57 Vol.3 Ch.52- The Stars and The Moons.

"I'm going to sell all of our loot and turn the quest in. I'd say go find an inn but we only have one choice and sadly it isn't guild affiliated…" Dem said.

"Full price then, ugh…." Ilme groaned back.

We arrived in the evening in a small village on the outskirts of Sandervile territory. We were a few days away from The Fortress City Nactus which was currently under the control of City State Whieland. We were to spend two days here to rest and resupply while also turning in our quest and selling our gear. At least as much as we could sell-off in a village this small.

This village didn't even have a name as far as I know. It was your typical Sandervile farming village. Its sole purpose is to be a home for farmers and their laborers and it doubled as a waystation for travelers from Whieland while also acting as a buffer between the two city-states in case of invasion. Of course, nobody was going to admit that part.

Dem was this group's leader and as the highest-ranking adventurer amongst us, he also got the best rates at the guild. That included everything from buying supplies, selling monster parts, and repairing any gear. I was going to do my own purchasing but Dem practically begged me to allow him to do it so I could make the most amount of money. I caved and we gave him our lists and he handled the business.

The rest of us moved off to find the one inn this village had to offer. It was easy to spot as it was one of the largest buildings in the village, but still, that didn't amount to much when compared to the Anderfield guild branch. The two-story wooden building was unpainted and underwhelming. It was clear this building served one purpose and one purpose only. They didn't even have a kitchen to prepare meals for guests.

Before walking into the building I couldn't help but look over my shoulder at the familiar sound of a carriage rattling across the hard ground. It was a familiar sight to me as well. Two horses were pulling a carriage but the carriage didn't have grain or supplies, it had people, slaves.

Slaves were common just about everywhere. I couldn't go into a village or town without seeing them. They were ever-present. A part of me wanted to interfere. To step up and free those people but doing so was futile. Touching those slaves was the equivalent of damaging somebody's property. Not even the ever compassionate Anna spared them a second glance.

Slavery was normal, accepted, and some even expected it. Nations were built off of slave labor. That much was true in my past life. Even the other Xeno races practiced slavery. Not only against other species but their own. If I'm not mistaken the only major nation on this planet that has banned slavery was the Kingdom of Luminar. But they were the exception, not the rule. The strong have always lorded over the weak, regardless of time or space.

I could only watch as the carriage rolled off into the distance. I followed everyone inside the inn.

On a slightly more positive note, the rooms here were dirt cheap at only ten silver a night. But cost often reflected quality. My room for the next two nights was even smaller than I was used to and it didn't even have a window. It had a wooden chair laying in the corner that looked about ready to turn into dust and float away just by thinking about sitting in it. Besides that one ancient chair, there was a bed and that was it. At least the room was clean… mostly.

I was only going to be here for two nights including this one so it was just going to have to do. I'd prefer this to cold hard ground any day. I was about to barricade my door so I could get a quick snack in but I heard somebody approaching. They stopped at my door and gave it a few knocks,

"Knock knock, you didn't go to sleep did you, Voker?" Dem's voice asked me from the other side of the door.

After that night at the campfire, Dem had returned to his usual self. With his return, the group fell back into rhythm as if it was nothing more than a fleeting dream. I opened the door and Dem had a fat smile on his face as he tossed a bag at me. The bag jingled with the sound of coins as it floated in the air.

"There is a little less than six large silver worth of coin in there. I couldn't sell everything here so I'll get you the rest when we get to Nactus," he told me.

Six large silver? That's a lot, even after being split six ways.

"Are you sure? That seems like a lot…" I questioned.

"I can count you know? Well, not that high but I can count… I even had Anna double-check for me," Dem said a little too proudly. "But don't worry, It's your cut and I promise I didn't skimp you. Unless Anna did… but she didn't… most likely."

Of course, he can't do arithmetic. Most people in this world can't. Maybe I shouldn't have him handle transactions. At least Anna was there, I trusted her.

"In the future, if you want, I can do high-level arithmetic. If you need help that is," I offered.

"You can?" Dem said quickly. Then he shook his head and chuckled to himself, "Of course, you can. Sure, next time I'll bring you along so you can see how it's done. Damn, I should have brought you along this time. Didn't even think about that…" Dem said awkwardly while scratching his stubble.

"It's fine. Always next time."

"Anyways we are going to grab some dinner. If you… wanna join us? Maybe?" Dem asked while looking at me expectantly.

