Ylra had been quick with her purchases. She refilled her quiver, in addition to buying several magical arrows. Magical arrows didn't seem to be too expensive in this world, especially for those that were around his rank. Minor magical arrows were twenty gold pieces each, a fair price, whereas flaming arrows, which ignited on a hit, were a hundred gold pieces.

Ylra walked as though she was the sun. Her brightness almost blinded Adam, who looked towards Rojer. Rojer shrugged towards Adam, as though to tell him this was how she always was. Buying arrows for her was akin to Adam exploring something new or gaining new spells.

They returned to the guild, with Ylra and Rojer entering. It seemed they had no other plans for the day. Kaf was sitting in the corner, reading a book. He glanced at the door to see Adam enter and then waved the bronze token towards the half-elf.

"Here you go," the half-orc said, handing the cool metal over.

Quests Complete

Slay: Vandra

Slay: Guardians

Stamps Gained

12

EXP Gained

Quests

+500

+800

Otherworlder Bonus

+1,300

EXP Total

2,600

Current EXP

9270

Level up available!

'What should I level up tonight?' Adam wondered, placing the token around his neck. Warrior or Wizard, one of the two would work best. Wizard would have increased his magical capabilities, as well as offering him access to more spells.

"Aren't you going to complain about how many stamps I gave you?" Kaf asked, looking up at the half-elf.

"No?" Adam replied, unsure of whether this was a test. "Should I?"

"It's easier for me if you don't."

"Duly noted." Adam nodded.

He left the half-orc be, finding Andal drinking alone. Technically, the dwarf wasn't alone since he was in the company of alcohol. Adam joined him, ordering himself an ale. Now that he had the cash to splash, he may as well take some time off for himself.

Currency

123 CP -> 120 CP

"I have heard you are going to consider Lady Elowen's offer," Andal said, taking a long sip of his drink.

"I'm thinking about it," Adam replied, taking a sip of his own drink. It was smooth and cool.

"The Sansant family holds quite the sway on the course of history. If you are to adventure with the good Lady and her group, please make sure you don't displease her."

"I'll do my best, but I'm quite the queer guy, as you know."

Andal's moustache shifted into a smirk. "As I know," he said.

The pair shared each other's company for some time, drinking and eating their fill. They were joined by Ylra and Rojer, who snacked, drank, and shared their stories.

"Sea dragons aren't as soft as you think," Ylra said, reminiscing about her time in the east. "My father had always spoken about how soft they were, as though they were clouds, but they are not at all that soft."

"Have you ever sat on a cloud?" Adam asked, wondering if she spoke from experience.

"No, but I can imagine it," Ylra said, placing a hand on her chin to think. "It would be wet, but soft, too soft. I'm sure it couldn't hold the weight of a person."

"I'm inclined to agree with you," Adam said.

"Have you ever sat on a cloud?"

"No, unfortunately not. One day, maybe, though I'd need the Fly spell for that."

"You could buy that kind of spell from a magic store. Perhaps you could buy it from Rowana?"

Adam shook his head. "She gives me bad vibes." He had already resolved himself to not return to her shop.

'Me too,' Bandlor chimed in. The way she looked at me…' Bandlor shuddered atop Adam's head.

"She noted something peculiar with your familiar," Rojer said, his eyes falling onto the owl. "I have noticed it too."

Adam tried not to squirm under the mage's gaze. "What do you mean?"

"It does not appear to be a typical familiar."

'They're onto us!' Bandlor exclaimed into Adam's mind.

"That's a right," Adam said. "He isn't your typical familiar."

'What are you doing?' Bandlor fell still atop Adam's head and waited with bated breath.

Rojer raised his brow. "What do you mean by such a statement?"

"He isn't your typical familiar," Adam said, smiling. "He's my familiar."

'...'

"..."

Ylra smiled. "You remind me of my father," she said. "He always said such curious things."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Adam said, chuckling.

"What are you guys talking about?" Jay asked, taking a seat nearby. He appeared with Imma and Kay in tow.

"Nothing much," Adam replied, nodding a greeting at the trio. The three already had their tokens, each stamped twelve more times like his own.

"Hey Adam," Imma called, "about what we spoke about earlier."

Adam furrowed his brows towards her for a moment. "What we spoke about?" he asked.

"Spell swapping."

"Oh! What about it?" Adam asked, hopeful.

