System Change

Derek settled his nerves and walked forward toward the crowd. Among those gathered around, he recognized a few. Unsurprisingly, the easiest person to spot was Tyron Blacksteel. The man towered over everyone else by a large margin, and the fact that he was off to the side, made it even easier to spot him.

The burly man was fiddling with a well-crafted chest piece in his hands. Obviously, the chest piece wasn’t for the smith, but for someone else. The chest piece would have been about four sizes too small for the man. Unless, of course, it had some properties that allowed it to change size to fit the user. Derek could see a man of Tyron’s capabilities making something like that.

However, that theory was soon quashed, as he held the plate armor up, and a man moved from the crowd and bowed to the smith as he received the armor. Based on the man’s actions, he seemed extremely grateful to Tyron. Tyron waved him off, and the man scampered away, putting the armor on in the process. Derek guessed that one of the members of the raid team took the chance to have Tyron repair his armor before they set out.

Derek shifted his focus back to the crowd to see if he recognized anyone else. Sure enough, he saw the same three members of House Allister he had seen at the auction. They were well known for their healing, so it made sense that they would be selected for the raid. Though there was no way all of them would be going.

He couldn’t think of any reason Teresa Allister would go. She was obviously well under level for the dungeon. He guessed she was only there to see the others off.

Another surprising addition to the party was Shae. He stood chatting with another man, who was decked head to toe in typical mages garments. The man had a hooded robe, along with an odd circlet with a multicolored stone sat in it.

Derek wasn’t sure if Shae was going on the mission, but him being here explained Judy’s behavior when he met her at the guild the other day to spar with Clare. She had hesitated for a bit when he asked how the man was. Also, Thomas had said that Shae was preparing for something and wasn’t able to train him as much lately. So, the guild master being here would make sense of everything.

Obviously, most of the large crowd here wouldn’t be going on the raid. It was capped at 25 people, and there were well over 40 people in the large courtyard. Soon, Derek caught sight of Edgar, who smiled widely when he noticed Derek.

Derek moved forward to meet the prince.

“I’m so glad you decided to come. You are coming, right? Not just here to see me off?” Edgar asked, still smiling.

“I am…” Derek answered. “It took a bit to make up my mind, but apparently, this is an opportunity I don’t want to miss.”

“Damn right.” Edgar nodded before turning to a certain guard in the crowd. “Max, you’re off the hook. You get to stay here with the rest of the army.”

Derek watched as the guard let out a sigh of relief, and any nervous tension he had before disappeared completely.

“T-thank you, Prince Edgar,” the man said. “If you will excuse me, then.”

Edgar waved the man off, and the guard left in a hurry. “His wife just had a kid last week. A little boy. I didn’t want to take him away from his family, but I trust him. You coming means he doesn’t have to wait three years to see the boy.”

Derek nodded. “He’ll get less sleep in these three years than we will in three months.” He laughed.

“That’s for sure.” Edgar laughed with him. “By the way, there was something I was hoping to ask you about.”

“Oh? What is it?”

Edgar led Derek off to the side, away from earshot of anyone else. “Walter Searidge.”

“What about him?” Derek frowned.

“He wants to come along on the raid. Something about adventure, honor, and glory. I don’t know him well, but you do. I know he is over level 200 now after dad annulled the contract. What do you think? It’s always good to have an extra healer.” Edgar explained.

Derek furrowed his brows before coming to a decision. “I trust him enough. He may be rusty after such a long time, and his level is low compared to most others… but he won’t be dealing damage, and most healing and support skills are percent based. I also know that he is quite good when it comes to poisons and toxins. I say bring him.”

“I was thinking the same. I honestly don’t want to bring so many of the kingdom’s guards along with us. Not that they aren’t worthy, but they are my brother’s people. I prefer adventurers. That’s why I asked the two Adventurer’s Guild Masters to come along.” Edgar pointedly nodded at Shae and the man he was standing next to.

I guess that answers that question. “Not the Guild Leader?” Derek asked.

“No.” Edgar shook his head. “It’s hard for the leader of such an enterprise to get free time. Losing a couple Guild Masters for a few years is one thing, but losing the boss… hell, if we could do that, I’d be on my knees begging for Ms. Swan to tag along.” He laughed.

“Ha…” Derek chuckled. “Speaking of the Crown, is Avery coming along? Alanah told me she was nudging him in this direction.”

“I hope,” Edgar replied. “I told him to meet us here today if he decided to come. We still have a bit before we set off, so we’ll see.”

Derek nodded as Edgar brought out a communication crystal. After a moment, he put it away.

“Walter Searidge will be joining us soon,” Edgar said.

“That’s good.”

“Oh, and apparently, Avery will be joining us as well.” Edgar suddenly said.

“What?”

