At 6 a.m., at the Freewalker Guild, Amelia was organizing some documents Damian had handed in. He had asked her for help getting everything ready for the next Masters' meeting. The two were sitting at the reception counter when Amelia's bracelet flashed, informing her of a notification.
Amelia lightly touched the bracelet, and a screen appeared showing two notifications in front of her and Damian.
[Update Notice!!
The device called "Adventurer Card/Bracelet" will now be called the "C.O.T.I" an abbreviation for "Closer of the Information."
The "C.O.T.I" device will be updated in the next few hours and will include the following features:
*Quest page (Receptionists will be able to upload quests to a private forum for their adventurers, where they can accept or reject quests from distant locations)
*Private conversations
*Temporary group chats (Temporary teams will be able to form a chat where they can talk to each other without any problems)
*"My Tale" page (Adventurers will be able to post videos, information, and images about their adventures on "My Tale" and other adventurers will be able to comment in the comment box. Attention: this is a Beta version)
]
"Wow, this is quite an update..." Amelia said, looking at the information, and Damian nodded at her side.
"I can't wait for this to reach civilians. It'll surely be much more lively" Damian said, looking at the information on the "My Tale" page.
"Will this be available to civilians?" Amelia asked.
"Yes, the Master told me it might come out next year, once it's much more developed" Damian affirmed, and Amelia nodded in understanding. "Look, you have another notification… it's a mission notice."
Amelia looked at the second notification in surprise and opened it without hesitation.
[Mission accepted, class: B
Employer: Rodrick
The adventurers will embark on a hunting mission where they have to search for, track down, and exterminate a basilisk that prowls between the border of the capital and the lands of the Eastern Duke.
Time limit: 2 days
]
"Huh?" was all Amelia could say when she saw the mission information before exploding in fury. "That idiot!! What made him think they could face a fucking basilisk? They are only three C-class groups and two Assholes who are just about of getting promoted to C-class!!" Amelia exclaimed angrily, looking at the screen and hitting the reception counter.
"Amelia, calm down, you're going to break the bar again!" Damian said, trying to stop Amelia. "You know how Sir Rodrick is. He's very tough, but he'd never let an adventurer die on his watch, not if he could help it!"
—
At the makeshift camp Rodrick and the others had set up, everyone was sleeping outdoors since there wasn't enough room to set up tents. Finn was asleep a little apart from the others, leaning against a tree and covered with the cloak Amelia had given him.
Finn was sweating as he clutched his chest in pain. The throbbing was getting stronger and this time it had spread to his shoulders and abdomen, causing discomfort and a bit of pain, but it still didn't wake him.
Without Finn noticing, a figure emerged from the trees, observing Finn's condition with curiosity. The figure was a woman with slightly pinkish skin and long, wavy green hair adorned with a few leaves. Her golden eyes looked directly at Finn with curiosity and fascination before kneeling down beside him to get a better look. The girl looked at Finn closely before a smile formed on her face. She leaned closer to Finn, whispering in his ear. Gradually, Finn's sweating stopped, and his agitation with it. The girl took Finn by the head, laying him on the floor, and then lay down with him.
Seconds passed, and the girl lay next to Finn, whispering in his ear before beginning to stroke Finn's hair. This lasted a few seconds until Finn's bracelet glowed and began to vibrate, quickly waking Finn up.
Finn quickly got up, looking around, but no one was there. Then, he saw that he was lying on the floor, which was strange for him since he had gotten used to sleeping sitting up. Finn rubbed his face. Then, he saw the bracelet, which kept vibrating. Touching it lightly, a screen opened.
"An update in the next few hours? That's not bad at all, Roger" Finn said, looking at the content of the update.
Finn stood up only to kneel down again, feeling a pricking sensation in his chest. Finn opened his shirt, noticing a strange blue, spiderweb-shaped mark right where he'd felt the pricking.
"What the hell…" Finn said, looking at the mark on his chest.
Finn gently touched the mark. It didn't hurt or bother him at all; it felt more like a magical tattoo that had suddenly appeared. After staring at the mark for a few seconds, Finn covered his chest, deciding he'd investigate this when he returned to the guild.
At 6:30 in the morning, they were back on the road, tracking the basilisk. The hunters were leading the way this time, as they claimed they could guide the group to the basilisk due to their experience as monster hunters. Finn was sitting in the wagon, reading a book about powerful metals and weapons that had existed throughout history, which the dwarves had lent him.
"I don't remember seeing a book like this one in the Guild…" Finn said, interested in the book.
"That's because there isn't one. Only the Snowvein Kingdom has these kinds of books, just as only we have books with explicit information about the ancient murals" Rodrick said.
"I see… and why don't we exchange information? Wouldn't it be useful to each of us?" Finn asked, turning the page and seeing a hammer with thunderclaps decorated around it, Mjolnir. 'Thor was never shown or appears in the novels, although he is mentioned, especially when Cristel meets Thrud, Thor's daughter, after Cristel escaped from the Night King's castle.'
"It is, and we've been trying for hundreds of years with the treaty, but we never got anywhere" Rodrick said, causing the dwarves to sigh.
"Why? I don't see the reason not to accept the treaty. Are we in conflict with Snowvein?" Darwin asked this time, and the dwarves shook their heads.
