We traveled through the woods together. The silence was slowly becoming deafening, and not a single mob was in sight. The further we pushed into the domain, the more twisted and corrupted the trees became. The foliage was caught in a state of decay yet was also blooming into new life. Never have I seen something like this, and I have ventured far and wide. I've fought in dozens of dungeons. Yet nothing could compare to something like this.

After an hour of walking, we approached a small wooden cabin with a single torch that hung outside its door. With relief, I rushed over to it. I was used to walking for hours on end, but there was just something about this place that exhausted me. Maybe it was just being alert nonstop and jumping at the smallest of sounds. But it was slowly beating me down. Alinore stared at the cabin as I drew my sword. Carter had his bow clasped firmly in his hand and had an arrow at the ready while Gunther spun his staff. Without having to speak, we fell into our usual breaching formation. Carter stood by the door, with Alinore directly beside him. Gunther stood at the other side, and me in front. I raised my hand and activated my totalis barrier skill. A small tessellated blue shield grew in the air in front of me and grew until it reached the size of a tower shield.

I didn't have too many axillary skills that didn't apply to my class. If it didn't involve dueling, I didn't want it. The only reason I had this skill was for the problems that the sharp end of my blade couldn't solve. I glanced towards Gunther before looking at the other two. Gunther stepped to the front with a nod, placed his hand in the door handle, and quickly pushed it open before he spun back to the side. Usually, we would kick it down, but we would prefer to keep the place intact if this was a safe zone. I stepped forward and placed the shield between me and whatever could be in front of us.

I pressed into the room with Alinore directly behind me. Her wand was at the ready, along with the magic that circled her. Carter, I already knew, had eyes on the room, his bow ready to release a flurry of arrows. I quickly scanned the foyer and saw that it was empty, just a minor groove on the floor that denoted a change in levels. The walls were polished and slotted into each other seamlessly, and a few lanterns lined the hall. I kept the pace up and traveled down the hallway and into the main living area. Which was empty as well, baring a small table and a few chairs. An oversized circular couch sat in front of a large fireplace, which was burning steadily. Between the kitchen and living area was a large carpet crafted in a circle and split into layers that flowed tightly between one another in a rugged display of browns and reds.

We cleared a few more bedrooms, and once we were sure that the cabin was clear, we collectively released a sigh of relief. This was far different from the rest of the safe zones we usually came across. More often than not, it was a cold circle on the ground that monsters sat right outside waiting for us to leave. But this was something far nicer than we could have ever hoped for or could even afford.."Dibs on the master bedroom," Carter spoke up as he grabbed Alinore's hand and dragged her off to a bedroom. I wouldn't argue with them on that. Whatever kept those two happy. Without a second thought, I clambered over to the couch, dropped my bag down with a slight clatter, placed my rapier down next to it, and took a seat. A jolt of surprise coursed through me a split second later. This piece of furniture was the most comfortable thing I have ever sat in. "Gunther, you have to feel these couches. I swear the gods crafted these."

He walked back into the living room and eyed the piece of furniture with no small amount of disdain in his eyes. Eventually, he caved and sat down. "I… I am desperate to hate these couches, but I can't bring myself to."

I hummed my agreement as I just sat there, relaxing for the first time in a long time, before the sound of my stomach rumbling tore me from my blissful haze. I needed to make some food. If memory serves correctly, it was my turn to cook for everyone tonight. It took monumental effort to force myself off of the couch and walk over to my bag. Now, what was I in the mood to cook today?

I brought some fresh herbs and some meat in my personal bag of holding. If my father saw me using it for stuff like this, he probably would fit, but he isn't here now. I rifled through the bag and did a mental tally of what was in there. I had this exotic herb in here that was called Soap's bundle. Which I only really brought along cause Alinore and Carter think it's delicious, but I think it tastes exactly like its name. I pulled the bundle of green herbs out, set it on the table, and pulled out another called mint. I wasn't a fan, but everyone else in the party was.

I set the two bundles on the table and pulled out some meat that I brought along with me. I couldn't cook for the life of me, which was why I wasn't above spending a few silver on pre-cooked meals and putting them into my bag. The nutrition bars were hot garbage and not worth my time, and I wouldn't subject my friends to that horror either. I pulled out a small cooked chicken, along with a few cooked shellfish that was still steaming, along with some portions of some vegetables.

