The Adventurer's Guild had been a bust. There was nothing really new for Reivyn to see there except for a different style of expensive architecture. The retainer had quickly gotten them a meeting with the local branch Guild Master, and after verifying that he himself wasn't an undercover spy, they had explained the situation to him. It was the fastest way to gain access to the entire structure. Reivyn was able to map the entire thing before he ever met with the Guild Master, but he was still putting on the show that he needed to have line of sight.
The Adventurer's Guild had been mostly empty. A few high-Level Adventurers were puttering around inside, waiting for a time they could be called up to arms, but for the most part, all of the Adventurers that didn't enlist in the military had moved further inward of the Region. The higher-Level Adventurers were in a situation where they couldn't be compelled to join the military, but they were expected to offer their services in an emergency and receive just compensation for it.
The lower Level Adventurers could get a steady stream of income from their salary, but they wouldn't get a combat bonus. Conversely, the higher Level Adventurers' income was mostly put on hold without access to quests, but they could get a large combat bonus. It all worked out in the end, and the lower Level Adventurers didn't mind their temporary stint in the military because they got decent Life Experience they otherwise wouldn't have access to. It wasn't like the military just accepted anyone and everyone in times of peace.
The Adventurer's Guild is a strange entity, now that I think about it, Reivyn thought. Thinking about the situation with the individual Adventurers led him to think about the organization as a whole. It's an independent, outside organization, but it's made up of the local "insiders" wherever it's found. Everyone still has allegiance to their kingdom or empire, yet they're part of an organization that spans pretty much the entirety of the populated Realm.
There was no super Guild Master in charge of the entire thing. There was no council of elders or any kind of overarching overseer. The Guild Master in the Tier 4 Capital City was the head honcho for the entire empire they resided in, and he had the ultimate authority over all of the subordinate Adventurer's Guild Branches. They had nobody who overlooked their jobs.
There has to be more to it than that. That's a good way to have significant corruption. I'll have to ask about it the next time I do something with my identity as an Adventurer in the future.
Reivyn had never planned on being a full-time Adventurer. Likewise, he had never really planned on having a full career as a soldier or mercenary. Things just sort of worked out that way. Having an identity as an Adventurer was more of a bonus to how he had envisioned his lifestyle. The main draw of gaining ranks in the Adventurer's Guild was the access it could provide in higher Tier Regions.
If one didn't have the necessary rank, they wouldn't even be able to see the higher-end quests and opportunities, much less tackle them. Sure, people could go out on their own, and Reivyn could definitely see himself doing so with his considerably higher power level as compared to his Tier and Level, but most people required the assistance of at least a Party.
And it wasn't just access to higher-end quests, either. The Adventurer's Guild could give their people preferential treatment towards delving into Dungeons. They could skip wait lines and sell their spoils for higher profit.
Reivyn had never really thought about what he was going to do with his life in the next thirty years or so, but just going from one quest to another, one Dungeon to another, constantly putting his life on the line to make a profit, wasn't what he had imagined. He wasn't opposed to the adventure and risk, but there was nothing to motivate him to push harder other than personal growth.
Well, I guess with my proclivity for training and increasing my Skills, that would be motivation enough, Reivyn chuckled.
He also didn't have aspirations of conquering nations with the might of a military behind his back. He didn't see himself as some hero to lead the armies of an empire to defend against the hordes of monsters, either.
Maybe one day...
Reivyn let his thoughts drift off as he heard the tell-tale sounds of a blacksmith enter his ears. He had been lost in thought as he followed the retainer through the city. The retainer had led him away from the central hub of the city toward the northwest corner. The sounds grew louder and louder as they got closer, and suddenly, Reivyn was able to see a large area that had been cleared out with several new blacksmith workshops and other crafters' stations constructed altogether.
Reivyn had gone on his little mission with the retainer by himself. Refix, Kefira, and Serilla had gone back to the company barracks. None of them were worried that things would spiral out of control without their presence or anything. They had simply wanted an end to the day, and Reivyn didn't see any reason to bring them along. He wasn't expecting to find any more spies, and even if Kefira wasn't there to lock down the space around any he did find, they would be able to handle it.
"What was the point of this?" Reivyn idly asked.
"Centralization," The retainer replied. Reivyn was a bit surprised at the response. He had been thinking more out loud than expecting a response. "There are far more blacksmiths, tailors, alchemists, and other lifestyle professions than what can fit in the central square of the city. It made sense to gather all of them together in one location, and the prince wasn't going to give special treatment to those that had occupied a position in the most coveted central square.
