Walking through the empty street in Toulasi was strangely a calming one even if the silence itself was a far cry from the usual busyness of the city. The shining star hung low shy above the wall far away waking the world up in its dawn.

  The block they were on was quiet, too quiet. Perhaps it would be more accurate to say completely isolated. All the buildings around were built up with nothing inside, shells made with exterior decoration. All except one that hummed in electrifying sparks all around. The manisteel wires surged in a satisfying sounds of zzzrh in short intervals.

  On the outside’s exterior were platforms and railings conveying materials of glasses and ingredients upward to the very top floor. It moved a pace every time the mana made a loop around the building. The platform itself was half covered in improvised planks meant to shied items from falling off.

  Arlene had come here before, but she didn’t notice the surrounding like this. Her mind was too focused, too deep into a theorized conspiracy about the corrupted blood. The question raised in her mind about this strange neighbourhood. Did Anire herself buy the entire block to isolate herself in an experiment?

  Wattyson was strangely quiet. Arlene had known him to be making snarky comments by now. She glanced back to her companion and her eyes rolled. The robed man himself had his eyes shut and was moving like he was auto piloting. He was slightly higher than usual, possibly hovering again.

  The duo walked till they reached the outside of that building. A figure in turtleneck sweater and a grey coat atop with skirt and long socks leaned lazily against the street lamp outside. The dimming light shined on her while she was holding a clipboard. Her face was of focus with eyes half-shut. She was missing that usual smile.

  “Good morning Anire!” called Arlene with her arm waving high up.

  The call itself woke Anire up fully and that familiar smile of her wore again like it never left. Her head leaned forward before her entire body followed to standing straight. Her clipboard packed into that rune bag of hers dangling by her hip.

  “Good morning, Arlene~ and Wattyson~” Her lined ruby eyes stared at the two with awestruck. Her mana sight was active once again to the boundless vessel and the void one. She anticipated for a morning back from Wattyson. To gauge whether their relation would improve from the research agreement. She would get none.

  She quickly bounced and pivoted to Arlene instead. “So, how was the date yesterday~?”

  “It’s not a date!” Arlene retorted with two hands straightened down. She shook her head and nudged Anire. “Do you want some meatbuns?”

  She turned to the sleeping floating enigma still floating. Her bag slung over his shoulder. Unbuckling the bag released out the hot steam. Her finger tugged between the plastic bag and pulled out the meat bun. She offered the bun, the size of her hand, to Anire.

  Anire accepted the gift with both hands with her ear twitching playfully. She eyed to Arlene with gratitude but also purpose; to continue their objective today. Without further ado she started walking, leading the duo while nibbling on the large steamed bun. The bun’s inside was hallow already revealing the savoury meat and its juice.

  Arlene buckled her bag again before pulling Wattyson’s hand, an indicator to start moving once more. Her hand rested on the pommel of her blade as she followed Anire. Her eyes darted to all the nearby building shells. They were clearly lived in once as not all the building looked to be new.

  Her thought soon shifted to meeting the Master Explorer. Things to report to them were of Gavituth and nothing else, but to explain how such an apex predator managed to migrate all the way to Tu’ei forest from the Far Tundra… they would need a proper alibi. She contemplated on the what if – perhaps a larger animal threatening up there? Or maybe human was overhunting them? She didn’t know how much the Explorer’s Guild knew. That was a clear hole for her alibi.

  It wasn’t long until something occurred to her. She could’ve just asked the senior explorer neko in front of her. Such an oversight hadn’t happened much since her party splitting up. She was losing her touch.

  “Hey, Anire,” began with a quiet voice. “How much do the Explorer’s Guild know?”

  “About what?” Anire’s voice was muffled. She was still nibbling on the meat bun.

  “About Gavituth, we both swore to not tell anyone of the corrupted blood. I’m trying to think of an alibi but I don’t know how much the Explorer’s Guild know.”

