---Unclaimed Mountains, Morranto, 2 days later---

The Emerald City was called the entrance to the Unclaimed Mountains, the most western branch of the central mountain range. After passing the entrance, the climate quickly changed again. They were still in the mountains, but the climate became closer to a desert.

The mountains were dry and hot in the day, and freezing cold in the night. The mountains were not really covered in snow, instead, it was a barren and desolate landscape of rocky cliffs and crippled or dead vegetation. It was the complete opposite of the green hell they came through before and someone else may have suffered just the same in this environment.

However, not mentioning the Parrot of Doom, or his trusty steed Blotches, Lydia and Mike were the chosen of Heliopolian Gods, and somehow felt at home in this desert-like environment. Only Ray suffered under the merciless sun during the day and the bitter cold at night as he led the way.

Although Ray's appearance had suffered under the blessing of his god, his mount was a lot cooler than theirs by several magnitudes. While Lydia and Mike rode Evan's Alpekas, Ray was riding a massive black horse he had summoned. It's imposing stature and beauty could almost compete with the raw martial power of the Questing Beast.

The landscape was barren and hostile, but it was not empty. The beasts they came across varied greatly in strength, but they rarely got the chance to fight, because of blotched and Ceres with them acting as natural repellents. Most they only saw from a distance.

The ones that dared to attack were either brainless cannon fodder or too confident in their own skills. No matter which, the automaton did not have to lift a feather, as Lydia and Mike easily took care of them. Although the party had no problems with the monsters, it didn't mean they were weak.

Like in every area of life, there were stories of success and tragedy. After entering the mountains, the party realized that Emerald City and the few cities they heard about beforehand were the one percent that succeeded. Although it was a success with a pitch-black shadow, it was better than the other 99%.

As they followed Ray, they came past many examples of those who failed. The number of settlements that showed signs of reconstruction and destruction was as surprising as it was tragic. Some seemed to have been given up before they could be finished, others... only the broken formations and dried stains of blood bore witness to the recent presence of people.

Compared to the massive cityscapes the people of Urth were used to from the districts, the cities like Emerald City in the Unclaimed Mountains were naturally tiny. However, these mining outposts barely registered as villages, it was no wonder, that they would be overrun the moment a strong monster appeared.

The few nameless settlements and mining outposts they came across, that were not abandoned, showed no reaction to them passing by. The barriers and gates stayed shut tightly. Even if they left Ceres and Blotches behind, to not look like a total band of weirdos, nobody dared open their doors for them. They wouldn't even talk with them.

A such, they had to make their way through the barren desert mountains completely on their own. They had enough rations, but it was pure luck that Ceres had gotten the power to provide them with fresh water, otherwise the water they had taken along may not have sufficed.

“I didn't think it would be this bad in these parts...” Ray apologized after they passed by another mining outpost that kept their doors shut. He also had not been to Morranto before and only knew its rough location on the map.

After traveling for almost a week they reached the estimated location Ray knew about, they still spent two hours searching until Ceres finally found the city from the sky. Morranto was big for its circumstances. With a quarter the size of Emerald City, they could roughly guess its population at 10-15 thousand.

It was surprisingly big for a “bandit bay” in the middle of nowhere and surrounded by mountains filled with beasts ranging between lv.80 to 95. It was also unexpectedly fortified. Nestled up to a mountainside above a sparsely vegetated valley, the place of depravity was protected by several levels of walls and enveloped in several layers of barriers. It looked like a modern city, intersected by medieval city walls.

From afar they could not only see the fortification, but they were even able to see that part of the valley below had been reclaimed. A patchwork of fields with crops growing on them could be seen at the foot of the mountain.

“Bandits that are farming?” Mike mumbled at the sight of the city above a valley of fields.

“Although it's a lawless place, it doesn't mean it is without order...although we may not like the kind of order,” Ray mumbled with a complicated expression. He had spent longer than them in the Unclaimed Mountains. He didn't talk much about it, but it was obvious he had seen a lot of unsavory stuff.

After a moment of silence, they started descending into the valley. Ceres and Blotches silently stayed back as the chances to enter Morrento with those two were slim. As they got closer, they were able to make out figures on the fields.

“Are those farmers?” Lydia asked surprised. As a citizen of Urth, who had never left her world and never seen someone work the field, farmers were something from history books.

“... they are the reason we are here,” Ray said grimly after a moment.

“Slaves...” Mike spat out in disgust. Even from far away, the group of people who stepped on the path of legends could make out the ragged appearance of the people working the field. What was surprising was the diversity. Wearing dirty clothes, males from all kinds of races from across the Pathworks were working hard either plowing, weeding, or harvesting the fields.

They were still some very far away when they saw a massive shadow descent upon the fields. Their mounts stopped dead in their tracks and even the three adventurers were startled by the creature that emerged from the clouds.

The bird was massive, with wings that blotted out the sun. Looking like a grotesque reimagining of an owl, built of necrotic flesh and steel, the size of a colossus, the thing dove down towards the field.

On the fields, the people started running and guards came from the towers and the city gates at the bottom. Magic and skills were fired from guards and people on the city walls, not weak by any means, but none of the attacks could stop or even hurt the thing.

Ignoring the attacks, the bird of prey made a turn right above the ground, grabbed a bunch of the slaves on the field, and returned to the air. The three of them tried to hurry and help, but their mounts wouldn't move and by the time they started sprinting towards the field, everything was already over.

In a matter of seconds, the colossal owl had appeared, took its prey, and vanished again without a trace, leaving the trio dumbfounded.

“Tsk, we were too late, “ Mike lamented. “What was that?” he asked Ray, but the saint of Sol'Fiam could only shrug his shoulders helplessly. He had no idea what that was,.He had never heard about it before either.

“Ceres? Ceres! Can you hear me?” Lydia spoke into the communication orb. She wondered what the storm elemental was up to while a giant bio-mechanical bird kidnapped people, however, nobody answered.

“Ceres isn't answering,” she concluded and put it away, after trying for several minutes. It had not even been half an hour since they separated but the bird was already doing stuff on its own. Mike sighed and calmed down.

“Ceres can take care of itself. What is important now is getting in the city and do what we came here for. Let's hope we can really get information on that girl's aunt here.”

“So far, I haven't really questioned the quest from Seth, but could you tell me why finding a single woman is that important?” Ray asked carefully after they were back on their mounts and slowly drew closer to the city.

“You are too naive, Ray. This isn't just about this woman,” Lydia answered him.

“What else is there?” Ray asked a question, Seth would have also asked in this situation. The blacksmith simply had not expected that finding her would become such an ordeal.

“Isn't it obvious, we are here to find justification? We need a good reason so Minas Mar can get involved in the business of the Unclaimed Mountains. Think about the public outcry, when we come back with a victim rescued from bandits and slavery and witness reports of the conditions across these lawless mountains

Even if we as a guild promised not to get involved with the Unclaimed Mountains, there will be more than enough people who will jump at the chance to play hero. It wouldn't be the first time. This way we can indirectly get involved without breaking the contract.”

Lydia kept reading way too much into Seth's whim of goodwill. However, if she were to bring this up to Seth, the blacksmith wouldn't deny it, as her explanation would have sounded quite plausible and he did irk him that stuff like the existed without his knowledge.

Although Mike wasn't too sure about Lydia's explanation, he kept silent. They all fell silent when they finally reached the gates of Morranto, the first settlement since Emerald City that didn't quickly shut their doors and raised their defenses.