Name: Michael Adkins Class: Controlled Berserker of the Greatsword Arts Race: Human, Male Level: 81, B-rank Titles: Greatsword Enthusiast, Gifted By God, Controlled Berserker Class Effects: +120 to Strength, Agility, Dexterity, Vitality, Control; Doubles at level milestones; Going into a controlled berserker state increases your stats by a factor of 2x; Blind rage increases stats by a factor of 4x Attack: 760 Defense: 0 Health: 2750/2750 Mana: 400/400 Health Regen: 1.375/sec Mana Regen: 0.2/sec Strength: 300(+460) Agility: 125(+395) Dexterity: 120(+240) Vitality: 155(+120) Intelligence: 50 Wisdom: 40 Luck: 27 Leadership: 19 Control: 30(+60) Rage: 21 Skills: Greatsword Mastery, Throwing Mastery, Heavy Armor Mastery, Ice Magic Mastery, Ice Spear, Wind Enchant, Pain Tolerance, Sneak Attack, Cooking, Trap Disarming, Danger Sense, Deflect, Controlled Berserking, Blind Rage, Bartering, Persuasion Title Effects:

Greatsword Enthusiast: 1.2x Attack with Greatswords, 1.3x Durability with Greatswords, 1.1x Attack Speed with Greatswords

Gifted By God: 2x modifier to Strength, Dexterity, and Agility; Maximum Greatsword Mastery; 2.5x Experience Modifier

Controlled Berserker: Allows you to control your anger and direct it onto one enemy, creating an intimidating aura; Controlled Berserking bonus increased to 2.5x from 2x

Name: Jane Crimson Class: Magic Archer Race: Foxkin, Female Level: 78, B-rank Titles: Sniper, Magically Talented Class Effects: +20 to Intelligence, Wisdom, Agility, and Dexterity; Able to cast Mage-type spells normally restricted to others; Able enchant arrows with magic for special attack effects Attack: 510 Defense: 0 Health: 920/920 Mana: 1500/1500 Health Regen: 0.46/sec Mana Regen: 1.75/sec Strength: 130(+380) Agility: 280(+20) Dexterity: 163(+20) Vitality: 92 Intelligence: 130(+20) Wisdom: 130(+20) Luck: 10 Leadership: 10 Skills: Bow Mastery, Longsword Mastery, Light Armor Mastery, Spell Mastery, Chant Mastery, Ice Magic Mastery, Blizzard, Ice Spear, Rain of Spears, Mobile Casting, Evasion Title Effects:

Sniper: Dexterity increases by 1.2x when using a bow; Long distance shots have a higher chance of hitting; Ranged damage fall off decreased; Increased chance to hit an enemy's vitals

Magically Talented: Magic related masteries increase faster; Magic effects are increased by 1.2x

Jane and I checked each other's status cards while walking. I had a heavy specialization in the physical stats while Jane's were more well-rounded in comparison. We currently didn't have our gear equipped, so our attack and defense values were lower than usual. We entered Lisa's Blacksmith and saw the girl sleeping at her counter. I walked up and poked her face, which woke her up. She was surprised until she saw my face and Jane's.

"So, what are you here for today?" She asked me.

"I need you to repair my armor. Unless it's beyond repair, then I'll ask for a new one that is the same as this one. I'd also like you to reforge this sword entirely of adamantium." I brought my sword and armor out from my inventory and placed them on Lisa's counter. She inspected the armor with a grave face.

"What did you get hit by? This armor's beyond the point of no return. You're going to have to get a new set. Also, this sword will take some time to forge completely out of adamantium. Give me a week. You can go get the new armor over there, I'll be scrapping this destroyed armor." Lisa gestured over to a different part of her shop where I saw the new half plate on display. I placed thirty silvers on Lisa's counter walked over to the armor she gestured at.

I stored that armor in my inventory and left while she took my sword over to her forge. Next would be my coat.

Leaving the smithy, Jane and I walked over to Marlin's place where I saw him working on something. Knocking on the door frame made him look up from his work and he smiled when he saw us.

"How're you doing there, Michael? Jane?" He went with a simple, friendly meeting.

"We're doing well. Can you take a look at my coat?" I placed the coat on the counter he had in his shop and he walked over to inspect it. After he looked it over, he shook his head.

"It's basically been shredded. Tell you what, I'll make you a new coat. A better one that's just as light while giving more protection. I'll have it ready in a few days." Marlin said this with a determined look. I left him with fifteen gold and left the shop. Before we left the Guild, Adaline had stopped us at the booths. She handed us a pouch of 500 gold, saying it was a reward for our contribution in driving off the demon army. Jane and I split the money 50/50 on the spot.

