Umara was right. One thing I hadn’t really thought of until after the fact was how all of the stuff that was in my storage chest was still back at the overrun base.

We obviously didn’t have the time nor mind to try and retrieve it, so it was probably sitting among thousands of monsters at the moment.

That meant I had very few spare clothes. I never had many belongings in the first place, but now what little I had was gone. The only solace was the fact that I still had everything that was expensive on me or in the hotel, such as my nice formalwear. Anything I lost could be easily replaced.

And replacing it needed. Although I was planning on using shopping as an excuse to sneak away, I really did need new clothes and supplies. I was missing an entire wardrobe and associated chest to store it in.

Umara and I took the teleporter to the Capitol since we didn’t care to take the Rail. Once there, we went straight to the Hotel to greet a familiar face.

“Key Master! Long time no see.”

“John, it’s good to see you in good health. You as well, Lady Umara.”

“Key Master.”

Umara curtsied a bit as I shook hands with the Key Master.

I leaned on the reception desk, letting out a long breath as he smiled.

“I have to admit John, I wasn’t initially sure if you had survived. But I knew someone such as yourself couldn’t possibly die in such an underwhelming manner.”

“Underwhelming is one hell of a way to put it. But yes, I suppose I was lucky. A few stars aligned that day and I was able to make it home, my squad included.”

“Mm. It was a fortunate coincidence that a Grand Templar was there to call upon the Church.”

“The Church?”

Uamra’s face lit up with question marks, prompting an explanation.

I had guessed it as soon as I saw Anderson appear. That beacon the templar burdened us with while running away was something that managed to call down a few Paladins of the Church. Anderson was probably only just one of many that were called, along with an entire brigade of Templars.

With their help, the Kingdom was able to retreat with some of its soldiers and Anarchy was forced back. Of course, a majority had been killed unceremoniously, but taking small victories was all we could work with now.

The Templar watching Vetsmon being a Grand Templar was a small detail I hadn’t known, but the Key Master was right that his presence was incredibly fortunate. Even then, the Church probably had plans in place to respond from anywhere.

The first emergence of a Scourge King in decades and they were able to respond within the hour. It was an incredible mobilization, speaking to the Church’s prowess.

Once Umara was filled in, she nodded.

“So that’s what I had missed when keeping Tana alive. You know a Paladin?”

“I don’t really know him, but Maxwell does and given the circumstances, we’ve been acquainted.”

“And you’re in debt to him. I would say that’s a bad thing, but it may very well be good since it’s a Paladin.”

“Either way, it’s a miracle we’re here. So, tell me Key Master, how’s the market doing? The war settle yet?”

I looked over, the Key Master nodding.

“Yes, tensions have settled, and the Tavera Family has come out relatively victorious. That Crown played its part perfectly and now they’re in the process of redrawing territory lines. As for the other mafias like the Clockwork Association, they’re in a precarious state at the moment, though alive. Time will tell how this will play out.”

“That’s true. Though I wonder who managed to make a Crown at that level. It was an Authority 11 beast heart, right? Making a Crown that powerful would take one of the best minds in the Crown-making business. There can’t be many at that level in the whole world, and I don’t think the Tavera Family went to someone from the Kingdom for help. There’s also no way they did it in-house. They’re a knight family after all.”

“Hm, that’s quite the speculation there, John.”

My brows raised when I saw the Key Master’s wide grin. He seemed amused.

I realized that this situation wasn’t as simple as it seemed.

“...Who helped the Tavera Family?”

“Who knows? That’s not the question to be asking though.”

“It’s why…”

I drifted off in thought.

Someone powerful was helping the Tavera Family reach a realm of power far above the other mafias in the market. They would only do that if they had something to gain.

A simple conclusion would be that a Tavera Family takeover of the market was beneficial. Whoever helped them would be similar to a partner who had control by proxy.

Maybe the Kingdom really did help them in order to take control. But if they didn’t, and it was a third party beyond the Kingdom’s control, far more was at stake than just control of the market.

At some point, I shook my head.

“Alright, I’m stopping there. Too far above my pay grade.”

“Haha, political undercurrents are fun to think about, aren’t they?”

“Yeah, it’s a real hoot to know that the stability of humanity is on a knife’s edge, especially when a Scourge King just made its debut on the battlefield. I’m stressed enough knowing I’m going to be on that battlefield soon too, so no thanks.”

“Yes, the military will be quite the change of pace for you. But you’ll be ready for it. Is that what brings you here also?”

“No, I’m going shopping.”

I explained the fact that I had lost my chest, prompting a nod of understanding.

