A month passed. Marcus and Kyrie had teleported to the town of Chargrine from Florianne. The town was Southeast of Florianne and quite a distance from it. Marcus had wondered how long it would have taken to fly to this town.

In the month, Marcus had read some more books in the library, did some minor quests and also found one of the missing books and earned 3,000 experience points for submitting it. The book had been The Major Quests of Una by Lidwick Thane. It had not even been tough to find it. He found it in a preserved room in one of the ruins near Chargrine. He had leveled up twice and was now at level 48. Almost 50.

In the same month, Kyrie had dominated the adventurer versus adventurer arena. There seemed to be a lot of adventurers in Chargrine and especially in level 41 to level 50 bracket. Kyrie had taken her time but was now ranked 1 in adventurer versus adventurer at Chargrine. She had written her report about the experience but had not submitted it. She said she would do it in Florianne. She had also leveled up and was now level 50.

Finally, they got a message from Tanniv. Actually, Kyrie got the message. She was the point of contact in their team. The champions and their teams would meet Marcus and Kyrie in Fontaine. It was another city in the Southernmost part of Filinile. Umanahash had only one city, Opulential, while the rest of Umanahash was filled with towns and villages. However, Filinile had two cities on the landmass Florianne and Fontaine.

Fontaine was very much similar to Florianne. However, the forest cover around Fontaine was less and Marcus also observed that the number of trees in the city were also less than that in Florianne.

After arriving in Fontaine, Kyrie had sent a message to Tanniv. The champions and their teams were staying at the inn The Wild Green. Marcus and Kyrie made their way to the inn.

The inn was in the central part of Fontaine, near the market district. It was also close to the library and the arena could also be seen from the inn. Marcus felt that this inn was especially for adventurers as it seemed to be at an optimal distance from all the facilities an adventurer may require.

The inn was run by a Feliur named Kana Washai. She smiled as Marcus and Kyrie entered. Marcus inquired about the champion and learned that the champions were in the common room. Marcus thanked Kana and both him and Kyrie entered the common room.

The common room was empty except for the champions and their team members. As Marcus and Kyrie entered, Tanniv and Tamara greeted them. Then they pulled Kyrie on to the side and left Marcus on his own. Kyrie looked as if she wanted to protest but it seemed that the champions had decided that she was more important of the two.

Marcus sat on one of the empty tables and looked around. He looked at the champions and their teammates. He had read about them on the Globalnet.

He looked at Tamara first. Tamara Goodleaf. Even without being the champion, she was already famous. She was at max level and refused to retire from her life as an adventurer. She used a longsword and a shield and Marcus had seen photos of her armor. The legendary armor of Goronos. Goronos was a dragon who lived about tens of thousands of years ago. Not on Una, on the homeworld of the dragons. When Goronos died, the dragons honored him by making an armor out of his bones, scales and a metal which was found in the homeworld of the dragons. Initially, the armor was made such that it would fit a dragon. However, the dragons brought this armor when they came to Una. The details were not found on Globalnet, but Tamara received this armor from the dragons when she did a quest for them.

Marcus then looked at Tamara’s teammates. The first was an elf, Shania Windleaf. She seemed to be related to Tamara as they looked very much alike. Marcus considered that she must be a distant cousin of Tamara. Shania was also a high-level adventurer, standing at 202 level and used dual daggers. She always had a smile on her face and Marcus felt that she kept a positive outlook because he had read about her fighting reputation. In a fight she was ruthless, and this friendly smile turned into a chilling smirk during the fight. Marcus shivered a bit as he thought about it.

The second and third teammates were a feliur couple. Duranos and Shadra Longclaw were well established adventurers of The Feliur Kingdom. Their level was in the one-eighties. Duranos fought with a quarterstaff and used his claws sometimes while Shadra was a healer who used a wand and a charm. Marcus noticed that their fur was darker shade and they somehow reminded Marcus of panthers.

