The morning sun saw two adventurers exiting Grush village. It saw them summon their flying mounts and make their way towards the nearest town. From there it saw them take a series of portals which led them to Florianne.

After reaching Florianne Marcus said to Kyrie, “Alright, you go check on the adventurer versus adventurer scene, I will go submit my second book.”

Marcus had somehow found the second book in his inventory along with a message which was somehow from Seymour Grush. He wondered how that had happened. Seymour Grush was dead and a holographic projection. How had he put a book in Marcus’ inventory along with the letter, Marcus did not know.

Marcus read the book title, Demonology by Lucine Evemoon.

The letter read,

Congratulations adventurers on solving my little puzzle. Even though you may not be able to get the treasure, here is something which might help you.

Was this some play by the Game Masters or by someone else. He wondered about his stroke of fortune as he visited the library and submitted the book. He received 4,000 points of experience for his efforts. The librarian also informed Marcus that he needed to talk with Sylinine Sharpquill, the head librarian at the library in Opulential. Marcus wondered what it was about as his major quest updated. It now read,

Major Quest

Sylinine Sharpquill has something to tell you regarding your ongoing hunt for demons. Meet her in ten days to find out what is happening.

Time till quest failure: 9 days 14 hours and 40 seconds.

Penalty for failure: Halving of current level.

Marcus did not like the penalty for failing the quest. He would have a word with Kyrie. She would have the same quest too. This would mean that if adventurer versus adventurer was back on in Florianne, Marcus would have to go alone to meet Sylinine.

Marcus walked up to the arena to find Kyrie fuming outside it. He wondered why she was outside.

Marcus asked, “What’s wrong?”

Kyrie took a deep breath, failed to calm herself down and spoke a bit forcefully, “The arena is still not up and running. It has been ages. I have a feeling there will be no adventurer versus adventurer in Florianne for at least a year, considering how things are here.”

“Okay. You saw the update in the major quest?”

Kyrie frowned and her eyes glazed over as if she was checking something in front of her. Then she said, “Interesting.”

“Opulential has an operational arena”, said Marcus.

“Let’s go there then.”

“Yes, but let’s get our blessings from the temple of Udha and Hekana. We need our health and mana normalized according to our level.”

They went to the respective temples to get the blessings. Their health and mana updated after they had received the blessings. For Marcus the increase in mana was considerable as he had higher wisdom than Kyrie. Marcus and Kyrie checked each other’s statistics after they had received the blessing.

Name: Marcus Blank

Race: Human

Designation: Adventurer - Rank 3

Age: 25

Current Location: Fontaine

Adventurer Statistics:

Adventurer Level: 100

Experience: 5,000 / 29,800

Strength: 20

Dexterity: 40

Intelligence: 50

Vitality: 50

Agility: 40

Wisdom: 39

Luck: ???

Health: 400

Mana: 256

Active Effects:

None

Passive Effects:

Stamina Regeneration - Level 8

Well Rested - Level 4

Twinblade Proficiency - Level 12

Alcohol Tolerance - Level 3

Stealth - Level 5

Description: The anomaly has now become a better adventurer. With a little effort people may forget he is an anomaly after all.

Spells known:

[Enchant Weapon: Holy] [Whirling Weapon] [Force Push]

Spells Equipped:

[Enchant Weapon: Holy] [Whirling Weapon] [Force Push]

Spell Slots: 6

Physical Attack: 230

Magical Attack: 370

Physical Resistance: 300

Magical Resistance: 202

Critical Attack Chance: 45%

Critical Attack Damage: 90%

Status:

None

Name: Kyrie Shiningstar

Race: Water Nymph

Designation: Adventurer - Rank 3

Age: 83

Current Location: Fontaine

Adventurer Statistics:

Adventurer Level: 100

Experience: 1,000 / 29,800

Strength: 20

Dexterity: 80

Intelligence: 10

Vitality: 50

Agility: 50

Wisdom: 22

Luck: ???

Health: 400

Mana: 188

Active Effects:

None

Passive Effects:

Fast Draw - Level 10

Precision - Level 12

Longbow Proficiency - Level 16

Stealth - Level 11

Water Proficiency - Level 100

Description: The outcast traveller from Tarados, flowing into Una, taking huge steps now and sweeping demons away is still enjoying herself by bashing other adventurer’s heads. She is the water nymph to watch out for.

