It’s been a much more stressful day than originally planned. 10 attempts later, trying to stab those little yarkers, all failures. They were just too quick and I just… kept… on… missing!

Close, but… but they always seemed to move at the last second, slithering right around my blade. I wasn’t skilled in any sense of the word, but I expected something to work at this point, even if by sheer luck.

It was midday, and I wasn’t planning on staying any longer in this forest. Finding some information on the creatures would be quicker than my trial-and-error method I had going on and I didn’t want to waste anymore time. “Just too far-gone annoying, stressed already.”

Walkin back the way I came, I strutted back to the town. The wall, filled with guards patrolling along the top and patrons lined up at the gates. It looked to be at least an hour’s wait. “Do I really have to do this every time? Seems like a waste of time.” But I didn’t have another option, and so, I waited my turn.

I shuffled through all the same, listening for a single thing, news about Greycott, but unfortunately, there had yet to be anything about the invasion. It should come soon, considering that I passed Hurack and his sister when I left earlier. Bellmare might go into lockdown as a precaution if my luck is anything to go on.

Regardless, let’s stop by the inn and wash off. The dirt has been rubbing against my skin for some time now. Royse’s clothes have made it better tho, comfortable and durable despite the rougher activities. Not anything impressive, but they're holding up better than my original clothes.

I made quick work of walking through the crowds, none of that meandering around buffoonery from yesterday. I bumped into a few people, still not quite used to the flow of traffic here, but it was better than before.

Before long, I arrived back at the Inn, but I noticed something off with the door to my room.

With a key in hand, I stared at the lock bent 90 degrees the wrong direction, completely pushed out of the way. As if someone slammed the door open with no regards to keeping it in one piece. This is the exact person Sly would hate.

“Haaaaaaaaa, why is it never just… simple. Yark it.” I pushed the door upon, not even needing to turn the handle.

It opened with some resistance and a familiar situation once again graced my presence. But this time, it seemed to be in reverse.

Two humans, one plastered on the floor without a care in the world, sleeping soundlessly, and the other noticed my presence as she lifted her head. Before she had time to say anything, I started. “Hey, nice to see you again and all of that, but I think you have the wrong room. I already reserved this room.” I knocked my fist against the broken door.

Her eyes squinted, as confusion wrote itself all over her face. “What the fuck?” She rubbed her eyes, shifting herself over with one hand and pushing herself up with the other. After a second, she looked back over, still confused as dark rings displayed themselves perfectly beneath her eyes.

“You broke into my room and bent the lock sideways.” I pointed to the door, raising one eyebrow. With a turn of her head, she paused with voided eyes at the door before looking back up to me.

“I’m tired… I’ll… just… just… on the floor.” She said, falling off the bed’s edge and onto the ground, without a care in the world, as she closed her eyes a moment later. Not even bothering to look in my direction as Garnot’s snoring filled the room.

Whaa…. What the yark was that!? Does she expect me to just sleep on the bed since she got off it? What the yark is going through her mind?!

I walked closer, getting ready to drag her out if I had to, but as I stood beside her, soft breathing was all that I heard, like nothing ever happened.

Just how tired was she?

“How the yark does this happen two times in a row? And now I need to drag them out….” I whispered beneath my breath.

Reaching down, my hand went towards her leg, but I paused. Is this really worth the effort?

…

Do you know what? Nope, this isn’t worth it. New room it is.

Why bother when just 2 silver coins can solve this? Heck, it’s probably worth avoiding her killer kick knocking the living snot out of me.

I straightened back up and took a step, but something caught my sight. Another room key, just like my own, sat on the nightstand. Labeled 6 insead of my room number 9.

Hmmmm. Well… at least they were close, but since they took my room, then I’m taking theirs. Even trade as far as I’m concerned. I did a quick key swap and left, walking a couple doors down.

“Finally, let’s get this grim off my body.”

I wiped the accumulated dirt from my body in my new room, letting the rag take away the stress. “Freshened up to explore the town until nightfall.” I’m going to continue hunting the flying snakes tomorrow, but for now, I’m going to see what this place offers, and what other supplies I can buy.

Leaving the inn, I picked a direction and meandered around the town.

Although reading would be a pain, I didn’t need someone to read for me like I first thought. If I could sense the pen indentation and ink on the map, I could do the same thing for books. Might be slow, but it was an option if needed.

The stone path was sturdy beneath my feet, remaining still as the carts and rows of people traversed over them. I followed behind a carriage that was making quick progress towards the center of town. Carving out a path among the sea of people.

