Of course, now Kureha needed over one million experience points to reach level 15, but that was something he would deal with later.
Like when he was trying to level Kureha up again.
With a swipe of his hand, he opened Kureha’s status screen, put her 10 SP into her Intelligence.
“Congratulations, Kureha,” Titania said to the little fox. “It looks like you have finally reached the level where leveling up becomes difficult.”
Kureha yipped in what Adam thought was a happy voice. It was hard to tell. He leaned down as the little fox yokai ran up to him and began pawing at his leg. The happy mrrring noises she made as he scratched behind her ear were oddly soothing.
“Nice job, Kureha. I knew you had it in you.”
“Yip!”
“So what now?” asked Titania as she fluttered over to Adam and sat down on his shoulder.
“Now we return to Solum,” Adam said. “I would like to speak with the mayor before Fayte, Lilith, and Susan arrive.”
It had only been one day since they completed their first quest together. Everyone had agreed to log in today at 8:00am. Adam, as someone who only needed two hours of sleep to remain at his peak physical and mental condition, had woken up at 12:30am this morning, logged into Age of Gods, and began grinding his, Kureha’s, and Titania’s levels ever since.
Because Adam wanted to maintain a higher level than all the other players in Age of Gods, he was working a lot harder to maintain a strong lead. He was worried, however. It took so many experience points to level up. The only way to do so would be to take on quests or raid dungeons, but he didn’t know where any dungeons might be. He planned on taking another quest with his party again at some point, but there were several other things he wanted to do first.
One of them was talking to the mayor. Thanks to the quest he did for the man, Bromley Paxton was more than willing to see him.
“Adam. I did not expect to see you again so soon. Are you here for another quest?” the man asked.
They were back in Bromley Paxton’s office. Adam was standing at attention, but the mayor was sitting behind his desk this time. It looked like he was working on papers… which surprised Adam. Was this also part of Age of God’s setting? He’d never seen an NPC do actual work. Their only real purpose in games was to offer insight, lore, and quests.
“I do plan on taking another quest, but not right now. I actually had a question,” Adam said.
“A question? Well, feel free to ask. I will answer if I am able to.” Bromley Paxton wore an amicable smile. It was very diplomatic and made Adam think of some of the aristocrats and dignitaries he had killed during his time as Lucifer’s assassin.
“I wanted to ask about hidden classes,” Adam said. “Specifically, do you know if there’s any place I could go to find either a [hidden class scroll] or a master who can train someone in a hidden class?”
“Hmmm…” Bromley Paxton stopped working when he heard Adam’s question. A frown grew on his face as he leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms. “That is quite the question. You understand that hidden classes are very hard to find, yes?”
“I am aware,” Adam said with a nod. “But I was hoping you might know something. Even a rumor would be fine.”
The mayor hummed once more and scrunched his face up in thought, which made him look like a pug.
“I do know of a rumor regarding a place where you might be able to find a hidden class,” Bromley Paxton admitted. “Legends say there is a cave several hundred klicks north of here, in a place filled with enemies that are all over level 40 called the Sunset Mountain Range. This cave is located on the tallest mountain on the Sun Continent, the Suncrest Mountain, and it’s said to have been the last hiding place for the sole survivor of the now extinct Demon Knight Clan.”
“Demon Knight Clan?” Adam asked.
It was Titania, still sitting on his shoulder, who answered him. “The Demon Knight Clan is a group of powerful demons who came here from the Forgotten Continent. Unlike the many other warlike demons who reveled in death and mayhem, the Demon Knight Clan cared more about money and sold their services to anyone who was willing to pay the right price.” She snorted. “Because they have pointed ears, some people used to think they were related to my Fairy Clan.”
“Are they not?” asked Adam.
“Of course not!”
“It was just a question. No need to get upset,” Adam muttered.
