Ryan's heart almost leapt to his chest.

Finally.

"Are we going to begin here?" Ryan asked calmly as he referred to the tavern they were currently sitting in.

"That's the other thing we wanted to warn you about," Cicero started.

Uh, oh. Ryan didn't like the tone the man just used.

"We would like you to understand the scope of the situation that you're about to put yourself in... Permanently," Sasha said. "If you utilize the ring to its full potential and it raises you to the upper echelon of this little town, questions would be asked."

"The kind of questions that you wouldn't want, trust me," Cicero said. "It won't take long for them to find out that you possess Sarinth's ring, and that'll leave you at great peril. Is that something you are willing to risk?"

Well, Ryan wasn't surprised with the words that were being thrown at him. Of course, having Sarinth's ring would put him at severe risk. Something he'd already have to deal with in his current predicament. Even without the knowledge of the ring, he already had the Looter's Heaven coming after him, so all in all, nothing changed except for a chance for him to make something of himself. An option that he wasn't going to hesitate to take.

"There's another option you know," Freya began. No doubt the fairy taking Ryan's silence as hesitation and probably fear. "Uro here has suggested a method to get the ring off of you."

Ryan turned to face the dwarf, no doubt the scheming weasel underneath the barbaric acts of the dwarf had already concocted a master plan to take it off.

"Well, how do you plan to do that?" Ryan asked the dwarf, who had been casually picking his finger throughout the conversation.

"It's quite easy, lad," the dwarf said as he raised his eyes to meet Ryan's, a maniacal gleam in the man's eyes. "I'll cut off yer finger."

Ryan blanched at the words. He looked around the table, hoping that Uro was just joking, and this was not the other option that they wanted him to take, but the grimaces on their faces was all he needed to see to know that there wasn't going to be any other additional option.

"It's not that bad if you really think about it, you can avoid all the potential problems that could arise," Freya added gently.

Ryan didn't doubt for a second that she had been handed the awful task of broaching the topic by the rest of the group.

"No, I'll keep my finger and the ring," Ryan said, not letting the uncertainty that he currently felt seep into his voice.

A nod came from Cicero, Sasha looked neutral, Freya looked supportively at Ryan, and it helped calm him down. A snort came from the last member of the room, and Ryan didn't know why the dwarf had snorted, so he turned to him.

"Look at that, the lad has some clangers on him," Uro cackled. "I hope that yer grow an attitude to match it."

Ryan laughed at the complement, or what he thought was a complement, as one could never be too sure with Uro. The laugh seemed to ease the tension surrounding the table as the rest of the squad seemed to relax.

"Okay, so you'll be keeping the ring?" Cicero asked, receiving a nod from Ryan. "Then there's another thing that you need to know."

Another thing... another thing. Maybe Ryan should've brought a journal with him, considering the amount of information that they wanted to heap on him.

"What's that?"

"The process of activating the ring should knock you out for anywhere between a couple of hours to a day, leaving you defenseless."

Wait, what? What was all this about him falling unconscious? Activating the ring shouldn't take more than waving a magic stick over it, and tada, he should be wearing an activated ring, but of course, things couldn't be that straightforward. No doubt the merchant Sarinth trying to safeguard his ring at all costs.

"Not to worry, though, we'll keep you safe while you bond fully with the ring," Sasha assured him. Uro chuckled sarcastically, receiving a glare from Freya.

"Look, lad, the lot of them are tip-toeing around the issue that made me come up with that grim idea of cutting off your finger," Uro. "Yef can die while you try to bond with the ring, on the good side, if the ring rejects you, they'll be nothing that you'll have to worry about again as well... ye know."

Ryan let out a breath. Nothing good comes easy.

"What are my chances of surviving?" Ryan asked.

"Slim to none. No one has successfully bonded with the ring since the death of Sarinth. Although I must admit that we have no idea how many people have even attempted it," Cicero said.

Ah, the picture being painted for Ryan was making the bonding option less and less appealing.

"Losing a finger doesn't seem so bad now, does it?" Uro.

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

Ryan almost snapped at the dwarf, but hells man, it definitely didn't seem so bad.

"Anymore depressing news I need to know before I begin?" Ryan asked.

"No, that's pretty much it," Uro.

"Let's do it," Ryan declared.

This was it, his chance to become better, to do better. To leave a mark, what great merchant didn't take a risk?

"Okay, let's head upstairs. We've prepared Freya's room."

Ryan couldn't help but blush at the location that was picked for the occasion.

As one, the occupants of the table rose up and began to lead the way upstairs, with Ryan trailing behind them.

Ryan was a little bit miffed at the fact that his squad didn't try to stop him from doing it again, instead, they'd kept quiet and were now leading him to where he'd take his last breath or where he'd be reborn, ready to conquer the Realm.

The rooms on the upper level of the Siren's Call must be a sight to behold if Ryan was judging by what the hallway looked like - neat and eloquent.

The sounds downstairs didn't make it up the stairs, all Ryan heard was his own footsteps and the footsteps of the others in front of him as Ryan walked behind them.

Cicero stopped at a door that Ryan assumed belonged to Freya, not like the door looked any different from the others, rather the fact that it was the fairy's room that they were headed for that led him to that conclusion.

