"Child, I knew I was right about you. I am so grateful that a place as peaceful as Adra Village could produce a brave soul like you who does not shy away from hardship. You have proven that you possess the strength and courage to venture beyond this place. It is time for you to see the world outside. But remember, no matter what happens out there, there will always be a place for you here in Adra Village."
"Grandfather, the chief..."
Listening to the village chief's stirring encouragement, a layer of moisture glazed Lily's eyes, her voice slightly choked up.
For Lily, Chief Haren held a special significance unlike any other.
It was his gentle encouragement, his warm smiles, time and again, that had sustained her up to this point.
The thought of leaving made her feel a pang of reluctance.
John, on the other hand, was much more nonchalant about it all.
Having faced life and death countless times, what was a trip to Calia?
Besides, once there, they could easily purchase magical teleportation scrolls to return at any time.
Why make such a fuss?
Of course, John refrained from voicing such mood-breaking thoughts and simply patted Lily gently on the shoulder, comforting her softly, "We'll come back often."
"So, we're off then, Grandfather Chief. Take good care of yourself."
"Don't worry. As long as your names are not yet celebrated throughout all of Mount Olympus, nothing will happen to me. Go now, my child, and embrace your future!"
Meanwhile, in Calia City.
Helena flicked her fiery red hair, which shimmered like the sun, and found herself instinctively gazing towards the gates of Calia, hoping to catch a glimpse of that familiar figure.
"Should be about time, right?" she mused.
"Helena, are you still waiting for that John? Are you really that interested in him?"
"Of course, I am! I've invited him no fewer than seven times—seven times! And he's declined every single one. Naturally, I'm intrigued."
Helena spoke while watching Exiled Immortal, who was engrossed in decoding, "He must have some secret story!"
"In the idioms of our Dragonia, this is called playing hard to get. Maybe he's refusing you just to pique your interest."
"Well, he's succeeded—he's certainly caught my attention!"
"...Who would have thought that the renowned captain of Calia's Pioneer Squad would be a maiden lost in thoughts of spring every day."
Exiled Immortal sighed lightly, setting a newly unlocked puzzle box on the desk.
After much effort, the box that was supposed to contain treasures yielded only a common-tier gear.
Disgusted, Exiled Immortal tossed the worthless trinkets aside.
"Helena, don't you think our squad's expansion is a bit too rapid? We started with just five people, and now we're over twenty. And, I feel like Yuta is deliberately targeting us."
"Targeting? What kind of targeting?"
"Haven't you noticed? All the players who joined our squad lately have been exclusively female."
At this, Helena furrowed her brows in thought, then realized, "No wonder, something did seem off."
"Right? I suspect Yuta is up to something behind our backs. I advise you to check into it. If it comes to it, I'll take him down myself, to protect the honor of the Pioneer Squad."
"Let me observe a little longer. If he truly crosses the line, I'll handle it personally. By the way, about that hard-level dungeon, how's your exploration going? Any leads?"
"The process is stuck; it seems we're missing some necessary precursor events or a special item. I haven't found a way to continue yet."
Exiled Immortal shrugged and calmly added, "Otherwise, with my skills, why would it have taken this long?"
"That makes sense."
Helena nodded slightly, her confidence in Exiled Immortal's abilities unwavering.
Even among the original five members of the Pioneer Squad, Exiled Immortal was the strongest, second only to her.
As one of the only two SS-level combat talents in the group, Exiled Immortal's [Windwhisper] talent showcased its early advantages splendidly.
As an archer who could manipulate the wind, Exiled Immortal could, when exerting full power, even stir up a small hurricane.
In dungeon exploration, this ability put him well ahead of Qing.
Of course, the trade-off for such early power was a weakening in the mid to late phases.
In contrast, Qing, who possessed the SS-talent [Roar of Ares], had a much larger growth potential.
"Let's take it slow. Although we call ourselves pioneers, facing this entirely unfamiliar world, we need to pace ourselves."
"I thought you'd be in a hurry. You always say you want to stay ahead of everyone else. I thought you'd be very interested in being the first to clear dungeons."
"I am interested, but some things still come down to luck."
That night, in the outskirts!
Without a word, John stripped the armor off a skeleton and fitted it onto Lily, then with a forceful throw, he hurled the last of his iron throwing knives straight into the face of a fissure pig.
With a gruesome squeal, the monster's massive body heavily thudded to the ground.
"That was the last one, we should be safe for now."
[Ding, you have annihilated the fissure pig tide, EXP + 2000, leveled up to Lv20]
John knelt on the ground, gasping deeply, beads of sweat from his brow pattering down, spreading out upon the earth.
Unluckily, just as John and Lily were nearing Calia, they stumbled upon a small horde of nearly thirty fissure pigs charging at them.
If not for the armor obtained from the Monster Cave, John might have been able to save himself, but protecting Lily would have been difficult.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, Johnny, but you're hurt..."
Lily looked at the gash on John's calf, torn by the tusk of a fissure pig, biting her lip.
"It's just a scratch, no big deal."
"Don't move, let me heal you. Just wait a bit, Johnny, it won't hurt soon."
[Asclepius, deity of healing, I praise your noble name, let the light of healing descend upon this earth!]
Lily clasped her hands together, her eyes tightly shut as a gentle light began to emanate from her palms, slowly enveloping John.
In the next moment, the wound on John's leg healed at a visibly fast rate, leaving not even a scar behind.
What puzzled John, though, was that along with the healing of his wound, his mind power seemed to have significantly strengthened.
Seeing this, Lily's heart leapt with joy, and disregarding her own weakness, she threw herself into John's arms.
"Too, too tight!"
Seeing John's face turn red from her tight embrace, Lily quickly stepped back, her cheeks flushed and she knelt awkwardly, tears brimming in her eyes.
"I just need to rest a bit, it's mainly because I've just become an Alchemist and I'm still not quite used to it."
Now, although John had become an Alchemist, the problem was that he had no materials.
Solvents, item enchantments, weapon poisoning, and other such methods were all unavailable to John at the moment, otherwise, this encounter might not have been so strenuous.
As for Lily, her combat abilities were in a rather awkward position.
Before undergoing a second class change, a Priest's offensive capabilities are severely limited, mostly effective only against undead creatures, and practically useless against regular monsters.
This means that even simple dazzling spells are more useful than a priest's attacks, and naturally, John couldn't expect too much from her.
Once their energy was more or less restored, John struggled to his feet.
After collecting materials from the fissure pig, they prepared to continue on their way.
"Calia is just ahead. We should be able to get there before daylight. Once we're in the city, we should find a place to stay first. We'll likely need to spend a considerable amount of time in Calia."
"Johnny, I have a question. Don't we need to rest or eat in this game world? Why don't I feel tired at all?"
"This is a bit complex to explain, but you can think of it like this: right now, what sustains us is the energy stored in our bodies in the real world. The longer and more intensely we engage, the greater the consumption on our bodies, which is why we need a place to settle down. By resting at night, we can stay in the game world longer than others."