The next four teammates were humans. Marcus had read about them. They were known in The Mercenary Faction as The Bloody Hounds. They were excellent trackers and fighters. Their leader was Mikhail Ivanov who was their tank who used a mace and a greatshield. It was a really big shield according to Marcus as it covered Mikhail completely. Their dps was Vladimir Ivanov. Vladimir and Mikhail were brothers. Vladimir used a unique weapon. Throwing axes which came back to him. Marcus wondered how that worked. The third member of The Bloody Hounds was Ivan Babanin. He was the team’s controller and used dual wands. That was unique too according to Marcus. The final member was Victor Pavlov, and he was the team’s healer and support. Marcus had read that he did not fight much and mostly used spells to either buff his teammates or heal them. If any enemy came close to him, he had a greatmace with which he pummeled them. All the members of The Bloody Hounds were in the level range of 190 to 200.

The last two teammates were nymphs. There was a land nymph level 210 named Garun Stonehash and a wood nymph level 220 named Sylivianna Twigbreak. Both of the nymphs used bow and arrows along with spells. Based on what Marcus had read, their fighting style seemed similar to Kyrie.

All in all, it was a nice high-level team that Tamara had gathered to battle the demons. All of them seemed to be heavy hitters. They had to be considering the number of battles they would need to fight. Marcus observed that they seemed comfortable with each other, which was good.

Then Marcus looked at Tanniv. Tanniv Kinner. The second champion of Una. Marcus had not seen a feliur with such white, bright and shiny fur. Did it never get dirty? Tanniv was at level 153 and carried a greatsword. The sword was longer than Tanniv, but feliurs did have a hunched way of walking. Marcus wondered how tall the feliurs would be if they actually straightened.

Marcus then looked at Tanniv’s teammates. Of his nine teammates, one was human, one was gnome, one was feliur and the rest six were a new species which Marcus had not encountered before. They were called celestials. They looked like humans with the exception being that they had different types of halos floating above their heads, a pair of wings on their back and tails swishing around everywhere. Marcus considered the tails of the celestials more majestic than that of feliurs. Where did these celestials come from?

Marcus had read that the celestials were a recent species that had been integrated into the world of Una, about five years ago. There were not many adventurers and somehow Tanniv had six on his team. And all of these celestials were in the range of 100 to 150 in their levels.

The first teammate of Tanniv was the celestial Hestia Spellblade. She was at level 102. Marcus had read that she used a new type of weapon which Una did not have before; a chakram. The chakrams were two sharp discs with handles in the center. They were meant to be thrown for attack and they came back to the wielder once thrown. Hestia had a crescent shaped golden halo on her head and her skin was golden in colour.

The second teammate was the celestial Artemis Windrunner. She was at level 124. She used a large bow, the largest Marcus had ever seen. She had a full silver halo on her head and had silver skin.

The third teammate was the celestial Thalia Humoro. She was at level 152. She used a longsword and had a special glove used to cast spells. The glove boosted her magical damage. She had a wobbly circular red halo, and her skin was red in colour, similar to the demons somehow. However, she was not a demon, that much Marcus could discern.

The fourth teammate was the celestial Erato Muse. She was at level 143. She used a long glaive as her weapon. She had a white circular halo, and her skin was completely white in colour.

The fifth teammate was the celestial Clio Thermopolis. She was at level 200, the highest in Tanniv’s team. She used a rapier and a buckler as her primary weapons, and she also threw short daggers for attacking at short to medium range. She had a circular golden arrow with golden skin.

The sixth teammate was the celestial Athena Sharp. She was at level 122. She used two spell enhancing gloves on both her hands and for melee attacks she summoned a pure magic blade which dealt magical attack. She dealt only magical attacks, no physical attack. She had a white quarter of a circle halo with white skin.

