Once we left the Magic Guild, we pushed our way through the busy streets to return to the inn. By the time we reached the Big Oak Tree, it was almost a quarter to noon.

The common room was a virtual combat zone as people fought for empty seats during the lunch rush hours. My party walked through the crowded room and made our way to the VIP room. Thankfully, it was still available.

An elven waitress came into the room to take our order.

"What is today's special?" I asked.

"Mutton stew," she replied.

"We'll have the special and also honey mead," I ordered.

"Can I get two servings?" Dovarata asked me.

"Sure," I said. I realized the dracon had a big appetite.

"Me, too!" Bila jumped in.

I nodded at the waitress.

She smiled and left the room.

When the elf was gone, Dovarata looked at me again. "Milord, I will be leaving your party after our meal is finished," she announced in a sad tone of voice.

"I see."

"My agreement was to take you to London and then accompany you to the ruins. Since we have done so, our bargain has been completed," she explained.

"And you need to return home," I guessed.

"Yes," she nodded. "I've been here in London for 4 days. My golem needs maintenance and my sister, Hleara, will be antsy awaiting my return."

"I can imagine," I said as I thought back to the younger draconic sister.

Dovarata turned toward Sister Waverly, who was sitting next to her. The dracon took the nun's black robes and veil out of her Bag of Holding and placed it on the table. Then she placed a key on top of the clothes. "The key is for the guest room that I was sharing with Bila. You can take my bed."

"Okay," the nun said and accepted the key. Waverly took the clothes and placed them on the empty seat to her left.

Several waitresses soon entered the VIP room carrying trays of food. Once we received our bowls of mutton stew and our tankards of mead, they departed again.

My companions ate the delicious food in silence. Even Bila was eating with less enthusiasm than usual because of Dovarata's imminent departure from our party.

Once I finished my meal, I looked at Rijana and said, "I want to add more spells to my spellbook."

My magic instructor looked at me and nodded.

I looked at the rest of my companions. "I'm planning to spend the rest of today in my room. You're free to do whatever you wish. We'll head out again tomorrow morning."

"Okay," Van agreed. "I'll head over to the church and run some errands."

"I'll be guarding you," Bila said.

"We'll hunt in the woods," Bjoukin said.

His sister, Bjoukia, nodded. Of course, she'll be going with him.

All eyes then turned toward Sister Waverly, who had a perplexed expression on her face. "I don't feel like sitting in my guest room alone. So I will keep Bila company."

"Bila is going to sit in my room. Are you okay with that?" I asked her.

"It's fine," the nun smiled.

I suddenly remembered something. I untied a small sack that I received yesterday. I placed it on the table. "This is the reward I received yesterday after I delivered my report to Saint John the Kind regarding the disappearance of the orphans from the orphanage. There are 200 gold coins in the bag. I would like to split the bounty equally among us, aside from Sister Waverly," I explained.

My companions stared at the sack for a moment. Then Rijana shook her head. "We didn't do much to deserve compensation. We couldn't track the wolves or locate the snake pit. Frankly, if we also factor in the interviews you conducted with the workers at the orphanage, you actually did most of the work. I think you deserve the full 200 gold coins," she concluded.

The elven siblings nodded in agreement.

"I serve the Church and I don't need the monetary reward," Van said.

I turned toward Dovarata and she, too, shook her head. "I just received a huge inheritance from my father, remember?" she reminded me. "I have no need for gold coins nor any shops to spend them near my home." After all, Dovarata lived on an island formed of an inactive volcano. There were no human settlements near her ancestral home.

Finally, I turned toward Bila.

Her eyes glowed as she wrestled with her decision. Normally, she would not hesitate to take her share of the reward. But Rijana's words struck a deep chord with the cat girl. Out of the eight people currently in the room, the ones who did the most to resolve the matter involving the orphans were: me, Van, Rijana, and Dovarata. In that order. Aside from me, if these three people refused to take a share of the reward, then it would make Bila look greedy if she accepted a share. Thus, in order to keep her Honor, Bila also had to decline the reward as much as it grated her personally.

After a long moment of silence, Bila looked at me and shook her head. She pushed the sack in front of me. "Keep it," she said quietly.

The matter of the bounty now settled, Dovarata rose from her seat. "I should head out now. Good luck on your quest, Lord Mulligan." She bowed deeply to me and walked out of the VIP room for the last time.

Once the dracon was gone, Bila spoke up. "Are you fine with her leaving? I thought you need her magic item to teleport?" she asked.

I shook my head. "I'm hoping to learn some travel magic before I leave the city. If I fail in doing so, then I could still arrange for transportation with the Magic Guild," I explained.

"Ah, that makes sense!" the cat girl nodded.

Since we had all finished eating, we vacated the room. I left 10 silver coins as a tip. When we entered the front lobby, our party separated as discussed in the VIP room.

I walked up the stairs followed by Rijana, Bila, and Waverly. I unlocked the door to my guest room and kept it open for my guests. I entered the room last and locked the door behind me.

