I Can't Get the Vampire Rogue to Romance Me

Chapter 46 - Double the Rogue, Double the Fun

"Why not synergize with Sigismund or even Hagor? He's a druid and tends to be more ranged than not?" she pressed. Yes, she was fishing for a certain answer.

He snorted. "Come on. Sigismund hated my guts on sight, and Hagor has his own agenda. You're the only one I've been able to trust at all."

Evageline puckered her eyebrows, then raised one. "What agenda?"

Valerian gave a pitying sigh, "Oh darling, you've had to have noticed. He is all over you like a bear in heat and just sees me as competition. Now don't get me wrong, if you want to go rutting around with nature boy there... well that is a choice, I guess," he said, before straightening in his seat, giving her a polite nod, "but none of my business."

"You are so forthright, and mannerly," she stated, matching his tone.

"Thank you. I do try to keep up appearances. Gods know, it's been hard enough since the goblin raid. And... and I apologize for my behavior..." He stopped, then dropped his head, leaning in with a conspiratorial air. "Look, you know who I am. You know what I am. I'm pretty sure you understand that, just existing as I am, lying is something I do out of necessity. I'm not safe wherever I go. And most importantly, I'm not sure that if the others truly knew any of it... let's be honest, there isn't much that would stop them from killing me. It would be a way to unshackle themselves at the very least from this problem." He tapped the collar around his throat. "Believe me, if I could have left you all, I would have and be done. It probably would have been safer for everyone, but that isn't an option yet, so I have to be practical."

He looked at her, his eyes more open than she had seen yet.

"You have trust someone," she said for him, understanding.

"And I'm going to trust you. I may be a fool, but I do anyway. I thought you were the fool, a rogue who is so forthright and honest she doesn't seem like one that lives long, but..." he wobbled his head in a sort of reluctant nod. "You've made me change my mind the last few days."

"I wasn't trying to change your mind. I'm just trying to get through this as much as you are," she said.

A weighted silence passed between them.

Then he offered her his hand. "I know what it is like to be pressured to do things you wouldn't choose for yourself."

She met his knowing gaze, her throat constricting.

He didn't wait for her to ask. "Yes, I saw. And heard. I recognize a lot in your deity. You didn't exactly choose him, did you? He chose you?"

"Yes," she said softly.

"And he's got some plan that involves me?"

"I... I don't know what it is," she said, dropping her gaze to the ground, feeling so sick with guilt, though she couldn't say why.

"Look, I get it. You didn't choose this right? That's a situation I understand all too well. You feel like you can't trust anybody and everyone out there is out to get you," Valerian pulled up the hood of his cloak over his head, leaving just the edges of his profile visible. It seemed to be a self-comfort gesture.

"So knowing that I might be forced to... well, not betray you, I can't think that is Meta's ultimate goal, but you know I've got an agenda... That I don't even know about. Knowing all that. You still want to synergize with me?"

Valerian shrugged. "Yes."

Evangeline took another second to think. "I will do a 'synergy' with you." She giggled as his face bloomed with a pleased smile.

"Excellent choice," Valerian said. He sat down next to the tree, patting on the ground to invite her to join him. With a flourishing hand, he opened his menu.

Accepting his invitation, Evangeline did the same, hers appearing to her gaze. She had to just believe he could see his.

She had to flip over to the party menu, and select Valerian's name. Another box appeared with text.

You have sufficient relationship points with Valerian. Do you want to synergize?

She hit the "yes" button. A small box appeared before Valerian's name with a tic in it. Evangeline knew that she would need to level up more to synergize with anyone else in the group. Yet, tension in her shoulders that she didn't realize she carried, dropped after choosing Valerian as her first synergy partner.

A second later, a new menu appeared, this one labeled Synergy skills.

There was only one line underneath, but it was the biggest foundation of their synergy.

Synergy Skill: Reliable Sneak Attack

She opened the menu to read the text.

When both rogues are in the same combat, they are considered to always be in flank with each other no matter where they are on the field of battle.

"Oh, wow," Evangeline breathed as her mind raced through the implications of that. "So no matter what, even if we aren't attacking the same creature or standing next to each other, we get to use our sneak attacks?"

"Yes, which enables you to be across the field, as a firing assassin, without the requirement of hiding first to get the sneak attack."

"And you don't have to worry about fighting with anyone else, because as long as I'm covering you, you get your sneak attack."

"That's the idea," he grinned.

"Wow. I never thought to play the game with two rogues before. I had no idea they could synergize like this," Evangeline marveled.

Valerian wrinkled his forehead, confused. "Play the game?" he repeated. "Is that a turn of phrase or something."

"Uhhh," Evangeline had to think fast. "The game of life? Really? You never heard that before? It's very common where I come from."

"I..." was all Valerian could get out, as just then a noise from the edge of the forest snapped both their gazes to attention.

Skill: Perception. Success.

"Goblins!" Artmond shouted.

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