A 50-teenager group whom John had tied up emerged. They ran up to the boy who had played with Michael and pulled him away.
The silver-haired man whom John had met pumped his fists. “Alright!”
John, Amanda, and the crowd around them gave a thumbs-down and booed.
John stomped a foot. “Oh come on! The kid was 19 years old, and the man is—what?—70 plus?”
Amanda took a deep inhale for a shout and chuckled halfway.
John and Amanda left and bounded up to the boy who had played with Michael. Behind the boy, a mother whom John and Amanda had met emerged. She gave them a warning stare and trudged away along with the boy.
John walked up to the mother. “Pursue litigation at the royal court.”
The mother chuckled derisively. “For what?”
Amanda walked up beside John and showed a warning frown.
The woman glanced at her and gave her a polite smile. “Amanda, thanks again.” She raised a concealed basket which Amanda had gifted her.
Amanda nodded.
John raised his brows and tilted his head toward the mother. “The person who beat him deserves mutiliation at least?”
Amanda and the mother frowned.
John glanced between Amanda and the mother. “It’s the norm for thieves. Some of them are already up for public display.” The mother’s frown grew deeper as John spoke.
John gestured with his hands and nodded, showing his sincerity. “I really think you should at least give the competitor person that.”
Amanda composed herself and only tensed her lips. “John, John, John.”
“That’s like bottom level—” John turned toward Amanda. “Yes?”
“I don’t think she wants it.” Amanda gave him an expectant look.
John opened his mouth and stared at her and the mother.
The boy who had played with Michael tapped his mother’s shoulder. “Food?”
The mother nodded. “You’ll get it, don’t worry.”
John nodded with a resigned expression.
He and Amanda said “Goodbye” and left.
John and Amanda entered an adventurer’s guild and greeted a group of adventurer who had eaten with them.
“Hello, everyone. Hello Jacob.”
Jacob waved at him and looked elsewhere.
John hid his disapproval and followed Jacob’s gaze.
A man entered the guild and paused, furrowing his brows. He ignored Jacob and John’s stares and sat down.
John walked up to Jacob and tilted his head toward his face. “What’s wrong?”
Jacob glanced at John and widened his eyes slightly when he saw John’s happy face. “Isn’t that Charter?”
John gave a flurry of nods.
The man named “Charter” who had ignored Jacob and John glanced at John and gestured him to come.
John ran up to him and sat down. “Is it too late now to say your coffee is not coming?”
“Can you ask them please? Thank you.”
Amanda turned toward John and gave him an expectant look.
John bounded up to her and gave her an affirming expression.
John gestured Charter’s want for a cup of coffee.
Amanda pointed toward the counter of a retail kiosk. “Might as well.”
Amanda handed the basket where Michael had hid to John, and John placed it down on a table near the adventurers.
Amanda patted Michael’s head. “Might I please have 32 cups of coffee? And...”
John gestured toward Charter and raised a finger.
Amanda nodded as she spoke. “One more coffee.”
A cashier jotted down and glanced at her. “Thirty-three cups of coffee.”
Amanda touched her own chin and nodded.
She stared at the distant adventurers as the cashier jotted down, calculating.
“Is it really that hard though?” One of the adventurer men laughed.
The cashier showed her an expectant smile. “That’ll be 50 gold coins.”
Amanda nodded, and she and John walked away and sat down.
A woman handed her 32 cups of black coffee and turned around toward a co-worker. “Please keep the cahier somewhere out of the cupboards.”
Amanda ignored her and raised her eyes toward the adventurers.
The adventurer who had laughed clasped another’s shoulders. “Would they really have found it if they were that serious? Like ‘Elevated’ serious. No way right?”
Amanda shifted her eyes to the outside. A man outside carried multiple pouches of bread and milk and hurried along.
John massaged her around her thigh. “Are you okay?”
Amanda blinked many times as she turned her head toward John. “Many people died today.” She sounded quiet.
John widened his eyes. “Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Hmm. Uh-huh. Uh-huh.” His confused voice grew understanding as he spoke, and he rubbed the back of his head toward his nape and shoulder.
John blinked as he looked toward his bouncing legs. Amanda stared at a table, formed a circle with her mouth, and took a deep breath.
John deepened his voice. “Many people lived today.”
Amanda gave a small nod.
