Neph's group travelled true at a rate that astonished Enri. They practically skated over the trail road that led to E-Rantel, moving so smoothly that one could doubt there were much motion at all.
But there was very much motion. Enri could attest to this. She clung to the hairs on the monster, now called Hamster, for dear life. It galloped with such force that each time it lunged it felt like it could pass over mountains. But it's little feet stopped their descents in the most gentle way, making it seem like that the Hamster itself was nothing more than a wave of watter, ebbing and flow.
Enri looked up at the sky to see the three Saviors of Carne Village soaring true with their wings. The twin Angels had wings which shimmered and glowed a ornate, golden color, beautifully outdoing the sun above them. The leader of the group, Lord Neph to Enri, had wings that resembled a grayer version of the Angel's wings. She had not notice it at first, but the feathers of those wings, those [Fallen Heathen Wings], as she heard him say, were actually finger bones.
It scared her, at first, those giant hands extending out of Lord Neph's back. But the fact that those wings belonged to the one that saved both her sister as well as her home, it looked to her more than a gentle hand than a malicious grasp.
"Everyone, stop, there is something that needs attention." A voice snapped Enri out of her awed trance.
Lord Neph was the first one to land, Enri saw. Hamster had long stopped his movements as to await orders. The twins descended afterwards gracefully.
"What is it, Lord Neph?" Enri asked. She was leaning against the comfortable fur of Hamster, but seeing as how the twins bowed, she stopped and bowed as well.
"I believe we should conceal ourselves. We can't go around flying with our wings like this. Especially after I made Gazef agree to conceal our power." Neph said. The twins nodded as he could see, but he looked at Enri and only saw confusion.
"I know this is a bit much to ask, but I request that you also help us conceal our power. We are in an unknown land, and would like to avoid attention." Neph spoke and bowed to Enri.
Enri, flustered as to why someone so great would bow to her, blurted out-
"Wh-What are you saying, Lord Neph?! This is the very least I can do! I solemnly promise that your secret is safe!" Enri yelled and bowed in return.
"Alright then." Neph said. He looked at the twins.
"Yes Lord Neph?" The both of them said in unison.
"You two, need to conceal your wings from now on, unless I say otherwise, you are not to reveal them to anyone. Your halos are fine, they only come out when you are in your High Avatar form or True Eden forms. But I repeat, do not show them unless I say so." Neph said, and looked the two in the eye with a firm stare.
"As you will, Lord Neph" They both spoke and bowed. The wings behind them shattered into light as they did, and they appeared as nothing but beautiful women, not out of the ordinary.
Neph himself dispelled [Fallen Heathen Wings].
"But, how will we get to E-Rantel without flying? From what she describes, we are about halfway there." Verdandi asked.
"Relax, we can conjure up transportation. I can create a few beasts, and Diyandi can conjure up Earth Elementals. You can do the same." Neph responded.
"But Lord Neph, won't that be too much of a giveaway? Elementals are a 6th tier spell, and while I would be happy to cast it at your command I feel it is a detriment to concealing our power." Diyandi responded. She was pouting a bit. Her reasoning was sound though, and Neph couldn't help but agree.
"Well..."
"Why not a wagon or a carriage? I saw them sometimes during my visits to my friend in E-Rantel, it seems like something that would fit Savior-sama's group." Enri said, interrupting Neph's thinking.
"That's a great idea!" Neph couldn't help but exclaim. He patted Enri's head a bit, and she smiled. He looked at Diyandi, and without a word, she started conjuring up a wooden carriage for the four of them. The specific ability that allowed this was a higher form of [Seedling Creation], the ability that Diyandi had used to give Enri's little sister a flower. It was called [Vegetation Animate] and allowed the user to control plants to varying degrees of mastery.
Diyandi's skill level of it was such that she could conjure up a working carriage. This was completed with wheels that function and rotated, defying all kinds of logic that something grown could not do that. The carriage, while wooden, was ornate. Indeed, it looked like a carpenter's life's work. It would astound any art critic. The door opened to a large cabin enough for 4 people to comfortably sit.
Neph started towards it, but stopped.
"I need to change out of this." He said. He searched his inventory for appropriate looking gear and equipped it in a flash of light. It was another set of armor.
