Wellstone Village

It was late morning when the young traveler finally reached the Wellstone. Boisterous noises of the village replaced the long, tranquil silence of nature. At last, the sound of civilization. Despite its isolated location, throngs of travelers walked down the streets. Of course, he knew the reason why. Stalls lined the side street displaying various products that may have caught anyone’s interest. With several competitors, the merchants shouted promos to make their presence known. “Weapons and armors here. Take a gander gents, this prices would sky rocket in lefora.” “Over here if you need potion, freshly made no bitter taste!” “How much is for this fire scroll?” “Sandwich! Who want sandwich! For only 15 yels a piece!” The hustle and bustle can be mistaken for a festival. Some adventurers stopped by to look at the weapon stall. Blades’ sharpness glinted under their scrutinizing eyes. Some mages went for the potions on the opposite stall owned by a witch. Some bought their food and other supplies. With people congesting the stalls and crossing around, the march of the carriages slowed to a walking pace. For a village without proper guards, it was easy for chaos to break out. But thanks to knights stationed here and there, the public order was rather manageable. Xen wanted to take a look too, but he had his priorities straight. He pulled his horse, guiding it to the busy street. He glanced at his surroundings, taking mental notes on the stalls or stores he would visit later. He checked the signboard hanging on every establishment; when he found what he was looking for: a signboard with the carvings of a mug and moon- he stopped. He checked the surroundings to see if there was something he could tie the reins to. A man walked towards him and grabbed the reins. “I’ll take from here, lad.” He said. Xen stared at him in confusion. “What are you doing?” “Uhhh.. Are you not going inside?” The man asked, confused. “Yes, I’ll get a room first, then find a stable. I was just looking where I can tied the reigns.” “Sir. We have a stable at the back…” the man trailed off, looking at him suspiciously. “Is this your first time entering an inn?” “With a horse, yes. Wait… You’re the ostler?” The man nodded. Xen covered his face with his palm briefly before asking, “How much?” “It’s 10 coppers per day.” The young man handed over the exact amount, and the ostler took the reins. The horse neighed in protest, so he gently patted its forehead to calm it down. “Behave now, Mr. horse.” He turned to the man and said. “Take care of him.” He turned on his heels and made a beeline towards the swinging doors. Since it was morning, there weren’t many patrons around. Only a few adventurers were looking at the quest board affixed on the wall, as well as one party discussing in the middle of a snack. He walked to the counter where an old man stood guard. “I need a room.” “Just the room? No meals?” The man grunted as he wiped the counter clean. “lunch, dinner, then breakfast. Just for one day.” “That would be three silver.” Xen paid his coins, and the barkeeper gave him a key in exchange. “Yours is at the end.” “Thanks.” “Comedown on eleven for your food.” ─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ── The room was surprisingly big enough for 2 people. It was empty, with only a bed and a side desk like any other inn. He hung his hat on the coat-rack beside the door. He went for the bed and rubbed his hand at the well-fixed bed sheet. No dust. He gave it a sniff before he smiled in approval. “It’s freshly washed. Good.” It’s one of his pet peeves. Some inn owners don’t replace the bedding after their patrons leave. Worst, they don’t even bother to use pesticides to kill the bedbugs. In cases like this, he would just summon his own mattress atop the bed. But in this case, there’s no need to. Good job, innkeeper. He opened the window to let in fresh air. He could see the courtyard where the stables were. Aside from horses, it also housed a few carriages. This was a lucky find considering the number of travelers in the village. After breathing a mouthful of wellstone air, he turned back and removed his coat. He tossed it skillfully on top of the coat rack before throwing himself into bed. “Let’s see here…” he said, looking at the ceiling. I still have some high-grade potions. So I won’t need it now. My priority right now is food and weapons. “Hmm… weapons… should I really do it?” he asked himself again. It’s been on his mind ever since Welma told him about it. A weapon power, too important to pass up. The relic of the dungeon grants an unimaginable growth to one’s prowess. Perhaps any person with considerable strength will go for it. Try their luck no matter how abysmal it is. But he knows himself. He had a fair chance of winning compared to other parties. Even if I fail, I can still learn something from it; maybe I can reach enlightenment. His journey might seem aimless, but actually he does have