The Achievement Junkie

It didn't take long for Lina to get bored with the scenery and start asking more and more questions about anything that came to her mind. Each party member took turns answering her questions, except for Maynard who just enjoyed drinking and occasionally adding a joking comment that would get Rydel to laugh.

Traveling in this way saved the team a lot of time and was much more practical. They still needed to camp out each night but they didn't face much worry with that.

The only downside was losing the chance to gain EXP while on the road, but the party also knew there would be plenty of EXP waiting for them after they reached their destination.

Four days flew by as the party adjusted to their new means of travel. They were well within Prachten after crossing over both Sandros and Iscantor.

Now they were in a small village, searching for some more Intel about Sunset Valley. While doing so they made sure to enjoy a good meal at the local inn.

As the party found a table near the center of the inn's tavern, they could already overhear a number of conversations that piqued their interest.

The paid close attention to the nearest conversation as it was the clearest and easiest to follow.

"That happened to you too?" Asked a burly man with rugged leather armor.

One of the other three men at the table nodded. "Yeah, it seems like it's getting worse. A couple of months we probably won't be able to enter that godforsaken valley."

"No kidding…" A different man at the same table scratched his left arm, or at least what was left of it.

The party's eavesdropping was then interrupted by the waiter. "Hey, what brings you into town? I don't think I've ever seen you here before."

"Just business," replied Rydel. "But what's this I hear we hear about Sunset Valley? Something happen?"

"Well… We're not supposed to talk about that, at least not while on the job…" A gold coin was suddenly flicked into the air, which the waiter casually caught and tucked away in his pocket. "I don't know too much but I know that it's getting pretty dangerous around there."

"I thought it was supposed to be a tourist attraction? You know, supposed to be a wonder for the eyes every sunrise and sunset, for all the lovers go to reignite their passion."

"In the past maybe, but not now. Apparently, the place is slowly getting overrun by more powerful beasts that just keep coming and coming." The waiter shook his head as he sighed. "It used to be my favorite place to take my wife but I'm too weak to do that now. Anyone under lv. 20 doesn't come back alive. Anyone under lv. 30 will come back injured. Rumor has it that soon anyone under lv. 40 will face the same fate and it's only a matter of time till the trouble rises and rises."

Jack tossed up another gold coin as he asked, "Got any idea what's behind this?"

"No… I don't." The waiter fiddled with the coin while he was deep in thought. "So far no one knows the cause or how to stop it. I just know we need to stay away if were not strong enough. That's all I know but is there anything I get you the drink?"

Rydel chimed back in, "Brundies all around and juice for the young one. We'll each take whatever your special is today."

"Coming right up." The waiter weaved in and out of the tables and quickly vanished into the back room of the kitchen.

While waiting for their order the party listened to everyone else, finding that their stories weren't any different from the waiter's. Maynard glanced Jack and asked, "So… Does this mean that… We'll have to wait?"

Jack didn't answer but Rydel did. "You think? We don't have time for something like that, at least not right now. After we're done with this, then maybe we can come back but keep your priorities straight."

"Way ahead of you, Rydel, don't worry about me." The samurai lifted both hands innocently as if to remove all questions about his priorities.

The food came and went, just as good as any typical inn's specials would be. It wasn't amazing but it was nice to relax in a warm atmosphere and enjoy the comfort of a good night's sleep in a well-maintained bed.

By sunrise, the party was already gone and cleared out of the inn, well on their way for Talmook.

With luck, they managed to arrive in the growing city by early afternoon, which led to some party members wanting to take some time and explore the city.

"We don't have much time so we should just get going now," stated Jack. "Maynard, you already know what to do, so just make sure that Maura and Lina don't cause any trouble."

Lina looked up to her big brother and frowned. "But Big Bro, can't we all look around the city?"

Jack relaxed a little bit, not wanting to seem stiff when dealing with Lina. He hopped off of Appa's back and helped Little Lina do the same. "Sorry, but we really don't have any time. The sooner we stop that army, the better chance Trodar has for making it through this."

"Then promise me we'll explore the city together when you get back," reasoned the young teen.

"Right now--"

"Promise!" Lina got close to Jack and stared deeply into his eyes, not stepping down or giving him any leeway.

The young hero scratched his head. "Okay… I promise that we'll all explore the city when we get back." He wrapped her arms around her and gave her a quick hug. "Until then you better listen to Maura and Uncle Maynard. If you don't do what they say, then the deal is off."

"Okay! Then I'll listen. Thanks, Big Bro!" She returned the hug and then strolled to Maura and Maynard who had already dismounted from the giant bird.

As Jack turned to climb back on to Appa, suddenly, two hands wrapped around him from behind. "Be careful, Jack. I'll miss you."

A slight smile showed as Jack turned around and wrapped his arms back around Maura. He let her head rest against his as she clung to him. "Don't worry, we'll be back soon. We just have a few things we need to take care of first. Thanks to our pact we can let you know about everything while it's going on, so don't feel like we're out of touch or anything, okay?"

"I won't," replied Maura as she let him go and looked away to hide the water beginning to build in her eyes. "Everyone needs to be careful, remember that."

"You're not gonna kiss her?"

In amazement, everyone looked back at Eliza who was obviously annoyed by Jack's lack of sympathy. "That's the least you could do if you're not going to see her for who knows how long. Go on, you can do it."

Jack bit his tongue as he struggled to reply.

Before he could come up with something to say or he decided to acquiesce, Jack was bombarded by a set of soft lips pushing up against his. Jack didn't fight Maura's advance. He held her as she did so, closing his eyes and giving in to the moment.

Eliza smiled, happy to see Maura finally showing some initiative.

A moment passed as everyone watched with a smile, except for the blushing Lina. When Maura finally released Jack from her clutches she avoided Jack's gaze but didn't hide her bright red face. "Just be careful."

"I will."

The two went their separate ways, one mounting the giant bird and the other joining the two people at the side.

As Appa took off toward the northwest, Maynard gave Maura a little nudge. "So, you're finally going to fight for him?"

"We should hurry, otherwise, we won't find a good inn before they fill up," stated Maura as she took the lead toward the city.

Lina stayed close to her with some blush still apparent on her face as Maynard chuckled from behind

*****

Jack and those remaining with him made their way toward Limneer. They did manage to enter the country by nightfall, but they were near the border. In about a day and a half, they reached their destination, Zurden.

Zurden wasn't a large city, in fact, it could barely be considered a city at all. But in all of Limneer, it was one of the biggest trade towns. Being near both the border of Trodar and Sandros, there was always a hustle and bustle in the streets no matter the hour or the day. Countless visitors would come in and out of the city to stay the night or just grab some supplies before continuing on their journies.

It wasn't hard at all to enter the city while blending in with the many travelers but the party knew better than to ask the wrong questions and get themselves in trouble.

n order to prevent that, Rydel was selected as the spokesman for the party, letting Jack and the others speak to him mentally if the need would arise.

Once inside the city, the party traversed the dirt roads while weaving in and out of the foot traffic. In no time they found themselves surrounded by a number of inns of different shapes and sizes.

After scanning those nearby, Rydel led them into one of the shabbier and more commonplace establishments.