As they exited the dungeon, it was already dark outside. The sky was cloudy, covering quite a large portion of the stars with their presence, creating a much darker and depressing atmosphere. Every now and then, the moon showed itself from behind the curtain of clouds, illuminating the path back towards the town. Upon the realization that they still had a while to walk before finding themselves back at their inn, the girls groaned, clearly unhappy with the situation, though none of them were willing to set up camp around here, thus, with a string of rather quiet curses, the party set off to return to town.

  Some time later, they had reached the town wall, with the girls expressions being quite annoyed, causing any possible attempts at courtship to be delayed for the time being. With a quick flash of their adventurer licenses, they got past the gate guards, the groups next target obvious. They were returning back to Lunas Garden first and foremost and only after a long and nice bath, as well as a hearty meal and full nights sleep, would they go to the guild to sell off their spoils.

  Rex was the only one of the party who was entirely satisfied with their gains, then again, he had earned the most from everyone present. Not that he was cheating the girls in any way, their spoils were all collected and counted by the girls, Rex not caring if they decided to hide some op their earnings. No, his greater gains came from his own passive 'drain' as well as the blood he acquired whenever he cut any of the monsters. Due to the magical properties of dungeon monsters blood, he was gaining quite the harvest, even if he could only siphon a small amount with each cut he made. With the pace and quality that he was acquiring, it would only take a few more days until he could ignore his normal swords and use the blood crystal one he was creating, it having reached the stage where no monster they had encountered so far could hold against it. Even the morboon crystal variant could be neatly sliced with with a few extra days of grinding in the dungeon. The thought about grinding brought back nice memories of his delves in dungeons in core body and spending days grinding away, growing ever more stronger with each kill.

  Still, there was something pleasant in doing the same, but with a group of people that you found pleasant to be around. And with such an opportunity, joined with the need for companions to speed up his own growth, at least until the needed threshold where he could reliably and with speed grind alone, he had all the incentives to stick around and enjoy the time adventure he was having. Such a though brought a smile to his face, one that he quickly wiped off of it, returning to his calm demeanor. 'Damn man, your women have made you into a softie! Get it together!' he scolded himself in his mind, not capable of holding a slight elevation of the corners of his lips.

  "Fuck it!" He gave up, not holding back the slightly pleased expression on his face, joining the girls for their supper as he was. With everyone gathered after a good bath, the ladies of the party seemed much more content, having washed away the blood and grime that was covering them, though no one else in the party had the calm and possibly even happy expression on their face.

  "You seem particularly cheerful." suspiciously spoke Alurial, the pleasant exhaustion clear on her face, just like the rest of the girls.

  "Just happy how beneficial the dungeon is for ones growth." Rex replied, not hiding the reason for his good mood.

  "Would be better if we did not have to walk back and forth each time we decided to delve." complained Ria.

  "I mean, if you hate it so much, why don't just hire a carriage to bring us back and forth then?" Rex asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.

  "And how do you suppose we do that?" With an eye roll asked Alurial.

  "Our previous coachmen spoke of a way to do exactly that. Something about a rune caller or whatnot. There is a branch of their around, rather large one at that, likely due to the dungeon present. Wanna check it out tomorrow before we depart to the dungeon?"

  "If it provides a way to avoid all that senseless walking, I am all for it!" exclaimed Veena, quickly joined by the rest of the girls, all leaning in the same direction.

  "It's decided then. tomorrow morning, a visit to the guild to offload our today's harvest, then visit to the coachmen guild, then off to the dungeon we go. Sounds about right?" Rex confirmed their their plan of action with the girls as they waited for their meal, having stopped in one of the diners near Lunas Garden. A few minutes later, their orders were brought out. The girls had chosen some vegetable salad with additional meat patties covered in some meat sauce. Rex, on the other hand went for the good old steak, with some vegetables that resembled potatoes, so Rex named them as such in his mind. A bit in the meal, he ordered another piece of meat, having devoured the first one with terrifying speed.

  "How in the Lord's name?" Alurial was speechless. Such a meal would probably cover her for an entire day, and Rex, not only devoured it like nothing, but even ordered seconds. Hust where was all that energy and goodness going to? Sure, he was rather large for a human, and well build as well, but still, the amount he ate was astounding.