I sat on my bed and said, "I need to clear out my notifications first. Then I will start leveling up my profession."

Bila sat on the floor and leaned against the door.

Waverly sat next to her. The nun assumed the lotus position and started meditating.

Rijana sat next to the sister and did the same thing.

I looked at the trio sitting on the floor. I was surprised that none of them chose to sit on Van's bed. I guessed they weren't comfortable with the idea of sleeping on a man's bed.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts and started going through my in-game messages. I received a net total of 1,200 XP from using Spirit Sense and Navigation Sense. I also received 50 XP from negotiating with Hurley, the boy on the street, and Arkan, the tailor. However, my loss against Sister Waverly in a duel resulted in a reduction of 300 Reputation and 600 XP. She had also scored a critical hit against me for 30 Health plus the knock out status effect. Ouch.

Despite her profession as a nun, Sister Waverly certainly knew how to fight and she definitely was not fragile despite being our party's primary healer. Anyone who was foolish enough to discount her as a nun deserved to be beaten up by her just like the way I had been.

I pulled up my Player Status Screen. I had not looked at it since I arrived in London, or 4 days ago.

A picture of my player avatar was in the left column and right above that read: “Title: Pursuer of the Crown, Title: Spirit Magi, Title: Matter User, Title: Dragonslayer, Title: Finalist in the Melee Tournament, Title: Undead Hunter, Title: Were-Hunter, Title: Avenger of the Town Judge Wachtel; Title: Liege of the Butterfly School of Swordsmanship, Title: Protector of Southampton, Status: Member of the Mage Guild, Status: Adept of the Butterfly School of Swordsmanship, Status: Adept of the Church of Britannia, Status: Town Judge of Tregome, Status: Honorary member of the Tregome Bordermen, Status: True Friend of Burnhamm Village.”

The middle column read: "Name: Lawrence Eugene Mulligan, Race: Human, Alignment: Lawful Good, Permanent Conditions: Marked by Bane, Marked by Musa, Marked by Luck, Marked by Gaea, Marked by Jasla, Marked by Leonus; Profession: Mage/Swordsman, Level: 9, Experience: 111,275/45,000, Reputation: 64,402, Attack: 42, Damage: 6-8 (Unarmed), 8-12 (Dagger), 8-18 (Long Sword), Critical Attack: 9%, Critical Damage: 250%."

On the right side of the screen, my player attributes were listed: "Health: 90, Stamina: 54, Magic: 50, Strength: 20, Intelligence: 35, Wisdom: 12, Dexterity: 19, Constitution: 26, Charisma: 12. Abilities: Navigation-Sense (Level 7), Magic Sense (Level 10/MAX), Immunity to Electricity (Level 2), Immunity to Fear (Level X), Negotiation (Level 5), Spirit Sense (Level 10/MAX), Reroll (Level X)."

At the bottom were six tabs. The first was marked "Skills." When I mentally clicked on the tab, I saw: "Professional Skills: Mage—Read Magic (Level 8); Swordsman—Dual-Weld (Level X), Charge (Level 6), Disarm (Level 4), First Strike (Level 3), Slide Step (Level 4), Duel Winner (Level 2), Sprint (Level 1)."

The second tab was "Magic Spells: General (Level 7)—Detect Trap, Light, Dispel Magic, Enchant Magic Item, Permanency, Summon Elemental; Fire (Level 8)—Fire Bolt, Fireball, Protection from Fire; Water (Level 4)—Acid Arrow, Iceball; Earth (Level 4)—Armor, Web, Earth Spike; Air (Level 5)—Magic Missile, Invisibility, Lightning Bolt; Light (Level 2)—Protection from Undead; Dark (Level 3)—Dark Vision, Darkness."

The third tab was: "Divine Spells: Order—Unveil (Level X), Chaos—Veil (Level X), Charm Opposite Sex (Level X); Life—Minor Heal (Level X)."

The fourth tab was "Artifacts," and it revealed: "Truth-Stone of Order and Chaos—Truth-Telling (Level X)."

The fifth tab was "Followers," and it listed: "Bila, Journeyman Swordsman."

The final tab was "Leylines," and it listed: "Divine Forest of Gaea (Earth); Hleandro's Lair (Fire); Southampton Water (Water); Southampton Harbor (Wind); Primrose Hill (Wind)."

My eyes immediately zoomed in on my current experience points. I was shocked by the fact that I had over 111,000 points! I gained 36,000 XP since the last time I checked my personal status. But considering the fact that I was a dual-class character and had to earn 2 XP for every point gained, this meant I really gained 72,000 points! More importantly, I should be in the vicinity of Level 15, which will unlock access to the Eight-Tier spells!

Bila noticed my excitement and her whiskers and ears twitched.

I offered her a friendly wave and then opened my messenger bag. I took out the magic scrolls that I had purchased from the Magic Bazaar back in Southampton. The scrolls were: Fly (Third-Tier), Firestorm (Fourth-Tier), Dimension Door (Fourth-Tier), and Anti-Magic Shell (Eighth-Tier).