  A small hum played through the quiet street from the nibbling neko. It was a valid concern, either came clean with the corrupted blood and risked paranoia in the world, or a strong alibi. Her head titled and turned to the side slightly, just enough to see Arlene with one eye.

  “We can always blame on the people overhunting there.” Her gaze remained.

  That thought did occur to Arlene. She recalled the animals in the Far Tundra were abundance and the people up north had to rely on trade to survive… until the defeat of the Dark Lord. Now, they could strive on themselves.

  “Would the guild accept such a reason?” Arlene’s voice remained caution. She did not want to plunge the world into a fragile inquisition. Even worse still, she couldn’t just tell the master of explorer’s guild or the adventurer’s. She didn’t know them.

  “Hmm~” Affirmation played out like a note, and Arlene could see the neko’s smile shifted upward from the nibbling. “There is an abundance of meats and furs in demand across the western world. The delicacy of the herbivores’ meats and furs were luxury items until two years ago. The push from other people trying to profit off this craze wouldn’t be too strange.”

  Wattyson remained quiet for he wasn’t in the conversation at all. His mind wandered off into his beauty sleep. Hovering behind Arlene like an automated homunculus.

  “Wouldn’t the guild know about it? I know they have a branch up north.”

  “Information travel slowly~.” She finally turned her gaze away, back to the front. “They are overworked and overburdened by their host countries and people in the new peaceful world~”

  The building or rather… the few blocks connected to that building were tall with pillars of metal making up the frame of the building. It wasn’t gated like the Adventurer’s Guild but every building along the block had the same flags sticking out of the balcony: Anchor mixed with binocular.

  Arlene wasn’t sure if she was walking into a global independence guild… or another country’s embassy. The design of metal coppers walling up the entire exteriors gave them a sense of Miner’s Guild than anything else. The explorer’s guild she visited in the past were a few buildings shaped like a normal three story house. Here it was like a cage of bureaucratic hell.

  “Is this a jail?” The sleepy enigma woke with a hoarse voice, observing the same thing. His eyes opened up lazily, still half-shut. He wasn’t floating any longer. His arms went into each individual’s hand sleeves becoming more and more sage like to outsiders.

  As far as their eye could see, the copper exteriors lined up till the far corner two blocks away. Walking inside showed another sight. The entire place was curated like they were a settlement project with a roof covering the entire thing. Garden right in the middle with marble paths branching off and leading to other buildings. A signpost reading: Main Office, Armoury, Dormitory, Greenhouse #1, Greenhouse #2, Storage, and more.

  It wouldn’t be an understatement to suggest the entire Explorer’s Guild in Toulasi was like a small village right in the middle of a city. The size alone dwarfed the Adventurer’s Guild, leaving them in the dust.

  “Yep,” affirmed Wattyson. “This is a jail.”

  “It’s not a jail~” Anire was still nibbling on the meat bun. It was… still whole. “You can say the explorers are very eccentric! They love to overdo stuffs!”

  “Like you?”

  “Hey~. I’m a normal person here!”

  Arlene chided in while looking up to the rainbow glass panels making up the roof. “Why the copper walls though?”

  “It’s to symbolize growth! Copper change colours when exposed to air for a long while. At least that’s what the Master Explorer said before he spent all the budgets building those a year ago~”

  “I don’t get it.”

  “Me neither~.”

  The main office housed people in green coat with draped sleeves. The crest of anchor and binocular were seen clearly on their backs. They were explorers of all rank, the only difference between all their ranks was how clearer and sharper the crest was.

  Around the main hall were exotic items. Statues or taxidermies of all kinds of animal lined up to the left wall. Above were huge skeleton of an ocean mammal held together by iron cables. In the middle of the hall… was a fountain with living fishes inside.

  “Is this another eccentricity of your master explorer?” asked the Arlene while her eyes went to Wattyson. Subconsciously comparing the eccentricities of him to the supposed Master Explorer.

  The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

  Her eyes then drifted to the four corners of this main hall. There were trees growing indoor, reaching high near the ceiling. Anchor trinkets hanging off the branches of all of the trees.