Marcus thought that the celestials were multicoloured. He had never seen so many colours in a species. Then he wondered as to how many different intelligent species he had seen, even before his amnesia. And as usual, he could not remember, which was not surprising to him at all.

The seventh teammate, the gnome, was Tim Garretth. He was at level 102. Marcus had read that he did not use any weapons primarily. Instead, he was more of a support and controller and attacked enemies with explosive mixtures while supporting his teammates with potions. He was a master alchemist, and he did carry a large dirk for enemies who got too close to him.

The eighth teammate was the feliur Kenirath Hopfoot. He was at level 145. He used a greatsword similar to Tanniv and had minimal armor on him. Marcus had read that Kenirath was a good friend of Tanniv and they had had adventures together much in the past. His fur was yellowish in colour with black spots at certain places reminding Marcus of a leopard.

The final teammate, the human, Marcus found most interesting. Her name was Selena Ramirez. She was at level 100 and used an estoc paired with a short dagger. She also carried a shortbow for ranged attacks. She also carried throwing stars, throwing daggers and explosive mixtures. That was a wide range of weapons that she worked with.

That was not what Marcus found interesting. Seeing Selena awakened something deep within Marcus’ brain. An image. A woman who looked so much like Selena. A flash of red hair and Marcus winced in pain. He had remembered something, and it had hurt him. He had known someone who looked like Selena, someone important but he did not know who.

Marcus stared for some more time at Selena, hoping it would jog some memory. But nothing happened. Selena noticed Marcus staring at her and came up to him.

“You do know it is rude to stare”, said Selena.

Marcus replied, “I am sorry. It’s just that you look like someone I know, but I can’t just remember who.”

Selena laughed, “Do you use this pick up line on all girls?”

Marcus frowned, “What pick up line? I am genuinely trying to place you but am not able to do so because of my amnesia. Have we met before? Do you know me?”

Selena said, “And yet it feels like you are hitting on me. To answer your question, we have not met. But I do know a bit about you. Not much has been written about you on the Globalnet yet, but Tanniv and Tamara have asked around and they found out a lot of things about you and Kyrie. Involved in killing three demon lords. That is the maximum number of demon lords killed or assisted in killing by an adventurer. I am impressed. Actually, I am easily impressed but this is still impressive, you know.”

Marcus said, “Thank you, I guess.”

Selena tried to say something but stopped as Kyrie, Tamara and Tanniv came up to them.

Tamara said, “Making friends already. Good. We all need to get along. We have explained the expedition to Kyrie, Marcus. She will tell you the details. However, she tells me your gear is not up to date. That is alright. We leave in a couple of weeks. Sufficient time to update right. Selena here will help as the two of you seem to be getting along. Excellent. Now, come on then, Selena. We need an internal team meeting to discuss some things. Marcus and Kyrie, you go do something else. Hurry now. Chop Chop.”

Selena looked at Tanniv who shrugged and pointed at other team members. Tamara, Tanniv and Selena went up to them. Selena waved goodbye to Marcus who exited the common room with Kyrie.

Marcus said, “Who says chop chop?”

Kyrie replied in a deadpan voice, “Apparently Tamara.”

They both laughed as they exited the inn.

Marcus said, “I presume we would not be spending the nights here?”

Kyrie said, “No, no. Nothing like that. We can get a room here if we want. However, Tamara or Tanniv would have to vouch for us. The innkeeper is not letting anyone else stay for the moment. The champions are paying her well to ensure their privacy.”

Marcus nodded, “Makes sense. Let’s just go stay in another inn. Nearby though.”

Kyrie said, “I am fine with that.”

They went to another inn nearby, The Galloping Galo, which was run by an umaru. They took a room there and went to the common room for lunch.

Marcus said as they sat down, “So, what did you think of the champions?”

