Srsli

49: Practice

The ominous pressure got the attention of everyone in the other room. They all rose from their chairs, eyes locked onto the doorway leading into the kitchen, waiting for what was causing it.

It didn’t take long before I saw a shadow—one that should have been solid—shimmer almost like smoke. Deciding to get this over with without too much panic, I stored one of the Thunar steaks, leaving three on the plate. Then, I scooped up a large portion of mashed tuber and placed it on the pla...

48: Thunar

Since we had some time to kill before we could go back to the lantern shop, and since we’d decided to detour past the kitchen on our way back to the inn, we stopped by one of the many markets in the city to pick up supplies for cooking. Liane broke off to find Jen and Hari, letting them know the plan.

It would be nice to cook something without having to hide it. I still had some meat on me—well, besides the Galvonsons, of course—but I had no idea where to even begin with preparing...

47: Book Hunt

I just stared up at Milo, who was still holding out the ring towards me.

“It... It’s too much,” I stammered, as Milo gently took hold of my hand and slipped the ring onto my finger.

“Nonsense. We, as a group, are investing in our party members. It only makes sense,” Milo said, releasing my hand once the ring adjusted to my finger. I could barely even feel it there. Liane and Jen both nodded in agreement.

“He’s right, you know. Now you’ll be able to carry Cris...

46: Guild Master

As we sat waiting in the office, I half expected to be called in for a switch, so I was surprised when Jackson entered again, this time followed by a lady who stood at about chest height to me. But there was no mistaking her for anything other than a warrior. Her arms were scarred, and her face looked hard.

When she entered, everyone began to stand. Following suit, I started to rise as well.

“Enough of that. Stay seated,” she said, waving us back down.

She approached the...

45: Report

I don’t think I’d ever slept that well.

The bed was, amazing!

Even when Milo shook me awake in the morning, all my body wanted to do was sink back into that heavenly cloud of a mattress! I had never had a proper bed like this before. At the Academy and Temple, the beds were incredibly thin, and at the Inn or Micca’s house, I usually slept on a bedroll. But this bed... it was something else entirely.

What did finally drag me out of bed, though, was Milo telling me I’d...

44: Moving on (Start of book 2)

As we entered the giant archway leading into Boltron, escorted by the guards, we were led off to the side. Much like our experience in Forest’s Edge, it seemed we were repeating the same scenario. I could see Hari, Kevin, and Milo speaking to an official-looking person wearing a well-fitted suit of sorts.

It didn’t take long before that person was replaced by an older gentleman clad in armour that looked more battle-worn and heavier than Hari’s.

I couldn’t hear any of thei...

43: Epilogue (End of book 1)

Lord Falcone sat at his desk, pouring over paperwork. There really shouldn’t be this much, but it was important he did whatever he needed to do to ensure a kingdom auditor didn’t visit. There was a fine balance between overcharging your subordinates in taxes and their becoming disgruntled, with word spreading.

But he had a lifestyle to maintain. Didn’t they consider that?

He sighed, noticing his butler standing at attention.

“Ah, Leo, thank you. I’m ready for your ...

42: Boltron

I felt that overall, everyone was more relaxed today. I was the only one nervous about reaching Boltron, though. The scenery was changing quickly. We were still heavily under the shadow of Mount Divinus, but we were already entering a vastly different landscape compared to the past few days. The rocky outcrops were turning into vast valleys. I would have expected to see some farmland, but so far, not yet.

Before we got too far into the day, I checked my notifications to see if any creat...

41: The Final Stretch

It wasn't long before we were joined by Hari and Kevin, who made their way into the walled-off section Milo had created.

“Okay, I don’t know which part of all that was keeping a low profile...” Hari began, but was immediately interrupted by a little flame elemental who burst into the closed-off section, angrily throwing sparks into the air.

“Sorry, Crisplet, we’re still here,” I muttered. Hari let out a deep sigh, while Kevin had a smirk on his face, watching it all pl...

40: Tremors

It didn’t take long before Milo shot to his feet.

“I’ve got to, uh.. go test something!” he said, before rushing outside.

Jen leant over to me, whispering, “You’ll want to go out there. He’s probably going to do something ridiculous with earth magic to test that buff.” With a chuckle, she returned to her food.

Well, I didn’t need to be told twice. I wanted to see some amazing magic, and if Milo’s everyday structures already blew me away, what would Jen co...

39: Mountain Pass

The hour passed quickly. Kevin was up front chatting with Milo and Hari, while the rest of the group had spread out along the caravan. I noticed Crisplet still nestled in Jen’s pocket, for now.

As the sun began to set, we found ourselves unable to pull off the road due to the rocky terrain. Instead, Milo conjured a structure directly over the road, shaping it into a space large enough to house the horses. It was beginning to resemble a proper stable.

“Milo, how much mana does ...

38: Pastries

When I awoke the next morning, I saw there were another 23 notifications.

Pulling up my status to see where I was at,

Name: Trevor

Class: Arcane Chef

Rarity: Rare

Level: 18

Experience: 5997/13613

Hit points: 210/210

Mana: 510/510

Stam...