“I hadn’t even thought of something like that. Quite unfortunate.”

“Hey, I hadn’t either until just recently. Shopping is only one reason I’m here though. I need to check in with the Patriarch. Maybe I’ll take a job too.”

“Oh? Well, I can certainly provide you with the latter.”

“I’ll take your recommendation.”

I smiled as the Key Master lifted his Aerial, transferring a data packet straight from the Repository.

A very fat man appeared. He had to be at least 600 pounds with how large he was. Turns out, he was also a warlock.

“This is Turner Bremman. He’s an Authority 6 warlock who managed to acquire some power and infrastructure during the recent chaos of the market war. Nobody dares do anything about him since his father is an Authority 8 warlock in the Clockwork Association… but I have a feeling you won’t care about such things. This job is to simply kill him, though there’s an extra reward stipulated for anyone who manages to destroy the stolen infrastructure he’s taken over.”

“What’s the infrastructure?”

“A strainer for Moonshine. They don’t grow the plant, but they do refine it to give it greater potencies. There’s also packing, but that’s secondary to the strainers. Now, if you kill the man, someone else will only take his place. But destroy the building, and it’ll cripple a major part of the market’s current drug chain. It’ll also mean less profits for the Clockwork Association.”

“Mm. Doesn’t seem too difficult. There will be plenty of people, but I should be able to handle that. Alright, consider it done.”

I tapped my Aerial a few times, stowing the data.

The Key Master smiled and nodded.

“Happy hunting.”

“After some shopping, it will be. Have a good day, Key Master.”

With a wave, Umara and I left and made our way over to the Founder’s Market.

On the way though, Umara pulled on our linked arms.

“Hey, let me join you.”

“Your mother told me to do the exact opposite of that.”

“That was a long time ago and I hardly give a damn now. I already know this is some dangerous stuff, so I want to help you. Or do you expect to destroy an entire factory alone?”

“That was the plan. This isn’t exactly my first rodeo, honey.”

“...I suppose that’s true. But still.”

“Hm.”

I hummed and pulled Umara into a side alley, facing her.

“You do realize that this will involve killing most of the people, if not all, working in that factory right? To say nothing of the difference between open field and urban warfare, you’ve never killed a person before. I never planned on involving you in my work not just because of your mother, but precisely because of how dirty it is. And I certainly don’t want you doing this just because you think you have to match me or prove something. Simply wanting to support me isn’t going to be a good enough reason to join. I can do it myself. Convince me I should let you, and I will. Otherwise, let’s go shopping and you can wait for me in the hotel.”

“...”

"You have however long it takes to buy our stuff to think on it.”

I said that while pulling her along, the two of us walking down the street in silence.

Like that we made our way to the Founder’s Market, passing through Chef Black’s food shack and finding the store that sold my old chest to me.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Once there, I talked to the shopkeeper and got the same model, just with some more space. We paid and left, heading out of the market and back into the Capitol where we found some nice clothing shops.

Although the market was good for unconventional or powerful items, when it came to luxury and comfort, the Capitol couldn’t be beat. While it wasn’t cheaper by any means, I didn’t care about that too much.

I almost always wore my coat out of habit. I couldn’t afford to be caught off guard, and it was my one source of protection. But everything underneath, besides perhaps my Warm Socks from Luna, I wanted to be more comfortable than durable.

I got a few pairs of some generic shirts and pants, things I could wear whenever. But I also had Umara help me pick out some more fashionable items. Sure enough, she had plenty of input planned for me.

I bought enough clothes to wear completely different things for two weeks. It was a lot, and some couldn't fit in my chest, getting stuffed into bags instead. But that was fine; I wanted to have a stash both for the road and home. I didn’t want to lose everything if my chest got lost again.

Everything took almost four hours. I had my own sense of style that frequently clashed with some of the clown wear of this world, so Umara and I had quite a few debates over what exactly was a good fit. Even the dresser at the store we went to was in on the fun as she and Umara tested my patience by dressing me in dozens of different outfits.

I would’ve come out with several times more if I had no standards. But in the end, it worked out well enough. Umara also bought a few things.

We went back to the hotel and dropped everything off in the room when that was finished. It was there that I looked at Umara and crossed my arms.

“Alright, let me hear it.”

“...”

She pondered for a second and then squared up to me.

“Moonshine is a drug, right?”

“Yes, a smoked one.”

