He Who Fights with Monsters (He Who Fights with Monsters, #1)

by Shirtaloon

“Is he healing?” Gary asked. “I can’t tell,” Rufus said. “There’s blood over all the wounds.” “Well, wipe some off,” Gary said. “You’re the one who wanted him to use that stone,” Rufus said. “You wipe some off.” “I have fur,” Gary said. “I don’t want to get blood in it.” “Since when has that been a concern?” Rufus asked. “It’s a new thing,” Gary said. “I’m growing as a person, and I think you should support that. By being the one who wipes the blood off.” Farrah shook her head, pulling a handkerchief out of her pocket.

Do you have aristocracy in your world?” “Sure,” Jason said. “We’re slowly phasing it out in favour of wealth-based oligarchy, but it’s still around.”

“You sure you’re good for everyone?” the constable asked. “No worries,” Jason said. “I could do this all day.” “You will,” the constable said. “Half of them we’ll be turning away, though. I may have said you don’t do injuries, but they’ll bring them in regardless. You from one of the churches?” “Definitely not,” Jason said. “Then why are you helping all these folk for nothing?” “Well,” Jason said, “since the gods are apparently real, here, I feel like I should be waving the flag for secular morality.” “Friend, the gods are real everywhere.” “That’s what people keep telling me.”

“That’s a noble goal,” Jason said. “How’s it going?” “Reasonably well,” Jory said. “The advantage of researching cheap and plentiful materials is that they’re cheap and plentiful. I’ve even started a clinic out of my laboratory, selling some of my early successes. It helps pay for my research, although the margins are thin to keep it affordable. That was the whole point, after all.” “Maybe you should talk to the church of healing,” Jason said. “They might be willing to fund your research.” “I had the same thought,” Jory said. “As it turns out, they see who gets healed and who doesn't as theirs to choose. The poor, in their uneducated ignorance, don’t get the chances the wealthy do to understand the glory of the gods. As such, they need suffering to wash clean their souls.” “That sounds familiar,” Jason said, shaking his head. “You get that kind of thing where I come from, too.”

“He might have his blind spots,” Farrah said, “but his family have never been shirkers. When the time comes to stand, they stand at the front.”

The idea is to help people, right? Killing some monster can do that, but so can turning a room full of sick people into a room full of healthy ones.”

“He seems like an unusual man,” Gabrielle said. “Yes, but also a dangerous one,” the goddess warned. “Take care in your future dealings.” “He never seemed that way,” Gabrielle said. “It isn’t his powers or his appetites that make him dangerous,” the goddess said. “It’s his ideas. He’ll have you question your faith, just because it’s faith. He’ll have you question everything, if you let him.”

“What about Ellie?” Humphrey’s voice came from the control table. “Ellie’s dead,” Rufus said coldly. “She was torn apart by monsters. This is Ben.”

“Actually, that sounded amazing,” Jason said, looking at the burned and blackened remains of leeches. The pile was about a third smaller. “You alright, buddy?” Jason called out. “Wobble to the left if you’re alright.” The pile moved slightly left as it continued the pursuit.

“I’m an affliction specialist,” Jason told Vincent as he continued to chip away. “We don’t do speed. We do inevitability.”

thoughtfully. “Affliction specialist is a niche role,” Jason pondered out loud. “Just the thing to deal with a certain flavour of monster, but against ordinary ones, I'm just a slower version of any middle-of-the-road adventurer.” He glanced over at Vincent, whose expression gave away nothing. “If I want to pass then,” Jason reasoned, “it isn’t about beating the unusual monsters, because that’s basic stuff for my ability set. It’s about showing I can dominate the ordinary ones as well as any other adventurer. Am I close?” “You’ll find that out when the assessment is over,” Vincent said. The

“I still can’t believe you gave him all that money,” Gary said as they made their way through the crowd. “It’s an investment.” “In what? That guy spends all his money on helping sick poor people.” “But imagine a world where everyone gave money for things like that.” Gary thought it over for a moment. “Then there’d be more healthy poor people?”

“Having a conversation with you is like wrestling an eel,” Clive said. “When did you ever wrestle an eel?” Jason asked sceptically. “I grew up on an eel farm out on the delta.” “Really?” Jason said, looking at Clive with new respect. “It must have been a lot of work to get from there to here.” “I had some good fortune.” “My friend’s grandfather says the great adventurers are the one who turn luck into fortune.” “Is your friend’s grandfather someone worth listening to?” “Never met the man, so I’m not sure,” Jason said. “He runs a school in Vitesse. I’ve haven’t had a chance to visit, yet.” “Wait, are you talking about Rufus Remore’s grandfather?” “Well, best get going,” Jason said, setting off again.

“I’m really more of a scholar.” “I hate to break it to you, Clive, but whatever you call someone with magic land mines, it isn’t a scholar.”

“Did he just call you Hump?” Jason asked Humphrey. Humphrey let out a sobbing groan. “Are we doing what Hump suggested?” Jason asked Ernest. “If we're going to follow Hump's plan the way Hump laid it out, we need to get moving, don't we, Hump?” “I hate you,” Humphrey said. “That’s alright, Hump,” Jason said with a consoling slap on the back.

“Five-element lock,” Belinda said. “Not bad for an internal door.” “Jory keeps some expensive supplies in these rooms,” Jason said. “Good to know,” Belinda said. “Please don’t steal them,” Jason said. “I don't think she'd do that,” Clive said. “No, I would,” Belinda told him.

“I failed her,” Rufus said, his voice barely audible. “No,” Emir said softly, moving to place a hand on his shoulder. “She died as well as any of us could ask. Comrades behind her, enemies in front of her and friends beside her.”

“We had little chance to control our own fates,” Rufus said. His first words in days startled the others into stopping. “We came out here to get away from that,” Rufus continued, “yet she died under the command of silvers. Because she followed me.” “Because of you?” Gary growled, voice thundering. “That’s the biggest load of crap I’ve ever heard. You think she followed you around like a lost dog? Am I your pet cat? We came out here to control our own fates; you just said it yourself. She chose to be here, just like you. She knew the risks of this life and she died protecting people, like a hero.”

“We all lost her,” Jason told Rufus. “You’re not the only one who gets to mourn.” Jason stood up and followed after Gary.