“From now on don’t ask me to do something like that again,” Adam said. “That was utterly disgusting.”

Adam sat opposite the Vice Master, in a brand new set of clothing he had the Guild acquire for him, after spending an entire hour washing himself using far too much soap, and after brushing his teeth five times.

“I didn’t realise you couldn’t stomach it,” Paul admitted, half teasing the Half Elf.

“Of course I can’t!” Adam was unable to contain his voice. “Think of my British sensibilities, Paul. You cover me in shit, of course I’m going to get mad.” Adam shuddered.

“I always thought Adam was stupid,” Lucy said, also wearing a new set of clothes. “I take it back. I understand why you took that tower, and why you keep a second change of clothes.” Lucy nodded her head slowly. “I won’t ever make fun of you for taking a bath every day.”

Jurot, who was also freshly bathed, nodded his head.

“You made fun of me for taking a bath every day,” Adam asked. He didn’t realise it was weird, considering that Jurot bathed every day too, even out of the Iyr.

Lucy remained silent for a long moment. “I didn’t?” she replied, avoiding his gaze.

“I didn’t expect you to betray me, Lucy,” Adam said. “You can find your own tower whenever we’re out in the wild.”

Lucy grabbed his hands, pouting up towards him. “Aren’t we friends? I’ll let it slide that you killed that adorable little Oyarth.”

“Adorable little Oyarth?” Adam asked, pulling away from her. “Lucy, you need to get your eyes checked.”

“My eyes? What about your brain?”

Paul cleared his throat. “Enough with your marital quarrels.”

The pair glared at him.

“Thank you for your assistance in this matter. I’ve given the go ahead to stamp your Adventurer Tags twice, and for Lucy to promote to Bronze too.”

“Oh?” Adam asked. “Isn’t that really quick?”

“It’s a good idea to keep people at the right rank,” Paul said. “She’s done so much already, and considering how strong she is, I doubt anyone will complain. Some Adventurers might take notice that you’ve ranked up too quickly, but ignore them. If they do bother you, you can put in a formal complaint through the Guild.”

“I’ll just beat them up,” Lucy said, dismissively. “So, wasn’t there a big fat reward? Gold. Gold. So lovely. So beautiful.” She hummed her tune quietly.

“I’m sure Braun has processed the quest, and has paid the Porters according to your wish, and has split the gold appropriately into your bank.”

“A bank? How do I use one of those?” Lucy asked.

“Just speak to the Guild and show them your Adventurer’s Tag,” Adam said. “They’ll let you take out your stuff from your bank.”

Lucy hummed again. “I think Dragons are on to something. Sleeping on a big pile of gold, although uncomfortable, is pretty fun.”

“Isn’t it more fun to swim on a pile of meat?” Adam asked.

“Meat is for eating, Adam,” Lucy stated as though it was a fact.

‘Are they going to get married soon?’ Paul thought.

‘Is gold for sleeping?’ Jurot thought.

“By the way, I want you to pay our gate fee today,” Adam said. “I still feel dirty after meeting with the Oyarth.”

“The gate fee? Seven copper?”

“Yeah,” Adam said. “Seven copper.”

Paul squinted towards Adam. “It’s quite a cheap price for your forgiveness.”

“Who said I’m forgiving you?”

Quest Complete: Slay Oyarth

+200XP

XP: 5950 -> 6150

Stamps Gained: +2

Stamps: 8 -> 10

“Lucy,” Adam called, sipping some tea. “I’m done with adventuring for a while.”

“Sure,” Lucy said. They had done quite a bit, and the way they adventured during Nightval wasn’t as effective as it could be, but they couldn’t really do it any other way. “Are we going back to the Iyr?”

“Yeah,” Adam said. “We’ll take the rest of the crew back too, Nobby, Fred, and Sir Vonda, I mean.”

“Then we’ll adventure during Dawnval?”

“From the second month of Dawnval up until the last month of Noonval, so about four months and a bit,” Adam said. “Although, there might be other ways of getting a dragon heart other than slaying one. We might be able to put a bounty for one.”

Lucy nodded her head slowly. They had been quite productive in the last month, and she had managed to finalise her practise and get a feel for how strong she really was.

