A few missed messages

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see a flashing icon, indicating that the HUD had some notifications for me. I was intrigued, as I couldn.t think of anything that had happened recently that would have done anything major. With this in mind, I opened the menu.

The top message was something that made sense.

Achievement Unlocked: Sweet Succulent Sewage

Ingest a consumable that would kill a man, and live without using any ****-defying abilities

Reward: Skill: Iron Gut (passive): You are immune to ingested poisons, as well as any form of illness that would be caused by something you eat.

That was... Useful. And also somewhat disturbing to know that I very well could have died by simply eating the porridge-like substance I was subconsciously spooning into my mouth as I thought. Regardless, there were more messages.

The next ones caused more surprise when I read them.

Your champion has earned new achievements!

Achievements unlocked:

One Pu~nch!
It's-a Me
Who send all these babies to fight?
Juiced!
How Does it Feel to Die?

I blinked a few times in shock at the message in front of me. I didn't even know that my champion could interact with the HUD whatsoever, let alone earn achievements. Unfortunately, I didn't know what most of those were, so it was mostly just the fact that he got them that mattered.

There was one thing that was certain though. I recognized the first achievement on the list at least, it was one gained for combat. That meant that it had already begun, that my plan of diverting the others would soon be in full steam.

It seems I was clearly lost in thought, as Grutrod spoke up. "Something wrong there laddie? Ye'v got a strange look on yer face." I looked over to him, seeing him staring at me with an eyebrow raised in concern.

I considered for a moment how I wished to answer, "I... am not quite sure. I am getting a strange feeling from my connection with my lord. It feels as if something is... not right." I acted like I spaced out in thought, while carefully examining his response.

He clicked his tongue and scowled, "Would it 'ave anyt'in te do with that monster in the woods from before? somet'in wasn't right with 'at 'ol travel in the woods, kept gettin' shivers." He made a grunt as he shook his head at the thought of it.

I let out a large breath before I responded, "Perhaps... I simply don't know. Whatever is occurring it is troubling Moged-Ruun enough for me to feel it through our connection, and that cannot be a good omen." I closed my eyes and performed a fake prayer to myself by reciting a few Bakugan names in an exaggerated accent under my breath.

Before anything else could be said, the door to the tavern was opened somewhat forcefully. Turning to look, I was greeted by what appeared to be a knight, dressed in the crest of house Normn. They simply had a chainmail shirt and leggings, with no helmet, and a band over their front and back where the crest was displayed.

He looked around for a moment before simply calling out, "Please do pardon my intrusion, but Baron Norman Normn has requested the presence of one Mathew Kiegan. If he is present, would he kindly come with me to the lord's manor?"

I looked to the barkeep and down to the food in front of me. Before I could even ask, he replied to my unspoken question, "Don't worry, I doubt a single person in the kingdom would be willing to touch it. It will be here when you get back." He then added one more detail, "And I don't think it is possible for food like that to go bad."

I gave a nod in response before standing up and walking to the man. As he opened his mouth to address me, I spoke as I walked past him. "I am the servant of Moged-Ruun, Mathew Kiegan. Let us not leave the lord waiting, yes?"

He didn't respond, simply following along behind me. I felt as if I may have been a tad harsh, but if Norman had something important enough to actively request my presence, it deserved a speedy response.

As we walked along the roads, I got a new message from the HUD.

Your Champion has earned a new achievement!

Achievement Unlocked:

THIS IS SPARTA!

I chuckled somewhat nervously to myself after reading that. 'He certainly knows how to unlock these achievements, huh? At least I know he is most certainly performing his task diligently. I can only hope he hasn't gone overboard...'

My mind continued to think out how to address the new threat I had created as I neared the home of the Baron once more.