Ch. 21..30

Chapter 21

"Fine, I’m sorry okay. It won’t happen again," mumbled the bandit as he took a step back.

Rydel said nothing and acted instead. Within a single breath, he cleanly slit the bandit’s neck and wrapped a handkerchief around it to avoid blood spilling all over the restaurant floor. He yelled, "Yo Trom, you can take this trash’s bounty down from the wall. It should be for ’Slar, Bandit Captain.’"

Trom quickly appeared and hurriedly removed a poster from the wall as he bowed his head and smiled at Rydel, waiting for the hunter’s next move.

"I don’t usually deal with this level of trash but he brought this on himself." Rydel glared at the other bandits sitting at the now silent table. After seeing their captain killed like a lamb before the slaughter, they were scared stiff and unable to move. "Let’s go, kid, I’ve had enough for tonight."

"You got it Captain!" shouted Jack before he chugged the last of his brundy. Jack picked up Bowser, who was carrying the last of a charred pig’s foot and followed Rydel to the stairs.

"This should cover a few nights, right?" Rydel passed the bandit corpse to Trom with a smirk.

"Of course," said Trom as he turned and dragged the corpse out the back door. The incident wasn’t expected but Trom knew how to take advantage of a situation and give kindness for kindness. Normally he would charge one gold coin for a room with two beds and a few silver for food. This bandit captain was worth ten gold, easily making him more money.

The hunter duo escaped the many shocked gazes in the restaurant and found their room upstairs. Those people downstairs began to gossip and form the stories that would spread like wildfire the next day, all about a mysterious newbie with a rare fox and his merciless companion.

"Don’t worry about the people downstairs. There will be lots of rumors and stories tomorrow, but they’ll disappear in a few days," said Rydel. "Just make sure to sleep well cause we’ve got a long day tomorrow. First, we’ll find a local medic and then we’ll head to the local association branch. There’s some stuff there I need to take care of."

"There’s a local association branch here? How come we don’t just stay there?" asked Jack.

"Cause it’s only an office. There’s a single bed and it’s for the man who runs it 24/7."

"Really? Why is it so small? I thought the Adventurers Association was an international power?" questioned Jack.

"It is, but that doesn’t mean much here. The Adventurers Association headquarters is in the Polt Federation, so the surrounding nations all respect and give the association authority in their respective regions," sighed Rydel. "The Reinolt Kingdom is one of the few nations who keep a neutral relationship with the association. They don’t stop the association or impede it, but they do their best to keep it from growing too powerful within its borders. Can you guess why?"

Jack scratched his head for a second before he guessed, "With a strange entity like the association, some nations probably fear the association stealing their internal strength, right?"

"Exactly," chuckled Rydel. "The Polt Federation already has its hidden military strength that no one wants to face, but the federation offered a pact with the Adventurers Association. As the most neutral nation across the continent, the neutral Adventurers Association joined hands with them and the two entities were deemed untouchable from that point on. King Leodoro already hates outside threats but having such an influential power inside his borders made things worse."

"I can imagine," said Jack. "What did he do about it? Knowing his personality, he probably lowered the acceptance standard of the Royal Court and offered insane benefits to attract would-be association members."

"That’s exactly what he did, but he also personally invited many high-level adventurers with bribes to join his side. And considering the amount of wealth he offered, almost everyone left the association. That’s why the association building is so empty nowadays," clarified Rydel.

"What a rotten king. No wonder that idiot boasted so much about his Royal Court." Jack recalled the king’s offer to join the Royal Court and the incredible pride the king displayed. "How many lv. 30’s does the Royal Court have now compared to the association?"

"Before the recent pact between the association and the federation, we had more than twice as many. But after the king’s unbelievable bribes, they’ve now got six, one more than us. Other than Arnole and Zariff, they’re all under lv. 35," answered Rydel with a displeased grunt.

"At least we’re beating them in one category." Jack’s words caught Rydel off guard and got the lanky hunter to look back him. "We’ve got more summoned heroes."

Rydel burst into laughter and slapped his leg. It didn’t last long, but Rydel was feeling a little better after imagining all of the wealth and resources the king must’ve lost thanks to Jack.

"Did the Royal Court make you an offer too, captain?" asked Jack.

"Yeah, and it was a good one too. It had me consider leaving the association," answered Rydel.

"Then why did you stay?"

"Cause of the chief." Suddenly, the indifferent Rydel became solemn and a hint of pride flashed in his eyes. "When everyone was made an offer, you can guarantee that Zariff was given the biggest of them all. But the moment Arnole and the Royal Court showed up at the association building, he stood guard in front of the door and forced them to admit all benefits they had to offer him publicly."

"After they gave in to his demands and announced them, shocking every civilian and adventurer to their core with jealousy, he flat out refused. Chief didn’t even let them into the association building and forced them to find the other adventurers in private to make their offers."

A genuine smile crept onto Jack’s face as the story went on. He was going to speak but Rydel continued, "The members who stayed behind and turned down the Royal Court were furious at everyone who left."

"But the chief didn’t let anyone lash out against any defected adventurers, saying that if they’re hot-blooded and itching for a fight to let off some steam, then they can just look for him. He hasn’t publicly admitted it, but a huge grudge has grown between him and the king because of this."

"Sounds just like the old fart I know," joked Jack. "Well, I guess I’ve got to hurry up and level up. To be honest, I’ll be leaving the moment I’m lv. 30 and can travel safely, but I’ll stand by that old fart if he needs some help."

He wouldn’t admit it to Rydel, but his opinion of Zariff only went up every time someone talked about him. There was no doubt in Jack’s mind that Zariff was worth more than just befriending, maybe even being a sworn brother. That’s something he would think about, even if it was awkward considering his achievement to seduce Maura.

"I figured you’d leave when given the chance. Got any place in mind?" asked Rydel.

"Trodar."

"Oh..." Rydel flinched back when he got the immediate answer. "There’s a lot of trouble around Trodar, why go there?"

"Cause that’s where I spent most of my time as an ancient hero," answered Jack.

He didn’t mention his former guild or him helping set up the Trodan Council that ruled the nation. Those memories were precious and personal, plus he had no clue what might happen if people found out that he was such a major character in ancient Kartonia.

Someday he would be stronger and not fear any backlash, but if that was leaked and some enemy found out, they may not hold back and would do everything in their power to silence Jack before he became powerful.

"Trodar, huh?" Rydel stroked his chin in thought for a moment. "I guess I’ll have to join you."

"Why’s that?" asked Jack.

"Cause that’s my home. I was born in the streets of Gilga," said Rydel, gently staring back at Jack. "You were an ancient hero of Trodar?"

Jack swallowed some saliva and chuckled nervously. "Yeah, I was. Just keep that between us for now, okay? Few people know that I interacted with ancient Kartonia before coming here, but you’re the only one who knows that I was an ancient hero. I didn’t even realize that until you explained a few things to me."

"Don’t worry, I can keep a secret, but you’ll have to answer all of my questions," persuaded Rydel with an eager grin.

"I guess I can do that much. I’ll try my best to answer," said Jack.

Rydel tensed up slightly and leaned in closer to Jack, giving them a sense of closeness while they were seated on the two beds across from each other. With a mix of excitement and anxiousness, Rydel asked his first question, "What happened to the Leisure Guild?"

 

Chapter 22

"What happened to the Leisure Guild?"

Jack froze when he heard Rydel mention his former guild by name. Earlier Jack had realized that the many characters played by gamers were living, breathing heroes in ancient Kartonia, but personally hearing his guild’s name confirmed it without a doubt.

"What happened to the Leisure Guild?" Rydel repeated himself. He wasn’t antsy, but he could tell that Jack was distracted and wanted to make sure he got an answer.

"We disbanded." Jack finally gave his hushed answer.

Rydel was astonished by that statement. Not only because Jack said it disbanded, but Jack said "we" specifically. "You were part of the Leisure Guild?"

"I was a cofounder." At the time, Jack needed to start a guild and get it to control a nation as one of the strange achievements. It was too difficult for most players, but Jack_J the Achievement Junkie was up for the challenge.

"You were... a cofounder..." stammered Rydel. "But that means you... you helped start the Trodan Council."

"Yeah, I occupied the second seat. But like I said, we eventually disbanded and went our separate ways."

"But why?" asked Rydel.

"It wasn’t in our control." It was too complicated to explain how his online friend and cofounder in the first seat quit "A Hero’s Tale" along with most of the other main members of the guild. One thing led to another and it wasn’t able to sustain itself.

"But if you disbanded, how come the Leisure Guild is still around?" questioned Rydel.

"What did you say?"

"The Leisure Guild is still around. It’s nowhere near as powerful as it was during ancient times, but it’s easily the oldest guild in Trodar, maybe even the entire continent," clarified Jack. "It’s one of the weaker major powers in Gilga and doesn’t have too much influence anymore, but many people still admire and respect it for all the good it had done for Trodar in the past."

Jack didn’t know how he should feel about that, let alone respond. When the Trodan Council was formed, it was originally filled by only members of the Leisure Guild. In modern Trodar, Jack guessed that it would be lucky to occupy two seats out of the eleven.

"Are you sure you don’t remember any of your former titles? I’m sure I’d figure out who you were," said Rydel, nodding his head like a dog expecting a treat from his owner.

"Honestly I don’t." Jack lied; thanks to some of the titles being part of achievements, how could he forget them all. But he didn’t want too much attention, he felt that it would only get in the way of his leveling.

