Choices

Specks of snow fell on Rosie's face.

After seeing Alysia off, she stood in the snow for a moment before turning back.

When she returned to the group, Lucius was speaking with Nikus in low voices.

Seeing Rosie walk back from behind the hill, he gave a subtle nod, acknowledging her return to the group.

Then, the group began to move.

Descending the slope toward the military camp, their boots crunched continuously through the snow.

Before they had gone far, Vera suddenly drew close to her side.

Her gaze remained fixed straight ahead, her stride and breathing steady as she kept her voice low enough for only the two of them to hear.

“Did Alysia try to recruit you into the Harpers?”

Rosie glanced over at her. “How did you know?”

Vera snorted softly, an expression on her face that practically read, I know her too well.

“You didn't join, right? That's why you came back.”

Rosie nodded.

In truth, her main reason was that Lucius had promised to give her something.

Otherwise, even if she refused the Harpers, she wouldn't necessarily have returned with them.

Vera fell silent for a moment before speaking up again. “Then how about considering joining us in the Dawnguard?”

Rosie paused slightly in her tracks, turning her head to look at her.

Vera's expression wasn't entirely solemn, carrying a hint of a smile, but beneath that smile lay a sliver of genuine earnestness.

Today, they had slain a group of vampires, yet a vampire elder had managed to escape.

In a sense, the operation could be considered a failure.

However, if she could recruit Rosie into the Dawnguard, it wouldn't be a total loss.

After all, Rosie's strength was plain to see, and she seemed to be God-favored with immense growth potential.

Perhaps she might even surpass the legendary strongest Dawnguard—the legendary dragonborn who single-handedly wiped out an entire ancient vampire bloodline.

“Didn't you say I couldn't join?” Rosie asked back.

“That was before,” Vera said. “Things are different now.”

Rosie thought for a moment, then shook her head. “Things are indeed different, but I don't want to join anymore.”

Rosie wasn't stupid. Baron Rhodes kidnapping people to deliver to Elizabeth made him an obvious accomplice, and aiding a traitor was a severe crime.

So even if her killing of Baron Rhodes came to light, it wouldn't matter. Worst case, she could just claim she had discovered he was a vampire accomplice.

“Sure you won't reconsider?” Vera's voice took on a tempting edge. “The Dawnguard is very popular, you know.”

“No,” Rosie said firmly. “I like adventures and traveling. Chasing vampires all over the world isn't the life I want.”

Vera was quiet for a bit, exhaling a breath of white mist. “Sigh... fine then.”

She dropped the subject of recruitment and switched topics.

“Where did you learn that 'Holy Light'? Why didn't you use it yourself back in the dungeon?”

“Are you interrogating me?” Rosie asked, slightly displeased.

“Haha, I'm just asking. It's fine if you don't want to say—everyone has secrets,” Vera laughed off her query.

“Still, your Holy Light was quite effective against that vampire. It probably suffered pretty serious injuries.”

“Then why aren't you pursuing it right now?” Rosie asked.

“I'm not a vampire. I need proper rest. It won't be too late to hunt it down tomorrow,” Vera replied.

Rosie fell silent.

She wouldn't be here tomorrow, so whatever happened next was none of her business.

After walking a bit further, faint specks of firelight appeared ahead.

The outline of the military camp gradually grew clear in the darkness.

The wooden palisades revealed jagged top edges under the moonlight, and dim yellow lights glowed on several watchtowers, swaying fitfully in the cold wind.

Spotting a group approaching from afar, the guards at the entrance immediately tightened their grip on their spears.

Once they recognized the figure leading the way, they paused, straightened up, and loosened their grips on their spears.

“Lord Nikus! You've returned!”

Nikus merely gave a faint nod. “Yes, I'm back.”

The guards noticed that the returning group was significantly smaller, but they didn't dare ask.

Nikus turned to Lucius behind him. “Lucius, take Lady Vera and Miss Rosie to rest. Whatever else can wait until tomorrow.”