She gave me half and now I had about 236 gold to spend including what I had before. Deciding to call it a day, Jane and I returned to the Boisterous Inn. We grabbed dinner and returned to our room where we took a bath and went to sleep.

A week passed by without trouble. I'd thought about what to do with the shortsword constantly until I decided to give it to Jane. I couldn't learn other sword masteries and I wasn't able to come up with any ideas on a mastery I could learn to utilize the shortsword. On the other hand, I'd learned a new ice spell and Mastery by launching small, sharp ice projectiles instead of spears. I was eager to see it in practice.

Ice Flechette Mastery Your Mastery of the Ice Flechette skill. Higher Mastery provides increased damage, reduces the mana cost, and increases chant speed of the skill. Mastery: Beginner 4 Effect: 8% Ice Flechette An ice spell made for close range. Fires 9 razor sharp ice projectiles that can cause severe hemorrhaging. Damage: 45(+9) x 9 Cost: 85(-17) Cooldown: 3(-0.6) seconds

I practiced with the new ice magic and it caused my Ice Magic Mastery to rank up to Intermediate 1. The bonuses were already noticeable and provided a large and welcome boost to the efficiency of this spell. The spell's chant was extremely short, only requiring me to say its name before it was cast. I could already cast on the move since I'd been fighting in close combat in all my battles. The fast chant came at a high mana cost, which was dampened by the Ice Magic Mastery.

Once the day to pick up my new sword arrived, I sat up on my bed and headed over to the bathroom. I noticed my beard had been growing out lately and shaved it back to a thin one. After shaving, I washed my face and went to wake up Jane. Once both of us were ready, we grabbed breakfast and headed over to Lisa's Blacksmith.

Arriving at the door, I knocked on the doorframe to signal to Lisa that we were here. I looked inside and saw Lisa sleeping at the counter. I walked over and saw that she had dark circles under her eyes. She must have heard my plated boots since she woke up when I arrived at the counter.

She broke into a weary smile and gestured to the side before falling asleep on the counter again. I draped a blanket over her before leaving twenty gold coins on her counter and heading to the weapon rack she pointed to. The new sword was resting on the rack, and I inspected it in all its glory.

Modified Adamantium Greatsword Damage: 275(+226) Durability: 170/170(+51) A greatsword made entirely of Adamantium. The sword was modified for a one-handed grip and is difficult to use without prior experience.

The sword's design was almost the same, with a few differences. The blade was now dark as night and looked intimidating. The hilt was wrapped in a smoother looking purple leather and the pommel was blunt instead of the tipped one from before. The blade was also extended to 1.83 meters. Picking up the blade, I felt that it was much heavier than before. I appreciated the increase in weight however since it would add to the destructive power of this sword.

Placing it on the hook, I left the blacksmith with Jane to go retrieve my new coat. While walking to the leatherworking shop, I shared a concern with Jane.

"Should we go to Grantz and pay the full price for these rings? I felt it was a little shady how they sold us these rings for so cheap." I asked Jane in a concerned tone.

"I think we should. I'd rather not have any debts to this kingdom. I can tell you want to leave already, Michael." Jane replied to me. She knew me too well. I did want to leave since I wanted to see what else this world would offer. My heart palpitated thinking about the wonders we would find.

"Alright, we'll go after we pick up my new coat." I said to her. She nodded and entwined her hand with mine.

Once we arrived at the shop, I looked around and saw Marlin loudly snoring at his counter. His situation was similar to Lisa's and he also heard my plated boots walking in. Looking up, he reached underneath his counter and brought out a gray leather coat. On the back of the coat, I saw the familiar basilisk scales laid in a hexagonal pattern covering it. The outside of the sleeves had scales covering it, with the joints being left free for movement. It was basically an armored coat, and I loved it.

Basilisk Scaled Coat Defense: 65 Durability: 80/80 A coat made from high-quality leather and laden with basilisk scales. The coat itself is light while providing ample protection.

I placed another five gold coins on Marlin's counter. He took the coins and stored them in the counter before going back to sleep. I didn't see it, but he procured a blanket out of nowhere and had it on him already. Jane and I left the shop to go to the jewelry store.

When we arrived, Grantz and Alicia approached us.

"What would you like assistance with today?" Grantz politely asked us.

"I'd like to pay the full price for this set of rings." I told him.

"Oh? But the price we made you pay is the real one." Grantz looked puzzled.

"No, I know these rings are worth much more than what you made us pay for them. What was the full price for one set?" I asked. Grantz let out a sigh before replying.

"It's actually only one gold for each ring. The Adventurer's Guild made us sell these rings for a cheaper price to curb the death rates of adventurers. Especially against the demon army. The extra agility helps you a lot, doesn't it?" Grantz explained.