Kyrie said, “They are polar opposites. Tamara thinks this is still all fun and games even though non adventurers have died. She did show sincerity but I really cannot tell. She was not serious half the time she talked. Tanniv was the opposite of Tamara. He was completely serious all the time and he hardly talked while Tamara talked a lot. It was Tanniv who gave me the details of the expedition while Tamara wasted a lot of time talking about non relevant stuff. They did ask me questions about my background though. That was uncomfortable.”

Marcus nodded. Their food arrived. They ate in silence for some time. Then Marcus said, “What is the expedition about then?”

Kyrie took some time to reply, “You know the demons are wreaking havoc on all the landmasses. The champions, as a part of their major quest, need to go to all the landmasses in order to kill the demon lords and bring peace to the landmass. However, there is one land mass they have not been able to go to.”

“Urtor”, guessed Marcus, “The landmass of The Undead Kingdom.”

Kyrie nodded and said, “Yes. The majority of the landmass is terraformed such that the undead can survive there. That is why the undead mostly do quests there. Species other than the undead cannot survive much there. There are fewer Umaru on that landmass. I mean, you can survive for some time. But long term exposure to the terraformed environment of that landmass affects species other than the undead in weird ways.”

“The champions would need to go to Urtor if they have to kill demon lords on each landmass. Are they looking for something that would help them do that?”

“You kind of guessed it, Marcus. The champions are looking for a spell. It is a mana intensive spell which can help them survive on Urtor. There are two places in Una where they could find the spell. The first is deep within Urtor, so that is not possible. The second is somewhere deep within the mountains of Gunin mountain range in Filinile.”

Marcus raised an eyebrow at that, “Gunin mountain range! Our treasure quest. Could it be a coincidence?”

Kyrie shrugged, “Looks like a coincidence as of now. Our treasure quest ends in us getting units as per what Reginush told us. And the champions do not know where the spell is. So, the expedition is simple but long. We are going to scour the depths of Gunin mountain range in search of the spell.”

Marcus said, “Okay then. Sounds like a lot of work. I understand why the champions and their teammates are doing this. But, why us? Why were we invited to this expedition?”

Kyrie said, “I asked them the same question. They told me to wait and find out. It was a rather ambiguous answer and I do not like it.”

Marcus said, “I do not like it either. I mean, we are scouring the depths of Gunin mountain range. What does that mean? Did they tell you that?”

Kyrie shook her head and Marcus continued, “Then they have done no research and are planning to search till they just find the spell. That is ridiculous. No matter. At least we have a week. I shall read more about the Gunin mountain range and what this depth means. It is better to go prepared.”

Kyrie said, “I agree with you.”

Marcus said, “But why are we leaving in two weeks. I thought we would be on our way by tomorrow or the day after.”

Kyrie gave a sheepish grin and said, “That was me. I asked them for two weeks. After all, I have to be ranked first here at Fontaine, at least in my bracket, do I not?”

Marcus realized what she meant. He laughed. Adventurer versus adventurer strikes again.

***

The next morning Kyrie went off to the arena. She was going to have at least one match lined up today. Marcus went in search of better equipment.

The market was close to the inn. There were many shops. Marcus needed everything except headgear where he had his Circlet of Hope. He needed a new twinblade, a new chest armor, new bracers and leg wraps. He checked his units. He had 50,123 units on him. That was a good amount. He would hopefully get good gear.

Marcus smiled, feeling good. He had saved these units over the last few weeks after his fight with Cthulhu. He had not even paid units to NAIF for his debt. He had been regularly paying some units before his encounter with Cthulhu. His debt to NAIF was now down to 70,000 units. Marcus had started to get a bit comfortable with it. He would pay it off fast, faster than Kyrie at least.

Marcus examined his current gear.

Magic Iron Twinblade

Physical Attack: Base 10 + Strength 1 + Dexterity 3

Magical Attack: Base 10 + Intelligence 15

Block: 20%

Critical Attack Chance: 2%

Critical Attack Damage: 10%

Requirements: 8 Strength, 10 Dexterity, 10 Intelligence

Description: A twinblade with Magic attack. Scales more on intelligence and provides high magical damage.

