He Who Fights with Monsters, #1
He Who Fights with Monsters
by Shirtaloon
Contents
18. One of Us
Overview
The team secures the manor, learning the cult is a local branch of the larger Red Table. Jason discovers magical amenities and experiments with outfit-swapping. Overnight, Jason confides his guilt over killing, and Rufus frames the harsh realities and choices of adventuring. Jason asks how to begin; Rufus says to absorb more essences.
Summary
With the manor secured, Rufus confirms the cultists belong to a local branch tied to the Red Table, a wider organization beyond their current rank to confront. The group decides to stay overnight, and Jason explores the house’s unexpectedly advanced magical amenities, contrasting them with the horrors discovered in the kitchen.
Jason replaces his ruined clothing with desert gear, experiments with his inventory’s outfit tab, and notes the misty gear-swap effect. Restless, he steps onto the shared balcony to clear his head under twin moons.
Rufus, on watch, joins Jason. Jason admits disbelief has given way to acceptance of this new world, though he still questions his place in it. He speaks openly about killing for the first time, confessing that counting the dead kept him from sleep.
Rufus counters that in this world justice is often delivered by adventurers; the cult’s atrocities demanded action. He lays out the bargain of adventuring: most days are wondrous, but the hardest day earns the rest. He urges Jason to consider who he wants to become and the consequences of every choice, including inaction.
As their talk ends, Jason asks what it takes to become an adventurer. Rufus answers plainly: they can teach him, but first he must grow stronger by absorbing more essences.
Who Appears
- JasonProtagonist; replaces ruined clothes, experiments with gear, and grapples with guilt over his first kills.
- RufusLeader on watch; explains the Red Table, justifies hard choices, and urges Jason toward adventuring via essences.