"Let me have a look." Sebastian took the bunch of papers from Leo as he quickly glanced over them. With his augmented senses, he was able to skim through the entire pile in mere moments. He closed his eyes as he processed the information quietly. Opening his eyes he then looked at the expectant Leo and Jin.
While reaching out for the side dishes, Sebastian continued. "He's trying to rebuild weapons he remembers from Earth. He wants to make money from it I think. That's what weapon dealers do - they make a need for advanced weaponry in the market. He's having trouble with the magick side of things, from what I understand in his notes. Is that what you wanted to learn?"
Leo rested his chin on his hand as he started to contemplate while gazing into the distance, seemingly unaware of the noisy pub around him. "I also think that he's trying to make more weapons or try to mass produce them. We didn't know what weapon dealers did in Earth so we thought it was best to ask you. Once again, I think you agree that Forgotten Ones can be dangerous depending on which side of the law they stand."
Sebastian let out a long sigh as he placed his third empty pint on the table. "So what do you want from me? Should I kill him for revenge? Will you give me a quest like that?"
Jin saw the situation turning cold and interjected. "I'll order more ale. We still have side dishes. What do you want Leo?"
"Ah thanks, Jin. I'll just have mead if you're buying." Leo quickly turned back to Sebastian. "Do you know about the adventurer tag and its binding status right?"
Sebastian took out his tag as he circulated his mana through it, bringing the familiar screen into view which was only visible to himself. Curious as to why Leo suddenly wanted to talk about it, he looked at Leo while waiting for him to continue.
"That was actually technology brought back by an Otherworldly adventurer, among other bits of knowledge they brought back."
Sebastian raised his hand to signal Leo to stop. "When you say Otherworldly adventurer, this was when your ancestors started exploring other worlds deliberately right? Not a Forgotten One like me?"
"That is correct. They brought back knowledge that inadvertently shaped our world. Rivie would have told you about this period. Did she tell you in detail?"
"Only about the cataclysmic accident between Kalonia and Earth when they tried to open a gate of sorts."
"That's true, however, there was more before that." Leo sipped his mead as he continued. "With the knowledge they brought back, Kalonia flourished in leaps and bounds nobody ever expected. We had impressive means of transport that could traverse long distances in mere moments, people were able to cultivate their bodies to peaks which nobody even knew, and everyone lived in comfort due to this new information."
Sebastian looked at Jin who was busy with the side dishes and drinking his ale across him. Jin returned his gaze as if to reaffirm that Leo was telling the truth. "I've only read about it in books and heard it from teachers. Though we have had relics turn up now and then."
Satisfied with his answer, Sebastian turned once more to Leo. "If that's the case, then why are we struggling with magick like these, and why can't we keep mutated beasts in check? It sounds like everyone had a grand time back then."
Leo nodded as if expecting the answer. "That was what the problem was. Everyone became too complacent because of their newfound comforts that they forgot what Kalonia was. Nobody checked on the mutated beasts population and their growth. When hordes of mutated beasts attacked the population, everybody was too distracted. Some people focused on technology, others on physical abilities or new magick techniques, and others simply on new types of food. Nobody could defend properly and we estimate that 2/3 of the entire population was wiped out in a span of days. In that situation, otherworldly information resulted in a mixture of good and bad, as it made Kalonians too lax in their defence. However, the surviving knowledge passed down through the generations has continued to shape our world. "
Sebastian also nodded as he processed the information once more and imagined the scenario in his mind. Seeing him quiet, Leo continued with his speech.
"That brings us back to the rogue Forgotten One. People who come from other worlds literally have a world of new information that could affect Kalonia. Nate is a dangerous force, so much that leaving him unchecked will result in destruction we can't fathom. Unfortunately, this was just the beginning so we need you to find him."
"And when I do find him? Report back to you like what we were supposed to do with Erimead Village?" Sebastian looked at Leo with tensed muscles.
"If possible. Although I won't get in the way with your actions, letting us know how to deal with him in the future will help us a lot." Leo placed the pile of papers in front of Sebastian before he continued. "I'll leave his journal and notes with you. I've already made copies for us to keep. Please have a closer read, preferably without alcohol involved, and let us know about your plan. I'll leave the members of this quest to you."
Sensing that the short impromptu meeting was finishing, Sebastian placed the papers in his winter coat pocket and prepared to leave.
"Ah, one more thing." Leo raised his hand to stop Sebastian from leaving quickly. "Visit me in the adventurer's guild so we can update your tag with the last mission you did. It was a success and you still have your reward with me."
Sebastian's brows furrowed as he tried to remember the details of the last mission he did. "Wasn't it a failure? We were supposed to simply check on Erimead Village and report back to you what happened."