"I'll have to pass. Sorry."

"I see… I understand. Well, I got all of the stuff that you ordered and made sure you got credit for the quest completion. Name is in the report and everything. Our stuff should be ready before we leave. I'll at least see you tomorrow…?" Dem said, a little disheartened.

"Most likely, yes," I responded.

"Okay, well I'll see you then. Night, Voker."

I bid Dem farewell and listened to him as he walked away from my room. I felt a tinge of regret not being able to share a meal with the others but it was sadly just a necessity. Breaking the seal on my mask broke the illusion. Turning multiple shades darker in both skin and hair color would cause quite the disturbance. Something I'm not interested in doing.

But speaking of taking my mask off…

I opened the door and double-checked the hallway. I couldn't rely on my hearing and I've had people hide their presence from me before. I can never be too careful.

With the coast clear, I shut the door, locked it, then barred it. I didn't want anybody barging in on me. Even if it took them an extra few seconds to bust this crappy wooden door down, hopefully, it would be enough time for me to put my mask back on.

I took my mask off and put it into my spatial storage ring with a sigh. It felt good to take that thing off. Despite its size and appearance, it didn't even feel like I was wearing it. I rubbed my face and cringed slightly.

Despite all the things this mask did, it however did not keep my face clean. I still sweated under the mask and even though I tried to clean my face while being tucked into my sleeping bag I surely couldn't get everything. It's not like I could wash myself out on the road. I groaned and put my mask back on and decided to go grab a washbasin to clean myself. It's been a little too long since I've had a proper cleaning.

I returned to my room shortly and went through the usual routine of locking myself up in this room. I stripped down and gave my clothes a sniff.

Not bad. Not great. I should really wash these thoroughly since they smell like campfire and blood. But that's just the smell of adventure, right?

I started wiping down the dirt and grime off of my body and in time I was much cleaner than I had been in over a week. Being clean after a long period of time on the road was oddly satisfying. Back in my old life I never really cleaned myself or showered.

I mean I did "clean" myself but that was as simple as walking into a sanitation unit and pressing a button. Then bam. I was cleaner than anybody in this world could imagine. Not the same thing and I've come to enjoy bathing. Is that odd? I hope not.

I also noticed slight changes in my body. I should be nearing puberty but it was difficult to tell. I've never gone through the process myself and I know very little about my Elven biology. Elves don't have body hair and we don't get acne as far as I know. For Humans, it was pretty obvious when a child was going through the process of puberty but for me… it doesn't seem to be that obvious.

I am getting taller, if only slightly. My voice does crack and fluctuate occasionally. But other than that I have no other indications. I still look like I'm ten despite turning thirteen in a few months.

But there is still hope. Not all is lost. At least that's what I'm going to tell myself.

Instead of putting back on my normal gear, I opted to wear something more casual. My attempts at hiding my missing hand had failed but that was to be expected. I put on a long sleeve t-shirt and some warm pants.

Now that we were moving further north the temperature was getting colder. It was still moderate but it was definitely colder out here than it was closer to Sandervile. I sat down on my bed and stretched out. I ran my hand through my short black hair and sighed.

Already need another haircut. Looking forward to the day when I don't have to cut my hair because I'm a damn runaway slave. Maybe when I get to Luminar I'll let it grow a bit. Maybe…

I thought I was going to try and get a bit of sleep but I realized that I wasn't tired at all. The trip here was rather uneventful and let me get plenty of rest. We were attacked by stray monsters twice but Alce had killed them before I even saw them.

Since I wasn't going to sleep, I put my mask back on and decided to go for a walk outside. It was odd watching my skin color change right before my eyes. I had thought I would get used to seeing myself look so different but that hasn't happened yet.

I didn't run into anyone on the way down and found myself standing out in the open. The cool air was refreshing as I filled my lungs up. The light breeze chilled my skin to just the right amount of cold to still feel good. The sun was already down and the streets of this small village were all but empty. All was quiet in this little town.

Not having a destination in mind, I hobbled my way down the streets. Although the village was silent there was one building that seemed to be having a good time. The wooden building was bustling with commotion. The sounds of people laughing and talking leaked out from the closed door and shutters.

I didn't need to see inside to know that was probably the one and only tavern in this place. The others were probably enjoying dinner and mingling with all the other adventurers or townsfolk. I continued on my quiet walk.