Leather Cotton Armor

Physical Resistance: 5

Magical Resistance: 2

Description: An armor made up of a combination of leather and cotton giving you the protection in the form of best of both worlds but actually has less resistances than pure armor.

Pure Cotton Pants Armor

Magical Resistance: 5

Description: Light, breezy and yet perfectly snug, the everyday wear for a combat mage.

Iron bracers

Physical Resistance: 7

Description: Light and sturdy. Better than leather yet not quite in the category of heavy armor, these bracers would serve to protect an adventurer well.

Circlet of Hope

Physical Resistance: Wearer Level

Magical Resistance: Wearer Level

Spell Slot 2

Description: A Legendary Circlet once worn by the King Ganamush the Benevolent. The wearer of this circlet would be blessed with the King’s protection giving them resistances equivalent to their level. It binds to the wearer who wears it and can only be given to a non adventurer after the adventurer is done with it.

Except for his Circlet of Hope, all the gear was crap. Marcus wondered how he had survived for so long with such crappy gear. Then Marcus remembered the extra damage he always got in a fight and groaned.

Marcus had now reached the market area and looked around. Globalnet had some recommendations but he was not 100% sure regarding which shop he wanted to go to. He wondered where he should start from when he got a message. It was from Selena.

Selena wrote, ‘Where are you?’

Marcus wrote back, ‘I am at the market area. Near the central fountain.’

Selena wrote, ‘Stay there. I am coming to you. Five minutes max.’

Marcus sighed and sat down on one of the benches near the fountain. It took Selena 15 minutes to get to Marcus.

Selena asked as she arrived, “What are you doing here?” She looked annoyed.

Marcus said, “Shopping for new equipment.”

“And what”, said Selena with a huff, “did Tamara tell you yesterday?”

Marcus said, “That we have a couple of weeks till the expedition and we need to prepare for that.”

Selena looked pointedly at Marcus till Marcus said, “Is there anything I can help you with?”

Selena took a deep breath, perhaps to calm herself. Then she said in a clipped tone, “She also asked me to help you get the equipment. So, tell me then. Why are you here, alone and have not informed me?”

Marcus said in an affronted tone, “I am perfectly capable of buying equipment on my own. I have researched the items that I can buy and I have a feeling that I can get them here. It would take some time but I do have two weeks, don’t I?”

Selena suddenly laughed. She said, “You have researched. Oh my god! You have gorking researched. That is gorking hilarious. Okay, great researcher. Tell me, what is the gorking cost of a twinblade which an adventurer such as you would require?”

Marcus said a bit uncomfortably, “The price was missing in my research. However, I could get the information through a primary survey, which basically means I ask the shopkeepers.”

Selena again laughed at that. She said, “I like you Marcus Blank. You are hilarious. Let’s go then. Let’s ask a shopkeeper. Let’s buy your equipment.”

Considering the way Selena spoke, Marcus hesitated. He looked at her and she simply gestured to enter a nearby weapon’s shop. No, she knew something which Marcus did not.

Marcus said, “Hmm, it seems that you know the price of a twinblade that I would require. And you want me to experience some fucking humiliation. Am I correct?”

Selena said, “No. No. I just want you to shop on your own. Here. I am leaving.”

And Selena started to walk away. Marcus looked at the nearby weapon’s shop. Then at Selena who was still walking away, not at a hurried pace, but she did not show any signs of stopping.

Marcus sighed and said, “Wait. Wait. Wait.” He ran up to her and stopped her. He continued, “I am sorry I did not wait for you. I did not take the words of Tamara seriously. I really did not think you would come to help me. So, I just came to the market on my own. I am sorry I did not think to check with you before coming though. In short, I am sorry.”

Selena twitched her lips in both directions and looked at Marcus for some time. Then she nodded and said, “Your apology sounds sincere. It is gorking accepted. Now, let’s go shopping. I am excited.”

