"New... prey?" The Alraune spoke with a confused expression. I was speechless at the fact that it could speak. Sensing the danger of this enemy, I summoned my shield and got into a defensive stance. "Strong prey... I... want..."

The Alraune lunged at me with its thorn-like appendages. I dodged the ones aimed at my throat, though I couldn't evade all of them. One managed to pierce my leg armor and stab right into my thigh. I gritted my teeth to withstand the pain and cut off the thorn. This caused it an equal amount of pain, though the Alraune screamed in pain. I ripped out the thorn, causing me more pain, and charged at the plant.

Once I got close, I stabbed my sword into its abdomen and blasted an Ice Flechette into its chest. What met me after that was a thorn in the chest. It hit me and sent me flying about five meters before I rolled to a stop on the ground. I felt pain wracking my chest. That hit must have broken a rib or two. I coughed up a bit of blood and wiped it away. When I looked at it, it was approaching my now unconscious part members.

I felt anger well up inside me and cast an Ice Spear, which caught the Alraune off-guard as it hit the monster right on the side. The thing had a humanoid form but wasn't going to die like a human would. I cleared the five meters in a second and swung with as much force as I could. This was a big mistake. I underestimated its mobility and it dodged my swing, using a vine to wrap around my neck and lift me up.

The abruptness caused my shield to unsummon itself and I barely managed to hold onto my sword. Two vines restricted my arms, but I could still move my metal arm barely enough to cast a spell towards the vines. I waited for a chance to strike. The Alraune then started speaking again.

"Prey... strong. Name... is?" The Alraune asked a question with a surprised expression. I decided it was an opportunity and cast Ice Flechette, slicing the vines restricting me. The Alraune once again was caught off-guard and screamed in pain as its vines were cut. I barely managed to land on the ground properly since my leg was beginning to numb even more.

I fired another Ice Flechette at point blank and retreated. The Alraune then looked at me with extreme bloodlust in its eyes.

"You... die..." That was the thing I heard before being hit hard enough to go flying into the wall behind me. That hit must have made me go flying for a good 20 meters. It took everything I had not to fall unconscious and I was bleeding profusely from my head. I felt searing pain all over my body and barely managed to stand up using my sword as a prop. I would die if I took another hit like that.

Once again, I was treated to the sight of it approaching my companions. I felt anger welling up inside me. But it was an anger that felt like frost-burn, like a combination of the icy rage from Controlled Berserking and the burning anger from Blind Rage. It was a strange feeling, and I focused it on the Alraune. I subconsciously activated my intimidation aura and got its attention instantly. If it could form cold sweat, it would do so right now. Its expression turned from one of anger to one of fear.

I rushed towards it while ignoring the pain I was going through. It was rooted in fear, and all I could think about was its intent to consume my party and the intention of killing the monster. But before I landed the strike that would kill it, I stopped. Something stopped me from swinging the sword, and I decided to let it go.

"Leave. Don't ever come back if you value your life." I spoke to it with an icy tone. The Alraune nodded and immediately shot up the stairs. I assumed that it escaped into the nearby forest and turned around. Sheathing my sword, I felt the fatigue from Controlled Berserking hit me and I kneeled on the ground. Barely managing to stay upright, I got up and hobbled over to the others and woke them up.

They saw my battered state and instantly had worried expressions on, especially Jane. I coughed up a bit of blood and wiped it away.

"Can you lend me a shoulder, Jane?" I asked her. She obliged and I took her shoulder. We started heading up the stairs. I struggled since my entire right leg was now numb. That mage better give me a damn good enchantment. I tried to scratch my head, only to be met with a large amount of pain and blood.

I looked down and saw blood and dents all over my gear. I wiped some more blood from my mouth and held my chest after. More than just one or two ribs were broken. I could probably recover with the vitality stat, but it would take some time. We headed up the stair and I propped myself against a wall to slowly recover. Rose came over and cast some healing magic to speed up the process.

It would probably take a few hours with the spells now. I sat down and controlled my breathing. We all sat down in a circle and waited for a few hours. The others killed time by talking about their own struggles while adventuring. I listened and smiled wearily. I felt a soft sensation on my right arm. I looked over and saw Jane hugging my arm, resting her head on my shoulder.