His explanation made sense and Grantz had a genuinely confused look. It was like he was asking, "Why did you even ask about the full price of the rings?" I decided that his explanation was enough and left the matter there. Apologizing for the trouble, Grantz and Alicia saw us off and we left for the Guild to look for Lance. I was going to tell Lance about my change in plans and wanted to ask if he could come along or not. Lance and Rose would be a massive help in the coming journey.

Once Jane and I arrived at the Guild, we headed over to the request board. I waited until I saw Lance and Rose approaching and I waved at them. Lance waved back and seemed very laid back today.

"How're you doing, Michael?" Lance said.

"I'm doing good. Hey, do you want to travel with us? I'm planning to leave the kingdom and travel to other places." I asked him. No point in deliberating, if Lance didn't want to go with us, I wouldn't force him to.

"Sure, I've been in this kingdom all my life. To be honest, I'm a little tired of seeing the same things over and over again. Let's see what the world has to offer, Michael." He agreed with my suggestion and I nodded.

"Well, let's go find an atlas and see where we can go first, how about that? I'll also have to say goodbye to some people I know." I needed to take care of this before we left.

"Sure. How about we meet up at the Southern gate tomorrow? I've already thought of a place we can visit." He gave a friendly smile after saying that.

"Sounds good to me. I'll see you tomorrow then." Jane and I headed towards the exit. Adaline decided to see us off one last time before we left.

I assumed the harem was situated in the castle and decided to go say my goodbyes to them. I felt more inclined to say farewell to them in particular since they hold no malice for me. As we approached the castle, we were stopped by guards. Jane and I showed them our status cards. B-rank adventurers were considered seasoned veterans and were allowed a limited degree of freedom in the castle.

Accompanied by some guards, we entered the castle where I was directed towards the living area of the harem. The place was very luxurious. The harem stayed in a smaller house separate from the mansion. A beautiful garden lined the sides of the winding pathway to the house. The house itself was spacious. It made you think that it could house fifty people by itself. Jane and I entered and were met by a hall that had two stairways up to the second floor. I heard a feminine voice from deeper in the house.

"Someone's here to visit! I'll see who it is!" I heard a feminine voice and saw a small silhouette walk out from the side. Mary looked down from the second floor and recognized us at once. She ran back inside and the rest of the harem appeared. Kudo spoke first.

"Oh, what are you doing here Michael?"

"I'll be leaving Everwind. I'm going to go explore the world and see what it has to offer. I don't feel like being confined to this kingdom. This might be the last time we see each other." I explained to him. He looked saddened by this and I placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's fine. I'm sure you'll do well without me. This is goodbye, Kudo."

"W-wait, do you really have to leave?" Surprisingly, Fukasawa was the one to ask me this.

"Like I said, I want to explore this world and see what it has to offer me." I explained to her again.

"Then, duel me one more time. I'd like to make up for my previous losses." She drew her dagger and got into a stance reminiscent of a leopard ready to pounce. I drew my greatsword and held it in front of me. Both of us waited until the other made a move.

Fukasawa then took the initiative and a dagger flashed towards my throat. I deflected the dagger with my mithril arm and stabbed towards Fukasawa with the arm-blade. She barely dodged it and jumped over me. Readying her dagger, she stabbed it towards my back, only for me to turn around and slice it in half with my greatsword.

While she was distracted by her broken dagger, I placed the point of my arm-blade at her throat.

"It's my loss." Fukasawa said bitterly. I withdrew my arm-blade from her throat and she walked back over to the harem.

"Alright. I'll be taking my leave now." Jane and I walked out of the house. I'd forgotten about the guards around me, but they seemed awed by the display. I paid no heed to the guards while we exited the palace grounds.

Heading back to the Boisterous Inn, Jane and I told Alice of our plans while eating the dinner her husband provided.

"I see. Well, if you meet anyone that wants to come visit Lerton, tell them to go here." She gave a smile and I returned it. I felt Jane's deadly stare so I turned my gaze back to my food.

The day to leave arrived. Jane and I left the Inn after saying goodbye to Alice and James one last time. Walking to the Southern gate took some time. It was almost noon when we arrived and I spotted Lance and Rose conversing at the gate. They saw us walking over and waved at us. Jane and I sped up the pace and met up with them.

"Ready to go?" I asked.

"Yep. Our location will be the Tecca Empire. It's located past the desert south of here. It's called the White Desert and it's pretty dangerous out there. Luckily, we're skilled enough to get through there without much trouble. Overall, our journey is about a thousand kilometers in distance." Lance told us where we would be heading. This journey would be a long one, but the thought of new wonders to discover propelled me to start the journey.