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Sylanwood, Diremaw: North Section, Time: 10:00 AM
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Ezra. Was. Pissed.
He was having a rough time as he had been asking around the town but yielded zero results.
"Sorry, mate. Didn't see any suspicious out of my eye." The farmer stated, putting the hay bale into the wagon.
"I see. Thank you for your time." Ezra stated before walking away, rather than spending his frustration on something other than the stranger.
He decided to lean back against the alleyway wall, looking up at the sky.
"I shouldn't have..." He muttered before stopping himself from his rant. He can't just blame James for this. Sure, he drags them into a dangerous eye view but that's what adventure gonna be like.
'I do just hope this doesn't become a trend for us-' His thought was interrupted when a man in a mask with a fur hood jumped down.
"Hmph, It seems the outsider lap dogs are alone to be taken." The man pulled out a dagger, ready to kill Ezra at any moment.
"How convenient." Ezra in a deadpan tone, tilted his head in amusement before Ezra's shadow started to morph into something.
A shadow hand burst out of it, grabbing the man whole with a titan grip, causing him to drop the weapon entirely.
"Now, you shall tell me everything you know before I turn your lung into a paste." Ezra threatened, walking closer to the man.
The masked man, now desperate, gasped for air as he pleaded, "We...took her...up to the Mountain of Diremaw, the Frozen Slope! It's...an old fortress...where no one dares to venture!"
Ezra's shadowy grip loosened just enough for the man to breathe. "Why there?" Ezra demanded, his eyes piercing into the man's soul.
"The boss wanted her for some ritual! Said she's got special blood or something!" the man stammered, fear evident in his eyes. "Please, just...spare me!"
Ezra's shadow hand released its hold on the man, letting him slump to the ground. "If you've lied to me, your fate will be far worse than death," Ezra warned, his tone ominous.
The masked man quickly scrambled to his feet, nodding frantically. "No lies! I swear!"
Ezra, with a sense of urgency, decided to head back to where Ace was searching. The man was let free but couldn't move as the shadow hand already crushed his bone.
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Sylanwood, Diremaw, Time: 10:10 AM
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"Ace! I found where they took Elowen!" Ezra exclaimed, panting heavily as he arrived on the left side of Diremaw. He looked up to see Ace in front of a store, holding a bunch of shopping bags.
"You were shopping while I was running around?!" Ezra couldn't believe it; Ace had been shopping the whole time while he was searching for clues.
"Oh, you meant they took her up to The Frozen Slope?" Ace asked, uncertain if both of them were on the same page.
Ezra was shocked that Ace somehow got the same information as him. "How did you know?" He almost suspected that Ace had been loafing around.
"Some guy in a white mask tried to rob me, but I beat him up and asked him for info, and that's how the story goes," Ace explained, pointing towards the alleyway. "I've also been shopping for some climbing gear to prepare ourselves." Ace extended his hand toward Ezra, gesturing to help him out.
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Sylanwood, Diremaw: Castle's Entrance, Time: 10:30 AM
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As the party approached the castle, they found James and Mianne waiting for them, looking rather satisfied.
James greeted them, "Hey, you two. Anything to report?" James was ready to go.
Ace grinned, clearly pleased with their findings. "Yes, we've got a lead on Glacial Vigorous. They're further up in the mountains. It'll take us some time to reach their location."
Ezra, having prepared for the journey, had brought along brown fur coats and hiking kits for everyone. The rest of the group praised his foresight. "You might need these since we're going up a mountain."
"That's some impressive preparation, Ezra," Mianne commended, impressed by his thoroughness.
Ezra nodded in acceptance but remained mostly silent. Ace could only glare at him for Ezra taking all the credit. Meanwhile, all the members of The Lucky Inquisitors donned their brown fur coats.
James tried to put his brown coat over his armor but it was too small for the coat to go over his armor. "Come on..." James was trying his best.
Mianne chuckled at his simplicity and decided to help him out. "Alright James, how do you take this off?" Mianne tried to find the lock on the armor before finding it on his back.
James's armor detached itself as James let out a huge sigh of relief. It was very stuffy in there. "Phew! I forgot how much easier it is to breathe without the armor." James could finally breathe in the fresh air.
Mianne, however, was starstruck at how close she was to James's body. The sweat on his well-toned body and a visible 6-pack made her brain almost melt just by looking at it.
"Hot...C-Cute f-face and s-s-sexy..." Mianne kept muttering as she shook, not knowing how to take her eyes off James's body.
Mianne was steaming and had a giant blush on her face before she quickly put the brown coat over James's body, sitting on the ground and hiding her face inside her knees. "D-D-DONE!"
"Aw, thanks Mianne!" James breathed in and out, feeling more relaxed without wearing that confining armor. He decided to put the armor pieces into his backpack for later use.
Seraphina and Leo exchanged determined glances. "We'll send backup from any nearby kingdom as soon as possible," Seraphina assured the Lucky Inquisitors.
The group thanked the royal couple for their support and assistance. With their plans in motion and determination in their hearts, the Lucky Inquisitors continued their journey further up into the daunting mountains, ready to face the challenges that awaited them.
Outside of everyone's view, Sugar Enterprise had been covertly observing the situation.
Sugar, with a mischievous grin, commented, "It seems we have some royal trouble in here." He casually indulged in another piece of Diremaw's Delight, savoring the delectable treat.
While they were being watched, November tasked Cefie with a crucial mission - to thoroughly scan the mountain's size, area, and altitude.
Cefie efficiently analyzed the data and provided a detailed estimate. "I have calculated that it would take us about 2 hours at maximum to reach the top,"
Cefie reported. "However, it's worth noting that the wind currents become stronger at higher altitudes. There's a 25% chance that we might get blown away."
Sugar's skepticism grew as he considered the risk. "This might pose some trouble," he mused, rubbing his chin.
"But we'll leave our fate to chance! Toodies, prepare the unicorn! We're going to follow them and capture that charm and the baby pinecone dragon!" Sugar declared, raising his fist dramatically.
Toodies, ever the practical thinker, began tending to the unicorn, offering it carrots and grooming its mane. "There, there..."
Sinnodal, who was also munching on Diremaw's Delight, couldn't help but voice his concern. "Are we going to... die?" he asked with a nervous sweat forming on his forehead.
November, with her characteristic playfulness, chuckled at Sinnodal's question. "Haha! We ask that question every time," she replied, further unnerving Sinnodal.
"I don't know how we've managed to survive this long," Rosco added nonchalantly as he settled into the golden captain.
Sinnodal sighed, realizing that this might be his new reality. Sugar's Enterprise decided to discreetly tail The Lucky Inquisitor, keeping a slight distance as they ventured forward.
Some villagers observed the peculiar sight of a group of seemingly well-dressed people, sparking rumors and curiosity about their true intentions.
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