As we looked through the board, we picked out an easy quest:
[Collect 5 Magic Herbs | Reward: Scroll]
"Seems easy enough," said Cinister.
"Where do we even find them?" asked Ragna.
"I'll go ask the lady," said Micheal.
He returned a few minutes later. "So, they're in a big field and... they're not exactly easy to spot."
"Great," Alya muttered.
We made our way to the field and started searching for the herbs.
"Ugh, we can't find any," Alya complained.
"Why haven't we fought anything in a while?" Ragna grumbled.
"Just calm down and look for the herbs," Cinister replied.
"And who made you the boss?" Ragna snapped.
"What? Do you have a problem?" Cinister shot back, narrowing his eyes.
"Yeah I want to be the boss." Ragna stood up straight, squaring his shoulders and sizing Cinister up.
"Ooooh, the two strongest are about to throw down," Alya grinned, clearly enjoying the tension.
"Place your bets!" Micheal called out, already rummaging in his pouch for coins.
Alya and Micheal stood firmly behind Cinister. Meanwhile, George and Brayden gave Ragna a thumbs-up, each whispering tactics like armchair coaches.
"[Fire Rings]" said Cinister and he got a massive damage, speed and health boost.
"[Arcmail]" Ragna said making an electric armor
"Yeah," he smirked, flexing his arms. "Got this spell from that dragon boss. No big deal."
"Just shut up and lose," Cinister growled, lunging forward. His strike landed square in Ragna's liver a brutal, precise blow.
But the moment his fist connected, a surge of lightning erupted from Ragna's armor.
Cinister's left arm jerked violently, paralyzed.
"...Hm," Cinister muttered, glancing at his limp arm. "That's not good."
"[Aqua Blade]" Ragna shouted.
A hundred shimmering water swords manifested in the air, all aimed directly at Cinister.
"Say I'm the boss," Ragna grinned, "and I'll let you go scot-free."
"Like I'd ever" Cinister replied, then muttered, "[Ashen Veil]."
A ghostly semi-circle of smoke bloomed out from beneath him, swallowing the field in a thick, grey fog. Ragna's eyes darted side to side.
"Where did this even come from?! And when did you learn that spell?" he shouted, backing up instinctively.
From within the veil, a shadow moved. Cinister emerged slowly, the fog clinging to him like a shroud. But something had changed his previously paralyzed arm now flexed freely.
Ragna's eyes widened.
Cinister smirked. "Well you could say it's from the dragon."
"[Jetburst]" Cinister casted.
A blast of force erupted beneath his feet as he rocketed forward a streak of flame and smoke cutting through the fog.
But Ragna was fast. He sidestepped with a grin.
"Ha! I got you now!" he shouted, raising his arm to counterattack.
Then he blinked.
Cinister was gone.
"...Where did he go—?"
"[Jet Burst!]" Cinister's voice echoed—from above.
Ragna looked up.
Too late.
Cinister came crashing down like a meteor, his hand glowing with the power of [Jet Burst], slamming Ragna into the ground with explosive force.
But he hadn't accounted for one thing the Aqua Blades.
The swords Ragna had cast earlier, now untethered by his focus, shot toward Cinister mid-air, piercing through the smoke and striking him clean.
Both fighters hit the ground hard.
The dust settled. Silence followed.
Then one shadow rose to its feet.
[Cinister]
"This cloak is good," Cinister said, brushing dust off his shoulder. "If it wasn't for it, I might've lost. But hey—good duel, nevertheless."
He offered Ragna a hand and pulled him up.
"Don't think I've given up on the leader position," Ragna muttered, still catching his breath.
"Whatever you say," Cinister replied with a smirk.
The two walked back toward the group only to see Alya and Micheal tossing gold coins back and forth, grinning like goblins who'd struck a deal with fate.
"Are you guys serious right now?" Cinister groaned.
Alya grinned. "Hey, we said place your bets. You just made me richer."
"Should fight more often," Micheal added, flipping a coin.
"What about the herbs" Cinister said.
"Don't worry Micheal got them." Alya pointed towards him
"Yeah, I was able to use [CryoSense] to find them," Michael showed the herbs.
"Any more abilities you want to hide or what?" Cinister replied angrily.
"Sorry, I guess I should have been more clear," Michael shyly responded.
"Let's just go," said George, who was on the floor with Brayden.
As we made it back, the receptionist said, "Thank you for the herbs. Please come back tomorrow for a new quest."
"We have to wait a day for a quest?" Ragna said with a dissatisfied tone.
"Yeah, because if we just let you do the quest normally, we would be able to keep giving you rewards," she said confidently.
The Fangra sighed, and we went back to our house where Cinister and Alya started cooking.
"So thanks for the extra gold, you're the best," Alya said with a big smile.
"I don't know if I would thank me. The only reason we won is because of my cloak," replied Cinister.
Alya pinched Cinister's cheek playfully. "Look here, if you keep this attitude, you will never beat Allen. Go do that."
"Yeah, you're right," Cinister muttered, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Anyway, who got the scroll?"
"Oh, I did," Alya said, holding it up with a small grin, "but I don't plan on using it."
Cinister raised an eyebrow. "Wait, why not?"
"Well," Alya shrugged, "because it's only a common one. Nothing special."
Cinister frowned, clearly confused. "Different rarities? What do you mean?"
Alya laughed softly. "Yeah, it's like a dungeon game. Scrolls and items come in all sorts of tiers common, rare, epic, legendary, mythic, secret and impossible. Your [Ashen Veil]? That's an epic one, no doubt."
"Okay, I think I caught up. Anyway, we should get some rest who knows what could happen tomorrow," Cinister said, stretching his arms.
"Yeah, and we should check on the crew too," Alya replied, nodding.
As we made our way to the dining room, the sight greeted us: everyone slumped over, looking exhausted and starving.
"Oh, sorry guys, we made some food," Cinister apologized sheepishly.
"Finally!" Michael groaned, rubbing his stomach.
Without hesitation, everyone dove into the meal, the room quickly filling with the sounds of hungry bites and satisfied murmurs.