Now that the others were waking up, Lucius headed inside. Maryanne was the only one still asleep, so he told Whisper to wake her while Roland gathered everyone's breakfast and began heating it over the remnants of the fire with his cooking talent. Garrick didn't say a word—though he looked like he had calmed down over the course of the night. He simply took his breakfast to go as he headed outside.

Maryanne rolled off the couch into a sitting position, her blankets still wrapped around her body, and began slowly rubbing her eyes. The child looked better than she had since Lucius first found her. Roland's cooking talent had gone a long way in alleviating the lingering effects of her injuries and malnourishment. Once Roland finished the rest of their meals, he placed the food in front of them before Tiber began discussing their plans.

"Once we finish eating, we should get moving.", The stern soldier suggested, "The sooner we take a look at these farmhouses of yours, the sooner we can report back. Every day that goes by, we lose more people to the goblin raiders."

Lucius nodded along as Tiber spoke. Afterward, the group hastily finished their food and packed up their things. When it was time to go, Maryanne wanted to walk on her own, but they needed to move quickly, and there was no way the child could keep up.

"Just ride in the bag this one last time, we don't have much farther to go."

Maryanne scrunched up her nose as she heard Lucius' word, before making a counteroffer of her own.

"It hurts my legs. I won't go in the bag anymore. I can hold on tight like this!"

The young girl motioned for Lucius to bend down before climbing onto his back, wrapping her legs around his waist and holding tightly around his neck. Lucius stood up slowly and rocked side to side a few times to check how sturdy her grip was. Maryanne grinned broadly when Lucius allowed her to stay like that for the journey ahead. Whisper disappeared into the storage space of the new ring as Lucius made his way toward the exit, following the soldiers who had just stepped out of the cabin.

The bat happily fluttered around the enlarged space, using his shadows as he busily reorganized all the items Lucius had clumsily piled inside the night before.

"There's so much room!"

The new space was double the size it had been previously, and even before the upgrade it hadn't been small. Now it was roughly half the size of a professional basketball court. Lucius wouldn't be able to fill it up anytime soon. When Whisper found the ape corpses, he began begging for them with an eager look on his face. The two corpses were wrapped in a cocoon of shadows the moment Lucius gave the mythical creature permission. Checking his status as the warm energy flooded his body, he saw that he'd gained one vitality from each corpse, bringing his total to twenty-three.

Garrick, Roland, and Tiber stood just outside the door, wearing their heavy rucksacks as they waited for Lucius. When he walked out of the cabin, Tiber glanced up at him, motioning toward the road with his arm as he spoke.

"Lead the way, kid."

Lucius took a moment to generate an image in his mind of the roads between his current location and his destination, confirming his route before setting off down the driveway at a casual run. If he had been alone, he would have gone much faster, but he wasn't sure how much stamina the three soldiers possessed, so he set a pace he thought they could follow.

The sun had been up long enough to remove most of the chill from the air, and the clear blue sky stretched as far as they could see over the colorful forest canopy. It was a good day to travel. After a few minutes of running, Lucius realized he had underestimated the soldiers, as they urged him to move faster twice before finally being satisfied with the pace. Now the group was moving at quite some speed, with Maryanne tucking her face behind Lucius' neck to shield herself from the wind generated by their rapid movement.

The group made excellent time, and with Lucius' ability to steer them around most threats, they avoided being delayed by any fights. Before the sun had reached its peak in the sky, Lucius spotted the tiny farmhouse in the distance. The place had already changed significantly in just the few days he’d been away. The nearby field was full of thriving greenery, strange pig-like creatures grazed in the pasture, and several carcasses had been skinned and hung up to allow the blood to drain while their furry pelts were laid out nearby to dry in the sun. Someone had also begun constructing a rudimentary defensive wall, rising six feet off the ground, made of sharpened logs half-buried in the earth and tied tightly together. Though only a small portion of the wall was completed, Lucius could tell it would greatly enhance the farm's defenses once finished.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

What the soldiers noticed first, however, were the patrolling guards riding on the backs of large spiders, carrying matching shields and spears. From this distance, only the spiders were clearly visible, while the details of their riders remained indistinct. Tiber dropped to one knee, pulling his sword from his storage ring, a horrified expression spreading across his face as he shouted to Lucius.