An adventurer made wide gestures as he spoke. “‘It can’t be!’ That’s how he said it. ‘No! No! No, no!’ He was so scared, but that was the most exciting part!”
“Dogdogdog is a real man for crying and not holding back his tears,” said another adventurer. “When I read the ending and got to that scene, it actually made me cry.”
A group of people who had dressed in mourning clothes entered the store.
One of the mourning-dressed women walked up in front of Amanda. “Kimberly said, ‘Adrian is in prison.’”
Amanda looked toward John.
John showed her an encourging, urging smile, nodding his head and raising his brows.
Amanda chuckled out of surprise. Her chuckle grew nervous while the woman who had walked up in front of Amanda stared and raised her brows.
John lowered his head, grinned, and clapped his hands secretively.
Amanda touched above her brow. “Ok, I’ll discuss first with John.”
John frowned.
Amanda gave John a naive, pleading look. “Then, I’ll pass by her and Adrian.”
The woman who had walked up in front of her gave her a disbelieving look.
Amanda gave her a confused look, raising her brow. “Up by 7 tomorrow, so it’s not a problem.”
The adventurers crowded toward John, and one of the adventurer women gestured in front of John.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
John turned his head toward the adventurers.
The adventurer who had gestured gave John an expectant look.
John shook his head.
The adventurers nodded.
Jacob took out a notebook and placed it on the table.
The adventurers turned their heads toward the notebook. Their voices were loud. “Is this a hand-copied version of Jared’s?”
Jacob bit his lip and stuttered. “I found evidence of the death of Aliyah. It’s here.”
The adventurers gave Jacob polite smiles. “Jacob is serious. Wow.”
Jacob gave John an expectant look.
Amanda stood and walked toward the counter.
John joined Amanda, ignoring Jacob.
His head turned elsewhere, Jacob followed John with his eyes and balled his fists under the table.
“Aliyah...” Jacob grabbed a cup of water and drank it as the adventurers’ faces grew bored.
John sat down with an enthusiastic voice. “What’s Aliyah?”
Jared struggled to speak, opening his mouth several times as the rest of the adventurers realized John’s enthusiasm.
The adventurers imitated John’s enthusiasm. “Yeah, Jacob, what’s Aliyah? How did you get Jared’s book anyway? Did you go visit him?”
Jacob hesitated to smile, stood up, and turned around toward his pouch on the chair where he had sat. “That’s right.”
Charter faced Jacob and handed him a cup of coffee. “Bad for your throat, but it helps.” His voice was quiet.
Jacob smiled wide for a split-second. He led John, Amanda, Michael, the adventurers, and Charter outside to a remote place. “Jared said that if there was a king, he should be the strongest and most intelligent. He should be the wisest and provide the most benefit to the country. To that end, the country must give all their control and sense of self to him for him to receive faith power and become a god. The major reason is that gods can utilize magic beyond our current means to elevate our society as a whole. The second major reason is that gods, as a result of their power, lose the weakened morality of a desparate human. He will seek after his most difficult wishes alone because he now has the power to accomplish them. After he accomplishes them, he becomes a stoic as his destiny is bound to his fulfilled identity. From what I understand, Jared meant that all a country needs is to force a king candidate through the wishes of the country until he ‘becomes’ it.”
The adventurers nodded at one another with guilty looks.
Charter frowned. “Aliyah?”
“The death of Aliyah is the death of a godless kingdom.”
John spoke fast. “With the joint ruling of Chancellor Sophia, Grand Commandant Andrew ‘Jared’ Miller, and Imperial Secretary Sick, the kingdom fared okay by reason of their magical prowess, but this system failed after Jared alongside Sophia attacked Sick’s new growing forces as a declaration of his ‘godly’ ideals.”
The adventurers became nervously quiet as John and Jacob stared at one another.
John gave Jacob a friendly smile.
Jacob rubbed his fingers together, hoping John would affirm and advice him.
Charter clapped. “Either way, it’s a good study. Jacob, right?”
Jacob nodded, glancing at John.
John raised his brows.
Jacob looked away.
John turned toward Amanda. “Want to go home? I almost forgot. You’re supposed to check Adrian.”
Amanda spoke slowly. “Royal court.”
John gave her an encouraging smile. “I’ll come with you. Mikey might want to come as well. We should bring him.”
Amanda nodded, turning toward the adventurers.