Lucius stepped forward at his word.

“As for the rest, see to their accommodations.”

Nikus turned toward the remaining men, gesturing with his chin at the servants and survivors supporting one another.

“Ladies, please follow me.”

Lucius stepped aside, making a gesturing hand.

As he spoke, his gaze lingered on Rosie for a moment.

Rosie nodded. “Alright.”

Vera said nothing, simply offering a nod.

The two followed Lucius toward the rear of the camp. Along the way, they encountered several patrols of soldiers, who offered brief salutes to Lucius before continuing on their rounds.

Lucius brought them to a stop in front of a tent.

Faded by sun and rain, the tent canvas had turned a pale gray, with a few stray threads fraying at the stitched corners.

The entrance curtain consisted of two overlapping pieces of coarse canvas, their edges pressed with several polished copper snaps.

Lucius lifted the flap and gestured for them to enter. “Please get a good rest.”

Then he looked at Rosie. “I will bring you the item tomorrow.”

Rosie immediately beamed. “No rush, take your time!”

Lucius gave a small nod and turned to leave.

Vera pulled back the tent flap and ducked inside, with Rosie following right behind.

The tent was modest in size. Two cot beds were set on opposite sides, draped with rough gray wool blankets, while a low wooden table stood between them.

A sheet-iron brazier sat in a corner near the entrance.

Vera squatted down, picked up a few slender twigs from the woodpile beside the brazier, and placed them at the bottom. She produced a flint striker and struck it a few times. Sparks caught the dry wood, and small flames flared up.

She added several thicker logs, and warmth began to diffuse through the interior of the tent.

Rosie sat down on one of the cots.

Bending over, she unbuckled her deformed shield and set it beside the bed, then unhitched the broken sword from her waist, tossing it casually onto the ground at the foot of the bed. After that, she removed her blood-stained brigandine armor.

She looked down to inspect the armor. The leather where the rapier had pierced it was slightly curled outward, revealing the inner layer's steel plate and a dent on its surface.

“My, Rosie... didn't realize you were so well-endowed.”

Vera's voice drifted over from the opposite side, dripping with lazy teasing.

She was lying on her side on the cot, resting her head in one hand as her eyes roved over Rosie.

Rosie looked up, meeting Vera's gaze head-on.

Vera was sizing her up with an ambiguous smile tugging at the corner of her lips.

Then Vera extended a hand, wiggling her fingers playfully in the air. “Want big sister to give you a relaxing massage?”

Rosie rolled her eyes at her. “With fingers that nimble, your skill must be amazing, right? No wonder Big Sister Vera's skin looks so great.”

Saying this, she held up two fingers as well, mimicking Vera's crooking gesture from a moment ago.

Vera froze briefly before catching on, laughing as she scolded playfully, “Naughty girl, who knew you were like this!”

Rosie twitched her lips, offering no reply.

She stood up, lifted the curtain flap, and stepped out of the tent.

The moment the flap opened, cold wind poured in, causing the flames in the brazier to flicker violently.

A short while later, she returned carrying a basin of hot water.

The rim of the iron basin was warm to the touch from the steam, the water sloshing softly. White vapor rose into the cool air, swirling a few times before dissipating.

“Are you wiping yourself down?” Vera's voice drifted over from the cot, brimming with eager volunteerism. “Let me help you!”

Rosie set the iron basin on the floor, crouched down, and submerged a cloth towel into the hot water.

“You're overthinking it. I'm just cleaning my armor. Though if you want a sponge bath, I wouldn't mind helping you out.”

As she spoke, she wrung out the cloth and began wiping down the surface of her brigandine while it was still hot.

The surface of the wild bull leather was naturally water-resistant, and the bloodstains had dried into a thin, hard crust.

The hot water softened the dried blood, which was then wiped away along the fabric's weave, bleeding swirls of dark crimson into the clean water in the basin.

Where the leather was damaged, water seeped inside. She pressed down firmly to squeeze out the trapped blood before wiping it dry with a corner of the cloth.