"Do you still want to swap spells?" Imma asked, her voice a whisper, glancing around to see if anyone was paying attention.

"Yeah," Adam whispered. "When do you want to?"

"Are you free now?"

Adam raised his brows in surprise. "Yes, yes I am."

"Alright, let's head upstairs then." She stood up, followed by Kay. Jay remained to drink as the three made their way up.

Adam wondered what spells she had. Haste was an interesting spell, one that he wanted to procure for some time now. It was one of the best spells for his adventuring. Not only did it increase someone's speed and give them an additional restricted action, but it also increased one's Defense too. It was the combination of the three elements which made it a great utility spell.

Adam first grabbed his spellbook from his room, before Imma led him into her current guild room. Her room was the same as his, with a bed, a chest at the foot of it, a bed side table, and a small dresser. With the three of them inside this tiny room, it was a cosy fit.

Imma reached into her backpack and withdrew her own spellbook. It was dark brown in colour, as plain as bread, save for the single latch around the front. The pair swapped spellbooks, though Imma had taken a moment to brace herself.

"I'll trade you Haste for one of your third gate spells," Imma offered.

"I can do that. What about your other third gate spell?"

Imma looked to Kay for a moment, before her gaze returned to Adam. "I have Fly."

Adam's eyes flashed towards hers for a moment. "Do you want Fireball and the Tower spell?"

"Deal," she snapped back, more than eager to take his offer.

Adam told her all the spells within his disposal, and she returned the favour. He chose to trade a few more spells with her so he could acquire the spells he was interested in. Longstrider, Haste, Misty Step, and Fly.

He didn't have much time today since he needed to meet with Elowen, so the pair agreed to spend the next few days copying spells together. He realised he would also need to pick up some more ink from Rowana.

'Damn it.'

He returned back to the guild room with Imma right behind him, though she seemed far more peppy now. Ylra and Rojer were gone, with Lady Elowen and Redboulder sitting near Andal.

"Where's Jay?" Imma whispered to herself. She eventually spotted him sitting at the bar alone, drinking away as he stared up at the ceiling. She slunk away towards him, followed by Kay.

"Did you enjoy your shopping?" Elowen asked, catching Adam's eye.

"It was fun, though I didn't buy enough stuff," Adam replied.

"Are you planning on buying some more now?"

"I'll do that tomorrow," Adam replied. "Did you want to talk about your offer?"

"Yes, let's do that," Elowen said as she stood, finishing her drink in a single motion. "We can return to the inn and speak with everyone else present."

"I suppose it's best that way," Adam mused aloud.

The inn was a mountain Adam hadn't quite reached. The doors were solid wood, engraved with all manner of runes. The guardian of the door was a powerful brute of a man, with a bald head and a thick handle-bar moustache. His skin was pale, like those who gave him the wrong look, and his grey eyes seemed to dismiss anyone he deemed unfit of entry.

Fortunately, Adam was with Elowen, who had made entering the inn an easy process. The inside was lavishly furnished, with thick red carpet, dining tables and chairs made of some rare wood imported from elsewhere. The tableware was made of fine porcelain imported from elsewhere adjacent, from lands Adam had yet to hear of.

Elowen asked for some food to be brought up to her room, placing down a small gem to pay for it, and then led the pair up.

Ylra and Rojer were inside, with Rojer rocking the tiny babe. Adam couldn't quite see her, she was still bundled in the blanket, but he could see the tiny blue arm with the black marks clutching Rojer's shirt.

The room was much larger than Adam's. There were four beds, each at the four corners of the room, a bedside table for each, and a pair of dressers which faced each other between the two pairs of beds.

Elowen motioned with her hand towards a bed, inviting Adam to sit on it. Adam sat, his eyes glued on the tiny arm, and Elowen sat down beside him.

"We have our mission," Elowen said. "Though we've almost completed our main objective, we do have a few other matters we can attend to. Ser Andal had offered to create the potion for us, and if it is successful in healing the child, we will have completed our main task. However, there are a few more tasks we can still accomplish within this land."

Elowen reached into her pouch and withdrew Vandra's head. "We would like to gift this to a clan in the north. We would like your assistance in this phase of our journey."

"You want to gift the head of Vandra?" Adam asked, furrowing his brows together. Vandra's head would be worth quite the pretty penny, even more for someone who knew who Vandra was.