“Then that’s all I needed to hear. It’s stupid that humanity has its thoughts on anything other than wiping out the Scourge. I get it, we can’t be so fixated on one thing for centuries, especially when we’ve reached a stalemate. But the fact that those people are wasting their lives away with such things is disgusting. And even besides that, I know those things are used to manipulate people. I’ve heard about some of the things you’ve done before, and I want to be a part of that. There’s a lot of scum within the market, and I wouldn’t mind cleaning some of it up myself. If this hunt is going to help anything at all, then it’s worth putting my effort toward. Because now I know that we’ve got things to fix both within and beyond this Kingdom.”

“...”

I stared at her.

Her argument was soundly based in principle. It wasn’t just because she wanted to follow me. And that was what I was looking for.

I nodded.

“Alright then. Let’s go.”

“Just like that?”

“Just like that. You need to do this because you believe it should be done. Don’t get me wrong, we’ll be making some good money. These kinds of things pay well. But this isn’t something you should just stroll into without a good reason.”

“... Why did you start doing it?”

“Because I had to.”

I spoke while gearing up, slipping my fingerless gloves on.

I turned over my hand, glancing at the letters of the word Bang across my four fingers.

“I mean, I suppose I technically had a choice. But I stuck with it because I needed money and I had just gotten to the Kingdom with nothing to my name. I was desperate. But you’re stepping into this of your own volition. You’ve nothing to gain from this, so you better be doing it for the right reasons, especially considering the risks. And to that end, we’ll be getting you a mask.”

“Want me to cover my face?”

“Yes. They can get mad at the American all they want, but you can’t give them an excuse to give you or your mother any trouble. So you need to go incognito.”

“...incog-what?”

“It means you need to disguise yourself. Just cover your face, get out of those obvious warlock robes, and do as I say. Go ahead and change, then we’ll go buy the mask.”

“Mm.”

She nodded and skipped off. Before long, she came back out in some new overgarments.

Umara wore gear underneath her robes that was primarily responsible for safety. The robes themselves were imbued with special enchantments supplementary to her magic, nice, but not essential to have.

She also had a tight black undershirt and black pants with some straps that held last ditch items like knives and medicinal pills. It fit her body well.

Then she put on an overcoat similar to mine, letting it hang on her shoulders.

“Alright. Let’s go get the mask.”

She spoke as I took one last glance, clicking my tongue.

“Looking sexy.”

“Take off my clothes and I’ll be even sexier.”

“Tsk, why am I the one who has to exercise restraint?”

“You don’t. Come on.”

“Silence temptress! I’m a good Catholic boy.”

“Pfft, uh huh.”

She laughed as we left.

Once in the lobby, I hit up the Key Master’s desk.

“Key Master! You know a place that sells masks?”

“Of course. Building 1288 in the Founder's Market.”

“No shit? Thanks man.”

I fist-bumped him and we continued on our way.

Once again we entered the market, walking down the streets, peering at building numbers until we found the shop.

Surprisingly, there were a bunch of parents and children there, many of them buying masks. Or perhaps not so surprisingly.

My brows raised as I approached a lady with a fox mask inside.

“Well you’re a new face. Welcome to the Faceless Abode. You can call me Aki. How can I assist you?”

“We’re looking to get her a mask.”

I motioned to Umara, who stepped forward.

Aki moved over, reaching out her hand and tracing a finger from Umara’s forehead to her chin.

I watched from the side, Aki tilting her head a few times before nodding.

“Very well. For protection, aesthetic, or do you want a new face?”

“That’s up to you, Umara.”

“Hm… I don’t need protection. Just aesthetic.”

“Very well.”

Aki nodded, waving to the wall nearby. Across it were a few hundred mask designs of all shapes and colors.

“You can choose from the wall or I can do a custom one for you, which will cost extra. You can also ask for changes to a wall design. Come back to me when you’re ready.”

“Sure.”

We nodded and moved to the wall.

This was Umara’s mask so it was up to her, but many of the designs were pretty so I had fun looking at all of them. I even considered getting one myself.

Some were shaped like the faces of animals, like various fox, bear, wolf, or bird masks, and all of them were painted in various ways. Some of them had tribal designs, some had stars across the face, some were shaped like theater masks.

All of them were artistic, no doubt. And it was clear that this Aki sold to everyone. Hence the children who were in here wanting the pretty pieces.

After all, you had to make money somehow. Aki didn’t limit herself by making expensive products.

After many minutes of looking, Umara leaned back and sighed. I moved over to her while checking out some more masks.

“Find one you like?”

“I’ve found 50 that I like.”

“Understandable. Well, maybe pick something that reminds you of something important to you.”

“...”

Umara went silent, so I walked off and left her to her thoughts.

I continued browsing, finding a number I liked. This Aki was an amazing artist, so there was a lot to choose from.