"Fine, I’ll get you to admit it sooner or later," claimed Rydel, guessing at Jack’s motives. "Anyways, records say that the Leisure Guild was once the strongest guild in all Kartonia, is that true?"

"In a way, it was. It’s hard to say who was the absolute strongest, but our guild had achieved far more than anyone else’s," answered Jack. He was referring to the Leisure Guild being first on the achievement board, where they were the undisputed king until they disbanded.

Pride and respect swelled through Rydel when he heard Jack confirm the fact. "What about the ancient guild wars? Was the Leisure Guild really the most powerful?"

Laughter rang out from Jack as he put two and two together, realizing Rydel was talking about the guild wars PvP event from the past. "We weren’t the most powerful, but we were definitely one of the top three."

"That’s still awesome!" Rydel was like an excited child that was easily enthused.

"What can you tell me about Trodar? It’s been a while since I’ve been there personally," said Jack, trying to get some information of his own.

Rydel shrunk when he heard Jack and lost his pent-up excitement. He took his time to breathe and think, throwing Jack for a loop. After making Jack wait for almost a minute, Rydel said, "I’m not sure. I was born there but I fled the country when I was a few years old."

"What happened?"

"You want to go to Trodar to help the war effort, right? Well, my parents tried to escape the country before the travel ban was put in place. We made it past the border, but my mother and I only survived because my father led some soldiers in a different direction," answered Rydel with a softer tone.

"My mother was distraught and wouldn’t stop traveling north until there was nowhere left to go. That’s what led to us stopping at a port like Reinolt City and to me later becoming an adventurer. I joined the association and turned down the bribe partially because the members of the Adventurers Association are some of the few people allowed to enter Trodar without too much hassle. There’s still a massive entry and exit fee, but money comes and goes."

"So, you don’t remember much from Trodar? You learned all that other stuff from your mom, didn’t you?" asked Jack.

"Yeah, either that or from paid informants." Nodding his head, Rydel’s weighted gaze met Jack’s. "If you’re going back to settle the troubles in Trodar, you can count me in. I’m no hero, but not many can outsmart me."

Jack sighed and groaned. "Are you sure? I’m never orthodox and will do whatever I want on a whim, despite the consequences."

Remembering what happened when they tried to leave Reinolt City, Rydel chuckled, "If that’s all I have to worry about, you can forget about persuading me otherwise."

"Fine, you can join me after I reach lv. 30. Now you know why I have no time to waste."

"No worries, we’ll get you leveled up in no time. With that fox’s help, you’ll get there soon enough," said Rydel, returning to his usual mood. "Let’s get some sleep, we’ve got a long day tomorrow."

Jack didn’t respond; he laid down and pulled the sheets over him and the sleeping fox that fell asleep beside him. Rydel did his best to calm his emotions but it took him some time for him to fall asleep.

Morning sunlight crept through the corners of the single window, giving them both an early welcome call. They got on their feet and made their way downstairs. Like clockwork, Trom was there waiting for them.

He assured them that he would take care of all their needs and gave directions to the nearest medic and the local association building. Jack asked about the local Royal Court office too, but Trom insisted that they couldn’t miss it if they found the association building.

Once they exited the Boar’s Inn, the streets were already full and packed with budding gossip about the two of them.

Jack laughed when he heard whisperings that Rydel was really a demon summoned to protect its master on command. His favorite rumor was that he had received a blessing from Kori the fox god and Bowser was a gift from above.

Though they were laughing the whole way, no one bothered them in the least thanks to the brutal rumors they all heard about Rydel.

A simple building came into view. It was home that had been converted into a business with a sign reading "medical services found here." They knocked on the door and were soon welcomed by a middle-aged man in plain clothes. He showed them in and immediately tended to Jack’s needs since he was the first customer to show up.

It cost Jack seven silver for the basic-level healing, new bandages, and an ointment that would quicken his recovery. He found the price to be more than reasonable but, like everyone, Jack hated parting with his money when he was nearly broke.

With a quick bow and a thank you, they returned to the dirt road. Since Baltwood wasn’t too large, it didn’t take long for them to find the association building. That’s when Jack understood Trom’s advice to find the Royal Court office.

To the side of the plain and worn-out association building was the most extravagant building in town. It’s bright purple and yellow colors stood out like a sore thumb, just like the Royal Court crest which was hanging above the building’s entrance.

Sidestepping the Royal Court office, Rydel led Jack into the association office and yelled, "Vaul, where are you?"

A muscle-bound man with an unbuttoned coat rose up from behind the front desk. "That you, Rydel? Man, it’s been too long. You need to visit more often otherwise, things here get too boring."

"We can talk about that later Vaul. First, where’s everything that needs to be delivered to the main office?" Rydel got straight to the point.

"Here, take it already," said Vaul, who casually lifted a large, leather chest onto his desk.

Rydel placed his hand on it and stored the chest into his spacial bracer. "What’s the news from around here? Anything we need to know about?"

"Yeah there are a couple of things, but let’s talk in private," said Vaul as his finger pointed to Jack.

"He’s a new member so don’t worry about him. Just say what you need to say," barked Rydel. He was clearly trying to hurry Vaul along and keep the man from going off on tangents like he always did.

Vaul took a good look at Jack and was startled that he couldn’t see through his level or anything. Based on his wardrobe Jack could be labeled as a newbie, but Vaul had never met a newbie with that level of privacy. This made him curious as a grin stretched across his face.

 

Chapter 23

"If you say so," said Vaul, waving his hand like it no longer mattered. "There have been some issues with the mine lately. Nothing too serious has happened but some people have gone missing."

Rydel squinted as he pondered the issue. "How convenient, we were planning to grind there since I’ve got this kid as bait. Anything strange about the disappearances?"

Vaul shook his head saying, "Not sure, but you might be able to ask around. Three parties have gone missing, which is normal but not all at once. Only two survivors made it out alive in the past week while the rest of the party never made it back."

"Who are the survivors and where can we find them?" asked Jack.

Jack’s sudden question caught Vaul off guard, but Rydel lifted his hand and said, "Don’t be fooled by the kid’s appearance Vaul. Trust me, he might have more experience than the two of us combined."

That shook Vaul to his core; no one ever got such high praise from Rydel. "Okay... You’ll have to check the taverns and inns for a pair of clerics, one male, and one female. They go by Drad and Slivia."

"Thanks, anything else we should check out while we’re here?" asked Rydel.

"Sort of, it’s not too important though. You should know that the valiant crown prince has arrived and is staying next door," said Vaul, rolling his eyes and poking fun at the royal family. "He’s here to level up and unlock his next subclass with help from the mine."

"Hmm, that complicates things," sighed Jack. "What level is the crown prince currently?"

"He just reached lv. 9 yesterday, the celebration kept me up all last night," groaned Vaul in displeasure. "My guess is he’ll take a break for a few days before heading back in to reach lv. 10 and choose a new subclass."

"Looks like you’ve got competition, kid. Who do you think will win, you or the crowned brat?" joked Rydel.

"Is there anything to question?" Jack didn’t bother to compare himself with a spoiled royal; he didn’t even bother asking about the prince’s name.

Rydel laughed and put his arm around Jack. "Good, that’s the way it should be. Let’s go get Bowser registered and prepare to enter the dungeon in three days. That’s how long the medic gave you right?"

Jack nodded and stated, "I’ll be ready by then, and with everything I’ve got going for me I’ll level up way faster than that fancy pants prince. Besides, we all know the fastest way to level in a mine is with good bait, and you’ve got the best bait right here."

They all chuckled at Jack’s straightforward confidence. Vaul smiled and asked, "Kid, what level are you exactly? I can’t tell for some reason."

"What do you mean?" asked Rydel.

"It’s because of this," Jack flicked the "Privacy Screen" pierced on his left ear. "Rydel probably didn’t notice a difference because of his eagle eye ability."

Both of the men were shocked that the little piercing had such an effect. Vaul grew more curious and asked, "What kind of treasure is that? And what does the other one do?"

"These are both soul-piercing from ancient Kartonia and the other one is only useful to me, you wouldn’t understand even if I told you."

"What? Soul piercings!?" they yelled in unison.

"Yup, and I know where you can find two more, they’re a set even," commented Jack.

"Seriously? Why didn’t you tell me this sooner?" Rydel was mad with envy.

"Because they’d be nice to have, but that particular set is more useful for someone tanky like Zariff," answered Jack.

Rydel was bummed and a little confused by the term "tanky." He sighed and let it go, trusting Jack’s judgment.

Vaul didn’t know what to feel or say. A low leveled adventurer he had just met spoke about something so epic and rare like soul piercings like there were only accessories.

"Anyways, let’s go register Bowser at the royal office. Who knows, maybe we’ll see the crown prince while we’re there," said Jack, who turned to take initiative to leave.

Rydel sighed and waved Vaul off before following behind Jack. Left alone without much explanation, Vaul was drowning in confusion as he tried to figure who and what Jack was.

The hunter duo arrived at the royal office and immediately opened the door to enter. They briefly glanced at the wall filled with bounties and posters. Both of them took in a breath of fresh air when their warrants weren’t anywhere to be found. Glad that they beat the royal delivery boy here, they quickly wrote Jack’s name on the waiting list and took a seat.

After almost thirty minutes of hushed conversation, Jack’s name was called out and the duo walked to the reception desk. The old woman sitting on the other side asked, "How can I help you today?"

"I need to register my fox," said Jack, pointing to the curled up infant fox on his shoulder.