"Goblins?! Get down! They'll see you!"

Lucius turned around, furrowing his brows at Tiber's reaction, before quickly realizing the misunderstanding. He couldn’t suppress a chuckle as he watched the serious man react with such alarm. Nonetheless, he cleared up the confusion, waving to get the guards' attention.

"No, not goblins. Those are our spiders. We stole them fair and square."

A pair of binoculars appeared in Tiber's hand, and he used them to get a better look at the distant riders. His expression only softened once he confirmed with his own eyes that the riders were human. The soldiers rose from the ground as Lucius led them toward the farm, meeting the guards along the way. It was Scott and Helen again. This time, they carried shields in addition to the spears Jack had made for them. Lucius wasn’t sure if it was a coincidence that they were on duty again or if they were permanent guards, but either way, he was glad to see familiar faces.

"Our young hero is back, and he brought some friends."

Scott greeted them with a grin as soon as he recognized Lucius among the group. Lucius offered a quick hello before asking where he could find the others. Scott scratched the back of his head as he looked up at the sky for a few seconds, until Helen answered in his place with a frustrated tone.

"You don’t pay any attention, Scott!" she rebuked before turning to Lucius, her sour expression morphing immediately into a smile. "Jack is in the forge as usual, and the rest should be in the farmhouse."

Lucius thanked Helen for the information and led the soldiers into the farmhouse. James was sitting at the table just inside the door, his arms crossed bitterly across his chest. However, he seemed to cheer up a bit when he saw Lucius walk in.

"Lucius, you're back."

"Hey, James. Why the glum face?"

James turned away from Lucius' gaze, his arms returning to their tightly crossed position.

"I got punished. I don’t want to talk about it."

"Ah, I see. Well, can you help me gather everyone? We need to have an important discussion."

James' eyes lit up as he found an excuse to escape the boring table. He hopped to his feet and raced out of the room. A few minutes later, people began gathering around the kitchen table. Patrick was the first to walk in, and Lucius immediately noticed the many different magical auras emanating from the man’s clothing. He greeted Patrick with a handshake and asked about his attire.

"It looks like you solved the problem of using multiple inscriptions! Is that the case?"

Patrick smiled, glancing down at his clothing.

"Yes and no. I unlocked an additional ability that lets me overcome the limitation personally, but for others, the limit still exists. However, I’ve managed to raise it to two items instead of one, so both the shields and spears everyone uses can now be inscribed."

As the two spoke, heavy footsteps echoed down the hall. Lucius glanced over and saw Jack approaching quickly, carrying something, a wide smile spread across his face. He was holding a pair of bracers and rushed into the room excitedly, stepping in front of Lucius.

"Lucius! You’re finally back! I made a present for you—try these on!"

Jack pushed the pair of bracers into Lucius' arms before stepping back with his hands on his hips, watching expectantly. The items were crafted with a thick leather base to wrap around an arm, and atop the leather were three sheets of black iron for added protection. The ends of the bracers had loops and thin leather strips for tightening. The craftsmanship looked solid, and the bracers gave Lucius a sturdy feeling, as if they could block a decently strong attack. Jack’s smile widened when he saw Lucius examining the bracers approvingly.

"I know you don’t want to carry a shield, but these will let you block some damage when you don’t have a choice. Also they got a uncommon attribute that enhances defense!"

"Thank you, Jack. Really, I appreciate it."

Lucius rolled up his sleeves and placed the bracers around his arms. The fit was surprisingly good. As he pulled the straps tight, he prompted the system for a description of the items.

Light Bracers - [Leather & Iron Bracer] - Quality [Enhanced]

Defensive bracers crafted by a novice artisan, the materials for this pair of bracers have been magically enhanced through use of its creators unique aspect, and additionally enhanced through use of inscription for added defense.

Sturdy - The sturdy modifier allows this item to endure an additional 25% damage before being destroyed.