A large groan resonated as colossal gates rose from the ground. A cohort of five walked into the fortress, their bags filled with meat and other goodies. They were tired, but the only expression on their faces was that of ecstasy.

Walking through the muddy streets of Poplis they made their way to the Expeditionary Group building, ready to submit all of their spoils for hard earned credits. Confidently striding into the lobby, they set down their bags of goodies down on the countertop. The lady at the booth inquired, “How many, and what level?”

Blake replied, “Thirteen creatures, and one monster.” The eyebrows of the receptionist raised before quickly settling. She opened up the bag containing the proof of kills, and confirmed their number. Then, the group unloaded a few of the bags which contained the usable pieces of creature and monster.

The receptionist noted down the contents in her notebook and calculated how much money the group was due. “It comes out to 310 credits, thank you for your contribution to the abyss.” Blake then asked, “Could we please get it separated into fifths for equal distribution?” The receptionist nodded and presented them with five leather purses containing 62 credits each.

Cassius opened them and fumbled with the dark metal coins. It seemed there were six 10 credit coins, and two one credit coins. Their distinction being the number imprinted in it as well as the design on the face of the coin. The one credit bore the face of a stoic man, looking in the distance with flowing hair and a sharp jaw. The ten credit had on it a spear and a shield, and appeared to be a crest of sorts.

The receptionist looked on as Cassius curiously looked at the unique designs. “I see you’ve never seen credits before. Supposedly that is the founder of Poplis, and his favored armament in battle. It’s thanks to him that we can all live in relative peace here.”

Cassius furrowed his brow, sure the history of the coins were interesting but he was more interested in the material of the credit and who minted it. The design was very intricate, and the metal refused to bend even with his new and improved strength. [A question for another day I guess.]

The entire group fished out five ten credit coins and handed them to the receptionist. “Here’s our payment for the loaned weapons as well as the membership.” The receptionist smiled, “How diligent, the Expeditionary Group appreciates its members that are so hasty to pay back a debt.”

Cassius felt a bit regretful about parting with most of his new found wealth, but he knew it was for the better. The Expeditionary Group’s willingness to purchase nearly anything off them was indispensable as a fledgling group with no connections.

Some of the people in the lobby looked on approvingly, it seemed their first successful hunt even impressed them. However, Cassius also didn’t fail to notice some looks that contained hints of greed. [Looks like we’ll have to worry about foxes from here on out]

Wayne made a suggestion to the group, which was fairly unusual for him. “Why don’t we take the creature meat we butchered to the tavern, we can have them cook it up for us!” Cassius could practically see the group drooling in anticipation. “We’ll have to work out who eats what.” How the consumption of creature meat worked was that whoever ate the meat first gained the physical level up that brought a nameless one step closer to becoming named. It was quite the mysterious process, but this meant that only one person would get the benefit from one creature. Granted, everyone could still obtain the rejuvenating effects of the meal.

There was only the meat of thirteen creatures, and there were five of them in their group. Meaning three people could get three first bites of creature meat, while the last two could only have two. “I think it’s only fair that Cassius gets three. He really saved our asses back there.” No one argued with Blake’s assessment. “I think Sarina and Blake should be the other two.” Said Wayne thoughtfully. “They are the ones that benefit the most from the boost. Sarina can take more hits, while Blake can scout farther.

Blake looked around and asked, “Is that good with everyone?” The group happily agreed. It was good that this squad was so friendly, it seemed unlikely that they would fight amongst themselves anytime soon.

The cohort sauntered over to the tavern and handed the meat over to the cook. “That’ll cost three credits.” The group scowled but Cassius, Sarina, and Blake each forked over one credit. “Sorry guys, fresh food doesn’t run cheap.” The cook said as he took the meat to be prepared. The cohort talked a bit more about future plans before beautiful plates of food filled their table.

Cassius looked at his dish. The lamprey looked surprisingly delicious, almost looking like eel with its juices spilling onto the plate. The ant came out in the form of a shish-kebab, with pieces of grilled vegetables in between each morsel of ant meat. The decadent dish was complemented with some bread and water.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

“S-So good!” Ellie was practically crying at the taste of the meal. “I never knew something could be so filling!” Exclaimed Sarina. It seemed the group earnestly enjoyed the food. While just roasting the meat over a fire was nice, the addition of herbs, spices, and local vegetables brought the meat to another level. It also helped that they progressively felt a bit stronger while eating.

“Should we splurge out on some booze?” Asked Wayne excitedly. Sarina was about to agree with him before Cassius nervously interrupted, “L-Let’s save that for another time. We need to uhh… yeah we need to save our credits!” Blake laughed a bit. “It seems like booze and you don’t get along well.” Cassius remembered the pain in his jaw as he sighed. “That seems to be an understatement. But in all seriousness I say we save drinking for once we’ve wracked up some more credits.”

