COI C246
The bridge to Kinteinnou region, the forest lies ahead covered in crystallized dust and crystal shards surrounded by unimaginable amount of mana released from the inside and the bottom of the ground. The lifeless forest keeps still as there are no life wondered to the surface. A sound of crystals shattered by the sounds of its hooves. The elks appeared after such a horrifying moon cycle. A bit thin but still alive, they wondered around the shattering crystals to break open to any of the dried leaves or grass to find. The nature’s greatest achievement of the surviving animals in the forest have surfaced its dominance.
“The Hawldreds are here. Signs of them going south have found some new pasture there”
“Elrond, they might be here first because of the farmers are beginning to plant the grass seeds”
“Look at them, they are must be loners. Hawldreds always in packs, eating grass is the least to their worries”
Elrond hears the cracks of the crystals deep within the forest. It was so loud that no animal would be able to break it without sheer magic being siphoned out of it. The forest lies within still have enemies surviving ‘till that day.
The Enders elf turns to see the Dexter Guild members. The military corps lie and wait for Tabitha to meet with them. They were planning to meet in two weeks. Their journey is difficult and the place they are heading is the East Coast. From what he heard about the news from Lord Lori’es, by his decree, to let them go through as the objectives belonged to Isekai City. In secrets, the citizens didn’t know about the Enders would do it. It was all thanks to the new recruit. It was suspicious at first, but the Unworthy guild had a report that would work in Tabitha’s favor.
Elrond is not convinced by this. The coincidence into going to East Coast is rather high of daemos interest. The elves have no concern about the threat even though it is close in their realm. There are Rusics and Gobins having problems about that coast. Back then, it is where the heroes stood their ground at the rear of the war.
“Tabitha, what are you going to do when you meet the same people who brought there?”
“Uhm, excuse me, Elrond. I heard you’re calling me”
“I did, the east coast have brought many of your people missing”
Tabitha is finally here with Juela and two Dexter Guild members, McS4 and R-cord, have approached her. These are the people who will accompany her to East Coast. Because of the paths are heavily blocked by crystallized trees shattering itself to the ground causing numerous blockades. The dangers of the ground collapsing are one of many threats inside the forest. There is a possibility to use magic to get there fast. The dusts are still had its effects when magic touches it. The risks are there and lethally so.
Juela looks at Elrond a bit puzzled. She hears him talks about the same people who brought here. For Tabitha, she thought it was her own people. This is different though, an eldesune says it. Their way of speech brings the vast general term when it comes to the word ‘people’. Either be mortals who can lived centuries or the long-lived race in millennia. This troubles her and asks him
“Sorry for misheard you earlier. But, what did you meant of the same people?”
“Her people, Tabitha’s people”
Tabitha says to Juela “Yeah, Juela. Is there are other people who are trapped in east coast?”
Juela was unsure. Tabitha keeps answering for her it was her people who needs saving. While they are busy talking, R-cord sneaks in behind Elrond casually and he said
“The same people? Don’t tell me you already know those people were”
“They have the same powers. Of course, I only guess of it. It is only what I know so far from the guilds’ reports”
“I commend for your wisdom still sharp, Eldesune of Seer”
“Gladly to hear some honorifics, please speak truly as you are not finish with your words yet”
“Pardon me, it is sharp that blinds you as its blade shines”
R-cord leaves, leaving Elrond forgot how old R-cord is. Elrond replies to him in regards
“Give my respect to your predecessor Core Vic. If that artificial version of him does exist”
The way they talk to each other is telling of their understanding of different races. Elrond is not giving his specific details. His answers are true, but not the people he mentioned. Hidden from his mouth filled with no lies and giving only half truths. This gives R-cord the people won’t be mentioned are going to be a pain in their journey.
McS4 confronts with R-cord after their conversation.
“Is there a better way not to let those two girls know about the East Coast?”
“Tabitha’s friend understands a bit of the Eldesune’s speeches. We are going to get involved in their conversation as adventurers do, right?”
