lie!" What happens when you act both like a psycho and a good guy at the same time? I had the reputation of both. It was likely that you would be looked at with even greater caution than before.

"I like you," Lena said. Was I, even as a good guy, supposed to believe something so stupid? She seemed to think that my element had made me weak. Well, it was time to break that illusion.

"Don't lie!" I shouted, turning into a drill sergeant, spitting everywhere. It was pretty unsettling.

"I... Don't know," she said in confusion.

"Just tell the truth." Shifting from screaming to talking calmly made her relax.

"I don't care what your element is. Honestly! But I figured out the real faces of the people in our squad, and power always seemed to be in your hands. Maybe I'm wrong, I don't know, I'm not you, I can't see what's true and what's not. But I want to be with you!" She almost shouted the last part as she took a step toward me.

Seems that Lena considered me the main leader. She also didn't seem to care about Light or Darkness. In general, so long as I don't show weakness, she won't attack. I think an old friend of mine who was a snake breeder told me something along those lines.

"Enough, I get it." This was pretty tough, but I still had to get an answer from my second follower. I didn't need people thinking that I'm an understanding guy. "Cyril?"

"I'll tell you right away — I don't like you." Is he for real? "But Light, although risky, strange and unknown and possibly weaker than those who I despise so much, could give me an opportunity to achieve so much more. A cunning and unprincipled bastard like you would never join Light if didn't have some kind of hidden power!"

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He left me shocked and bewildered. He also joined Light only because of me. What point was there in my high level healing ability then? I was just kidding, of course. Without this ability, they wouldn't stand a chance in the upcoming tournament. If we prepare properly, and if our opponents don't surprise us, we won't have any problems winning.

"I don't care how you feel about me," I said, and Cyril exhaled with relief. "You both want power, and I'll show you how to get it, but I want to make two things very clear. First, we aren't followers of Chaos, but those of Light, and my orders are not to be discussed. Second, we are surrounded by enemies. We have no allies. There's not neutrality. Whatever I show you and whatever I tell you must not leave our group. I won't even ask if you agree or not. Just remember: if you break these rules, you will not only be kicked out, but you will also become my enemy."

Since they appreciate my reputation so much, I should take advantage of it. I found myself in a very interesting situation; they watched me with devotion and without the slightest shadow of a doubt in their eyes. If I'm lucky, I might convert them from paladins into real combat fanatics. An interesting thought. Maybe I should plant a couple of ideas into their heads.

"What are we gonna do now?" Lena noticed that I had zoned out and was becoming impatient.

"We'll gather enough supplies to last us for two days and go train," I smiled. Now, where do I take them?

Cemetery? No, the Skeletons were too low of a level. Should we just walk through the woods, looking for strong opponents? We might not find anything good… Or we might run into something, or someone, too strong. Forbidden City? It was quite far and definitely too early for that. Theoretically, it would be possible to go to the swamp. Lena and Cyril could accumulate some experience, healing each other and fighting mobs at the same time. But I don't want anyone near my tombstones. I'd prefer it if that place remains my safe haven.

"Innokenty." I saw three Chaosites head past me toward the exit of the settlement.

"What?" Major snapped at me, but he was immediately silenced.

"Did you want something, Cat?" I have long thought that these two had gotten their advanced Marks too quickly. Ordinary monsters wouldn't give such results, which meant that they found a better place to farm experience. It would be nice to find out the way to it. But I didn't like the look Innokenty had when he turned to face me. It felt like he was looking down at me.

"Perhaps, yes." Just as I thought, his eyes shined with contempt as soon as he heard that I might ask for. You're in for a treat, boy. "I don't want any member of the Council to be as fucked up as you are right now. You have the least amount of votes, the least number of followers, and you are the only ones who have not yet signed the potion supply contract."

"Watch your tone," Innokenty's voice turned into a hiss, but he collected himself. "What contract?"

"Well, everyone used to get my potions for free," I smiled disarmingly. "But given the current situation that deal is off. The question is: are you ready to pay the standard price for five items a day?"

"Ten!" Major interrupted, but this time no one stopped him. Innokenty looked at me questioningly.

"The terms have already been set." Good thing they didn't check to see if I had really negotiated with the others yet. "You either accept them or you don't. Five potions for a bag of herbs I ask for, plus one unusual stone from you every day and a report on where it was found."

