Both the adventurers and the guards were getting angry. Klein led their group down the hill and as they approached, they could hear the argument.

A fiery woman led the adventurers, jabbing a finger into the guard captain’s armor. “What’s the point of being here if you won’t protect us?”

That got under the guard’s skin, and they shuffled on their feet. “We aren’t here to protect you, Adara. We’re here to protect the town.”

“The danger to the town isn’t here; it’s out there, on the road.”

“There’s been five rift breaks just this week. Five! Who’s saying there won’t be another one closer to town while you’re off clearing that rift?”

Adara was still fuming but stopped to consider that.

“The Sword sent us to protect this town, and that’s exactly what we’re gonna do. If the town falls, Yon falls, and we can’t afford to seal off the portals here. There are worlds downstream that would be totally cut off until we can clear this place out again.”

Adara steadied herself, taking a deep breath to calm herself. “Just listen, alright. We’re just barely short of two complete parties, which would let us tackle both rift breaks today. Don’t you have anyone? You must be able to see that we’re also helping protect the town.”

The guard sighed, waving the second guard over. They whispered in his ear, shaking his head.

“We’ve extended the range of our patrols while all this is happening, so over half of our unit is still out. That means there’s only five of us to watch the town.”

From on top of the wall, another person appeared, wearing a badge of crimson pinned to their tunic. “Mel came back into range of her speaking stone, Cap!”

“Great!” The guard captain clenched a fist, calling up. “Give her the coordinates of the higher-level rift break.”

“Aye.” The face called back, disappearing.

The tension diffused and the leader of the adventurers clapped a hand on the guard captain’s shoulder.

At that moment, Edgar and the others approached.

Klein greeted them in a measured tone. “Good day, folks. I couldn’t help but hear you’re hurting for adventurers. We might be able to help. What level do you need?”

“The monsters are level eight.” The leader turned towards them. “Don’t tell me you’re all eights?”

“My friends are level three.” Klein flipped his hair. “But I happen to be level nine.”

Edgar groaned at Klein’s ostentatious behavior, but to their credit, neither Adara nor the guard captain batted an eye.

“What’s the situation?” Klein asked.

“There’ve been multiple rift breaks south of town, heading towards the Seas of Sam and the Ice Caves, and we’ve got to stabilize them before too many monsters pour out.”

“That sounds familiar…” Mirai said, unfolding their map. “Yup, we’re heading for the Ice Caves, so…”

“We’re stuck?” Klein asked.

“We’re stuck.” She said, tucking the map away.

“I’m all yours,” Klein said, turning to Adara. “Call me Kly.”

“I’m in your debt, Kly. I think a level nine is exactly what we need to get this done.”

The Sword captain nodded to Adara. “I’m glad. Good luck. As patrols report in, I should be able to send a few others your way.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“Alright, let’s go everybody.” The woman called, leading them towards a group down the road.

Klein motioned for their small group to gather around him. “You guys could stay in town. It’s gonna be dangerous, and—”

Priz shook her head. “We shouldn’t split the party, Kly.”

“You can’t fight, though. You might as well stay behind.”

Priz chuckled. “Don’t worry. We’ll find a safe spot to wait it out. We know you’ve been aching for some action. Besides, Ed and Mira haven’t seen you fight yet.”

Klein frowned for a moment. “Fine, but if things get ugly, as the guild-appointed guardian of this party, I’m ordering you to hit the road.”

They joined up with the other adventurers, the Mason, and the Key and continued down the road. The two guild men were unlike any adventurers Edgar had seen. The Key wore a large hood, but every inch of their body that Edgar could see was covered in tattoos. They didn’t speak to anyone, and no one spoke to them. Their eyes were ice-blue specs peering out from under the hood, shining with magic. They didn’t seem to be carrying equipment, except a set of rings on their fingers that Edgar glimpsed under the sleeves of their garment.

The Mason walked beside the Key, seeming much more approachable and down to earth. He pointed at the various hills, chatting with a female gnome, and carried a bindle over his shoulder.

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“What level do you think they are?” Edgar asked Mirai as they walked.

“At least low twenties, but more likely in the thirties.”

Edgar gaped. “If their levels are so high, what do they need us for?”

“Masons and Keys don’t level the same way we do—they don’t fight. From what I’ve heard, they focus on skills and abilities that help them with their craft.”

“And their craft is building those foundations? Will we get to watch?”

Mirai smiled. “Those two guilds—The Stone for Masons and the Prism for Keys—are very secretive. Their techniques are a well kept secret, so I doubt we’ll learn anything today.”

Edgar scratched his chin. “It’s not like human sacrifice or anything bad, right?”

“Hah… Keys are just people doing a job; a very cryptic job that involves a lot of ancient and secret magic, but it’s still just a job.”

Adara paused, pointing at a dark speck among the grasses about a hundred meters from the side of the road, where bursts of flame spouted up into the air. “Anyone level ten and up goes with Crayfish to the second rift, and the rest of you are with me on this. Kly, your people can break off now.”

A lanky man raised his hand and continued walking up the road, allowing adventurers to congregate around him before continuing on.