“The Demon Knight Clan went extinct over a thousand years ago,” Bromley Paxton said. “However, this legend about the cave only began around five hundred years ago. I am not sure if the cave really was the hideout of the last surviving Demon Knight Clansmen, or if it is just a rumor since no one has even found the cave. However, rumors have persisted that the last survivor of the Demon Knight Clan left behind a trial, and that those who complete the trial will gain a hidden class called Demon Knight Assassin.”
“Thank you for the information,” Adam said with a slight bow.
“Of course. Come to me if you need anything else.”
Adam left the mayor’s residence after getting the information he wanted. He traveled to the food court and bought Kureha several kebabs. She seemed to enjoy eating those the most. He also bought a loaf of honeyed bread and sliced it up for Titania.
“You are awfully considerate,” Titania said as she grabbed one of the slices. It was just large enough to fit in her hands without looking obscene.
“What do you mean?” asked Adam.
“I mean you are always looking out for us,” Titania said before nibbling on the bread. Her pointed ears wiggled in what Adam could only assume was joy. “I have noticed it ever since we met, but you seem to observe everyone in your party and anticipate our needs. I’ve never met such a considerate human before.”
“Ah. Well, I guess you could say I’ve become used to looking after people,” Adam admitted, not sure what else he could say.
“Hmm… is that so? So you look after people back in your world?”
“Yes. My lover.”
After mentioning his lover, an image of Aris flashed in his mind, of her eyes closed, her lips ice blue, and her body frozen in stasis. His heart ached. Every day she was not with him was another day where the hole in his chest expanded. He did his best to ignore the pain, but Aris had been an inextricable part of his life for five whole years. How could he ignore something like that?
Titania must have seen the pain in his eyes. After studying him for another moment, she turned her head and focused on eating. Adam was grateful.
Fayte arrived several minutes after his conversation with Titania. She walked up to their table, her face hidden behind her veil as always, and sat down next to Adam.
“Good morning,” she said in a soft voice. “You weren’t at breakfast today. Have you been playing since early this morning?”
“More or less.” Adam shrugged, then smiled sheepishly. “Sorry about missing breakfast. It’s hard to tell the time when I’m playing.”
“It does not help that they do not have a clock in any of the popup windows,” Fayte added with a twinkle in her eyes.
Kureha finished eating while they spoke. The little fox yokai hopped off the table, onto the bench, and curled up on Adam’s lap, where she promptly fell asleep. Adam began stroking the yokai’s fur. His fox companion emitted soft noises in her sleep that reminded him of snoring.
“Lilith would flip if she saw this,” Fayte said in a voice that seeped amusement.
“Probably,” Adam agreed.
Lilith was the next person to arrive. The moment she saw Kureha sleeping on Adam’s lap, her hands began twitching. It looked to him like she was just barely restraining herself from squealing like a love struck fool, or maybe she was resisting the desire to pluck Kureha from his lap and stroke her fur. Only the cool and mysterious persona she had cultivated for over a decade allowed her to maintain her composure as she sat down on Adam’s other side.
“I-I’m sorry f
or being late!” Susan said as she rushed over to their table, the last one to appear.
“It is okay,” Fayte said, though her eyes held an unknown glimmer in them as she looked at the heavily breathing young girl. “Are you okay, Su?”
“O-of course,” Susan said, turning her head and looking away.
Adam frowned for a moment as he noticed this and realized something had happened with Susan, though the girl seemed unwilling to share. He didn’t want to pry into her personal life too much. At the same time, it was clear that Fayte was concerned by whatever had happened to their youngest companion.
“Sit down, Su. I think we should discuss what to do now that everyone is here,” Adam said.
Susan sent him a grateful look before sitting down on the opposite side of Adam, Lilith, and Fayte. These benches could seat six, but the other two women had already claimed the spots next to him.
Now that everyone was present, Adam informed the group about the legend he had learned from Bromley Paxton, the one that said a Demon Knight Clansman had left a trial that would allow someone to change their class into Demon Knight Assassin. The three women listened to him with attentive expressions. They had already learned the benefits of having a hidden class after Adam got the [Fairy Archer Scroll] from Bromley Paxton’s vault.
