"Hell yeah! Another flawless victory!" Lana raised her arms and then celebrated.
"Flawless?" Jake frowned.
"Only you suffered damage, so Louise and I had a flawless victory," Lana smirked.
Jake wanted to ask who deserved the praise for that, but it was fine. He wasn't a front liner to be praised for doing his job properly. Nevertheless, the group saw the massive beehive decreasing in size, and then the crystal appeared, and at that moment, they were teleported back to town.
Congratulations! You obtained 2000 coins and 200 fame.
You obtained Alert Ring.
Alert (0%), master this item to obtain the skill permanently.
Durability: 10/10
Alert: it alerts you of violent enemies within a three meters radius per level.
While Jake frowned since the coins he gained were fewer than the boss granted him directly, that became just a minor issue when he received the item. It seemed very useful… but until now, Jake hadn't been attacked by surprise, so he wasn't sure it would become really useful anytime soon.
"What did you guys get?" Jake asked.
The girls also gained rings, but Lana's granted her ten points of mana, and Louise's increased her health by the same amount. This time, Jake was the one who got lucky… Nevertheless, it was time to sell the loot they obtained during that mission and then go to the other… or cook lunch.
"You guys are back a lot sooner than I expected," Luke said. "Congratulations for defeating a boss."
"How do you know that?" Jake asked.
"It is the only way to complete a mission sooner than the usual five hours, that and clearing special missions," Luke replied. "Well, let's see what you guys got here…"
In the end, the group didn't find any special equipment, so they only the gear that they found and had no use for it. They didn't earn much, but at least, thanks to the numerous monsters they defeated during the mission, they recovered all the money they spent on potions. In fact, now they had three times more.
"It seems you guys have some leeway with money now," Luke said. "I can sell you a set of gear that will grant you another class."
Jake already had three classes, while Lana and Louise had two. A power-up like that sure would be useful in the next mission… still, after doing some calculus, Lana and Louise discovered that they didn't have enough. Lana needed six thousand more coins and Louise four.
"Fear not, for Champ is here to solve the problem," Luke said.
"Hey… don't say unnecessary things," Jake said. "Why don't you give them a discount since we are already came here many times?"
"Well, I am already giving them a pretty good discount, any more than that, and I would be losing money," Luke said.
"Bullshit," Jake said. "All merchants say that kind of thing."
"Well, it is fine. We will have enough coins in the next run," Lana shrugged.
Jake sighed… while it was true, it would be a waste not to upgrade their gear, obtain some skills and classes and make them stronger in the next mission. In the end, Jake gives them the money necessary to obtain the items. It was only ten thousand coins, after all… Jake could make three or four times more in the dungeons that he could access.
"Thanks for your patronage," Luke said after she passed the items that granted the classes witch and nurse to the girls. "I have been selling quite well these last few days thanks to you guys, so I will give you a hint about the next dungeon."
"Wait, no…" Jake said, and then he realized that it was too late.
Jake had no idea how Luke knew about the next dungeon they were going to clear. Nevertheless, Luke did something unnecessary, but unnecessary and weird. The hint that he gave them was… he just pointed his index finger upward.
"Well then, I will be waiting to hear about your success," Luke said with a smile on his face.
"Doing so many unnecessary things…" Jake furrowed his eyebrows.
"What now, Jake?" Lana asked.
"It will take a while to find the next dungeon, and you guys will have to level up Heat Resistance," Jake replied. "Let's accept the next mission after lunch."
The ideal would be to complete the missions in the Hellish Desert two times in order to let the girls level up Heat Resistance and Poison Resistance as much as possible now that Jake had the capes for that. However, he was in a hurry to reach the fifth map of the game. Why? Because Jake wanted to enjoy the thrill of facing difficult mobs again. Bosses' fights were pretty intense, but a continuous journey where every single battle makes him improve a little was almost better. Not to mention, the fun lasted longer.
"Can we have some fried chicken today?" Lana asked as soon as they logged off.
"Do I look like your chef?" Jake asked. "You must be daydreaming or you were spoiled rotten."
Although Jake said that he felt his mouth-watering once he imagined the fried chicken and tomato sauce. It has been a while since he ate something like that since it usually is made for several people. Not to mention, Jake had brought everything on a large scale to ask for discounts and save money. Thanks to the game, he had some leeway with money, but old habits die hard.
"You really made it… bon appétit!" Lana said.
Louise laughed a little, but Jake sighed since it was probably the only thing he knew what to say in French. Naturally, Jake knew more than her. He also knew the meaning of Bon jour… but aside from that…
Regardless, Jake's meals were starting to taste a bit different because of the company. While it wasn't bad, he felt a bit weird, thanks to it. After all, years had passed since the last meal he had with someone.
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