To describe it would be... Tribal. It was an asymetrical looking armor that radiated battle prowess. The right shoulder was covered by a spiked epaulet. In contrast, the left shoulder was covered by a large patch of white fur.
There was a strap that connected the bottom edges of the spiked epaulet on Neph's right shoulder running diagonally across his body, attaching at the belt on the left side. Underneath it all, the armor was a simple plated pail, albeit with large bands of metal instead of a single underlying breastplate. There were two large, white leather plates which hung from the belt on the sides of Neph's waist, and two larger and longer ones trailing from the back. Overall, this made it look almost like a battle tailored tailed suit.
The bottom half simply looked like black metallic bandages that wrapped around Neph's legs. He wore a pair of white boots which appeared angular, with a single spike where the knee would be, curving downwards. To finish this off, he added a pair of white gauntlets, with the same angular look, but lacking the spike that the boots possessed.
"I think this will do. [Wynter Siege] armor should do just fine, it's low level enough that it looks like something that can be commonly made, but was strong enough to absorb up to three hits from a strong opponent before completely breaking. This is enough time for me to switch back to Ghost White armor." Neph explained. He looked at the twins for approval, and they nodded excessively.
"Will you be wearing the mask?" Verdandi asked.
"Well, it's been a part of me for a long time. It would be wrong not to." Neph said and pulled out the oh so familiar mask that Enri first saw him with. A mask with horns that resembled he mane of a lion, with a crown-like set of horns at the top. No mouths were present on the mask, but two eye sockets that were blacker than the abyssal darkness.
Neph looked at the twins, and understanding his intentions, they both changed into matching witch wardrobes.
They both wore a vest comprising of ice dragon skin, which was furred around the neck and the arms. Underneath it, they both wore a shirt woven out of metallic fibers known as [Gorgonic Tongues]. The shirt was a bit tight, and it showed off their busts in a modest way. To describe the shirt in a simple way would be that it was a sleeveless turtleneck.
Their bottom halves were comprised of a pair of ice dragon skin pants, which also were skin tight, but tastefully so. They were adorned with a set of low-raised heels on the feet, the heels themselves looking like a series of spider legs which converged on a point lying just a bit farther than where the big toe would be. The thing that stood out most from their outfit, however, were the skirts. Verdandi and Diyandi both now wore a kind of separated skirt.
They both had a belt on their waists, this formed the basis of their skirt. Starting from the middle back of the belt, long, flowing strips of fabric tinted in their elemental colors would flow down. This extended from the middle back out to the sides of the belt, but not the front. Thus, when moving, it looked like a trail of color through water, or perhaps a soft colored breeze passing through. The fabric that trailed them was ethereal. There were no sensations if one were to touch it, it was that soft.
Overall, this gave them both a otherworldly look. There were minute differences between the two, such as the highlights on Verdandi's vest was silver blue as opposed to emerald green on Diyandi's. A similar case for the trailing fabric which formed their "pseudo skirt".
Enri was stunned.
So beautiful... So gracefully divine.
"Alright, that about settles it. Let's get back to the journey." Neph spoke, breaking Enri out of her trance. She could see that the three were already heading towards the carriage.
"Ah-Yes!" She followed suit.
Diyandi manipulated the carriage to extend its wood as a pair of tendrils which lightly wrapped around Hamster's body.
"You may begin, Hamster." Neph comanded.
"Yes, milord!"
And so their journey continued.
The group of four had made it into the city of E-Rantel. With just a single step, countless eyes wandered towards them, examining the new faces. Hamster was not here because he had to be outside the city gates. Neph just told him to go and
"Find some food or something".
And so he did.
The group of four walked slowly, with Enri leading. To summarize the thoughts of the observers, most of the looks were in the following context:
What's this farm girl doing here?
Who is that mysterious man with the white mask?
By the gods, the two beauties behind the warrior in white are truly beautiful!
Lecherous eyes, fearful eyes, enticing eyes, Neph had seen it all.
It's to be expected
He thought. Enri had led them to the middle of town square, wherein she turned to him and bowed. This of course, drew a couple of gazes, but Neph appeared richer than Enri, so it did not draw much suspicion for someone of lower class to look up to higher class.
"Lord Neph, I think this is where we will split ways temporarily. I have a friend I want to go ask a few things of!" She ushered these words out. There was a pause, but she heard a reply.
