Breakfast had been silent for the most part. The visibly hungover inn staff brought it up for free, but we tipped them well either way. The first thing we did was check the Battle Board, and as soon as we did it seemed to put a damper on our respective moods. Ysnik was the only person on the board save for a few mercenaries, and she had a whopping 1722 Battle Points. Sure, that worked out for us in the long run as we had an opportunity to potentially get both the Heavenly Gem and a clean sweep on the Marketplace items, but it still stung.

“How did she get the extra 500 Battle Points, anyway?” I mused to no in particular.

“Quests, most likely,” Opix answered. “If she’s gonna bring her friends to 1-Star and get Battle Points, she’s gonna spam Quests.”

“The thieving goblin could have started with Quests. She did not need to steal from us twice!” Cerus grumbled.

“The Territory Quest is set up so that you’ll need to pursue other Alliances to get enough Battle Points for the Heavenly Gem. The Battle Network Quests only give enough to clear out the regular Marketplace items.”

“That reminds me! The Marketplace should be updated, right? Let’s check and see what they have.”

“Might as well,” Opix shrugged.

To my surprise, there were only two items on the Marketplace. The first was called “Specialized Class-Armor Set” and the other was called “Specialized Class Weapon”. Both had no picture depicting what they looked like, instead merely showing the titles and their prices. I hovered over them for a better description.

Specialized Class-Armor Set - 100 BP

Star Level Undefined

This Armor Set will be tailored to the user, creating conditional Armor that encourages a fighting style best suited to the user’s class.

Specialized Class Weapon - 100 BP

This Weapon will be tailored to the user, creating a conditional Weapon that encourages a fighting style best suited to the user’s class.

”So we need 600 Battle Points, then.” Cerus said over a mouthful of eggs.

“We do.” Opix nodded. “Grim’s 4 and 5-Star Quests should take us there. Since they’re higher leveled they should get us close to or at Level 99. Once we’re there we can rest and make our way to Ysnik.”

“And what is stopping her from simply running off with the Gem?”

“She’s honest,” I answered. “She’s a thief, but she isn’t a liar. Besides, she didn’t seem keen on pissing the Gnomes off.”

“And you have no problem fighting the girl by yourself? She will be three stars ahead of you. To if you manage to hit Level 99.” Cerus asked, narrowing her eyes at me.

“She can kill me whenever she wants, but she’s a sloppy fighter. As long as I’m ahead of her I should be good. Plus, I’ll have that Specialized stuff from the Marketplace. If it was made by the same people that made the BP Stealer, it should be a pretty good set of loot.”

Opix turned to me, his eyes suddenly intense. “She’ll have a Gem. Those make you stronger, remember? There’s no telling what it’ll do to her.” I started to speak, but Opix continued. He gave me a wry smile, the same one he gave whenever he was about to suggest something underhanded. “One unique trait is that Gems can’t go in inventories. Some people can keep them in their inventories, but that trait is exceptionally rare. Chancellor Kato is the only person I’ve met who can do it. If the fight starts to look rough, your best bet may be just to swipe the Gem and run.”

“So underhanded!” Cerus gasped.

“I’ll keep that in mind, but I don’t think it’ll come to that. My fight with Ysnik will be a lot like yours with Ciz, Opix. Besides, it won’t take long for you two to take care of Zel and Isets, will it?”

That was just what I needed to say to get Opix started about the Gnomes again. To his credit, I could see him attempting to avoid opening that can of worms again, but he’d reached his limit once again. He’d gone over points he’d made before, namely that Zel and Isets would likely have better Armor and Weapons than the sets on the Marketboard and that the Gnomes would likely be buffing the boys to make them viable against Opix and Cerus. Opix’s concern wasn’t that the fight would be difficult. On the contrary, he was afraid that after they’d won they’d essentially be telling the Gnomes to try harder.

Another issue that’d been difficult to avoid was the idea that the Gnomes may just join in the fight themselves. If they did, we’d be shit-outta-luck with regards to Satyrsong’s Heavenly Gem. Cerus didn’t seem to mind, saying there were nine other Gems to pursue – which was true, but the Gnomes had just as much access to them as we did. One thing we all agreed on was that we needed to nip this problem in the bud, ensuring that our pursuit of the other Gems was unimpeded.