"Hmm," the old lady thought for a moment as she stared at Bowser. "I’m not sure what breed this fox is, so I’m sure it will be pricey. Lucky for you it’s young and low leveled. Follow me."

She stood up and led Jack and Rydel down the hallway. The interior was just as flashy and eye-catching as the exterior; it was almost overwhelming. "Oh, what a treat. That’s the crown prince himself."

Jack and Rydel heard the lady’s comment and followed her gaze. Through an open door, they saw a young man who looked to be in his twenties and he was covered from head to toe in vibrant clothing.

The lady bowed as she passed the doorway, but the hunter duo had looked away before the crown prince noticed them, not caring to treat the royal family like anything special.

The crown prince frowned with he saw the little attention he got from those two and shouted, "Maid, stop." The old lady followed orders and stopped, forcing Jack and Rydel to do the same. "Who are these two lowly commoners, are they even worthy to be back here?"

Frowning deeply, the lady explained, "These men are here to register a beast companion. I can’t tell what breed the boy’s fox is, so I must use the bloodline test."

"Oh?" The prince showed some interest after hearing about a rare beast. "If it’s so rare that an experienced maid like yourself can’t recognize it, then it must be good. Boy, I want your fox."

The corners of Jack’s mouth tilted downward. He was mad for many reasons, including the fact that the prince never made an offer and only declared that he wanted Bowser as if he wouldn’t need to pay a thing and Jack should just give Bowser up. To keep himself from getting into too much trouble he remained silent and shook his head.

"You refuse my order as the crown prince? That’s a major offense towards the crown," said the prince, trying to scare Jack into submission.

Jack took a deep breath and tilted his head to the prince. "I’ve already offended your old man, you’re just a mouse compared to him." The prince flinched when he heard that, not knowing what to say next. Seeing the prince’s hesitation, Jack continued, "My time is precious, so don’t make me waste it. Please madam, we’re in a hurry."

The old lady was struggling to decide her next move. She knew that Jack was with the association thanks to the waiting list, but she feared to upset the crown prince. This was the worst nightmare she never expected to have.

"I want that fox!" commanded the prince. Suddenly, the guards around him stood at attention and brandished their swords.

"You’ll need more than a few guards at lv. 20." Rydel was twirling a knife in his hand.

All the guards stiffened when they heard his comment. None of them were strong enough to read Rydel’s level and they were all confused by how they couldn’t read Jack’s level either.

"Guards, I said I want that fox!" the prince continued to yell.

"Are you trying to make an enemy of the association?" Jack’s question caused them all to hesitate. "If so, you’re doing a really good job. If not, I’d recommend taking a few steps back so I can forget this ever happened. The kingdom doesn’t need to know about the prince trying to steal from the association, or does it?"

The prince’s face was red, unsure of what to do so he wouldn’t lose too much face.

Normally, by law, any citizen of the kingdom would have to obey the prince’s every command. However, association members had a certain level of political immunity thanks to the international power they have as a backer. Treating an association member like this was already not within the bounds of the law, not to mention the clear physical threats he had made towards them.

But if he simply gave up on the fox, it would be like cowering to the association and his father would be livid after hearing that.

Cooling himself down, the prince said, "Name your price."

Chapter 24

"Name your price."

Jack looked away from the prince, acting like he never heard the question.

The old woman was worried, but she hid her emotions the best she could and hoped that Jack would cooperate. Rydel smiled and shook his head when he realized how stubborn and immature the crown prince was.

Still redder than a tomato, be it from anger, embarrassment, or both, the crown prince repeated himself. "Name your price adventurer."

"You can’t afford it."

The calm, hushed reply caused the prince to choke up and freeze awkwardly. The guard in charge of protecting the prince spoke up, "Please adventurer, the prince has always liked to collect rare beasts of all kinds. Truly you can ask any price and the Royal Court shouldn’t have a problem acquiescing."

Jack chuckled; his patience was growing thin and he only wanted to hurry the bloodline test. "I’m being honest, you can’t afford my fox. Though I’m unsure of the breed myself, I’ve seen what it can do so I know that it’s extraordinary. The only thing that might tempt me would be the throne your king sits on, but maybe the Royal Court can ask on my behalf."

That guard wanted to cough blood after hearing Jack’s response.

For him to ask for the throne, it was clear that Jack was never going to give up the fox and that Jack had a deep enmity for the royal family. This was obvious to anyone who realized the meaning of Jack’s phrase, "your king," which meant Jack didn’t consider King Leodoro as his king.

"You ungrateful—" the prince was about to return Jack’s insult but was interrupted.

"Please madam, hurry and take us to the bloodline test. I’m disgusted by the company here and no longer wish to smell their undeserved arrogance." Jack’s words were polite and respectable, yet they cut to the core like daggers. The woman sighed and turned to lead the two adventurers away.

"Wait, I didn’t give you permission to help them. By royal decree, this Royal Court office will be temporarily shut down as we comb its records and perform a screening," said the prince with a wicked smile on his face.

Everyone looked at the crown prince in shock, not expecting the prince to be so brazen or hot-blooded.

Once a year there was a screening of each office to verify all records and weed out any potential spies in the ranks of the Royal Court.

Usually, such screenings are scheduled and announced beforehand to the public so the public can plan trips and errands around the weeklong screening, even in "A Hero’s Tale." Once a screening was announced, there was always a boom of customers that would do their errands a week early.

Also, the office workers were paid on commission, only getting paid a portion from every transaction they made. They would also have to plan their spending around the scheduled screening so they could afford to live, but a surprise screening was a possible financial suicide.

Hearing this, the old woman’s fury was directed at the prince. She understood that he had power and would typically get what he wanted, but it was clear that the prince couldn’t exploit association members so easily and it was futile.

In a childish fit, the prince had acted against everyone’s interests and gained everyone’s enmity. Even the guards were mad now that they had to perform a screening and level up the prince, knowing they wouldn’t be paid any extra.

"Are you really so childish and immature? It’s not their fault that you can’t have my fox, yet you’re causing them more problems than anyone else," said Jack, motioning towards the maid and the guards. "If you’re the crown prince, then surely the Reinolt Kingdom won’t last even half a century more."

"You!" This time the prince acted personally, lunging towards Jack before his guards could stop him.

He was wide-eyed and anxious to strike Jack down but was sent flying backward before he remembered Rydel standing beside Jack.

"Wow, I guess the Royal Court no longer gives any face to the Adventurer Association. I’ll make sure to fill in Zariff once we get back to Reinolt City," commented Rydel.

"Please adventurers, don’t take offense. His highness—"

"Your king has already offended me before I joined the association, so don’t go on telling me that this was an accident. We all know how spoiled and corrupt the royal family is, I’m just not afraid to admit it," answered Jack. "If he had stopped persisting after one of the many times we stated our case, then I’d be willing to chalk the experience up to the prince being young and naïve. But if he seeks my blood just for not giving up my fox, his arrogance knows no bounds. Even the ancients gods wouldn’t act so arrogantly."

"Come on kid, it looks like they’ll be busy here for a while. Let’s give the prince and his servants room to play," said Rydel, turning and leading Jack back to the lobby.

"Come back here you cowards! You’ll pay for striking the crown prince; you’ll be dead the moment you step into Reinolt City!" Fuming, the prince slandered the two silent adventurers leaving the office. All guards and workers were silent, not wanting to receive the punishment for talking back to the royal family.

In the lobby, everyone was able to hear the many yells from the crown prince. They all lowered their opinions of the royal family, especially when they heard that the prince acted against association members.

It was obvious to most people that the prince wanted this exiting adventurer’s beast and threw a tantrum when he didn’t get it.

From that day onwards, new rumors of the pampered royal family would spread like wildfire.

Also, everyone’s opinion of the Adventurers Association went up when they saw the adventurers leaving calmly like it wasn’t worth their time to argue. The woman who worked as the receptionist at the royal court would even share how the association members respected and defended her when the prince announced the screening.

This small event would be a silent wave of commotion that would later lead to the neighboring towns to favor the association over the Royal Court.

"Now what? Is there another way to register Bowser?" asked Jack once they were outside.

"Hmm, it’s not like there aren’t other options but I’m not sure what’s best. Let’s ask Vaul, he’d be more familiar with this region than me," answered Rydel.

The hunter duo entering the neighboring association office and saw Vaul sitting in deep thought. Vaul looked back at them and yelled, "Who are you? What are you?"

"Whoa, calm down." Jack put up his hands and leaned back like he was innocent of the accusation. "I’m just a summoned hero that the king pissed off, so I joined the association instead. Before I came here I had interacted with ancient Kartonia but right now I’m just a lv. 1 trying to register my beast companion, got any tips on how I can do that?"

Vaul took a moment to respond, thinking over Jack’s words. "Okay, I believe you since that’s the only way Rydel would look up to you so highly. As for registering your fox, what happened at the royal office?"

Rydel was about to explain when Jack briefly summed it up. "The crown prince was too immature and announced a surprise screening after I refused to give up Bowser. Know of any other ways to register it?"

"Well," laughed Vaul, "in most nations, you can even register a beast with the association, it’s just that the Reinolt Kingdom has a law saying that any beast in their country must be registered by them and they only accept international beast registrations for temporary residents."

"So, how does that help me here?" asked Jack.

"There are other places you can register your beast within the country, but they’re going to cost you. The Royal Court has paced massive taxes on practices like the bloodline test and the materials used for it. Any third-party service to register a beast will cost more than triple what the Royal Court offers." Vaul explained it simply and shrugged.