Spells known:

[Power Shot] [Fade] [Enchant Weapon: Poison] [Summon Water Elemental]

Spells Equipped:

[Power Shot] [Fade] [Enchant Weapon: Poison]

Spell Slots: 4

Physical Attack: 530

Magical Attack: 50

Physical Resistance: 232

Magical Resistance: 216

Critical Attack Chance: 45%

Critical Attack Damage: 105%

Status:

None

Marcus liked the increase in level but was disappointed with the low level of proficiency. Leyda had increased both Marcus and Kyrie’s levels but their proficiency with their weapons and other passive skills was not up to the mark. They were low compared to their level. They would have to level them up soon. He was hoping that fighting high level enemies would help bridge the gap.

Once they were done with their business in Florianne, Marcus and Kyrie took a few portals to reach Opulential. They had an appointment with Sylinine after all.

They reached Opulential during the night. They decided to meet Sylinine in the morning. They had some time after all. Eight days worth of time now.

The morning found Marcus and Kyrie in front of the library in Opulential. They glanced at one another, nodded to each other and entered it. They would know today what the next part of their major quest was.

Marcus and Kyrie went to Sylinine’s office. She smiled as she saw the two adventures. Marcus could see that she looked less tired and more relaxed than last time. Maybe the workload was finally getting less for her.

Sylinine said, “Welcome Marcus. Kyrie. Please, have a seat. We have a few things to discuss.”

Marcus and Kyrie took the seats in front of Sylinine. The gnome librarian hummed a short tune when they sat down.

Marcus said, “You seem extremely happy for some reason.”

Sylinine grinned and said, “It is that obvious, isn’t it?”

She then showed her hand. A golden ring with a rainbow etching glowed upon the ring finger.

Kyrie said, “You are happy because you got a glowing ring?”

Marcus shook his head as Sylinine laughed. Sylinine said, “I forget you do not have these customs as nymphs. This ring symbolizes I am engaged.”

“Engaged in what?” asked Kyrie.

“Engaged to be married.”

“Oh! Congratulations.”

Marcus congratulated Sylinine too.

“Who is the lucky guy?” asked Marcus.

“I rather doubt you would know him. His name is Forine Penburrow. We had been dating for quite some years before he asked the question.”

Marcus and Kyrie both nodded at the same time.

Kyrie said, “You have the next stage of the major quest for us?”

Sylinine said, “Yes. That is why I called you here. What do you two know about the landmass Artorios?”

Marcus said, “It is the main landmass for The Elven Kingdom. Elves and Umaru are the major occupants of the landmass. It has a tropical climate, lots of trees, not as many as Filinile but still many. There are many rivers crisscrossing the entire landmass and surprisingly it has only one mountain range at the Northern end. Standard monsters occupy the landmass, and it is one of the favorite places for elves to level up.”

“So, you know only generic information”, said Sylinine, “That is still impressive.”

Sylinine took a moment before she continued, “The elves are being plagued by a demon lord. Harados to be precise. Harados is the master of hellhounds. They are plaguing Artorios currently. The elves are not happy with them and the demon lord. So, they are forming a hunting party. A party of about 100 or so adventurers whose task is to eradicate the hellhounds and the demon lord Harados.”

Sylinine paused for a moment to let the news sink in Marcus and Kyrie. She then said, “I want you to be a part of this hunting party. The elves have asked the various factions to provide them with adventurers. We want you to represent us. There are 10 more adventurers proposed by other Librarians, but I want to propose you two. Would you join the hunting party?”

Marcus said, “This sounds like a long task. And the thing is Kyrie needs to have her dose of adventurer versus adventurer from time to time. If we are out chasing hellhounds and demon lords for months, then it would be a bit problematic for us.”

Sylinine said, “You can hunt the hellhounds any way you want. It will be the demon lord which would be a group effort. Go to Treedos. It is the capital city of Artorios. Talk with the leader of the party. Her name is Zoey Dewbow. See if you can work something out.”

Marcus looked at Kyrie, “It is your decision. This part of the major quest will affect you the most.”

