— In the periphery of the Undbok Forest
Owen was checking out his progress. It was a considerable increase because Riang wasn't there, so the perfect opportunity to exert as much energy as possible presented itself in front of Owen.
He didn't stop running as fast as he possibly could for about 30 minutes.
His boots even left noticeable footsteps on the ground because of how much he had already run in large circles.
==========
[Endurance Training Progress: 48/100]
[Strength Training Progress: 39/100]
[Movement Speed Training Progress: 98/100]
==========
"That looks promising.." Owen felt great after seeing that his work had some effect.
However, he still felt that his accumulation was still slow. But it can't be helped. Real life is different from a game, so he couldn't just run into a wolf pack and start hunting for EXP unless he wanted to die so badly.
No, he had to take it slowly. If he chose not to be careful, he could only pray that he could still respawn. And to be fair, Owen doesn't want to test out if he could.
This was the reason why he kept running for about another hour.
For the past few minutes, he noticed the different training progress bars being filled at different paces. Owen remembered that it was indeed a feature of the original game.
The right kind of training would benefit the training progress that is closely related to it. That was the reason why his movement speed progress bar filled up faster than strength despite only being trained for a shorter time.
Because he didn't eat or drink anything for a day, his debuffs got stronger as well.
Owen inspected himself and just like usual, there was no tiredness or soreness no matter what he did.
His mood was considerably positive at this moment. "While it is great that I don't starve, but that would mean that I have to keep myself from eating to maintain my strength… I don't think I could resist if something really delicious was in front of me."
Because he drifted at the thought of food, he unwillingly imagined the mashed potatoes with gravy and cheese from Loraine's.
Owen's face contorted into slight disappointment for himself.
He sighed, "Ah– the temptations… Screw my life, honestly…"
"It's not like it's already screwed. I mean, I literally have organ damage right now." Said Owen as he turned to look at the list of his debuffs.
==========
(Debuff) Organ Failure (Liver)-2
(1) Decreases soul energy regeneration, stamina regeneration, health regeneration, strength, and endurance by 5%.
(2) Reduces poison and disease type debuff resistance by 10%.
(3) Inflicts [Pain]-[2 seconds] in a random interval of: (1-5 minutes.)
(4) Lowers the effectiveness of consumed items, acters and potions by 5%.
Duration: Until "Organ : Liver" is fully healed.
(Class Ability Activated)
(1) Increases soul energy regeneration, stamina regeneration, health regeneration, strength, and endurance by 5%.
(2) Strengthens poison and disease type debuff resistance by 10%.
(3) Inflicts [Relief]-[2 seconds] in a random interval of: (1-5 minutes.)
(4) Lowers the effectiveness of consumed items, acters and potions by 5%.
==========
(Debuff) Thirst-2
(1) Weakens vision, movement speed, agility, cognition and hearing by 7%
(2) Continuously drains the character's water reserves at a rate of 3% per minute.
Duration: Until the thirst bar is filled by half.
(Class Ability Activated)
(1) Strengthens vision, movement speed, agility, cognition and hearing by 7%
(2) Continuously replenishes the character's water reserves at a rate of 3% per minute.
==========
(Debuff) Hunger-2
(1) Weakens energy regeneration, health regeneration, strength, endurance and vitality by 7%
(2) Continuously drains the character's essential nutrients at a rate of 3% per minute.
Duration: Until the hunger bar is filled by half.
(Class Ability Activated)
(1) Strengthens energy regeneration, health regeneration, strength, endurance and vitality by 7%
(2) Continuously replenishes the character's essential nutrients at a rate of 3% per minute.]
==========
Even though he's no longer hungry or thirsty, the debuff persists because the game interface says so. By going through that logic, that must be why it applies to other 'realistic' debuffs as well.
Despite what his stats are saying, this was his peak state at the moment.
Owen treasured it by constantly exercising throughout the hour. He eventually filled the training progress bar for movement speed by doing so.
*Vhoom…*
A brand new panel appeared beside Owen's head.
