Mash and the others headed towards the town in the distance. They considered doing something with the farmland but didn’t want to risk failing the scenario. The previous dungeon that the others went into was a scenario type as well, though that had a much simpler objective. This dungeon was meant to be more complex, and one of the things that people would struggle with was finding out the purpose of the dungeon.

  However, they had done a bit of research before choosing this dungeon and were somewhat prepared for what they saw. The clear blue skies and large plantations told Mash which scenario this was. Their actual involvement in the scenario would be different from what others had experienced, but the locations would be the same. The dungeon had a setlist of environments, but the scenarios would be entirely unique.

  They walked casually, not really worried about rushing to finish the dungeon. Rather than speed, the bigger issue would be fulfilling their roles. Mash guessed he was a builder of some kind and was glad for the job. He could build things with his magic alone and wouldn’t need to learn the proper skills for it. Luke was obviously a priest, and Jill was a musician. Her box had contained a flute, and that made them think that she was probably a bard. The only one that was unknown was Red, as her outfit didn’t give much away.

  As they got closer to the town, Mash was a bit confused by its construction. It didn’t have any walls but had an archway around the path that led into town. At the top of the archway, was an awkward sign that named the town Cornhaven. Mash thought the name was a little strange, but he guessed that a majority of the crops he saw had been corn. The village itself was bigger than it had first seemed, and there were buildings that ran up a nearby hill. The houses and shops were mundane wooden structures, and none of them looked particularly luxurious. They didn’t have glass windows instead they relied on wooden panels that were pushed open. It reminded Mash of his old room, back when he was little.

  Mash looked further up the hill when Red pointed towards it. Cresting the top of the hill was an elaborate mansion that looked to be even bigger than Arthur’s house. Surprisingly even the mansion didn’t have a wall, and Mash could see the blue stone from a distance. Was it painted, or was the stone naturally blue?

  “Ellinia, thank goodness! You found the bishop too. Quickly we must return to the mansion.”

  Hearing Red called by her real name was very strange, and it took Mash a second to realize who the newcomer was talking about. The person who spoke was a man that wore something like a butler’s outfit. It was a suit of black and white which had colors matched Red’s dress, but it was done more in the style of a butler. It was comprised of a white shirt that was accented with a black overcoat and tie. The man had short black hair that was combed back behind his head, and he had a narrow mustache.

  Even more surprising was the speed at which the man moved. He clearly had more agility than Mash did, and the man grabbed Red’s arm dragging her away. The man also waved for Luke to follow, and he quickly ran after them. Mash and Jill joined too, though they weren’t asked for. It might be a mistake, but it wasn’t like they had a better idea. Hopefully, their presence wouldn’t cause too many problems.

  The man led them quickly, at a pace that was surprisingly brisk despite their high stats. A servant with this kind of speed was interesting, and he wondered what the lords of the house would be like. That was the real reason that Mash and Jill were joining them. If the servant was this strong, then the masters of the house would probably be even stronger. It didn’t seem like a good idea to leave Red and Luke alone, especially seeing as Jill was their best bet to escape any situation. The man didn’t seem to be stopping them, so they simply followed along.

  The town was big, and buildings ran from the top of the hill down to a river that he hadn’t noticed before. After a minute of running, they arrived at the mansion. Now that he was closer to the place, he was able to see how elaborate the garden was. There was a cobblestone path that led up to an enormous wooden door, and the whole mansion was surrounded by flowers. Thousands of them wrapped the house. Only small cobblestone paths broke the endless stream of flowers.

  As they approached the door, Mash could tell that the house was indeed painted blue, and he wondered why someone would paint a building with such a color. The blue was darker than the shade of the sky and looked more like sapphire than an element of nature. Mash wondered where the guards were but couldn’t see anyone who would fit that role. There were other servants, a few of them giving their group odd looks, but the majority seemed anxious about something else. As he passed through the hallways, he heard someone’s words and figured out who he was.

  “What is the carpenter’s son doing here?”