Pretty quickly, I was in what seemed to be the central location of vendors and merchants lining the streets. Money was changing hands faster than I could count, matching the pace of the bustling town.

Hmmm, what’s this? An engraved sign read Mana Infused Jewelry, matching the lined up rings and necklaces inside the stall. The word mana drew me here, but I sensed nothing but, just plain old rocks and gems.

“Welcome customer, anything that catches your interest?” The vendor said with glee, rubbing his hands together.

Hmmmm, might as well ask. “Yes, can you inform me about your wares?”

His eyes cleared up, excited at the prospect of profit. “Absolutely. These items are infused with mana, the life-force of everything. They bring good to those who wear them. Mana attracts more of its kind, so if you want to be graced with its striking presence, then wear something from the stand here.” He waved his hands in front of his wares.

My ears turned off halfway through his spiel. With my mana sense, which has yet to prove me wrong, I couldn’t sense anything, not even a drop. In fact, they were void of all mana, less than the natural density around me right now. I’m sure my senses aren't all powerful, but something this simple? I was more than capable.

I grabbed a ring he pointed to, inspecting it closer. The metal texture was cold and unpolished. It looked reasonably well, but it definitely had a distinct look to anything ornate. Especially compared to the one on my finger.

Hmmm, wait a second. This gives me an idea.

Things like this existed, just like the light crystal in the Pioneering Merchant. I totally forgot about it, but just as Hollow said, you can take mana from a crystal and use it in a pinch. Not sure how exactly I ‘pull’ the mana from the crystal, but it’s probably worth the time it takes to learn.

If I could inject mana into an object and pull from it as a source of mana, then I could effectively increase my pool. Running out of mana hasn’t really been a problem, but more wouldn’t hurt.

I could still regenerate mana faster than normal, but it wasn’t instant. Heck, if I had enough mana then I could disregard it completely, firing nonstop to increase my practice or whatever else I needed. Just needed to be careful not to use too much in one go, avoiding overuse and throwing up my previous meal.

“You have brilliant eyes. That has the most mana infusion compared to anything else here. Only 5 silvers and it’s yours.” He pushed the ridiculous price, one that’s probably all profit if it’s as simple as I think it is.

As I set the ring back down, a voice called out from behind. “Charly, what the fuck did I say about seeling people this hot garbage! You’re scamming people.”

Charly’s face formed a heavy scowl at the words and before even getting a word out, he turned… and ran like his life depended on it, leaving all of his precious goods behind.

If I see you again, you know what will happen!” She let out a puff of anger before shaking her head with a sigh. Her outfit was something similar to a guard as two swords curved over and out from her shoulders, with multiple dark patches of sturdier leather placed throughout her joints. Complete with red hair tied back into a ponytail.

“Sorry, he’s been trying to sell his ‘magical’ products for some time now. We’ve fined him and restricted his access to sell, but he keeps bringing this shit back.” She grabbed one of the wooden rings, bringing her arm back as far as it went before chucking it with all her might. “iiiissssssss.” The ring whistled as it flew, hitting the precarious merchant right on the head. He stumbled a bit, but continued his escape as he only picked up his pace. Clearly afraid of whoever this was. “Fucking merchants…”

Wouldn’t have bought anything anyway, but it’s nice to have it confirmed by someone else. “No, problem. Figured the same thing with how he was talking, but it’s nice to see the city doing something about it.”

“Ya, we do our best, but we can’t eliminate everything.” Still facing the running merchant, she turned, taking a second to give me a once over. “Hmmmmm. Pardon my question, but are you new around here?”

“Just arrived yesterday, looking to stay for a while.”

She pursed her mouth to the side at the words, trying to find out something, but smiled a second later. “Awesome. Take care not to get scammed. I’m quite familiar with everyone around here, so come find me at the guard station if you have questions. Especially with merchants trying to scam people. That’s my specialty.”

I nodded. “Oh, the name’s Ruby, by the way.” She set off a second later, nodding back.

That’s a good thing, right? A person covering their entire body with a cloak and helm isn’t that common, so some looks are to be expected.

After the uneventful event, I looked at everything this area offered. Books, armor, weapons, toys, food, actual jewelry, and everything in between.

It all seemed kinda meh, nothing special, but it’s what you’d probably expect out in the open. The better goods are probably inside stores instead of some random vendor on the street-side, but at least I know what they have if I need anything.

With that done, I got closer to the city center, looking for one thing. Last time it was the turbulent mana man, so if I saw something similar, I would be gone and out of here as fast as my legs could take me. I can make a quick run through the vendors here and grab everything I need for a quick journey. All I need is food and a map or some directions to the next place.