Marcus said in a resigned voice, “Okay. Let’s go.”

Selena said, “Before we go. I need to know certain things. First, what are your stats? Your basic ones like strength, dexterity and all that. Second, I want to look at your current gear. And finally, I also want to know what is your budget for getting everything.”

Marcus shared with Selena just his basic stats.

Adventurer Level: 48

Experience: 150 / 3,800

Strength: 14

Dexterity: 26

Intelligence: 30

Vitality: 25

Agility: 20

Wisdom: 20

Luck: ???

Health: 200

Mana: 140

Selena looked at them and said, “Not bad. You are going for a hybrid dexterity intelligence build and have a good point spread. I think you can currently go for a twinblade which has a 25 dexterity and intelligence requirement. Okay. Show me your gear.”

Marcus did, albeit a bit reluctantly. Selena examined his gear. Then she looked at him. Then she examined the gear again and again looked at him.

After the fifth time she did it, Marcus said, “I know it is not much.”

Selena interrupted him, “This is gorking trash. Except for the Circlet of Hope. That is neat. Don’t lose it. It will be the best gear for you in the long run. But the rest. I mean. Come on. What the gork have you been doing? What is your budget for the new gear you were going to buy? I hope it is good.”

Marcus said, “It is 50,000 units.”

“For everything?” Selena asked in a surprised tone.

“For everything”, confirmed Marcus.

Selena looked at him for some time. Then she whacked him.

“What the fuck!” exclaimed Marcus.

Selena whacked him again. Marcus said, “Stop hitting me.”

Selena said, “What kind of gorking adventurer are you? How the gork did you remain alive till now?”

Marcus said, “The same way Kyrie did. Amazing fighting skills, running away from tough fights and I have a feeling in my case, I am very lucky.”

That earned him another whack.

Selena said, “Come on idiot. I am taking you to get proper equipment. 50,000 units would get you zagui shit. Come on. I am paying. You can pay me back anytime in the future. I will not have one of my fellow adventurers wear rags when they could be in good armor. The same shit with weapons.”

And Selena dragged Marcus into the weapons store before Marcus could protest much. They went to different shops, looking at different quality of equipment, trying it out and negotiating prices. It took hours but Marcus finally had a decent set.

Shimmering Twinblade

Physical Attack: Base 50 + Strength*1 + Dexterity*3

Magical Attack: Base 50 + Intelligence*5

Special Attack: 10% chance of Blinding Enemies. Levels up with Twinblade Proficiency

Block: 20%

Critical Attack Chance: 5%

Critical Attack Damage: 20%

Requirements: 10 Strength, 25 Dexterity, 25 Intelligence

Description: A rare twinblade with Magic attack. Scales more on intelligence and provides high magical damage. The blades of this weapon are made with glimmerstone which also causes temporary blindness amongst the enemies.

Arachne Silk Robe

Physical Resistance: 50

Magical Resistance: 50

Description: An armor made from the silk produced by the arachne found on Una. Stronger than spider silk, the armor has defensive capabilities against both physical and magical damage.

Hard Wraps

Physical Resistance: 20

Magical Resistance: 20

Description: Wraps made from the leather extracted from the magical beings - Kanashis. Strong and light, the wraps provide defense against physical and magical damage.

Aduminotium Bracers

Physical Resistance: 100

Description: Bracers made from aduminotium, one of the hardest metals found on Una. They are made with master craftsmanship such that they are light in weight but provide maximum protection.

Marcus loved his new equipment. His twinblade had a different design than his previous one and it shimmered in sunlight. The robe armor was light and felt great on skin. It was black in colour with silver spider like patterns covering its entire length. The wraps were also comfortable and they wound around his legs, from slightly above his ankles to his knees, and they did not hinder his movement. The bracers were amazing. Black in colour, they fit right over his robe on his arms and had an intricate pattern carved on it.

