Zera looked at the large amount of monster cores she had. 'I don't want to absorb them one at a time..I wonder if I can select them all at once.'
Zera then pulled out the 8 total slime cores and the orc core.
--- Absorb ---
Do you wish to absorb--
'Stop asking me permission. Just absorb them when I hold them unless I say not to.'
....
+19 Image
+15 Kinetic
+4 Energy
rank 1 Achieved.
Rank 2 (1/20) Rank 1 monster cores
Unlike the previous absorptions Zera felt a considerable overpowering feeling in her body. 'Wow I can actually feel how much stronger I just got . . . You could get addicted to this'
Cleo silently observed Zera while they started to walk back to town where their home base is located. Zera noticed them walking and caught up. The 4 idly conversed while Cleo silently watched the group.
The walk was brief and full of conversation. It was to the point Zera didn't even notice they were nearing the town until they were at the entrance. The entrance is a large stone archway with a metal barred gate with bars around 3 inches thick. Two guards were posted in front.
The guard on the left stated to the group, "Show your entry permits."
Each of the group showed their permits but when it came Zera's turn.. She had no clue she required one.
"I don't have a permit, sir."
"3 Red Coins for a one week entry permit."
'Red coins?! I don't have that.. I hope Elemental Coins count as change or something.'
"Uhm... Will these do?" *she pulled out a stack of small dime sized colorful coins which constantly changed color.
Everyone in line behind them now, and the guards were stunned. Even Cleo glanced over.
The guard stuttered, "I--I will have to get change from the bank across the street to exchange that particular coin. Wait here please."
Zera sighed loudly. "Alice.. Did I do something dumb again."
Alice replied a moment or two later than normal, "No .. well. Maybe. people will probably want to rob you since you hold 10000 red coins in your hand for each coin . . ."
"Whaaaat?! But--" Zera leaned to whisper to Alice, "But I have 100 of these . . . Should I not have them?!"
Alice simply rushed Zera in and told the remaining guard to keep the change. Upon entry Zera got a glimpse of the first town she's visited in Aeriol. Buildings stretched along the 3 forked pathways closely together. Variations between marble and fairly bricked housing lined each pathway. Almost all of the buildings had various kind of insignia on the left pathway. on the middle there seemed to be various signs indicating shops and merchandise. Further down the middle there seemed to be stalls crowded with people. The place Alice led me was the right side. the buildings had no special logos or signs. It is just housing it seemed.
Cleo walked beside Zera and explained. "We aren't an official team and we don't have enough funds for an official building so we rent out a house and use it as our base. Don't got a problem with that, do you? If you do then just go elsewhere."
"I'm perfectly fine with that. I think it sounds cozy doing that kind of thing from a home environment, no?" Zera was confused what the issue was with basing at home.
"Heh. You'll come to disagree in the next hour or two." Cleo smirked casually and stopped at the third house on the right, putting her hand on the door knob and pausing. "Alice, the usual. Ready fireballs."
Alice readied her staff toward the door and formed two decent head-sized fireballs. Cleo swung the door open and several people with various weaponry barged out in large quantities. they tripped over eachother and piled at the door.
"Get the misfits! We need to rid the guild of these idiots!!" One bulkier toned man had shouted that in the back of the group.
Alice chuckled bitterly. "Keep trying, you might get us in 10 years." The fireballs surged forward. one collided with the crowd in the door and exploded, while the other zooned over them and hit the remaining people inside. The pile-up quickly got up and ran away as the smoke cleared, shouting things like 'Demon!' and 'Its the Flame Monster! Run away!!'. Most of them were burnt all over.
Cleo nodded in approval, noting the one heavier set guy with a strap going across his shoulder and a battleaxe on his back still there. The man had no shirt on, hour classic barbarian look. "Brat, your initiation test is to chase that lump of overgrown meat out of our base."
--- Mission Granted ---
Title: Recruitment Task
Description: A frequent invader has struck your allies base to be accepted by the crazy leader.
Reward: 50 Elemental Coins, Battle Achievement: 1 Human Defeated
Cleo cringed a bit and commented, "Why do I feel like something just talked trash about me.."
Zera thought to herself, 'Man even other worlds have these creepy sixth sense chills.'
The bigger man noticed the tiny twig of an initiate and laughed, feeling like he gained control of this situation. "You're telling me I'm free to fight this novice? Hah! How generous of you." He unlatched his 4 ft long battle-axe off it's holster and launched a careless attack. Zera could tell he underestimated her.