"I'm fine with gathering herbs," Innokenty answered right away. "Why do you need stones? Making a collection, are you?"

"Examining." On one hand, they didn't want to help me get stronger, but on the other, while we were still a part of the same squad, a part of my strength would be shared with them. Same with the potions. We were good as long as they don't find out how little I was actually sharing.

"Okay, we agree to your terms. Potions first?" All three stared at me. I wished that I could remind them how our conversation began.

"Sure." Time for my main question. "Will you then share the location of place where one can level-up fast as a sign of good faith?"

All requests have been expressed; let's see how they'll react.

"You wanna slay Abyssites, too?" Major laughed, but I remained silent and kept my gaze on Innokenty who was thinking whether to tell me something or not. Petrovich had used these wild monsters in the Forbidden City, and none of us needed our former leader to become any stronger than he already was.

"On the way to the cemetery, turn to the mountains right before it. When you get there, you will see a large landslip, can't miss it; at the top of it will be a cave. But bear in mind that we get to choose a hunting spot if we meet inside. We stay, and you leave."

"Okay," I gave them the promised potions and even waved goodbye.

Well, that was a pretty nice conversation. I managed to secure myself a supply of herbs and find someone to look for stones for me. With everything in place, I was going to implement Dmitri's proposed plan. Life was slowly getting better! I still had to deal with the book about the Mask that I had received from Fox, but I couldn't read anything in it except for some seemingly meaningful names. All I saw were jumbled up symbols and I hoped that I would be able to understand them once I raise my intelligence a bit more. But I had to improve my stats and levels before that. And all of that was just a matter of time, time, and only time. It was the thing that I needed the most.

"We're ready!" My brave Lena with Cyril returned, dressed in their unpretentious armor, and carrying backpacks with supplies.

"Then we're good to go. I have just been told a good place for hunting." I pointed in the direction of our goal and went after them, guarding our rear.

But before we started our campaign, I couldn't resist the temptation and had to have a look at the description of my favorite skill.

Advanced Deception, level 1

Active Statuses:

• Baldy's follower

Your squad and merchants think you that are David Jones's follower.

Bonus: +2 Deception points per day.

• Path of Light

People see you as the representative of Light.

Bonus: +10 Deception points per day.

• Lone wolf

Your squad thinks that you are a psychopath and a maniac.

Bonus: +1 Deception point per day.

That was all the Deception that I had obtained. I couldn't really say that it was much, but at least I knew what to do with it. Of course, deceiving won't be as easy as it was before, when I could lie and immediately receive my award, but that was understandable; the higher level the skill was, the more difficult it was to improve it. From now, only those lies that people could believe day in and day out would count. I knew what to do once we arrive at our destination.

To be honest, I was afraid that we might get lost, but Innokenty wasn't lying. All of the landmarks that he had pointed out were simply impossible to miss. We arrived to the cave within an hour. It looked like a regular cave; the only thing that stood out were the red streaks on the walls. We also saw something that looked like a zombie or a skeleton. Although I couldn't see much from where I stood, I could see that the thing was level twenty, and that it was clear faster than the ones I had met before.

"Observe; you might also get this skill one day." I pointed at the undead that was running toward us. "Light is not only a healing element, but also a flame that purifies and thus becomes a universal weapon in this world."

The undead was getting closer and closer. Unlike the stupid Skeletons that rushed forth without any sort of plan or tactic, this thing slowed down, maintaining a safe distance between us. It then leaped forward. It must've thought itself fast. Lena and Cyril must've thought the same as their dexterity was pretty low.

I decided to confuse it. I gave thirty points of endurance to the undead, and made it halt rather clumsily. I didn't use my improvised flasks this time, I had switched to cotton wool, which I soaked with my potions. It looked rustic, sure, but my dependence on alchemy had become less obvious.

"Purifying Flame!" I thundered, activating Flame Flow. Scarlet tongues licked my enemy's body; reluctantly at first, then faster and faster, eating away its health. Let me hear someone claim that this was a manifestation of magic rather than divine power!

"What the hell?!" Lena gasped, amazed by my little show.

"We're not paladins, we're inquisitors!" Cyril concluded. "And then we will kindle the flame that even the angels in Heaven will feel their heels burn," he added, as if quoting someone.

I don't know whose words those were, but even I felt goosebumps. Meanwhile, the system increased the bonus for Path of Light to eleven Deception points per day.