‘I need to be stronger,’ she thought. ‘If I could become as strong as before, then a Dragon would be easy enough to fight.’

“Are you okay?” Adam asked. “If you really want me to, I can adventure a little more.”

“I’m okay,” she said. “Jurot and I talked a little. He said that the Twilight Month is a good time to grow stronger, and that I can help a nearby village with dealing with all those Beasts.”

Adam slowly nodded his head, sipping some more tea. “If we go against one of those Oyarths again, I’m letting you deal with it alone.”

“Even though it was cute, it smelled too bad.” Lucy sighed.

Omen: 1, 7

“We’ve decided to return to the Iyr,” Adam said, looking out to the rest.

Sir Vonda and Fred had been invited to the table too, and the two Porters, Jeremy and Remy, as well as Nobby, were listening intently.

“Nobby’s coming with us so we can train him, and I’m offering you two the chance to come too. Fred, because you might want to join us to become stronger and find something to do to give you purpose, and Sir Vonda, because I quite like your company,” Adam said, before continuing to whisper, “and we owe you too.”

Vonda felt her cheeks flush for a moment at his words, but recalled how easy it was for him to joke. “I am willing to come, since we have business. I would have made a pilgrimage to the Iyr one day.”

“Well…” Fred began, glancing between them all. His eyes met Sir Vonda’s, and he slowly nodded his head. “Okay.”

“Great. Jeremy, Remy, you guys alright to come with us as our Porters?” Adam asked.

“The journey back will be dangerous for us, so we’re not eager,” Remy admitted.

“Right,” Adam said. “Could we convince some of the villagers to escort them back?”

“For the right price,” Jurot replied. “If I asked them to, they would be more eager to assist.”

Adam hummed quietly. “You know what. I think you guys have worked quite hard, and it would be a shame for me to take you all away from your families. I’ll give you a small tip as thanks and we’ll deal with all the logistics.”

“It’s been a pleasure as always, boss,” Remy said.

“If you need us, you know where to find us,” Jeremy added.

Adam tipped them each ten gold, which he assumed to be about a grand, and let them leave as they pleased. “Nobby, you got everything you need?”

“Yes,” Nobby said.

“You said goodbye to your mom and dad properly?”

“Yes.”

“Your little sister too?”

“Yes.”

“Good.”

Adam finished some minor business, including sending the gifts to the Iyr through the Guild. He had to make sure to pack everything properly, before he remembered something extremely important.

“The Iyr?” Filliam asked. “No, I’ve never been, why?”

“We’re heading back to the Iyr, and I thought you might want to come with us?”

Filliam stared at Adam. “You’re inviting me to the Iyr?”

“Yeah,” Adam said. “I thought you might want to since it’s a pretty cool place, great for you to tinker about.”

“I’ll come!” Filliam shouted, happily. “Let me pack my bag!”

Adam stared at Filliam, who greeted the others with a great eagerness, shaking all their hands. ‘What the hell.’

He was now wearing a bag which was easily as big as him, full of all kinds of materials and trinkets, no doubt.

Nobby exchanged a nod with Filliam, who knew the ways of a Porter quite well, including all the ways to distribute weight to allow one to carry great weights.

“Damn,” Adam said. “Porters really are built different.”

“You’re leaving already?” Paul asked.

“Yes,” Adam said. “I miss the Iyr so much so we’re returning.”

Paul sighed. “You’re quite lucky, aren’t you?”

“Yes.”

“You haven’t forgotten about what you owe me, have you?” Paul asked.

“Me? Forget things?” Adam scoffed, before narrowing his eyes. ‘What do I owe him?’ “Oh,” Adam said. “You mean that thing.”

“Are you just saying that?” Paul asked. “Or do you remember.”

“I owe you, your missus, and your brother in law, no, cousin in law, right?” Adam asked.

Paul nodded his head slowly. “I’ll send Aizaban the specifics.”

“Sure, sure,” Adam said, clasping his forearm. “I’ll try not to die before I repay you.”

“Don’t tempt Fate,” Paul warned him.

“Fate tempts me, for she is a sweet but harsh mistress,” Adam replied.