—


    Ezra turned toward the exmation and witnessed a beauty with lc hair and shimmering cerulean eyes approaching from the distance. Ezra analyzed the individual’s facial features before gasping.


    “Alexandria?” Ezra muttered in astonishment.


    “Yes, it’s me,” Luna nodded. Alexandria was her real name. However, Luna grimaced and whispered to Ezra. “Please address me as Luna here, and don’t tell my family that I’ve started ying this game.”


    “Alexandria?” Luxmented. “As in Little Miss Alexandria Hall?”


    “She’s not so little anymore,” Ezramented whileplimenting Luna for having grown into her beauty. She was an adorable child, but she had matured into a remarkably stunning youngdy.


    Meanwhile, Kieran’s expression changed as he stared at Luna. ‘She’s a part of the Hall Family?’


    The Hall Family was one of the Magnate Families Kieran considered reaching out to because of their vast wealth and influence over fields he required. However, it never urred to him that the family’s daughter was in her circle this entire time.


    Without Ezra’s revtion, Kieran probably wouldn’t have acquired this knowledge for quite some time. But, knowing her identity didn’t mean he could ask for her assistance.


    Although she whispered it to Ezra, Kieran’s sensitive hearing picked up on the words they exchanged. Asking her to involve her family could potentially drive a stake into their rtionship since she didn’t want them notified of their presence in this game.


    How would it look if the young miss of the Hall Family was found spending all of her free time inside a game instead of developing life skills and higher etiquette?_.


    Ezra understood Luna’s intentions and agreed to them.


    Afterward, Lux was the next one to introduce himself.


    “Vice Guild Master of Eclipse, Lux Straum. Again, I extend my gratitude for gracing Eclipse with this opportunity,” Lux bowed slightly. Lux clearly hailed from a fancy upbringing with the way he carried himself.


    Lastly, the ginger-haired beauty hugged her bust and leaned most of her weight on one leg while somewhat disregarding everyone. “Cam, Head Healer of Eclipse’s Withering Sun Legion.”


    Kieran’s gaze narrowed after hearing Cam’s introduction. ‘Cami… the ck Saintess?!’


    Not just Ezra, both Lux and Cam were Titled Rankers on the Gamer Republic’s Exemr Records. However, Cam and Lux ranked on the lower end of the spectrum, while Ezra existed in the middle.


    Still, they were all experts in their unique aspects.


    The name ck Saintess referred to Cam’s tendency to dress in dark clothing and her attitude towards healing. It differed from most healers who rushed to aid their allies at every turn.


    Hence, in Kieran’s past, most people would avoid Cam and the stress of having her in the party.


    After going through the introduction, Kieran shared the quest with everyone. As stated in the special note, the rewards for the shared quest were diminishedpared to the original in Kieran’s possession.


    The level reward was lower, and instead of 2 Rare Grade Treasure Chests, the shared quest holder would only receive one.


    Nevertheless, the reward was shocking enough to stupefy everyone, including Cam, who gave Kieran a sidelong nce.


    “This…” Ezra was at a loss for words. The rewards from this quest exceeded anything she hade in contact with thus far. “No wonder your name continues to resound. There are some incredible things in your possession.”


    “When do we set out?” Altair suddenly asked. The introductions were customary, and he understood that, but his desire to perfect his iplete battle style was strong.


    “There’s something we must wait for,” Kieran said.


    As he said this, a single caravan approached from the distance.


    “Did you… rent an entire caravan?” Altair blinked with a deadpan expression. He had grown ustomed to the odd things Kieran could facilitate.


    “Nope. There’s only this one transport vehicle, and I haven’t rented a thing. I requested it,”


    Inside the caravan, a small girl waved her hand with an exaggerated pout. “Hey! That was very rude, Aatrox. You left me out there stranded.”


    Naturally, this girl was Nina. The junior merchant Kieran left outside while he searched for the culprit.


    The others gave Kieran odd looks, but he couldn’t care to clear up the misunderstanding. “Follow my advice and continue with that practice.”


    “Uh-huh! I’ve already made some progress, thanks to you! It really works,” Nina cheered while showcasing a small ball of condensed wind in her palm.


    Kieran wasn’t surprised because A-Rank Mana Affinity made it extremely easy to wield the Mana of the corresponding element.