Zera watched him run toward her and nimbly shifted to the side, avoiding his strike by a significant margin. She was sort of bugged by a thought lingering in her mind, 'Why does he feel so slow. He looks really powerful.'
Alice shouted nervously, "Be careful Zera! He's fought Cleo several times!... Although he didn't last long."
Cleo shook her head to Alice and pointed to Zera's swift footwork which made light of any attack the brute sent her way. "She has no stance what-so-ever.. It's like she's just hopping around. I get the chills watching this. It's like she's playing with a toddler. I hope her strength isn't also similar or she will break the walls or floor when she hits him..."
The man heard Cleo comment about it being like playing with a toddler and got enraged. He swung his axe in a huge sideways arc, slicing through the brick hallway wall on the left side and going straight to Zera's head.
But unfortunately Zera also felt like testing her newfound strength. She caught the axe head with her pointer and thumb. The axe's steel head suddenly shattered like glass. The man fell backwards in shock and Zera aimed to punch him straight in the head. As her fist descended on the crook Cleo's hand caught Zera's. A powerful shockwave of air cracked the sliced wall and blew it apart. The man scrambled to get up and he ran as fast as he could. "Y-You're all freaks!"
--- Mission Completed ---
Obtained 50 Elemental Coins
Obtained Achievement: 1 Human Defeated
"Oi. Brat. What was that. Did you plan to kill that man?' Cleo glared with ferocity equal to that of a deadly beast.
"W-wait what ..? There's no way that would've killed him. I made sure I pulled my punch a bit."
"Hm... I'll let it go this time." Cleo let go of Zera's hand and walked back outside. "Pulled her punch huh..." Cleo was staring at her bright red palm which was now completely raw and slightly damaged. "What kind of monster did you guys find near the World Tree.. No.. I'll rephrase it to you three. How did you find her. Any evidence of where she came from?"
Kale was the first to respond. "We found her naked on the ground. A horned lizard was actually hiding behind her for a while we noticed. We seemed to have startled it and it attacked her."
Cleo crossed her arms, staring in the distant sky toward the Third World Tree. "So that's what the familiarity was.. They finally did it. Things will only get worse from here. I accept the girl known as Zera into the Misfits guild as our 5th member, even though our base is now partially destroyed because of them."
Zera overheard the comment about her destroying the home and immediately noticed the destroyed hallway. "I'm sorry! I'll pay for it!", while thinking, 'I did that!? How will my force look after I rank up a lot?!'
Cleo took a long look at Zera once more and shook her head in disapproval. "Alice will take you clothes shopping. You seem to have borrowed a jacket from us but that's hardly any cover."
Zera panicked internally, 'Clothes shopping?! As a girl?! I've never done this before! How do I approach this kind of topic.."
"Let's go Zera. I'll help you pick out clothes. You lost your memory, yes? So your decision making may not be that good yet."
'Thank you Alice for being so oblivious. . .'
"U..uh yes. Please help me with that Alice."
"Of course Zera. We're friends are we not?"
They then went to be a clothing store on the middle road of the very oddly organized town.
Alice dragged Zera into a particular women's apparel and lingerie store. Alice picked out various clothes for Zera to try and ended up approving all of them with the obsessive remark, "That's so cute on you!" or, "That outfit was MADE to be worn by you!" and after twenty minutes of selection the clothes piled up.
"U..uhm.. Alice. I think we have enough now." Just then the store clerk, a young woman with long blonde curly hair walked up. "There's a black winter jacket over there which would look very nice on you. It tends to get quite cold around this time of year anyways." She pointed to the particular jacket which came with a pair of newly invented blue jeans.
'Jeans.. I did not expect this medieval looking place to have jeans. Well maybe it'll be more comfortable now that I'm a girl.' Zera walked over and brought the clothes into a small room and tried the jacket and jeans combo. "Very nice.. The jeans are really tight but I suppose that's what girls prefer. I'll need to cut a hole for my wing."
Zera walked out and Alice practically tackled Zera in a hug. "That is amazing! That should be your mission clothes! Stuff you venture out in. It has to be. That makes you look so cool!" Zera paid the clerk two Elemental Coins. One for the clothes, allowing the business to keep the change. and one for the recommendation. It practically brought the service woman to tears. Zera could barely escape the rain of thank you's. Alice had to drag Zera out since she didn't seem to want to leave someone crying.
"It worked out well enough I suppose. can you burn a hole for my wing to go through?"
Alice did as she was asked and Zera's wing spread out from the jacket. Everyone in the vicinity stared with a mixture of reactions, most of which bordered adoration and fear.
Zera took the lead upon noticing this and ran back to the house, dragging Alice in tow.