With the mayor on board, it was an easy task to convince the villagers. The villagers were already panicking and mounting defenses at the village's perimeter. Howls could be heard in the distance as the demons, having escaped from the gorgon's influence, reverted to their natural behavior.

Luckily for the inhabitants of Chelsea, it snowed that night and for three whole days after that. The demons were largely creatures of violence and restricted their movements lest madness and mutation overwhelm them.

By the time it ceased snowing, the abnormally large population of demons had succumbed to infighting. They no longer had the population—or the energy—to cause problems for the small human-inhabited village. By them, Sorin had finished purging the poisons from everyone in the village and had restored their thought processes to a normal state.

It took a good week to collect testimonies from all the villagers. For the most part, no one caused them problems. There was one exception to this: the Mercers. Despite being rescued by Sorin and company and receiving treatment from Sorin for the poisons that ailed them, they continued to find reasons to complain about the whole affair.

Astley collected a few more specimens before taking her leave. Though she was more than entitled to a part of the mission reward, she instead opted to take the Dark Lady's corpse, which she claimed to be able to use in a myth-binding ritual.

By the time Sorin and company left Chelsea, only ten two-star demons remained. They were the most harmless of the bunch and were spared because their presence would prevent the one-star demons in the area from rampaging.

The Master of the Adventurers Guild was thankful for their contributions and issued their bounties in the form of promissory notes. Chelsea was too poor to directly award bounties, but they could be claimed at any branch of the Adventurers Guild on Pandora, assuming the branch had sufficient funds.

Several weeks went by. Team, We Don't Need a Life Mage traveled from town to town, investigating corruption cases, clearing out demons, and solving mysteries. They even managed to explore a ruin, though by then, there weren't any big rewards to be gained.

It was New Year's Eve when they finally stopped in a city called Trenton. It was a clear, snowless night, and as was customary, most restaurants and businesses were closed.

The inn they were staying at was a reputable location, however, and prepared them an extra-special meal for a private New Year celebration. Included in their meal was a wish cake specially prepared by the innkeeper. They cut the cake into six slices, one for each of them, including Lorimer. It was Sorin who found a coin in his slice, an omen of good luck for what would prove to be a challenging year.

"It's definitely been an eventful year," said Stephan, sipping from a foamy mug of ale. "We all became heroes. We saved no less than six villages. We solved two important mysteries and slew over a hundred two-star demons. All of these are accomplishments we can be proud of.

"And finally, after a very productive year, we all turn 17. It's darned frustrating being barely an adult. They don't even cut you slack even when you're a hero in the Bone Forging Realm."

"Tell me about it," said Sorin, holding up a glass of whisky. "I always got snark about my age back at home. Most one-star doctors are in their early twenties before they pass their examinations. Most of the well-known one-star doctors are well into their thirties.

"It was embarrassing, interacting with all these older people who thought they knew better than me. And it only became worse with time, when I proved them wrong, time and time again."

Lawrence cleared his throat. "Well, we're not all child prodigies, Sorin. Except for Stephan. And maybe Daphne. Gareth, you wouldn't happen to be a child prodigy in disguise, would you?"

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

"Not even close," said Gareth.

"Then here's a toast to us normal folk!" said Lawrence, holding up a glass of wine. Gareth accepted the toast and drank back his glass. It was a rare occasion where he, too, allowed himself a drink. "

"I personally never had any problems with my age," said Daphne, swirling her glass of Champagne. "Some people tried to pull rank in the beginning, but they ended up too embarrassed to complain about me when it became clear that doing so was just letting everyone know they were twice my age and half as competent."

"If only politics were so simple," said Sorin with a sigh. His eyes flickered to a small table where three envelopes remained from the batch Percival had just sent him. "Everyone, I've made my decision. I'm going to accept all three invitations."

'And what brought that about?" asked Stephan.

"Nothing much," said Sorin, refilling his empty glass. "I was just thinking about how we're going around saving people who can't protect themselves. It got me thinking—what do I do when it's us who needs saving? Am I just going to pray that someone comes to sort it all out like those villagers did? Hell, some of them didn't even know they were in danger until it was too late."

"Isn't accepting just one invitation a legitimate option?" asked Daphne. "I'm just playing devil's advocate."

"It's an option," said Sorin. "But Delphi is going to be dangerous, given the sorts of questions I'll be asking. It will put me and everyone I know at risk. What's more, I have no idea who plotted against my parents. I have no idea who went to recover my parents' belongings. Picking a single side without knowing the full picture is little better than betting while blindfolded."

Gareth raised a half-empty bottle of wine. "To a fresh start. And to Sorin successfully finding allies and not getting us killed."

"I can drink to that," said Lawrence. He took a deep drink from his wine bottle and let out a contented sigh. "Do we really have to leave in three days? Can't we just stay another week?"

"Absolutely not," said Stephan. "This is a tempering exercise, Lawrence. There's no point in it if you're going to take breaks whenever you feel like it."

"But I'm tired," said Lawrence. "My back also hurts. I need a massage. A week's worth of massages."

"You already had a massage," said Stephan. "And you'll have three more days to fit massages in. A week is too much."

"Didn't I treat you with acupuncture already?" asked Sorin. "Your vitals are back to normal, and I sense no residual trauma from that brutal spider bite. As an unlicensed physician, I feel comfortable declaring you fit for duty."

"Hey! That's not a fair diagnosis!" said Lawrence. "Don't you have a serious conflict of interest?"

Sorin snorted. "Then report me. Besides, Stephan is right. All this fighting, all this traveling—I feel my bones loosening up. Your intention is for us to lay down a solid foundation before we arrive in Delphi?"

"That's right," said Stephan. "Fighting is important. Risking our lives even more so. Also, there's an event coming up in Delphi. It happens every decade, and we're lucky to catch it just after breaking through. Only heroes are allowed to participate, and only those who haven't exceeded the first forging.

"With luck and a lot of hard work, we should be able to obtain good results. High performers will obtain opportunities that will greatly increase their cultivation speeds and potential."

Gareth raised his half-empty bottle once again. "To a hard-working and honest Lawrence! May his guts be big and his injuries small!"

"Reeee!" chimed in Lorimer from his perch on Sorin's shoulder.

"You got that right," said Sorin. "Lawrence, a rat just said you can either work hard or eat his dust."

Lawrence sighed. "How did I ever end up in a group like this? Tell you what: I'll commit to being hard-working, but you have to commit to shifting into something other than bears."

"Bear forms are optimal for all situations," defended Stephan. "It's something I stand by, and no one can convince me otherwise."

"You know what?" said Lawrence. "Challenge accepted. I refuse to believe you'll jeopardize a mission to stick to your so-called principles."

Stephan chuckled. "Once we get to Delphi, I'll have tons of ways to make up for my shortcomings. You'll eat your words, in the end, just like everyone else has."

"I'm looking forward to visiting the Hero Association," said Daphne. "Lots of good spell books, I hear. And a few skill books that are actually useful to mages."

"The Hero Association has a lot of nice things," agreed Stephan. "As long as you have the gold and the contributions to pay for them."

"You've been teasing us with bits and pieces of information about the Hero Association, but you've yet to give us anything concrete," said Sorin. "The Kepler Clan doesn't have a lot of heroes, so all I've got are a bunch of third-hand accounts."

"I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise," said Stephan. "Just know that the Hero Association has something for everyone. Anything is possible for those who accomplish great deeds.