"That much?" Jack was startled by the insane price, realizing how the Royal Court easily gained influence. "Where can I find a place to do this?"

"There’s one here in town. Baltwood is technically under the Royal Court’s protection as a town neighboring the capital, but the Balt Guild has been the real strength and protection of the town since they founded it," said Vaul.

"Balt Guild, huh? I knew they were from here, but I didn’t know Baltwood was named after them, I thought it was the other way around," stated Rydel.

"The Balt Guildhall is like a second town hall and they offer all the same services as the royal office, only at a much higher price. Knowing Rydel you guys are probably staying at the Boar’s Inn, the guildhall isn’t too far from there." Vaul smiled, knowing that he had guessed correctly from the smirk on Rydel’s face.

"Thanks, Vaul, we’ll come by again when we need more information," said Jack, bowing his head to the man behind the desk.

"Then make it fast, I get lonely here," joked Vaul. Both Jack and Rydel nodded and left quietly, leaving Vaul to return to his boredom.

Chapter 25

Jack and Rydel traversed the streets and the rumors of last night’s incident were still prevalent and kept anyone from troubling them. But for some reason, everyone was silent wherever they passed, and the gazes of the crowd didn’t show fear. Jack had a weird feeling, but he had no clue what had gotten into the people to change their attitudes so quickly.

"Remember, let’s hurry and get the registration over with so we can look for those clerics, Drad and Slivia," reminded Rydel, causing Jack to refocus and pick up the pace. "I think I know the Balt Guildhall. If it’s by the Boar’s Inn like Vaul said, then there’s only one building it could be."

Jack nodded and agreed. "You’re talking about that big building that seemed out of place, right?"

"That’s the one. We passed it after we entered the village, so I’m pretty sure that’s the place. My question is, how are you going to pay for this kid?" asked Rydel.

"Umm, that’s a good question," said Jack, scratching the back of his head in nervousness. "It couldn’t be over six gold, right?"

"Who knows now, thanks to that idiot prince. I think you could’ve been fine if it were the Royal Court’s price but based on what Vaul said I can’t say for certain."

Jack pondered for a moment before he asked, "Hey captain, you wouldn’t be able to spot me some coin just in case, would you? It’s only if I don’t have enough and there’s no other choice."

"Nope, you can forget it," answered Rydel. "I’ve lent money far too often for you to ask."

"Come on captain, it’s for the better good. With Bowser in the party, we’ll gain more EXP and an even better bait. If anything, you’d just be investing now to get a better return while we’re in the mine," persuaded Jack.

"Nice try, but no." Rydel sped up and left Jack behind him, who was trying his best to keep up.

It was already past midday and the streets were filled with merchants and customers alike. The duo from the association hurried and disregarded every booth; normally Jack would be very interested, but he knew that he had no money to spare now that he had to register Bowser at the Balt Guildhall.

Eventually, they passed the Boar’s Inn and noticed the large building further up the street. It looked like a big barn had been turned into a fortress, giving off a sense of practicality, very much unlike the Royal Court office.

"After you kid," said Rydel. He was an experienced adventurer, but Rydel understood that Jack was far more cunning with his words. Jack was always finding ways to get the best deals while at the same time form steady relationships.

Jack stepped forward and pushed the large door open. The interior was the same dark green color as the outside, and it maintained that practical sense throughout the entire hall. There weren’t too many people, but a few had come thanks to the surprise screening of the royal office.

"I thought you’d come!" a voice yelled from the other side of the room.

The hunter duo was startled to see a somewhat familiar face. It was a man that had signed the royal office waiting list just after them. They only recognized him thanks to the dark green scarf around the man’s neck, which was conveniently the same color as the wall.

"The name’s Jard Balt," the man quickly walked over to introduce himself. "You two are the adventurers who stood up to the crown prince, correct?"

"Yeah..." stated Jack quietly, recognizing Jard’s last name and his clear connection to the Balt Guild.

"Great!" Jard yelled, surprising everyone in the guildhall. "For you guys, we’ll handle whatever you need free of charge."

"Free? Are you sure? We need a bloodline test for that little guy," stammered Rydel.

Jard peeked at the lazy Bowser on Jack’s shoulder and grunted, "Hmm, if that’s what you need, then I’m not sure if we can shoulder the cost. Your antics caused the surprise screening, which caused a boom in business for us since our greatest competitor suddenly shut its doors. Anything else we can handle, but we can only offer a 50% discount on a bloodline test. Is that ok?"

"Of course!" answered Jack. "Can you take us back right now? We’ve got some other matters to handle and can’t take too much time."

"Great, just follow me," said Jard with an appreciative smile as he led the two away from the lobby.

"Hey Jard, what were you planning on doing at the royal office?" asked Jack.

"Good question boy. I was there to submit this month’s transaction reports and pay the needed taxes. The screening worried me before the royal office informed me that as long as I come back on the first day they reopen, then there would be no need to worry." Jard spoke honestly and didn’t hide anything from his guests.

"That makes sense I guess," said Jack.

"You’re obviously someone higher up in the guild, so you must know something involving the disappearing adventurers, right?" Rydel jumped to his conclusion.

"So, you’ve already heard. The association lives up to its name," praised Jard. "Of the three parties to go missing, the second was made up of Balt guildmembers. Their strength barely qualified to enter the mine, but we didn’t worry too much. What shocked us was that not a single message was sent via the party’s contact crystals. The only way to interpret this was if they were instantly killed or easily captured and stripped of their items."

"How big was the party?" asked Jack.

"It was made up of six lv. 8’s, two lv. 11’s, and one lv. 14. Together, we assumed that they should be able to take care of any trouble with such a line-up and get a lot of our younger members some much needed EXP," explained Jard with depression in his eyes. "My son was among the lv. 8 youths, but we’ve yet to find them anywhere, no matter how hard we search."

"We’ll be heading to the mine as well, so if we find anything or get a chance to help them, then we will," said Jack, trying his best to comfort Jard.

"Really?" Jard wasn’t too surprised. "Do you mind linking crystals? I would like to hear about any findings immediately."

Jack had already retrieved his contact crystal and touched it to Jard’s. "That’s the least we can do, especially after offering such a great discount."

"Just so you know boy, if you guys can bring back our men, we’ll pay you a hefty reward for each guild member returned safely."

"We’ll try our best." Jack bowed his head in thanks. "If there’s anything else you might need help with, just send me a message."

"Thank you," Jard bowed his head graciously as he approached a door near the end of the long hallway. "Hurry in here. With such a rare fox, it’s best no one else knows about us being in here."

Glad to see Jard’s desire for secrecy, the two hurried into the room before Jard shut the door and locked it. "Very good, now for the bloodline test. We’ll need a drop of the fox’s blood, so I’ll let you handle that part."

With ease, Jack took out a tiny knife that Zariff had let him keep due to the knife’s uselessness in battle. Jack pet Bowser and asked the fox to hold out his paw.

Bowser seemed to better understand humans with each passing day, so Bowser nodded and stuck out his paw facing upwards. The knife poked the paw lightly, just enough to pierce the skin and reveal a drop of bright red blood that was almost resplendent.

Jard noticed the blood and his heart shook. The radiance and pureness of the color proved that the fox’s blood was the strongest Jard had ever seen personally.

Without wasting time, Jard activated the machine sitting on a table in the center of the room. Its design was simple, being made of bronze with eight small, clear crystals jutting out the sides and one flat gem in the center. "Place the drop on the center gem."

Both Jack and Bowser nodded in sync as Jack stepped up to the machine.

Bowser placed his paw on the center gem and the entire machine began to glow. One by one the side crystals lit up brilliantly until all eight were no longer translucent and were filled with a pure red light.

The three of them all watched this entrancing display of color for a few seconds until the light slowly dimmed and vanished. Jack sighed and asked, "So what’s the bloodline?"

Still, in a trance, Jard struggled to speak. "This... umm... I’m not sure." He went to the side and pulled a big book off a shelf. Dust scattered as Jard opened it and began to flip through its pages.

"Kid, do you understand what just happened?" Rydel was still in shock like Jard. It was as if he was even more shocked that Jack had no clue just how impactful the event was. His hunch was correct when he saw Jack shake his head in response. Taking a second to choose his words, Rydel said, "Kid, I think that fox has a pure ancient bloodline."

Chapter 26

Jack’s train of thought came to a screeching halt. "Bowser has a pure ancient bloodline?"

"Yeah, kid. Now I wish you hadn’t shot the other one," said Rydel, shaking his head in disbelief.

Bowser’s eyes dulled a little when Rydel made that comment, so Jack petted him and tried to comfort him. "I’m sorry buddy, you know I didn’t mean to kill your mom."

"Hey kid, didn’t that pup eat every single bone that night?" asked Rydel.

"Yeah, what of it? He’s got a crazy appetite but that’s normal for him."

"That’s not what I’m getting at. You and I both know where that meat came from and it may have affected that pup’s bloodline, right?" said Rydel.

Immediately, Jack understood Rydel’s logic and nodded. It was common practice in "A Hero’s Tale" to feed your beast companion the bones and meat of its own kind. By doing that, they were able to increase the strength of their bloodline. He looked again at the confused Bowser, who was trying to follow the conversation the best he could.

"Hey Bowser, do you know where that first meal came from?" Jack’s question got the fox to shake its little head. Hesitant, Jack continued, "The meat and bones were your mother’s. Rydel had taken your mom’s body and prepared it for dinner while I followed after you to that giant snake’s nest."

