"I-Impossible... They actually got a Strengthening Fragment out of a Mutant...?"
I repeat the words I heard Tripp say moments ago over and over in my head. His words mixed with the expression of pure shock on the man's face give me a quite uneasy feeling.
Impossible? Why would it be impossible?
I look over at my team, then back at Tripp. It seems like none of them overheard his mumbles like I did. My 2 seconds of happiness have run their course after leaving the Titan's Domain. Now, another eerie spiraling sense of paranoia fills my head.
Technically, the Fragment didn't come from the mutant... That's what makes all of this even worse. None of the mutants I've defeated by myself dropped any fragments, and none of the ones we killed today did either.
Still, their drop rate is apparently 1%. It would be completely normal for us not to get one for a while....
We would be lucky if we got 1 all week at this rate. This quota should be impossible to meet...
"Impossible..."
I turn to Tripp. He's still staring at the black gem in Maria's hand from a distance with his mouth wide open and face white like he's seen a ghost.
There's definitely something fishy going on here...
After our celebration of collecting a single Strengthening Fragment after a long day of work dies down, Tripp calms himself down as well, returning to normal. The 3 others look to him for guidance, and I play along doing the same. He smiles and points behind him.
"Well, great first day of work. We should start heading back now, it'll take quite a while to make our way to the dungeon's entrance."
We all nod in agreement and follow our blond-haired guide back through The Great Plains. We face 3 more mutants and dozens of underlings, but they're taken out with ease, dropping nothing but mana crystals.
As we near the exit gate, Abby speaks up to the group.
"Hey, now that you're all a part of the Association, why don't we get rooms at the Vanguard Heights? We're all going to be spending a lot of time in the city, we might as well get a nice place to stay."
I look at her with a confused expression.
"The... Vanguard Heights? What exactly is that?"
Tripp grins and steps in.
"It's a residential building. Well, more of a residential tower. Only Hunters from the Association are allowed to stay there. It's a pretty exclusive apartment complex. I'd recommend it, my apartment there is incredible. There's always space available for people with contracts, we could go and get you 4 situated tonight."
I look over to Arie and Maria. Both of them are grinning ear to ear. I nod.
"Sure, let's check it out right after we leave the dungeon."
Maria jumps in holding up the black gem.
"What about this? Aren't we going to hand in our loot soon?"
I chuckle.
"Sure, sure. We'll be meeting at the Association HQ tomorrow morning anyways, we can just hand it in then. Sound like a plan?"
With a firm nod, she replies.
"Hmmph. Okay, makes sense."
The 5 of us leave the dungeon and make our way up to the surface. It's late and I'm starving, the rest of my group feels the same way. Tripp leads us to the Vanguard Heights, telling us on the way that we can get food there.
It's about 1km for the Dungeon Hub, in the opposite direction of the Association's building. The dungeons are right in the middle of the two.
Once we arrive I take a long look at the towering blue glass building. The sun is setting, and the orange beams of light reflect off the 50-story tower with an incredible dazzling glow.
The front doors glide open in silence as we're greeted by a tall thin man in a black tuxedo with the Hunters Association logo in small print on his white handkerchief.
"Welcome to the Vanguard Heights Residence, It seems we have some newcomers today. How may I help you all?"
Tripp smiles at the tall man, nodding to him as he walks by. He waves and speaks up before disappearing into the lobby.
"They'll take good care of you all, I'm heading off for the night. Meet you at 9 am tomorrow, got it? Especially you Jay!"
Maria giggles at that last line as Arie approaches the tall man who greeted us.
"We'd like to rent some rooms. The four of us are new C-Class Hunters at the Association."
He bows.
"Congratulations on your promotions. Please, follow me."
The old dapper-looking gentleman turns and leads us to a long white marble desk where he scans all of our cards and collects the proper payment.
I look around the lobby as he does so. The floors and furniture are all completely white. There's simplistic art on the walls near the elevator doors. The tall ceiling sports a blue crystal chandelier matching the windows.
For a premium suite, it'll be 1 gold a month. I fork over another shiny coin looking down at my diminishing supply.