"Thus, we have a hub of crafters located here. It's not a big secret or anything. Everyone in the city knows about it."
"I see, thank you," Reivyn said with a nod.
The area wasn't walled off, and they had easy access to the location, but there were still patrols making sure people who didn't belong didn't wander into the area. The retainer met up with one such patrol leader and simply explained that the prince had ordered Captain Reivyn to do a summary inspection of the area. The retainer was a well-known person, and there was no reason for the patrol leader to doubt his word.
Reivyn encompassed the area with his Divine Sense, making sure to pay attention to the faces of each of the individuals within his range. He nodded to the patrolmen before heading deeper into the crafting haven.
The sounds picked up through his Divine Sense were a bit strange. He could still hear everything with his own ears, and the distance and obstructions between the source distorted the sounds like usual; however, his Divine Sense filtered the information a bit differently.
He didn't hear the sounds with his Divine Sense. There were also no distortions caused by distance or walls. He was able to sense the clear, pure sound of each noise within his range as if he had been overlapping with the source. It didn't drown out any other noise, though, and it was more like he understood it on a fundamental level. He could tell the exact pitch and timbre of the sound, as well as the decibel level.
It had been easy to adapt to the strange flow of information into his mind when it was just people talking or combat. The last time he had been in a pitched-combat situation, his Divine Sense had been much lower Level, and the range wasn't large enough to pick up too much information. Walking into a hub of blacksmiths and other crafters really put things into perspective for him, though.
He had to slow his pace down so that he wasn't overwhelmed by the information flooding his brain. He hadn't suffered such a situation since he had gotten used to his new Skill way back in the desert of Drallo. The retainer slowed down to match his pace when he noticed the shift, and he gave him a curious look.
"I'm fine," Reivyn said. "My Skill picks up sounds, too, and it's a little much right now. Just give me a few moments to adapt."
The retainer nodded his head and didn't press for any further information. They walked along the edge of the hub, letting Reivyn adapt to the sounds before slowly making their way deeper toward the center of the hub. Reivyn could see the frantic activity of the lifestyle crafters making and repairing weapons and gear.
Not everything being made was expressly military, either. There were coopers making barrels, cobblers making footwear, and tailors making things other than clothes, like backpacks and pouches. The list was endless. Everything would have a purpose in a military unit, though.
Reivyn was a little surprised by the number of Tier 1 kids running about. They were the apprentices, and they acted like errand boys and girls for the most part, though Reivyn could also see them taking turns observing their superior's work. The crafters' hub was like a little city unto itself, though there was no overt commerce being conducted.
They made their rounds around and through the hub, and Reivyn gave the retainer a shake of his head once they returned to the original position they had approached the area from.
"I didn't see anything, and I'm certain I inspected everyone," Reivyn said.
"Very well, I'll let the prince know," the retainer responded.
With that, the retainer gave a slight nod and then briskly strode away. Reivyn watched him go for a second before turning to head toward his own destination. It had been a long day, and he was eager to finally relax.
I'll get in a couple of sparring sessions with dad, and then Kefira and I can work on our Mana Skills, Reivyn thought.
Some might think his idea of relaxing was a little off the mark.
---
"I'm really not sure what can be done about it on your end," Prince Allik said. "Captain Reivyn was the only person in the entire city that I know of that could spot the skin-masks."
An ethereal image of another man who resembled himself was hovering over a long-distance communication device. Unless it was strictly necessary, they didn't communicate such long distances with the magical items. It ate up too much power. This was anything but a routine communication, though.
"You said Princess Kefira teleported the corpse of the first spy they caught straight into your office?" The other man asked.
He was the second prince, Prince Endrew, in charge of the main defensive line. He was dressed in simple military attire without armor or weapons. The stalemate that existed in Piori existed across the entire front, and they didn't need to be in full battle regalia at all times.
"That's right," Prince Allik confirmed.
"Do you know the range of her abilities?" Prince Endrew asked.
"I can find out. There wasn't really time to get into the nitty, gritty details."
"Do so. If she's able to, we need to dispatch this Captain Reivyn across all the fronts to root out the tumors. Sooner rather than later."
"I'll get on it," Prince Allik said.
"Good. Is there anything else?"
"Not at this time, brother."
"Alright. Notify me when they depart. Have them travel in a straight line across the front. No reason to make things complicated. Out."