After a good amount of time meandering, I found myself at the guild building. Calling it a building was sort of a stretch, however. The guild building was nothing more than a small home on the side of the street. If it wasn't for the lime green insignia of the guild plastered onto the side, you could easily have just walked by without knowing better. But next to that insignia was something I didn't notice before.

It was a set of large wooden shutters attached to the side but they weren't locked nor did they look like windows. I went to open the shutters and found the guild notice board. It was here that quests, bounties, or any other kind of guild work were placed.

I scanned the notices and read a few of them.

Exterminate giant rats infesting grain storage at a farm.

Exterminate plant monsters outside of town at a farm.

Harvest twenty soothe berries in the northwest plains.

Blah blah blah.

Nothing all that interesting on the quest side of things. To be expected from such a small village. But the guild also had wanted posters as well. I scanned looking for a certain mixed Elven child but was relieved to see that I wasn't there.

Seems I'm still ahead. But not for long. Gotta keep moving forward.

I looked over at a few other bounties but most of them were small-time bandits wanted for next to nothing. But at the top right of the board were the older more outstanding bounties. And amongst them was an entire sheet of paper dedicated to The Chapter of Despair.

Geeze, they are giving a large silver per member killed? But wait… damn, seventeen large gold coins for Alnwar's head?

That is… more money than a Human could spend in their lifetime. They don't even have a face to Alnwar's name. Just vague descriptions of him that conflict. No wonder he has never been caught. Sadly, that filth knows what he is doing.

But I know your face, Alnwar. You said you were looking forward to meeting me again. You should have killed me when you had the chance. I don't need a bounty to take your head from your shoulders. I'll make you suffer for what you did to Remi and Deya.

I felt the anger boil in my chest and face as I stared at that wanted poster. I smacked myself mentally for getting worked up over a stupid piece of paper and closed up the notice board a little too aggressively. Not wanting to be here anymore I hobbled myself back down the road to my room. It was time for bed.

I made it just past the tavern when I noticed two men supporting their clearly intoxicated friend as they stumbled down the street. I passed by them but one of them called out to me.

"Ayeee, Vokerr? Is that you?" a familiar voice called out to me.

I looked back and noticed the man. It was Nick, Dem's friend from Anderfield. It appeared that Nick had a little too much to drink this time around as his two companions were trying to keep him upright.

"Nick. Looks like you had a good night," I said.

"Suree did, kid. Beat all these LOOOOSSSSEERRRS in cards," Nick shouted in triumph while jingling his coin pouch. "Huh… seeeems like there is some missing…"

Nick flung himself free from his friends which elicited groans of complaint from the other two. A tall bald Human man with piercing blue eyes gave me an apologetic nod. The other was a Human man from the Dunes, a desert region on Amoth. He just shook his head at Nick. They both looked to be around their late twenties but both of them had the appearance of warriors. Topaz adventurer tags hunk loosely from their necks.

Nick tried to throw himself onto me but I sidestepped. I was expecting him to face plant into the ground but he managed to stay standing.

He burped, "Ah, no touching. Sorry…"

"It's fine. I just prefer not to have my personal space invaded," I said flatly.

"Please excuse our friend, sir. We don't mean to bother you," the bald man said kindly.

"Do you two know each other?" the man from the dunes asked.

"Of course we do! This is Dem's new party member! The one they were all talking about like… uh… how long ago did we leave? Like twenty minutes ago, rrright?" Nick burped out.

"No, it's been less than five minutes. Get a hold of yourself," the bald man said with a swift chop to the back of Nick's head.

Nick grabbed his head and groaned, "Ouch… not so damn hard, Ryan." Then Nick looked back at me. "Ah! Myyy manners! Voker, these are my party members. Tall, bald, and smart is Ryan. The big brown fellow is Adrian." Nick stepped over to his friends and put his arms around them, "And tooogether! We are THE STARS! WOOO!"

Nick hollered into the night sky. Adrian face palmed himself so hard that he left a visible mark on his forehead. Ryan just chuckled awkwardly and gave me another apologetic look.

"The Stars?" I said to myself.

Nick gave me a sour look but then laughed to himself. "What? Have you never heard of us? It's the name of our party! Pretty cool right?"

"Uh, yeah. Sure is," I said quickly.