==========
[Movement Speed Training Progress: 100/100]
[Movement Speed Training Progress:
+1 Movement Speed
==========
[Movement Speed Training Progress: 0/105]
==========
After that notification, the progress bar reset itself to zero. But now, it required an amount of 105 progress so that it could give out another point for movement speed.
Owen stopped running. It took two seconds for him to gradually slow down and fully stop.
"I don't feel any different.." Owen jogged for a little bit to see if anything changed.
So far, he didn't know if it was just a placebo effect, but he felt slightly faster. Which could only be described as the slightest of the slightest increase.
As for how he adjusted to this world, he didn't feel as attached to comfort provided by his modern lifestyle. His gaming addiction is now replaced by the desire to train his combat skills. His appetite for food remains just as persistent though.
Most of the time, he suppressed these desires and focused on what's important.
"Riang and Oslan wouldn't be here for another hour. I wonder what I can do in the meantime…" Owen was about to scratch his face using his left hand before realizing it once again.
He switched to his right hand as he lamented over the inconveniences of not having both hands. "I guess it's true that you wouldn't care about something until you lose it."
Owen opened his inventory and took out the [Iron Battle Hatchet].
*Clink!*
==========
Level-8, Iron Battle Hatchet (Common) - Whoosh! Do you hear that? Whoosh! That's the sound of this hatchet swinging nothing but an empty space. It is craving for blood and it's your job to appease its desire.
Additional Effects: N/A
Special Effects: N/A
Damage: 6-19
Armor Penetration: 5-7
Attack Speed: 5
Weight: 5.3 grams
Damage Type: Chop, Blunt
Durability: 74/80]
==========
"What kind of description is that?" Owen found the text to be quite 'unique'.
He took off his scarf and unbuckled the leather belt on his waist that served no purpose but to look fashionable.
With some difficulty, he put the hatchet on his left forearm and secured it tightly with the scarf and belt.
This was the weapon that killed Yuhmbir.
Owen shook his forearm erratically to see if it was properly secured. Because of how tightly the belt and scarf wrapped around the hatchet, it wouldn't be flung out when he did so.
Owen approached a nearby tree and swung his forearm at it.
"Swhick!*
The hatchet struck the tree bark, leaving a long white mark on it. The hatchet budged slightly from his forearm, but that was all.
This little experiment confirmed that if he struck a person, the hatchet wouldn't fly off because the strike was a little too hard.
Owen now took out the [Woodcutting Hatchet] from his inventory to practice. When the inventory panel appeared, he reached his hand out and the hatchet was within his grip.
Fixing his hold on the hatchet for a bit, he began to try swinging them with each other. He tried to attack with both of them in a cross direction, some diagonal swings and how good would it be to cut with by quickly turning the hatchets around to try and react to incoming threats better.
After a few swings of both hatchets, he shook his head.
"This range is not good at all… No wonder Yuhmbir managed to get the upper hand in the first half of our fight." Owen put both of his arms down as he tried to boil his mind into bubbling up better ideas.
Owen returned the [Woodcutting Hatchet] back to his inventory and got the [Plunderer's Iron Sword] to replace it.
==========
Level-8, Plunderer's Iron Sword (Common) - Empty their pockets, threaten them to reveal their treasures, that is what a plunderer does best. Stuff your pockets with riches with the help of this blade.
Additional Effects: 2% Chance to inflict [Tetanus]
Special Effects: N/A
Damage: 9-14
Armor Penetration: 7-23
Attack Speed: 5
Weight: 0.8 Kilograms
Damage Type: Chop, Slash, Blunt, Thrust
Durability: 99/120]
==========
"When I thought that the hatchet's description was funky, this is worse." Owen had no idea what was in the mind of whoever wrote these descriptions.
With the sword now in his hand, he tried swinging it around to get a feel for its weight. The weight of the sword was roughly one kilogram and it was quite balanced.
He pointed the sword forward, the sunlight shone on the blade, giving it a sharp glare.
Owen tried to re-imagine Yuhmbir with his sword. With both of them having longer reach, Owen wanted to see if he could somehow win without relying on tricks.
The imaginary Yuhmbir stepped forward and swung his sword downwards with both hands. Owen didn't even block and let the sword 'slice' him.
It was already a failure from the start.