"Alright. If you are finished with your business, then you can come find me at the Adventurer's Guild." Neph said, looking at a place where several armored men came in and out of. He couldn't read the signs, but his intuition told him that the place he was looking at was it.
"Thank you very much!" Enri said, and bowed again before heading off.
Neph and the twins entered the Adventurer's guild a few moments later. Again, they drew many gazes from the inhabitants inside, but seeing as how there were an innumerable amount of armed personnel, Neph knew firmly that this was the place.
He stepped in and took a walk around the lobby to survey what to do, and noted that there were several people who looked at a sort of bulletin board and approached the large counter after tearing off a sheet of parchment from the board.
Damn. You need to know to how to read. How is it that I can talk fine but I can't read a single lick of these characters?
Neph glanced at Verdandi and Diyandi.
They seem to be having problems too!
Alright, well let's keep calm. We can't even accept jobs yet. I can assume that the people are checking with the board that those are the requests Braucur was talking about. So that mean I can avoid the reading problem for just a little bit longer if I go through registration first.
With this idea, Neph approached the counter with the twins and spoke.
"Hello, and how may I serve you today?" The receptionist spoke.
Alright, well, let's try the charm route.
Neph took off his mask and looked the receptionist in the eye. He had been told he was handsome, according to Viqtoria and a few others, so this will probably work.
"Hello. Me and my two comrades here would like to register to become Adventurers." He gave her a soft smile. She was visibly stunned. It took her a few moments before she can gather herself, and her coworkers around also looked at her with the opinion that she was so easily defeated.
Uhh, did it work? Neph thought.
"A-Ah yes! There will be a five silver coin entry fee, and a, a five copper fee for a literacy test!" She said, straightening herself.
Are you serious. A literacy test of a language that I haven't even seen before today.
Neph started pulling out a few batches of coins, fifteen silvers and fifteen coppers, one set of payment per person in his three person group.
It was at the moment of him beginning to hand over the money and dreading the literacy test that the room was stirred up with a applause. Neph turned around to see everyone in the Adventurer's Guild applauding.
It was Gazef. Neph felt a bit of relief.
Gazef took a look around and saw three familiar faces, and felt relieved as well. And with a single phrase, Gazef silenced the entire room, and everyone that was in motion stopped as if [Time Stop] had been used.
"Nephilentines-dono, it is good to see you!" Gazef spoke in a loud, commanding tone while walking over.
"Good to see you too." Neph said, extending a hand for Gazef to shake. He let Verdandi hold his mask. In truth, Neph felt a bit relieved, but he didn't know that "Warrior Captain" had so much social power, so much prestige in this city. The room seemed to resume motion and life again, but there were still eyes being thrown in Neph's direction.
"What brings you here?"
"I have decided to travel around as Adventurers, to see the world. And to render my services to those who need them, after discussing with my subordinates." Neph replied, showing a hand to Verdandi and Diyandi.
Gazef felt a bit relieved. His intuition after speaking to the messenger about Neph on the day that he was saved by Neph was true. Gazef wondered why Neph was in a different, more tribal suit of armor now, but he just decided that someone of Neph's strength would have different armors.
"I see, well then perhaps I can-"
"Gazef Stronoff!" A man yelled. The two interrupted parties looked up at the new voice and saw a man looking down at them from the interior balcony.
Gazef smiled before he replied back.
"Guildmaster! I was just looking for you!"
"Who's your friend?" The Guildmaster asked.
"A extremely strong warrior who helped saved my life a few days ago."
A unanimous sound of "Ohhhhh" reverberated throughout the building. It was at this point that news spread about Neph in a ambiguous manner as the warrior in white saved the Warrior Captain.
"Well then, this is a good day! Shall we go somewhere to discuss things?" Gazef asked Neph.
"Sure. I have a few things I'd like to ask of you as well."
The group of six people sat down on a large oval table. Neph's group was on one side, and Gazef and the two higher ups of the Guild were on the other.
"Allow me to introduce myself, I am Pluton Ainzach, E-Rantel's Guildmaster. My partner on my left is Theo Lachesil, and he's the Magic Caster Guildmaster." Ainzach spoke.
