At the northern borders of the Thalorian Empire, in the town called Seasky.
The town strived because of the waters that weren't too far from it. The sea creatures, other aquatic animals, sea plants and rich soil was an attraction for a whole lot of people.
Even though it was close to midnight, almost every corner of this town was bustling with life.
In the taverns, people watched the singers while eating the popular fish meals and drinking beer. On the streets, adventurers and town folks came together under the night's watch, exchanging various tales.
From his window of his room on the top floor, and with his passive senses that had limited range, Finn detected all of this, making him smile as they spent their time.
Just then, he heard Anatalia call for his attention, "The meal you requested is here."
Finn saw a plate filled with cooked aquatic beasts that were sauced with spices specially grown in this town. The plate had roasted small fishes, boiled tentacles, and vegetables that looked as alluring as the others.
"Oh, thank you!" Finn said, as he accepted.
He was in his small Jellyfish body that had some of the organs of the White Fenrir so his taste buds were working very well. Finn didn't need to eat much, but he was still interested in eating what he found interesting.
Anatalia, who tried to maintain elegance, was also attracted to the sight of this food.
Truly, meals made from aquatic animals and fishes were one of the best this town had to offer.
There was a small table in the room, that was where Anatalia ate, and Finn sat on one of the two beds in the room, eating there.
Finn slowly ate, while Anatalia had already cleared the three servings she had.
Seeing Finn eat with pleasure, she forced herself to say something, "H-hey. Now that we are here, what do you want to do next?"
Finn glanced at her and said, "Well, I'm actually looking for something, so yeah, I'll be looking for that?"
"So you want to venture around?" Anatalia asked.
Using his tentacles to form a thumbs up, Finn replied, "Pretty much. That's the plan for now."
"If it's like that…" Hesitatingly, she said as she bowed, "Will you become an adventurer… with me?"
Seeing this, Finn's tentacle let go of the fork he was holding. "Eh?" He blurted.
"A-ah, I don't mind if you don't want to," Anatalia panicked, "but you see, since I also want to adventure, we could do it together if you don't have a problem, I-i'm actually not that bad in combat…'
As Anatalia rambled, Finn thought, 'I mean, I was planning to ask you anyways so this works too. I'll need someone to act as my proxy in multiple situations. Heh, a jellyfish can't just walk… float into a library and say: Don't mind me, I'm just reading. That's absurd.'
Finn's thoughts were cut short as he heard Anatalia say with slight dejection, "I don't know what to do for now, I don't want to wander aimlessly too. I just thought if I could stick along a bit and actually see what the world has to offer, then I'll know what to do."
"I see. Alright, no problem!" Finn stated.
"Really? You're okay with it?"
"Of course. I'll be needing an expert of this world with some stuff, so let me burden you!" Is what Finn wanted to say, but he changed the last clause to "I hope I can rely on you."
Anatalia didn't mask her joy and replied, "Oh, yes. I have no problems!"
After that Finn nodded at her, then continued eating his food. It was until after he was done that Anatalia spoke again.
"Sorry for interrupting your meal earlier."
"It's no problem." Finn shrugged. "We'll be together for a while longer, don't sweat the formalities too much."
"Alright, if you say so." Anatalia said. "About what you said you were looking for, what is it? Maybe I have some idea."
Since Anatalia was associated with people who were possibly looking for clues of the barrier, he answered her, "It's an item relating to god. I got insights that something existed back in the forest. I lack any clues regarding this at the moment. What do you think?"
In the modern day, there was only one god people generally still accepted as a god.
Anatalia pondered for a bit, then replied, "I have no idea what that is and the people I was with don't as well."
"Figures," Finn muttered.
Believing Finn was slightly down because she couldn't help, Anatalia added, "Don't worry too much. Maybe after becoming adventurers and having access to their library, we'll find a clue. I hear clues for this kind of stuff are actually left in history."
Finn agreed with this reasoning. But without knowing much, he asked, "How do we become adventurers? Is there a place to sign up?"
Not shocked by his ignorance, Anatalia responded, "Yes, we'll also go through some tests. There are various places we can do this, but I suggest we go to the western regions, there are more adventurers there so there'll be more information."
Having no problem with this, Finn said, "I'm alright with that. When do we leave? How do we get there?"
Anatalia clasped her hands and smiled, "Tomorrow, we leave."
Finn asked puzzledly, "Why so early? We're yet to eat much, talk less of exploring the regions."
"I'm not comfortable staying on this land." Anatolia said.
Roughly understanding her situation, Finn sighed, "Sheesh, okay then."
"I'm sorry for troubling you," She humbly said. She added, "There aren't trains, airships or gates here, we'll have to wake up early, take a carriage, ship or boat to another town and find our way west from there. We should still have enough money for now."
Her former supervisors were people who liked to squander money after completing their missions so they carried a lot on them. For low ranking adventurers, they had a lot of money because of the influence of those who hired them.
Although he was reluctant to leave here so early, Finn agreed with Anatalia's plans. He knew for sure that he would be coming back to this area in the future, this was his motivation to feel positive.