The city was larger than Alex had expected.
Cobblestone streets wound between white buildings with red tile roofs. The bustling harbor dominated the eastern horizon—dozens of docked ships, sailors shouting orders, seagulls screeching above. The sll of salt and fish perated everything.
And the people.
So many people.
Central City had been large, but homogeneous—mostly humans, with occasional elves or dwarves. Here it was... different.
Alex saw an elf negotiating with a dwarf. A demi-human with cat ears carrying boxes. Even what appeared to be a small lizard-man selling fish.
"Diverse," Emily murmured, clearly thinking the sa thing.
"Good place to disappear," Raven added with satisfaction.
Their first stop was the Guild District.
The Guild building was a three-story structure near the port—practical architecture, without the grand intimidation of the Central City headquarters.
Inside was bustling. Adventurers everywhere—drinking, laughing, checking mission boards. The atmosphere was more... relaxed. Almost festive.
No one gave them a second look.
Perfect.
They approached the registration counter, where a woman in her fifties—gray hair cut short, a scar running through her left eyebrow, a gold earring in her ear—studied them with sharp eyes.
"New registrations," she said, not asking.
"Yes," Alex confird.
"Team na."
"Team Nightshade."
She wrote it down without blinking. "Previous classification?"
"None," Alex lied. "New team."
"Then you start at Bronze. Standard." She pushed forms across the counter. "Fill these out. Na, specialties, approximate level—doesn’t need to be exact, just general range."
They filled out the forms carefully.
Alex wrote "Level 30-35, summoning specialty." Technically true.
Raven wrote "Level 50-55, necromancy specialty." Also technically true.
Emily wrote "Level 35-40, healer." The most honest.
Grim didn’t need a form (listed as "Alex’s companion").
When they finished, the woman scanned them quickly.
"Captain Sera," she introduced herself, offering her hand. "I run this Guild."
Alex took it. Firm grip, evident calluses.
"Alex. This is Raven, Emily, and Grim."
Grim (80cm form, peeking out of Alex’s backpack) waved a tiny bony hand.
Sera smiled slightly. "Nice to et you. Coral Port rule: I don’t care about your past. I don’t care where you’re from or what you did before you got here."
She leaned forward.
"Here, only what you do now matters. Understood?"
"Understood," they all said.
"Good." Sera stamped their forms. "Team Nightshade, Bronze classification, officially registered. Welco to Coral Port."
---
With registration complete, next priority: lodging.
Sera had given them a list of inns and apartnts that rented without asking too many questions.
They visited three places before finding one that worked.
An apartnt in the Residential District—third floor of a four-story building, with a view of the distant ocean. Three bedrooms, small kitchen, modest living room.
"800 crowns a month," said the landlord—an older man with an elaborate mustache. "First and last month in advance. No loud parties. No property damage."
"Agreed," Alex said, counting out coins.
They signed a contract (under aliases), received keys.
The apartnt was... cozy. Basically furnished—beds, a table, worn sofas. But clean. Functional.
"Ho," Emily said softly.
"Ho," Raven agreed.
Then ca the inevitable question.
"Who gets which room?"
The three rooms were: a large one with an ocean-view window, a dium one with an east-facing window (morning sunlight), and a small one with an alley-view window.
"I’ll take the small one," Emily said imdiately. "I don’t need much space."
"I need the dium one," Raven said.
"Why?" Alex asked.
"Sunlight. I need sunlight for... reasons."
"What reasons?"
Raven crossed her arms. "Private."
"Raven."
"Fine." She sighed dramatically. "I practice blood magic that requires direct sunlight for certain rituals. Happy?"
"Oh. Makes sense then."
"Then you get the big one," Raven said to Alex. "Ocean view. Enjoy it."
Alex didn’t argue.
They spent the next hour unpacking (they didn’t have much), organizing, making the space feel a little more like their own.
Grim claid a corner of Alex’s room, arranging a small cushion Emily had bought him.
"Our ho," Grim said with satisfaction.
---
The next day, they explored properly.
The Market District was a labyrinth of narrow streets filled with shops, stalls, vendors shouting offers.
And the diversity was astonishing.
A dwarf blacksmith hamring a glowing sword with enchantnts. An elf alchemist mixing potions that glowed impossible colors. A human rchant selling textiles from lands Alex had never heard of.
"Amazing," Emily breathed, eyes widening at everything.
