Adam weled the open road heading southward. Last time they had those despicable Nobles, but now it was just Adam and the boys, and Jonn too.

  “Freedom at st,” Adam said, staring at the long road ahead of them.

  “We should be careful,” Kitool said. “Now that we are no longer in a rge group, we will face greater opposition. Without the Silver Rank Iyrmen, we will be more vulnerable.”

  “Yeah,” Adam said. “It feels weird without them here. It’s like there’s a rge pressure on my shoulder. If we meet with someone like Sir Royce or the Mountain guy, I might end up really dying.”

  “So you are self aware,” Dunes said.

  “I’ve always been self aware,” Adam replied. “Except times that I’m not.”

  “That’s not helpful.”

  Adam winked.

  Omen: 2, 13

  It had been half way through the day when Kitool raised her hand, and Jurot donned his shield.

  Taking his cue, the rest doheir shields, readying to face whatever it was which had surrouhem.

  Emerging from the trees around them were five Wolves, but they were uhe Wolves of Red Oak. They were rge and muscur, ea white fur, with pierg blue eyes.

  “North Wolves,” Jurot said.

  “What’s the difference?” Adam asked, Lightsear gripped tightly in hand, which caught the attention of two of the Wolves.

  “They are more powerful than typical Wolves,” Jurot said, gripping his axe tight in hand, ready to burst forward.

  “Funny that,” Adam said, his eyes sing the Wolves. “I was w just how powerful we were now.”

  Battle OrderD20 + 1 = 19 (18)

  Even though Adam was ready to fight, it seemed the rest of his party was even more eager.

  Kitool bounded forward, feeling a sense of great strength within her, as she struck her staff into the neck of a North Wolf, following the heavy blow with a flurry of her fists, striking the creature and wou deeply. The Wolf cried in pain, and with rage in its eyes, ss jaws towards the Iyrman, only for its head to drop to the floor, bisected from its body as Jaygak cut the creature in half.

  “Okay?” Jaygak asked, quickly taking her pce beside Kitool, ready to defend her if need be.

  “Okay,” Kitool replied, spinniaff together befripping it tightly with both hands.

  A Wolf leapt towards Kitool, but Jaygak cut it across its chest, causing it to yelp in pain.

  “On yht,” Dunes said, cutting into the North Wolf and killing it with his newly acquired Jagite longsword. He raised his shield, trying to defend himself as a North Wolf bounded around him, and another leapt onto Kitool, who seemed like easy pray.

  The pair of North Wolves mao slip past the heavily armoured warriors, and Kitoht her staff up to defend herself, but the North Wolves mao cw across her front, tearing her clothing and flesh to shreds.

  “Kitool!” Jaygak cried, stepping towards her downed pany, raising her Bloodseeker high.

  Warrior Spirit: 3 -> 2

  Attack (Fnking)D20 + 8 = 10 (2)D20 + 8 = 22 (14)Hit!1D6 + 2D6 + 5 = 16 (5)(2, 6)16 damage!

  “You know,” Adam said, gripping Lightsear tight in hand, “I’m feeling a little left out.” His bde fshed white hot as it pierced through the North Wolf, Lightsear gliding in the creature like a hot khrough butter.

  The North Wolf hadn’t evehe bde as it fell atop Kitool, dead.

  Onward Soar: 1 -> 0

  Attack (Fnking)D20 + 8 = 9 (1)D20 + 8 = 24 (16)Hit!1D6 + 2D6 + 5 = 20 (5)(6, 6)20 damage!

  “Did you think I’d let you kill one of my panions so easily?” Adam asked as the North Wolf which had pinned Kitool us paws quickly snapped up towards Adam, who had cut one of its pack through so easily.

  The North Wolf leapt up, only to find the end of Lightsear, which cut the North Wolf in half, its guts not being able to fly around due to how the cut had been. It dropped oher side of Adam, who had already turned his attention to Kitool.

  Mana: 10 -> 8Spell: Healing Word2D3 + 3 = 9 (3, 3)

  “Are you alright, Kitool?” Adam asked, his voice full of healing energy as it soothed the woman, closing her deep wounds, and causing her eyes to fsh open.

  Kitool ale, her body covered in a cold sweat. Her vision finally focused and she was able to see Jaygak’s worried face.

  “Adam?” Kitool said.

  “Yeah?”

  “Thank you.”

  “Any time.”

  Jurot was already w on butchering the North Wolf he had sin, havi Adam to deal with the other two, and to heal Kitool.

  Victory!North Wolves+50XP

  Jonn had gripped his greatsword tight, but he had no ce to draw it, as the fight retty much already over. He had been waiting to see if they needed his help, but five North Wolves were no match for someone like Adam and his group.

  “Good job, everyone,” Adam called. “Let’s take it easy for a bit and catch our breaths, then we tinue on.”

  Kitool sighed, sitting down and tending to her wounds. She felt the soft skin of where she had been cwed, again. ‘I spend more time on the ground than I do-‘

  Before she could finish her thought, a devilkin hand spped her across the back of her head.

  “No,” Jaygak said.

  Kitool rubbed the back of her head, her eyes slightly narrowed.

  “No,” Jaygak repeated.

  Kitool sighed, the ers of her lips slightly twitched into a smile. “Yes.”

  Omen: 3, 8

  The rest of their journey passed by ufully until they found their way to West Wood, its rge walls soon enpassing around them.

  The Adventurer’s Guild i Wood was almost identical to the Adventurer’s Guild within Red Oak, save the wood used was much darker.

  “Five North Wolves,” Adam said, revealing the kill to the Adventurer’s Guild.