Jack waited for Bowser to snarl and bite him in anger but was shocked to see Bowser’s eyes start to water.

While many knew that it was a way to make your beast companion stronger, most people wouldn’t think that it was a natural occurrence in the beast world. Little did they know that rather than have a funeral, feasting upon the flesh of the fallen was how most ancient breeds believed the fallen spirit could go on to protect those who had consumed its body. For Bowser, his instincts told him that his mother would forever be with him to strengthen him.

Bowser leaped back onto Jack’s shoulder and began to lick him uncontrollably, catching both Jack and Rydel off guard.

"That’s great!" Jard had looked up from the old book when he heard Jack’s conversation with Bowser. "According to this book, most ancient breeds wouldn’t perform burials. Instead, they had funeral feasts where they consumed the corpse to preserve the bloodline and strengthen others."

"Seriously!?" The duo yelled at the same time.

Jard nodded and dove his head back into the old, dusty book in search of something.

Jack couldn’t help but be glad that what he thought might be gruesome and cruel was customary to ancient beasts. Not knowing about the spiritual purpose behind the funeral feasts, Jard and them wouldn’t have been able to guess that Jack and Bowser would grow even closer now.

Bowser knew that Jack had eaten his mother’s body, so he assumed that his mother was also protecting Jack. Even Rydel would be treated more warmly by the fox from then on because of this.

"It should be around here," said Jard as his hands slowed and no longer flipped through the pages so rapidly. Jard took a few seconds on each page as he narrowed his search. The two adventurers waited anxiously; it was clear to them that he had to search the old tome to figure out Bowser’s bloodline.

A few minutes went by and Jard’s eyes went wide as they froze on a particular page. After a few seconds, he swallowed the saliva in his throat and quietly stated, "I think I found it."

Jack hurried to Jard’s side and stared at the page. Just like Jard, his eyes became glued to the page as he read the name of Bowser’s bloodline. "Hell-flame Fox."

"WHAT!?" Rydel yelled at the top of his lungs when he heard Jack’s mumbling.

Jard put his hands up and began to explain, "This fox is hands down the most valuable beast I’ve ever seen with my own eyes. Anything that can light up three crystals has a decent bloodline and the best modern bloodlines can light up four or maybe five. Some beasts have descendant bloodlines that have branched off of their ancestors. Those beasts can light up six crystals and are typically sought after to be used by the major powers like the Royal Court. If a beast can light up seven, then they are considered to have an ancient bloodline. But lighting up eight... only the true kings of the beast world with the purest of bloodlines can do that. Something like a Hell-flame Fox..."

"But that little pup can’t be a genuine Hell-flame Fox? Legends say that Hell-flame Foxes would grow larger than this guildhall." Rydel argued.

The hunter said anything he could think of as a reason to not believe such a powerful, ancient beast was so cute as a pup. He had mentally prepared himself for Bowser to light five crystals and possibly six, but eight was too hard to believe.

"Then, let’s read the description," continued Jard. "Hell-flame Fox. Known to be born with an undying flame within their bodies that grows together with the fox.

"No one has gotten close enough to see their true appearance and lived, but fully matured Hell-flame Foxes can create flame bodies bigger than most buildings, giving them extremely destructive power.

"They are one of the most intelligent beasts without question, easily able to understand humans and eventually speak with them. They’ve only been spotted three times in recorded history. Some mysterious events in history are credited to the Hell-flame Foxes, but no survivors were ever accounted for to confirm the truth."

There wasn’t much information given, but Jack and Rydel couldn’t deny that it was nearly identical to Bowser. Listening carefully, Bowser nodded his head as if to confirm that he was indeed a Hell-flame Fox. Seeing this, the three of them could no longer question if it were true.

Jack chuckled to himself and buried his face in his hands.

There was once a rare solo event where a Hell-flame Fox was offered as a reward to anyone who could complete it. The hard part was that it was a one-day, surprise event with little to no explanation. No one even knew what a Hell-flame Fox was, let alone be able to prepare so quickly for a high-level event.

In the end, no one was able to finish the quest because the final boss was a Hell-flame Fox that no one could defeat, not even Jack could, though he got close.

Bowser dropped to Jack’s lap and looked up to him. When Jack finally lifted his face from his sweaty palms, he noticed the sincerity in Bowser’s eyes. His heart melted not only for Bowser’s cuteness but also for the fox’s determination to be with Jack.

"Boy, I’ve got to tell you something." Jard’s voice brought them all back to reality. "It’s a good thing that the prince stopped you at the royal office. If the Royal Court had learned there was an ancient beast within their borders, especially if it were a baby Hell-flame Fox, they would do anything to get their hands on it. If they could raise it as a weapon, not a single nation would willingly war with them."

Hearing that, Bowser grunted in displeasure and puffed out his chest.

Everyone got a laugh from the proud fox and the atmosphere began to lighten.

Jard continued, "Let me help you kid. According to the book, no one has ever seen a Hell-flame Fox outside of its flame body, so no one can tell what it looks like. I’m going to report it as a new descendent level bloodline based on the ancient Inferno Fox. That way it’s more believable yet far enough from the truth to avoid most problems. The Royal Court will still try to get their hands on it, but thanks to your membership in the Adventurers Association, I’m sure the association will be willing to step up and protect something so valuable that’s already in their lap."

"He’s right," said Rydel. "After we finish getting you to lv. 10, we’ll head back to Reinolt City and contact HQ. They won’t let Bowser get taken, you can bet your life on it."

Jack nodded and brushed through Bowser’s lush fur coat with his hand. "If you’re so powerful, then how come your mother died from a simple arrow?"

Bowser’s expression became grim and filled with contempt. Jack could tell that a lot had happened to Bowser before Jack was lucky enough to meet him. Sadly, at the moment he had no way to fully communicate with the fox pup. Jack set a new goal in his mind, to find a way to communicate with Bowser. Whether it was by finding an item, sufficient leveling for Bowser, or anything else, it didn’t matter to Jack.

"What do we do about the beast seal? I think me and Bowser can have a mutual seal even," asked Jack.

"Forget about paying for the test. That test never happened, okay?" claimed Jard. "I’ll draw up the mutual seal for the both of you and that’ll be the only charge."

Smiling, Jack replied, "Thanks Jard, I’m glad to have such a generous friend."

"It’s the least I can do for a new friend," said Jard. He was more than willing to wave the expensive test fee to get in the good graces of someone like Jack, whose potential would shake the world. If it were announced that not only did Jack have a Hell-flame Fox as a beast companion, but he had the one-in-a-million mutual seal as well, every major power would do anything to either gain Jack’s favor or end Jack’s life.

 

Chapter 27

On the side of the bloodline machine were a few different brushes sitting inside a jar of ink. Each had a different sized tip and would be used for various seals. Jard grabbed one of the thinner ones and brushed the excess ink it had on the edge of the jar to keep it from dripping. "Come here you two, and don’t move no matter what. The mutual seal is one of the most difficult to draw and even when linking your seals, you must remain still. If not, you will fail and there will be a backlash."

Jack stood and carried Bowser with him as he walked back to the middle table. After putting down Bowser, they both turned and looked at Jard.

"Good, now stick out your right palm Jack and please have Bowser bow his head." Jard’s commands were obeyed and the two of them waited for the next instructions. "I will now begin drawing your seals, so be patient as they must be perfect. I’ve never performed a mutual seal outside of practice, so please be extra patient with me."

Rydel sat down at the side of the room as he was mesmerized by Jard’s strokes. They appeared to be long and never-ending, but they were kept within the palm of Jack’s hand. After a few minutes and a couple of corrections made by Jard, he faced Bowser with a nervous smile on his face. Understanding Jard’s intentions, Bowser bowed his head and calmly waited for Jard to finish.

Amazed by how cooperative Bowser was, Jard chuckled as he began to draw the exact same seal on Bowser’s small forehead. This took almost twice as long for Jard to fix his errors and get it perfect, but as time passed Jard eventually lifted his hand.

"Now there’s only linking the mutual seals. Jack, press your palm firmly on your fox’s head and endure the piercing pain. The seals will activate upon contact and will slowing sink back into your flesh, creating a permanent bond between you two," explained Jard slowly.

Nodding his head, Jack turned back to Bowser and showed a bright smile. Bowser did the same and held his head up high. With a deep breath, Jack lifted his hand and followed Jard’s instructions, carefully laying the seal on his palm over the seal on Bowser’s head.

Suddenly, pain shot through Jack’s hand and into Bower’s skull. They both winced as the held strong under the pain. Jack was sweating profusely, using his left arm to brace and support his weakening right arm. The pain felt like it was piercing through his palm and carving out the muscles in Jack’s hand. It was the same story for Bowser, only the pain felt like it was carving grooves into his skull.

Both Jard and Rydel swallowed saliva as they saw how painful a mutual seal was.

Everyone always talked about how they coveted a mutual seal, but too few people understood how painful and taxing a mutual seal was.

Most seals had a parent and child seal, binding the child seal to the parent seal. The parent seals weren’t too painful and would slowly fade into your skin, but the child seals were typically excruciating.

Those seals were used on beasts and slaves alike, but none of them were as piercing or long-lasting like a mutual seal. The mutual seal had more capabilities that would create an irreversible, mutual bond between the two participating, this was why it took longer and was far more painful.

After five minutes passed the seal had disappeared from Jack’s palm and surfaced on the back of his hand.