He knew that if he blocked, the sheer force of Yuhmbir's swing would knock his sword away and it would give Yuhmbir a large enough opening to slice his neck off. That was a glaring disadvantage because he only has one hand to hold the sword with.
Owen closed his eyes and tried to simulate a battle once again.
Another Yuhmbir materialized out of thin air in front of him.
This Yuhmbir stepped forward and swung his sword downwards at Owen like before.
But this time, Owen evaded the strike. He stepped backwards, but he realized that this was the same blunder he made back then. The imaginary figure of Yuhmbir thrust the sword forward and stabbed him.
It was another failure.
"Oh come on… it was so much easier doing this with Melvin.." Owen sighed deeply and stood up once again.
He wasn't willing to stop now.
"Maybe it's because of the lack of experience and knowledge when it comes to a sword. I didn't realize how damn hard it was to do this…" Owen recollected his thoughts and prepared himself once again.
This went on for a while and happened through numerous attempts.
But sadly, all of them failed miserably.
Even if he dodged, Yuhmbir would counter it by doing some kind of maneuver to hit him. Not only that, even if he decided to block, Yuhmbir's sheer strength was able to break through his defenses and hit him regardless.
He was lost on what to do.
Owen gritted his teeth as the figure of Yuhmbir slashed through his neck.
He failed once again.
"What am I doing wrong?" Owen knitted his eyebrows together. This was the first time where he was truly lost and unsure of his circumstances.
His life has been smooth sailing so far. All he did was memorize information, apply that to real life and it would be done after that. People always regarded him as a genius, and that he was talented. It was a pity that he didn't have the motivation to pursue a certain goal besides gaming.
No, it wasn't a pity, he chose what makes him happy and that was great.
But now, that same strategy didn't work at all.
He was puzzled.
He didn't know what to do.
Just as he was trying to figure out what action he should take next, he suddenly heard the voice of a young child speak to him.
"You should not be doing it like that…"
Owen turned around and saw a young boy that looked exactly like him. The boy's eyes were wide open and unblinking. There was a certain vibe that made it seem as if the boy wasn't human. It was unnatural, uncanny looking.
The boy wore a white shirt, black shorts and shoes with white socks. The boy's appearance was very fitting for a hotel themed horror movie.
When Owen saw who it was, he snorted with obvious contempt over the boy. "What does it have to do with you?"
"Why do you reject me with that attitude in particular? Does it hurt you so badly to accept that my assessments are correct?" The boy spoke in a monotone voice. He didn't make any excessive movement like he was a monolith.
"I can eventually figure it out just fine… I don't need you or your help." Owen once again tried to simulate another battle.
'Yuhmbir' appeared as usual and attacked.
Of course, he failed like what happened several times before. But it wasn't like he didn't improve. In fact, he lasted a bit longer this time.
When Owen got his right arm slashed off, he stopped in his tracks with frustration.
"That surely appears as someone who is devoid of the need for guidance." The boy said in a bland tone without giving an additional reaction.
"I can see his mistakes clearly. They are very wrong and have a lot of openings. I am surprised that you do not have the correct methodology and thinking to try and find them. Not only that, you could not even see your own mistakes." The boy added.
"I said, I don't need your help! Leave me alone will you?!" Owen snapped back angrily.
The boy stood there silently.
He then opened his mouth to say, "The fact that my presence is summoned indicates that you need me. Why are you so stubborn? It is not like I am merely doing this for myself, I am here because I am doing this for us."
"You can lie to anyone else, Owen."
The boy's voice did not change, but it felt strangely colder.
"But not to yourself…"
"I am sure that you know deep within what you would like to admit, you understand that I am a part of this body that you cannot cut off completely."
Owen walked over to the boy and pointed the sword right up to his face.
"Then I just have to bury you deeply. You're a part of myself that I reject very much… You're not human, you don't understand the meaning of family, you don't understand the concept of love or forming a meaningful connection with another person, you don't see the point of having friends at all. In fact, you don't see the importance of any of that."
"You're a monster who prioritizes benefits for himself without caring about the people around you. I swear, if you were gone, I wouldn't have to… I wouldn't-" Owen paused as he began to have flashbacks.
