CHAPTER 84 What About My Experience Points?

Keith

The ring on Keith's right index finger was warm against his skin, letting him know that it had worked.

There hadn't been enough time to craft anything impressive last night, but his Mechanical Enchanter title wasn't for nothing. And after the dungeon, he was being extra cautious of his own fragility.

So he only took five points of damage from Henrietta's grip instead of twenty-six … That didn't seem like much, but with his base hit points at four hundred, every little bit counted.

[Automaton: Lulu has completed the Task. Automaton: Lulu asks if there is another Command. Yes/No]

Similar notifications had been popping up all morning, and each made him smile a small, vicious smile. He mentally selected [No] and turned his attention back to the matter at hand.

He'd watched Henrietta walk into the [Troll Magic], and for a moment … just a moment, he'd felt like she was leaving. Walking away. He'd known in his heart that she wouldn't, but his body had almost moved on its own, reaching to drag her back.

Instead, he'd stood aside. Patina had shot him a look like he was pathetic. He'd ignored her.

Ria was telling everyone her choice. She repeated, "I'm not going."

Sir Havork frowned at Ria, and Keith's fingers itched to cast a draconic wind spell to send him flying. Or maybe a lightning strike. His water magic could raise the lake and drown them all … but then, he'd have to clean up the mess. And it would interrupt Henrietta's conversation; she didn't like it when people were rude.

"You'll regret this," Knight Commander Havork told her. Funnily enough, it didn't sound as threatening as it should have. Keith knew the knight was Henrietta's mentor, so their relationship might make it difficult for him to outright kill her …

Keith didn't even want to think about what would happen if he ordered his minions to betray each other. For all Chloe and Rufus teased like cats and dogs, they'd probably overthrow him and put him through counseling if he tried.

"I can live with my decision," Ria spoke confidently. "But the only thing I would actually regret would be not giving you this."

The knight tensed, but Henrietta simply took a step back and bowed. "Thank you for training me all these years. Goodbye, Sir Havork."

Henrietta turned and walked back to the other side of the bridge. Keith walked up to meet her at the border. She couldn't leave the space without answering the riddle or taking damage, so Keith brought out a high-grade health potion. She just smiled at him and shook her head.

Then she sat down cross-legged on the bridge, facing the enemy. "I'll stay to watch until everyone has gone home."

Sir Havork sighed deeply before looking at Keith. "You'll make sure she's happy?"

"Of course." Keith couldn't help the bit of a sneer in his smile. Henrietta was already happier in his kingdom; Keith was sure of that.

The old knight turned on his heel and walked back toward the command tent.

Just then, Patina cut in. "Wait, they aren't actually going back, right? What about our battle? What about my experience points?!"

A few on the opposing side also started mumbling. Who knew if the Drendil king would pay for a failed invasion. Keith shrugged. "If you want EXP, send everyone to Deep Shoals. We're paying our people to be on standby for the week, anyway; might as well clear out the dungeons."

He needed so many crafting materials for his upcoming list of projects. More defense items for his person, a set of matching rings … and he needed to reinforce all the furniture.

"You can't be serious?" Patina waved her hand at the large army right in front of them. "You think they'll just pack up and go home? What's to stop them from waiting it out?"

Ria chuckled. "Don't worry, Lieutenant Patina. We've already handled the army. They have to go back today. Tomorrow at the latest."

"What? Why?"

Keith supplied the answer. "Because they're all out of supplies."

Ria put in, "You've already emptied the grain wagon, haven't you?"

Keith smirked. "The grain wagon? My automata have taken everything but the fish jerky. Let them snack on it all the way home."

Sir Havork turned on his heel just before he reached the other leaders. "You've done what?"

"I've stolen all your food. And water. If you don't believe me, go and check the wagons. You really shouldn't have been so focused on attacking the bridge troll."

"Trevor! Paxton!" Knight Commander Havork shouted. Two men in the Drendil army jumped. "Go check our supplies. Now."

"How long were they attacking you?" he heard Ria whisper to Gerda.

"They spent five minutes trying to guess, then they attacked for an hour. Then a break to guess again while they sent scouts along the river to see how far the magic went. Those scouts didn't come back." Gerda was delicately arranging her hair into some sort of coif. "They spent the next hour trying to pile mercenaries on to see if sheer force could break through, and stopped to take a break just before you showed up."

Ria nodded. "Plenty of time, then."

Keith was impressed. He interrupted. "How long can you keep this spell going, Miss Gerda?"

"Actually, the spell is enchantment based. Once it's cast, it's cast. It will last until the riddle is answered or the mana runs out—and I had a lot of troll magic saved up." The troll shook her head a little to make sure everything was secure. "[Troll Magic] is surprisingly powerful, especially after I captured all of the bridges in the Dark Enchanted Forest."

"All of the bridges?" That was news to him. "… Does my drawbridge count?"

"Ah! Well …" The troll hesitated, telling Keith all he needed to know.

"Your self-report as a part of section 3(f) of the Domain Influence section of your tax forms should have included which bridges you have domain over." Keith crossed his arms. On the other side of the bridge, soldiers were returning at perk-assisted speeds.

Gerda sighed. "That's correct. I haven't reported it because, well, I was worried about the attention. The teleport point at the castle is very useful."

"I'll have my office send you the fine and the appropriate paperwork."

"I get to keep them?" The troll seemed genuinely surprised.

"Maybe not all of them, and certainly not my—"

"Oh!" Henrietta interrupted. "That means I don't have to go for an hour-long run to reach your place anymore!"

Keith's mouth snapped shut, and he gave a strained smile. "We'll talk."

"Maybe we should be paying attention to our enemy," Patina reminded everyone. "It looks like they've finished discussing."

Sir Havork was marching back their way with a vengeance.