The pain began to fade as the newly set seal began to disappear within Jack’s skin. It didn’t take too much longer for the seal to disappear completely and for Jard to speak up. "It’s finished, you can relax now."

Jack collapsed to the floor and he sat with his legs crossed. His breathing was scattered, and all his clothes were damp from his sweat.

Bowser laid down on the table and appeared to be napping with his eyes shut.

Glancing at his hand Jack asked, "That’s it? What exactly does a mutual seal do?"

"A mutual seal is incredibly rare, and we don’t know 100% of its capabilities. What we do know is that now you’ll be leveling up together from now on, as if you two share EXP. Also, you can now sense each other’s presence and to help find each other no matter the distance. The further away you are, the fainter the feeling but it will be there. Rumors say that as you grow together, eventually you two will be able to communicate telepathically but that might just be rumors." Jard explained it simply and calmly while Jack was gathering his breath.

"Hopefully those rumors are true," said Jack, picturing the conversations he and Bowser would have. "Is there anything else rumors say about mutual seals?"

"Well..." Jard answered hesitantly. "There’s only one more that comes to mind, but I think this is just a rumor. A few believe that a mutual seal can allow the two carrying it to have access to each other’s bloodlines and abilities. If the rumor were true, you’d be able to gain a piece of the Hell-flame Fox bloodline for yourself over time. And if you cast any magic to protect or empower yourself, you might eventually be able to affect that fox too."

There was no response from Jack, he was too busy imagining how amazing the mutual seal could potentially be. In his heart, he hoped with all his might that these rumors would be proven true with time.

Jack bowed his head and said, "Thank you Jard, you’ve done so much for me and I have so little to offer in exchange."

"Just cough up three gold. That will cover the cost of the high-tier bestial ink we used to make the seal. And make sure to contact me after you two find my son and the others," replied Jard.

Jack threw the coins as he stood back up. His legs were still a little shaky, but he was able to steady himself and let Bowser climb back onto his shoulder. "Then, for now, let’s part as friends. We’ll be back once we’re done in the mine."

"Thanks," said Rydel, trying not to be forgotten and left out of this new circle of mutual benefits.

"I thank you two and hope the relationship between us can grow. And if there’s ever a need, the Balt Guild will support the Adventurers Association no matter the foe, even if it were the crown." Jard’s words revealed some of his true intentions and that he might know more from behind the scenes that were unknown to Jack or Rydel.

With a bow of the head, they thanked each other and exited the room. The quiet guildhall was a nice change of scenery, reminding them that they were back in the world and not only in the company of close friends.

The hunter duo exited, leaving Jard in the lobby as he pondered what might come of this new friendship he had sought to create. A young man came up from behind and asked, "Guild Master, where have you been? There are important matters we need to discuss."

"I was busy and couldn’t help it. What’s the matter?" said Jard.

"Another party has gone missing within the mine. There were no survivors, just like before."

"So, what’s so important about that?" asked Jard.

"That party had two lv. 20’s while the rest were all above lv. 10," said the man solemnly.

"What?" Jard was startled. He looked back at the closed front door and said, "For now, don’t worry about it. I’ve got my ways of taking care of the situation."

"Sir, what do you mean?" asked the young man.

"Don’t worry about it. Just send a message to the elders that the guildhall must be ready to receive more business thanks to the surprise screening. Is there anything else?"

"One last thing," stated the young man as he handed out a small stack of wanted posters. "These are the new wanted posters like you asked sir."

"Good, we’ve needed extra funds as business continues to decline." Jard started looking through the posters when he stopped and stared at two particular posters. He laughed, "Looks like my hunch was right."

"Sir?" The young man was curious why the guild master would laugh after seeing a wanted poster.

"Make sure that no one tries to detain these two. Anyone who even attempts will lose a week’s allowance and receive thirty lashes," said Jard with a beaming smile.

"But sir, those two have the highest bounties of the lot. We’re in desperate need of—"

"I’m saying this for the sake of the guild. Anyone who goes after those two will be biting off more than they can chew," explained Jard. "There’s also no personal information listed. I know Jack is low leveled, but his potential is beyond incredible and can’t be underestimated. And Rydel is lv. 29, even I’d have trouble facing him. The best part is that the Royal Court also forgot to mention that they’re members of the association; do you want to deal with people like that?"

The young man stiffened when he heard Jard’s explanation. Jard continued, "They may be friends of mine and wouldn’t wish to kill any guild members, but I have a feeling most people trying to hunt them down wouldn’t survive long enough to reveal any sort of identity. Now go, inform the elders and announce what I’ve told you."

Frantically, the young man turned and left in a hurry, happy that he wouldn’t be tricked by the scent of money to pursue his death.

Chapter 28

"Hey Trom, I’ve got a question for you," Rydel yelled as he and Jack entered the Boar’s Inn. Trom quickly appeared from the back kitchen and waited for Rydel’s question. "There are two clerics who came back from the mine recently. They lost their party and go by Drad and Slivia. Do you know where we can find them."

"You came to the right place," answered Trom as he pointed at a table in the back. "They showed up a couple of days ago half dead. They passed out on our doorstep, so we gave them a free room and dragged them to bed. Since then, they haven’t left the inn, only coming down for quick meals now and again when they get bored of their room. When we asked them what happened, they said nothing and paid extra to keep their stay here a secret."

"Then why are you telling us?" asked Jack.

"Because the staff and I eventually figured out their identities from the rumors. We know that you guys are heading to the mines and as members of the association, you’re the most trustworthy people in town to handle this," said Trom.

"What about the crown prince? Can’t his guards handle it just as easily?" asked Jack.

Trom smirked, "I hate the Royal Court, all they do is raise taxes and let the Balt Guild handle our protection. The association members that stay here always pay well and handle some trash that occasionally walks in, like last night. I hear everything before everyone, so know that you’ve got yourselves one of the best sources in town."

"In that case, we’ll cover their meal. Bring our usual order up to our room and bring four rounds of brundy to the table," said Rydel as he placed three gold on the reception desk and started walking towards the back of the restaurant. He was already familiar with Trom, so he understood how Trom liked to do things.

"It’ll be right out." Trom flashed a smile and winked at the two adventurers before he disappeared like always.

Rydel, followed by Jack, casually took a seat across the table from the two clerics. "What do you recommend here?"

"Not much, it’s good food at a reasonable price. You won’t be disappointed," the male cleric said as he gave a smug grin and started to stand.

"Why the rush, you haven’t finished eating?" asked Jack sitting down next to Rydel.

"I lost my appetite," said the male cleric, determined to leave.

"It’s a shame you two have been cooped up in this place for so long. Why not enjoy a drink and relax?" commented Rydel as a serving girl arrived at the table and passed out four mugs of brundy.

The male cleric flinched and sat back down. "What do you know?"

"Drad and Slivia, right?" asked Jack. "Have you been able to fully recover after returning from the mine?"

Both clerics let out a depressing sigh. "I told that man to not tell a soul. When this is all over, I’m gonna—"

"We’re with the association." Jack’s interruption caught their attention and they began to listen. "We’ll be heading to the mine in two days, so we’ve heard a lot about the missing party incidents. Do you guys know what’s going on down there?"

Drad was hesitant to respond and grew tense, but Slivia placed her hand over his to comfort him. She asked, "What good is there to tell you? Just stay away from there, or else you’ll end up like our party."

"I doubt that," Rydel joked. "Most people my level don’t pay attention to the mine, but I’m not here for the EXP. Besides, if there’s something that I can’t handle down there, we can always call Zariff."

When they heard Zariff’s name mentioned, the two clerics began to relax. Drad said, "Fine, but not here."

"Way ahead of you," laughed Rydel, who chugged the complete mug in one go.

The other three finished their drinks at their own pace. Jack spoke after he stood up. "We can meet in our room, our dinner’s already waiting for us there."

The clerics were surprised to hear that these association members were one step ahead of them.

They followed Jack and Rydel up the stairs and entered their room.

Jack and Rydel grabbed their food off the end table and sat on one bed, letting Drad and Slivia sit across from them on the other.

The clerics were anxious and unsure if they should say anything, Slivia’s expression change when she saw Bowser start playing with a boar’s leg. Seeing her like this Drad chuckled, "So, what do you want to know?"

"Everything." Jack took the lead to ask. "Has something changed inside the mine?"

Drad sighed, "Not much has changed inside the mine. There are a lot more goblin settlements then we had anticipated, and we were ambushed after reaching the third level of the mine. We fought for a while but after it became too much, we tried to escape and used our contact crystals to call for help. But before we noticed, the exit had been clogged by high-level goblins and the crystals weren’t working."

"We only made it out because our captain gave up his life using a forbidden technique and forced a small hole in the goblins’ ranks. Then we climbed back out through some of the old mineshafts instead of the main path."

"That explains how you got out," said Rydel. "That also explains why you passed out on the doorstep. You’ve been poisoned, right?"

The clerics’ eyes went wide when Rydel figured it out. "How can you tell?"

"Simple, because I’ve climbed through the old mineshafts before. I know that particular azure mine very well, it’s how I make a good chunk of my coin." Rydel retrieved two small glass bottles with a purple liquid inside and tossed them to Drad and Slivia. "That’s an antidote strong enough to remove your poison. Give it a couple of days and you’ll be back to normal."

"These... We can’t just take these. An antidote like this cost a few silver each," Slivia complained as Drad downed his bottle’s contents immediately.

"Then pay in information. You already know we’re not gonna harm you, so just keep telling us your story and don’t leave anything out," said Rydel.

