𝗈𝐕𝒍𝐞xt.𝗇𝓔t
Returning to where the carriage was parked before they went on their separate ways, Valyr took in a deep breaths, calming himself down soon after once he noticed that he was the first out of all of them to return to the carriage.
Deciding to rest inside the back of the carriage for now, he took a brief glance at the Imperial Production Guild before taking his helmet off. Then, once inside the carriage, he took off all of the other pieces making up the Half Wyvern Armor set, bitterly smiling as the thought of taking a shower as soon as possible entered his mind.
“Haah… haah… I thought I wouldn’t make it in time.” Allowing the cold breeze of the oncoming night to wash over his body, Valyr soon heard gasps for air from outside the carriage, prompting him to take a look, only to find a slightly exhausted Wells in front of him catching his breath.
“What’s with the rush?” In the midst of him catching his breath, Wells noticed Valyr’s head pop out of the carriage, causing him to jump back in surprise, not expecting his friend to have arrived at the carriage earlier than him.
“And here I thought I was going to be the first to the carriage.” Bitterly smiling in response to Valyr’s question, Wells soon responded that he wanted to be the first to the carriage so he could surprise everyone else that came after him with his presence. Unfortunately for him, Valyr was the first to arrive.
In response to his friend’s explanation, Valyr let out a bit of laughter as he beckoned Wells to enter the carriage so he could rest his body. Taking up the offer, Wells went ahead and entered the carriage, feeling a great amount of relief once he laid down on his back, even though the floor was made out of hardwood.
“So, what did you do for the rest of the day?” As this question escaped Valyr’s mouth, a smile crept up on Wells’ face as he sat upright, proceeding to explain most of the activities he had done in the city on his own. Though most of the activities Wells described to Valyr were only something the former could enjoy, some of them had piqued Valyr’s interest, prompting him to make a mental list of the things Wells had tried that he wanted to tried out.
After that, Wells mentioned to Valyr that he tried searching for Shadow Serpent Essence all throughout the city, only to end up becoming unsuccessful since most of the stores he came across did not have any on stock. As for the ones who did, all of them were selling a small amount of the stuff at such an exorbitant price that he would be better off not buying it.
Listening to Wells’ explanation regarding the search for Shadow Serpent Essence, a wry smile appeared on Valyr’s face as he told the man in front of him that he had experienced the same thing earlier while on the lookout for the stuff.
Finding the explanation a perfect segue to tell Wells what things he had done while alone, he went ahead and did so, telling his friend that, aside from keeping track of some notable stores he had come across and eating meals from a few restaurants here and there, he bought himself a plethora of skills that would allow him to expand his repertoire.
Raising one of his arms that had the spatial bracelet wrapped around it, he then told Wells of the exact place he had gone to that sold the skill books he had bought, prompting the latter to respond that he might head to the shop tomorrow, believing in Valyr’s words that their collection of skills was incredibly comprehensive.
Fortunately, just as the two of them ran out of things to talk about, Braum and the other four appeared at the carriage, waving at the two as they made their way inside.
“Before we begin, you’ll have to come with us to the Imperial Production Guild tomorrow morning, Valyr.” Just as Valyr was about to ask what the five had been up to while they were doing their own thing, Braum took the initiative to inform Valyr of the meeting tomorrow, leaving the latter no choice but to nod in response.
“Speaking of which, here’s that item you asked us to get.” Soon after, Braum took out an item from one of his pockets, giving Valyr a fist-sized orb that radiated dark energy. By the time his hands came into contact with the orb, feeling the somewhat oppressive feeling of darkness emanating out of it, Valyr already had an ecstatic expression on his face.
“Shadow Serpent Essence!” With his eyes widened in surprise, Valyr swiftly thanked the group of five before focusing his attention on the orb, feeling a great urge to use the orb as soon as possible. However, he decided to suppress this urge for now, placing the dark orb within the spatial bracelet that contained the skill books he bought.
Though Braum and the other four raised their eyebrows in curiosity, remembering that Valyr didn’t have a spatial bracelet earlier, the five of them were forced to stop their train of thought as Valyr asked them how much he would have to pay them in exchange for the Shadow Serpent Essence. In response, Braum told him that the essence was a gift from the Imperial Production Guild, which made Valyr raise his eyebrow in doubt.
Fortunately, it did not take a lot of convincing from Braum for Valyr to accept the gift, with the former telling him that the Shadow Serpent Essence was just an investment from the guild on someone that would be able to explore the entirety of the Four Pillars’ Inheritance.
Seeing as he wouldn’t be able to repay the favor by paying for it, Valyr eventually told them that he owed them a request to forge a custom weapon, which the five thankfully agreed with.
“Well, with that out of the way, it’s time to talk about the lodging you two will be staying in for the meantime.” Noticing that Braum was already finished with what he had to do, Madeline took the initiative to continue the conversation, piquing the interest of both Valyr and Wells as she asked them a question with a smirk.
“Wanna check out where you’ll be staying for the night?” As this question escaped Madeline’s mouth, the two looked at each other before simultaneously giving her an answer that made her laugh in response.
“Isn’t that obvious?”