The images of a school balcony began to imprint itself into his mind. It left a nasty feeling like a lingering bitterness in his mouth.
Owen held his sword down and heaved out a depressed sigh.
The boy tapped his chin with his finger, pretending to think. "You seem remain in that point in time. What we did was necessary. It was his fault to begin with."
"No, it's all your fault. Not mine… Now can you just leave me alone?" Owen held the sword forward and turned around.
The boy sighed, finally giving up.
But even that sigh was a mere imitation of human disappointment.
"Understood." The boy then began to walk away into the forest, slowly disappearing from his view.
Soon, he could no longer be seen.
"My only advice is to practice your footwork and to use a shield because you are severely limited by stats and proper equipment. Yuhmbir relies on preventing your movement, so be attentive to your feet. The hatchet on your left forearm is too passive, so a shield is the best way to make use of it." The boy's voice still lingered on to Owen's ears despite being out of sight.
"You have to rely on something too. Not everything can be done by going alone."
After those echoing words in his mind, the boy could no longer be heard.
Owen's expression was conflicted. He didn't want to admit it, but 'he' was right.
Looking at his left forearm right now, he knew that it was pointless trying to deny the truth. Using his inventory, he stored the hatchet back in it.
Owen took the belt and scarf from his forearm using the inventory and wore them how a person normally would. It looked as if the scarf and belt disappeared from his forearm and just magically reappeared on his waist and neck.
He thoroughly tested the functions of the inventory and found out many interesting things that he could do with it.
Apparently, he can 'unequip' and 'equip' certain accessories, clothes and armor whenever he wants to.
Another great feature of the inventory is save slots for anything equipable called [Fast Equip]. A great way to show how this works is with Owen's forearm with a hatchet being secured by the belt and the tough black scarf.
Owen 'saved' this save slot for his equipment. Meaning, as long as he had the hatchet, belt and scarf, he would be able to have it ready even if the three items are in his inventory.
Why is this a feature made by Abyssal Confinement? Well, because they encourage different builds to be made, [Fast Equip] is a way to switch from one build to another in one second. Given that they have all the components of the save slot for their [Fast Equip], of course.
Getting back on the current situation…
Owen took a deep breath, he visualized what would happen if he had a shield on his left arm instead of the hatchet. The imaginary figure of Yuhmbir appeared once again.
This time, Owen decided to take the initiative. He covered himself with the shield and ran forward with the intention to crash against Yuhmbir.
Yuhmbir moved to the left to avoid Owen's charge and slashed at him. However, Owen used the shield properly and blocked the sword with a counterattack.
Yuhmbir couldn't see Owen's sword because it wasn't in his line of sight. Because of that, he didn't manage to react to the sword thrust aimed towards his stomach.
*Clishnk!*
The hauberk managed to stop the sword from completely stabbing through his body, but it still left a shallow cut.
Yuhmbir tried stepping on Owen's foot to prevent him from moving away, but all Owen did was bash his shield against him.
Yuhmbir almost fell out of balance but he managed to regain his footing quickly. That was until his vulnerable thigh was slashed, giving him no reprieve.
Owen stepped back and looked at Yuhmbir who wasn't able to move because of his injury. Right now, he could see multiple ways to kill Yuhmbir, so there wasn't a need to finish him off because this was just a simulated scenario in his head.
The result of this battle was far from his expectations. Owen saw the value of a shield through this battle and it made him want to get one as soon as possible.
"I guess I have to think about saving enough money for a shield now…" Owen touched his chin as he was deep in thought.
While he didn't like to admit it, the boy's advice was the most logical path to take.
While he stood there in place, he heard someone call his name.
"Owen? Are you there?"
Owen immediately brought the sword back to his inventory.
When he turned to look at who was calling him, unsurprisingly, it was Riang and Oslan who just finished their training for the day.
Oslan didn't look as tired as Riang, but he was the one who had a frown in his face. Probably because he performed badly as usual.
"Oh, it's you two." Owen waved at them as a greeting.
"I brought Oslan along since you said that you wanted to talk to him anyway." Riang gestured towards Oslan.
