Alistair activated his Lightning Dash ability and rushed towards the marsh boar, holding his sword firmly in his hand. "Lightning Strike!"
As his sword collided with the boar, a huge crackling sound like thunder emanated around the area, confusing the beast and allowing Alistair to deliver the finishing blow. It was difficult to tell where he had to strike as the boar was covered in moss and swamp grass, making it difficult to tell where its legs ended and the chest began.
But his estimate had been correct, and the beast fell limp to the ground.
[You've killed . You've gained 125 exp.]
[Congratulations! You've reached Level 35.]
This is the third monster I've encountered on the way back to Sunglow. Thankfully, it's not an evolved monster, but a few more levels and it could have been. I need to inform the Guildmaster of this imdiately.
He could already see the stone wall peeking out at the end of the road. It was a relief because travelling on a horse for two days in a row while constantly looking for monsters was tiring. It wasn't so bad on the way back when he only had to worry about himself. But watching over Milo, who was half-dozing the whole way back, exhausted Alistair.
But the door to the bakery is now secure, so lina should be safe.
He didn't quite understand why he worried so much about the girl. The kitchen had a door that could be locked at night, so his watching over her day and night was definitely an overkill. Watching Sienna was rely an excuse—the monster hadn't shown any signs of aggression, and resident elves had already spread the word that wyrms were common pets among elves.
No, it was only natural that I repay them after I broke that door. A nobleman must always take responsibility for his actions.
However, Alistair couldn't deny that the thought of not spending ti in the bakery anymore made him sad. He enjoyed his short ti there, watching how lina would prepare dough and pastries. Her face lit up whenever she created sothing new. Not to ntion the privilege of eating the goodies while they were still warm.
Shimrtart had instantly beco his favorite dessert. Alistair was convinced that nobody else could make it the sa way lina could, and he'd be ready to pay any amount of money to eat it again.
But lina said that she couldn't keep making them because feyfruit would run out soon. If only there were a way to get more of it…
"Welco back, Captain Sinclair!" Barrett greeted him at the entrance gate.
"Good day, Barrett. I need to speak to the Guildmaster," Alistair said, begrudgingly waving away the thoughts of the delightful dessert.
"She was patrolling on top of the wall, so while back. I think she might return to this point soon," Barrett said, then arched his eyebrow. "Did sothing happen on the way?"
"Three boars on the way back, two on the way to Pertia, along with a pack of nightshade wolves."
Barrett visibly shuddered. "Ugh! I hate those things. Nimble little bastards. One bite and you're done for. Odd that there are so many of them around. Didn't you encounter another pack when you were escorting Master Gilbert and Miss lina?"
"Yes, and that's what worries . The monster activity is incredibly high."
Barrett scratched his chin thoughtfully. "It'll always be high around Sunglow when compared to other places, but i can't deny it has been higher than normal. Oh, here cos the Guildmaster."
Guildmaster Arianne was walking along the outside of the wall, making Alistair wonder if she had jumped down from it at so point. He'd seen her do it once, landing nimbly on her feet like a cat. He didn't dare to repeat the stunt, being pretty sure that the weight of his armor combined with the height of the fall would certainly shatter his kneecaps.
"You have returned, Captain Sinclair. Very good. I have a task for you," she said without even a greeting. Alistair withheld a groan at the thought of instantly being thrust into patrol.
"May I report sothing first?"
"Let guess—there was an increased number of monsters on the way to Pertia," she said nonchalantly.
"I— Yes, that is correct," he stamred, surprised that she knew.
"Yes, there have been more monsters near the wall, too. I think it is very likely that a passageway to Monster Realm has opened sowhere nearby," Arianne clicked her tongue. "As if we already didn't have enough problems here."
"Opened? But that would be…" Alistair trailed off. Locations of the passageways to the Monster Realm were well known. Their location had not changed since their first appearance ten millennia ago. But on a very rare occasion, a new passage, much smaller than the original ones, would appear.
