“P-please buy me some food.”

“Hey, are you ok?”

The suspicious man suddenly collapses in my arms and I didn’t know what to do. I held him up as his stomach continued to grumble like it was a volcano on the verge of exploding. I rest him by the sidewalk and ran to the nearest JackDonalds and bought a meal consisting of a burger, fries, and a drink.

I shook the man awake and handed him the meal. His eyes shone brightly as he began to devour the food. Fifi and I waited for him to finish eating before we talked about his items. The one Fifi was most interested in was the wooden mallet.

“Thank you. Really, thank you. I would have starved to death if it wasn’t for you.”

“How did you get like this? You would have been fine if you asked the government for help.”

“Heh, the government can never be trusted, kid. By the way, do you know where we’re at?”

“What do you mean? We’re in Hope City.”

“Hope city?”

This man really was suspicious. How did he not know what city he was living in? Wait, maybe he came from the surface, if so what should I do. Should I report it to William?

“Did you come from the surface?”

“Surface? No, I was fighting some monsters on my mountain and I suddenly appeared here a few days ago. I’ve been trying to sell my items for money but no one would buy them.”

“Mountain?”

I was even more confused now. There was no mountain near Hope city for many miles since it was built in the plains. I whisper to Fifi about the situation and she believed that he might have been teleported to Hope city by chance. She said that it wasn’t rare for monsters to have to teleport abilities or traps teleporting people in her era, but she didn’t expect it to happen in the modern age. 

“Most monsters with teleport abilities are very strong so he might have had an unlucky encounter or he had stepped into an ancient mage’s trap. Either way, let’s ask for compensation for helping him, try to get that wooden mallet.”

“Ok.”

“Hey, what are you and that little fairy discussing?”

“What, you can see me!?”

“Yeah? Oh, I should probably get going now. Here, I’ll give you this wooden mallet as a gift for helping me.”

The entire situation was too shocking that I couldn’t really grasp my head around it. This was the first time Fifi’s invisibility magic had ever failed in front of a human. The suspicious man turned to leave but something was urging me to stop him. The feeling was coming from Tigurka’s seed which I had turned into a necklace.

“Wait, what’s your name?”

“It’s Calistus, what about you?”

“Jude, Jude Craven.”

“Alright, nice to meet you, Jude. If fate has it then we’ll meet again.”

Calistus walked away and disappeared into the darkness of the night. It was such a strange encounter but I feel like this wasn’t going the be the last time I meet him.

“Wow, its a replica of Honkers mallet. Hehehe, what a steal.”

“What’s Honkers mallet?”

“Honkers mallet was a weapon used by Honkers the giant. The most famous legend surrounding Honkers was how he used his mallet to destroy the horn of the dragon, Guslay. Although its a replica, if it has a single percent of the actual mallet’s power then it would still be incredibly strong. But the weirdest thing is that Honkers the giant isn’t a legend of this world.”

Fifi was excited to explain the replica of Honkers mallet but by the end of it, she was speaking so quietly that I couldn’t hear. I don’t know the legend of Honkers the giant but if it was able to break the horn of dragon then it was must be incredibly powerful. I’ve never met a dragon so I can’t really compare its strength but they must be strong.

Fifi stored the mallet in her pouch and we made our way back home. I asked Fifi if I was going to be using the mallet as my weapon but she said no. Her reasoning was that the mallet was too strong for me to handle and if I was to use it then I would become dependant on the mallet’s power. So she recommended me to borrow a sword from William.

……

“Ju-Ju. Work. Again?”

“Yeah, I don’t know when I’ll be back so Karla’s going to take care of you, ok.”

“Bye-bye.”

I hand Karla the rest of my money to use for Justina and get into the truck. I wave goodbye to both Karla and Justina as the truck starts up. It wasn’t long before I couldn’t see them anymore. I sit next to Mako as I make sure not to bump into anything. We were using the same truck we used to escape Ostempal but this time it was more crowded.

There were seven people in the back instead of six and we also had to make room for our gear and rations. Since we didn’t know how long we’re going to be out William had also prepared camping gear that was tied on top of the truck.

The truck drove through an underground passage instead of going back up to the surface city. Once we exited the passage, the sunlight came through the windows. The simulated sun in Hope city wasn’t bad but it couldn’t compare to natural sunlight.

“Is that really all the gear you need, Jude. We could have helped you buy more.”

“It’s fine but thank you for the offer.”