a destination. Not a place, but a state of one’s existence. The ultimate goal of every awakened is to transcend the limits of humanity. To be transcendent. But not everyone can reach that peak. One has to traverse the arduous path in the physical world and the mental world. A vague explanation that he seemed to figure it out. Fight every strong opponent and forge his body and skills to their limits; the physical. Realized the essence of every action and your own inner world; the mental. For that reason, he was not averting any dangers that may come his way. He traversed the unfamiliar paths and fought monsters that even a common adventurer couldn’t take. He faced those hardships in the hope of searching for things he was not aware of. And now an opportunity once again presented itself. But not something he could venture into outright. “Ugghh, dad! Why didn’t you just tell me!” He grunted as he sat up, massaging his temples. He breathed deeply to reset his temperament. Closed his eyes and searched for the answer once more. For the puzzle his father left him when he left the gates. [Never enter the dungeon without reaching it.] Is it advice? Or a warning? Just what is he trying to make him do? But one thing is for sure: his father won’t give him something without a reason. And this uncertainty put the idea of the dungeon on his mind. But he wanted to go. His heart tells him he should go for it! Now a chaotic battle raged in his head. Xen sighed and closed his eyes more. It didn’t take long before he fell asleep. ─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ── After having his lunch, he went to the village square, where most stores are located. The weapon shop was the first in the order. He had already listed down the establishments in his head, so he knew was going. He entered the building with the signboard — with an emblem of a pair of swords crossing behind the shield hanging by the canopy. The rustic smell filled the walls. Heavy boots thudded against the wooden board with every step. Adventurers crossed the hall, inspecting some weapons on display. Bows, axes, swords, and utilities such as ropes and torches- a store truly dedicated to the adventurers. He glanced briefly at the price tags of displayed weapons, feasting his eyes on the level craftsmanship. Beautiful it might be, Xen still went for the bundles of swords in the barrel. Xen grabbed one of the swords. He ran his fingers along the flat side of the blade, filled with scratches. There weren’t any dents so far. “Not bad, I can work with this. How much is this?” he muttered before his eyes fell on the price tag at the edge of the barrel. “150… Alright, Ill take it.” He carefully selected ten swords of similar states and put them on the floor for a moment. He searched once again for additional items that may seem useful. “Smoke bombs… I’ll take this too.” “And this is… monster repellant… trash.” Xen looked again and went for the bow and arrow, but it wasn’t inside the display case. A trick he learned to get cheap items that can be improved with adept hands. He took a good look at the inventory one last time. With no additional things that he found useful, he waved his hand. The items on the floor floated and carried themselves beside him all the way to the counter. He garnered curious gazes from other customers, including the clerk. “All of this, sir?” The store clerk asked, surprised. “Yes.” He left the weapon shop with a satisfied face. His next task was procuring the food. He went around the villages looking at the signs again. From snacks, breads, cooked dishes, and raw meat. Since time doesn’t exist in the void-storage magic, spoilage wasn’t a thing, and no organism could thrive there. Thus, he was enjoying freshly cooked food whenever he took it out. He explained how void-storage works to the adventurers. Adventurers looked at him with amazement, in contrast to MiLi and Mr. Rhodis, who seemed burning with jealousy. He went to the plaza and sat there, chewing his freshly cooked barbecue. Some couples were resting on the bench on the other side, and others were just loitering around on the pathway. On the bench, he took a bite of his barbecue. His eyes rounded in surprise. “Hmm… this is good.” He brought out the newly purchased newspaper and read the contents. He spent a long time in the forest without any updates and had only been given updates of the outside world when he met the Rhodis and the adventurers. Since he was here on a settlement, it’s time to catch up on what he missed during those days. “Hmm… all the news is focused on the dungeon huh.” Pages flipped every 10 seconds with an occasional bite of his barbecue. It didn’t take long before he finished it all just as he took his final bite. “Now what do I do?” he muttered as he slumped on the bench, staring at the sky tinted with orange light. Like the cycle of the sun, the question he had been putting off came back again. Xen sighed. He breathed in deeply