“So you think we should head there?” asked Fayte.
Adam nodded. “At the moment, there are only a few thousand players who have left the Village of Beginnings, but more will come soon. Before that happens, I believe we should make sure all of us have a hidden class. That will help give us an edge over everyone else when the elite members of society begin forming guilds.”
“Speaking of, how does one form a guild in this game?” Fayte inquired.
“People can form guilds once their Reputation is high enough. Guilds can be formed by using a [Guild Creation Token] and registering your guild with the Guild Association,” Titania said. Having finished her meal, she once more fluttered up and sat on Adam’s shoulder. “The Guild Association is a long-standing group that’s been around since before I became the Guardian of the Spear. It’s their responsibility to manage guild registration. They keep track of things like guild rankings, each guild’s net worth, and how many quests they have completed.”
Adam had not known this. He blamed himself for not asking her. The information about guilds would definitely be useful later, but they would not have to concern themselves with that until someone found a [Guild Creation Token].
“And how does one find a [Guild Creation Token]?” asked Fayte.
Titania’s beautiful red hair wavered like rippling waves as she shook her head. “No one knows. Sometimes they are dropped from powerful monsters and raid bosses that people defeat. Other times they might appear inside of a treasure chest deep within a dungeon. Not much is known about [Guild Creation Tokens]. It has always been assumed that the Four Goddesses created them and scattered the tokens throughout the world.”
Talking about [Guild Creation Tokens] wouldn’t do them much good right now. This was something they wouldn’t need to worry about for a while. That being the case, Adam and his party decided it was time to head off. They had a hidden class to find.
After renting out four horses, Adam, Fayte, Lilith, Susan, Titania, and Kureha left Solum and traveled north. Each of the players got their own horse. Titania was too small to ride a horse and Kureha was a fox. What did she need a horse for? Both Titania and Kureha hitched a ride with Adam, same as usual. Titania rode on his shoulder and Kureha turned his hair into a bed.
He hoped he wouldn’t smell like fox when this was done.
Lilith had looked jealous, though whether she was jealous of the fox or Adam was not something he could figure out.
North of Solum was a large expanse of mountains and valleys that seemed to stretch on for hundreds of miles. The valleys were vast and deep. Sometimes there would be a large lake at the bottom. Other times there would be a massive forest. Adam could not judge how large each valley was, but he estimated that most of them were about the size of a large city like Phoenix or Houston.
According to Bromley Paxton, the cave was located within the surrounding mountain range. It was known as the Sunset Mountain Range and it was the largest mountain range on the Sun Continent, stretching from one side to the other as it divided the continent in half. Among the mountains, the biggest was located smack in the center, a snow-capped mountain surrounded by clouds.
Suncrest Mountain.
Bromley Paxton said that if there really was a cave where a Demon Knight Clansman had hidden themselves, it would definitely be there.
However, to get there, they had to contend with the monsters.
A fierce roar shook the ground as Adam and Lilith danced around a pair of massive feet, each of which were about two times bigger than they were. These feet were attached to trunk-like legs that reminded Adam of the massive trees in the Redwood Forest. Whenever these feet landed on the ground, they shook the earth, threatening to knock him and Lilith off their feet.
These creatures were called [validodon]. They were colossal dinosaurian-like creatures that closely resembled a triceratops. Three large horns sprouted from its forehead, while six more, three on either side, emerged from near its cheeks. Its body was covered in hard scales like armor and possessed multiple spiky outcroppings. Its brilliant brown eyes were covered by thick brow ridges that acted like a helmet to protect its one vulnerable point.
“Watch out for its tail!” Fayte shouted.
While Lilith lowered herself onto her stomach, Adam leapt into the air as the [validodon] swept its tail at them. Attached to the tail was a very large spiked ball. He would have assumed it was a weapon someone had attached to this creature, but it was actually growing out of its tail. A natural weapon.