Everyone on the team is really nice. Besides Mako, Jill, Gorou, and even Rachel had offered to help buy me gear or other necessities. Unlike everyone’s armor which seemed sturdy and brand new, mine was dull and old like they were hand-me-downs.

We had small talk here and there to pass the time. Stories of how Ken and Gorou got drunk and sang their hearts out or stories of how Rachel saw William on a date with a girl from a different Unit. We even heard William complaining about how FUUI as an organization were cheapskates because instead of covering the destruction of his truck, he had to pay for the repairs out of his own pocket.

“It’s not only that, I have to pay rent for the base and all they give us is a “premium” discount on groceries. It wasn’t even for weapons or armors! They don’t care for small Units like ours and only cater to larger Units which will make them more money. Don’t you guys think it’s unfair?”

Just like that 2 hours passed by as we arrived at our destination. We passed by a few cities but many of them were destroyed and burned down. It really showed the severity of the situation around the world that out of the 4 cities we passed through, only 1 of them was still holding on. Even along the way, we had to fight against monsters that were roaming on the roads.

“Is it me or is it oddly foggy?”

“Yeah.”

Looking out the window we could see buildings in the distance but other than that it was foggy everywhere else. There didn’t seem to be any signs or sounds of life in this area at all. It was faint but I could somewhat hear the sounds of frogs croaking.

“Jill, we’ve arrived at Consal, right?”

“Yeah, according to the maps, we’re currently in Consal.”

“Odd, why haven’t we arrived at any buildings yet?”

Gareth drives towards the buildings off in the distance but after a while, it seems like we haven’t moved at all. The distance to the buildings was exactly the same as when we first got here. William gave me a glance and I began asking Fifi what was going on.

“It seems like there’s a spell around the city that prevents us from entering.”

“Is there anything you can do about it.”

“Just give me a few minutes and I’ll find the correct path.”

I relay to William my conversation with Fifi and Gareth stops the car. We decide to wait for Fifi to deduce a path for us while keeping an eye out for our surroundings. CZ sends her eyeball out into the fog to scout our surroundings. Besides the stunning ability of the eyeball, it was able to fly and scout the area for a certain distance. 

Time silently passes by which causes everyone to become even tenser because the sounds of frogs croaking grew louder. I see CZ whisper something to Rachel and I could see her face go white.

“Wililam, CZ says she feels something in the fog and that its coming closer.”

“Alright, keep driving Gareth.”

Gareth starts the car back up but before we could go anywhere, the front right tire popped. Looking out the window, I could see a spear pierced into the tire. William rushes Gareth to go and he steps on the pedal. It was a bumpy ride with only three tires but at least we were going somewhere.

“William, CZ says the monster is still right behind us!”

Gareth continues to drive as William pokes his head out of the window with his gun aimed down. Like William, Rachel, Ken, and Gorou aim down their guns out of the windows. Mako tries using her wind magic to clear up the fog around us but it doesn’t work. The fog was just as thick as before, no, it was getting thicker.

“William, it’s even closer now!”

“Shit!”

Through the fog behind us, I could see a silhouette of a humanoid figure but it was definitely not human. It was at least 10 feet tall and had a tail. Its body was posed like it was going to throw another spear.

“Stop, don’t drive forward!”

Fifi tried to warn Gareth but it was too late. The truck begins to fall down as the ground below the truck disappears into an empty void. The fog was gone but we were now falling down in pitch darkness. 

“Fifi, Mako, and Jill use magic to slow the fall.”

All four of us use wind magic to slow the fall but the truck was too heavy for us to completely stop its descent. The truck must have hit a wall because it began to uncontrollably spin.

“Hold on!”

My head was becoming dizzy and it felt like I would black out but I held on. I don’t know how much time passed but everyone else besides Mako, Fifi, and I had already passed out to the g-force. That was when we finally made impact with the ground.

“I-Is everyone ok?”

No one besides Fifi replies back to me. I use fire magic to light up the car and checked everyone’s injuries. They were currently knocked out but I was glad that I could only see scraps and bruises from them being bashed against the car. The only person who had a serious wound was Gareth who had a gash in his forehead that was profusely bleeding. I had Fifi go heal him as I take my seatbelt off and exit the car.

I check our surroundings for any signs of monsters but I couldn’t see or hear anything. Looking back at the car, it had landed on its side and didn’t have much damage because we used wind magic to slow its fall. The only problem was that the gear tied on top of the car had disappeared during the fall.