It was Jin's turn to interrupt the conversation as he scratched his head. "In a way, we actually did that. We found out what happened with Erimead Village and even brought back the survivors. Mel, Aima, and I have already updated out tags. We didn't want to rush you so we waited for an opportunity to come by to let you know."
Sebastian smiled as he wore his simple winter coat and stood up to leave. After receiving the complimentary [Detoxify] from the pub's in-house healer, he made his way back to Mel's house with only his snow-crunching footsteps to accompany him.
***
TANG! BAM!
Sebastian took a step back and assessed the situation. Jin was still holding his wooden buckler as he held a wooden spear on his other hand. Reeling from Sebastian's blows, he took a step back before he charged forward!
'I knew you would charge. [Shield Bash] is it? [Augment] max physical reinforcements.' Sebastian's new found skill set resulted in his muscles bulging to almost twice the size that Mel, who arbitrated the practise match, audibly hearing the muscles expand.
BLAM!
Sebastian took the [Shield Bash] head-on with his two wooden swords.
Jin was obviously surprised as he looked at Sebastian who didn't even budge and took his skill head on. 'It's like I just hit a boulder! This is crazy!'
'Tense right shoulder and left leg. He's going to duck down to break my balance and stab me with his spear. As if I'd let you!' Sebastian pushed still-surprised Jin back with raw power behind his two swords!
Since Jin placed all his weight on his left leg to prepare for his [Spear Slash], he was forced to take a step back instead.
BLAM! BABAM!
Sebastian didn't waste time as he struck Jin's buckler with his right sword and spun around to hit him with his other sword. With the momentum, he turned once more to roundhouse kick him while he was still off balance.
Thud!
Jin fell down and when looked up, Sebastian was already pointing his two swords at his neck and chest, with a blank stare. Even if it was a practice match, he clearly felt the killing intent.
"Stop! Finished!" Mel took a step forward as she placed herself between Jin and Sebastian.
Sebastian released his skill and tried to help Jin stand up by offering his hand, however, Jin shook it away. "It almost reminds me of our first match. Although now the results are stark different. You actually broke my left arm. I couldn't block your blows, they were monstrously strong. I need to heal myself before I can stand up."
Sebastian looked down and saw that Jin's left forearm was indeed bent at an awkward angle and started to swell. It happened most likely when Sebastian used his raw power then. Feeling apologetic, he tried to open his palm and made the motions to cast [Heal] on Jin, when Mel stopped him.
"You can't cast spells yet right?"
"Ahh. You're right. Then I'll leave Jin to you then." Sebastian went inside the warm house as he prepared tea for the others. While waiting for tea leaves to steep, he thought back to his private training just a few days ago. He still couldn't cast offensive spells, however, he could cast [Heal] only to himself. Checking his mana flow once more revealed no abnormalities whatsoever. Unable to find the source of the problem, he continued to focus on his [Augment] skills like before.
Jin and Mel entered the house and took their places on the dining table as they warmed themselves up with the tea.
"So Sebastian, what is the next plan? Are you really okay with us helping you subjugate Nate?" Jin opened and closed his left fist to check on it while he was asking Sebastian.
"You know what he is capable of, and you also know that he is a Forgotten One like me. It saves me having to brief other people. I simply ask that you agree to my condition."
"Which was to leave him to you when we found him right?" Mel was holding her warm mug with both hands, trying to warm herself.
"That is correct. I will try and make him talk, however, I will use 'unconventional' means. Leave him to me." Sebastian tensed his muscles as he thought about his plan to extract information from Nate when they captured him.
"Just be careful though. While we're thinking of how to capture him, what does 'fuck' in his notes and journal mean? He uses it a lot, and I don't think he means sex in this context." Jin held the notes up, looking at the unknown word.
"Ah, that's actually used as a curse word from Earth. We simply say it when we're angry or flustered." Sebastian snickered as he thought that they found it strange when it was merely crude language.
"Wow, he does use it a lot." Mel picked up some papers and leafed through it, looking for instances of the word. "So what does a 'fucking midget' mean? He said he found one and this 'midget' is making his weapons?"
Sebastian picked that paper and started rereading it. "It's also a derogatory word, I think he meant a dwarf. We need to find this dwarf who manufactured his weapons. He might have answers to lead us to him."
"Where should we look for him?" Both Jin and Mel looked at Sebastian with expectant eyes.
"We should ask a dwarf that we know that has connections," Sebastian answered with a smile.
***
A few days later, in a dark alley, a small hooded figure was running with three burly men chasing after her.
"Don't run too far missy! Nobody can hear ya in these back streets. We'll need our stamina for when we catch ya!" One of the muscular men took out a small dagger when they started to close in on her.
Her hood came off and revealed a dwarf with red hair, who was pretty if you didn't count the fact that she looked flustered and was sweating buckets at the moment. 'I knew I shouldn't have made that deal! Stupid coin! This will be the end of me!'