All in Charisma (A LitRPG/Isekai Adventure)

The morning light filtered through the dense canopy of the Darkwood, casting an eerie glow on the ancient ruins of Eldareth. Justin stirred awake, feeling the chill of dawn and the cool earth beneath him. He glanced around to see Lila already awake, stoking a small campfire. Kargan was still asleep, snoring softly.

They had made it through the night in one piece, and that was about the best he could ask for.

For the first time since Silverton, Justin had no level-up to process. He got up and stretched, trying to reduce the tension in his muscles. Though it was daytime, the dimness was downright eerie.

He moved closer to the fire, where Lila handed him a piece of bread.

"Morning," she said, her voice low. "We're getting a little low on supplies, unfortunately."

"Morning," Justin replied, taking a bite. "Well, once we get to Windfall, we'll dine like royalty." He looked over at Kargan, who was still asleep. "We should wake him up."

As if on cue, Kargan stirred, blinking groggily as he sat up. "Huh?"

"Time to eat," Justin said, handing him some food. "Hope you like bread. It's all we have left."

Kargan nodded, taking the offered meal. "It's fine."

As they ate, Kargan was quiet, lost in thought. Justin guessed he was probably choosing his level 3 skill.

After a few minutes, Kargan's short tusks stuck out a bit in what Justin assumed was an orcish smile. "New spell," he announced with pride. "Vital Surge. It lets me use some of my Life Force to heal myself or a party member."

"That's great!" Justin exclaimed. "It will definitely come in handy if we decide to explore the city."

"Is that the way we're going?" Lila asked. "We've had our share of close calls already."

Before they could discuss it further, a sudden rustling from the trees caught their attention. Justin stood up, his hand instinctively reaching for his cane. From the shadows emerged a figure—half-man, half-horse. It was a centaur with a brown coat, holding a short bow designed for rapid firing, along with a quiver full of arrows at its side. Its pale face was framed by a mane of dark hair, and its green eyes glowed with anger.

Before Justin could say anything, the centaur was already drawing an arrow and letting it fly. Thankfully, it was knocked back by Kargan's Blood Aegis, which was still standing strong.

Lila was already moving, while Kargan quickly cast a fresh ward. The arrows kept coming, pelting the barrier constantly. It wasn't long before even this new version petered out entirely.

The centaur moved with astonishing speed, firing on the move. Kargan moved quickly to recast the barrier, but in the interim, an arrow flew right toward the group and lodged right into Lila's shoulder, causing her to scream in pain.

"Get behind me!" Kargan roared, abandoning the creation of a new aegis.

As the orc stepped between Lila and the centaur, and Justin moved behind him, Kargan cast Sacrificial Armor, surrounding himself in a crimson barrier. Even as arrows were knocked back by his magical shell, Kargan turned to Lila and roared with pain as he cast magic anew. A flash of crimson light surrounded her, and the arrow slipped from the wound as the flesh beneath knitted together, leaving nothing but the blood that had stained her shirt. Her eyes widened at the sight.

Kargan's entire body was sweating blood, riddled with wounds, even as he turned to face the centaur, staff in hand. His magical armor was already weakening from the continuous barrage of arrows. He needed time to recover.

Justin felt worse than useless. There was no way that centaur would let him even get close enough to attack with his cane. Even with Sacrificial Armor covering him, the centaur could easily outrun him.

"I can't keep this up forever," Kargan said, his voice strained. "We need to think of something."

Justin thought of his own skills. Poison Barb might work, but did the centaur even speak the same language as him? Dandy's Swagger would provide a small morale and confidence boost, but it was questionable how useful that was. There was Dazzling Display, of course, but if Justin used it now, it wouldn't be available again until tomorrow, and he might need the move for the Vault.

In the end, Justin activated Dandy's Swagger, strutting forward and twirling his cane. A yellow aura surrounded him, infusing itself into his allies. An unbridled, cocky confidence filled him.

Kargan glanced at him. "What on Eyrth are you doing, Socialite? Now's not the time for dancing!"

But he'd gotten the centaur's attention, which had apparently taken the strutting dance as a threat. Justin decided now was the perfect time to lob a Poison Barb.

"Nice shooting! Did you train with the village idiot, or are you just naturally this bad?"

The centaur apparently understood the message all too well, its cheeks flushing with anger. It began firing only at Justin, who did his best to dance out of the way. One of the arrows he couldn't dodge, but thankfully, it didn't matter. His Gentleman's Rebuff kicked in, swatting the arrow aside like a fly.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

[Gentleman's Rebuff has shielded this attack!]

Kargan stood between Justin and the centaur, tanking the hits with a newly conjured Sacrificial Armor spell. He quickly followed this with a new Blood Aegis. He stumbled a bit, blood dripping off his skin and even staining his robes. He definitely couldn't keep this up forever.

"Now, Lila!" Justin shouted.

Lila seized the opportunity, lobbing her knives. The centaur stumbled, three of Lila's six knives hitting right in its flank, causing it to rear up on its hind legs as it let out a horse-like scream.

When it backed away into the trees, Justin thought it was retreating.

But then, two more centaurs burst from the underbrush—one with a sword and shield, the other with a bow.

"This…is bad," Justin muttered.

Kargan was panting for breath, his form slumped. The new centaurs wasted no time in joining the attack, the sword-wielding one charging toward the outside of the freshly conjured aegis while the two archers continued to rain arrows on it. The new aegis wouldn't last long against the barrage.