Drad flinched before Slivia answered, "The biggest change was that there’s not a single goblin settlement left on the first two levels. They’ve all been abandoned or relocated."

"But Slivia, they said—"

"It’s better this way," said Slivia, not giving Drad an opportunity to say anything. "For most of our time on the third level, we didn’t find anything. But we later found a goblin city, probably made up of all the goblins from the earlier floors. After we saw the city on the horizon, we were ambushed and us two were lucky to escape after captain used his ultimate technique."

"Was your party killed?" asked Jack.

"Our leader died letting us two through, but I’m not sure what happened to the others," answered Slivia. "I don’t know why the contact crystals weren’t working but I know there are a lot more high-leveled goblins now. The ones that surrounded us were all lv. 15 or higher, there was even a lv. 20."

"Seriously?" Rydel was surprised. He was very familiar with that azure mine and he was sure that the highest level he’d encountered was lv. 17 and most were lv. 10 or lower. "Are you sure? How many were there?"

"At least ten over lv. 15, at least that’s how many surrounded us," Drad spoke up, finally willing to speak openly. "But I think there are a lot more, and there are probably some over lv. 20 too."

"Wow, looks like I’ll be doing a lot more leveling then I’d expected." A couple of notifications from the system went off but Jack ignored them for now. That’s when he noticed that he had old notifications waiting for him.

A little excited to explore the new notifications later, Jack quickly returned to the conversation. "Other than that city, were there any other active settlements?"

"There were a couple, but now I understand that they were outposts and not settlements. That’s probably how they knew we had approached the city," said Drad.

"Then don’t worry too much. Rydel here can handle any high-level goblins with ease, and I can come up with something that’ll even the playing field." Jack’s eccentric smile caused the clerics to feel nervous.

"What are you going to do?" asked Drad.

Jack laughed, "Since the goblins want to group up so much, that just makes our plans a lot easier, right captain?"

"You know it kid," said Rydel. "You two shouldn’t worry too much, the association will step in and take care of this. Is there anything else we should know?"

Drad shook his head as Slivia began to watch Bowser finish chomping on a charred pig femur. Jack said, "Good, then you’re free to go. Thanks to your info, I’m even more excited to get inside that mine."

The clerics started to think Jack had gone crazy, but seeing Rydel’s smile, they could only assume that the hunter duo had a plan. They said goodbye to the hunter duo and Slivia waved goodbye to Bowser.

As the two closed the door behind them, Jack roared with laughter. "Yo Captain, it looks like we’ll both be leveling up this time. Just imagine the loot!" Both Jack and Rydel celebrated their future success with brundy and food till dawn.

Chapter 29

By the time Jack and Rydel came to after their night of celebrating, it was nearly noon the next day. Both were doing fine, not feeling too hungover. Rydel was the first to say anything. "Let’s call Zariff and fill him in on all this. First, let’s mention that fox of yours and then we’ll get his opinion on the whole mine situation."

Jack nodded groggily and said, "Sure, sounds like a plan captain."

Just as Rydel pulled out his contact crystal, his stomach gurgled and growled at him. Without saying a word Rydel got up and bolted for the door. Not having any intention of stopping him, Jack understood that Rydel would feel better after clearing out his system.

He took advantage of this time to change his bandages and apply the new ointment. After that Jack opened up his notifications. His eyes blinked a few times as if they didn’t believe what they saw. There were multiple new achievements and some of them were even completed.

[Register Bowser as a beast companion: completed]

[Lower public opinion of Royal Court: completed]

[Raise public opinion of Adventurers Association: completed]

[Beat Leodoro II to lv. 10: in progress]

[Unlock companion telepathy: in progress]

[Unlock companion bloodline: in progress]

[Unlock companion mirroring: in progress]

[Discover the goblin benefactor: in progress]

[Find Byron Balt: incomplete]

[Find any survivors: incomplete]

[Find the goblin city: incomplete]

[Destroy the goblin city: incomplete]

Jack was blown away when he saw how long his list of new achievements was and grew excited to see three had already been completed. He instantly claimed them, not hesitating at all.

[Register Bowser as a beast companion: claimed]

[Officially register Bowser as a beast companion with a mutual seal. Special reward: 20 skill points.]

[Lower public opinion of Royal Court: claimed]

[Lower public opinion of the Royal Court by means of rumors and gossip. Reward: 5 skill points]

[Raise public opinion of Adventurers Association: claimed]

[Raise public opinion of Adventurers Association by means of rumors and gossip. Reward: 5 skill points]

Now thirty skill points richer, Jack smiled as he read over the other achievements. Some were expected, like those about Leodoro II, who Jack assumed was the crown prince and those about finding the survivors and the goblin city.

The others stuck out to Jack for different reasons. Curious, he checked the other two incomplete achievements.

[Find Byron Balt: incomplete]

[Find Byron Balt, the son of the Balt Guild Leader. Reward: varies on the state you find him in and whether or not you can bring him out alive.]

[Destroy the goblin city: incomplete]

[Destroy the newly formed goblin city. Reward: EXP offered varies on the degree of destruction caused.]

Reading those deepened Jack’s smile. He now recognized his new friend Jard Balt as the Balt Guild Leader, ensuring that he now had a powerful local ally. And with an achievement willing to award him EXP directly, how could Jack not get excited.

Those two achievements were mentally marked as some of the most important to the current Jack; he would make sure his plan would complete them to the best of his abilities.

Jack moved on to look over the three new achievements involving his beast companion. He was extremely interested after he noticed they involved the rumors Jard had mentioned about the mutual seal.

[Unlock companion telepathy: in progress]

[Advance companion telepathy to lv. 1. Reward: 5 skill points.]

[Unlock companion bloodline: in progress]

[Advance companion bloodline to lv. 1. Reward: 5 skill points.]

[Unlock companion mirroring: in progress]

[Advance companion mirroring to lv. 1. Reward: 5 skill points.]

Jack was now laughing hysterically, even though he didn’t realize it. He couldn’t contain his joy when he understood that his achievement system had given him a way to directly access the abilities he wanted the most.

But before he jumped into his skill list, he was startled by his last achievement in progress.

[Discover the goblin benefactor: in progress]

[Find out more about the goblin’s recent rise in power and who was the one who caused it. Reward: 100 EXP, 10 skill points.]

Unsure of how he got such an achievement, Jack began to ponder what might’ve caused it to appear. All he could think of was the earlier conversation with Drad and Slivia. Jack questioned whether they had hidden anything important, almost certain that they had.

He didn’t think for too long as he put the idea to the side and immediately opened up his skill list, checking out the first of his three new favorite skills.

[Companion telepathy: lv. 0]

[Communicate with your beast companion telepathically. Advance to lv. 1 to unlock. 0/10 skill points]

That smile instantly flipped when Jack noticed the price to advance the skill to the next level. Thanks to the other skills he advanced, Jack noticed that every level up would cost double the previous.

An example was how to level up his bow skill to lv. 1 it had cost his five skill points, but to advance it to lv. 2 and lv. 3 it would cost him ten and twenty skill points respectively. But to level up his companion telepathy to lv. 1, it would cost him the same price as any other lv. 2 skill.

From one perspective, this might cause some people to wait and level it up later. However, Jack understood that if it cost him twice as much to level up a skill, that skill must be worth twice as much as any regular skill.

He checked the other two companion skills and discovered that they followed the same trend. Somewhat reluctantly, Jack spent all of his newly earned thirty skill points on the three skills.

[Companion telepathy: lv. 1]

[Understand your companion’s feelings and share basic communications. 0/20 skill points]

[Companion bloodline: lv. 1]

[Inherit the initial level of your companion’s bloodline abilities. 0/20 skill points]

[Companion mirroring: lv. 1]

[Any skill, spell, or item that affects you can also affect your companion to a minor extent. 0/20 skill points]

Jack also jumped back to his achievement list and claimed the fifteen skill points from unlocking his companion abilities before he distributed them among his skill tree. In the end, he upgraded his stealth to lv. 2 and advanced his health regeneration to lv. 1, the skill he had picked up thanks to the ointments he had been applying for the past few days.

Before he closed out of his hero menu, Jack checked his stats. Shocked, Jack saw that he was already lv. 3 and was halfway to lv. 4. Confused about the sudden advancement, he looked at the tossing and turning Bowser.

Jack quickly opened up Bowser’s stats, now available to him after forming the mutual seal. There he found his answer; Bowser was already halfway to lv. 3. Witnessing this firsthand, Jack started to comprehend the advantage of having a mutual seal.

If they were sharing EXP, wouldn’t they both level up at a pace that no one else could match? This would help Jack with his leveling problems.

After seeing that, Jack determined in his mind that the next achievement he completed must be to discover the goblin benefactor. Not only would it give him more skill points, but it offered an instant 100 EXP.

Advancing in levels was similar to advancing skills, every level would need twice as much EXP as the previous level. Lv. 1 required 25 EXP, making lv. 2 and lv. 3 cost 50 EXP and 100 EXP each.

Jack and Bowser would need 200 EXP to reach lv. 4, but they were already halfway there with 100 EXP. Discovering the mysterious benefactor would instantly raise both Jack and Bowser to lv. 4, why wouldn’t he want that before entering the unusually dangerous azure mine?

Waiting for Rydel to return, Jack did his best to plan out what skills he would upgrade next and what order he would chase his achievements.

Eventually, Rydel returned and whipped out his contact crystal, but Jack stopped him from contacting Zariff and said, "Wait, there’s more to this story then we thought. The goblins have a secret benefactor and those two clerics should know something about it."