  The humidity was clearly in the air and smell, yet everyone was going about their days like usual. They were clearly used to this already, a sign of competence or just some sort of Stockholm syndrome? Nonetheless, the work was still going on with efficiency.

  Anire strode confidently and nonchalantly with the meat bun finally finished a quarter way in. Steams weren’t fuming out no longer. Her end sleeves flapped about from her skipping to the reception table.

  The person to greet the neko across the reception table was a female with long white flowy hair and two long antennas stretched out the top of her head. They were her ears resembling that of a rabbit.

  “Welcome back, senior Anire!” The usari spoke cheerfully with eyes beaming of respect at the neko. “Are you here again for your next spontaneous experi— Oh my god is that the Chosen One behind you!” Eyes of star formed in her.

  “Yes~ I’m here to bring them before the Master Explorer, is he here Mimi?”

  “Mmhmm!” Mimi’s ears bended halfway down, nodding. “You’re in the clear if you wanna go meet him, but never mind that!” Her slender finger pointed to the Chosen One. “Hey! Hey! Can I get your autograph?”

  Her head was bobbing eagerly. A piece of paper illustrating the Chosen One’s party – a crest of the Luminare church was found in the corner—and a pen of red.

  Taken aback by this, Arlene stammered for bit. Years of experiences from being admired by other hadn’t prepared her well to those asking for a signature. At most, passersby would come up and talk or ask question. Not many would ask outright for something, at least not so much to be used to it.

  Passing by Anire, she took up the paper and drew a letter ‘A’ ending with a twirl and a single five pointed star. Returning the paper with a welcoming smile got the usari’s nose to bleed.

  “Ahhhh!” Mimi held the paper high with a bright wide smile. A new heirloom for her family was made. She was feeling ecstatic judging from how she did small repeated jump looking at the signature.

  “Ahem,” coughed up Anire. “Excuse us Mimi~ We’re going to go now.”

  “Yeah yeah, have fun!” Mimi responded without batting them an eye, still admiring the new heirloom.

  “You’re strangely quiet.” An observation from Anire eyeing the barely awake Wattyson. Her ruby-lined eyes stole glances of him time to time. He was walking with arm crossed into his sleeves still. There were murmurs of him being a sage. Dressed like one would guaranteed such a speculation.

  “Are you going to be awake by then?” joined Arlene referring to meeting the Master Explorer.

  “No. I’m… tired still.” He didn’t even try to articulate his voice.

  “Any particular reason~? Were you tired from your date yesterday still?” A mischievous grin aimed at Arlene.

  “It wasn’t a date!” Arlene denied flustered. Yesterday was just her touring a city with a companion. Nothing more.

  Wattyson stretched one arm away and started rubbing his stomach. “I’m still full from the skewers yesterday… I’m sleepy.”

  A small jap at his shoulder, but it wasn’t from a fist. It was a glass vial in red. “Here~” Anire offered up three vials of strawberry. “This should get you awake~”

  “Ah, thanks.” A knob immediately discarded as he chucked down one of the vial.

  Looking around the hallway… there weren’t any trash cans. “What do I do with this?”

  “Give me~” Anire took the offered empty vials and discarded into her rune bag. Recycling it for other uses.

  Quiet befell once more as they made their way through the moderately sized hallway. It was big enough to fit twelves people side by side. Another eccentric purchases from the Master Explorer’s perhaps?

  Arlene’s thumb rubbing on the pommel as she looked around. For every ten meters they passed, there were always something on the wall. Trophy of animal heads or a random branch of tree held together by tape. It wasn’t an exaggeration from all the displays so far the Explorer’s Guild also operated as a Hunter’s Guild, judging from all the animals they got on display in Bavasr’s branch.

  An entrance soon caught her attention as it was different from the rest. For one, it was double door rather than a single door like many they had passed. Second, it was ornate in copper. From Anire’s words, copper was something the Master Explorer spent all his budget on. Lastly, there was a giant draw of binocular in between the two doors.

