I gulped, not quite ready to have this conversation. Not now, and not here, of all places.

“Greg, Aerion… This may sound off to you, but…”

Here it comes…

“Would you two mind if I hid who I am when we enter Basecrest?” Richard asked, looking embarrassed.

I blinked.

“It’s not that I’m ashamed of my status as Champion. Quite the opposite, really,” Richard said, his eyes darting between myself and Aerion. “Just that I’d rather avoid a commotion.”

“Wouldn’t you want the recognition?” I asked, frowning like I couldn’t possibly understand what he was on about.

“No. Well, yes… Just that the city must have gone through so much recently. I wouldn’t want to impose.”

I had half a mind to tell him that the city could use any cause for celebration, but who was I to fault a man for hiding his identity? Gregory Wills was many things, but a hypocrite wasn’t one of them. Well, not frequently, anyway.

“No problem, friend,” I said, smiling tightly. “After everything you’ve done, it’s the least we could do.”

Richard’s back slouched, and I could almost feel the tension leave his body. Almost. His eyes lingered on me, just a second longer than they ought to have. There was something in his eyes. Something deeper...

Then it was gone, as if it had never been there.

“Thanks, Greg,” he said. “You’ve no idea how much it means to me. I’m sure this is all very odd for you two.”

I shrugged. “I’m quickly discovering that all the Champions are a little unusual, in their own way.”

Myself included.

Okay, so maybe I was a hypocrite. But only a little…

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The journey back wasn’t nearly as tough as the way here. No bushwacking this time—enough people had come this way from Basecrest that there was now a nice trail to follow. Or a path, at least. As Richard was only too happy to remind us.

“Back on my world, the only time people went out into forests was for recreation,” he said, regaling Aerion, who listened with rapt attention. I tailed slightly behind, partly because the path wasn’t wide enough for all three of us, but mainly because I didn’t want Richard to see my nostalgic smile.

“Doesn’t sound so different from Axius,” Aerion said. “Braving the wilds to improve their abilities. Does your world have similar Blessings and Boons, by any chance?”

Oh, right. I’d never told Aerion people on Earth didn’t have powers. Nor had she ever asked. I guess she just assumed we did.

“Er, not quite,” Richard said, looking away. Poor Richard. I could picture Aerion’s ears drooping in a few moments when she learned the truth.

“People on our world… Well, they don’t have powers, y’see?”

“What do you mean?” Aerion asked, frowning. “Is the magic there different?”

“Well that’s just the thing… There is no magic on Earth. Just… technology.”

Aerion frowned. “Like the elves of Order’s territory?”

“From what I’ve heard, yes. Just take that steam technology you have and fast-forward it about a hundred years.”

A hundred years? Something about that sounded a bit off to me. Sure, Aerion’s people had some relatively advanced steam-drive tech, but in most aspects, they struck me as medieval, living under the rulership of what was essentially a king, and only just beginning their industrial revolution. No computers, no internet, no space programs…

“No Boons. No Blessings… No magic. You’re just… ordinary?” Aerion asked in exasperation. Sure enough, those pointy ears of her drooped, mimicking her expression.

“Afraid so,” Richard said, his own ears drooping. I guess it was a subconscious elf reflex. Something they couldn’t control.

“Don’t get me wrong,” he said. “Technology’s made for some incredible things. Cures to all sorts of disease. Vehicles that can fly through the air. Even bombs that can wipe entire cities off the planet. Not dissimilar to a High Ranker here.”

“That’s… incredible,” Aerion replied, the wonder back in her eyes and ears. “To create such power without magic. We would never be able to achieve something like that. But then…”

Aerion fell silent.

“Yes?” Richard asked.

“If you lack magic, then do people of your world put themselves in danger… for fun?” Aerion asked, confusion etched all over her face. That melted away as she seemed to have an epiphany. “No wonder you Champions are so strong!”

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

“Well, er, not exactly,” Richard said, sounding very much like he was about to let Aerion down again.

“Humans might be physically weak, But there’s no monsters back on Earth, y’see?” Richard said, his voice markedly higher than usual.

“No monsters…” Aerion said pensively. “I don’t understand. You mean to say your world is at peace?”

I was just barely containing my laughter at this point. This conversation was so delightfully awkward, my only regret was not being able to record it.

“I mean, no,” Richard said, running his fingers through his hair. “There’s the occasional bear or puma, but most animals tend to keep to themselves. They’re honestly more afraid of us than we are of them. Attacks are almost unheard of.”

“So your forests are safe, and people go for strolls in them?” Aerion replied. “Sounds downright idyllic, if you ask me.”

“It does, doesn’t it?” Richard said nostalgically, his eyes drifting to some faraway place. “It has its wars and its cruelty, just like Axius, I suppose. I once thought it quite a terrible place, actually. That that worst things on Earth were us humans. Funny how coming to a world of dragons and literal monsters has a way of putting everything in perspective…”

“I bet it would,” I said, unable to restrain myself.