I felt a little bit of pain, but the warmth that went through my heart at this moment overpowered it. These guys were real companions who would go through hell and back with me. I could trust them with my life, and they could trust me with theirs. I realized that in this moment and thought about naming our group.

Maybe... the Nomads? I planned to travel this continent and maybe find a new land to explore. Nobody has explored the entirety of the ocean yet in this world. It still sounded like an extremely dangerous venture but would be worth it. I decided to discuss this with the others.

"Hey, what do you guys think of the name "The Nomads"?" I asked them. They all looked at me with confused expressions.

"Why do you ask?" Lance said.

"Well, I just thought our group should have a name. I decided on "The Nomads" since we travel a lot." I explained. Lance thought about it then shook his head.

"I think we should do "The Explorers" instead since you plan to explore the continent and find things other people wouldn't, right?" Lance gave a different suggestion and I thought it made a lot of sense.

"Alright. We'll do that. Our group will be "The Explorers"." I said while smiling in satisfaction. We did a little toast using imaginary wine glasses. I started laughing and the others did too. We continued killing time until I fully recovered and we started heading back to the city. We made it there within ten minutes and entered through the gate. It was late evening and we headed to the Guild.

Entering, we saw a man standing at the counter talking to the receptionist about something. He had a tome on his belt and was wearing a blue robe along with a silver circlet on his head. He had the characteristic elf ears along with silver and blue eyes.

"Is the tower cleared yet? I need it immediately!" The elf mage looked to be in a rush and hurriedly said this to the lady at the booth.

"The adventurers have not returned yet." She then looked past the elf and saw us standing there. "Nevermind, they have returned now." The elf turned around and looked at his. He then rushed up to me and grabbed my shoulders.

"Is it cleared? Answer me!" He said to me. I didn't understand why he was in such a rush but I answered him.

"Yes. It's cleared. Though you'll have to get rid of many corpses in the basement. There was an Alraune living down there." He let out a relieved sigh and let go of me.

"Thank you. Come to the tower tomorrow. I will enchant your weapons then. Until then, good night." He bid us goodbye before walking out of the Guild.

"Well, that just happened. Alright, I guess we can go now." I said to the others. They nodded and we took a few steps before the lady stopped us.

"Wait! You guys forgot about your reward money!" She then pulled out a pouch of coins. I laughed awkwardly before taking the bag and thanking her. I put the bag in my inventory and we started leaving to find an Inn to stay at. We walked around until we saw a sign that labeled a place called "The Fallen Leaf". It was a simple two-story wooden building that gave off a cozy atmosphere.

Upon entering, I immediately got stares because of my bloody and battered look. The blood was my own, of course. I sighed and scratched my head awkwardly, which made me get some dried blood on my cloth-wrapped hand. Maybe I should switch to a glove. The innkeeper came out and we had a conversation about lodgings. I decided we would stay for a month so we could do requests and possibly encounter new monsters to fight.

I thought about the Alraune encounter while getting our group's room keys. The arrangement was the same as last time, Jane and I had a separate room from Lance and Rose. Deciding to call it a day, we headed up to our respective rooms and entered. I would probably have to get my plate armor repaired since there were a few dents and a hole in it.

I put my gear into my inventory and grabbed a set of casual clothes from my inventory. Entering the bathroom, I placed the clothes by the door and entered the bath. While I sat and relaxed, Jane entered and got into the bath too. She was next to me and leaned her head on my shoulder. She then started talking to me.

"Michael. You don't have to shoulder these burdens by yourself, you know? You could always talk to me if you're feeling stressed out." Jane said this in a soft voice. I placed an arm around her and hugged her tightly. I just hugged her and let all the stress from the adventuring life release itself through this one hug. Jane patted me on the back.

"You did good today, just like usual. So don't look back, alright? Just face forward and do your best. I'm always here for you." Jane closed her eyes and kept hugging me. I teared up a little but it went unnoticed. This world was a great one.

After we finished bathing, I got into bed expecting to go to sleep. Only to get pinned down again.

"I've been holding back Michael~. Let's see how long you'll go this time~." Jane started taking off her clothes and mine. Why did I even get a spare set? I mentally prepared myself for this long trial that would be more exhausting than normal combat.

Surprisingly, I managed to stay conscious for 40 minutes before passing out.