"Yes, that's really bad for all the inhabitants of Sunglow. Which brings to your mission. Take as many n and guards from towns as you need and find this passageway. Comb through the whole surrounding area if you must—leave no stone or tree unchecked."
Alistair opened his mouth to object. He felt like he wasn't experienced enough for a mission like that. He hasn't even reached his master class yet. But as Arianne's determined gaze pierced him, he closed his mouth.
If not , then who else can do it in this small town? The Guildmaster has to remain in Sunglow as its last line of defense. She needs soone strong to go on this mission.
"Very well." He nodded.
"Good. I know I'm asking much of you, but rember that you do not need to engage with the passageway or any monsters near it. I just need you to locate it so we get so help from the Church for once."
"Understood," he said, and Arianne nodded in approval. She then walked back up the wall and resud her patrol. Alistair began thinking about how to best approach the issue.
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One thing at a ti. First, I'll go ho and take a bath, and maybe clean so of the ss that's been building up there while I guarded the bakery.
Alistair got back on his horse and made his way back ho. His stomach was grumbling, and he wondered whether he should stop by the inn for a al. But his clothes were dirty, and his body odor was becoming a bit too strong for his liking, so he hurried ho. Perhaps, he could go to the inn after he washed up.
But as Alistair neared his house, he noticed that there was sobody standing by the entrance. When he realized that it was lina, a smile crossed his lips. He wasn't sure why she was there, but the surprise was a welco one.
"Good evening, Lord Sinclair," she said, inclining her head politely towards him.
"Good evening, Miss lina. To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?" he asked after he got off the horse.
"I just wanted to thank you for all the help you provided us." lina lifted the cardboard box she was holding, and he was delighted to see various pastries inside, both sweet and savoury. "I figured you might be hungry after the long road."
"I am actually," he took the box, already thinking of which tea to enjoy these with. There was even a slice of what looked like a ringue pie—sothing new she must have cooked up. He was excited to try it.
"There's another reason why I ca," she said after a brief pause and presented him with a letter.
"Is this what I think it is?" Alistair asked, carefully taking the envelope from her.
"Yes, it's a reply from the Master's friend."
Alistair's hand trembled. He knew he shouldn't get his hopes up as there was no guarantee that this unknown person would even know a solution to his problem. Even if they knew that, they might not be willing to share the solution.
"Thank you so much, Miss lina! If you don't mind, then I'd like to go and read it now," he said. lina nodded, but did not et his gaze. For so reason, she seed a bit nervous.
"Of course. I hope you enjoy the pastries," she said, and hastily retreated.
I wonder if sothing happened. Maybe I can check on it later. But now it's ti to read the letter and eat so pastries.
Alistair hurried inside, ignoring the surrounding dust and heading straight to the kitchen. He turned on the magitech kettle—a really nifty invention which ward the water to your desired temperature in a matter of seconds—and put so tea leaves in a teapot.
As he waited for the tea to seep, he sat down at the kitchen table and carefully opened the envelope. His hands trembled slightly with anticipation when he pulled out the page. Alistair read it carefully, taking in every word, observing every curve.
His first thought was that the sender must be a female, for their handwriting was in a neat, delicate cursive and their wording very polite. Alistair had almost expected a blunt rejection in reply in a manner that Master Gilbert would speak. But this person had a different stance. The information that they conveyed in the letter was also invaluable.
"Architects… Could they really exist? In this very region, nonetheless," Alistair muttered to himself as he poured a cup of tea. This was not the first ti he had heard of the term "architect".
One day, when he was about twelve years old, his father had gathered Alistair and his siblings together and taken them to a secret chamber that not even the most trusted servants of the house knew of. He had been intimidated at the ti, as the room was dark and deep underground. After all, he had heard many stories of noblen suddenly being forced out of their hos by sudden monster attacks or commoner uprisings.