Neph did a slight bow before introducing himself and the twins as well. The first one to start was Ainzach.
"So, Neph-dono, tell me about how you saved Gazef's life." He took a sip out of the beer that had been placed by a waitress.
"Well, it's nothing really. I simply stumbled upon Gazef fighting the Sunlight Scripture, as I'm told they're called, and helped him out when it seemed like he would need it." Neph gave a non-chalant reply. He didn't drink the beer, because he never liked alcohol. Instead, he drank a cup of water he had Verdandi materialize.
"Really?" Ainzach responded. He could feel like there was something more, so he looked at Gazef.
"That's really how it happened. I am ever grateful for Neph-dono's help."
The mood seemed to go sour for a bit. It was Pluton who resumed the flow of things.
"Still... To be able to help Gazef against an opponent of Sunlight Scripture's level... If you were an adventurer, you'd be at least Silver Ranked."
"I can definitely vouch for at least Gold." Gazef interjected.
"Pardon?" Neph asked.
"Well, if you don't know, the Adventurers were ranked according to metal, Copper – Iron – Silver – Gold – Platinum – Mythril – Orichalcum – Adamantite. You are trying to register as an adventurer no? I've seen your group at the counter." Pluton said.
"Well, yes." A simple reply came from Neph.
"Well, that settles it. Most Adventurers start off at copper but I think with Gazef's voucher we can give you Silver right off the bat!" Pluton declared a bit too happily."
"I'll consider it a favor for me too." Gazef smiled at Ainzach.
"Well. This is unprecedented ground. There hasn't been many cases of people skipping ranks as they join. But I guess I'll take the favor then. Excuse us, we'll get the paperwork ready." Ainzach got up and took Pluton with him. The remaining four waved goodbye.
"I guess I'll go find him at the Guild again later?" Neph asked.
"Yes. But first. I have a favor to ask of you, Neph-dono." Gazef questioned in return.
"Hmm?"
"Well, it's unfortunate that Ainzach and Pluton left so early but I can fill them in afterwards. I've been summoned by the King to investigate a criminal organization. This note is what was we found on one of the guards that had been killed outside of the Royal Palace." Gazef handed Neph a note. Neph couldn't read it of course, but thankfully Gazef spoke out the contents.
"It's a threat from someone who only left the initial Z. The rest of the paper was torn as the guards retrieved it. It says that from this city, the City Of E-Rantel, that this 'z' will send the kingdom into ruin."
"I see..." Neph pondered, trying to look as invested in the note as he can. He did see a sign at the bottom that resembled a big Z, but it was more ornate than a normal English Z.
"That's why I'm here. To recruit some Adventurers with good strength to try and investigate any suspicious activity around these parts. This is a matter of kingdom security after all."
"But are you sure you should be telling me this? Isn't this a breach of secrecy?" Neph asked.
"I trust you in truth. Saving my life and all. I also trust my intuition that you are someone who can be trusted."
"Really now?" Neph spoke. The twins behind him nodded excessively at the word "trust".
"So what do you want from me?" Neph asked. Gazef sighed.
"Simply put, I wish to ask for your strenght one more time. And I request that any activity you find suspicious, you report to me. I really wish I can confidently say that I can handle this on my own, but because of the 'z' initial, our intel suspects it is a group known as Zuranon." Gazef sounded a bit down.
"Zuranon?" This peaked Neph's interest.
"A highly dangerous death cult which man of its members specialize in necromancy. Their influence is spread throughout many countries and cities. We fear that one splinter group has taken residence in this city..." Gazef's voice trailed off.
"Very well. I'll keep an eye out. Since they're a death cult, I can assume they probably wear something like black or red, and mostly robes and hoods?" Neph responded.
"Ah, yes, I would also like one of my subordinates to provide you with more inform-"
"Lord Neph!" Someone interrupted. The girl ran in at an impeccable pace.
"What-what is it?" Neph asked, a bit startled. A second figure rushed in, this one also female, but much older.
"My grandson! My grandson's been taken!" The lady was a bit bloodied. She was wounded.
"He-He held them back while we escaped! A woman with daggers almost killed us!" She yelled out again, inciting panic in the small Inn where Neph and Gazef were having drinks. Confused, Neph looked at Enri.
"My friend Nferia's been taken!"