When Oslan saw Owen, he nodded at him and said, "I'll try my best to help."
"Then I appreciate that." Owen smiled.
"I'm assuming Riang couldn't tell you about the route that we'll be taking, correct?" Owen asked while holding his left forearm as he twisted it to relieve the muscles.
"I didn't get the chance to. And even if I tried, I don't have the map, so it'll be difficult to understand." Riang explained her side.
Owen looked at them both, "Since that's the case, why don't we go to your place so that you can tell Oslan about it?"
"Sure, I don't mind." Riang said with a shrug.
"Then let's go so that we can discuss it." Owen's delivery was straightforward.
The three of them walked back to Wiunlen.
Riang was an observant person so she mentioned the ground and asked, "Were these footprints made by you? There's so many of them."
"Yeah, I was just running until you two got here." Owen did not see the need to deny it.
"Nothing else but that? Is that what Teacher Tiduer said about good cardio?" Oslan remarked.
Owen furrowed his eyebrows after hearing such a familiar word. "You guys know what cardio is?"
Not expecting what he said to elicit such a reaction, Oslan decided to deny it. "Well, not me… I heard it from Riang and the teacher."
Riang dove into her memories and easily remembered them.
She explained, "I think I've read of it from those books about facts of the human body written by–"
Owen cut her off.
"It's from Ichor Selenkyr isn't it?" He guessed.
From what he saw, it appears as if his name is as far reaching as his influence.
However, contradictory to his expectations, Riang disagreed.
"What? No.. It's from Geru Randil." Riang said while looking at him in a bizarre manner.
Owen was not mentally prepared for a wrong answer, hence, it took him by surprise.
Blinking twice, Owen braced himself for the consequences as he asked, "Who's that?"
Riang looked at him with a look oozing with disbelief and underlying remnant of unknown disappointment.
Despite this, Riang remained reasonable and answered like the civilized human that she is, "He's the one who scored the highest in the entrance exam and the one who graduated as an Imperial Doctor from the Selenkyr-Abran Global Medicine and Health Academy."
"..." Owen could sense her emotions just from the way she spoke. It was like he was getting screwed over for being uninformed. "I mean, still close enough.. Where would the knowledge come from anyway?"
Riang's expression broke, she was now looking at him strangely. "I don't get your point."
Owen noticed that he may have dug a deeper hole for himself.
Quickly making up an excuse, he responded, "I meant that Ichor Selenkyr must have taught it to those medical teachers. If anything, he's the genius."
Riang no longer looked at him in a judging expression. She just stomached that Owen must have really low information coverage for common knowledge.
She relaxed her posture and agreed, "It's undeniable that he is a genius, but are you sure you aren't getting things mixed up?"
"What do you mean by that?" Owen unknowingly dug another pitfall for himself.
Riang groaned. In her entire life, she had never met someone so knowing of the complicated and yet so oblivious to those clear for everyone to see.
She elaborated patiently, "Ichor Selenkyr only funded the academy. While Laklisra Abran, a medical prodigy is the one who provided her knowledge to teach to those willing to learn from the academy. She is a 3,000 year old doctor who has dedicated all her life to save other lives."
"But you have to give Ichor some credit too. If it weren't for him believing in her talents, she would have never become who she is now without his help." Riang added.
Owen nodded as he touched his chin. "I understand now."
"Huh.." Oslan was also enlightened. "That is something I would have never known if it weren't for you."
Owen patted Oslan at the back. "Don't put yourself down Oslan, Riang is the daughter of a commander under a duchess. If you had the same upbringing, you would have been smarter."
"Are you implying that I'm stupid?" Riang looked back at him.
"I'm implying that Oslan has a stronger drive for knowledge." Owen had experience with Jazmine, so his tongue was glib enough when it came to retorting.
Oslan scratched his head.
"Thanks but… Haven't you seen my performance? What does being smart help with if I'm not able to swing a sword?"
Owen shook his head. "You can still take on logistical work or those jobs that require more brains than muscle… Plus, your stamina is great, you can probably get more pay from construction jobs."
Oslan sighed dismissively, "But I want to fight… That's my dream."