But it turned out that the matter wasn't anything sinister. Duke Sinclair had told his children the story of how the Human Realm and Monster Realm beca connected and how the System appeared at the sa ti. It was a well-known story—the Church preached it every day. But Duke Sinclair's story was a little different.
Naly, it ntioned being called "architects" that served to maintain the System. He also said that if one were to et an architect, they could ask them for any one thing—a new skill, a new class, a System artifact, even a familiar. But they were notoriously hard to find, almost impossible, unless you already knew their location.
"Could it be that they actually know where one of these architects dwells? If that's true, then I could delete this skill just like the sender suggests I do," Alistair said to himself, taking one of the lamb bundles and taking a bite out of it. The flaky pastry with the rich, aty filling tasted so delicious that he had finished it before realizing it.
But even if what this sender says is true and an architect really is sowhere in this region, that wouldn't make the search any easier. I need to know more. I'm going to send them a reply and ask for more details.
Alistair retrieved pen and paper and began to write a reply. He didn't worry about the crumbs from pastries falling onto the page, for this was rely a draft—he'd rewrite it later. The ssage was short—he inquired about a more exact location of the architect and if it wasn't impossible to expose it by letter, then encrypt it.
Encrypt it how? It needs to be vague enough that if sobody else were to read the letter, they wouldn't understand that it speaks about architects. In fact, I should encrypt my own letter as well.
Alistair took the page, threw it into the fireplace, and set it on fire. Then he took a new one and stared at it, wondering how to best write it. He sat there for several minutes, unsure how to start, so he took the ringue pie that lina had placed in the box in the hopes that sugar might help his brain figure out a solution.
After taking a bite, Alistair exclaid in surprise. The pie was so delicious—the crumbly pastry had been filled with tart rhubarb filling that was beautifully complented by the sweet ringue. It felt like his exhaustion lted away as he ate it, and his thoughts beca clearer and more coherent.
"Why not just hide it as a recipe?" he humd as he finished eating the tart and began composing his letter again.
The first thing Alistair did the next morning after waking up was head to the bakery to deliver his letter, and also to buy himself sothing to eat for lunch. As always, the old baker greeted him with a deep scowl, but accepted the letter nonetheless. He did not get to talk to lina as the girl was busy with custors, running in and out of the kitchen with their orders.
After that, he headed to the Adventurer's Guild to figure out how to best tackle his new assignnt. Everything was still relatively empty as those who had the night patrol were yet to return, and their replacent hadn't arrived.
Find the passageway to Monster Realm. How do I even do that? The forest surrounding Sunglow is huge, so a manual search without any direction would take ages. Okay, let's think—what do I know about these passageways?
Alistair realized that he did not know much about them besides the fact that you were to stay away from one at all costs. You could never know where you would end up if you went through. Even the original passageways tended to change from ti to ti, and new ones were even more unpredictable. You could end up right in the middle of a dragon's nest.
But what did the passageways look like? Were there any signs that could help to find it in the surrounding area? Alistair had no clue, so he decided to visit the archives.
It was located underground with shelves lined with books about all sorts of monsters, and every kind of information that could help one defeat them. But there wasn't as much information on Monster Realm because the Sunglow archives were still rather new.
"Is there anything about passageways?" Alistair asked the elderly librarian, a scrawny woman with her skin barely clinging to her bones. She pondered the question for a mont, scratching on her wrinkly cheek, then nodded lazily.
"I believe there are one or two books about it," she croaked out in a hoarse voice and slowly made her way to one of the shelves in the back. Alistair tapped his foot as he waited for her to return—it took far too long—and took the two rather thin books from her.
Much to his disappointnt, the books weren't actually about the passageways, but rather the Monster Realm in general. There was a short section that ntioned that passageways should be avoided, and that was it.
I suppose I have no choice but to do it the hard way. I'll take anyone who is not on patrol or a quest and go comb through the forest. Try to find so clues—there must be sothing.
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