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I had a small chunk of salt that I kept in here as well, along with some ground pepper. This little guy cost me a fair amount, so we were careful to ration it out. But it went a long way with helping the food taste a bit better. I pulled out the smaller plates that I kept stowed away, along with a few forks. I know that many in the guild would look down on this, seeing it as excessive and pompous, but good food was the way to keep morale up. I set everything up, and just before, I was about to wake Gunther up, who had already passed out. I felt a slight jab in my bladder. With a yawn, I walked towards the front of the cabin, intending to drain my bladder.

When I came back, I glanced over at the food and saw that the herbs looked slightly disturbed and seemed to be missing a few leaves, and my salt block seemed slightly smaller, and the portions of food seemed slightly shifted. Anyone else wouldn't have seen it, but I did. I glanced towards Gunther and saw that he was still passed out. From the back of the cabin came a bunch of giggling from Alinore, which told me that those two were a little to busy to come out here and take stuff. I rubbed my eyes and stared at them for a moment longer. Maybe I was just exhausted and was seeing things. I haven't really slept since the anxiety of visiting this domain kept me awake for a lot longer than it should have.

I shrugged and walked down the back hall, and slammed my fist against the wooden door. "Oi, if you two lovebirds are done, dinner's up. I suggest you come get some."

"Alright, Redrick, we will be out in a bit!" Carter called out, his voice muffled through the door.

I turned away and saw that Gunther was awake and was munching on the part of the chicken he tore off. I pulled off my boots and set them down next to my bag, and reached out for a plate, and took some of the food, and munched on it mindlessly. I was still a bit unnerved by this place. We traveled for well over an hour, yet we haven't seemed to encounter a single mob. I put a small pinch of salt and pepper on the piece of chicken and bit into its tough flesh; it was a little overcooked, but it would do for now, I suppose. I quickly scarfed down my meal and gnawed on a few vegetables.

I laid back on the couch and munched on a carrot as I stared at the ceiling. I wanted to do a bit more exploring before we left in the morning, though I wasn't above making sure this was our H.Q for the duration of our stay. I swallowed the rest of my food and saw that Gunther had passed out once again.

I wasn't surprised. The man could sleep anywhere at the drop of a copper coin. I stood up and grabbed the water skin that I kept on my travel bag and took a deep swig of it before strapping it back into place and meandering into the kitchen. A few large gray pieces of paper were on the table with sprawling texts across its surface with a strange naming structure and a string of numbers. At the very top, each sheet was labeled The Asterian Times.

My eyes skimmed the page, and I realized what I was holding. It was a collection of news on a weekly basis. What kind of empire had its citizens able to read well enough for this to matter? Education was ungodly expensive, and finding someone who was willing to teach you to read for free was nigh impossible. My eyes danced across the top of the paper as I checked the date once more. It was labeled as being made on the 25th of April on a Friday in the year of 2018. I guess this was this empire's dating structure. I had no idea of what the year was currently here, though outside of this place, it was it the year 650 of Aeavonus.

I read through it quickly and saw that it was discussing the assassination of the reigning of Emperor Alexander and the coronation date of his successor, Calixa. I felt my heart twist as I read further on; I felt for Calixa, and I was all too aware of how it felt to have your family torn away from you like that.

I moved onto the following week's paper and saw that Calixa took the crown and was slated to select her chosen. As I read on, I saw more snippets of news that discussed the whispers of war and the growing religion that was taking the empire by storm. The other thing that caught my interest was the discussion of who would take the spot of the chosen, which was a paladin by the name of Quintas Regullis.

I flicked away to the last sheep of paper. That was labeled for a week later. I could read that there was a massive upset when the Empress took another as her chosen. Instead of Quintas, she took Alessia Veers, a lesser-known knight from the Order of the Blue Rose. I tried to work through why the Empress would choose another. More than likely, it was her establishing her place as her own entity instead of bowing to the nobility—a bold and risky move, but a good power play nonetheless. I read further on and saw that war broke out between Asteria and a neighboring empire of Tyrsenian due to trade and political strife that had been building for a few years. Once I finished, I saw that it was the last one on the table.

As many questions as it had answered, there were still many more. What role did the chosen perform that was so important to the nation that it occurred immediately after the coronation? I had a few ideas, but this realm has yet again defied common knowledge, and I was afraid to make a guess that would be incorrect. In fact, I was starting to think that this wasn't even a domain at all.