"There is a giant clan in the north. Vandra and her family have been quite the plague to them for many years now. With a gift like this, a bond between our families would be forged."

"A giant clan?" Adam asked. "Do you mean a large clan of people, or a clan of giants?"

"A clan of giants."

Adam remained still and silent. He blinked a few times. Giants? As in those really large people? Those giants?

'What's the matter?' Bandlor asked.

'We're going to meet giants.'

'Yeah, and?'

'I've never met a giant before.'

'You've also never had se-'

Adam snapped his fingers and Bandlor disappeared. The four around him straightened in alarm for a moment.

"Sorry," Adam said. "I couldn't think properly with him on my head." His eyes darted between them all. "You said you had a few more tasks you could do?" he said, trying to change the subject.

"They aren't quite as important as this task, but yes. We wanted to assist the giants with any issues they may have, but also to-"

"My Lady," Redboulder interjected, "are yeh sure we should be tellin' him all our business?"

"He will see the child often on our journey," Elowen replied. "That alone is more than enough to entrust him with our business."

Redboulder thought for a moment, brushing his beard with a meaty fist. He bowed his head and withdrew.

"A few other matters we have are to establish relationships with new allies, as well as to rekindle old alliances. This is to remain a secret between us, of course." Elowen stared deep into Adam's eyes.

"I see," Adam replied, nodding his head. "I don't really have any reason to speak to anyone about this, so you can count on me to keep my lips sealed."

"We thank you."

"What would be my payment?"

"We won't be putting this request through the guild, and as such, you won't be able to receive acknowledgement or rewards through them." She reached into her pouch and revealed a small ring. "I will offer you one hundred gold for accepting the quest, and then this ring once we have met with the giants."

"What is it?"

"A ring of protection."

Adam almost whistled. A ring of protection was an extremely useful item, an item which every adventure benefitted from. It gave him extra Defense, as well as extra protection by increasing his ability to resist various effects. Any bonafide adventurer carried one about their persons.

"The merman princess, why were you tasked with healing her?" Adam inquired.

"Her family and my own have been close for centuries. It was decided that a Sansant would deal with her curse, and I volunteered for the role."

Adam fell silent again. It was quite the romantic story, and a great deal. "All you want me to do is help you get to the giant clan? Then I'll get the ring?"

"Yes, that's correct."

"And if I continue to assist you, will there be another reward?'

"Yes."

"What kind of reward?"

"It would depend on the task, but it would be a fair price. There may be some creature slaying on the way, in which case we'd split the spoils half and half."

"Half to me and half to you?"

"Correct."

Adam thought about it for a moment. "Would you be willing to carry the spoils? I don't have a bag of holding."

"If you are willing to assist us on our entire journey, I could offer you a bag of holding."

Adam's brows raised in shock. "Really?" he asked, unable to keep his voice level.

Elowen nodded. "It would be a simple matter, and a fair price to pay for your assistance."

"If that's the case, then I'll be more than happy to assist you."

Elowen extended her hand. "A deal it is."

Adam shook her hand eagerly, grinning wide. A bag of holding! Something like that was way too good to pass up. A ring of protection and a bag of holding? This quest was turning out to be quite lucrative.

"When do you wish to leave?" Adam asked. "I assume we have a few days?"

"We should leave within a few days," Elowen said, "but I will be sure to give you a day's notice."

"That sounds wonderful, thank you. I have a few matters to attend to, so leaving in a few days works great."

Adam had been so cheery leaving that the bouncer pulled aside, unnerved by his disposition. He remained cheery even as he walked into Rowana's shop, though his jollyness slowly dissipted under her intense gaze.

"Welcome back," she said, her face a wide smile. "Did you come to trade your familiar?"

"I was hoping to buy more ink," he said. "I realised I didn't buy enough."

"A simple matter to remedy." She waved her hand dismissively. "Where is that sweet little owl of yours?"

"He's currently having a small break."

"You should be careful toying with such beings."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Currency

43 Onyx (50G) -> 37 Onyx (50G)

"You're bronze rank?" Rowana finally said, leering at the token on his chest.

"Yes," Adam said, nodding his head.

Rowana remained silent. Adam took that as his cue to leave, letting her ruminate on her thoughts. He resummoned Bandlor as he left the store.

'Hey,' he called out to Bandlor.

Bandlor remained silent.