“That’s the citizens’ point. Our team is less what mostly team supposed to be. A tank, a DPS, and a support are what they supposed to team up with. I guess we do more constructive tactics if we are going to be all ranged”
McS4 pulls out his heavy weapon. It drips down fluids brightly in yellow and the sound of it sizzling gives very dangerous chemicals. He shows it to him
“I guess tactical zones are no longer needed for them”
Tabitha and her team made it to the exit of the city. Elrond comes along to say his goodbye. She waves at him
“Hey, you weren’t at the farewell party from the other day”
“I heard from your guild. Your friends are doing it every day. I am kind of busy. Your guild seems to be idle lately”
“Like you tried to make a fool out me. I know why many of them are at the guild tower. They are at their preparation. You think going out there and do some questing really that easy. Supplies and maintenance are key since resources are scarce”
Juela smiles while feeling embarrassed how Tabitha is lecturing an elf with thousands of years of experience. Elrond is playing grandpa with her.
Juela calls out to Tabitha “I think we should head out. We don’t want those two wasting their energy”
Tabitha sees Juela points out to McS4 and R-cord. The gunmen are fully built in their power armor. Comparing their outfit from the city sphere and here has shown really used for are rugged and dented. Elrond sees Tabitha’s curiosity. He gives her a guess
“I assume you didn’t know why they use that kind of armor”
“Yeah, they are little dirty and you can see how it’s being dent. Their armors are a bit grey instead their armor normally used when I’m with them”
It was because those power armors are going against the citizens. The amount of waste mana helps them regenerate the cleanliness of their armory and weaponry. Those excess are reaching the max limit of their mana absorption. They also brought storages to gather more of their excess mana than they needed. This one is different. The armor and weapons are scarce to carry any amount neutral mana on them. McS4 explains to her why
“There are places would be difficult for us to bring. We carry this old piece of junk for its worth”
“Like what? I don’t know anything about your guild’s equipment”
Tabitha pushes him to tell him. Her genuine look of her face made him sees is really need to understand her teammate. R-cord steps in front of him and pulls him at his back
“It is better not to waste time. Our breath is fresh and ready to go. We can talk later since the difficulty to get through the forest is not harsh”
Tabitha turns to Juela “Aw, but you are curious too, right Juela?”
“We should get going. Just like they said, we have to go since we are really in a tight schedule”
“We have two months left before the next moon cycle”
“Believe me, I think you should listen to your team” Elrond steps in as he guides them to the exit.
Elrond watches them leave as the guards outside receives the papers from them. They look at Tabitha by giving both her and Juela a proper farewell. The Enders notice of the guards are behaving. A bow and some manners that shown to their officers and nobles, these show them what guild they are trying to respond to. They look embarrassed at first, but Juela recognized this gesture. She quickly turns to look at Elrond. Her curiosity still lingers from his words of ‘the same people’. This makes her worried for Tabitha.
The paths are gone. The distance from the west of Kinteinnou region to the east of Kinteinnou region is tiresome. The days to reach there without magic is a week. Not because of the wilderness they go through, but to village to village in the Agatheus City states. The map shows the fastest route should going to the wilderness, but it will waste their supplies if they go there. Tabitha underestimated the journey they go through. The dusts linger are so thick and made it impossible to get through. The influence of mana harnessed by the locals. To help them to keep their crops alive and well than being consumed for the past 9 months of horrendous cycle.
McS4 and R-cord were able passed it through with ease. They brought a special equipment to cut through the crystals and mana inside. Its combustions help passing through blocked areas temporarily. Mana bursts out whenever they break it. After each breakthrough, the large areas of the explosion hardened the mana, and it is trapped inside continuing to hardened to what shards are left scattered. They weren’t kidding about taking it a week to go through. The locals are making their own paths in such a far-away pathing.
As the first day of their journey put to rest as the night comes. Tabitha never been this exhausting to help them getting through the crystallized forest.