I took out my spellbook and writing equipment. I took the scroll for Fly out of the scroll holder and laid the scroll flat on my bed. I opened my spellbook to a fresh page and started copying the spell. 15 minutes later, I heard dice rolling inside my head. "Read magic SUCCESSFUL. +100 XP. Spell of air LEARNED: Fly. +100 XP."

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes to rest for a minute. Then I opened my eyes and looked at my bed. I saw that the scroll for Fly had turned to dust. I took out the scroll for Firestorm and began to copy it into my spellbook. 20 minutes later, dice started rolling inside my head. "Read magic SUCCESSFUL. +200 XP. Spell of fire LEARNED: Firestorm. +200 XP."

I took a 5-minute break and then tried to copy Dimension Door. My skill level in Air was only at 5 compared to 8 for Fire. I knew that there was a chance that I would fail to learn the spell. That was why I delayed advancing my character level. And now, the moment of truth had arrived. After a half-hour, dice rolled inside my head. "Read magic SUCCESSFUL. +200 XP. Spell of air LEARNED: Dimension Door. +200 XP."

I took a deep breath. I had spent over an hour copying spells into my spellbook and I was already mentally exhausted. I was NOT in the proper mental condition to try to copy an eighth-tier spell into my spellbook. Thus, I decided to meditate for a while to clear my mind.

As I meditated, I reached out with my soul and felt my connections with the leylines. I was truly thankful to Gaea for teaching me how to tap into the first leyline and leading me down this path. The leylines provided a supplemental source of energy in place of mana to fuel my spells. I felt the five streams of leylines pass through my body. I felt a sense of belonging and I was humbled by this connection to an unknown part of the world at large. Finally, I felt that I was ready to make the attempt.

I opened my eyes and recalled my status screen. I cashed in my experience points and immediately advanced my Swordmage profession to Level 15. The advancement gave me 30 attribute points to spend or 6 points per level of advancement. It was time to shore up my weaknesses. I added 6 points each to my Wisdom and Charisma and brought them to 18. I added 1 point to Dexterity and brought it to 20. I added 4 points to Constitution and brought it to 30. I spent 5 points on Strength and brought it to 25. I had 8 points remaining and I spent the rest on my Intelligence, bringing it to 43.

I remembered that Saint John had a weird ability that allowed him to read my status screen. In fact, the first time I visited him, he used this ability to write down a copy of my status report. At the time, I was too shocked to ask what he was going to do with this highly confidential information. During the meeting, the cleric specifically asked me to raise my Charisma to at least 15 and explained it was important because I was seeking the crown. Hopefully, he will be happy with the way I distributed my attribute points and the fact that I took his advice and raised my Charisma to 18 points.

The middle column now read: "Name: Lawrence Eugene Mulligan, Race: Human, Alignment: Lawful Good, Permanent Conditions: Marked by Bane, Marked by Musa, Marked by Luck, Marked by Gaea, Marked by Jasla, Marked by Leonus; Profession: Mage/Swordsman, Level: 15, Experience: 111,325/120,000, Reputation: 64,402, Attack: 62, Damage: 10-12 (Unarmed), 12-16 (Dagger), 12-22 (Long Sword), Critical Attack: 12%, Critical Damage: 300%."

And the right column now read: "Health: 140, Stamina: 88, Magic: 102, Strength: 25, Intelligence: 43, Wisdom: 18, Dexterity: 20, Constitution: 30, Charisma: 18. Abilities: Navigation-Sense (Level 7), Magic Sense (Level 10/MAX), Immunity to Electricity (Level 2), Immunity to Fear (Level X), Negotiation (Level 5), Spirit Sense (Level 10/MAX), Reroll (Level X)."

I was shocked again by my status screen. After I distributed my 30 attribute points, I had massive upgrades in my Health, Stamina, Magic, Attack, Critical Attack, and Critical Damage. Frankly, if I had the right spells cast beforehand, I could even go toe-to-toe even with my former sword instructor, Kalistra. I imagined fighting her in a duel and shook my head. Nah. I wasn't going to last 10 seconds against her. Nonetheless, I was certain that I could defeat Captain Maisen at the very least.

Buoyed by my renewed confidence, I took the scroll for Anti-Magic Shell out of the scroll holder and started copying it into my spellbook. The spell proved to be the most complicated thing I had ever read. The instructions turned into a lecture that expounded on the balance between the light and the dark and how the four basic elements were subservient to the Great Balance. Order inevitably descended into Chaos and entropy arose to wipe out existence itself. Yet, from the nothingness of the Void, spontaneity sprang forth in the vacuum and new matter was created.

After an hour, I had to make an Intelligence check. I made four more saving throws, meaning that I had spent five hours reading and copying the spell. Dice rolled inside my mind again. "Read magic FAILED. Reroll SUCCESSFUL. Level 9, +1,000 XP. General spell LEARNED: Anti-Magic Shell. Level 8, +1,000 XP."

With a goofy smile on my face, I collapsed onto my bed and blacked out.