Everything seems fine now, but I needed to be prepared. Wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice.

Nearing what seemed to be a central wall, I ended up at a gated section, blocked by posts spaced every hand’s width. A large empty section of land showed itself on the other side, with guards and even a few Chevaliers walking around a large mansion in the center. I wasn’t too extravagant, but looked quite nice in a pact city with people literally everywhere.

I used [Sensing Sight] all over the mansion, sensing for even a trace of the worse case scenario. Basement, ground floor, and up to third floor.

Nothing, nada, nope. Just a simple, plain old mansion. “Awesome.”

I’m not sure what else I'll need to check, but an uplifting start. It would be nice to get some basic information as well. Just some names and positions of the people with power in Bellmare would be enough.

I continued along, getting a better feel for the place. Memorizing locations of interest before I’d made my way back to the inn just before sunset. I informed the innkeeper of the incident last night and the ‘room switch.’ He was relaxed with the news and said he’d already expected it. Didn’t give any information, but something must have happened considering his facial expression growing dark at the mere mention of it.

Walking up to my room, I only hope for one thing: an empty room. Is that too much to ask? “I’m finally somewhere safe, so please leave me alone.” I pushed the door open after a turn of the key. I prepared for the worst, but I’m greeted by a pleasant sight. A clean bucket and not one individual inside.

“Some rest and let’s get back to hunting those little yarks.”

I woke up a bit before sunrise, ready to repeat the day before. On the way out, I passed by my old room. The broken lock was no longer on the door, replaced by a chuck of wood acting as a handle. “A temporary fix? I guess. Is it that hard to find a replacement? Well, whatever, not my problem.”

I took a few steps down before a voice sounded out. “What the fuck is that!? Replace the lock you… You broke properly or I’ll talk to the guards.” The innkeeper said, almost yelling at the two as he barely held his voice back, conscious of his customers still asleep.

“Um, sorry, but you’ll have to wait. We’re… ummm. Kinda … umm outta money for the moment, we can do it.. Ummm. like in a day or two.” She said carefully, trying not to anger the man further. The Innkeeper was pissed as the scowl only grew deeper.

Hey, at least she’s trying to be honest, but it has nothing to do with me, so I’m out of here. I moved past Garnot and his sister, still didn’t know her name, and exited the lobby, following the same path to the wall and then into the forest. “Take two. Let’s get this done. The better I get, the faster I’ll start enjoying this.”

“Shit.” The day just kept on getting worse. Laira looked over at her brother.

“Shit.” She said again. They just had enough for another meal by going to the cheaper inn, but they had to buy a fucking door lock instead. Not even enough for another meal, concentration to do their jobs as [Entity Hunter]s, or anything else. Just what they had on their backs.

“Shit.” she said, for the third time.

Her brother was still the same as ever, but she would be here no matter what. It wasn’t the lowest they’ve been, but a rough few days were ahead of them, especially with every standard mission at the guild hall needing at least a day to complete. And a day they did not have.

She could do a random job within the city, but her brother would be a handful to take care of simultaneously, with his ‘condition.’ An hour was fine, but any longer than that and he would get sidetracked and probably add to the problems she had to deal with.

“We just need enough for another night and some basic food...” But sadly, anything with those requirements didn’t exist. Well, there was one option, and that thing was hunting, without the concentrates they needed as [Entity Hunter]s.

Concentrates were special blends of various ingredients that gave off a very particular smell. Depending on the specific concentrate, it enhanced an [Entity Hunter]’s smell or attracted a specific monster to their location. A particularly potent method, but without the concentrate, they were useless.

“I never want to deal with the Fucking Ulines again.” She held her head in her hands, leaning forward and looking towards the ground. “Shit, this will never work.”

If she could have someone to watch her brother, then she could make it work, but nobody was that good-hearted. Especially in a packed city where everyone was just another warm body moving around. “Haaaaa.” Laira signed to the ground.

The last time I tried this, Hurack was in a cage, ready to be shipped off to sell. I wanted to crush every human in Riverside when that happened. Never… never again. “Hurack.” She looked back over at him.

“Let’s go hunting. It’s the only option now. We will be back before nightfall with enough money to buy whatever you want to eat.” She said with a strained smile, knowing full well it wouldn’t be that easy.

He tilted his head to the side. “Anything… for my sister.”

The words resounded within her.

You got this, Laira! I may have failed in the past. But that ends now. He needs me and I’m not letting him down. And if I ever see that guard again in Greycott, I’m knocking his teeth out for ripping us off.