He then threw two jabs into the air playfully.
Owen respected the fighting spirit that he was showing.
"Didn't I say that I can make you stronger? I'll make sure you get a supply of acters in the future so that you can awaken your latent strength." Owen reassured him.
This caught Riang's full attention. She looked at him with widened eyes for a second.
"Wow, that's a big promise.. Owen, are you sure you're not spewing baseless words?" Crossing her arms, she gave Owen a stare with the intent to discern his truthfulness.
Owen merely shook his head at this.
"You'll find out soon enough if my promises are baseless."
Riang clapped her hands sarcastically. "Alright, I'll be witnessing your benevolence in the future then.. Don't disappoint me."
Owen scoffed. "The only disappointing one here is your height."
Riang's bearing was instantly shattered, her expression freezing before dropping down into a blank stare.
Like a creaky screw, she turned her head at Oslan and spoke in the flattest tone that she could possibly speak in.
"Oslan, punch Owen for me."
Oslan looked at Owen, sizing him up and down.
"Yeah… I don't think I have the qualifications for that." Oslan steered sharply away from trouble.
Owen's eyes landed upon him with interest. "So you would if you can?"
"Also no." Oslan blocked the question with a hard pass.
Owen shrugged with a grin. "See Riang? That's why I like Oslan better."
Rolling her eyes, Riang scoffed. "Why? Because he's more agreeable?"
"No, because his height looks like it didn't stop as a toddler." Owen chuckled.
Riang narrowed her eyes at Owen for a good amount of three seconds.
"Sleep with your eyes open."
"Hahahahahaha–!" Owen burst out laughing.
…
Soon, they reached Riang's grandiose apartment complex of cheap wood with a limited water supply.
Naturally, "grandiose" was purely sarcastic.
The three of them walked up the stairs and stopped at the right room where they were stalled for a bit because Riang tried unlocking the door with an upside down key.
With her frustration growing, she flipped the key and opened the door with ease, letting the two of them inside.
Riang opened her drawer and placed the key in it before going to her sheets of wool to sit on.
Oslan looked around and said, "Nothing changed at all… It still looks the same after a year."
"Oh? You've been here before?" Owen asked as if he was interested.
"Yes, but not frequently. There's nothing to do here at all, so we just play outside." Oslan nodded.
"It's like you're saying that my place is boring." Riang said as she tied her hair into a ponytail. She then grabbed a piece of cloth to wipe the sweat off her back that she accumulated from their training.
"That wasn't what I was trying to say. Name at least one thing that's entertaining to do in this room." Oslan opened the window to let in some light.
Owen chuckled. "He's right, you know."
"Whatever." Riang reached over to the drawer to get the map.
Once she did, she spread it on the ground and paved the corners with her hands to straighten it.
"Oslan, so here's the plan that Owen made. I'm not shameless enough to say that I contributed anything, so Owen gets the credit here." Riang glanced at Owen before she continued.
She coughed twice and pointed to the two places representing the Eslahai and Silmoun kingdoms. "So, we're here and our goal is to reach this place. To get to the Eslahai Kingdom, we need to cross these areas."
Riang's finger dropped on the Undbok Plains. "According to the route, we will go around the Undbok Forest through the Undbok Plains."
"Eh?" Oslan was visibly confused. "Wouldn't that take longer than just going straight through the forest?"
He noticed that the plains were much larger than the forest, so it felt counterintuitive.
Riang understood his reaction and patiently explained. "I thought so too at the beginning. But according to Owen, the rock crabs that live inside the forest are very dangerous and they aren't worth the risk. Instead, we can use the buffalos in the plains as our rides and we can even eat them. It makes sense after you hear all that."
"By the way, rock crabs like to live near trees because they are parasitic towards most robust plant life. You won't be able to find them in the plains." Owen felt the need to add in that snippet of information.
"Oh, so you do know basic vocabulary." Riang raised her eyebrows while looking at Owen with a condescending air.
As if what she said slid off his dense aura, Owen leaned back on the wall and waved it off. "Yeah, yeah, just explain it to him… No use in insulting me for it."
Oslan now looked as if he got the reason behind that decision.