Kyrie said, “I understand. Let’s go meet this Zoey Dewbow. Let’s see what we can work out.”

“Excellent”, Sylinine clapped her hands, “I will tell Zoey that you two are coming. When will you reach there?”

“When is the hunting supposed to start?” asked Kyrie.

“In about eight days from now. You can reach a little later too. Not more than a month though. When do you plan on going?”

“I want to participate in the higher level bracket for adventurer versus adventurer here before travelling.”

“And I”, said Marcus, “will need some time to research.”

“I will tell Zoey that you will reach her in two weeks' time. Is that alright?” asked Sylinine.

Marcus and Kyrie nodded. They concluded their business with Sylinine and exited the Opulentia’s Library.

Marcus turned to Kyrie and said, “You are going to the arena?”

Kyrie nodded, “I am going to the arena.”

When Kyrie set off, Marcus set off towards finding an inn. He did not want to start research immediately. He wanted to rest first.

As he booked a room and lay on the bed of the booked room, he thought about the hunting party. This could be fun.

***

Marcus and Kyrie travelled to Treedos in a week’s time. Kyrie had reached the number one spot in the level bracket of 91 to 100 in adventurer versus adventurer. The first task they would do on reaching Treedos would be to meet with Zoey Dewbow. Then Kyrie would see how the adventurer versus adventurer scenario was in Treedos.

After stepping out of the portal in Treedos, Marcus and Kyrie went in search of an inn. After finding the inn, they went to the adventurer’s guild in Treedos. There they set up their respawn point at the Resurrection stone and then asked for Zoey. They were informed that Zoey had already started the hunt and was out in the forest west of Treedos, hunting hellhounds with a small party. Marcus and Kyrie were told that they could meet her in the evening after dinner time. They were okay with that.

Kyrie went in search of the arena while Marcus visited the library. They had time to kill before their meeting with Zoey. Marcus spent some productive time in the library reading about the landmass Artorios and what to expect in terms of enemies. The latest book he had made a copy of, Demonology, gave him an idea about the demon lord Harados. The book had details on many demons and demon lords and Marcus was glad he was able to get a copy of it.

The demon lord Harados looked like a normal human. He commanded a legion of hellhounds all extremely loyal to him. He was a conqueror and a hunter, using his hellhounds to weaken the economies of a region before completely subjugating it. He would be doing the same here. Marcus did not have much information about what the hellhounds were doing. He presumed Zoey would be giving him the information.

Marcus was soon joined by Kyrie. He was surprised to see her.

“What happened?” whispered Marcus.

“All adventurer versus adventurer arenas are closed till demon lord Harados is killed and the threat of his hellhounds is over”, hissed Kyrie.

Marcus could understand Kyrie’s frustration.

“Well then, we hope that we are able to take care of Harados fast. Although I don’t understand how arenas are related to the demon lord.”

“Almost all adventurers on this landmass are fully involved in hunting him. No one is currently interested in adventurer versus adventurer. The arenas decided it was cheaper to simply be closed rather than have either one or no fight for the day.”

Marcus nodded. He somehow understood the arenas’ decisions. It would not make Kyrie happy but he understood.

He instead said, “Fuck those arenas for now. If you feel like you really wanna have a fight with another adventurer, we can teleport to a city where the arena is operational.”

Kyrie shook her head, “Thank you Marcus but it is alright. Let’s kill this demon lord fast.”

Marcus then started to read his book again. Kyrie read a book, a fictional novel. They passed the time in silence. They left the library during dinner time. They ate in a restaurant near the library. Marcus was feeling particularly peckish after all the reading he had done.

After their dinner, they went back to the adventurer’s guild. It was time for their appointment with Zoey. They were led into a private room when they told the proprietor they had arrived. Zoey Dewbow was waiting for them.

Marcus halted just for a second as he saw Zoey. Then he entered the room and sat down on one of the few empty seats. Kyrie sat beside him. Zoey looked at them as they sat down, her eyes looking as if she was contemplating whether they were worth her time or not. Or maybe she was simply reading their names and levels.

Marcus was getting good at ignoring the ethereal beauty of the elves but Zoey hit differently. He somehow felt attracted to her. The expression ‘take my breath away’ suddenly came to his mind when he looked at Zoey. She had sharp eyes which were tired but focused on them.