Nick frowned, "Not everyone is like crusty, no fun having Dem. 'Oh, look at me, I'm Dem the Wyrm Slayer. Having a party name is sooo childish," Nick mocked. "Having a name is important! Helps people know who you are! Gotta make a name for yourself just in case some big-shot noble wants to hire you! Nobody is gonna remember just my name but a symbol! Now that's something everyone can remember!"

Nick continued his tirade but was stopped short as Adrian put him into a headlock, "That's enough talking out of you for one night. Sorry, little man. He got a little too excited with his winnings."

"It's fine. I know how he acted when he wasn't intoxicated."

Adrian mouthed out the word "intoxicated" then nodded to himself. Nick didn't seem like a bad guy. This was just what happened to people when they drank too much. There was a reason this stuff was considered to be poison. All the more reason to never touch it.

Ryan and Adrian began dragging Nick away but Nick began shouting once more. "Wait! Wait! Stoop. Voker!"

"Yes?"

"Wanna come adventure with us? Just one quest! We will be back before nightfall tomorrow, I promise," Nick said enthusiastically.

"I… don't know. I'll only be here for another night. And I don't think I will gain any credit for being with your party."

"Nonsense! Dem talked to me about how you can only get credit for higher ranked quests if you are with him! This quest is Topaz! Only one rank above you! You will get credit and I'll make sure of it!" Nick shot back.

"Why do you want me to come with you so badly? You don't even know me. Besides I'm crippled so I'll only slow you down."

"No that's- oww, okay okay…" Nick groaned as Adrian gripped him a little harder.

Adrian sighed then looked at me with his swirling dark brown eyes. "He wants to see what you can do."

"Wants to see what I can do?" I repeated.

Ryan beamed a smile at me, "Your party was quite talkative tonight. They were going on and on about how you cast custom fire magic against a bunch of bandits. And the praise didn't stop there."

Nick wiggled his way out from Adrian's death grip and stumbled over to me, "Exactly! Even that Dragonkin woman was going on and on about you! I've never heard her speak so much as a sentence!"

"Is this… true?" I asked.

All three nodded then Adrian spoke up, "Indeed. They seemed quite proud of you. I for one would like to see such a capable mage at least once in my life."

"Hey, don't let Clayton hear you say that," Ryan laughed. Perhaps sensing my confusion Ryan explained. "Clayton was our friend and mage. He retired a few years ago after he had another kid and settled down at a ranch not too far from here."

"I see," I responded with a nod.

"Exactly! Which is why you should come with us! We are just killing some vegetable monsters at a farm. One hour there, one hour back. Easiest quest of our lives! What do you say, Voker?" Nick said while raising his eyebrows.

Mmm. It could be informative to see how another group does things. Dem seems to trust Nick and I don't have any reason not to. These guys don't seem all that strong so if they decided to attack me I could defend myself. Besides, it's only a few hours away and it's not like I'm doing anything else.

"Sure. Why-"

"Poaching my party members again, Nick? Wasn't my money good enough already?" Dem teased.

Dem and SIlent were walking down the street together. Dem was out of his armor and Silent wasn't wearing his usual black clothing. Instead, both of them were dressed rather casually. Nick groaned and flicked his head back towards Dem who was just standing there with his arms crossed. "Am not. It's just one quest. I wanted to see him in action!"

"Uh, huh… It's not like he would go with you anyways," Dem said with a sly grin.

Nick turned around fully and an even wider grin spread across his face, "Oh? That's what you think? Actuallyyy, he just agreed to go with us. Isn't that right, Voker?"

Dem and Silent both raise an eyebrow at me. I nodded to them both. I thought Dem was going to be mad or even disappointed but instead, his grin grew even wider.

"Sure. Guess I was wrong, Nick." Then Dem nudged Silent. "Two large silver that Voker has no fun at all with them."

Silent smiled savagely. He gave Dem a thumbs up but then pointed up.

"More? Fine three," Dem said quickly.

Silent kept pointing his thumb up.

"Four?"

Silent bobbed his head side to side as if he was thinking about it. Then brought his thumb back up.

"Five?!"

Silent gave a look of "Sure, not bad." Then nodded his head.

"Five large silver it is… I'm about to make all my money back…" Dem said with a smile while rubbing his hands together.

"You hear that, Voker. We are going to have fun. Well, as much fun as we can have killing vegetables…" Nick said.

"Are you even going to be able to wake up tomorrow?" I questioned.