and exhaled the lingering cheeless vibe. “Alright, let’s organized- what do I get from this?” Headache… that first thought came to his mind as he agonized over his indecisiveness. He went to purchase several weapons in an event he chose to delve into the dungeon. Dungeons often take a long time to be conquered depending on the difficulty. Some take months at the minimum. Worst, it would take a year. Depending on the mechanism of the dungeon, it might even trap the adventurer there without a way out. “In four months, I will enroll in the CC academy too. If I spent my time there for a long time, I’m screwed.” Xen sighed once again. “… this impossible.” He got up from the bench and returned to the inn. ─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ── “Here your food.” “Thanks.” Xen thanked the waitress for the dishes. A simple dish of steak and bread coupled with a glass of fruit juice. But his face was far from pleased; not from the food, but from his inner turmoil. Xen began cutting the steak and took a bite. He chewed emotionlessly as he stared into space. “Excuse me…” “…” Xen looked forward at the priestess and the swordsman on the opposite side of the table. A youthful couple that seemed the same age as him. They didn’t have any food before them and were only discussing trivial things earlier. “Yes, what is it priestess?” “I can’t help to asked but, are you mage?” “In a way… yes.” Xen looked sideways before nodding as if convincing himself. The priestess beamed and leaned forward. “Then, would you like to join our party, were actually going to lefora to register.” “Sorry guys, I don’t plan to become an adventurer. I’m just a traveler.” Xen smiled wryly. “I see… s-sorry.” The priestess bowed. “You can find plenty aspiring ones on lefora, right?” “Yes, that’s actually what we planned first, but I think we need to get to know each and improved out team work before we could take on any quest. So we planned to get members as early as possible.” “Yeah, this way we can increase our chance of succeeding. Even a little.” The swordsman ”That’s a nice idea.” Xen smiled. “You never know what will happen within the forest now that the dungeon is there.” “Yeah, they said more high-ranking monsters lurk in the mid region. That’s why we really have to take extra careful.” “Yeah, we’re actually nervous. We would finally debut as adventurers, and our quests will more dangerous than it used to be.” “Hmmm. Perhaps you can first try quests that are in the city. To ease into it. You don’t need to face the forest firsthand.” “Works inside the city are only miscellaneous task like cleaning sewers or finding a lost cat. We didn’t trained hard for things like that. We also have to take think about the rewards for the effort.” “Besides this actually an opportunity for us rookies. with forest as of now, we don’t have to go too deep to hunt monsters, we can easily escape and ask for help if things gone bad.” “So hunting monsters it is. But you said you’re nervous. Will you guys be alright?” “Were nervous but… we’re not afraid. I’m just worried if we can succeed in our first quest or if we can get along with our members. But we have to try. If we can’t, we won’t find out if we have what it takes to be an adventurer. It’s a gamble that’s worth the risk. If we can fight off the monsters in the shallow area, we can develop our teamwork. Little by little, we will work our way to go deeper.” The priestess explained. “Yeah, well go big, and people will sing praises for us.” The swordsman said, dreaming of the day he and his party would be successful. Perhaps they can do this. After all, only those willing to take risks go far and wide in this world. “If you don’t try, you won’t find out, huh…” Xen muttered. Then a smile crept onto his lips. “Alright, good luck to both of us.” “Oh you going to the forest too?” the swordsman said “Yeah, sightseeing.” He took a bite of that steak. “After that, I’ll do some unregrettably stupid things.” “Then why do we go together? You’re alone right, its best to have someone keep company.” “Sorry to intrude your conversation But we have to speak with kid right here.” A man with a dandy smile stood by their table. He had slicked-back brown hair, and a scar ran through his cheek. His well-defined muscles threatened to break free from his tank top underneath the open jacket. He looked like a typical roughneck leader you see in an alleyway. But there was an unmistakable commanding aura behind this man. The two adventurers broke a sweat at the presence of such a man. Xen asked to break the suffocating silence. “Oh, so to what do I owe the pleasure?” The man ceremoniously took the seat beside him and started. “My juniors were on a quest… You see, something happened. An accident happened, and they ended up losing some of the horses.” He smiled, but his eyes narrowed dangerously. “One of which is the one you ride to this village.” “I see…” unbothered by such provocation. Xen smiled back.