“Fifi, are you done healing them yet?”

“Yeah.”

Since Fifi was done healing everyone, I decided to flip the car over with the help of earth magic. One by one, they started to wake up.

“Ugh, what happened?”

“Where are we?”

“It seems like we fell down a hole.”

They all exit the car as I began to explain to them what happened. Seeing that the situation was out of hand, William decided that everyone should gear up and rest for a bit. 

“How much did we lose, Gareth?”

“We lost the camping gear and rations that were tied on top. The car seems to be busted and isn’t working.”

“Haah, it was brand new too. Jude can you go with CZ and scout the area. I want you to get a grasp of the surroundings.”

“Ok.”

I burn a few items with my fire magic and leave them some light sources as the two of us head out into the darkness. Fifi was left behind because I wanted her to watch over the rest of the team. 

CZ’s eyeball was up in the air as I use fire magic to light up the way. We continue to walk as neither of us talked to one another. I wasn’t very good at talking and CZ didn’t talk much so it was silent. Now that I think about it, this was the first time I was alone with CZ, she was usually with Rachel or Ken.

“A dead end.”

“...”

“Let’s head back.”

We begin to head back and we could see the small glint of light in the distance. We probably walked out 200 meters or so when we reached the dead end. Suddenly I feel tugging from my shirt. Looking at CZ, she was pointing in a different direction from the others.

“Is there something over there.”

“...”

“Ok, let’s go check it out before heading back.”

I make my flames a litter brighter as we head on over. I didn’t see anything but eventually, I saw blood splatter on the ground. It was like someone had fallen out of the sky and made an impact with the ground, but I didn’t see a body. We walked a little bit further and was surprised at what we found, it was a truck that resembled ours.

Unlike our truck which had minimal damage, this one had unluckily landed head first. We looked for any signs of bodies but we couldn’t find any. But we did find signs of life. There were wrappers similar to the rations we carried and there was a campfire that didn’t seem too old. Not being able to find anything else we decided to head back and explain the situation.

“I see. That must have been Kayla’s Unit. Was that the only vehicle you spotted?”

“Yeah, there was only that one.”

“Hmm, there should have been three vehicles. And if there are no bodies then there must be an exit somewhere around here. Rest up for now before we continue our exploration.”

CZ and I head towards the campfire where everyone else was at. All our gear and rations had been loaded off of the truck as Gareth was trying to fix it. Gorou was carrying a heavy-looking shield with a shotgun and wore thick armor, Jill had light armor and was using a wand, and Mako had a sword, a wand, and a gun while also wearing armor. 

When Fifi first discovered that people were still using wands and staffs, she was surprised. She had assumed that all knowledge of magic along with wands and staves were lost, but it wasn’t. From her explanation, wands and staves were great conductors for mana so it made using magic easier and faster. She recommended getting a wand myself but the price of one was way too expensive. William, Gareth, Rachel, Ken, and CZ were all wearing armor with their own respective weapons.

“Fifi, can we talk for a bit.”

“What is it, Jude?”

“Do you feel like we’re being watched?”

“Good, I wasn’t expecting you to feel that but you’ve exceeded my expectations. What you’re feeling are the eyes of this dungeon’s overseer.”

“The dungeon’s overseer? Are they dangerous?”

“The overseer can’t attack us directly but they can send their minions to deal with us. We also have to be careful of traps but the more risks mean the better the rewards. We’re definitely coming out of this rich, Jude. You won’t have to worry about money anymore.”

“Haha, ok.”

In her own way, she must have regretted her decision for us not to be paid a regular wage. She was excited at the prospect of making a profit during this mission more than anyone else.

“GYAAAHHH!!!!”

“Everyone get in your positions!”

The scream had shocked all of us but with William’s quick command we got in our positions. Gorou, Ken, and I were in the front while Rachel was right behind us. We were the vanguard and the mages, Mako, Jill, and CZ were in the middle while Gareth and William covered our rear. 

Gorou propped up his shield with one hand and held a shotgun with the other. Both Ken and I take out our swords while in one of his hands were metal pellets. Rachel, Gareth, and William had their sights aimed towards the darkness where we heard the scream. Both Jill and Mako held their wands while CZ was already scouting ahead with her eyeball.

“P-please don’t kill me!!!

Someone was begging for their lives and incoherent jabber that replied back. 

“Let’s go, we’re going to save that person.”

Under William’s command, we all went towards the area the voice came from. It was going to be the first battle of our first mission.