Lilith and I had communicated directly with each other’s minds, but it wasn’t an option to do the same with my captor. Even if I could somehow manage to correspond with the troll’s mind, he would learn I was worth far more than a regular jewel. That was the kind of privileged information that could make him far more wary of me. Thankfully, Jeff seemed so dense that he hadn’t drawn the connection between the essence of my elf and the importance of the stone.
Yet.
I had to bide my time until I could summon Von Dominus again. While controlling my avatar, I probably wouldn’t be able to fight the troll and his mother. Even the most legendary dropkick this mountain had ever seen hadn’t done a thing to Jeff’s rock of a skull. The elf was too suited to slyer, more charismatic action, not suicidal bum rushes.
But I could always wait until they fell asleep and skewer their eye sockets with a kitchen knife. As an Infernal Dungeon core, I planned on taking out my enemies with ruthless efficiency and no end of style. If I was to become the strongest in the realms, then I needed a show of power.
Hell, this predicament could even be a blessing in disguise.
The only problem with that plan was that the troll might not give me a chance to enact it. I needed more immediate action, and loath as I was to admit it, that meant enlisting help. The only other creature I’d sighted had been the Sulfur Gnome, and I’d killed him. Lilith was my only remaining option, so I reached out with my senses, bypassing the essence of the troll, careful not to brush against his consciousness. I became aware of the stones, the mountain, and—at the edges of my mind—heard a muffled roar like a multitude of people talking underwater.
I paid close attention to the troll to ensure he wouldn’t notice what I was doing, but he seemed more focused on transporting me than on what I was doing inside his balled fist. I continued my search for intelligent life for a few minutes until finally a grating voice entered my mind and grew distinct.
“I hear you,” a voice said. “Speak, being who whispers inside my mind.”
It wasn’t Lilith. I had no idea how to contact the goddess, but I fixed on the garbled, fractured voice and isolated it from the others. I focused on making it clearer. Listening in, I paid close attention to the creature’s thoughts.
“Your assistance is required,” I communicated telepathically. “I’ve been captured by a troll. My freedom shall lead to your reward.”
I didn’t know what kind of being I’d just contacted, but it didn’t matter. If Jeff was any kind of indication, Lilith’s creatures weren’t exactly the brightest in this world.
I didn’t have anything to barter with, but it didn’t know that. Make a connection first, and the terms of payment could be negotiated later—once I was rescued from this troll.
“What reward will you offer?” the being asked.
So, this creature was a little more intelligent than I had given it credit for. It wanted to know exactly what was on offer before assisting me. I needed to keep it in the dark but tantalize it enough to gain its help.
“I’m a dungeon core,” I answered. “My powers give me the potential for limitless wealth. Seek me out, destroy my captors.”
I didn’t even have any treasures, nor did I really have a dungeon, but this creature didn’t need to know that. Enough information to hook him—I assumed it was a him—and I could be scanty with the details.
“Then I shall find you and save you from the clutches of this fiendish troll!” the voice replied. “I can sense your location. You are nearby.”
I silently thanked Lilith. Maybe not all her creatures were hulking mongoloids.
“Move with haste. The sooner you arrive, the more bountiful your prize.”
“I will not tarry.”
“Ensure you don’t. I am not one to be displeased,” I said.
“Understood. I shall gather the tribe and come to help you.”
Hours upon hours of VR roleplay and sales pitches were serving me well in this world. I might not have been the most dangerous warrior yet, but I could still hustle like a professional.
When the telepathic link went dead, I considered what kind of creature had just promised to help me. It’d promised a tribe; numbers would be crucial if I was going to outplay Jeff and his supposed family. The creature’s voice had sounded menacing, but voices could be deceiving. My mind grasped at the kinds of monsters I could have contacted. What creatures would inhabit an Infernal realm? Undead skeletons? Demonic werewolves? A raging colony of hellish ants?
Was it wishful thinking to hope I’d contacted an Infernal Dragon?
Either this thing and its friends were going to be powerful enough to overwhelm and mince my captor and his kin, or I was going to have to cook up another exit plan, preferably something not involving plummeting off a cliff, getting used as a troll heirloom, or staying immobile for the next week.
I had shit to kill, and Jeff was at the top of the list.
Chapter Six
“Ma! I be home!” Jeff cried out.
I still couldn’t see anything out of the troll’s hand, but I could hear a slight echo. Most likely walls, either of a cave or some kind of mountain structure. My senses were restricted. It was difficult to make anything out aside from feeling and hearing, and my sight—if you could call it that—was short-ranged and weirdly refracted through the faces of my gem.
“Jeff! You be late for dinner,” a bassy feminine voice answered. “Where’s Charlie? Bertha be waiting for him.”
I mentally grimaced as my mind flickered back to Charlie lying motionless on the side of the mountain with his head screwed on backward. He’d been the first, but when the cavalry arrived, the rest would be next.
“He had an accident,” Jeff grumbled uneasily.
“What kind of accident?” his mother
