Although I was just a 1* weakling, I was confident in finding a party due to the Tree training program. The government supports the Tree students by giving them access to the Lairs as long as they have a party when they go inside, which would obviously take the other members' effort time. Thus, when you have a Tree student with you when entering a Lair, the hunters get compensated with extra money for their efforts.
" Oh, yeah." I reply as I look at the party in front of me.
" Do you plan on going into a Lair? "There are about four people in the party in front of me. The one I was talking to was someone who looked like they were in their mid-20s. There was a sword strapped to his waist and he was wearing a full-body suit that looked incredibly expensive. There's also someone who has floating orbs rotating around them. It was glowing green, so I'm guessing that's a healing orb ability or something. I could see a burly man wearing medieval armor with a huge shield strapped on his back, standing behind the others.
And lastly, there's also a small man with the head of a hawk. He seemed to notice I was staring at him as his face suddenly shifted to a woman.
" Uh, Yeah," I say as I pretend like I just didn't get caught staring oddly at her. I've been here for about a week and a half and I've seen some weird sights like this one, but I still can't seem to get used to it.
" Oh great, would you like to join us then?" He said as he looked at me with expectant eyes. I guess they really want that extra cash, huh? Well, it's not like I need to have a specific party regardless. There's nothing in particular that really happens in the main plot at this point, except Krean wreaking havoc, but as that was already dealt with, life in the academy should be boring for the next few weeks.
"Yeah, sure," I replied, so that I could get this over with. The Lair we'll be going into seems to be a Horned Rabbit Lair. I didn't complain, as they seem to be ready for this expedition, so I'll just rest at the back, kill a few horned rabbits, and then earn a quick buck. Rabbit hide and their long horns sell for a lot, so I couldn't care less.
So before we continue, we still have another member joining us. He might know you too. " The Leader, or the guy with the full-body armor who introduced himself as Kinmed, looks at me as we wait at the portal to the Horned Rabbit Lair.
Do I know him? What does he mean by that? Was it Daniel? Or am I going to meet someone from before the awakening? As I try to remember the people I was acquainted with, nothing seems to enter my mind.
"I'm sorry, I got lost for a bit." A voice escapes from someone at our side.
" Oh, there he is. Come here. Let me introduce you to the new guy joining us for this trip. " Kinmed leads the man in question. And now I know why he said we might know each other. I know this guy the most out of everyone in this world.
" You might not know each other, as your ranks are quite far apart, but this is Mon and this is Sol." He says as he points at us relatively.
Oh, I know this guy more than you think. Even his future, I know. This sounds incredibly weird to say, but it was exactly how I said it.
" Are you sure you want to go with us? "You're pretty much on the same level as us, so I'm afraid we'd just be a nuisance to you." Kinmed asked Sol worriedly. He's quite the nice one, it seems.
"No, it's fine, the rules need us to have a party, so I do need you guys." Sol reassured Kinmed as he switched his attention to me.
" Nice to meet you." I raise my hands, trying to act normal, ignoring the awkwardness. After he saw me beating up Krean, we met here.
Why is this guy here in the first place? Wasn't he supposed to stay in Tree for the first few weeks? Trying to... hunt Krean...
Damn, this is a real world and I keep forgetting. I can't always rely on the story when an anomaly like me changes the flow of the story in the first place. If I change something in the plot, I can't expect the others to just sit and lie down without any purpose in life. They have their own emotions and cognition, and I should pay attention to everything I do.
Before everything runs out of my control...
Anyways, now that we're all here, Come and get ready. We're going into the portal now. " There were no others in the portal, so we went through the guards without having to fall in line.
Kinmed went through the portal, and he immediately vanished. The others followed, and only I was left. I shortly followed after, and I'm not going to lie, it was not a very pleasant experience. I felt motion sick even though I was already used to traveling due to the amount of transport I had to do during my acting days.
Well, it seems like I was still okay, as I can see Sol on his knees holding his stomach. It was extremely amusing to see the normally perfect and strong main character struggling for his life from just a portal.
Wooooshhh
As I try to relax from the motion sickness, a cold breeze suddenly hits me in the face.
"Welcome!" to the Horned Rabbit Island. A floating island at the top of where Tokyo was supposed to be before the 3R's " We're exactly on the edge right now, and I suggest not looking below you."
I'm not going to lie, this was insanely beautiful. It was still bright, although it was already night back in Terra, symbolizing that we were quite far away from there. It looked just like a normal forest on the grounds, but the horizon and the view looked incredibly amazing. You could see huge trees and a mountain range extending far away from the horizon.
" Why can't we look below?" Sol asked Kinmed after calming his stomach.
" Well, the ruins back in Terra are heaven compared to the city down below. " Kinmed said, which only raised our curiosity more.
" Anyways, we'll start hunting if you guys are good," Kinmed says, indicating the start of...
Our hunting...