“Ugh! I wished we could use magic to get there”
Juela is by her side “It is for the best. This is the fifth moon cycle. The last cycle for the moons’ full rotation around the world”
“Like how would people survive something like that. The crops we saw is so barren. I can see greenhouses struggling to keep themselves protected from the dusts”
R-cord joins their conversation “The Jigeram’s particles are shown great death to the lands that are plentiful because of Alga’s light. No matter how you complained, both of them have shown their usefulness and their dangers”
McS4 grumbled after the last breach “I wished we could. We don’t know where we are ending up when we teleported there. You could’ve experienced the ambushes while you are being teleported away. Sometimes you won’t be on the right place when you use it. It was good for us, but you two seems to be bothered that every step in the way, you will fight”
He ironically gruntled.
They made it into an inn. The inn shows its exotic structure. Luxuriously in its marbles and ivory statues. When they step in, it begins to raise its runes for security. If there is no threat, then it only for show in multiple lights displaying before them. If they are, then let these glowing lights ray at them with numerous dwarven spells. Anyway, the inn is empty, but there are people working inside as they busy maintaining the facility from the dust. Tabitha stays at the courtyard to enjoy the view. Juela goes inside to rent a room.
Juela meets the owner of the inn “Hello? Why is your inn, empty? This is supposed to be a cheap local inn”
Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
“Competitions, ma’am. There’s an underground hot spring belonged from Isekai City near this field. They have their advantages for not going to be rained with shards from here. I bet you can compete against them with food and drinks. Their guests go here from time to time to have strong meals. I have tasted there before. It was too sweet for my taste”
The owner gives her the key as he continues talk about more about the citizens.
Juela goes out and shows them the keys. Because of how empty the inn is, Juela takes the best rooms on the third floor while the R-cord and McS4 takes their ground floor and a storage room for extra space. At the third floor, the room they rented are so well made as it has an opened roof window with the view blocked by the walls of crystals. It was so grand for Tabitha to have this kind of room. Tabitha remembered
“I almost forgot that you are a rich girl”
“I’m not, villages and outskirts are very cheap. 10cuu is commonly cheap here”
“10cuu, that’s 1,000 Y. A night? But at Enders Bridge, it cost 1sylvs. That’s 10 times more”
Juela shakes her head “Don’t try to be funny chuckle* The bridge has upkeeps because of the sieges”
“Chuckle* I’m not”
Tabitha likes to make fun of Juela being rich. She always giggles when talks about money. Her sense of money is pretty tight. Yet, Tabitha is the one who exaggerates the prices. Not from how expensive it is, but how so cheap they were spending. Isekai City has the strong spending power. Because of their efficient trades like going business with the city states. It is easily likely for the city states took interest to their final product exports. Mass productions for supply and demands are Isekai City’s strong point, unless they could rebuild Taiyou Undustries back up again.
After they settle in, the girls look down at the balcony. On the view below, Juela picked the right room to have a clear vision to see R-cord and McS4 pulling out their things. The two watches them. They begin to maintain their things and made some items. Tabitha is mesmerized their effort to prepare for another day. She picks out her cards from her decks. The new set cards replaced that only benefits Archivist. Now her cards lack magic, it was strange for Yui not giving her magic boost cards. Only she had are the basic spells and command cards.
The command cards, the authority of Lord Lori’es is on her cards. Tabitha went blank when she received it. Not knowing how to use it, Yui said to her is meant for the Dexter Guild members. The basic is for her own use. The basics are not for the damage but to control the battlefield. Knockbacks, displacements, dispels, and many more crowd control spell cards. Tabitha looks at it and said to Juela
“I am the leader, right?”
“Yeah, I want to hear you try calling us out”
“That’s good, but this is the first time I would be using these cards”
“Yui said is meant for them. Don’t try give me those spells on me. You’re going to make mistakes whenever this is new to you”
“Aw, don’t be so mean”
The two laughs at each other whereas the lights brighten by McS4 working on their supplies. Tabitha goes straight about Agatheus City.
“Say, I’ve been into Agatheus. It was my first trip outside from Isekai City. Why didn’t I heard of this place being cheap?”
“It depends on the moon cycles. 3rd to 5th moon cycles is setting their prices very low. It will balance out from the 1st and 2nd moon cycle”
“That’s Alga’s moonlight, right? But was it the other way around?”