"Oh, don't you worry about me. I'm gonna have that beautiful Elf in your party heal me right up in the morning. Then I'm gonna be right as rain."

So Anna's light magic can heal the effects of alcohol as well? I figured as much.

Ryan sighed at his friend's crude remark, "We will see you tomorrow, Voker. Meet us at the guild building before sunrise."

"Got it. See you then."

With that, all of us walked back to the inn to get some rest. It seems that tomorrow would either be fun or lackluster at best. I guess I'm just going to have to find out.

—

I had fun.

Yes, I had more fun than I was expecting. Nick, Ryan, and Adrian are well-mannered and just overall good people. At first, I was apprehensive but it faded nearly within the first hour of talking with these guys. The walk to the farm took us a bit longer because of me but they were kind enough not to complain.

The quest itself was very easy. Well, considering that I was the perfect match for it. It was no wonder Nick wanted me to go so badly.

I imagine if these three had to march through an empty field and kill a bunch of living vegetables they would have given up out of boredom, not fear. The monsters were just well… mutated vegetables that could walk…. slowly. The things only came up to around shin level and it was as if potatoes grew teeth and shambled towards you at a snail's pace.

They were only at a threat level of five so killing them was very easy. But the problem and the reason the quest was Topaz and not Amber was because of the sheer quantity of monsters. They had completely overrun the farm and there were hundreds of the little monsters mucking about. The quest difficulty was set that high because there were so many. I'm sure if a single man tried eliminating all those monsters they might actually have gotten swarmed and possibly killed.

But as a fire mage… it was nothing more than a stroll through the farm. Since the fields were empty I had nothing to worry about. A single normal fireball was enough to incinerate hundreds of the little creatures in an instance. Nick and the party just went around stomping on any stragglers that I missed. All in all, it took us longer to walk here than it did to clear the monsters off the farm.

We were nearly back to where we were staying when I asked Ryan a question while pointing at the back of his steel breastplate. "What is that symbol, Ryan? I've never seen it before."

It was a rather simple design. Just three smaller moons surround the larger one. Just like how it is in the sky.

Ryan looked over his shoulder and at his back as if he could see the symbol. Then he just laughed. "Ah, it's the symbol of a warrior of the Moon Mother."

"The Moon Mother? That's the religion all about the moons, right?" I said.

"Sure is. Do you not know about it? I thought as a High Elf you would be familiar with our religion."

"I'm only vaguely familiar with your religion, sorry. You guys don't seem as prominent as Amon-Ra," I said.

"That is to be expected I suppose," Ryan said solemnly. "After the war, many followers from the Empire of Tel'an'duth perished. The Holy Kingdom also sent aid to Brax if I'm not mistaken, they were at least allies even though they didn't fight on the front lines. Amon-Ra became quite popular amongst the Brax soldiers. I'm also saddened to admit that Amon-Ra is more popular with my kin as well. But it's just the way the world is. I'm sure things will go back to normal in due time."

"You don't have any resentment towards Luminar or even the Holy Kingdom? Are you from Tel'an'duth?" I asked.

Ryan chuckled, "Hardly, I'm not some mindless zealot. I was born towards the end of the war. I have no memories of what life was like back then." Ryan rolled his shoulders and sighed. "But yes, I am from Tel'an'duth. Being born and raised as a full-blooded Human in Tel'an'duth had its own fair share of problems. But I didn't hate it. If anything I'm thankful for it. I found my purpose in life and I wouldn't take it back for the world."

Admirable. Most people don't look at their struggles in a positive light. Maybe I can learn a thing or two from you, Ryan.

"I see. You are stronger than most then," I said honestly. "So this Moon Mother… If I remember correctly the origin is something along the lines of the Moon Mother giving birth to her three children? And those three children turned into the smaller moons which then created us? That sounds about right?"

Ryan looked at me then laughed, "Hahaha! Yes, I suppose that is the gist of things! Although it sounds like you read it from a children's book."

That's because I did.

"But yes, that is the general story. We praise the Moon Mother and her children. Looking up into the night sky fills you with a sense of wonder, doesn't it?" Ryan asked out loud while looking up.

It was not night. If anything it was barely noon since we started before sunrise but Ryan still looked up into the heavens.

"Are you still going through that, uh, crises? Or whatever you were talking about the other day?" Adrian asked Ryan.