  Anire walked toward and pushed the two doors with an unhinged force. Normally they would knock first to be polite, but not Anire in her own guild.

  The sight before them were that of a regular office or a study room. Sofas and table in the middle put there to entertain guest. A desk near the end of the room. Both sides were flanked by wall of bookcases. No trophy in sight.

  What caught their attention most was a person lying on the ground in between the desk and the sofa. They were motionless. He had a coat of black with a very sharp anchor crest that could burn your eyes.

  “Is-Is he dead?” Arlene nudged Anire, but Anire offered no answer.

  The neko tip toed to the unconscious man. There was a vase of flowers on the desk. Arlene assumed she was going to splash the water on him, but no. With a quick motion, Anire’s leg went into the man’s stomach like she was going for goal all the way from midfield.

  “UGH!” A loud moan from the man, curling on his stomach. “I’M AWAKE!” He cracked his eyes up to see his assaulter. “Oh… It’s you. Whatever you want to do, please don’t do it in the guild. I don’t want to deal with another explosion.”

  Another kick. “Get up~ We have guests.”

  “Guests? Who would— Ah!” He finally sat up and everyone could see a glaring red bump on his stomach, piercing through his white clothes. “O’ Great Chosen One! How nice of you to visit us!” He flourished a bow to her while groaning just from bending slightly down.

  He looked to the companion next to her, the seemingly disconnected sage. “And you are?”

  “Don’t talk to me.”

  “Fair enough! I am the Master Explorer, name’s Uzard! What can I do for you!” He rubbed his hands together.

  Arlene took a step forward and filled with determination. “Master Explorer. We have an urgent matter to discuss.” Her hand remained fixed on the pommel and the other pulling Wattyson forward by the sleeve.

  “U-U-Urgent?! Please not another audit!” Uzard wailed as he skipped with one leg to his seat. Walking with both legs ached his side more apparently.

  “It’s not that~ Though I wish Toulasi’s city council would send more auditors.” Anire took initative instead to lead the other to sit on the sofa. “It’s about—“ Her voice dropped low. “—the quest we gave to the Adventurer’s Guild. Do you recall?”

  Uzard sat down, exhaling a satisfied groan from his labour of walking through the pain. “The quest?” he stroked his own shallow eyebrows. “Is it… the mining cave one? Did it work? Did it attract those auditors to the Adventurer’s Guild instead?!” He quickly jolted up and gasped. “WAIT! YOU DIDN’T HEAR ANYTHING, CHOSEN ONE!”

  “No~ The Unobios investigation in Tu’ei forest.”

  “Oh that,” he slumped back down. “What about it?”

  “A Gavituth was found~ This far south from the Far Tundra, seemingly invading the Tu’ei’s ecosystem.” Anire pulled out the clipboard to read further. “Subject was dominating the local ecosystems from other explorer’s report. Though it wasn’t dire as the Chosen One dealt with it with haste, if it had left alone for a week time… the entire ecosystem might have been wiped out. There is nothing in the South that could go up against Gavituth’s aggression.”

  Uzard’s eyes widened at the report. “An apex predator?! Came…” He quickly opened his drawer and pulled out a map then made his way to them, laying the map out on the table instead.

  A map showcasing the entirety of Avalevd with geopolitical layers as the main focus. “You’re telling me,” he pointed to the Far Tundra, “The apex predator of that hostile north moved all the way through a lot of these nations—,” he traced his finger along, “–and all these biomes of plenty and dried and got here in Tu’ei Forest!”

  He didn’t speak any longer… or rather the three couldn’t hear what he was speaking entirely. He was muttering to himself “three thousand kilometres…” His lip trembling as his free hand pulling his own hair repeatedly.

  “How did none of our other branches not report this?!”

  “It is possible they didn’t discover it. We here are working under the assumption Gavituth was making itself at home in Tu’ei while through the other biomes, it was merely passing through. All the carcasses other found could be link to other predators of that ecosystem.”