I need to go farm a lower-level dungeon and build up my balance again soon. If I want to pay rent here and continue buying MP to support my future training, I'm going to need a lot more money...
I take my new room key after signing all the proper documents. It's a small silver card with the number 4207 printed in thin black text on the front. My apartment is on the 42nd floor, room 7.
The 4 of us turn to the elevator waving to the tall man, he nods back with another slight bow.
"Welcome to the Vanguard Heights, I hope you enjoy your stay. There are restaurants and entertainment on the 21st floor, please feel free to indulge yourselves in the services offered."
With that being said, we make our way up to the 21st floor without hesitation. The white-walled elevator glides up over 20 floors in a meter of seconds and we arrive to see a magnificent view.
Neon lights, food and drink, games, and girls. They have it all. I've stumbled upon degenerate heaven.
There's an entire entertainment center on the 21st floor. Half a dozen restaurants, another half a dozen bars, some small casinos and clubs, a spa, hunter's trading stores run by the Association, and even a few training rooms available to rent.
I stare in awe as we walk over to a restaurant that suits our fancy.
"Let's play it cool tonight. We have a long week ahead of us... Once we complete our first mission, I say we give this place a run for its money."
We each order a good meal and a few drinks. Unfortunately, my self-regeneration keeps me from feeling the alcohol, but it's the thought that counts...
After a satisfying meal, the 4 of us break off to check out our new apartments. We all agree to meet each other in the lobby tomorrow around 8:30 am.
I ride the elevator to the 42nd floor and scan the silver card on the small black square above my room's door. With a light click, the door slowly swings open without making a sound.
"Now... this is what I'm talking about.... This is a view!"
The cool white marble floor leads forward about 10 meters opening up into a large living room area with a clear staircase on its right side leading up to a bedroom loft. There are two large white couches on either side of the main room facing each other with a long silver table between them.
The far wall of the apartment is blue-tinted glass that overlooks the city's night lights.
Off to the left is a long white and silver counter with a smooth black stove and cooking equipment. Further down the hall on the apartment's left side is a guest room, an extra bathroom, and an empty office.
I sprawl out onto one of the couches and let out a satisfied sigh.
Staring out into the night sky with thousands of building lights flashing below, I remember my last task of the night, Ember.
While out hunting today, I thought this issue over many times in my head. I have to figure out a way to have him by my side at all times without anyone noticing.
There's a possibility he'll be able to fit in my pocket dimension that I use to store items. Unfortunately, I was just way too exhausted to even try that before I left last night.
"I could give it a try right now..."
With that, I hop off my comfy couch and make my way downstairs. As I walk through the lobby with a smile plastered across my face I hear a familiar low voice.
"Where are you going in such a hurry? Mind if I join?"
I turn to see Arie sitting on one of the guest couches in the lobby. He gets up and makes his way over to me while continuing to speak.
"I was going to go late-night hunting as well. I knew you wanted to see one of those Titans for yourself too, you were just keeping your cool in front of Tripp weren't ya!"
He lets out a laugh as we both walk toward the lobby's front door. I reply.
"Hey- I'm by no means trying to fight a Titan tonight. If Tripp says they're dan-"
"Oh don't give me that!"
Arie smirks at me as the sliding doors open and we step out into the cool night air.
"I don't believe for a second you take anything that guy says to be true at face value."
I give Arie a side-eye, then let out a light exhale through my nose.
He's right, and he knows he's right... but, he has no idea what he's getting himself into.
The hooded bow wielder puts his hand around my shoulder and continues talking.
"I was going to face those things on my own anyways. So either you come and make it easier on me, or I get to hit up all the fun for myself."
Arie is really trying to get himself killed, isn't he? Is this what I seem like every time I jump into something crazy? Is this why everyone around me says I'm a lunatic? It's starting to make sense...
If I go with him, at least I'll be able to guide him away from those monsters. Plus, If I lead him away from the Titans all night we can farm some mutants and see if their drop rate of 1% is actually true...
That last remark that Tripp made is really eating away at the back of my mind. Is it really impossible to get a Strengthening Fragment out of a mutant?
I let out a sigh, then give Arie exactly what he wants.
"Fine. I'll help you find a Titan."