Twelve credits was not much to live off of, and it could barely afford them another week of living in Poplis. Blake replied, “He’s got a point, we can worry about luxuries later. For now, let's just enjoy the food and get some sleep.”

The squad spent the rest of the night talking, before eventually each of them retired to their inns. The group had agreed to meet the next morning, to once again set out for another hunt. The first success had given them a major confidence boost, and they desperately wanted more credits.

Creak. “Ahh, it feels good when things go right.” Cassius was finally in his room, sore from the exertion of the previous day, but excited for tomorrow. Before sleeping he popped the core into his mouth, and the familiar ashy flavor filled his mouth. Once again, the feeling of strength filled him. Each muscle fiber felt ready to spring into action, and his brain was processing things faster than before. The feeling was quite addictive.

Cassius laid down and within a few minutes let the sweet embrace of sleep envelop him.

…

Over the next week Cassius along with the group had made great strides. Everyday they ventured out to the upper tunnels, looking for more creatures to kill. Luckily they had avoided any monsters. The drake must have just been a one off event.

“Alright collect the centipede’s carapace, and don't forget the feelers!” The group was currently dressing their kills for the day. They had just fought two centipede creatures. They were terribly creepy with their endless legs, but were fairly easy to kill as they lacked good vision and coordination.

“How many does that make today?” Inquired Ellie. “Shoot, about… ten?” Responded Sarina. It was easy to lose track of how many things they had killed over the past week. Their first hunt was the most they had killed, with the other days averaging out to about eleven dead creatures. All in all they had killed about 78 creatures together. Cassius had so far consumed about 18 creatures. It was steady progress, and he’d probably meet one of the criteria for becoming named within the next month.

The main issue for Cassius was finding runes. After Wayne found the combat rune on the first hunt, Ellie managed to find a utility rune which enabled her to treat wounds and ailments far more effectively than a novice. Soon after Sarina found a mystic art that put an invisible barrier on another for a brief moment. Even Blake had found an item rune which gave him a cloak that increased his focus just yesterday. However, Cassius had no luck.

It seemed finding the two runes he had on the first day were just pure luck. Sighing, Cassius continued to cut open the centipede as he removed its natural armor. Blake patted him on the back, “It’s alright Cassius, runes always find their rightful owner. You’ll get one soon.” Cassius rolled his eyes, “Yeah yeah, just finish up the butchering. I’m looking forward to drinking tonight.”

The mention of drinks caused the mood of the group to get heated. They had been painstakingly saving their creds till they got somewhat equipped. With the recent successful hunts they managed to get to 200 credits before buying equipment. Each person in their group had some armor, new weapons, and even butchering and exploring equipment. That had brought each of their fortunes back down to nearly zero.

Thankfully, after this hunt they would be at about 100 credits each. Once they reached this number they agreed to treat themselves to ale, and some commodities like soaps and perfumes.

“Alright everyone, that should be good for today. Once again good work. Now let’s go treat ourselves!” Everyone cheered as they picked up their bags ready for the long haul home.

Once in the grasslands Cassius began to casually speak with Ellie. The two had gotten fairly close over the last week and Ellie was finally breaking out of her shell. It helped that they cooperated quite a bit, with her constantly buffing him and treating his wounds.

“So, how do you wanna use your new found fortune?” Asked Cassius with his axe slung on his shoulders. “Well first I’m going to get properly cleaned with soaps in the bath house. I don’t know how much longer I can stand the stench.” Cassius sniffed his under arm and grimaced. “I feel you there.”

“What about you?” asked Ellie as she looked up at Cassius. “I wanted to purchase some books on the abyss. Everything from its documented history to geographical features. Unfortunately, books and information cost a fortune here.” It seemed the abyss had some rich history, both ancient and recent.

Apparently the fortress that had been named Poplis had been there ages before becoming what it was in the present. The ruins of the place were found decades ago by the founder of Poplis, ‘Argo’. It was with his heroic leading that the place was cleared of numerous monsters and horrors and made into a bastion of hope for humanity. At least that was what everyone in Poplis believed.

Cassius himself wasn’t too sure. He had not once seen the leaders of Poplis, and there were supposedly four other bastions within the abyss. Had Argo perished years ago? Was he an old man living out the last days of his life within the cold gray walls of Poplis? There was no information besides word of mouth, and romantic retellings of a supposed past. All information was controlled by the central force of Poplis, and every purchased book had to be bought through them. Anyone who tried to go around this rule had disappeared, at least that’s what a merchant told Cassius when he was looking to buy a book.

Cassius found it suspicious that information was being withheld, but for now he shook his head. The worries were all meaningless if he didn’t reach the rank of named. Continuing through the grasslands Cassius continued to make small talk. “Haha, you should have seen the look on your face, as soon as you stabbed that bat yo-” All of a sudden a whistle through the air was heard before a gut wrenching noise came from Wayne. “Guh… ughhh.” Wayne fell over with an arrow impaled within his shoulder.

Cassius’s eyes widened as he readied his axe. “AMBUSH!”