When I woke up, I found that the bed sheets were new. I guess Jane had replaced them after what happened last night. I was sore but managed to move around just like normal. Sore muscles weren't as painful as broken ribs after all. I washed my face and put my clothes back on. Jane was still in bed naked and I decided to wake her up by fondling her tail.

She started becoming flushed and letting out moans. After a bit, she woke up and looked at me with an indignant face. I don't know why she made that face, I was the one being forced to go for extremely tiring sessions with her. As I sighed, she went to the bathroom to wash her face. I put on my Basilisk Coat and normal combat clothing, but I didn't equip the armor. I planned to have a blacksmith repair it. Also, trying to fight without the armor would be a new experience.

While thinking about these things, Jane finished and dressed in her gear. We exited our room and checked on Lance and Rose. When we opened the door, we saw them hugging each other in their sheets. I'm guessing they did some "stress relief" last night. I walked over and woke them up.

Once they finished preparing, we headed downstairs to grab breakfast and so I could ask the innkeeper about a blacksmith and a nearby church. She gave directions to a quality blacksmith that was nearby and a church on the other side of the city. The church was situated next to the royal palace.

Our group headed over to the blacksmith since we wanted to repair our armor among other things. The forge was outside the shop, and I saw a burly man working the forge. He had dark skin and black hair with blue eyes. Something that would've been rare back on Earth. He saw us approaching and stopped hammering, looking at us with a friendly smile.

"Hello there! I take it you're all adventurers?" He held out his hand which I promptly shook. I would always enjoy the company of nice people.

"Yes. I'd like to get my armor repaired, as well as my companion here of course." I gestured to both myself and Lance.

"Of course! My name's Elliot. What's yours and your companions'?" He introduced himself and asked for our names too. I obliged.

"I'm Michael, this guy is Lance, she's Jane, and she's Rose." I introduced them in order and they all shook Elliot's hand.

"I take it they don't wear metal armors?" Elliot asked.

"Yeah. It's just our armor since we're on the front." I replied.

"Alright, just leave them with me and I'll have them done by tomorrow." Elliot said.

Lance and I brought out our armor and left it on a table he had set up nearby. After assuring him we'd be back, we left for the church. I don't know if the others had a purpose in being there, but I did.

It was a pretty long walk but we made it. The church was massive. It was probably built to hold the entire population of Ironhorn. I entered with the others through the double door and looked around. The church was built out of expensive materials but it could probably withstand a large amount of damage. I saw a statue of Eden ahead. It was posed in an elegant form and I couldn't help but recall the difference between the statue and that lazy god.

I walked up to it and started talking.

"Eden. You there?" I waited. Silence. I bet the others thought I was insane now, including the priests currently inside the building.

"Eden, I know you're there." I sighed then heard a voice as I was about to turn and leave.

"That was a good nap. You took almost two years to contact me. What were you doing?" Eden's voice was transmitted through the statue and everyone inside the building could hear it. All the priests were extremely shocked.

"Adventuring, risking my life. The usual. Anyways, thanks for putting me in this world. I'm certainly enjoying this more than the desk job I had back on Earth." I had a casual conversation with Eden for the next 15 minutes while the priests slowly recovered from their shock.

"Alright, Eden. I'll talk to you some other time." I decided to end the conversation there since Eden seemed satisfied. I managed to kill some time for him and I guess that's all he wanted.

"Alright. See ya." The statue became silent and I started walking towards the doors. I then heard hurried footsteps behind me.

"Wait!" A feminine voice sounded out behind me. It was a little girl, probably around 13 to 14 years old. This was the second loli I've encountered in my time here, the first was when I'd left the Fox village.

"Yes? Is there something you require, young lady?" I said in a polite tone. I learned noble mannerisms from Lance while we traveled through the White Desert. It was a pretty good time killer back then and I'd learned pretty quickly.

"Are you an otherworlder? Nobody else can communicate with Eden other than oracles or otherworlders." She asked. I decided I would just tell her the truth since lying to a little girl would leave a bit of guilt.

"Yes. I'm from another world. But I plan to live freely and don't want to be tied down to any kingdom. So I'll have to refuse that if you offer it." I predicted that she would try to recruit me to her kingdom so I said it bluntly. She looked crestfallen at what I said.

"Alright. If you say so..." She looked at her feet and trailed off at the end of her sentence. I did offer something else for her.