  “Hmm… Good point.” He took a seat opposite of them now on the sofa. His head went upward resting on the sofa. “Then how do you think it get here?”

  “We don’t know,” Arlene admitted in a clear voice, abandoning the alibi she made up. She chose redirection instead. “We were hoping you might shine some light as to what contribute to that apex predator migrating away.”

  “Why do you want to know that?”

  “Because balance is threatened,” Wattyson finally spoke, “If one ecosystem is compromised, a domino effects will trample all other adjacent biomes until everything is threatened. Whatever is going up there in the Far Tundra is too huge to ignore.” He chugged another vial of strawberry before throwing it into Anire’s bag.

  He continued. “If a single Gavituth could kill off an entire ecosystem here, what do you think will happen if more Far Tundra’s ecosystem migrate south en mass? A new world order will settle through nature’s will. If you have any background knowledge pertaining to such an event leading to the South Gavituth, you need to tell us.”

  Uzard raised single weary finger, pointed to him. “I got lost at the new world order thing. Are you a sage?”

  “Don’t talk to me.”

  The Master Explorer bent down and twiddled with his thumbs. His gaze remained to the wooden floor laced with copper. “There is…” A small exhale of sigh. “There were reports of overhunting there. You’re aware of the constant demands for the ‘luxury’ materials right? Though last I’ve heard the kingdom of Elkydia there funded us to regulate and stop the overhunting.”

  He raised his gaze to Anire. “There are others. You can read those reports later, Anire. I’ll authorize your supreme access in the library.”

  She was still eating the meat bun, quarter until finished. “Not that I need your access to begin with~ I’m your second in command.”

  A small chuckle. “Right… The School of Magic reported a constant surge of mana overflowing in the land. We assumed it’s just an aftermath of the Dark Lord’s Citadel destruction. Though it is strange… that it is only happening now.”

  Arlene perked up. She fought in the Citadel. She struck the Dark Lord down. “What did those manas feel like?!” It was a touchy subject for her.

  “The mages there said of nauseous feeling. They believed it is to be a byproduct of all those demonic souls finally vaporizing and returning back to the soil. Do you perhaps…”

  Arlene leaned forward, stroking her own chin. Nauseous feelings wouldn’t deter animals to migrate out of the biome. That was too extreme. Though it could explain something else that Uzard didn’t know. She glanced to Anire whose eyes were of knowing. The corrupted blood. The surge of mana… No that wouldn’t explain how the corrupted blood came into play. There was no way if the hypothesized demonic souls returning the mana could contribute to it.

  We’re missing too many crucial information.

  There was only something that could give them a lead; The Gavituth’s heart. She eyed a signal to Anire. Do not surrender that heart to the Guild.

  “Oh right!” Anire finally finished the meat bun and held out the bag, pulling out the spoils. “Here, your ingredients for research!”

  A slab of Gavituth meat, and its magical organ – that smooth fleshy dimmed blue orb that exuded lightning. It landed gracefully on the table, almost cracking the poor table from the sudden impact of their weights.

  Uzard rubbed his eyes at the sight. “Why didn’t you submit this to the Research Labs?”

  “Due to the nature of this debrief~ I thought you should have it.”

  Uzard groaned much to Anire’s delight. “Alright… We’ll look into it and if there’s any correlation to its migration, I’ll let the neko know and she’ll update you. Is that good?”

  “That’s perfect!” Arlene stood and reached her hand out.

  Uzard responded in kind, standing up and winced loudly. Completely forgot about the pain still aching on his stomach. His hand went to shake hers while standing on one leg.

  “It was nice meeting you, Uzard of the Explorer’s Guild. I hope our partnership bear fruit.”

  “Likewise” He groaned still.

  The two walked out with Wattyson being dragged out by the sleeve.

  “Hey,” Uzard started again. “Are you a sage like for real?”

  “Don’t talk to me.”