“Hoen, I need your help with something.”

Not even an hour had gone by after Seth succeeded in making the bronze, when he appeared at the neighboring workshop, asking for the help of one of his dwarven colleagues. It was already late, but he found that the dwarf was still in.

Hoen was from a world, where dwarfs held a more modern perspective on their craft. He was also the one in charge of creating the lower-level items for the Bronze Anvil since he was the one with the knowledge surrounding magical casting.

The dwarf was able to create molds and casting furnaces that allowed him to directly cast accessories with simple enchantments. And this was exactly what Seth needed. The ability to mass-produce a huge number of relatively small enchanted items.

“Sure, what do you need?” The dwarf asked, clueless about what he was going to be pulled into. But it was too late, Seth already pulled out the blueprint he had created with the help of his skill. Seth spread the scroll on the workbench close by and Hoen’s eyes widened when he saw the contents.

“Are you for real?” he asked shocked, by the scale of the endeavor.

“Yes. And I need your help. I need you to…”

…

After roping in Hoen for the job, Seth’s mind finally relaxed a little and he returned to help Cerberus infuse souls into the golem cores. They still had a lot of work to do, and it wouldn’t become less once Simon came with the scrap armors. Despite the late hour, the blacksmith returned to work.

…

---Unclaimed Mountains, Emerald City---

The way into the city was easier than expected. The guy he chatted up turned quite friendly and invited him to a drink after a while. Before Mike could think of any other method, his new friend offered him to join their convoy when entering.

He got to meet the convoy leader who agreed to take him along. The catboy doubted him at first, but the guard didn't bother him after the leader had a word or two with them. The man didn't even ask Mike for payment.

The convoy leisurely drove into the streets of Emerald City. The beastman could only wonder about the difference between this place and the other settlements he had come past. Unlike the struggling settlements, this place and Morranto were surprisingly thriving... Well, who knew how Morranto was doing now?

“Do you have any plans in the city? Or are you only staying long enough to prepare for the next quest?” the guy asked when he saw Mike observing the city. Right, he had gotten into the city. Now he had to think about how to continue.

“There are some people I heard about, but I don't know how I would contact them yet,” Mike answered vaguely. It was the truth, he just didn't mention that he wanted to meet the alleged terrorists.

“Brother, If you have no plans or place to stay, you should come with us to our base!” the guy suggested. Mike didn't have a place to stay, and it would probably take some time to get in contact with the group that was wreaking havoc on Emerald City.

He had no real reason to refuse. Mike had introduced himself as a traveling swordsman lv.89, working as a mercenary at the Adventurers Guild. Nobody was suspecting him so far and he guessed that they would probably try to scout him. 89 was a pretty high level for most people after all.

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“Sure, why not?” he agreed lightheartedly.

The convoy drove on for a while, the city wasn't small. Finally, the trucks turned to enter a subterranean parking garage.

“Guy, can you bring our new friend upstairs to settle him in?” the convoy leader asked the man. Guy nodded and signaled for Mike to come along. Guy led him up a few stairs and brought him to a nice-looking lady.

“This is Martha, she manages things around here. She will show you to one of our guestrooms.”

Martha looked up at Mike and gave him a friendly smile when she saw his cat ears.

“Follow me, I have the right room for you,” she said beaming a smile, and took the lead.

She brought him to a room that could be called nice for a free place to stay and spartan in general. A bare room with light parquet flooring, a simple bed, a desk, a cupboard, and a small window. To the left was also a door that led to a small bathroom with a toilet, shower, and sink, which upgraded the room by a little.

“Would you like to eat something?” she asked after showing him the room.

“No, it's fine. Thanks,” Mike refused politely. “Then I will call you when dinner is ready.”

She didn't insist and quickly left.

…

“Where did you pick up that beastman?” a deep voice asked the convoy leader.

“Guy chatted him up at the entrance to the barrier. He seems quite naive, he even lied about his level, saying he is lv.89. I doubt someone with that level would act so clueless. But we should be careful, it might all just be an act.” the convoy leader answered cautiously.

“Act or not, even if he is really lv.89 it won't do him any good apart from raising his price,” the dark voice said amused at the convoy leader's concerns.

“It's been a while since good-looking cat people appeared on the market. Even though he's a male, he might go well as a bodyguard or combat slave for a young lady with special tastes.”

Outside the door, the black cat ears twitched. Mike could only sigh. Although Mike was not an assassin or a thief, his people were naturally apt to sneaking, so he had left his room to look around to calm his worries, only for them to be confirmed.

He had his suspicions but he acted innocent and trusting to give them a chance to prove him paranoid. Despite what he saw on his journey, and in Morranto...Despite what he experienced with the apiaries, he had hoped there would be at least some good people out here. There probably were good people in Emerald City, but it definitely was not these guys.

If these guys were catching and trading people, did that mean there were others locked up in here? Looking at the time, he decided to keep looking around. He just had to return before evening, when Martha would call him for dinner.

Guessing that they had put him in the rooms that were actually meant for their employees, Mike judged that that were the normal business floors. He currently hand gone up, because he had spotted the convoy leader by coincidence and followed him.

The floors had more rooms, even apartments and some offices, like the one he had just been eavesdropping on. If they really held people here, they would probably be downstairs. Dungeons and prisons were famously a downstairs thing.

Avoiding people's eyes, Mike snuck back down. Guy had quickly led him up the stairs before, not giving him a chance to see what the other floors looked like. But before he could enter another floor, he witnessed a peculiar scene.

There was a goat, kneeling in front of a door, fiddling with the lock. A goat... He wasn't as surprised as he thought he would be. There was something familiar. He seemed to recall something about a goat and Minas Mar. Didn't Seth...

“Excuse me, are you perhaps Tano'Mol?”

The goat jumped up in shock, its fur standing up as it took a fighting stance and faced Mike. However, it did not make a single sound.

“How do you know my name?” Tano'Mol asked, not that surprised that someone snuck up on him while he was lock-picking. Lock picking with hoofs was hard and took all his concentration.

“So you are Tano'Mol! I'm Mike, a Lord of Minas Mar. Seth told me about you, but what are you doing here?” Mike had not been sure, but he tried to approach because he made the connection between a goat demon and the mysterious group of assailants that most likely were connected to Minas Mar.

“Mike? The guy that has been off the radar for almost two months?” the demon asked suspiciously.

“Ah.. well, my com-orb was damaged and I couldn't get in contact... Wait! That's not important. Since you are here, you must have a way to contact home, right? I have news I have to report,” Mike suddenly changed the subject. He had to warn everyone about the cyber worms.

“Sure.. but could you help me with this first?” the demon asked and pointed at the door.