"I'll be staying in this city for a month before I leave. If there's anything you need, don't hesitate to send a messenger or something. I'll probably be able to help, alright?" That was what I decided on. She looked back up at me and hugged me.

"Thanks, big brother! If you don't mind, which Inn do you stay at?" I wasn't so sure about that big brother part, it made me feel like a pedo.

"My group and I are staying at The Fallen Leaf." I patted her head while she was hugging me and when she let go, I turned around to leave. Jane gave me a death stare when we exited and I appeased her before we left to head for the tower.

Exiting the city's Southern gate, we sped off to the tower and arrived after a quick sprint. The tower was now refurbished and looked as if it was just built. That mage was quick. There was also actually a door for the tower now. When we arrived, I heard footsteps coming from inside the tower. The elf mage opened the door and looked around before seeing us standing there.

"It's you guys. Come in. I'll get started with the weapon enchanting inside." He went back inside and we let ourselves in. Lance closed the door behind us and we headed upwards toward the top of the tower. At the top, there were alchemical devices everywhere. At least, that's what I thought. "I'm Leo. I'll be enchanting your weapons. Keep in mind, it's random but the enchantments I provide will almost always be good ones. Now we'll take turns enchanting. You will go first." He pointed at me.

I placed my greatsword on the table he was standing near. It had a magic circle on it and I backed up to give Leo space so he could enchant. Mana flowed from his hand into the circle until it glowed brightly. He started chanting sets of words from some ancient language while making gestures. The circle slowly completed a formation and the enchanting was over after a couple of minutes. Leo gestured for me to come over and I picked up the sword. The others had their weapons enchanted while I just stared at the greatsword in my hand.

Deliverance, the Edge of Death Damage: 535(+447) Durability: 350/350(+105) An enchanted greatsword made entirely of Adamantium. This greatsword empowers its wielder to cleave through even the toughest of armor or hide. Bound to Michael Adkins.

Effect 1: Attacks inflict a status that does 20 damage/sec for 6 seconds that bypasses any defense. The effect can stack up to three times on the same target.

Effect 2: Grants a passive 60% defense penetration.

Longinus, Spear of the Heavens Damage: 495 Durability: 320/320 An enchanted spear made of Mithril. It will empower the wielder to make lightning-fast strikes while staying mobile. Bound to Lance Howe.

Effect 1: A hit will inflict 35 points of light damage/sec for 6 seconds; The effect can stack three times on the same target; Has no effect on Light element entities.

Effect 2: Attack Speed increased by 35% when wielding this weapon; Evasion raised by 15% when wielding this weapon.

Arcus, the Call of Winter Damage: 510 Durability: 340/340 An enchanted bow crafted from Darkwood. It empowers its wielder to have unmatched from even the farthest ranges. Bound to Jane Crimson.

Effect 1: Attacks inflict 35 points of ice damage/sec; The effect can stack three times on the same target; Has no effect on Ice element enemies.

Effect 2: Velocity and Accuracy of Arrows are increased by 45%; Damage Falloff decreased by 60%

Dawn, the Sanctuary of Light/Tyrant, the Hammer of Ruin Damage: 470 Durability: 335/335 An enchanted staff crafted using wood from an ancient tree. It contains a mana crystal that can be used to store mana for emergency use. It comes with the ability to switch between two modes. Both weapon modes empower the user in different ways. Bound to Rose Harper.

Staff Mode: Increases Intelligence and Cast Speed by 40%

Hammer Mode: Increases Strength by 40%; Has a chance to knock enemies back on hit

Effect: Attacks inflict 35 Lightning damage/sec for 6 seconds; The effect can stack up to three times on the same target; Has no effect on Lightning element enemies.

I was awed by the power of my sword. Not only were the damage and durability massively increased, it even came with a damage-over-time effect on every hit. Everyone else got their enchantments while I drooled over my greatsword. We inspected each other's weapons and discovered that they had sheens and a dim glow corresponding to their damage-over-time effect. My sword had a bloody red glow, Lance's spear had a holy white, Jane's was icy blue, and Rose's was a gentle yellow.

All of us were extremely satisfied with our new weapons and left the tower. I decided to do a practice swing and sure enough, a red arc formed behind the sword. It highlighted the sword's path as it cut through the air. I was awed by this and so were the others. They tried using their weapons too and it had the same effect.

We were even more satisfied with our new weapons and headed back to the city in high spirits.