  "You have seen what I do. Believe it or not, that eats up a boatload of energy. And as reason would dictate, I have to get it somewhere. Hence the size of the meals. Besides, if you think this is scary, wait till you see me get serious." Rex words left Alurial stunned, no words coming out from her mouth for the rest of the evening. The girls were done eating relatively soon, so they paid for their meals and retired to the inn, wanting to get some rest. Rex stayed longer, finishing his meal, and with that done, inquired the waiter serving them about the more reputable alchemists around. Receiving the wanted information, he tipped the man a silver and left, in search of said alchemist's shop.

  The man of interest, an alchemist by the name of Arbazur Mimereta, was well known alchemist within the region. So much so, that he had received a few requests from the town lord as well. What was more interesting was the backing of the man. He had done good enough work to earn both recognition and protection from the underworld bosses in the area. Thus, the mans workshop was located in a slightly shady area of the city, where only bums, well armed men and dangerous looking men or rich folk with shit ton of muscle would visit. For Rex's needs though, such a place was precisely what he could use.

  After a few minutes of wandering through the back alleys, countless shady individuals having paid attention to Rex, yet not taking action as of yet, he finally noticed the desired sign a few street crossings away. Having memorized his path here and mapping a better, much more straight access to the place, he walked forward, only to be blocked off by a rather large and fat thug.

  "Oy there mate. Help a poor fellow out, will ya? A few gold coins is all I asks." a smug sneer appeared on his face.

  "I am in a relatively good mood, so I am willing to ignore your ugly mug and let you get out of my way. Better yet, disappear entirely, for who knows what might happen next time I see you." saying so, he released a slight amounts of his killing intent, causing the dumb thug to almost pass out from the sheer malice, pissing himself in the process. "Now scram!" Rex added, causing the thug fall backward on his ass, then quickly scramble away, as fast as his awkward body would take him, almost slipping in the puddle he had just created beneath.

  This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

  "Sigh. They don't make them like they used to." Rex sighed, as if reminiscing about the good old days, laughing about his own joke as he reached the alchemist shop. 'Arbazurs concoctions' the text on the sign said. Unlike other buildings in the surroundings that looked rather shabby and run down, this one looked almost brand new and well maintained, a couple of chimneys constantly spewing out a constant stream of dark smoke.

  A pleasant creak resounded as Rex opened the door, a sign 'open' hanging on it, and walked inside. A small, yet clear chime also resounded throughout the store, indicating the presence of a likely customer. only the determined and capable would travel here after all.

  "Welcome sir. How may we be of assistance? A health or maybee mana potion? Some special ailment that needs treating? We most likely have whatever it is that you need." A sweet voice spoke, bringing Rex attention to a girl, no older than ten, sitting on a rather large chair on the other side of the counter, countless stands with books that looked like catalogues placed on them.

  "Why hello there girl. The names Rex. What's yours?"

  "I am called Rumi. I assist master with chores and handling the shop." she replied cheerfully.

  "Nice to meet you Rumi. So, how does this work?" Rex smiled with a warm smile. Whatever the case, the girl seemed happy, so was leaving it there. Whether she caller Arbazur 'master' because she was learning under him, or because he had bought the girl somewhere, mattered little. All that mattered to Rex was the way the people of such a status were treated. A good master often could be hundred times better for said 'owned person', than a random stranger along the way.

  "You can leaf through the catalogues on the podiums, if you find a potion that you were looking for, we might be able to provide it for you. For the right price of course." she quickly added the last sentence, reciting it dryly, like something that was learned as delivered on request.

  "Understood. Thank you." Rex acknowledged and thanked the girl, stepping up to one of the displayed books and slowly leafing through it, inspecting the potions and tonics that were offered, alongside a small description of their effects and price. Once he was done with the first catalogue, he proceeded towards the next, his mind comparing whatever was on offered to whatever knowledge he had of alchemy and the concoctions he could theoretically create on his own. And while his knowledge on the subject was rudimentary and rather shallow, that was the case when compared with immortals who focused their life on the pursuit of alchemy. Here, he might as well be considered a world class alchemist.

  Another hour later, having gone through most of the catalogues, he could confirm his earlier suspicions. His knowledge was vastly superior when compared to whatever was offered here, with the only need to find the proper ingredients for his needs, opening up yet another path to greater might and insane profit margins. He had 'consumed' a piece of monster drops they gained from todays delve, learning the attributes of said items, figuring out more than one different recipe he could use said items in.

  "Is there any other, higher tier alchemical concoctions, or this is the entirety of your masters catalogue?" he asked the girl, who was carefully following his every move ever since he started exploring the catalogues.

  "My apologies, but I would not know. I would have to ask master. Unfortunately, he does not like being disturbed."