"Ah, yes we still are. At least as far as I know," Ryan said dejectedly.

"Crisis? I haven't heard of any kind of crisis?" I said.

"I suppose it isn't a crisis if you aren't a follower. But for us, it's a big deal. You see we haven't had an oracle in over a decade. Normally we would get one every other year but it's been far too long," Ryan answered.

"An oracle? Like from your goddess?"

Does the moon speak to them or something? Don't tell me these guys are actually crazy.

"I can already sense what you are thinking. But the goddess really does send oracles to us. Well, she used to anyway. We have a monolith in Thaymar that acts as a connection to her. She would send bi-yearly oracles to us. But to be fair I've never actually seen the monolith up close. But I have attended an oracle ceremony before."

Thaymar… that's the capital city of Tel'an'duth if I'm not mistaken.

"What is it like? Did you see something?" I asked.

"Sure do. I was a boy back then but I'll never forget it. The monolith is made out of white and gray stone. Almost like it came straight from the moon itself. And when midnight hit, the monolith shined brightly as it was illuminated by the moonlight. It was truly a spectacle to behold," Ryan recounted with a warm smile.

So maybe they aren't a bunch of crazies. But is it really their god? Or is it a god? Maybe it's really God? Or somebody could be pulling the wool over their eyes. Who knows?

"What did that oracle thing say?" Nick asked while taking a bite out of some jerky.

"Only the first two lines are legible to everyone. Everything after that only the Cardinals can read. The first two lines talked about a long-lasting peace amongst the nations. Apparently, the oracle before that prophesied the end of the war in the first two sentences. The Cardinals said much the same if I remember correctly, that part is a little fuzzy, to be honest. I was more enamored with the actual oracle than whatever they were saying."

Ah, there it is. The rest of the "oracle" can mean either everything or nothing at all. If they are really getting it from their God, the truth is in those latter lines. The higher-ups can use those latter lines to start wars or do some nasty things if they want. Even brand people as heretics and start mass witch hunts. The possibilities are endless.

The conversation petered out as we approached the village. We went to the guild together and turned in the quest. My payment was a handful of silver. Not much considering what I just made killing those bandits but I guess that's the difference between a Ruby quest and a Topaz quest.

I parted ways with the three of them and got some food from the tavern on the way back to my room. The proprietress gave me a weird look for ordering "to go" but she didn't complain much when I handed her the coin.

I got into my room and did my usual routine to make myself safe so I could take off my mask. I plopped down onto my bed since I wasn't about to trust that chair with any amount of weight. I just started digging into my slab of meat when somebody knocked on the door.

"Yes?" I called out.

"Can I talk to you for a second, Voker?" A beautiful voice called out to me.

What does she want with me?

I groaned and covered my food and put my mask back on as well. I opened the door and Sylvia was standing before me with her arms crossed.

"Took you long enough," she said curtly. Even when she was being rude her voice was just so pleasant.

Regardless of her beautiful voice, I wasn't sure what she wanted. Unlike Dem and the others, I owe Sylvia nothing. She paid the others to get her to Luminar but not me. I protect her out of respect for the others and because I don't necessarily want to see her get hurt. I mean I've barely even spoken to her over the last few weeks. But that's where things start and that's where they end.

"Uh-huh. What do you want?" I asked.

She looked down at me since she was more than a full head taller than me. Her one dark blue eye staring gazing at me through the open slit in her bronze mask.

"Aren't you going to at least invite me in?" She asked pointedly.

I turned and looked into the room. The walls were narrow enough that if my arms were longer I could stretch out and touch both sides. There was clearly nowhere for her to sit. Well… there is one place.

I stepped aside and motioned for her to come in, "Sure thing, Your Highness." I jabbed.

She didn't even acknowledge me as she walked into the room. She gave the chair nothing more than a passing glance. She was still wearing her usual all-black outfit. Everything from the top of her head to her toes was covered. Besides her pale High Elf ears sticking out from her hood. She slid my food a few inches away then wiped the covers off as if there was dust. Then she sat down while crossing her legs… on my bed.

I was about to speak up but Sylvia must have read my annoyance and spoke first, "I want to hire you."

Huh?

"Why? You haven't paid a single silver all this time. I'm practically protecting you for free. And you have the others so-"

"Not to protect me. I want you to come with us to a dungeon," she said flatly while cutting me off.

"Not happening."