Edgar nodded towards the gate, and Derek looked to see Avery leaning against the entrance. Derek waved him over. After that, Edgar left for a moment to dismiss two more kingdom elites. Since both Walter and Avery were going, they were no longer needed.

“So, Alanah convinced you to come after all?” Derek asked as Avery approached.

“Yeah… she ‘convinced’ me to come.” Avery snorted. “More like forced me.”

“Didn’t want to leave the boys?” Derek asked.

“That and the business. I don’t know if you heard, but Stella is going off to gain some levels, as well. It will just be Alanah, alone. Well… she has those Mental Resistance scrolls she plans on giving the boys when they unlock the Great System.” Avery explained.

“I see.” Derek nodded. “Well, it will be good for you to get away for a while. And Alanah is a big girl. She can handle everything by herself.” Avery was the epitome of loyal toward Alanah.

“I guess…” Avery relented. “It will feel good to hunt some things again. That fight was the most entertainment I’ve had in quite some time.”

“Mhm…” Derek muttered. “Gerald was very fun to punch.”

The two laughed and continued to chat for some time before Walter arrived. The older man was giddy with excitement. He looked like a new man.

“So, you’re tagging along, huh?” Derek asked.

“After so many years… I can’t wait.” Walter said, excitedly.

“What about Clare and your family? Will they be good for the next three years?” Derek asked.

“I already made arrangements for my family and selected a new patriarch. I finally get to hold an elder position. It’s all on the next generation now. As for Clare, she is with Jensen for now, until Bronson arrives. He will take over her training and be her protector. She knows what to do.” Walter answered.

“Clare? That’s the young girl that’s undergoing some of the same training as Zac and Lucas, right?” Avery suddenly asked.

Derek nodded. “Yup.”

“One second.” Avery took out his communication crystal and made a call. A couple of minutes later, he put it away. “My mistress is willing to take her in to help in the process, if you would like. The three children are from the same generation, so it will be good to form bonds early on. Of course, her protector is welcome, as well.”

“Really?” Walter’s eyes lit up at the suggestion.

“Of course.” Avery answered. “Adding another sparring partner of the same level to the mix would help them all. It’s just unfortunate that my mistress doesn’t have more Mental Resistance skills currently.”

“I would be an idiot not to accept such an offer. If Lady Swan is serious in her offer, then I accept.”

“Great!” Avery smiled before taking the crystal out once more. Once he put it away, he spoke again. “Stella is still in Savannah for now. I have informed her of the situation. Have Clare go to the Crown Hotel later, and she will take it from there.”

“I am in your debt.” Walter bowed deeply before taking out his crystal to make the arrangements. “Thank you,” the man said once more, once he was finished.

At that time, Edgar made his way to the steps of the palace and cleared his throat to gather everyone’s attention. “It looks like everyone’s here. Please say your farewells, as we will be away for some time.”

The crowd buzzed as people hugged and said their goodbyes. Soon, Edgar made another announcement, and only the 25 people going on the raid were left.

“I have personally selected the 24 of you to go on this adventure with me. I hope I won’t be disappointed. I’m not much for speeches, so, let’s get to it. Please follow me.”

After that, Edgar led everyone through the palace to a room with a private teleportation circle. It wasn’t a secret that some people would have their own teleportation circles. It was costly, but ultimately, not too uncommon.

The circle was small, though, too small to fit all 25 party members. “We’ll be traveling to one of the outposts closest to the raid dungeon from here.” Edgar stated. “Please enter the circle in groups of five. Once you arrive at the outpost, quickly move off of the circle to make way for the next group.”

Soon, group after group teleported away, and it was Derek’s turn. He was part of the final group, along with Avery, Walter, Edgar, and a hooded person in a black cloak who looked oddly familiar to Derek.

It took a couple of seconds, but it finally clicked. “The Shadow Witch?” Derek blurted, causing the others to turn to look.

Sure enough, when the person removed the hood from their head, it was Vanessa Hodges, also known as The Shadow Witch. Derek stared at the woman, dumbstruck.

Edgar stepped forward, scratching the back of his neck. “About that… Ms. Hodges here is now under contract to the Kingdom.”

“Really?” Derek asked, skeptically.

“Really…” the woman sighed. “I can no longer go back to the guild, and it was a good offer. Well… it was better than rotting away in that cell.”

Derek shook his head.

“Ms. Savannah already made it clear to us that Vanessa didn’t have anything to do with Gerald’s activities. She was only hired help from the Assassin’s Guild… well… it was off books, but she was only there as a protector. Her contract to the Kingdom is quite stringent, as well. And she has also made an oath to the Great System. There is nothing to fear from her.” Edgar explained.

“I guess it really doesn’t have anything to do with me. It’s your choice.”

Edgar nodded, then stepped forward. “Let’s go.”