  "Don't fret young lady. I might visit again sometime. Just ask the question when your master is free. You can frame it as interest from another enthusiast of the art and possible customer."

  "Understood sir." acknowledged Rumi, quickly jotting down the message on some small paper she neatly folded and put in her pocket.

  "Have a nice day then." Rex nodded his head slightly, then left the shop, returning back to inn, performing his routine of expanding his space storage and then retiring for the remaining night.

  He was back up in the morning, having 'slept' a few hours, though in reality his sleep these days consisted of a special meditation form, allowing for a proper rest of his body, while at the same time hastening his physical development further towards his goals. Since his room was next to the girls, and there was yet to appear noises that indicated that they were slowly waking, he kept on meditating, with the slight caveat that his mind does not drift off, inducing a sleep like state. He was entirely aware and sharp of his surroundings, waiting on the girls. Another couple of hours later, there was activity on the other side of his wall, prompting him to leave his own room and await the girls outside. He received a few ddly raised eyebrows once the girls exited their own rooms, inquiring how he could be waiting for them every time.

  "I wake up notably before you. Then all I have to do is focus on sounds from your rooms that inform me of your status. Once I know you are all up, I just have to wait here until you exit. Simple as."

  Rex's explanation was taken at face value, leaving it as such, with the group leaving the inn for a quick breakfast, then they would come back to gather the necessary gear and proceed with their daily plans. Choosing another of the nearby diners, the party had a filling breakfast porridge with freshly baked bread. Once that was over, as previously planned they returned to the inn, collected the stuff needed and left for the guild. Their way there was uneventful and with the relatively empty guild, they got to exchange the monster cores very quickly while also earning some extra knowledge about the crystal they had earned. It was a slightly more valuable drop that was rather frequently acquired from the same monster they had felled. From what the guild attendant said, there were a few of morboon spawn spots in the dungeon, each having one of the boss monster spawning there, with a few day interval. Still, the crystal was worth more, thus the group happily exchanged it for raw cash, leaving soon after that.

  Their next destination was also quickly found, yet again no incidents occurring during the walk. Though they did hear a few civilians talk in worried voices about yet another disappearance. From what they had heard, it was starting to happen more and more frequently, raising their alarm levels even higher. If it was going to continue rising at the pace it was already, not only the city lord, but even the guild might have to take action.

  "Think we should do something?" Worriedly asked Ria, near instantly receiving Rex's point of view.

  "Its not a matter of 'should we', but more of a 'can we?'. I am sure that the town lords men are working, yet there has not been a single witness to the disappearances, not have there been any bodies emerging, leaving everyone in an absolute dark. I say, instead of trying to catch something we know nothing about, let's focus on delving until crucial information appears that allows us to take action, should it be needed. Otherwise we are just running around like headless chickens and wasting our precious time."

  "Rex is correct girls." agreed with hims Samanta. "Remember our goal. Sure, we will help, if we can, but it sis just as, if not more important to ensure we grow stronger."

  Hearing her words, the girls nodded in agreement, a few apologies escaping their lips for being short sighted, only receiving encouraging smiles from Samanta and assurances that she is the same as them, jokingly blaming Rex for their ability to focus on what they should. Rex just helplessly shrugged his arms, not even bothering to reply to the light jab. BY the time their conversation died down, they had reached the coachmen guild.

  The guilding was a rather simple in its design, though what seemed to be stables next to it looked entirely different. Unlike the modest building, the stables were huge, with multiple fields next to it, surrounded by fences and revealing a few horses, either leisurely lazing about, or being trained by some men. Entering the smaller building, they quickly encountered one of the coachmen, asking and receiving directions towards the man in charge who had the authority to provide them with what was asked.

  As it turned out, the two coachmen had spoken truthfully,as there indeed was a way to aquire what they were looking for, especially so with the place they wanted to go to, as it was a well known and frequented place by adventurers. All it took was a single and rather simple enchanted item, that when infused with mana sent a signal to its other pair, notifying the coachmen guild where its twin was located that their services were needed. Since before issuing said caller, there was a simple contract made, stating the place from where the group would be activating said item, it was a simple matter for a carriage, or however many necessary, to be dispatched to aforementioned location. A short wait later, or however was expected depending on the location and distance needed to travel, the carriage would be there, ready to collect the group. And while it was slightly more expensive than originally assumed such a service might cost, the girls unanimously agreed that it was necessary, causing Rex to simply shrug and give up.