  Mash didn’t really know who the speaker was and had other things to distract him. Each of the servants they passed was high--leveled. Some weren’t quite their rank, though many had mana that could compare to them. It was pretty impressive, though the building itself was amazing. The floors and walls were made of some extremely bright wood that seemed to be naturally white. It felt like the whole house was alive, and it was dense with mana. The house probably had several times more mana than he had energy and wondered what enchantments were placed on the house. There were elaborate paintings hung across the walls, and he saw large crystals hanging from the ceiling which provided light for the building.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Apparently, he was a carpenter and had a father. He would probably have to go and find the man but imagined that he couldn’t just leave now that he was inside. Nobody seemed to recognize Jill, and that was a little worrisome. If nobody recognized her, it would be hard to figure out what her role was. They continued to follow the butler as he led them to a room on the second floor of the place.

  The door was open, and upon getting close Mash felt several high-leveled people inside. At least three people were over level 100 and seemed to be comparable to his brother. Now, he was doubly glad that they had followed, as this would clearly be something important. Mash was somewhat apprehensive to enter the room and couldn’t help but have Priscilla prepare some outlines. It was a mere precaution and he hoped that it would be able to buy Jill enough time to teleport everyone out.

  As Mash entered, he ran his eyes over everyone in the room. Even if his draconic domain gave him the shapes of the people inside, he wanted to see if any of them looked openly hostile. The three strongest people in the room stood beside a sickly girl who was laying in a bed. They all had reddish hair and blue eyes, obvious signs of a familial relationship. One man looked significantly older than the other two that stood to either side of him. The eldest man stood straight and was easily a head taller than Mash. The man had a squarish jaw, and his nose looked like it was blunted as if it had been broken several times in his past. The two beside him looked almost like twins, both were a little shorter than the old man, but looked a lot younger than him. They were not young though, and Mash guessed that they were ten or twenty years older than him.

  Finally, Mash’s gaze fell upon the girl who lay on the bed. The bed was entirely made of white silk, and it was twice as large as his own bed. She was wrapped tightly, and her skin was pale with sickness. Not to mention, Mash could see black veins running up from her shoulder and across her neck. She was obviously the youngest, even younger than Mash. She was not a low level though as she had enough mana to surpass anyone at level 30. The fact that she looked younger than Mash was a bit surprising.

  Luke understood the situation immediately and quickly walked over to the girl. Without hesitation, he began healing her. The men standing beside the bed looked worried but didn’t seem hostile. Mash relaxed a bit. They were obviously not angry, and if anything, they looked benevolent. He didn’t know that someone could look benevolent, but the old man before him managed to do it. Mash watched, as Luke’s healing magic flowed into the girl. The blackened veins returned to normal, and her pale skin even seemed to regain its healthy glow. After a minute or two, Luke was finished and rose from beside the girl. The bed creaked as Luke pushed himself to a standing position.

  “Dad?”

  The girl whose eyes were closed till now spoke softly. Her voice shook with uncertainty, but Mash was distracted by her eyes. Unlike the blue eyes of the rest of her family, her eyes were greener, but as he looked at them Mash thought that the colors were changing. The girl was lifted up into the arms of her father, and the man swung her while laughing deeply. The two men beside him wore equally bright smiles. Honestly, Mash wondered if Luke had solved the scenario, but as the dungeon didn’t seem to change, Mash guessed that there was still more to this. Glancing at Luke, Mash noticed that he was in deep thought about something.

  Mash could question him later, for now, he just stayed quiet. Eventually, these people would address them, especially seeing as Jill and he shouldn’t be there. The man slowly set his daughter back down on the bed, before turning to face them. Luke was now standing with the rest of them. It looked like the man was going to ask something, but the girl spoke up first.

  “Elli! I never thought I would see you again.”

  The girl began crying as she jumped out of the bed. She hugged a very stiff Red, and Mash couldn’t help but smile at the odd image. Red was standing as straight as possible while, the girl cried and hugged her. Also, the name Elli was certainly going to be something the rest of them would tease her about. Red adjusted quickly, returning the hug, though her motions were still a bit stiff. The older man walked over and clapped his daughter on the back before speaking.

  “Yes, you did a good job in finding a bishop, but what of the others?”

  His voice was the deepest of any man he had ever heard. The man’s eyes washed over the group, and his presence fell on Mash like an anvil. While the man was certainly powerful, his gaze didn’t actually hold any callousness. He seemed confused and weary, and Red quickly yelped a response. Her voice cracked a little as she spoke.

  “They helped me in locating the bishop. It was only thanks to them that I could find him.”

