The journey home was rather peaceful. The casual arguing between Daniel and his team made it rather fun and interesting. It only took a few minutes for us to exit the wide forest.
Not long after, we arrived at what seemed to be a city. I said it like that, as this looks more like some ruins or a landfill with all the debris and old litter just sitting around. Thankfully, it still looks a little lively, as the number of people strolling around was not small. They were mainly hunters trying to look for a living or the public security team making sure it was safe in this area.
...
" It's quite the sight to see, huh? " Daniel, who seems to have noticed my expression, wanted to ask what I thought of it.
Was it that obvious that it's the first time I'm seeing this? He's quite the perspective one, huh? The ruins, or this area, are relatively safe. As it is on the perimeter of Terra, which is dubbed the stronghold of humanity, the hunters make sure that this place is safe and devoid of dangerous monsters.
" Yeah, isn't that the Golden Bridge? " I pointed at the famous bridge, which looked like 10 storms ravaged it for 10 years straight. However, the number of people seems to have stayed the same.
I knew of this bridge not only because of its real alternative, but also because it was an important part of the coming future.
" Oh yeah, that was quite famous ages ago, huh? We call it the Red Bridge now. It's the landmark which means we are near Terra. There seem to be suspicions of there being a Lair underneath it. That's why there's a bunch of people gathered around there. I think those are the Joloe family's people. They own that place after all. "
This isn't good. If I remember the first arc correctly, it started with the discovery of the Lair. It seems like I have to push my plans a little earlier than I wanted.
...
As we move through the " city ", I see all types of buildings. From the Golden Bridge, which was originally from the States, to small shops from what seemed to be Asia, judging from the language on the signs. The Rupture was the one responsible for all this mess. The movement of tectonic plates changed the entire state of each country. It was not only the cities that got separated but also military camps, which weakened the military prowess of the countries. Even if they wanted to help, the language barrier stood firm, making communication and cooperation near impossible.
I still couldn't believe I was now a part of this mess.
...
" We arrived " Daniel smiles as he points at the massive city in front of us.
" Welcome to Terra Mon " They smile at me in the modern city in front of me. Tall glass buildings stood on the ground; modern cars drove through the busy streets as if nothing was wrong; and hologram billboards covered the entire sky.It was futuristic, but not to the point of being impossible. It looked like it was about 10 to 20 years in advance of the real world.
The buildings were still made out of cement, aggregate, and metal, whether it was a small shop or a huge multi-story building. It was simply marvelous; it was like an oasis in the middle of all of the destruction and ruins.
" We were sent to lead you to Tree asap, but we still have this " Daniel says as he points at the corpse of the Shrieker behind us. The corpses of monsters are highly valuable. Their materials are unique to themselves, making them highly sought-out. And because this was an elite beast, a step above the normal beasts like goblins, slimes, kobolds, and so on, it will sell for a lot of money, at least for a common student like me.
" Should we trade it for some money? I'll split it up with you guys. " I smiled, thanking them for helping me sort this out.
" Nah, we don't need the money. We're getting paid enough for this rescue mission anyway. " Daniel dismissed the idea of splitting the money.
" Besides, your temperament doesn't fit your age. And the way you carry yourself seems to me like you are very confident. It's only my second time seeing someone your age maintain their composure while strolling through the ruins. Besides, I'd rather have the favor of a future pioneer, don't you think? " Daniel smiles as he holds out his hand.
" Hah... You are indeed very perceptive, Mister." I smile as I shake his hand. It seemed like he was testing me with all of the questions he had presented earlier.
We went to a building that looked like a mall. In front of it was a hologram with the words "Freed" floating on the front part of the store. It's none other than the number one shop in Terra. It's the shop that appears in almost every single arc of the story. I mean for a good reason, as you could physically buy anything that a hunter needs in this store. From weapons to potions, you can buy them all. It's massive, and the number of people strolling inside fits its huge size. They were wearing normal civilian clothes, but they all had weapons strapped to their bodies.
There were multiple stories in the shop, but the first floor immediately grabbed my attention. The monster corpses filled up the entire area. From small parts of normal monsters up to my full Shrieker corpse lying down on a metal cart, all lining up to trade it for money in the many different stalls.
" Don't you have a space pocket for this? " His friends asked him embarrassingly. I didn't mind the attention we were getting, as I was quite used to it already.
" Yes I do, but it's too big for my Space Pouch. We'd have to slice it to fit it in our Space Pouch. Besides, don't you want to be famous? We'll start getting offers from huge guilds! We won't be freelancers anymore. Besides, everyone saw it already. " Daniel reassured his teammates.
As much as I wanted to help them be more comfortable, cutting the Shrieker's corpse wouldn't do as the price of the corpse would plummet. I needed the money to execute my plans to fix the " ability " problem.
" It's fine, we're up next. We wouldn't stay any longer. " One of his teammates helped Daniel reassure the group.
...
After a few minutes of checking and counting the price for the corpse, we successfully traded for 10,000 in cash for the monster corpse. It might look high, but it's pretty reasonable. I mean, they only gave me a single piece of paper for it. Were there 10k bills in the story? But yeah, the corpse of the Shrieker was perfect, and the high difficulty of hunting plus the chances of dying was enough for that price to be reasonable.
Although, it's barely enough for me to do that...
Barely enough to enter the Red Bridge Lair.