  Quest plete: North Wolf HuntingXP Gained: +100XP: 3820 -> 3920Currency Gained: +22GP, +5SP

  “It seems you have the maximum amount of stamps,” the young man at the ter said.

  “Yeah, but I’ll sort it out in Red Oak,” Adam replied.

  The Guild Worker heir head, leaving it be. If Adam didn’t want to deal with it there and then, it was his prerogative.

  “How long should we stay here?” Adam asked.

  “It would be best to stay within each town for a week to rest up betweeravels,” Dunes said.

  “We quest if you’d like us to,” Jurot said. He looked to Adam, who had been eager to quest so much every time they were in town.

  “We should quest sometimes,” Adam said. “I’ll run out of money if we don’t.”

  “What do you mean?” Dunes asked.

  “I pay for our living expenses mostly from my pocket,” Adam said.

  The others stared at him, their brows furrowed.

  “Why?” Jurot asked.

  “Didn’t I say that I would?” Adam asked. “When I first became the leader?”

  “No,” Jurot said.

  “Oh,” Adam said. “I just assumed that was my responsibility to pay for it.”

  “You paid through the Party Fund when I asked st time,” Dunes said.

  “Oh, you’re right,” Adam said. “I pletely fot about that.”

  Duared at him. “How long have you been paying from your own pocket?”

  “Since Jaghi,” Adam said. “Since Sir Harvey aying for us, I guess I fot.” Adam began to ugh. “I’m such a scatterbrain sometimes!”

  “That’s one way of putting it,” Dunes said.

  “Lets take a few days off to rest up and we’ll quest some time ter, alright?” Adam smiled.

  “Pay for the party properly through the Party Funds,” Dunes said.

  “I will, I will,” Adam said, waving his hand to dismiss his worries.

  Omen: 1, 12

  “I,” Adam said, staring at the ceiling, “am bored.”

  “Why are you bored?” Jurot asked, blowing the carved wood to clear some of the dust. Jurot tio whittle away at his little block of wood, this time creating five Wolves made of wood.

  “We’ve spent a few days just kig it, when we should be doing more. The butchered pieces of the North Wolves we sent back to the Iyr are probably having more fun than us.”

  “I am having much fun carving wood,” Jurot said.

  “Yeah, but you’re a wood geek, so of course you would be.”

  Jurot threw Adam a quick look, not knowing what wood geek meant.

  “We should go and quest,” Adam said, sitting up.

  “Shall I call the others?”

  “Should we take just Jonn and allow the others to rest?” Adam asked. Jonn had been following them, and it was about time he finally earned his keep, even if Adam wasn’t paying for the ma.

  It felt a little weird having an observer with him, so with Jonn finally joining them on their quests, he’d be able t in someone powerful into the fold.

  “They would not appreciate us leaving them behind,” Jurot informed him.

  Adam thought about the group, and about Kitool, who had been downed during their st fight. The more she fought alongside them, the lower the ce that she would go down iure.

  “You’re right,” Adam finally said. “Let’s go and take them all.”

  The group formed at a table.

  “So, you finally became too bored to sit still?” Jaygak asked, tilting her head at him. Her lips were formed into a knowing smile.

  “It’s a little scary how well you already know me,” Adam said.

  “You’re queer, but you’re also very predictable.”

  Adam narrowed his eyes. “I was told the opposite retly.”

  “That’s because they’re not as insightful as me.”

  “I’m sure,” Adam said, rolling his eyes.

  Dunes smiled.

  “Alright, let’s find ourselves a quest to do. Jonn, yoing to be joining us too.”

  “I am?” Jonn asked.

  “Yeah,” Adam said. “If yoing to follow us, then yoing to o work for us.”

  “I pay my own way.”

  “How long you do that for?” Adam asked. “I’m sure, what with your new armour and ons, you probably aren’t going to be able to follow us for as long as you’d like. What if it takes years for you to finally swear your Oaths?”

  Jonn remained silent.

  Adam made a fair point. There may eventually e a time that Jonn makes his decision about Adam, but that time may be much ter iure. If he had enough mohat he didn’t have to worry about it for years, then he didn’t o rush to make a decision.

  “Very well.”

  “Good.” Adam smiled. ‘Hook, line, and sinker.’

  Jurot had been eyeing up the quests, but had quickly brought oo the group.

  Adam stared down at the quest and then back up to Jurot. “Are you kidding me?”

  “No,” Jurot said. “We have fire.”

  “Yeah, we do, but do we have the fire power to deal with something like this?” Adam asked.

  Jurot blinked, unsure of what he was hearing from Adam. “You are powerful.”

  “Yeah, but as powerful as that?” Adam asked.

  Jurot gnced around at the rest of the party, his eyes falling on the Guardian, in his breastpte, with the rge sword at his back, and then the Priest, who had also grown more powerful i few weeks due to how much they quested.

  “I believe we do it,” Jurot said, staring deep into Adam’s eyes.

  “Alright,” Adam said. “I’m not stupid enough to ignore your opinion.”

  “It is a powerful foe,” Jonn warned.

  “For you, maybe,” Adam said. “We’ll o be careful, especially you three.”

  Kitool nodded her head slowly. She uood that she was the one who o be the most careful, due to how she ofte down.

  “We’ll buddy up,” Adam said. “I’ll be with Kitool, Dunes with Jurot, and Jaygak with Jonn.”

  “What is your reasoning behind those pairings?”

  “I don’t trust Kitool in Jonn’s hands,” Adam said, simply.

  “You don’t mind if he stabs me?” Jaygak frowned.

  “I assume you didn’t miing poked by pointy things,” Adam replied, ily.

  “That’s beside the point.”

  Adam smiled.

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  Ba the road with just the bois.

  Oh, and Dunes.