Charter laughed. “Jacob, you should try selling these orbs. If you’re the one at the front, they’ll want to listen to since their bodies are getting drained while you wait.”
“No, I don’t want to.” Jacob sounded relaxed.
Charter furrowed his brows. “I have a lord in line since they want to take up holy magic. Come on.”
John glanced at Amanda, ran up to Jacob and Charter, and grabbed their shoulders. “Holy magic!” His voice sounded funny.
Amanda smiled, and Jacob raised his head and widened his posture. He raised his brows as Charter’s eyes grew bored.
“How would you do it?” Jacob sounded excited.
Charter’s eyes widened, imitating Jacob’s excitement. “Like I said. Just practice your hands to stop them from shaking. You don’t want to drop the orb or shake while you’re doing your hand waving.”
Jacob nodded as he left alongside John, Amanda, Michael, and the adventurers.
Along with the adventurers, John, Amanda, and Michael returned home. Michael stayed behind as the rest left again.
They ran up to the gates which John and Amanda had visited.
A group of adventurers hid their armbands and emerged from a camp nearby.
One of the adventurer men sprinted up to John. “Is that Little John?”
John nodded and shook his hand. “Oh, hi Ryan. It’s good knowing you’re still out here helping the goblin poor.”
The adventurers with Ryan clapped.
One of the adventurer men with Ryan strided up to John. “That’s right! Even without their mage ones, we wouldn’t be so quick to judge. We’ve been giving them gifts lately.”
John and Amanda gave polite smiles.
Amanda strided away.
Ryan furrowed his brows. “Why’s she leaving?”
John covered his mouth. “She needs to go. Body calls!” He sounded funny.
Ryan pointed at John. “My bad! With your new look, I thought you got yourself an impudent group of comrades.”
John gave a polite laugh. “It’s only expected that you would’ve thought that. Now, what are you sitting out here for?”
Ryan gave a thumbs-up. “We’re blocking the gates. It’s our first attempt.”
John closed his eyes. “Blocking it?”
Ryan gave a flurry of nods. “Uh-huh! And we’re doing it for free!” He guffawed.
His group gave him awkward smiles.
John backed away alongside Amanda and the adventurers. “Either way, I think you’re missing something here. We’re not here to do anything much, but Lord Mark—”
Ryan glared. “You lackey for him? John, stronger John, it’s us against you and your John clique.”
He and the adventurers with him showed their symbolic armbands, declaring war against the John, Amanda, and the adventurers with John.
One of the adventurers with John raised his arms against his chest, disgusted and irritated. “The Dogs!”
Ryan swung his hand at John, grabbed his shoulder, and sliced at his neck.
John stopped his dagger and slashed it with a sword.
The steel dagger broke, and John slashed Ryan’s chest.
Ryan dashed backward as a volley of arrows emerged and struck him.
John fell forward, but Amanda grabbed him, saving him from the arrows.
He sprinted and yelped when a volley of arrows hit the ground behind him.
Jacob tripped. “Ugh!” He got up.
The other adventurers with John yelled. “No, no, no!”
“Please, please, please!”
Ten large families of goblins whom John had met and another family whom John had saved emerged. Those among the goblins who had shot each produced a skilled longbow result of 12 arrows in one minute.
Ryan and the most of the adventurers with him lost their lives.
John, Amanda, and the adventurers with them and the 11 families of goblins greeted one another.
“Thank you!”
“Thanks!”
“I love you! Thank you!”
A group of goblin teenagers wearing purple, yellow clothes whom John and Amanda had met emerged in the light in front of John, far away. They gestured for a meeting with someone from the 11 families of goblins.
A goblin woman strided up to them and greeted them.
One of the purple- and yellow-dressed, teenage goblin boys spoke in a different language. “Imperial Secretary Sick is chasing down the lich, but the lich is nearing Enterprise Town. Can we pay you to get them? I don’t need to pay the adventurer residents.”
The goblin woman shook his hand and bowed, accepting his proposal. “No need for the payment.”
The teenage goblin boy stared. “Thank you.” He sounded embarassed.
The teenage goblins boys joined the families of goblins and marched toward a town named “Enterprise.”
John, Amanda, and the adventurers with them returned home.
John and Amanda paced around their home as their voice grew terrified. “Where’s Michael?”
When it became midnight, John and Amanda had left, met the older man whom they had met, and returned home.
“Where is he?” John covered his face with both hands.