They visited several key shops:
Blacksmith - "Iron Hamr":
A dwarf nad Borin—level 52, master smith. Sold enchanted weapons and armor.
Alex bought a new sword (his old one was chipped): a simple longsword with a 5 Strength enchantnt. 500 crowns.
Raven upgraded her combat daggers: a pair with a Life Drain enchantnt. 800 crowns.
Emily bought a new staff: white oak wood with a focus crystal, 10% healing efficiency. 600 crowns.
Alchemy Shop - "Mystical Essences":
An elf nad Lyra—level 48, master alchemist.
They stocked up on potions: 10 Major Health, 10 Major Mana, 5 Antidote. 1,200 crowns total.
Bookstore - "Arcane Tos":
Here, Raven almost fainted from happiness.
An entire shelf dedicated to necromancy—texts that would be banned in Central City.
"Modern Theories of Reanimation."
"Ethics of Undead Control."
"Advanced Blood Rituals."
She bought three volus, spending 900 crowns with joy.
Alex looked at the collection of books on Fragnts—but the shelves were mostly empty.
"Not much demand," the shop owner explained—an elderly man with thick glasses. "Information on Fragnts is rare. Dangerous too."
Alex nodded, not pressing.
---
Their apartnt building was in a quiet section of the Residential District.
Mostly retired adventurers lived there—people who had made their fortunes and now enjoyed peaceful retirent.
Their next-door neighbor—apartnt 3B—was an elderly woman nad Mrs. Thorne.
Small, round, white hair in a tight bun. But her eyes were sharp, and Alex noticed scars on her hands.
Ex-adventurer, definitely.
On the second day, she knocked on their door.
"Hello dears!" She held a plate of cookies. "Welco to the building. I baked extras."
"Oh, thank you," Emily said, accepting the plate.
"You’re young adventurers, aren’t you? I can tell." She smiled wisely. "I was one too. Forty years ago. Gold Classification, if you can believe it."
"Impressive," Alex said honestly.
Grim (80cm form) had co out of hiding, attracted by the sll of cookies.
He stood by Alex, looking at the plate.
Mrs. Thorne saw him, didn’t flinch at all.
"And who is this little one?"
"Grim. My companion."
"Charming." She offered him a cookie. "Would you like one, dear?"
Grim took it carefully, holding it in his tiny bony hands.
Then he looked at Alex, red lights flickering with confusion.
"I can’t properly eat it."
"You can absorb life energy," Alex suggested.
Grim did exactly that—draining all the residual life energy from the cookie.
The cookie turned gray, dry, literally mummified.
Mrs. Thorne watched, fascinated.
"Extraordinary. I’ve never seen that before."
Grim offered the mummified cookie back.
"Keep it, dear. A souvenir." She laughed. "Though maybe don’t eat it."
From that day on, Mrs. Thorne brought cookies weekly.
Grim collected them all, creating a small pile of mummified cookies in his corner.
Emily found it strangely adorable.
---
On the third day in Coral Port, they accepted their first mission.
The Guild board had dozens of jobs for Bronze classification. Most mundane—sewer cleanings, item retrievals, basic escorts.
They chose a caravan escort.
Mission: Escort trade caravan to Clearwater Village (2 days round trip)
Pay: 1,500 crowns
Danger Level: Low
Seed routine.
They should have known better.
---
The caravan consisted of three wagons loaded with textiles and spices. The rchant—a nervous man nad Petros—paid half upfront.
"Just keep us safe," he pleaded. "The route’s been quiet lately, but you never know."
The journey started peacefully.
The road wound through hills, open fields on both sides. Perfect weather. No signs of trouble.
Too peaceful, Alex thought.
His instinct proved correct.
At midday on the second day, when they were only five kiloters from Clearwater Village—
Ambush.
Twenty n erged from a small grove—well-ard, well-organized.
Levels 40-44. Too high for ordinary bandits.
And their leader—a tall man in black leather armor, a sword on his back—was level 48.
He stepped forward, smiling.
"Goods or lives. You choo—"
He stopped.
Looked closer at Alex.
"Wait." Eyes widening. "Alex Carter?"
Shit.
"There’s a bounty on your head, kid. 150,000 crowns." His smile widened. "Today’s my lucky day."
Alex cursed internally.
"Formation!" he shouted.
His team reacted instantly.
Raven summoned skeletons—forty of them, level 35 each.