Zoey said, “Welcome. You must be the adventurer representatives of the Librarians faction. I was not expecting such high level adventurers.”

“Don’t the Librarians have high-level adventurers?” asked Kyrie.

“They do but they do not come for such a low level quest. The average level of hell hounds is around 80 and the demon lord is expected to be around that level only. The maximum level adventurer that we have is me, at level 93. Both of you exceed me in terms of level.”

Marcus said, “Why does level matter? I mean we all want the same thing. Death to the demon lord.”

Zoey pursed her lips. She took some time before replying, “Yes. However, the adventurers normally do quests which are equivalent to their level or close to their level. They normally do not go for lower level quests unless there is a large reward. This quest is sort of 20 levels lower than your normal quest level. A 100 level adventurer normally does quests between levels 95 and 110. He goes maximum down to level 90 quest and below it only if the reward is worth it. However, I see here two adventurers, who have already reached level 100 and are here to do level 80 quests. That is not normal.”

“You do realize that this demon invasion thingy is not normal”, said Marcus, “Champions have been selected to stop the demons and one of the champions is at max level. For her, all the quests would lie in the realm of extremely low level. Yet, she is doing all of them.”

“The situation of champions is different. You are not champions. You are normal adventurers and yet here you are. Is it because you need experience fighting demon lords?”

Marcus and Kyrie both laughed at that.

Kyrie said, “Considering the number of demon lords we have fought, I think we need a break from them.”

Marcus nodded.

Zoey said, “How many demon lords have you fought?”

Kyrie thought for a moment. She said, “Well we have been a part of a team and also attacked the demon lords. There was Mára in Solaris. Then there was Cthulhim in the Sosquatch forest. Following him immediately was Cthulhu in Opulential. Then finally there was Nagasura while we were doing the labyrinth quest.”

Marcus said, “Nagasura was only you though with the others. I was stuck with Artenos, if you remember.”

“Why, yes. I forgot about that.”

Marcus saw that Zoey was openly gaping at them. She realized that she had her mouth opened and she closed it immediately.

Zoey said, “I see why your faction sent you. Your experience would be invaluable in hunting down Harados.”

Marcus frowned, “I don’t know about that. Till now we have usually stumbled upon demon lords and have not been actively seeking them. This is the first time we are doing this sort of thing.”

“Nevertheless, you are the most experienced adventurers when it comes to fighting demon lords. I have made you a part of a team of six adventurers. Harados is rumored to be around the town of Galados. I have already sent your team members. The hellhounds were becoming a nuisance over them, and I decided that it would be good that they start hunting. Join them in Galados. I would tell them you are coming. They would introduce themselves. They are good fighters. Do not worry about them. They would hold their own. Their mission and now your mission is to eradicate the hellhounds in the region around Galados. If you spy Harados, then report immediately. Every adventurer would then gather there, and we would attack Harados together. Even though you have fought many demon lords, it is better to attack a demon lord with many adventurers. Is this clear? Are there any questions?”

Marcus looked at Kyrie who shook her head.

Marcus said, “We understand. We will leave in the morning.”

Zoey nodded, “Would you like to have a drink for now?”

Kyrie said, “Thank you but no. I will retire for the night. I am tired and I do not partake in alcoholic beverages. They do not sit well with me. It was lovely meeting you Zoey. We will get on the hunt soon.”

Kyrie looked at Marcus expecting him to go with her, but Marcus said, “I would like a drink. I would also like to discuss a few things with Zoey, if you don’t mind Kyrie.”

Kyrie nodded, said her goodbyes and left. Marcus smiled as Zoey offered him a drink he could not identify. It was good and it hit well.

They talked for a long time about their life as adventurers. Marcus was feeling warm and fuzzy and was genuinely enjoying Zoey’s company.

Morning found Marcus beside Zoey, in the same private room as last night. He grinned as he put on his clothes. Zoey woke up as he was dressing and eyed him shamelessly. Marcus laughed and kissed her. He then said goodbye to her.

He was feeling relaxed after a long time. He was feeling good as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Maybe he just needed a night to relax. But the night was over now. It was time to hunt.