Sick’s voice emerged. “John? Amanda? Are you guys there? I called you guys, but Michael’s the only one who came. I’m sorry.” He sounded frustrated.
John glared at the door and opened it, sprinting outside.
Amanda joined him, bumping against the door into the streets.
They silently dashed around corners after corners, ignoring the surprised expressions of bystanders nearby. They slowed down due to crowds and the coming and going of a foreign ambassador. They jumped over a small fence, and John injured himself.
John gave a strained chuckle as Amanda picked him up. “Sorry, I became too enamoured by us running like this now that we’re here.” He stared at Michael.
Michael hugged Amanda.
John grabbed him and picked him up, playfully aggressively hugging and kissing him on the head.
He put him down, while Michael hugged onto Amanda’s arm and rubbed his cheek against his elbow.
John, alongside Michael, walked up to Amanda.
Amanda was touching a bunch of flowers. “Oh, sorry, this reminds me of the three kids.”
John nodded with a brow raised.
“Let’s not get complacent, shall we?” Amanda kissed Michael’s head and walked alongside John and Michael toward a tower. She looked stonefaced, but her fingers twisted about in frustration.
Amanda raised her hand, and the sound of glass breaking emerged from her past John and Michael.
Michael stopped, biting his lip.
John furrowed his brows and bounded up to Amanda. “Amanda?” His voice was hurried and stressed.
Amanda closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and turned her head toward John. “I broke my barrier. I think I’m doing it.”
John forced a smile. “The lich? If that’s your target... sure.”
A group of goblins emerged from a building and sprinted away down the road.
Amanda stopped. “They’re here.”
“They’re really purple from here.” John glanced at Amanda’s angry eye twitches. “I guess it’s the street lights.”
A thunderstorm emerged.
Amanda’s twitches stopped, twisting her torso toward John. “Is that yours?” Her voice sounded tense.
John pointed toward a bunch of bats emerging. “Yes. And those are the...”
Amanda’s voice became calm. “The half-naked bat man.”
The bats transformed into a silver-haired, black-clothed man whom John had seen at the tournament. A spear five times taller than him flew toward him and floated midair, moving alongside the man.
A bunch of adventurers carrying baskets with potions emerged, put down their baskets, and recovered their bearing. “John, Amanda,” said one of the adventurers beside Jacob whom John had helped persuade to join Carter. “Michael. Is Lord Mark here with us?”
Amanda dashed at an absurdly fast speed. “He should be here.” Green particles of magic emerged from under her feet as she dashed, grinned, and grabbed John’s shoulder as a gesture of camaraderie to the adventurers.
John smiled despite his shoulder’s discomfort. “The adventurer guild got us all here, huh.”
The silver-haired man walked up to John. “Not all of us. Greetings. I’m Peter.”
“Greetings.” John’s voice was a mumble.
John, Amanda, Michael, and the adventurers with them stared for several seconds.
The silver-haired man named “Peter” raised his brows and walked away with the same confident gait.
Amanda walked up to two of the adventurers and dranked a potion from their basket. “Thank you, Oliver.”
One of the two adventurers nudged the other, and this other one named “Oliver” observed Amanda’s haughty, climbing gait.
Oliver raised his legs and kicked the air. “Doesn’t Imperial Secretary Sick teach us not to walk like that?”
The other adventurer beside Oliver crossed his arms and leaned forward as he walked alongside Oliver. “Don’t worry. She knows what she’s doing. John taught Sick, and—inadvertently—produced much of his early feats.”
John walked backward and gave them a knowing look. “I heard my name and what you said. That was a lie I said years ago. I forgot to tell you until now.” He awkwardly sprinted away and joined Amanda.
John patted Michael on the head toward the necklace around his neck.
Michael gave John a confused look.
John nodded and gave him a meaningful glance.
Michael opened his mouth and nodded clumsily.
A group of James, the younger soldier the older man, the apron soldier, and the small army whom John had met emerged behind the adventurers. “Good evening, everyone,” they repeated across the adventurers. Their expressions and words were polite.
John smiled and gave a theatrically shy wave as Amanda’s demeanor along with her outfit became gradiose.
James and those along with him walked up to John and Amanda. They greeted them and marched alongside them.
The adventurers recited a poem, joining their march.
John slowed down and made a split-second expression of fear toward Amanda’s back.