Thankfully, the topic looped back around to our plans for the day. I looked over the Battle Network Quests I still had. They were still in the forest surrounding the High Tier Zone, though the 4-Stars and 5-Stars weren’t all together like they normally were. If we beat them, they’d give us a total of 644 Battle Points, enough for our Specialized Weapons and Armor while leaving enough for whatever trinkets they had in the area. Realistically speaking, I wasn’t sure how good my odds were at harming any of these Quest monsters. They were powerful enough to eat Henrietta, and the last I saw Ciz even she was struggling with them before she broke off to the 3-Stars. The circumstances that allowed me to nearly defeat her Presence were so particular that–

“Grim Hearts, I have not given you permission to ignore me!”

“Oh, sorry,” I said, snapping to focus. “I got distracted.”

“Clearly!” Cerus shouted. “Now answer my question: Where is your Sabertooth Splitblade? Everything happened quite fast and I do not remember if you retrieved it.”

“No. It was jammed in the Presence’s eye and you pulled me out before it got eaten by the 5-Star monster. Why?”

Cerus frowned. “That was your best weapon. You are unfit to wield a spear, and those Boxing Gloves simply will not do.” She turned to Opix. “Angel Boy, check your Bestiary. Perhaps there is an animal in the Low Tier Zone I can quickly have my thrall–”

Bang Bang Bang!

Cerus was interrupted by heavy bangs on the door that none of us were expecting. We exchanged confused glances with one another before taking our conversation to chat. All the while, more bangs sounded from the door. Part of me felt relief that the knocks didn’t sound like they were happening too low on the door. If anyone could get around the village’s safety protections, it was the Gnomes.

Opix: If it isn’t Ysnik and her crew, it’s probably a Gnome.

Cerus: i volunteer grim

Grim: What?! Why?

Cerus: you are the weakest one here and it is shameful to bully the weak

Grim: You tried to kill me when we met!

Cerus: i am the exception

Cerus: do it

Cerus: do it

Cerus: do it

Cerus: do it

She kept going like that as more bangs came from the door. I exchanged a look with Opix, who thankfully stood behind me just in case things went left. Seeing this, Cerus groaned and followed close behind.

When I opened the door, I’d truthfully been expecting to see a Gnome. Even if it hadn’t been low on the door, it was just unlucky enough to be something that would happen to me. My heart sank all the while as I stared into the gray, masklike face of the newcomer. They crouched down, though their white-fur back still touched the ten-foot wooden ceiling. They spoke in an androgynous tone, brandishing a familiar blade in its palm. It still had blood on it, and the leather on the hilt was partially melted like it’d been dipped in acid.

“I believe I owe you a stab to the eye, Grim Hearts,” Ciz’s Presence noted.

Opix: This is the thing you nearly killed?!

Cerus: my thrall is impressive angel boy you should know this

“Thank… you,” I said, doing my best to hide my utter horror.

The Presence smiled. “Relax, child. I am not your enemy this day. I was tasked with locating you, and I have. Now, I come bearing a message: My master, Ciz Weroz, is requesting an urgent meeting with you three. She wants to meet somewhere safe and public to ensure no foul play or ‘sudden plant watering’.”

Cerus laughed from behind us but held it in as soon as we turned.

“She asks that you name a suitable location within this village should you accept her request to meet. Master Ciz is currently in a bakery in the center of town. Would you like me to lead you there?”

“What does she want to discuss?” Opix asked.

“She would like to discuss an alliance. A true alliance; free of deceit or betrayal. Before it is formed, she would like to determine your character firsthand.”

“And if we disagree?” Cerus asked.

Ciz’s Presence laughed. “We were visited by Seraph Gnomes early this morning. The offer they made us was life-changing, and we denied it in favor of the one we are offering you. Should you disagree, we will take the Gnomes' offer – which will certainly result in your death.”

Opix glared at Cerus, who once again acted oblivious to the whole thing. Before it could turn into another argument, I decided to accept the offer.

“Tell her we’ll be there in five minutes.”

Ciz’s Presence spoke in a higher-pitched, Czech-accented voice. “I can hear you through my Presence. Thank you for accepting. I have given it thought, and I believe I should come to you as the topics I wish to discuss may prove risky if spoken of in public. Do you mind if I go to your room?”

“What topics do you want to discuss?” Opix questioned.

“The Felzian Queen, the Rangers, and our mutual goals of seeing them all destroyed.”

“We accept!” Cerus shouted. “Come upstairs!”

Ciz laughed through her Presence. “Good, I’ll be there in five minutes.”