Riang continued, "The next huge hurdle to our journey is the river as rocky as a wart-filled bull's back which is the Piurma River. Although it may look like the best way to cross this place is by crossing the thinnest part of the river, Owen's route includes us going through the rockiest parts because it would act as a way to prevent us from getting swept by the water and as a bridge."
"How are you sure about this?" Oslan expressed his doubts upon listening to it.
"I've done it multiple times before, so both of you can cast away your worries." Owen said directly.
Owen wasn't lying. He did cross the river plenty of times in Garden of the Gods.
Oslan decided to trust Owen on this one. "I'll take your word for it then."
Riang began to explain the way to cross the Masgracia Mountains next. "Owen told me that the best way to get past the mountains is by using soul concealment methods. That's why before we embark on our journey, we will first go to Mysteriea for those methods."
"What exactly are the methods that we'll be using?" Oslan wanted to know the specifics.
"That's a good question." Riang also wanted to know. She looked at Owen and waited for his answer.
Feeling their gazes land on his skin, Owen had to tell them.
"Soul aura compression runes, or any kind of wearable accessory that can achieve the same effect. There's quite a number of those in Mysteriea because they pride themselves in soul energy research." Owen's words quickly dispelled Oslan's and Riang's doubts.
"Makes sense." Riang felt the words were logical.
"Oh, okay." Oslan nodded.
Riang began to speak about the route once more, "After the Masgracia Mountains, the Ruins Of Tarmat is the place that we have to worry about. Thankfully, Owen said that as long as we hire a mercenary named Kejlar Yehedt, we're going to be fine."
Riang shortly gave Oslan the summary about Kejlar and the dangers surrounding the Ruins Of Tarmat.
After hearing all of that, Oslan grew even more curious. "How do you know that? Owen, are you somehow related to this mercenary?"
Owen shook his head. "Nope, but he's the one of the only mercenaries with integrity and a good reputation there that doesn't stab your back. For a place filled with criminals, someone we can rely on is important."
"As for your first question, unlike you and Riang, I travelled around a lot." He added.
"You really are a man with a knowing brain.. So once we hire this man, Riang could be said to have safely returned home?" Oslan felt that it was too good to be true.
"Precisely." Owen confirmed it.
"Huh." Oslan decided not to go against Owen's plan too much and asked one more question, "When do we leave?"
Riang was the one who answered this time. "Our original plan was to earn 5,000 copper coins because it can support two people through the trip to Mysteriea. But now since you're here, we might have to earn 7,000 coins. That should last us if we eat frugally."
Owen laughed. "Who told you that? I can take care of myself. I'm sure both of you know about my storage magic, correct?"
Both of them nodded.
"Then as long as we have 5,000 copper coins, we're set and ready to leave any time. I can feed myself just fine, so you guys are the only ones who should be worried about food." Owen's words eased Riang's worries a little bit.
"What does that have to do with storage magic?" Riang asked, feeling a bit suspicious.
"There's a specific reason why I cannot." Owen replied mysteriously.
"And that is?" Riang raised an eyebrow.
Owen grinned.
"It's a secret.. Just trust me on this one."
She clicked her tongue, "Tch– if you weren't here to help me, I would've forced you to show it." Riang let it slide for the moment.
Oslan found the situation a bit more fortunate than he initially anticipated. "So how much do you guys have at the moment?"
"4,232 copper coins…" Riang answered with a sigh.
"Oh, that's not a problem then. I have 1,209 copper coins saved." Oslan casually spoke up.
Owen and Riang stared at him blankly.
"..."
The silence was broken with Owen's laugh.
"Hahaha–! Then what are we waiting for? Let's set off tomorrow morning." Owen was pleasantly surprised. He turned to Riang and said, "See? Turns out you're one step closer back to your home."
Riang felt a rush of happiness inside her which made her look at Oslan differently.
"I guess you can say so… Thank you for this, Oslan. I'm very grateful." Riang expressed her gratitude to her friend.
Oslan only smiled before saying, "It's the least I can do for you."
While watching on the side, Owen thought with a cheeky smirk.
'Not bad kid, maybe you don't need the help of a wingman.'