The magic cut off suddenly without Allik having a chance to respond to the last message. It was typical behavior from his brother during these times, so he wasn't put off by it. If he considered himself busy with his task of running Piori and the surrounding areas, then his second brother was absolutely swamped. He not only had to oversee his own location, but he was in charge of the overall defensive efforts. General Wilyem was more an advisor to their father than a commanding general, and he was one of the last lines of defense with his Tier 6 Class.
There had been many debates about using the abilities of General Wilyem and the other older generation imperials. There was one group in the council that clamored to send them out to the front lines to make short work of the enemy forces. They could easily drive them off without any real danger to their lives, and the invasion would be over just like that.
The other faction pointed out that they didn't have enough information to send them out like that. What if the enemy forces had their own Tier 6 coterie just waiting for them to show up? It could be a trap to cut off their most powerful Classers, and then they would have free access to the entire empire. They were obviously not operating without information about their empire.
They obviously had intelligence on the Vairo Empire. The enemy forces were arrayed in a way that perfectly matched the defensive capabilities of the locals. They sent their troops out in a strategic manner to take advantage of the terrain, and they didn't concentrate their forces in incorrect locations. If they knew about that, and they also came from a Tier 4 empire, at minimum, then they had to know about the group of older generation imperials with much higher Levels.
Prince Allik rubbed his temples as he fought to dismiss the thoughts. There was no use in worrying about such a situation, and he could only hope that if or when the enemy Tier 6 Classers showed up, it wasn't where he or any of his brothers were without backup.
A knock at the door interrupted his thoughts, finally temporarily freeing him of the worry and stress. He looked up as his retainer entered his office.
"Well?" Prince Allik asked.
"Nothing, my prince," the retainer answered.
The older man had been with Prince Allik his entire life. He was part butler, part bodyguard, part adjutant... the list went on. He was immensely capable, and Prince Allik didn't know what he would do without the man's help.
Good subordinates are almost more important than one's own individual strength in these situations, Prince Allik mused.
"That was expected," Allik said. "Send someone to their barracks to meet with Princess Kefira. Inquire about her teleport abilities. Let her know that she doesn't have to divulge anything specific, and if she wants to keep things even more private, she can come to speak to me directly."
"It will be done, my prince."
"That's all for now. Have the runner let them know we want the information for the purpose of sending them out to catch more spies in other locations."
"Yes, my prince," the retainer gave a deep bow before exiting the office to carry out his task.
Prince Allik sat in silence for a few moments, staring off in the direction of the enemy line.
What are they doing? He asked himself for the thousandth time.
---
Reivyn's training sword blurred as he maneuvered it to try and reach past his father's defense. To anyone watching, they would barely be able to even see the wooden weapon. It was just a shadowy streak constantly assaulting Refix. For Refix's part, he wasn't even breaking a sweat as he swatted all of the attempts aside or simply tilted his body to avoid the blow.
Refix's transcendent Skill with his Weapons Prodigy Skill didn't just give him a strange ability. It also directly translated into better usage. It wasn't like breaking the barrier of Level 100 in the Skill was just a symbolic representation of his accomplishment in gaining the new ability.
According to Refix, there were different degrees of Level 100, as well. Somebody stuck at Level 100 for decades but unable to cross the transcendent barrier would have a significantly higher skill level than someone who just reached the maximum Level. At some point, the Skill Level was no longer a way for the System to assist someone with their Skills, but denoted their mastery; however, Level 100 was a hard line that couldn't be crossed without transcending the Skill.
There was no number representation for someone in that situation, though, so one could only find out the skill level of an opponent by engaging them. Someone who had gained transcendence might actually be worse with their Skill than someone who had trained for decades without increasing their Level.
Refix had been stuck at Level 100 for nearly a decade, and he was a genius. That wasn't just Reivyn's opinion of his father, either. The man was truly a prodigy.
Reivyn backed off from his furious assault. He wiped the sweat from his brow as he observed his father calmly standing at the ready.
"So what is your Skill Level, now?" Reivyn asked.
"I just ticked up to 107," Refix replied. Reivyn was slightly taken aback. "The Level doesn't match the actual Skill right away. If you want to look at it in terms of absolute ability, my Skill Level would have been around 108 or 109, but I needed to adapt to my transcendent ability before the System would recognize the increase in Skill Level. My Level was already there, though, so the Levels have come relatively quickly."