“How so?”
“I learn a bit of economy in my city. It is about supply and demand. Scarcities will bring up the high prices and when it becomes cheaper, supplies exceeding the demands”
“I see what you are getting at. The demands in Agatheus City. Is. Preferable without Alga’s presence”
“That’s a bit counter intuitive. Then Jigeram means it gets cheaper? I am not convinced a death moon will make it cheaper”
“Well, normally people didn’t have that much mana on them. It is a hassle to have limits in their bodies. Large quantities of mana are lethal to people. Sometimes even magical creatures”
“Really? Let’s focus in a business stand point. Ok”
“Sure, it is simple. More mana in the countryside means abundance of different qualities of natural resources. That’s include animals, woods, stones, and even remaining crystals from the Jigeram’s light. You remember, different kinds of creatures but on the same species. Right? The demands are very specific which is hard to identify before the moonlight change their biology and elemental structure. It is expensive because of its randomness. Because of this randomness differs on their worth”
“When there is no presence of Alga’s light, I know it is dangerous but in actuality provide a standard quality. I know they are low, but it is low enough to be affordable. We are not gambling on the countryside poor skills on identifying their harvest and games. Only the people inside Agatheus City can control the mana manifesting inside the natural resources. Ironically, the cause of the high prices were the Agatheans inside the city raised up the prices because of their appraisals”
Tabitha stood silence as Juela keeps adding the topic. She is not direct like Kiege, and just likes to talk as much as she is so much of a bookworm girl. These Agathean trivia keep going as Tabitha starts to learn how the city works. Then she hears something really interesting
“. . . Wait?! The inner realms. Don’t tell me those people at the surface are not actually the actual numbers residing here”
“Of course, historically. How do you think Enders reside from? There should be landmarks of them leaving behind the city. Your city has those shrines made out of wood instead of those concrete buildings”
As they are busy having fun at the third floor, R-cord is surveying through their area. The far side of the countryside where he is looking at south. There he sees through his scanners where there is a single form of mana. The info panels remotely moving up and down within in his scanner. Going through the files and reports what happened to the south. They found a report from Lady Coheld herself and Haw at the same date. R-cord closely looks at his monocle the second time as he resets it. The results are the same.
“Enemies originated from the south. Hybrid creatures with daemos’ creation in details. Ratmen, sourced from both Heroes and Demons faction. Purpose, they have lost control. They are freely roamed as the leader is not present in their dire needs. Reason, the Jigeram’s light is not fully removed. They will be under control again in the 1st moon cycle. Warning, once it comes. Their capabilities to survive will be heightened in critical level as a horde . . .”
The audio reaches to McS4 for only parts of it. The noise he made from making his supplies slip into his ears as he continues to ignore it. R-cord takes his notes out and gather some tips coming from both Haw’s and Lady Coheld. He gathered what he needed and calls out to McS4.
“We have ourselves some charges to make”
“What kind of charges you found out there, R-cord?”
“Either be ours or our former team member, chemical weapons are easy to come by in this cycle”
“Chemicals? East Coast is heavily immune on diseases. What useless concoction I can make to go against the slimes of the reefs?”
A note slides into McS4’s table. The resources what those ratmen have is coming from the creation of the daemos. It is useless to use it against the coast. There are also ways to layered their armory. Ratmen’s hides, bones, and flesh are incredibly toxic. If dared to place on the locals’ skins are tainted with diseases those hardly be cleanse without proper medicines or Elven magic. Dexter Guild has one exception, their power armor. McS4 sees the diagram of Lady Coheld’s quality of materials those rats have. This could be good use for its scheming abilities, especially stealth.
The next morning, Tabitha wakes up refresh as she had ever been. Never have been she lying on a comfy bed in an open area. She stretches her body as she uses her magic to switch her clothes into her adventurer’s outfit. After having breakfast and checks out from their room. Juela is already having a chat with R-cord. Juela gives a worried expression and R-cord covered with his helmet, and his monocle lights up in read. Tabitha knows it shows an alert.