Killing bandits, Lurkers, or potato monsters is one thing, an acceptable risk. Going into a dungeon is another, unacceptable risk. Increasing my rank in the guild makes my life easier. If my rank increases so does the guild's willingness to protect me. If I become a valuable asset to the guild that is. Not to mention the discounts I'm getting and the money I'm earning from quests. But dungeons are dangerous. Dying is not on my list of things to do.

"You haven't even heard my proposition!" she exclaimed.

"Don't need to. There is nothing you can offer me that would make clearing a dungeon worth my time."

"Clearing a dungeon? You are mistaken. I don't want to clear a dungeon. I just want to map out a single floor. Just one floor, that's all. Doing that will surely lead to a rank up as well, you can ask Dem if you don't believe me. I also already paid for the permit and the maps of the first three floors. Our one single mission is to map the fourth floor and give a detailed report of the monsters we find. And as for my offer? How does thirty gold sound? And I'll pay for your supplies…" Sylvia brought her finger to her mask in a gesture that made it seem like she was thinking. "I'll even sponsor your rank-up evaluation. Payment and everything. That is at least another gold."`

That is… more money than I've ever had. Paying for the priority mail cost me eight gold which was a small fortune. Twenty-five gold is the equivalent of three hundred large silver coins and a large silver was worth one hundred regular silver. Not to mention having my rank evaluation covered. But why?

"Why are you paying me so much? Wouldn't I be a hindrance in a dungeon? As a fire mage, I would burn the air in a cave and my walking ability is severely limited," I argued.

"That doesn't matter. Any mage is better than no mage. Your injury matters little as well since we will be moving slowly and efficiently. Besides, you counter an entire floor of the dungeon. The third floor is jam-packed with ice monsters. Will you join us or not?" Sylvia asked, unable to hide the annoyance in her sweet voice.

"Us? The others have agreed?" I asked.

"Of course. I paid for the permit and the supplies. I even gave them 60% of the profits from the loot we will no doubt gather. So…"

"Not interested."

Sylvia shot up from the bed, "What?! I thought you could count? Or did you mishear me? This single-floor dungeon excursion is probably the most profitable offer any adventurer has ever gotten, ever! It's just one floor! What can I do to convince you?" she shouted.

"Nothing. The risk does not equal the reward. At least for me, it doesn't."

Rather than getting even more frustrated, she thrust her face into her hands. She began tapping her foot and mumbling to herself. Eventually, she spoke again,

"Fine, the reward isn't enough for you? Then I'll just make it worth it. I'll give you everything I said before and I'll give you 20% of my earnings… No! I'll give you 30%! That means you will be getting 40% earnings from the dungeon for clearing three floors we already have mapped out. Then we just map out the fourth floor and leave. No more than that. It's going to take us… three days at the max. And the dungeon is only a day out of the way from Nactus! These kinds of earnings are unheard of! I'm practically letting you rob me!" she said while crossing her arms.

That is a lot of money. If I accept it I'd never have money problems again. Not just for my journey to Luminar but for the next few years…

"One floor?" I asked.

"One floor," she responded.

"And if you try to get us to do more?"

"You can drag me out of the dungeon by my ears," she said matter of factly.

"Why… why are you going to such lengths?" I questioned.

"We need a mage. Your ability to clear out a horde of monsters if need be is paramount to our success. There aren't any around here and I know what you can do. Despite your attitude problems you are the most capable mage I have seen in a long time. The others trust you which is even more important."

"I'm honored, but that wasn't what I was asking. Why do you want to go so bad? As a noncombatant surely you understand that you are nothing more than a hindrance?"

"Of course, I realize that. That's why I'm paying you all so much. I'm also paying you to map that floor out, not to ask about my personal life and how I live it. I have my reasons but they don't concern you," she said, unable to hide the annoyance in her voice.

"Fine. I'll go," I said.

Sylvia let out a sigh of relief and extended her hand.

"On one condition," I added.

"Name it," she said.

No way she will agree to this.

"I want ten more percent from you on top of the promised 30%."

"So 40% extra? Deal. See you tomorrow, Voker," she said while forcefully grabbing my hand and shaking it.

She left my room and closed the door behind her leaving me to wade in my own thoughts.

What just happened? That was all of her earnings gone. She is going to make absolutely nothing in this dungeon.

But I'm about to make a large fortune... Just who are you, Sylvia?