Since Neo Tyran was the last city of humanity, it was quite diverse, so a bay wasn't surprising, just like other habitats such as forests or mountains.
The bay of Neo Tyran was located in the southern part of the city. Martyn had only been there a few times. In fact, he had only gone twice when he needed to gather some marine species for the restaurant.
After talking a bit with the girl, he got some information about the area. Normally, the bay was a peaceful place, but lately, low-level aquatic monsters had been spotted.
"Could William have something to do with this?"
Martyn, currently on a lunar train heading to the bay, asked himself this question. He remembered that William had mentioned hunting sea beasts on the city's border, and surely that show of power scared off the low-level monsters.
{"For those getting off at the Bay, the doors will open shortly."}
The announcement that he had arrived at his destination excited Martyn, who was eager to see what awaited him. He got off the train and was greeted by a breathtaking view.
The bay was bathed in the beautiful rays of the sun, which illuminated the wooden bridges, making it the only place in Neo Tyran where technology wasn't so abundant. Warm, fresh winds blew through the blue-leaved palm trees, while the sand invited anyone to relax and enjoy the location.
Without a doubt, it was a charming place.
"Wow, I don't remember it being this beautiful."
Martyn's words made perfect sense. The other times he had come, it had been solely for work, so he never had the chance to enjoy the place like others did.
"Alright, we can't waste time admiring the scenery, I've got a trial to complete."
Refocusing on the task at hand, Martyn began to move closer to the bay. But as soon as he stepped onto the area, he heard a loud shout:
"Hey, kid, over here!"
Turning his head towards the voice, Martyn saw a man at a stall calling him. After considering for a moment, he decided to approach, thinking that maybe the man needed some help.
"What's going on, do you need help?" asked Martyn, not wanting to waste time unnecessarily.
"Help? No, no, nothing like that. I'm just the guy who guides people that come to the bay. Tell me, have you been here before?"
The man asked with a smile. Martyn was immediately surprised—he didn't recall anything like this from his previous visits.
"Yes, I've been here a few times. Actually, I'd like to ask where the monsters are."
It was better to ask; he hadn't seen any sign of monsters in the area.
"Oh, I see, you're probably a hunter. Some have been coming here to train. Must be fun to be blessed."
Martyn understood the man's words fully—he seemed to be an impure, just like him.
"Sorry, that wasn't my intention," Martyn replied, slightly embarrassed.
"Don't worry about it. If you're looking for monsters, you can take the path to the left. You'll find something to practice on there. There's also the path to the right, but people don't usually go there."
The man explained to Martyn, who grew curious instantly, so he asked:
"What's on the right side of the bay?" He had to ask—maybe there was some hidden power in that place.
"The right side has some pretty strong monsters. Many hunters have come back injured from there."
Hunters were known to be strong, so for a large number of them to come out injured, there had to be some great power in that place.
"Well, I think I'll head that way," Martyn said with a smile.
For Martyn, challenges were the best way to improve. The left side of the bay would be easier, but he wouldn't feel satisfied and, above all, he'd be surrounded by people.
"I see, you're a brave young man. Good luck," the man said as he waved goodbye to Martyn, who started heading toward the mentioned area.
The closer he got, the more he could feel a strong presence of mana coming from the place. But as he ventured deeper, he saw more strange things: a pile of marine monster corpses.
"Looks like someone beat me to it."
Martyn couldn't believe what he was seeing. Who could be so strong to have killed all those monsters?
"Where do you think you're going?! Stop running!"
But the culprit didn't take long to appear. Martyn heard a loud shout—it was a voice he had heard recently.
It was the same troublesome guy who had been causing a scene at headquarters earlier.
("Of course, he came here too.")
Martyn approached to witness the scene. The guy was chasing an electric octopus that was trying to flee from him.
"Get back here, you bastard! You're gonna meet the same end as your brothers!"
The guy with snow-white hair unsheathed his claws and drew closer to the monster.
"Wiii!"
But in self-defense, the squid launched a powerful electric attack, sending the guy flying. The attack wasn't strong enough to seriously harm him, but it was effective enough to distance him.
"Well, that's what I call bad luck," Martyn, who was nearby, couldn't help but smile at the sight.
"Will!"
But to his surprise, the monster noticed Martyn's presence and lunged at him, likely seeking energy.
[Inventory]
[GreenFlare Dagger]
[Skills:]
[Precise Slash]
Without hesitation, Martyn sliced the monster into pieces. In fact, it was pretty easy.
[You've gained 2 experience points]
[EXP: 787/1040]
"Damn, only two lousy experience points? If I'd known this, I would've used the mace."
Martyn didn't hesitate to complain—how stingy could it be to give him only two experience points?
"Hey, thief!"
A shout interrupted Martyn's complaint about the unfair system. It was the troublesome guy, now approaching Martyn with an angry expression.
Martyn chose to adopt a stoic stance. He didn't know how strong the guy was, but showing fear wasn't an option.
As he got closer, the problematic guy started to speak:
"What's your problem, man? That one was mine too—didn't you see I almost had it?!"
The guy started complaining—it seemed the monster was very important to him.
"Yeah... you almost had it," Martyn replied sarcastically, continuing:
"Relax, there'll be more. It was just one monster," Martyn responded calmly.
Thanks to his experiences as an impure, he was good at handling pressure.
"No, nothing like that! How am I supposed to recover my blood energy?!"
Blood energy? Martyn had never heard of anything like that before. Could it be that the guy needed to kill to get stronger? That was the only thing Martyn could conclude from what he'd said.
"Oh wait, I know how."
The troublesome guy turned his hands into those of a beast and stared directly into Martyn's eyes.
"I'll just have to hunt you!