The following morning, Angie opened her eyes and found Morgana getting ready to leave the room while the rest of the teenagers slumbered.
"I'm going out for a walk. Wanna join me?" Morgana invited, prompting Angie to quickly rise from her bed and change without asking where they were going.
After leaving the inn and leisurely walking on the bustling main street for a few minutes, Morgana stopped in front of a blacksmith shop, supposedly the best in Scar Town.
The shop was small, with an abundance of weapons and gear that adorned the walls and occupied every available surface, giving the space a sense of enchanting clutter.
Behind the counter sat a bald man, wholly concentrated in his craft, with a sparking tool in one hand that seemed to be welding with precision a strange-looking pistol on his desk.
He wore a leather apron and a magnifying glass that hung from his head, his attention unwavering at the sight of new clients.
"Are you getting a new weapon, big-sis?" asked Angie with anticipation.
"Not exactly. We are here to pick you guys a weapon," she responded with her carefree tone, finally catching the clerk's attention behind the desk.
After a few minutes of rummaging through the shop's inventory, Morgana gathered all the weapons she was looking for.
Two sleek blades for Kaede, since her class was "Assassin," a sturdy one-handed sword and a shield for Ray the warrior, a new "Rookie Healing Staff' for Conrad, and a novice wand for Angie.
'Heh, they are just picking up gear for rookies…' Thought the store clerk as Morgana approached the counter with her items ready to pay.
"It will be ten aetherium!" exclaimed the blacksmith, clearly jacking up the price with a sick smile.
"Yeah, sure," said Morgana while gently placing one gold coin on the counter worth ten aetherium and storing the weapons in her item box in front of the clerk, whose eyes widened in shock.
"Umm, big-sis… Are we really using these?" asked Angie as she inspected the wand in her hands.
"Only for today. Once you get to around level 40, I'll give you some of my good weapons…" said Morgana out loud as they both left the store, leaving the blacksmith completely bewildered at Morgana's claims.
'Did she say only for today? Until level 40?' he wondered, as he knew the weapons he just sold wouldn't do any good for someone above level 15. 'Nah, there is no possible way that little kid would level up that much in one day. I must have heard wrong…' he shrugged it off and returned to his work.
When Morgana and Angie returned to the inn's room, the rest of the party had already woken up and changed into their clean adventuring gear.
"You all lost your weapons to those cultists, right?" asked Morgana to all of the party members, who nodded in unison.
"Well, I got this for you…" she said while pulling out the new weapons from her item box. "You are gonna need it today."
The teenagers were both excited and slightly embarrassed by Morgana's gesture. Despite having their own funds, Morgana had taken it upon herself to acquire the weapons without hesitation or expecting repayment.
"Where are we going?" asked Kaede with both anticipation and wariness.
Morgana grinned, an expression that conveyed both mischief and reassurance. "To a dungeon, of course!"
__________
Before departing from the town, Morgana suggested stopping by the Adventurers Guild to see if there were any quests available in the vicinity. To their delight, they discovered a quest posted on the board that specifically requested "gnoll's fangs," with the added incentive of "as many as possible."
"Hey, Tina," Morgana greeted as she approached the counter, handing her the quest sheet. "I'll take the kids to get some training..."
Tina glanced at the quest and frowned. "I see..."
Puzzled by Tina's reaction, Morgana asked, "Is there a problem?"
Tina hesitated for a moment before expressing her concerns. The quest had been posted by the branch of Orion's Church located in Scar Town, and Tina harbored reservations about them.
"I get it. So I would be helping them if I completed this quest…" said Morgana as she placed a hand on her chin, pondering about different options. "Why are those guys able to have a church here, though?"
Tina nodded, confirming Morgana's understanding. She explained that Scar Town had become part of Gremoria's Empire fifty years ago, shortly after the empire's formation. One of the empire's key policies was the freedom of expression, allowing diverse beliefs and cultures to coexist within the country.
In principle, this policy was not inherently bad. However, opinions varied when it came to groups like Orion's Theocracy, who had been responsible for the destruction of numerous small cities and the slaughter of their inhabitants for not adhering to their beliefs.
The Empress of Gremoria was convinced that allowing Orion's Theocracy to spread their beliefs within towns peacefully would be more manageable than engaging in an all-out war with them. Hence, they were permitted to reside in different cities of the empire as long as they did not cause any trouble.
However, Tina was aware that the materials requested in their quests were ultimately exported to their land, where they would be used to create potions and weapons for their soldiers.
'Right… You can use gnoll fangs to create stamina potions…' thought Morgana as she returned the paper, declining the quest. "The experience would have been decent, but I can just go a bit harder to make up for it…" she muttered.
"We'll be back later tonight. Send my regards to Roland!" Morgana exclaimed as she left the guild with the Freebird party following closely behind her.
As soon as the party found themselves outside the city gates, Morgana summoned her Steed Prime along with the cart for everyone to hop on, making its way to the dungeon at a decent pace.
While everyone inspected their weapons and mentally prepared themselves for a fight, Ray asked Morgana where exactly they were going, to which she responded with a mischievous smile, "To the Nightfang Stronghold…."
The teenagers had heard about that place from the Adventurers Guild, and it was supposed to be a perilous dungeon that spawned hundreds of gnolls whenever a party ventured inside.
"If I remember correctly, the stronghold went from level 25 to 40…" muttered Morgana, adding to the anxiousness of the teenagers.
Noticing that Angie was gripping her wand tighter, her nerves clearly showing, Morgana used a skill called "Barrier" around each party member, telling them that no ordinary gnoll could break through that.
After a two-hour journey, the party arrived at a cave entrance nestled between two weathered stone columns. Standing next to it were two heavily armored guards responsible for monitoring the comings and goings of the dungeon.
As the teenagers presented their credentials, Morgana stowed away her cart and mount. The guards, noticing their bronze cards, made a snide remark saying that the kids were seeking their own demise.
Just as the guards were about to return the cards, Morgana pulled out her metallic-red card. "No worries, they are with me," she said with a playful smile as both guards inspected her credentials with astonishment.