This equipment, along with his Circlet of Hope fulfilled the basic armor necessities. Selena also made him buy a pair of gloves. These gloves did nothing except add 4 spell slots for Marcus. Now he had 6 spell slots that he could use.

Other than gloves, Selena also made him buy an enchanted set of boots. These enchanted boots increased his walking and running speed by 10%. Marcus loved them too.

All of this racked up a total of 260,000 units. Selena considered this cheap and she told Marcus that this gear would help him for at least another 30-40 levels. He would not have to think of upgrading till he got to level 80 now. Marcus was hoping he could push it till level 100.

After this, Marcus bought just one new spell. Selena had advised that Marcus buy only the most necessary spells. There would be quests in the future that would give him good spells and Marcus would not want to waste his units now.

Marcus examined the new spell he had bought.

[Force Push]

Hits the enemy with a force which would push him back. The distance the enemy gets pushed back depends upon the weight of the enemy. Does not cause any damage. Mana cost of 10. Cooldown 30 seconds.

It had cost him 30,000 units. Then he had taken Selena’s advice and kept his other spell slots empty. He was already in debt with NAIF. Now he was in debt with Selena. He did not like that much.

At the end of the day Marcus said, “Thank you. I don’t know what else to say. Thank you.”

Selena blushed a bit and said, “Meh. We are going to be part of a big team. We are fellow adventurers. We can always help each other. If not us, then who will help us?”

Marcus nodded. Then a thought formed in his mind. He said, “Can you help Kyrie too?”

“What do you mean?” asked Selena.

Marcus explained Kyrie’s gear and the condition for the same to Selena. Selena looked a bit pissed at the end.

Selena said slowly, “I don’t think I can help her. However, I think Tamara can. Let me ask her. See what she can do.”

They then went for dinner as it was getting late to a nearby restaurant. They talked about each other for some time. Well, Selena talked as Marcus had not much to say.

Selena was a local. She was born in Caramoor, the capital city of Reyarth. She was the seventh and the youngest of seven siblings. She had five sisters and a brother. She told Marcus that she always wanted to be an adventurer as far as she could remember. The locals could become adventurers after they reach adulthood. So, Selena had trained with different weapons over the years, along with her studies and as soon as she turned 18, she had applied to be an adventurer at NAIF.

Marcus learned that there was a short interview and physical test for Una inhabitants to become adventurers. Selena had cleared it with flying colours it seemed. This was 4 years ago.

She did not give much details on her family and her life before she became an adventurer but they talked about a few of her adventures. She was a bit disappointed with the demon invasion because the major quest that she was doing for The Human Kingdom was interesting and would have given her good experience and units.

Selena also asked about Marcus’ experience in dealing with 3 demon lords and Marcus told her. She was a good listener and Marcus seemed to enjoy talking with her.

At the end of the dinner, they parted. Selena went back to her inn to talk with Tamara about Kyrie’s equipment and then to rest. Marcus went to the library. He wanted to do some light reading before he went to sleep. He had a smile on his face as he walked. Marcus Blank was happy.

***

Two weeks passed fast. Tamara or other adventurers did not have a solution for Kyrie’s equipment plight. However, Tamara did advise that Kyrie could talk with dwarven artisans. They could help get her better equipment which would help her condition.

In the two weeks, Kyrie reached rank 1 in the 41-50 bracket at the arena. Marcus also read everything he could find about Gunin mountain range and the area surrounding it. He also read about the smallest mountain and how to access it. It would help them to find the treasure.

Marcus woke up one day to find Selena knocking at the door of his and Kyrie’s room.

Selena said as Marcus opened the door, “Tomorrow. We leave tomorrow. Finish all your business today.”

And she left. Marcus and Kyrie looked at each other. They did not have much left to do that day. They simply relaxed. Tomorrow they would finally head out. Tomorrow, the expedition would truly begin.