"No, we're not… it's just that the queen doesn't like the idea of other races wandering around the Kingdom, much less the capital" Rodrick confessed.
"And add to that the fact that the Kings of each kingdom aren't willing to give up anything without ensuring a greater gain" Lornar added. "Sigh, I still remember when the treaty was about to be signed… all of us dwarves believed that we would finally be able to walk freely through these green fields and join your guilds."
"Can't you all come to the kingdom freely? Then how did you get here?" Finn asked, closing the book and handing it back to Klamli.
"It's not that we can't. If it's just a few of us, like my team and I, then there's no problem, but if there are more than 10 or 15 of us, then we'll be denied entry" Lornar said.
"We truly hope the treaty will be finalized soon. Snowvein is a very beautiful kingdom, but very cool too. It's not a place where much prosperity can be achieved. There are very few habitable areas in it, and as time goes by, they'll become fewer and fewer. Almost 90% of Snowvein's inhabitants live in the capital, as it's the only way to generate some heat and live comfortably" Duraz confessed.
"If only the prince were still among us…" Rodrick said sadly, remembering how the prince shared the king's ideal of wanting to form a treaty with the dwarves, but the latter ended up disappearing on one of his exploration missions.
"There's no need to grieve now. The prince was a noble man. The Valkyries surely carried his soul to their queen, Freyja" Halordim assured, drawing Finn and Darwin's attention.
"Wait, what did you say?" Finn asked, confused.
"That the Valkyries carried the prince's soul to his queen?" Halordim said again.
"Exactly, but who is their queen?!" Darwin asked again.
"Freyja, of course. She's the Queen of the Valkyries" Halordim assured.
'Freyja?… yes, in the norse mythology of my other world, she was also the queen of Valkyries, but the mural we found in the cave stated that the Queen was Brunhilde, not Freyja…' Finn thought carefully.
'That's not what was written on the mural… Did I miss something?' Darwin wondered, confused.
Rodrick turned slightly, seeing Finn and Darwin's thoughtful state. The two were deeply immersed in their thoughts. Curious, Rodrick couldn't help but ask. "Is something wrong? It seems like you've had a revelation or something"
"They're just wasting their time" Reynolds replied from his horse trying to make fun of finn and darwin.
Finn looked up again and looked directly at Halordim before asking.
"What position did Brunhilde have in the Valkyries?"
"Brunhilde?... Well, she was a very distinguished Valkyrie, just like Sigrun. She was in charge of carrying the souls of fallen warriors to Freyja and Odin. Why?" Halordim said.
Finn nodded at Halordim's words before turning to look at Rodrick, who was even more curious.
"Mr. Rodrick, did you see the mural?" Finn asked.
"The mural?..." Rodrick asked back. "You mean the newly discovered one? Of course I…"
Rodrick's words gradually ceased as he remembered the mural's contents. Then Finn and Darwin's questions made sense to him. Something was wrong, either with the mural or with the information given by the dwarves.
"Lornar, is this true? Are you sure Freyja was the Valkyrie Queen?" Rodrick asked, seeing Lornar at his side.
"Of course it is. Our cousins from Nidavellir gave us that information. They saw Freyja and the Valkyries with their own eyes!" Lornar assured before asking "Why, do you doubt us?"
Rodrick didn't answer and simply removed his bracer, searching for the information about the ancient mural and handing it to Lornar, who looked at it and examined it carefully.
"This… This is wrong! It must be wrong!" Lornar exclaimed. "Where is this damn mural? I'll go see it myself!" Lornar said.
"It's currently under guard, and the queen won't let anyone in except the masters and knights" Rodrick said.
"Ha, this information can't be true… although, if we consider the events of the monstromachy..." Lornar said, thinking for a few seconds while scratching his beard.
"Is it possible?" Rodrick simply asked, looking at Lornar, for he knew that no race was allowed to reveal important information. Rodrick himself had broken that rule by showing Lornar the ancestral mural.
"Very possible..." Lornar replied, returning the bracer to Rodrick. "We would have to review and compare information between the kingdoms to be sure, but yes, it is very possible..."
"That's all I needed to hear..." Rodrick said, having one more reason to convince the queen to sign the treaty.
The group continued traveling until 9:00 a.m., when the hunters stopped abruptly. They had managed to locate a fresh trail of the basilisk. Rodrick and Lornar got out of the wagon, seeing the marks and traces left by the basilisk.
"They're not from long ago, maybe a few minutes ago" Gellen said.
"It's heading toward those mountains, maybe it's looking to make its nest" Ana speculated.
Lornar picked up a piece of scale that was on the ground, seeing that it was somewhat damaged and the feathers were stained with blood.
"No, it was escaping from something or someone" Lornar said, examining the surroundings further.
"I guess this..." Ava said, calling them from the other side of the path.
In front of Ava was a huge footprint almost the same size as her.
"A giant... or half-giant at least. The footprint is too small for a pure giant" Rodrick said, looking at the footprint.
"Ha, Too small? This thing will crush my group and me together!" Lornar laughed at the huge footprint.
"Keep leading the way, this time we'll continue on foot" Rodrick ordered.