“Hey, R-cord. What’s the warning sign?”
“Ah, you made it. We have threats near this area. We wished to collect some spoils”
Juela checks her sash “I don’t think those spoils won’t be any good to make some scrolls out of them. Their hides are not clean, even I rub it clean”
“Maybe not here, there will be more out there. News got out late at night. They will be going anywhere. Isekai City starts to have some rat problems”
“That’s right, those roots died out because of mana exhaustion. Those open spaces probably where those hordes are nesting”
“Juela, that’s not natural to have ratmen infesting underground”
“I was recalling, we were busy somewhere at east mountain”
Tabitha calls them out “Ok, ok, I want to know, R-cord. I hear Juela has no benefit with it. Do we really need to fight them since you said it comes with horde and an infestation?”
“Sometimes as adventurers, we have going to have problems going through the countryside. We have nuisances to keep us busy and tired us along the way. Fortunately, I can convince you to get them at this time”
“Uh huh? Where is it exactly?”
A call coming from R-cord’s equipment. “This is S4. Cor, do you read me?”
“I read you, S4. What’s your status?”
“Agathean adventurers are in my vicinity fending off the enemies. They wished to join”
“S4, S4, your confrontation?”
“It’s done, Cor. We have potential member here”
“Member, S4? Only one?”
“Affirmative, Cor”
R-cord said to the women “The fight is over. I think it would be a waste not wanting one hired man in our team”
Tabitha looks at Juela. Juela checks her coins and nods.
Tabitha asks “Are you sure, Juela?”
“Like what happened yesterday. I’d rather to have myself tired than exhausted. Tabitha, we have the money from our Lord. We need to use it before reaching the East Coast”
Juela goes on ahead. Tabitha looks at R-cord. R-cord said to her
“Being a leader, you weren’t train in logistics”
They have arrived at the battlefield. The ratmen were obliterated and the damages all around them seem to be off. McS4 is already picking up the bits and pieces of the ratmen. He points out who is their potential hire. An Agathean with few others are cleaning off the corpse. The sizes of their enemies are twice as big as them. To be able to beat it is commendable fighter. R-cord scans their states; mental, physical, and mana states. He finds to be less efficient as their bodies are barely using any of their strength. After a closer look, he finds someone who has use a lot of his mental stress. Another spellcaster.
The Agathean sees them and confronts them “Are you here to hire me?”
Tabitha is a bit baffled “Another mage? It would be a hassle for us protecting all of us”
When Tabitha mentions that. Juela turns to look at her weirdly, then she looks at the Agathean. His surprised face recognized someone who said that.
“Wait a minute, are you an Isekai citizen?”
“Oh, why yes, have you visit Isekai City before?”
“Visit? No, I worked there before. I was there to build a magic room. Say, do you know the name Haw or Ironno?”
Juela stops him “There is no need for a chat. We are here whether you wanted to be the job”
“Apologies, about hearing calling me a mage. I am really confused about those role things. I can still use a weapon and being at the front too”
R-cord moves Tabitha and Juela aside, and let him be the one to talk with him.
“I’ll make this short. We are travelers going to East Coast. Because of my companion you met before in heavy armor has seen you actually fighting these pests. We will pay you extra both managing your own and give us safe passage”
Direct to the point, R-cord waves at Juela to hand out the money. Juela only picks out a few coins of sylvs to his hand. Though there are more coins inside her bag. She knows how to make a wage. The Agathean receives the pay
“30sylvs. My, you actually know more about its dangers than us”
R-cord cuts him off “Will you, or not?”
“There’s no need to be hasty. Your companion is still collecting his spoils”
The Agathean inserts the coins into his pouch and his hand reaches out to theirs.
“Citizen customs, I am Secius and please take care of me”
Secius starts to rally his own group. Thanks to the 30sylvs at hand, he is able to bring 5 Agatheans for her Journey. It may be a big group, but it is enough for not wasting their own resources. Tabitha groups up with her own team. With their yesterday usage of their own supplies and resupply for the entire week in advance, they are really wasting theirs if they keep this up because of the crystals alone. Tabitha never been into this sort of adventure. Having more people around like they are in an expedition. Truthfully though, yesterday is indeed mundane if it continues.
