They split the rewards at the Adventurer’s Guild. Ithil got a total of 10 silver. The money didn’t matter much, Ithil did it because he needed experience. He wanted to get used to limiting his own power, to learn to fit in more.

So when Lerth offered him and Hikor to start a more permanent party, he said yes. Hikor took a bit longer but was eventually convinced.

“Maybe we should get more people to join our party?”

Ithil shook his head at Lerth’s suggestion.

“No, I prefer a small group.”

“Me too,” Hikor said.

“Then a small group it is. Also, shouldn’t we try to live together?”

Ithil tensed.

‘I want to sleep alone so that I can be in my dragon form, but how should I tell them?’

“I agree,” Hikor said.

‘Well, I guess it’s good training for me to live more in my humanoid form…’

“Sure,” Ithil said.

“Well, then. Where should we stay?”

“I’m acquainted with the Sparrow Inn’s owner,” Lerth suggested.

“Sounds good.”

Ithil, Lerth, and Hikor moved into a large room in the Sparrow Inn. Lerth managed to get it extra cheap because the owner owed him. Lerth didn’t want to say why, apparently it was something private.

For the next year and a half, they adventured around the village of Rockyhill. They went under the name Thornhunters to celebrate their first quest together.

They became good friends and Ithil learned many useful things about living as a non-dragon. During the night, Ithil would also do some light training. He trained in body control. He had strength and speed, but he felt limited in his movements. He also improved his techniques a little.

It wasn’t as good training as in the underwater cave, but he liked the calmness. No constant fights, no being constantly on the lookout for danger. He could spend his time doing smaller things.

On the day he turned 16, he decided it was time to leave for the capital.

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Ithil walked through the village streets he had walked through so many times before. He had only been there for little more than a year, yet it still felt like his home.

“You do know I can find the way out by myself?”

“Yes, but we want to see you off. Who knows when we’ll get to meet you again,” Lerth said.

“It would be best for you to remember us, you know?” Hikor put in.

“Yes, of course, I will. I didn’t spend more than a year here for nothing.”

Ithil laughed. It was the day he would leave for the capital. Lerth and Hikor had their reasons for not coming with him, and Ithil didn’t want to pry. He had come to respect them. He wouldn’t think twice to help them in case they ever needed it.

He planned to visit them again after having explored the capital. He had stayed in Rockyhill a bit longer than he planned, but the thing he had the most was time.

“We will be continuing adventuring as Thornhunters. So if you ever want to come back, we will welcome you.”

“I appreciate that, thank you.”

“No problem.”

Ithil had thought about revealing his true identity, but he didn’t know what their reactions would be. In the end, he decided to do it after growing some more. He still didn’t like the idea of his identity potentially being exposed to dragon hunters.

They reached the gate, and Ithil turned around to his friends.

“I guess this is goodbye.”

After Lerth and Hikor had wished him good luck, Ithil walked out towards the forest.

“You know the capital isn’t that way, right?”

“Of course, I just want to check something.”

Ithil sped up and quickly got out of view distance as he neared the forest. He made sure no one was watching him, before turning into his dragon form.

He hadn’t been in his dragon form for a long time, and it felt wonderful. He had decided to stay out of his dragon form during the time spent as an adventurer. He wanted to find out how it felt.

His body had grown to almost ten meters.

‘I really am growing fast. Unusually fast for a copper dragon. I wonder if it has to do with my training?’

He shot up and started flying toward the capital.

Ithil didn’t have many plans for the capital. He wanted to check it out for a couple of days and perhaps find out about any nearby dragon hunters. He planned to then continue with his training since he had a place in mind.

The giant walls of the capital of the Voucan Kingdom showed up on the horizon. There were two walls, one outer and one inner. The citizens lived inside the outer wall and the royals and upper nobles lived in the inner wall which was slightly larger, about 10 meters higher than the 60 meters of the outer wall.

Ordinary citizens weren’t allowed inside the inner section unless invited, which rarely happened. So Ithil planned to just explore the outer section.

As he got closer, he could see just how much bigger the capital was than Rockyhill. He flew slowly since he still couldn’t guarantee not crushing another mountain. The time spent not in his dragon form had made it slightly harder to keep steady, but he managed.

Small forests and villages passed by under him. His abnormally large wings flapped, sending winds down on those under him. He tried to stay above the clouds in order to stay hidden, but they were pushed away as he flew by.

‘I really hope people think I’m just a large bird. Someone experienced would probably recognize me as a dragon, but ordinary people should just be blinded by the sun when looking up.’

He landed in a thick forest near the capital. Before crushing any trees, he morphed into his humanoid form and landed on the ground. Before leaving the forest, he checked for anyone following him. He was much more careful now that he was in an area with more powerful beings.

After an hour he felt safe and headed for the western entrance, which was the closest.