“Quite the novel experience, this.” Gaius, who was floating in a barrel of mystical water, closed his eyes. He could feel yet another type of energy, something rather foreign to his senses, seep into his bones, and moaned out loud from the sensations assaulting his senses. Injuries that existed in places he didn’t know existed were beginning to heal up, the slight delay between thought and action decreasing as the boy continued to submerged himself in the water from the Fountain of Life.

All around him, gold glinted cheerily. How many could say that they took a bath in the middle of a treasure vault? Not many, that’s for sure.

Nexus, who was floating on the water, nodded lazily. “I should take more baths too when I get back.”

Breaststroke, frogstyle, butterfly…the wooden sculpture switched between the famous swimming styles on Earth expertly, creating small splashes that landed on Gaius’ face.

“Still, why keep a public good in the vault?” wondered Gaius. “And how did they transport that much water anyway?”

“You ask very good questions.” Nexus blew some water out of its mouth like a whale, and added on, “Maybe we’ll answer them. Or not. But unless you want me to get mad, shut up and focus on healing yourself with the water.”

The boy took a deep breath, and brought his knees to chest height. He stayed afloat for a few more minutes, and the cooling sensations seeped into his entire body as Gaius began to slowly sink. Exhaustion came back to the boy, but this time, it was the kind that a good night’s sleep could dispel, rather than the bone-deep fatigue that had been plaguing him ever since the battle at Lumari.

Eventually, the boy willed himself to float out of the barrel. Droplets of water splattered everywhere, creating a damp mess on the stone floor, but none of them mattered to the boy as he grabbed a towel and dried himself. Nexus had fallen silent, and after pulling his clothes on, Gaius reached out and grabbed the sculpture, who was in a state of unconsciousness. The boy shook it slightly, but there was no response.

“Well, that’s new,” murmured Gaius. He looked at the barrel of water, and made it follow him on the way out.

Nakama and Isabelle were playing in the living room by the time Gaius had disposed of the bathwater from the Fountain of Life. They were noticeably cleaner — their faces free of sand and dust kicked up by the long flight, and the two of them were actually on the verge of falling asleep.

“You two should go get some shuteye,” said Gaius. “And place this fellow somewhere comfortable too.”

He tossed Nexus over to Isabelle, and stretched his body.

“You’re tired too, right?” asked Isabelle. “You can put off whatever you want to do till tomorrow. You should rest first.”

“I’m fine,” replied Gaius. “I’m going out for a…stroll. And to check out the local area. Don’t worry. This is the capital of Mi-Zu, I really don’t think anything funny would happen to me while I’m out.”

“Famous last words…” Isabelle murmured, and Gaius couldn’t help but wryly note that she’d returned to her older personality. It was probably fatigue, but it was a far better treatment than that reverential mindset she had on when interacting with Gaius normally.

“Make sure Nakama’s tucked in properly, and don’t let her fall off the bed or something. As for Nexus, place it nearby, but don’t go tossing him around, and—"

“Yes, yes, we know.” She yawned. “I’ve been taking care of these two for a few weeks, surely I know what works…”

“Uh…” Gaius rubbed his nose, discomfited. “I’ll be off then.”

He turned to leave as Isabelle carried Nakama, vanishing into the depths of the house. After making sure that the vault was closed properly — he was unsure whether he’d closed it due to fatigue — Gaius left the house, and began to wander the streets.

The first thing he wanted to look for was the Adventurers’ Guild. Unlike the South, the Adventurers’ Guild in the Eastern Territories enjoyed greater prestige, due to the prevalence of monsters in the region. Most of these adventurers apparently could hold their own against a small squad trained by the Assembly’s standards, which meant that they were useful as advance scouts or independent commando forces.

According to Isabelle, the prevalence of adventurers whenever conflicts arose between the South and the East or West made the occupation within the Southern Continent rather unpopular. Of course, there were other reasons, but the Houses suffered greatly whenever the abnormally superhuman adventurers appeared on the battlefield, which didn’t endear the occupation to those in power within the South.

It probably didn’t help that these adventurers, as they were skilled in hiding and stealth, often went for the commanders of the enemy forces…who were usually men from the Great Houses. Most of these adventurers hid their identities too, which meant that the only recourse these Houses had were directed at the ancient organisation.

Now that I think about it, they sound like an assassin organisation, rather than that of monster killers…Gaius rolled his eyes as he continued to drift around the meandering crowds of people, his eyes peeled for the signboard of the Adventurers’ Guild.

It didn’t take long for him to find it. Thankfully, it was just called the “Adventurers’ Guild”, rather than some abstract name that Gaius didn’t have the time or strength to decipher. Men and women entered and left the rather tall building, casting shadows on the brown walls the entire time, even as the sun began to set.

As busy as a bee…Gaius hung around the entrance until the passage of people in and out of the building began to thin, and then entered. Click-clack noises, made at regular intervals, were the first thing he heard, accompanied by a subtle fragrance that soothed his nerves immediately.

The interior of the Adventurers’ Guild reminded Gaius of a government office on Earth. Around ten or so receptionists were seated at desks, and people were lining up in neat, orderly queues. Some of them whispered amongst themselves, but there was little the boy could hear from his current position. In the middle of the giant room was a set of sofas, with a table set in the middle. Small snacks were laid out on it, but no one was interested in them.

Sitting on the sofas were people reading what looked very much like newspapers, and as he watched, a woman, armed to the teeth with daggers, folded the newspaper in her hand up and left it on her seat as she left.

The gap was promptly filled up a second later.

How fascinating. It’s like watching an assembly line. Gaius smiled, and looked around the counters. His eyes landed on the registration counter, where the line was distinctly shorter, and made his way there.