Walking along the lobby, Raven held the brown card above his eyes and smiled. Somehow, he had managed to achieve a Grade A rank, and he did it without using his special abilities.
Right from the start, Raven was now one of the strongest adventurers. To him, it still felt like a dream. Unlike his past life, where he had only gotten a D rank on his first attempt and had to train relentlessly for three years to climb higher.
A proof my past training wasn't in vain... Now let's—Yaaah!!!" Wolfton suddenly appeared in front of him, nearly knocking him over.
"Let's form a party and take missions together," Wolfton said out of the blue.
"What? You want me to join you? Another champion like me, in the same party? No thanks," Raven retorted.
"..."
"Why not?" Wolfton pressed.
"I know more about the champion system than you. I'll fill you in, the system won't tell you everything. And you, on the other hand, clearly have talent with the sword. You could share some tips with me. How about it?"
"And what if I say no?" Raven asked.
"It isn't a threat, dude."
"It's an offer. So it's still up to me whether I accept."
"Do you even know which god you champion?"
"Of course I do. He's the Celestial of Eternal Darkness and Concealment."
"That's a title, not a name. See what I mean? The celestial I champion is Ọranfẹ, the Celestial of Wrath and Purification." Wolfton replied smugly.
"...That's nothing to gloat about. And besides, is it really wise to reveal that to others?"
"Well, anyone smart enough can figure out a weakness in your ability if they know what they're doing, so there's no cause for alarm."
The two walked out of the lobby into the reception. Raven suddenly asked,
"Who is this Ọranfẹ you spoke of?"
"He's a celestial of the southern colony, worshiped by us. Not like you westerners would know."
"You're a southerner? You don't have their accent."
"I was raised in the western colony, that's why. Anyway, enough digression, have you accepted my offe—Ouch!!!" Wolfton smacked his nose against Raven's back.
"Hey, what's the big idea? Why'd you stop so suddenly?" Wolfton yelled.
But Raven shyly covered his face with his hands and slipped behind the crowd. His movements became stealthy, calculated, as if he was trying to avoid someone.
Wolfton was confused. He scanned the crowd, wondering what could have made Raven so evasive. It couldn't be the scouting parties or the crowd itself.
Still, he followed, making Raven's sneaky attempts even more conspicuous than they should have been, calling out loudly:
"Why are you sneaking around like a rat? Who are you hiding from?"
"Shut up, brat. Read the room," Raven barked.
"But my danger alarm isn't blaring, we're in a safe environment." Wolfton replied.
"Do you owe someone money? Or maybe you offended someone here?"
Raven gave him a bilious glare.
"Why are you like this?"
"Like what?" Wolfton tilted his head, as if genuinely oblivious.
Raven frowned but kept glancing in a particular direction. Wolfton followed his gaze.
There stood a green female stickman in full adventurer's gear. In her hand was a wooden staff topped with a yellow gem.
"You're hiding from such a hot chick? Why?"
"Shut up and don't do anything stu—"
"Hey beauty! Someone wants to see you!" Wolfton shouted, pointing at Raven. Immediately, dozens of gazes turned toward them.
The lady looked stunned and pointed at herself. Wolfton nodded enthusiastically. With a shrug, she walked toward him.
"Hi, brazen one. You called?" she said.
"Yeah, a friend of mine wants to see you. He's right... Where did he go?" Wolfton turned to look around, but Raven was nowhere to be seen.
From the shadows nearby, Raven emerged, trying to blend into the crowd to slip out of the reception. But he was stopped.
"Mixing in with others again, are we, sister's boy?" the green lady, Helga, said. Wolfton walked closer to her.
"Heh, Helga. Long time no see. How's the cohort?" Raven asked awkwardly.
***
Meanwhile, deep within the jungle, the serene quiet was shattered by a sudden spark of electricity. One spark became many, until a white portal ripped open and grew in size.
From it, five humans emerged, dressed like a dungeon-raiding party.
The leader was a bulky man carrying a massive double-headed axe strapped to his back. Beside him was a slender woman in black, dual blades at her sides, her garb resembling that of a ninja assassin.
Another man, dressed in ornate clothes, carried a longsword. A second woman wore a pink outfit with slits cut high at the hips, her thighs exposed, and held a staff topped with crystal.
The last was a carefree-looking man. He wielded no weapons, no armor, but carried a sack slung over his shoulder for supplies.
"So this is the world the vampires of Springscent Island were trying to keep us from accessing. I like it," the leader grinned.