From behind her came a long, drawn-out sigh from Vera. “Aww...”

Finishing up with the armor, Rosie wrung the cloth dry and draped it over the edge of the basin.

Then, she reached into her pocket and pulled out an item.

It was a dark red gem that shimmered with a bloody glint in the flickering firelight.

“That gem doesn't look like a good thing,”

Vera's voice drifted over, carrying a rare touch of seriousness.

Rosie nodded. “I agree.”

She grasped the bloodstone and took a deep breath.

“O Shining Holy Light, answer my call and grant me your strength!”

“Holy Light!”

Golden light burst forth out of thin air, bathing the bloodstone directly, making it seem as if a miniature sun had risen inside the tent.

The bloodstone's luster began to fade, shifting from dark red to bright red, then to orange, and finally turning a brilliant gold.

Finally, with a sharp crack,

the bloodstone shattered from the center into several pieces, which continued to decompose within the golden light until they dissolved into a small handful of grayish-white powder.

An invisible stream of golden energy rose from the powder and sank directly into Rosie's chest.

A surge of warm energy lingered in her chest for a moment before dispersing into her limbs and bones.

【Free Attribute Point +1】

Lying on the cot, Vera kept her eyes on Rosie for a short while.

“I thought you'd keep it and find a good buyer to sell it to.”

“Items belonging to evil vampires must be destroyed.”

Rosie spoke with righteous conviction, sounding so earnest she almost believed herself.

“You can even resist temptation like that. I really think you're cut out for the Dawnguard,” Vera said once more.

Rosie dusted off her hands and sat back down on her cot.

Her body showed no obvious changes; she would likely need to allocate the point before feeling the effect.

“That's because my will is as ironclad as steel,” she said, repeating words she didn't even believe herself.

Vera twitched her mouth and said no more. She rolled over to face the brazier, pulling her blanket up over her shoulders, her breathing soon becoming slow and rhythmic.

Rosie shook open her blanket, wrapped herself in it, and lay down.

The wooden boards of the cot were a bit stiff, but they were infinitely better than sleeping in the open snow.

Then, she began pondering how to allocate her free attribute point.

She had zero regrets about not becoming a vampire.

Sure, eternal life without aging sounded nice, but living in darkness, surviving solely on blood, and being hunted down wherever you went?

Where was the fun in that compared to being a lighthearted, righteous adventurer?

Besides, she had adventure rewards. Who knew if she might draw an infinite lifespan trait someday?

There was no need to risk getting killed at any moment just to turn into a vampire.

She analyzed various stats in her head and ultimately decided to invest the point into Strength.

The reason was simple.

Strength served as the foundation for attack, defense, and even speed.

With strength, your strikes packed real force.

With strength, you could wear heavy armor.

With strength, you possessed high explosive power.

And with enough strength, you could remain nimble even while clad in heavy plate.

In games, wearing heavy armor restricted Agility.

But in reality, if your Strength was high enough, heavy armor felt as light as cloth.

In a certain shithole universe, those huge guys wore actual heavy armor weighing tons, yet they not only ran like the wind but chopped down enemies with terrifying speed.

【Strength: 16+1】

The cold bloodstone had transformed into blood-pumping strength.

Rosie closed her eyes, feeling her body strengthen once more.

Then, fatigue welled up from deep within, quickly swallowing her whole.

Soon, the tent fell quiet, save for the quiet crackling of burning wood in the brazier and the snapping of canvas as the wind rustled outside.

...

The next morning, morning light filtered through the pale gray canvas of the tent, casting a soft glow inside.

The scent of lingering woodsmoke still drifted in the air.

Footsteps approached from outside the tent, coming to a halt before the entrance flap.

“Lady Vera! Miss Rosie!”

Lucius's voice called in from outside, sounding considerably livelier than the previous night.

Vera's voice rasped sleepily from her cot. “What is it?”

“His Highness the Third Prince has arrived, and he wishes to see you!”