"Protect the caravan!"
Emily threw barriers around the wagons.
"[Blessing of Protection—Area]!"
Golden light pulsed, strengthening everyone.
Grim grew into Awakened form—2.5 ters of armored terror.
"Ready!"
Alex drew his new sword, the Strength enchantnt gleaming.
"Nightshade—attack!"
The battle began.
It was harder than expected.
These weren’t ordinary bandits—they were trained rcenaries. They coordinated. Used proper tactics.
The leader charged directly at Alex.
"Nothing personal, kid!"
Swords clashed.
Alex blocked, counterattacked—but the leader was level 48, much stronger.
He was pushed back.
Grim intervened, scythe cutting in a wide arc.
The leader rolled, dodging.
"Nice skeleton! But not enough!"
He threw a skill: "[Blade Storm]!"
Five sword cuts in a second, all aid at Alex.
Alex used Shadow Step, appearing ten ters back.
Raven covered him, her hand transford into Fragnt 3 sending waves of necrotic energy.
Three rcenaries fell.
Grim destroyed four more.
Emily kept everyone alive, healing flying constantly.
Twenty minutes of intense combat.
Finally—the last rcenary fell.
The leader, alone and injured, retreated.
"This... this isn’t over, Carter. Others will co."
He fled into the forest before they could stop him.
Silence fell.
Alex looked at his team—all injured but alive.
He looked at the wagons—intact thanks to Emily’s barriers.
He looked at the bodies—Grim had killed seven directly.
"Souls," Grim murmured. "Fifteen. Collected."
Alex didn’t have the energy to correct Grim’s grammar.
He just nodded.
---
They delivered the caravan without further incident.
Petros paid the second half with gratitude.
"You saved my cargo! Thank you!"
They returned to the Guild, reported to Sera.
She listened, her expression turning serious.
"Organized bandits. Professional rcenaries." She tapped her fingers on the desk. "Soone hired them specifically."
"To catch ?" Alex asked.
"Possible. Or..." She considered. "...your reputation preceded you. You’re Tournant Champion. There’s a price on your head. That attracts attention."
She sighed.
"Stay alert. Low profile when you can. And," she looked at each of them, "trust your team. Don’t go alone."
"Understood."
---
That night, Alex couldn’t sleep.
Too much on his mind. rcenaries. Fragnts. The future.
He went up to the building’s rooftop—a small flat area where residents sotis hung laundry.
He sat on the edge, legs dangling, looking at the stars.
The city sprawled below—lights flickering, distant sounds from the harbor.
"Master... worried?"
Alex turned—Grim had followed, 80cm form climbing up to sit beside him.
"Yeah," Alex admitted. "I thought by coming here, I could... rest. Train in peace. Build a quiet life for a while."
"But problems follow ."
Grim tilted his tiny skull.
"Then... we face. Together."
Alex smiled weakly. "Always together, huh?"
"Always."
A sound of a door opening.
Raven erged onto the rooftop, two cups of tea in her hands.
"Secret eting without ?"
"Just thinking," Alex said.
"Ah." She offered him a cup. "Then you definitely need company. Thinking alone leads to spiraling."
She sat on Alex’s other side, looking at the stars too.
"About?"
"The future. Fragnts. What cos next."
Raven drank her tea.
"Next cos tomorrow. And tomorrow, we train. Get stronger. Take missions. Live lives."
"And when the problems co back?"
"When they co back," Raven corrected, "we face them. Like always. Together."
Simple. Direct.
Exactly what Alex needed to hear.
They sat there—Alex, Raven, Grim—under the stars.
Not talking. Just... existing.
The city breathed below. The ocean whispered in the distance. Life continued.
And for the first ti in a long ti, Alex felt...
Peace.
Temporary, perhaps. Fragile, certainly.
But real.
"Thanks," he said quietly.
"For what?" Raven asked.
"For being here. For following to an unknown city. For... everything."
Raven bumped his shoulder lightly.
"Fool. That’s what a team does."
Grim nodded vigorously.
"Team. Nightshade. Together. Always."
Alex smiled—genuine, warm.
"Yeah. Together."
Above, the stars shone.
Below, the city slept.
And on the rooftop, three souls—human, necromancer, skeleton—found a mont of peace.
Knowing it wouldn’t last.
But cherishing it anyway.
Because those monts—those quiet monts between storms—
Were what made the fight worthwhile.
---
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