"How do you know that?" asked Rydel, a little apprehensive to believe such a statement.

"The same way I found out about the threat to Zariff’s life. You know I was right then, and you know I’m right this time too," stated Jack. "We need to talk with those two again, after that we’ll better understand the situation, making sure that we can respond to the situation the best we can."

"Hmm, I guess it’s worth a shot. Let’s hurry up and find them," said Rydel.

Both of them hurried to ready themselves and locked their bedroom door after exiting. The sleepy Bowser was still yawning as he laid on Jack’s shoulder.

Trom was standing by the stairway as if he had been waiting for them. Trom said, "If you’re looking for those two, they just checked out this morning."

Startled, Jack asked, "Got any idea where they went?"

"I’m not sure, but I think some of the staff overheard a few things," answered Trom, as Jack tossed the man a gold coin. "Their morning server heard them discussing something about leaving town and fleeing into the forest. I’m guessing they’ll try to hide out for a while. They headed for the nearby mountains, just east of the azure mine."

"Thanks, Trom," said Jack as the two hunters bowed and took their leave. Trom smiled as he stashed his latest earnings.

"Kid, it seems like you were right. Though they didn’t share the full truth, they wouldn’t go so far as to hide away in the mountains because of us. There’s got to be something big behind all this," guessed Rydel.

Jack nodded and sighed, "They shouldn’t have hidden anything; if they needed protection, who better than the association."

"There’s only one organization here that could scare them that much," said Rydel. "I think you can already guess it."

Not too surprised, Jack arrived at the same conclusion.

 

Chapter 30

"Got any ideas on how to find them?" asked Jack

"Of course, how do you think I gained my eagle eye ability," said Rydel. "But first, let’s buy some horses. Considering the fact that they went into hiding the moment we discovered them, they must be afraid that someone will be after them. If that’s true, we need to find them first."

Glad that he won’t need to travel on foot, Jack agreed. When they had left Reinolt City before, they didn’t have time to purchase any horses before fleeing through the gate. Having a horse would speed things up.

"Let’s resupply and get everything ready to enter the dungeon. We may not have enough time to come back here." Rydel planned for the worst, he always preferred being overly prepared in place of underperforming thanks to lack of supplies or intel.

"Let’s head to the stables near the village entrance, there will be plenty of shops along the way offering what we need," said Jack

Finding the basic goods they needed wasn’t hard at all. They found plenty of rations, bought more potions and elixirs, some torches, and more. Thanks to the many neighboring shops, they were able to use every shops’ nearby competition as a threat to haggle prices, getting everything Jack needed for a total of one gold.

At the stables, they each bought a horse for one gold coin as well, leaving Jack with only a dozen silver to his name. He didn’t mind at all though, because he knew had gotten everything he needed for a steal and he’d walk out of the mine with plenty of trading goods.

They quickly saddled up and left the village to the west, heading towards the mountains and the mine in between Baltwood and Reinolt City. The drowsy Bowser slept in one of Jack’s saddlebags while Jack followed Rydel’s every move. It didn’t take long to reach the foot of the mountain as they combed its base.

Rydel caught sight of some distant tracks off of the beaten path and led the way. Jack was right behind him as they climbed the mountain and soon approached a nearby cave. It was almost sunset, but Rydel could still clearly see the tracks that led them there.

"Let’s dismount here, we don’t want them hearing the horses," said Rydel, hopping down with the reigns in hand. He and Jack both pulled their horses to the side and found a few boulders to tie down the horses. After the horses laid down in wait for their riders to eventually untie their reigns, Bowser leaped onto Jack before he and Rydel crept into the cave.

It was a good thing the Jack had increased his stealth, that way he wasn’t so easily detected by the higher leveled clerics in the distance. They approached Drad and Slivia who were sitting around a small fire; they listened to their conversation.

"Why didn’t you tell them Drad?" asked Slivia.

"You and I both know what could happen if other’s found out about this," answered Drad, showing an ugly frown in the fire’s dim light. "You should be thanking me, you were about to say it, weren’t you?"

"Well, yeah. They’re with the association, why would they fear the Royal Court? If anything, they were our only shot at getting protection." Slivia raised her voice as her temper started to dwindle.

"The association is powerful, but that’s mainly outside of the borders. Inside, they can’t compete with the Royal Court, no one can," said Drad in disbelief. "It’s best for us to just hide and lay low for a while. If we can wait it out long enough, I’m sure everything will be fine."

"How do you know? I’d rather take the little protection I can get from the association then hideaway with a jerk like you."

Drad started to raise his voice. "Oh, so I’m a jerk for saving your life and trying to protect you? Really? We’d probably be dead by now if I didn’t wake us up early and get us both out of that inn. Why would you trust those two over me when we’ve been partying for over a year now?"

"Don’t act so innocent Drad. I’ve known about your perverted tendencies for a while now," stated Slivia, no longer afraid to speak her mind in the heat of the moment. "I’ve heard some of the stories from the captain, and he already warned me about you."

"Oh? So, you already know about that?" A switch in Drad’s brain flipped when Slivia said that, and he revealed a perverse smile. "Are you sure you’ve heard correctly? The captain would always mix up stories and exaggerated things. I’m just a lover, not a fighter. When I’m able to love women without restraints, I’m able to forget the horrors of being an adventurer and all the death I’ve witnessed."

"You’re sick, you know that?" Slivia folded her arms and leaned back in disgust.

"No, I’m not, you just haven’t realized how invigorating it can be to let go and forget about the trauma. How about I show you?" Drad didn’t hold back any longer. Sure that his life was being threatened, he no longer let himself be held any inhibitions.

"Get away from me," yelled Slivia as she got up and made a dash for the cave’s entrance.

"Hey, get back here! Don’t you know you’ll die out there? It’s too late for those association members to protect you!" barked Drad as he jumped to his feet and reached out to grab Slivia.

"I’m not so sure about that."

The statement coming from the darkness caught both Drad and Slivia off guard. Drad’s hesitation gave Rydel a moment to appear and grab hold of Drad’s arm. Rydel squeezed harshly and pulled Drad in close as he pinned the cleric to the ground with the arm behind his back.

Writhing in pain, Drad yelled, "Why are you here!? That’s impossible!"

"Can it pervert." Jack kicked the immobile Drad in the face, causing only enough damage to bruise Drad’s cheek. He turned to Slivia and asked, "Are you okay?"

Shook with all kinds of emotions, Slivia fell into Jack’s chest and let her tears flow. "Thank you! Thank you! I’ll tell you everything."

"Don’t worry, you’re safe now," said Jack as he patted her head with one hand and embraced her with the other. "Just calm down for now; we’ll discuss the rest later."

She didn’t respond and just let loose even more waterworks into Jack’s shirt and cloak. Jack sighed, "Is there any reason we need that trash over there alive? If not, I’d rather we take care of him."

Drad sobered up from his fit of rage and pled, "There’s no need to kill me, I know more than her and can even help you guys. We can team up and explore the mine for clues."

"The kid told you to can it." Rydel was tired of Drad’s blabbering and flicked a small knife into the back of the cowering cleric’s throat. Drad immediately stopped wriggling as his final breath left his lungs. "That’s better."

Slivia didn’t know how she felt seeing Drad die. He had tried to come after her and was always hitting on her during the year they partied together.

Though he had spent over a year partying and working together with Drad, all that time spent together was overturned in a single instant. She felt relief when she saw Drad grow still and silent.

Soon she stopped shaking and slowly let her breathing return to normal. Then, she remembered that she was being held tenderly against Jack’s chest. Peeking up in embarrassment, Slivia inched away from Jack and said, "Thank you."

"Don’t mention. Are you feeling better now?" asked Jack.

"Yeah, I feel a lot safer with you guys here and that perv out of the picture," answered Slivia.

"Now, what’s this about the Royal Court?" Rydel chimed while he looted the fresh corpse at his feet.

Slivia hesitated to answer but she slowly opened her mouth and said, "In the mine, when we were surrounded by the goblins we noticed something. The high-level goblins were all wielding weapons, and they weren’t like the usual ones they can find among some dead adventurers."

"What kind of weapons are we talking about?" asked Jack.

"Lots of different kinds. The only similarity they had was the crest embellished on them all."

"The royal crest, right?" Jack guessed, letting Slivia nod in response. "So, based on what you’ve seen, the royal court supplied the goblins with weapons and maybe more. Was there any more evidence that you found?"

She shook her head and said, "No, we were too busy trying to escape to look for anything else. We only noticed the weapons when we tried to break free. I don’t have any proof, so you’ll have to believe me."

"No worries, we believe you. If anything, your story confirms our hunch," Jack joked, trying to lighten the mood. "You’re with us now so don’t worry about your safety anymore, okay?"

Slivia nodded, happy to hear that and glad to be a little closer to Jack. Jack looked to be around her age and was almost a head taller than her, slightly taller than the average man. She had a feeling that he was different and that he was bound to be great. Her heart fluttered a little, partly from being saved and partly due to that feeling.

"That’s pretty big talk for a lv. 3. I’m glad to have such a powerful hero to protect us," laughed Rydel.

"Hey, that’s why you’re here, I’m just the bait hungry for EXP," clarified Jack, not caring to admit the truth.

Slivia was stunned to hear that Jack was only lv. 3, but even more so to hear him shamelessly admit to it. Her heart softened a little as if she wondered why Jack was so different from all the other adventurers she had met.