After dodging its tail swipe, Adam and Lilith charged forward and attacked its underbelly. Lilith could only use [slash], but Adam activated [Dance of the Sakura Blossoms] to deal maximum damage.
-742; -742; -742; -742!
-22,545; -67,635; MISS!
While Adam and Lilith attacked from up close, Kureha, Fayte, and Susan fired their spells and arrows from a distance. Kureha used [Thunder Bolt] and [Fireball]. She switched at regular intervals to deal with the cooldown time between spells. Fayte only had [Energy Bolt] for single person attack spells, but her skill was maxed out and didn’t have a cooldown time, so she could fire constantly until she ran out of MP.
It was a good thing they had bought a lot of [low-grade mana potions].
-600; -600; -600; -600!
-6,000; -7,920; -6,000; -7,920!
While Kureha and Fayte fired off their spells, Susan took aim with her bow and shot arrows at the [validodon]. She primarily used her [deadshot] skill, but whenever the cooldown time for [Fairy Shot] ended, she would charge up her attack and fire it. The [Fairy Shot] flew from her bow like a streak of light and slammed into the monster’s hide like a cannonball.
-870; -870; -870; -1,740!
The [validodon] was a tank-type enemy. It possessed +545,000 health and dealt -6,000 to -12,000 points of damage depending on the skill it used, meaning it could easily one-shot any of them if its attacks actually hit. This meant Adam and Lilith, who were darting between the creature’s legs, needed to be careful not to get hit even once.
While Adam and Lilith attacked at close range and Fayte, Susan, and Kureha attacked from a distance, Titania sang the upbeat [Song of Vigor] to increase everyone’s Physical and Magical Attack. Thanks to her, the damage they did was three times greater than it would have been otherwise. It was largely because of her power that they were able to demolish the enemy’s HP so quickly.
Adam was confident that even if Fayte, Lilith, and Susan weren’t with him, he could have still defeated the [validodon], but it would have been much harder. Altogether, the three women did a total of around -10,000 damage every time they attacked. That meant he was still the heaviest hitter, but their presence definitely helped.
After fighting for nearly half an hour, they defeated the [validodon]. The one who struck the killing blow was Adam after he activated [Dance of the Sakura Blossoms] for the third time.
Ding!
[Congratulations! You have defeated the [validodon]. Items dropped: [Heavy Plate Mail], [Validodon Horn], [Monster Core], [Ring of Vitality], and 100,000 gold coins! +150,000 experience points!]
Ding!
[Congratulations! You have leveled up! You are now at level 14! +1,125 HP! +20 MP! +5 SP!]
Ding!
[Congratulations! Changing_Fayte has leveled up! She is now at level 13! +50 HP! +90 MP! +5 SP!]
Ding!
[Congratulations! Lilith has leveled up! She is now at level 13! +10 HP! +5 MP! +5 SP!]
Ding!
[Congratulations! Little_Su has leveled up! She is now at level 13! +125 HP! +10 MP! +5 SP!]
Adam shook his head when several announcements about him and his party members leveling up appeared in a window before him. The disparity between Susan’s and Titania’s gains over Fayte’s and Lilith’s was astronomical. It once more let Adam know he was making the right choice by trying to get them a hidden class instead of taking on quests.
Since he had also leveled up, Adam added his SP into his Strength, bringing it up to +490. He also glanced at his spear, which was currently at level 9 still. He needed over +460,000 experience points to level it up.
“Nice work, everyone!” Fayte said as he and Lilith regrouped with the others.
Fayte, Susan, Titania, and Kureha had stayed far away from the battlefield. The [validodon] had a skill called [Earthquake], which was an AOE skill that did more than just -12,000 damage. It also had a 100% chance of causing stun. Of course, since it caused -12,000 damage, the stun effect was a moot point, but it was just another reason to remain outside of its range. Adam and Lilith could avoid being damaged by leaping into the air at the exact moment when [Earthquake] was cast. The others were not so skilled.
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