With an earth-shaking roar, a large gorilla-like beast charged our group of mercenaries.

“Now!” I shouted out. The two archers in our group launched a volley of paralytic arrows and three of them managed to break the tough hide of the beasts back. It staggered with a look of shock and tumbled over. Its weight and momentum caused it to continue tumbling toward the remainder of our group.

“Silvan!” I shouted. The mage to the right used his earth magic to erect an eight-foot-high wall. The beast crashed into the wall and cracks spread out from the point of impact. It was my turn. I waved my hand and ice quickly covered the beast’s body aside from a small circle at the back of its neck. Before I even had time to call out, Kana rushed out and plunged her sword into the opening. With practiced ease, she dug out the mana core from the beast’s neck and held it up as you would a trophy, blood dripping down her forearm. She let out a bestial scream.

“That was our best one yet!” I called out as our ragtag group assembled next to the frozen corpse.

“Yeah, I’m surprised it went that smoothly. What exactly is this thing, though?” Rachel, one of the archers, said as she kicked the large block of ice encasing the monster.

‘I’m not sure.” I said looking over at the beast. “I can go ask around the university once we get back. This might be a bad omen for the area if monsters like this are moving in.”

“Oh, before I forget.” Kana tossed the blood-soaked core over without much warning. I fumbled it a bit before firmly grasping it in my hand.

“Thanks.” I said, “I’ll get this purified and sold before tomorrow. I’ll have all of your shares ready for you by the time we head out tomorrow morning.” They all nodded and we started making our way back to town, leaving the thawing corpse and destroyed forest clearing behind.

“Hey, Silvan. Since when can you create a wall that large?” I asked as we trudged through the dense forest.

“I finally made some progress yesterday! I thought six-feet was going to be my permanent limit.” He said, swatting a small bug that landed on his arm.

“Congrats! That’s a huge jump in power.” Demuth, the second archer, said.

Kana looked at both Silvan and me strangely. “I’ll never understand why either of you wanted to become mages. The way you grow in power seems to have a mind of its own.”

I just shrugged slightly, “I’ve never been one for close-combat. I don’t have the reflexes for it.” This was only partly true. My death from my previous life was still ingrained in my memory. The image of the bloody sword spouting out of my chest would pop up every time I tried to wield a weapon. It was debilitating. I can’t lie that I also liked the idea of being able to cast magic. It was every little boy’s dream back on Earth.

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Silvan nodded at my response, “Same here. I’ve never been skilled in using weapons. I also hate the sight of blood…”

This got a chuckle from Kana. “Why did you decide to become a mercenary then?”

“The money.” Silvan’s response was straight and to the point. It was true that very few jobs could pay as well as being a mercenary. It was necessary with the number of new mercenaries dwindling and the number of monsters rising rapidly. There was very little oversight for this job compared to others and the rate of injury and death was always an offputting factor for many. It was an easy industry to join, but a difficult one to remain in.

It often reminded me of Sales jobs back on Earth. Many had low requirements for entry and paid well but the job was difficult and cutthroat. Only those with the right mindset and perseverance could make it at a salesman.

Our casual conversation lasted up until the gate to the city where we joined the rest of the crowd waiting to enter.

“This sucks,” Demuth said while we were halfway through the line. “I get that those assassins have been spotted in the area, but would they really be using the front gate? And would these shitty guards even be able to spot them?”

“It makes the citizens feel safer, which is what’s important,” I said although I was just as impatient as Demuth. It was another hour before we got into the city. We all said our goodbyes and parted ways with promises to meet up at the gate tomorrow morning. I then immediately went over to the purification shop only a few streets away from my apartment.

My mind began to wander as I made my way through the crowded streets. It was jarring when I first became fully aware of my surroundings in this new world. Luckily, much of the world is the same as Earth aside from the magic, giant monsters, and different magical races. In the beginning, I was very enthusiastic. I read as much as possible about magic and would often train eight to ten hours a day. It wasn't until I was older that I learned magic was being phased out in favor of modern weaponry and warfare. It was a tough lesson to learn, even being much older mentally. Magic just isn't practical in the face of technological evolution. Even then I refused to give up on Magic and the old methods of warfare.

Still, childhood dreams can be so easily crushed.

I reached a small shop located on a small side street. It was a white two-story building squeezed between two large high-rises. A wooden sign hung above the door that read ‘Purify’ in faded letters. It stood out from the modern buildings around it.

A small bell chimed as I walked through the door and a gnome hobbled up to the counter. “Welcome to Purify, the oldest shop in town, how can I…” before he could finish his sentence he noticed who was standing in the shop.

“Michael! It’s good to see you. How was your hunt today?” His gruff voice did not match his young appearance.

“It was good Enibar. We ran into a new beast out in the woods. I’m hoping you can purify its core for me.” I handed over the blue core, the blood now dry on its surface.

Enibar pulled out a cloth and wiped off the core before analyzing it further. He squinted at the blue orb rolling it over and over in his hand. After a short period of time, he let out a low whistle.

“Wow, I’m surprised there was a beast this powerful so close to town. You’re looking at a low E-grade.”

I smiled slightly, our group wouldn’t be strapped for cash for a while, “That’s great news. I might let the group know we don’t need to go out tomorrow.”

Enibar hesitantly looked down at the core, “You know..I’d be interested in purchasing this from you. I could give you 30,000 for it.”

I wasn’t sure what the specific market price was for that core, but I trusted Enibar. I nodded, “Sure, sounds good. Do you mind if I use the room upstairs to fill out the paperwork?”

He nodded, “Be my guest, I close at 9 o’clock today though.”

I started up the stairs, “I’ll be done before then. Thanks.”

I had known Enibar for years at this point. I often used his room upstairs for work-related business. A little trust could go a long way when doing business in this town.

I sat in front of the computer, in a large leather chair, and had a sense of deja vu. I was back to filling out spreadsheets. Doing the same work, day by day. Over and over. It was then that I saw long, black hair flutter in front of the screen.