  As soon as she finished speaking, the pressure vanished, and Mash heard Jill let out a tense breath beside him. The man analyzed the two of them, nodding once before speaking.

  “You both have my thanks, though I would like to know who this newcomer is.”

  This time the man was only looking at Jill, probably having realized who Mash was, or whoever he was supposed to be in this town. Somehow, Jill managed to look unbothered now and responded in an even voice.

  “I’m a musician and was merely looking for a place to rest when I stumbled upon Ellinia. I had passed a bishop on my journey and led her to the man after learning of the situation.”

  The lie was smooth, and Mash was surprised by how genuine it sounded. Red reacted quickly, nodding along without hesitation. As it turned out, Red and Jill were quite good at lying. Seeing their effectiveness, Mash chose to remain silent. He would not be able to lie like they were and trying would probably end in a disaster. The man smiled at them, genuinely looking grateful for their aid. He spoke again and his voice rumbled with a peal of building laughter.

  “Thank you all for your aid. A celebration is in order, and if you would be so kind, I would appreciate hearing some of your music.”

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  Chapter 124: Recollection

  Name: Mash Stellumbra  Class: Draconic Thunder-wood Imitation

  Level: 78

  Health: 1800 / 1800

  Energy: 3110 / 3110

  Fortitude: 180

  Endurance: 111

  Strength: 130

  Agility: 150

  Intelligence: 200

  Wisdom: 90

  Charisma: 76

  Free Stats: 0

  Skills: Hunt, Thunder-wood Creation, Inhuman Hibernation, Monstrous Transformation, Thunder-wood Imitation, Draconic Domain, Adaptable Monster Core, Monstrous Humanity, Wooden Body, Mimic’s Avarice

  Hunt: You have gone beyond your limits when fighting enemies and devouring their power. Go beyond your limits. Continue current fight even after depleting energy. Stats improve while at 0 stamina. Continues until either you or your enemies are dead.

  Current Bonus: +100% stats

  Inhuman Hibernation: You have stolen the techniques of mages and monks to form an artificial technique, your inhuman body morphing it to fit your corrupted nature. Hibernating will increase the rate at which your body recovers, healing most wounds.

  Current Rate: +200% recovery

  Thunder-wood Creation: You know how deadly sticks can be. Forge your mana into wooden creations. Lightning has tempered your wood, and it thrums with the power of thunder.

  Wooden Body: You can connect with the wood that you are touching. By expending your energy, you bring your creations to life as another one of your limbs.

  Monstrous Transformation: Transform your body taking on aspects of those which you have consumed.

  Thunder-wood Imitation: Form imitations of creatures you have consumed, imitating some of their bodily functions through your wood.

  Draconic Domain (Passive): Your eyes just weren’t enough. Sense the changes in the mana around you. Connect to the mana in your space and inherently understand the nature of the mana. Your presence suffuses the space, weakens the magic of enemies beneath you.

  Current Range: 21 feet

  Adaptable Monster Core (Passive): An unnatural mana core has fundamentally altered your body, fusion with a monster has given you access to its potential. Stamina and Mana combine to become energy. Your monstrous body is better able to handle the changes to your core.

  Current Bonus: +50% efficiency

  Monstrous Humanity (Passive): Giving up your humanity has improved your body, improving your physical control, natural defenses, animalistic intuition, and mana control. Now, a human in appearance only, you further empower yourself through your monstrous side.

  Mimic’s Avarice (Passive): Devour your enemy in battle to temporarily raise your stats. The fresher the victim the stronger the bonus. Gain full benefits even when consuming through your magic. Absorbs some properties of those you devour alive. Removes the negative effects of things you consume.

  Priscilla Form: Improved Mana Control and control of wooden creations, Better Lightning Resistance and Power: Thin dark blue and green scales that match Priscilla's cover his body

  Dragon Form: Raw Power and a lot of it: Thicker black scales that would look more like armor cover his skin and his body bulks up a bit and he grows claws on his hands and feet.

  Winged Cat Form (Sphynx Form): Improved Reflexives and Agility, Something he hasn't realized yet, and flight: Fur grows over his skin, and wings sprout from his back

  nvisible Lizard Form: Has mentioned it but hasn't used it yet, so far you know that it grants him the ability to become somewhat invisible

  Demon Form: black fire affinity

  Treant Form: Improved Wood affinity, living wood creations