Priz gestured at a hill on the opposite side of the road from the rift. “That looks like a decent spot to wait. Good luck, Kly.”

Klein smiled and nodded, jogging off to join the other adventurers while Edgar, Mirai, and Priz’s group climbed the small hill.

Jim pulled out a large blanket, and they all sat down, chatting as they watched the battle. Edgar drew a piece of dried meat and snacked on that.

Klein and the other adventurers formed a large arc and began moving steadily towards the flame monsters and burning grasses. Once the first monster noticed them, it let out a screeching howl, setting off a chain of howling that ended with monsters throwing themselves at the line of adventurers.

All the adventurers were strong, but Klein’s strength and ability were apparent right from the start. He fought using a long, curved sword and where he went, he left a trail of ice and frozen blood behind him.

The monsters were like flaming goblins, who could spout fire from their mouths while their hands and feet burned anything they touched. They had rust-colored plates on their red bodies that functioned like armor, blocking the weapons of the level eight adventurers, but not Klein’s.

The monsters sensed the threat he posed and three of them tried to gang up on him. Klein tapped the tip of his sword on the ground and then, as he swung his sword upward, a wall of ice erupted from the ground. As the monsters tried to blast through the wall, he dodged around to the side and flanked them, cutting them down quickly.

As Klein worked his way through the monsters, the other adventurers did their best to hold ranks. Every so often, Edgar could hear Adara’s voice calling out, and the line would advance one step.

“Ready, Push!”

Even from this distance, Edgar could smell the burns and blood spilled on their side. The monster’s combat style seemed reliant on touch. They tried to land quick punches and kicks, and wherever they struck, flames flared, adding damage to their attacks.

Adara whistled, cutting through the noise of the battle, catching Klein’s attention, and pointed to the right flank. Klein acknowledged, ducking a gout of fire and running to the right to reinforce them. One of the adventurers stepped back from the line, their sword arm hanging limp with savage burns.

“Ready, Push!”

They were getting close to the rift now. Adara made another gesture and the Mason and Key approached the formation. The Mason reached into his bindle to draw a hammer while the Key removed their hood. An aura of magic surrounded the Key as they prepared some skill.

“Ready, Push! Ready, Again!”

The line finally advanced past the rift, pushing the monsters back. The Mason tapped his staff on the ground and large, pre-cut stones began appearing next to the rift. He walked from one to the next, hitting them with a hammer. Each time he struck, he leaned in to listen to the sound of its resonance.

The sound drifted all the way up to Edgar. “Wow, that’s beautiful.”

Mirai raised an eyebrow. “What’s beautiful?”

Edgar blinked. “You can’t hear that chime?”

Mirai shrugged. “Must be your cat ears.”

The Key’s piercing eyes swiveled to fix on them. Even from this distance, they shrunk back from the gaze of those angry, ice-blue eyes. The Key waved their hands and a sphere of darkness enshrouded the Mason and the rift, blocking it from sight, and cutting off the chiming sounds.

The fight continued and as the number of fiery goblins dwindled, Adara whistled again for the two flanks to close in and trap the monsters in the center. At once, the adventurers launched off powerful skills into the small knot of remaining monsters, and they fell.

The adventurers cheered, celebrating their hard fought victory. Many of the level eights were wounded, but there had been no casualties. Klein approached Adara, shaking her hand, and then jogged back towards the road.

Everyone stood. Jim packed up the blanket and they began heading down towards the road.

“That was faster than I expected.” Edgar said, standing.

“Klein did well.” Mirai stated. “His leveling seems solid.”

Edgar nodded. “I thought so too. His ice skills are pretty sweet. That ice blast at the end, during that final attack, was very nice.”

Edgar mimed a chef kiss, drawing blank stares and chuckles from the others. Mirai palmed her face.

Klein met them on the road. “I’m gonna help escort the Mason and Key to the next rift when they’re ready.”

“Are you sure? It might be dangerous.” Priz asked.

“Most of these folks can’t punch up to level ten, but I could. It will be great essence, too. I don’t want to pass it up.”

“We could go with you again, or wait for you here.”

“You all ready to head back to town with the level eight folks at this point. Sounds like the monsters from the next rift can fly, so coming to watch isn’t an option, and the grasslands are dangerous after dark. The safest bet is just heading back to town for now. I’ll meet you back there, alright?”

“Alright, be safe.”

“Essence is only worth anything if you survive the fight.” Jim said.

Klein nodded. “That’s right.”

Klein waved, jogging back over towards Adara. She flashed him a smile as he got close.

“Oh… is that a thing now?” Edgar mumbled.

“Maybe.” Jim said, chuckling.

Once the level eight adventurers returned, they all slugged back up the road towards town. The healer was going to have their work cut out for them tonight.

As they walked, the sound of rustling grass distracted Edgar multiple times, but each time he looked, there was nothing to see. He dismissed it as a fluke of his imagination. He figured the excitement of the battle was lingering in his thoughts, riling him up, and tried to enjoy the floral scents and fresh air, even as the hairs on his neck pricked up yet again.

~~~~~

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