    Afterward, Nina left the caravan because this journey didn’t involve her. Kieran had pulled some ties with Mayor Lowe to request a caravan; otherwise, it’d be almost impossible to reach their destination in the timeframe given.


    Kieran naturally sat in the front to guide the caravan while the others sat in the back. However, Kieran requested Alice sit beside him. Recalling Nina’s Mana Affinity reminded Kieran that he never asked about Alice’s.


    The caravan took off as Kieran whipped the reins, startling the Obsidian Criollos to action.


    Once they obtained a decent momentum, Kieran nced at Alice and spoke. “Have you be ustomed to your new Mana Flow?”


    “Yeah, it was somewhat difficult at first. But I gradually became used to it the more I stimted it.”


    “Excellent,” Kieran praised. “And how about your Mana Affinities? Have they been defined yet?”


    “Um, yes. It became apparent after visiting the Magic Academy. Aside from my A Rank Fire Affinity, the rest of the elements are all C Rank,” Alice admitted.


    Kieran nodded after intaking the information. “That isn’t bad at all. Magic Affinities aren’t set in stone, but you should already know that. After all, your Fire Affinity wasn’t always A Rank, right?”


    “Nope.” Alice didn’t deny that fact. Unlike patrons of Xenith, who struggled to increase their Mana Affinity by purifying the element in their possession, yers possessed a simplified path for the time being, at least until their affinities hit the S Rank bottleneck.


    “It increased after learning enough fire spells. But, it increased again after your cleansing. I think your Mana carries some inherent me property,” Alice added.


    Thisment made Kieran think back to the time Agrianos unleashed his power. Although his dominant power was wielding blood as an unstoppable weapon, Kieran couldn’t forget the crackles of colored lightning that circled it.


    The crackles emitted unique and independent sensations that ignited Kieran’s desire to obtain the ss at the time. So, the fact Alice brought up this possibility aligned with the powers Agrianos disyed.


    “It’s possible. But I haven’t explored that avenue of thought yet. Or rather, I can’t because it’s difficult for physical ss to define those qualities,” Kieran said.


    Kieran’s status screen as a True Berserker appeared differently from Alice’s interface as a Mage. For Kieran to acquire those features, he’d have to gain an ability rivaling that of a Mage. But, Kieran couldn’t predict that happening anytime soon.


    “With time,” Alicemented. “There’s no need for us to rush. Didn’t you teach us that?”


    Kieran chuckled lightheartedly but ultimately nodded. “Yeah.”


    …


    Meanwhile, Ezra remained intrigued by Altair, who sat not too far away while spinning his dagger between his fingers in boredom. After doing it for a few seconds, Altair noticed the extra pair of eyes on him.


    “Is there something wrong?” Altair questioned.


    “Nothing’s wrong. I’m just curious—you were present during that fight, correct?” Ezra asked.


    “I was.”


    “Right. So, I noticed a few things during that fight. You seemed to execute footwork reminiscent of Aatrox’s actions. Did he train you? If so, for how long?”


    Altair could see a deep curiosity hidden within Ezra’s eyes but he didn’t know that Kieran had already formed a deal with her. These questions were used to gain insight into how effective Kieran’s training methods could be.


    Eventually, Altair shrugged. “It wasn’t that long. Probably two days at most? But, what can I say? He knew what worked and how to extract the most potential from our exchanges. We’ll probably continue to train in the future if he continues to grow at his current rate.”


    “Two days…” Ezra muttered in disbelief before falling silent. It was as if a bomb had gone off inside her mind. Two days’ worth of training to reach Altair’s level?


    Of course, Ezra didn’t know that Altair was one of Eclipse’s potential recruits six years ago. He was already blessed with immense skill.


    However, six years was a long time. Altair had matured from the scrawny teen back then.


    Four hours passed before Kieran stopped in the forested area inside the Barren Mountain Range.


    “We’ll have to stop here and ess how well we synergize inbat. We’re walking into a situation where we can’t afford mistakes, so everything must beid on the table now.” Kieran spoke in a loud and clear voice.


    While everyone stepped outside the cargo hold, loud snorts and huffs sounded not too far from the caravan as beasts appeared from within the forest’s shade. Several beady eyes lit up with hostility.