Reivyn didn't know how difficult it was to increase one's Level when they reached beyond 100, but since his father said it had "increased relatively quickly" with an increase of seven Levels over half a decade, he imagined it was pretty hard. Most of the people Reivyn had met in the Tier 4 range had their Skills sitting around the 50-60 range. His father had apparently reached Level 100 before he broke the Tier 5 barrier many years ago.
"What about you? What Skill Level are you sitting at, now?" Refix asked.
They both lowered their training weapons as they transitioned into a discussion. Not all of their training together was done through sparring, and the closer Reivyn got to Level 100, the more time Refix spent talking about the Skill.
Reivyn gave a quick peek at his Skill Level before answering.
"97," he answered.
Refix gave a low whistle at the response.
"Wow. I can hardly wrap my head around it," Refix shook his head. "I was almost a decade older than you are now by the time I reached that Skill Level, and I didn't do any less training than you."
"What's the highest Skill Level you've ever seen?" Reivyn asked.
Refix got a wistful look on his face as he recalled the past.
"My grandfather had his Swords Skill at Level 150," he answered. Reivyn's eyes opened wide at the revelation. "His actual Skill Level was actually higher, but 150 is the next threshold for the System. You have to unlock a second transcendent ability to move beyond 150. After Level 100, you have to gain another ability every 50 Levels to have it recognized by the System.
"In some of the ancient scrolls I've read over the years, they've mentioned people with Skill Levels in the thousands. They were basically unrestricted with what they could do with their Skills. Nowadays, you'll be lucky to find someone like my grandfather. I haven't heard of anyone with two or more transcendent abilities. That doesn't mean they're not out there, but if they are, it's incredibly rare."
"What happened?" Reivyn asked.
"Nobody knows for sure. It was probably common knowledge in the past, and so it wasn't properly recorded in any of the preserved documents that I've uncovered over the years. There's speculation, of course. The main theory is that it has something to do with how difficult it is to Ascend."
"Well, maybe you'll be the first person to reach Level 200 in thousands of years," Reivyn said with a smile.
"I doubt it," Refix replied, shaking his head. Reivyn frowned as he tilted his head in confusion. "There's a little monster I know that's likely to surpass me soon. I'll be the second person in thousands of years." Refix grinned at his son.
"Maybe," Reivyn replied with a grin of his own.
The two men squared off once more and resumed their sparring. They didn't immediately launch into a crescendo of blows. They ramped it up from the beginning like they always did, though the pace was much faster than most people could handle.
---
Reivyn walked out of his private bath with his towel across his shoulders. He had dressed in the room before heading out, not having to wait for his body to dry with the power of Mana. He didn't strictly need a towel, either. He simply enjoyed the relaxing routine.
He sauntered through the halls of the building, his body relaxed from the physical exertion of training followed by the hot bath. He made his way to one of the offices on the second floor and entered without knocking. He sensed the two people on the other side of the door with his Divine Sense, and they were waiting for him.
The office had been cleared of the desk and bookshelves. In their place were some comfortable rugs and cushions. Serilla was lounging by the door, and Kefira was seated cross-legged on one of the cushions. They both looked up at Reivyn as he entered the room. She and Reivyn shared a smile.
"A messenger came from Prince Allik while you were in the bath," Kefira said. "They wanted to know about my teleportation abilities so they could have us hop to other defensive positions quickly to root out more spies."
"That makes sense," Reivyn said with a nod. He walked forward and took a seat opposite Kefira. He slung his towel from over his shoulder and laid it on the floor behind him. "It's what I would do in his situation. My dad and the other officers have a good handle on the situation, so it wouldn't be the end of the world to send me off for a short period of time."
"Yeah, I didn't give them any specifics about my abilities, but I did tell them that I would be able to move us around fairly quickly. I've gotten a better handle on long-distance jumps, and I can bring all three of us along easily enough."
"Sounds good." Reivyn scooted forward so that his knees were touching Kefira's. They put their palms together forming a four-point circuit between themselves. "When do we leave?"
"The messenger didn't have that information, but I imagine it'll be soon. Probably tomorrow morning. You'll most likely get the orders at the morning briefing."
"Do you want to come along?"
"I probably should."
"Alright. Now that that's settled, let's get started."
The two began to cycle their Mana through their meridians. They used their points of contact between their palms and knees to form a larger cycle between the two of them, sharing their Mana in an endless loop. They hadn't breached the final step in their intimacy, but they felt a strong connection with each other every time they performed this exercise.
This was truly the most relaxing part of Reivyn's day.