Richard cleared his throat, as if to clear the air. “Yes, well… In my world, most people live in cities. Not much wildlife to be found there, what with the tall towers and the concrete. Getting out of those steel caves and into nature was considered therapeutic. Relaxing. A way to unplug from the hustle and bustle, so to speak.”

“It all sounds so… wondrous,” Aerion said, glancing my way. I didn’t need words to know she was judging me for never having shared the details of my planet.

“Even your cities sound incredible. I’d love to have seen it…”

Sorry, Aerion. Fat chance of that. Fat chance even Richard here went back. Even if he could, I was pretty confident the gods weren’t allowing plus ones. None of this world’s records ever mentioned such a thing.

“They certainly can be,” Richard said. “Technology can be a terrible thing, but it can be marvelous, as well.”

“I don’t understand,” Aerion said, frowning again. “If that’s all true, who would willingly forego the comfort of a soft bed or the warmth of a nice room for an outing in the forests? Without even the promise of power? The people of your world sound a little broken, if you ask me.”

I chuckled, but it was drowned out by Richard’s laughter. “You might be right about that one, Aerion. You might be right about that.”

----------------------------------------

The rest of the journey took the better part of a day, raising my Dominion by another point, to 63. It would have done the same for my Vigor if I had any headroom, but while I had plenty of spare Essence now to Initialize things, I’d held off. After all, I needed every last bit of Essence I could get if I wanted to Initialize Rocky. I was willing to take a stat point hit or two… These days one or two points made such little difference, and I could easily gain more with a dedicated power leveling session.

After a discussion that resulted in the sentiment that yes, in fact, a hot bath and a night at a posh inn was worth the extra effort, I’d hoisted Richard onto my back like I had in the dungeon, and with our enhanced Vigor and Dominion, Aerion and I sprinted the rest of the way back to town. The journey that should’ve taken two days only took a few hours.

As far as getting into Basecrest went, that was easier than I’d expected. As easy as walking right in, actually.

News of the dungeon’s collapse had reached the town, and the gates had been thrown wide open. I didn’t even see a guard posted—something that would’ve been unheard of just a day prior. We just strolled in, and considering Richard had only been paraded around Passion’s territory, not a soul recognized him.

I had to keep reminding myself that this world wasn’t like mine, where information traveled instantly, and it only took people a few hours to cross the planet. Crossing territories was a months-long proposition, even for the precious few who had the money for it. Unless you were a Champion or a high ranker, of course.

As such, the city couldn’t have heard the news more than a couple of hours prior. The fervor was just starting up.

“What do you say we find ourselves a nice inn, wash up, and then hit the town for drinks?” Richard said, shouting to be heard above the cheers and cries of joy erupting through the streets. I even caught sight of some party magic being released, creating something like fireworks, if the fireworks were made of ice or wind or water magic.

I glanced at Aerion, who grinned back, full of excitement.

“Sounds like a plan!” I said, searching for a nearby inn, but I needn’t have bothered.

Aerion guided us to the largest one in town, all the way in the inner ring.

“We can afford it!” she said, grabbing my wrist and leading me on, despite my reservations. “C’mon! Not like we celebrate like this every day!”

It was nice, seeing this unreserved side of Aerion. The cathartic euphoria of having just lived through a life-or-death struggle was hitting all of us, and even without alcohol, I found my inhibitions melt away.

“Fine!” I said. “But if we do this, we’re booking the nicest room in the house!”

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The nicest room, as it turned out, was far more opulent than anything I could have ever imagined. Consisting of the entire top floor of the ten-story building, it commanded sweeping views of the entire city, allowing us to appreciate the reds and yellows of the sunset in all its glory.

“This place feels like it was made for twenty,” Richard commented as we explored our accommodations for the night.

A part of me was deeply impressed. I honestly didn’t think anything this opulent existed in this world—it rivaled the sorts of penthouse suites you’d see in big cities back home. Just without the electricity, TV’s, lights, and other amenities. Not that they needed electricity for lighting here. At posh places like this, magic formed by Boonworthy lit the room just fine, bathing it in a beautiful amber glow.

“It’s… wonderful!” Aerion said, jumping happily onto a bed so big it put California kings to shame.

“Sure, the bed’s nice,” I said, shrugging. “But am I the only one looking forward to the private bath?”

The mention of a bath got both Richard and Aerion’s attention, and their lips curled up into a grin.

Without a word, Aerion bounded off the bed and ran out of the bedroom.

“Hey!” I called, chasing after her, dodging the pieces of her cloth armor she stripped while running. “Not fair!”

“Ladies first!” she said, disappearing into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

Sighing, I stopped at the door.

“Best to let her, mate,” Richard said. “If nine long years of marriage have taught me anything, it’s that it’s best to leave sleeping monsters lie.”

“Hey!” Aerion said from beyond the door. “I’m not a monster!”

Richard’s eyes shot wide. “My sincerest apologies, ma’am!” he yelled, before dropping his voice to a whisper. “Best not to talk behind their backs, either. Not good for the heart.”

“Oi!” Aerion shouted. “You’re talking behind my back, aren’t you?”

Richard and I exchanged glances, and the same thought played through our minds.

Was she really an elf? Or a mind-reading demon?