Chapter 97

“I’ll take it.” Wil informed the landlord, staring at the spacious entranceway while idly rubbing the aged, gold ring on his left index finger.

He had been in Ur for over a week now, and as grateful to the city lord as he was for allowing him to stay at the palace, the guest room there was feeling a little stifling. Combined with the watching eyes of the palace staff, it all resulted in Wil’s eagerness to leave.

With the help of the Guild, they provided him a list of available properties to rent or purchase. With the cost of breaking the curse on the ring, he only had a few hundred coins left to his name, making him lean towards renting a small property, rather than purchasing one outright.

After several viewings, he had found himself attracted to a two-story estate on the outskirts of Ur, near the Guild branch. It had belonged to another adventurer, who had been forced to retire due to an injury he had received in the Wilds. Although he was eager to sell the property, he was willing to rent it out to Wil for a year, with an option to purchase at any time.

Made of the same black stone as the rest of Ur, the stark exterior of the building contrasted greatly with the comfortable and luxurious interior. It was furnished in tasteful and comfortable furniture, and included a complete library, four bedrooms, and a large training area in the backyard. In the basement, a secure treasure vault, complete with wards, dominated the space.

What appealed to Wil the most was the cost, only a hundred gold coins a month. Out of reach for many in Ur, a high-ranking adventurer like himself could easily afford it. Combined with the sense of security it provided, and the strong enchantments protecting the structure, Wil found it to be perfect for his needs.

“Excellent. We’ll have the paperwork drawn up immediately. Normally, we would require a guarantor, even with your status in the Guild, but the City Lord himself has vouched for your character. You may move in this evening, if you wish.” The landlord, responsible for overseeing the property while its owner was away, smiled widely at Wil as they shook hands.

“That will be fine. I’m due at the Guild soon, but I will stop by your office to sign the paperwork and pick up the keys this evening.” Wil said, nodding his head at the landlord and stepping out of his new home.

It was likely that he would be here most of the year, looking for the betrayer. They hadn’t found a single trace of him on their quests so far, but the elemental assured him that he could still feel his mana in the vicinity.

Walking down the wide street, his cloak pulled tight around him against the late autumn chill, Wil felt the ring on his left hand.

He had retrieved the item from the Church of the Twin suns earlier today. To his pleasant surprise, the curse had been successfully turned in upon itself, the evil within purified and changed into a new source of power for its enchantments.

The ring no longer held the remains of a wight, or any negative energy. Instead, the intense cold that it had emitted had been harnessed, allowing Wil to channel his mana through it, enhancing its powers and drawing them forth.

He hadn’t had an opportunity to test it yet, but a quickly cast ‘identify’ spell had revealed its uses to him.

As a ‘Ring of Frost’, it could be used to freeze anything that he touched with the gold band. Also, it allowed him to use the Tier 2 Evocation “Binding Ice”, freezing everything in a cone of frost in front of him, binding his enemies and damaging them with extreme frost.

It was well worth the cost of a thousand gold coins, and Wil had offered to split the profits of its sale with Astrid. It was only fair that they share the spoils of their adventures evenly, but she had insisted he keep it.

“I have more than enough items and gold from my parents. You should hang onto it, think of it as a memento of our first adventure together!” She had said, smiling widely as she placed the ring on his finger.

Smiling at the memory, Wil continued down the street, idly running his thumb along the band of gold.

It was nearly noon by the time he entered the Guild Branch, the building as busy as ever. Already, small groups of adventurers were gathered in the lounge area, the smell of ale and pipe smoke nearly overpowering after the fresh, mountain air outside.

Making his way across the room, he saw a cloaked figure standing next to the notices. Smiling slyly, he was about it reach forward and startle the person, when Astrid suddenly turned to look at him, a disapproving look on her face.

“You’re late, and you want to make it worse by playing a trick on me?” She chided, her beautiful face frowning up at him. Laughing, Wil held his hands up in defeat.

“I’m sorry, the meeting with the landlord took longer than expected. But at least I have a place to live now. You can tell your parents that I’m no longer a homeless vagabond, mooching off their good will.” He joked, standing next to her, and looking at the notices.

“My mother will be glad to hear that, although I think my father will be disappointed. He rather enjoyed your company the past few weeks.” She said, dropping her frown and replacing it with thoughtful expression as she returned her gaze to the quest notices.

“Which do you think we should try today?” She asked, observing that Wil seemed to be drifting towards the center of the Quest Board, where the Rank 4 and 5 quests were located.

“We’ve searched Ringlan Forest, and the elemental found no trace of the betrayer. We should look in the opposite direction, towards the mountains in the north. Unfortunately, that means we need to take a higher ranked quest.” Wil said, lifting a few of the overlapping notice parchments in order to better read them.

“We’ll need to be much more cautious if we go north. The dwarves tend to ignore the surface beasts and monsters, allowing them to multiply from neglect, but they will not overlook incursions into their territory from humans. My father told me that relations between our two races haven’t been great for the past few years.” Astrid advised, scanning the notices for a suitable quest.

“I’m not surprised, they’re a prickly bunch. The several dwarves I’ve run into have been very…opinionated. They seem to take pride in it.” Wil said, not turning his head away from the Quest Board.

“How about this one?” Astrid asked, tapping a piece of parchment with a fingernail.

“It’s rather far, but I think it’s exactly what we’re looking for. It will take us a day or two to reach it, even flying, and several more to investigate. Wil your parents be fine with you disappearing for a week?” Wil asked, lifting the notice from the board, and reading it carefully.

“Yes, I’ll send them a message to let them know, but they will be fine as long as I check in on the way. What do you think we’ll be dealing with? The notice doesn’t provide much information.” Astrid asked, looking at the piece of parchment in Wil’s hand.

Contract: Investigate the Disappearances at Aramoor Village

Suggested Rank: 5, Solo or small party recommended.

Duration: 3 Months

Reward: 1000 Gold Coins

“No idea, but it shouldn’t be anything that your dozens of wands and artifacts can’t handle.” Wil joked, walking towards the distant counter to confirm their choice of quest.

“They can’t solve every problem, otherwise I’d have one that could make you quiet and polite. A ‘wand of Barbarian Taming’, capable of turning you into someone suitable for civilized company.” Astrid retorted, smiling at the young man beside her.

“Heaven Forefend! My ‘savage charm’ is one of my only redeeming qualities!”

The pair made it to the front of the counter, where a young woman confirmed their quest. Making their way out of the guild branch, and leaving Ur by the north Gate, they were soon riding Marali towards the northern village of Aramoor.

Wil sat on the back of the giant swan, resting comfortably as he settled in for the long trip north.