Undercurrents

The group eventually left Graybeard Metalworks. A few minutes prior, Leo had managed to negotiate with the mad blacksmith on the details of Alex's armor. Additionally, Alex was required to have his body measured by Madelin in order to create an armor with the perfect fit.

"I still don't get that guy," Judy muttered under her breath.

Around them, the sky was getting darker but the frequency of rain was noticeably decreasing. It wouldn't be long before the group would no longer need a [Mage Shield] to protect themselves.

"Yeah, me neither," Alex agreed in confusion. Holding the back of his head, he asked, "Why does he show so much favoritism to Leo? I don't recall him ever doing that before."

"Because Leo is another enchanter." Sarah gave Alex the same answer as she gave Judy.

"I still have trouble believing that," Judy argued. "How does he know that Leo is another enchanter? And didn't he get into a fight with some other blacksmith a few weeks ago?"

Alex turned to Leo before asking, "Did you tell Mad Beard about your abilities?"

"I don't think so." Leo shook his head in denial. "My interactions with him were pretty brief."

He deliberately chose not to mention that Madelin had also thrown a hammer at him during his first visit.

"Well, anyway, it shouldn't matter at this point," Judy sighed, feeling clearly put off. "What's important is that we managed to secure new armor for Alex, and it will only be two more days before we can get our reward."

Alex nodded in agreement

"Yes, it is good news. Though it's a shame that Mad Beard didn't tell us when the armor will be completed."

"I don't think it'll be too bad," Leo said. "Having to wait a few more days can give us time to get a measure on the magic items obtained from the quest."

"Are you planning on keeping all of them?" Alex asked.

Based on the quest description, any items they've found can be given to the quest giver in exchange for more money.

"Yeah, I think I will." Leo already made up his mind to not sell them away. "I might be able to glean some knowledge and inspiration to help improve my enchantment skills."

One of the ways an enchanter could improve was by studying advanced magic items that weren't created by them. The prerequisite was that it must also be of a sufficient enough level. This is also the same for random objects that have been formed naturally by nature.

----------

In a dark room, a shadowed man could be heard speaking into a hand-held object. The language he used was completely foreign to the country of Bavalon, and everywhere else in the current world.

"The evolution-testing process has been settled ahead of schedule," the man spoke in a coarse voice while using that strange, foreign language. The words he articulated were mixed with certain incomprehensible enunciations that would be impossible for ordinary human vocals to imitate. "Luckily, the device we used has been destroyed. It won't be possible for the natives to discover our methods."

Silence ensued as the informer pressed his ear and listened closely to his respondent.

A few moments later, the man continued, "Very well. The next stage shall be prepared.

"But I'll have to first conclude the matter of our previous project."

----------

Two have passed since Leo's friends visited Mad Beard's store.

As agreed upon, the person who set up the request of exploring the ruin would make his appearance in the guild to reward the adventurers. Apparently, the reason as to why it took three days before he made his appearance was because he is a minister of considerable responsibilities in the royal capital.

Upon arrival in the guild, the man possessed an old temperance and appeared to be in his seventies.

"Thank you very much for your sacrifices." the minister bowed his head to Leo and his friends as they were sitting around a table. "I will make sure that the remains of the objects you've brought back will be studied thoroughly."

"The guild has handed them over?" Leo asked, remembering the glowing stone pieces and the remains of the strange device with no traces of magic. "Every one?"

"Yes, we have received every piece." the minister sat up in a completely straight posture as he replied. "I have already made negotiations to compensate the guild for them.

"Do not worry about any inconveniences. We will use our resources to make sure the very best are in charge in uncovering the true nature of these mysterious items."

"Excuse me minister, but may I ask the reason for the exploration?" Alex, who was sitting beside Leo, put forward a question as he held his own considerations.

"It's nothing too complicated," the minister replied. "All mysterious occurrences and discoveries are recorded and deemed necessary for study by the capital in case of any unforeseen consequences."

"Is there any specific reason why you considered sending adventurers to investigate the ruin after your exploration team already failed?" Judy joined in the conversation.

The quest notice stated that another group of hired explorers had previously entered the ruin and never returned. Afterwards, the quest was sent to the people of the Adventurer's Guild to take up the task.

"We sent the quest to any group that was willing to take it," the minister answered without batting an eye. "There wasn't really any specific reason."

Judy nodded as if satisfied. A moment later, Sarah also joined in the discussion.

"You should be thanking the explorers who've died in that cave."

"I'm sorry?" the minister looked confused. The timing of that sentence seemed a little out of place.

"The adventurers and all the other groups have risked their lives to enter the ruin. I hope you can consider what they've done," Sarah said while giving the minister a penetrating stare.

"I-I see." the minister seemed to understand. "I will make sure to send some compensation to their families."

In addition to having a set of responsibilities, the minister also possessed high political standings in the kingdom. Naturally, he could afford to spend some extra funds to help stave off any discontent from the work he issued.

"Well then, if that's everything." the minister took out a heavy bag of coins and pushed it in Alex's direction. "I'll be seeing you all."

Alex stood up and represented his team.

"We're happy to work with you, Minister-- uh--"

"Call me Balin." the minister smiled at the standing adventurer.

"Minister Balin." Alex smiled sheepishly. "If you have any new quests, you can always count on our guild!"

Minister Balin waved his hand in goodbye as he exited the Adventurer's Guild.

"He seemed like a nice fellow," Judy commented.

"Yeah..." Leo stared at the direction in which the minister walked away.

Before the reward was given, the minister initially employed multiple suggestions for their group to trade in the magical items that had been taken from the goblins, but without much success. With Leo as an example, none of the team members wanted to give up their spoils of war, most likely because they also decided to believe in the usefulness of these items. Previously, Linda, the receptionist lady, had provided them with a detailed list on the identification of the magic items and their abilities.

Near the end of their discussion, the minister relented and allowed the team to keep their prizes. However, Leo couldn't help but sense a slight amount of dissatisfaction in the minister's disposition before the latter left.

"We finally got our reward for the quest." Alex's eyes sparkled. "Now all we need is for Mad Beard to hurry up with finishing my armor."

Although the reward given by the minister was only just above the average amount compared to what most quests would provide to adventurers, combined with the gold and jewelry they retrieved from the goblins' cave and handed back to by the guild, they now have quite a sizeable sum of money to spend. Even after giving a portion of the wealth away to help the families of the fallen adventurers, the group could still be said to have profited tremendously.

"Let's go eat some dinner!" Sarah cheered loudly while waving a bag of gold coins. She completely ignored the weird gazes she attracted from the other people in the guild.

Alex choked a little at her joyous display before remembering that he once wanted to take Leo out to a restaurant to celebrate the formation of their team.

"Ahem, yeah, we should probably do that," Alex awkwardly said while Judy was giggling at the side.

----------

In the following days, life became more relaxed for Leo. While he was still getting used to his new role as an adventurer, things seemed to be going quite well for him.

After only one quest, he already managed to obtain enough gold to last him for a couple months. However, the life of an adventurer wasn't all fun and games. Alex had once admitted to him that most quest rewards were not always going to be so generous. And Leo was well reminded of the certain death rate of adventurers in the guild.

Fortunately, Leo made sure to never let his overconfidence get the better of him. He learned through both lessons and experienced the downfall of pride and contentment.

After a few days went by, the group he was in was now ready to start their first official adventure together as a full-fledged team.