Another blockade right before them. Secius let two of them to scout around to find the other route. After some time, Secius sees the signal absorbed into the crystal
“Ratmen! They got attacked”
The ratmen surrounds the two by their fast reflexes. From over then under, the crystal shatters as they break through with their gnawing teeth. The mana inside the crystal bursts opens releasing overloaded mana into their bodies. They wear their cloth on their mouths to cover them from the intoxicating mana. Many Ratmen flew by as they charge in columns.
The two Agathean throws some pebbles on the ground. Soaked with mana potions, it hardened quickly by the crystal making small spikes as it absorbed. The ratmen stepped on it as their weak feet crumbles as others at the back pushes them down as floor mats. Their remains on the ground reattached to the ones who are standing, creating their extra limbs. They combined themselves and continue to charge like rat hybrid centaurs.
Secius comes to the rescue and opens his tome. He summons water splash on the ratmen, then he reenchants it and turns to slippery oil. Their rough bodies slip from their loose armor, it fell over from their dangling bodies and tripped again. With his next consecutive spell, he ordered his men
“Throw those rocks again!”
They throw those pebbles at them, then the crystals began to absorbed it. The oil spilled bodies start to bubbles up next to pebbles-soaked mana. A big splash from the oil as the crystals covered the pebbles. With little mana combined together on the rat men, they covered with small shards.
The Agatheans see they are covered in shards. They use their strong spell as they channel is as fast as they can. They charge forward and blows them away along with the shards with a powerful shot. It hits the ratmen at the back and the shards pierce through. All of them fell apart as their own mana leaked and absorbed to the crystals. The two Agatheans fell to their knees in quick exhaustion. They removed their cloths from their mouths as they need to breathe openly. Then suddenly, the crystal branches fell on them, knocking and trapping them from the large crystal.
A large ratmen, thin as it moves like withered stick bones, it looks down and begin to absorbed their life out from it. Secius casts his spell again to throw some mud at its face. It clogs its mouth as its entire body breathes into its chest. It desperately tries to feed as it nearly touches the thread of life of those two. Once it about to reach it. Its spine from its head shots off. An ivory bullet hits its bone and its head fell down. Secius sees this opportunity to run at it and kicks its head away from his companions. It was kicked in a far distance. The body couldn’t absorb and start fleeing to find its head. The fight is over, and the other three who are with him goes in and saved those two.
Tabitha had never look into her card as fast as she reads them. She wasn’t prepared at all from the sudden attack. McS4 whistles confidently
“Your cards improve. You give R-cord a better shot at this angle”
Juela sees the card Tabitha used “Silence, it is common but to silence a made ratmen from using its abilities. We don’t even know what it can do”
“Breathe* And I don’t want to know, Juela. I am just glad they are alright. Like why can’t you helped them McS4?”
“On such tight space, I’ll just hurt them instead of saving them”
“But, you have those equipment . . . That’s right, they are consumables”
“I’m glad our leader remembers our limits”
Tabitha can’t believe what she had seeing. It was easy to defeat those ratmen when mana is scarce. To think those Agatheans are having trouble to deal with them, especially on mass. This is not what she had in mind to go to East Coast like this. Their resources shouldn’t be wasting here. Especially what her cards on hands have need to recharge. Her mana capacity will be able to charge up well, but what about her team. This is the realization she learned as what Voldemyr reported. A group of people where he can save one but left the others to die. This is the warning she must learn to save the entire group.
Meanwhile, Lady Coheld reads the back-and-forth messages between her and R-cord. Their daily report of their first day. She can’t afford to waste that equipment doing mining work. There is a goal she had in mind at East Coast. Although there is plenty, like spying what her rival guild is up to. The documents she is looking for was not there on her personal data. A sigh on her disappointment when she sees that it will take them, a few more days, before they reach the east coast.
“This is taking too long”