"This is it, last chance to back out?" Cicero said.

Ryan shook his head, not trusting himself to speak at the moment.

Cicero nodded and entered the room, the rest of the squad followed, with Ryan bringing up the rear.

A circle of a white substance stood out to Ryan. No candles, which was a relief, as Ryan would've felt the scene if it the room looked like it was about to host a sacrifice.

"Take your place at the center of the circle, Sasha will begin the chanting," Cicero said.

As Ryan began to move towards the circle, a hand clamped around his arm, causing him to look at who had held him back. It was Freya. The fairy looking at him with an indescribable look on her face as she seemed to contemplate her next move before she launched herself at Ryan.

Ryan's brain didn't have enough time to duck or try to defend itself from the imagined attack, and so it did the only thing it could do - it closed his eyes.

Eyes that only opened when he felt soft lips pressing against his. Ryan was in shock, but he definitely wasn't dumb. He kissed her back, and they just stayed together for what felt like an eternity. He just wanted to live in this moment forever, her perfume assaulting his nose. The pleasant smell covering the pair, even as the rest of the squad found the walls to be more interesting, well, all but Uro, who stared at the pair with a normal grin.

Ryan didn't even bother putting much thought to that as he faced the most important person in the realm right now. The kiss putting into perspective what he was willing to risk: his life.

Within moments, she broke away from him and took a couple of steps backwards, head bent low. No doubt feeling shy at what she'd just done.

Ryan wasn't even sure of what he was to say or do at the moment, as it felt very awkward.

"Ryan, please step into the circle," Cicero said, saving Ryan the need to say anything to Freya.

Like the coward he was, Ryan stepped into the circle, eager to be anywhere else but in the same room with Freya, even if it was the afterlife, which was a little confusing, the fact that Ryan just had the thought to spend eternity with her... love was such a weird thing.

"So, I'll begin now. You might feel dizzy, and that's only normal. Relax and let it all pan out; we'll be here with you the entire way," Sasha said.

Ryan nodded in understanding. Without wasting time, Sasha began to chant, as she walked around the circle. Her tempo increasing with each rotation completed.

Ryan closed his eyes, not knowing what to expect but still bracing himself as best as he could. Waves of power seemed to be rushing towards him and being swallowed by a single point. The ring on his finger.

The blasted thing had begun to itch him. A sensation of heat emanating from the ring, and Ryan gritted his teeth as he endured the beginning of the spell.

His head began to grow heavy, and Ryan couldn't tell when he fell to the floor, losing consciousness.

He opened his eyes, and his jaw almost dropped, or his whatever passed for his jaw in whatever plane of existence he was in.

His body was normal, as though he was really here, and Ryan couldn't really tell how or where "here" was.

It looked like a workshop of an alchemist, equipment sat on a table with empty vials here and there. And Ryan didn't exactly know what he wanted to do in particular. He waved his hands, and they felt as real as they could possibly be.

He glanced around the 'room'; it wasn't as large as he would've imagined, but if this was truly what he thought it was, then the ring was really a valuable artifact.

Apart from two chairs, a table, and a couple of alchemical equipment, all that remained were empty vials and a single door that had been locked... with chains.

With how heavy and sturdy those chains were, Ryan doubted that he'd be able to escape the room even if he tried.

He made his way to the table, his eyes getting caught on a brown worn-out book. A piece of paper beside it.

The words written on the piece of paper were barely legible, but Ryan strained his eyes to see.

"Congratulations on getting to this point in the bonding process.

No doubt the possession of my ring has wrought enough havoc in your life.

The good part is that you'd gain access to this pocket dimension if you are able to pass the simple test I have set before you.

The test is simple, brew a single potion to perfection, any at all, using the recipes contained within this, and my remnant shall judge to see if you are worthy of bonding my ring. Fail to do so within three hours' time, and your soul is forfeit."

Ryan stared at the letter uncomprehendingly. An hourglass seemed to flip on its own with a thud, startling Ryan. The white substance within the glass already starting to trickle down.

"You may begin," a voice said.

Ryan looked around and was surprised to see a dark blob detach from the shadows in the room, moving towards him. It floated over his shoulder, it had the beginnings of a face, but nothing that was really defined.

With his soul on the line, Ryan didn't have the time to stop and begin asking stupid questions like he'd normally do.

Instead, he picked up the journal and thumbed through it, his eyes and fingers moving as fast as he could.

Different recipes were written down in the journal, from the minor health potions that Ryan made to the legendary potions that Ryan had only heard about in bards' songs.

Ryan decided to pick the minor health potion, after all, he didn't really have to do much differently.

Unlike other alchemists that had been trained by master merchants, Ryan was self-taught, so this had to be a walk in the park.

However, the more he read in the recipe for making the minor health potion, the more he wanted to kick himself.

This was barely comparable to what he'd been making, some of the items that were written down had names he couldn't even recognize, and it held way more instructions than he was used to, but it was this or nothing.

"Wonderful choice," the overhead blob said.

Ryan had barely finished processing the words before all the ingredients listed in the book appeared on the table, with a fire flaring up underneath a cauldron.

"Chop, chop."

Ryan let out a sigh, trying to not even let himself fall into the downward spiral that he was about to start falling into. It was time to brew.