Kargan gritted his teeth, already preparing a new aegis in anticipation of losing the current one. "We need to retreat into the Vault!"

Just as they were about to make a break for it, a pained scream echoed from the forest. Justin looked up to see the original centaur archer falter and fall to its knees, an arrow embedded just below its left arm. Two more arrows then were buried in its side.

From the trees, Eldrin emerged, bow in hand, his face a stern mask of concentration. The sight of their friend arriving in the nick of time filled Justin with a surge of relief and hope such as he had never known.

"Eldrin!" Lila shouted.

Eldrin quickly shifted his aim to the remaining centaur archer, which was already backing away into the Darkwood. Eldrin fired in rapid succession, bringing the second beast down.

The centaur swordsman, still attacking Kargan's new Blood Aegis, suddenly switched tactics and charged at the Ranger. Eldrin had enough time to shoot another arrow before diving into some underbrush, barely avoiding the creature's charge.

The Ranger needed help, even if it was only a distraction.

"Now!" Justin yelled.

They ran forward to engage. The centaur cut its losses and fled into the Darkwood, screaming furiously while beating at its shield. Maybe it was calling for reinforcements.

Eldrin watched the centaur's retreat, not breaking his defensive stance until he was sure it was gone. Then, he put his bow on his back and approached the trio, his eyes noting Kargan's presence.

"What in the gods' names are you doing here?" he demanded, though his tone held more relief than anger. "The Darkwood, of all places?"

Justin, still catching his breath, managed a tired smile. "Nice to see you too, Eldrin."

"They'll be back with more," the Ranger said. "I hope that Vault there isn't too high a level."

"It was Level 8 last night," Justin said. "Though we haven't had the chance to check it this morning. Where did you go? We were worried sick!"

Eldrin ignored the question for now. "All of you are lucky to be alive. It's my fault, I suppose, for not warning you about the Darkwood."

"I'll say," Lila said. "How did you find us so easily?"

"Shadowflight. And you left a trail that would put a drunken elephant to shame."

"Thanks," Justin said. "Any news about Gareth?"

Eldrin gave a coy smile. "Let's just say they won't be a problem."

Lila's eyes widened. "You killed them?"

"No, of course not. I led them south along the Marin. They've probably figured out the ruse by now, and when they do, they'll probably head for Darkstream Crossing. From there, they'll have to spread themselves thin trying to figure out where we're going. The point being, we should be safe to head to Windfall. That's the closest city of note."

"That was our plan," Justin said. "We should've gone to Darkstream Crossing instead."

"Aye, but there's no use lamenting the path not taken. Our new goal is Windfall, and from there, getting the rest of the way to Mont Elea."

"That's what we figured," Justin said. "Apparently, this city is the fastest way through."

"Aye," Eldrin said. "If this Vault is still Level 8, it's doable. However, without Alistair, we'll need to be on our toes. I'd take this over the Darkwood and centaur ambushes any day. Nasty, brutish creatures."

"They'll be back any moment," Kargan said.

At this voice, Eldrin regarded him, putting out a hand in greeting. "Eldrin Thornwood."

"Kargan Durzag," he said, taking the hand cautiously.

"Clan?"

Kargan was silent. "It's…complicated."

"A Blood Warden," Eldrin said with respect. "That's quite a rare class."

"And you're a Ranger, unless I miss my guess. I'm just here for a time. Until Windfall."

The sounds of movement and distant war cries from the forest showed that time was pressing.

"About time we entered that Vault," Justin said. "Mind taking over the party before we do, Eldrin?"

"Aye. Let's approach."

Justin invited Eldrin to the party and mentally offered him the role of party leader.

[Eldrin has joined the party and assumed the role of party leader. You gain the expertise of his Pathfinder's Pace.]

As they walked toward the Vault, Justin set his focus on Eldrin's character, noticing that he had earned a level and a new skill called Falcon's Mark.

Justin closed Eldrin's character information. "That Falcon's Mark looks interesting!"

"Haven't had the chance to test it out yet," Eldrin said. "Basically, it lets Shadowflight spot for me, allowing me to shoot into places I couldn't otherwise see."

"That sounds useful."

"I'm sure it is." Eldrin's eyes turned to the Vault. "Let's approach."

Even as the sounds from the forest increased, Kargan cast a new Blood Aegis, having mostly recovered from his wounds. It would buy them a bit more time to review the Vault description in case arrows came flying at them.

When they were within a few paces of the city's open gate, Justin received the information.

Vault Discovered: The Fate of Eldareth

Recommended Party Level: 8

Average Party Level: 6.5

Risk Level: Dangerous! Your party is below the recommended level. Proceed with extreme caution.

[Do you accept the Vault's challenge?]

Good, it hadn't gone up in level while all other details remained the same. Justin immediately gave his mental assent. With Eldrin leading the party, there was no reason to delay.

Kargan, however, seemed to hesitate, watching the broken gates of the city with worry.

"It'll be all right," Lila said reassuringly. "You're more than capable."

Kargan sighed. "No choice, huh?"

"Unless you wish to fight an entire centaur herd," Eldrin said.

"No. That, I do not." A moment later, Kargan nodded.

[You have accepted the Challenge of The Fate of Eldareth. May your courage be your guide and resolve be your shield. Good luck, Brave Adventurers.]

Justin was surprised to see another notification flash across his interface.

With that, the party entered under the broken gates of the city as one.