But I had my eye on one in particular.

It was a white mask that resembled the face of a barn owl but without any eyes. It had some sparse golden accents around the sharp curves of the structure, but was otherwise just pure white.

I stared at it for a while. That’s when Aki appeared beside me.

“Good eye. The facial structure of a Paragon is always eye-catching.”

“Paragon?”

“Of course. The Paragon species of Psyka, the Owlykat. Beautiful creatures of mystery and illusion.”

“Paragon species of Psyka. I’ve never heard of it.”

“My my. Never? Surely you’ve heard of the Dragons then, right?”

The name rang a bell. After all, it was in the name of this Kingdom.

“I have.”

“Well, the Dragons are the Paragon species of Mana.”

“And Vigor?”

“The Immortal Mane, formally known as the Lordbeast. Nothing dominates the lands quite like the Lordbeast, the strongest creature in the world. You can imagine it like a behemoth tiger. But of course, nothing can prepare you for the real deal. Its kingly Aura leaves all in awe, almost as much as its power.”

“Hm.”

I nodded. This was all new to me.

I didn’t realize that dragons were real, but since this Kingdom was called the Kingdom of Dragon Tongue, I suppose they had to get it from somewhere. It seemed like it was an actual species, though I wondered if they still existed since I hadn’t seen any.

Not only that, but Dragons were only one of three of these Paragon species. There was one Paragon for each of the three Magus classes.

And apparently this mask was modeled after the Owlykat.

“Would you like to get this mask?”

“... Sure. Why not.”

“It’s more expensive than the normal ones. That’s due to the eyes. I used a special material for it, allowing you to see through it despite the design. If you’d like, I have one that’s armored, one that I made for another customer who backed out. Protection around Authority 6 for 50,000. What do you think?”

“Sounds good, I’ll take it.”

“Great! I’ll be right back.”

She clapped before dashing off. After some seconds she was right back out with the mask.

It was the same as the one on the wall. I grabbed it and felt the material. The inside was soft and comfortable while the outside was rigid. It was split into two layers.

“Can I try it on?”

“Of course.”

After asking, I activated my necklace and felt the hood unfold over my head. Then I placed the mask over my face.

It sat over the air mask just fine. I would have two masks on, but after moving around and taking some deep breaths, the Owlykat mask did nothing to inhibit my breathing. I didn’t even notice it over my vision, and it didn’t threaten to fall off.

“These have some special adhesive magic. It won’t go anywhere, even with something under it. It can stick anywhere on your head as well.”

“Mm. Neat. Here.”

I turned toward her and took out 50 gold bullion from my bank card.

She smiled, taking out her own and letting me transfer it over.

“Pleasure doing business with you, sir. If it breaks, please come in anytime for a repair.”

“Thank you.”

I nodded and took off the mask, letting my hood disappear before placing it back on my face.

Then I walked over to Umara, who seemed to have decided on one.

“Boo.”

“Hm? You got one?”

“It was cool. It’s also an armored one. A good deal for Authority 6 protection.”

“Huh… I’ll get some protection too then. I think I want this one.”

She pointed toward a void black mask with two round eye sockets, within each socket a small flame that glowed eerily, like a wisp.

“I figured my eyes are my most iconic trait.”

“True. Is that the one then?”

“Mm.”

“Another splendid choice. Shall I prepare an Authority 6 protection plate?”

Aki appeared behind us, Umara nodding.

“Yes please.”

“Coming right up!”

As Aki ran off to the backroom, we stood around at the empty register for a bit, continuing to look at more masks.

Before long, she came back out with a new mask, identical to the one on the wall.

“I’ll sell it to you for the same price as your partner here. 50 thousand.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

“With pleasure.”

Aki bowed a bit after Umara paid.

I smiled when she put on the mask. Besides her gray hair, there really wasn’t a way to identify Umara now.

That’s when Aki tapped my shoulder. When I turned to her, I could sense a sudden spike in anxiety, her fingers trembling a bit.

It put me on guard. It was a sudden shift in attitude when she had been perfectly normal this whole time.

“Uh… You are the American, right?”

“I am. Is that an issue?”

“N-No! Not at all! I just wanted to ask… where did the name come from?”

“...It’s what people where I came from call themselves. Another country very far away from the Kingdom.”

“...”

Aki went silent for a few seconds, her entire body shivering in a mixture of anxiety and excitment.

She mumbled again.

“Perhaps… the United States of America?”

“...”

For the first time in a long while, I was rendered completely speechless.

There was only one reason someone should know that name.

“...No fucking way.”