I spent the next year and a half in Werow, even though I took the highest rank jobs I could. It turned out that whether you take one rank or two ranks above your own did not matter. It counted toward the same. Once I reached C rank, I started only taking B rank jobs.

  During all this time I earned a good fortune. And I also got the training and experimentation done to understand most of my newer abilities. One of them was that because I had been steadily gaining more mana, I got a better version of my magic sight.

  I could now see the mana in the air around me. As well as the chi in the surrounding area, and as a result I could now also see where monsters and other living creatures were in my vicinity.

  It also helped me map out the area round the places I have been so far, and I gained the mini map skill as a result. I had adviser implement a teleport point on my map so it would be easier to go to those places.

  Plus, it also vastly increased my range of vision, I could now see things in a 360-degree area, I had adviser take care of the extra information to make sure it did not overwhelm my brain.

  And the thing that made it most impressive was the fact that I could now see the intentions of those around me more clearly.

  I had my invisibility spell upgraded, and as a result I could now fully blend into environments, and with my sound barrier spell, I could move even as silently than an elf.

  But I was at a dead end, not literally. But if I wanted to start traveling soon, I would have to rank up even further faster. The only way now to do that was to take S rank jobs. Which was a bit of a problem seeing as the only way I would be able to take on a S rank job would be to get an S rank party to invite me to join.

  The trouble with that was, I did not want to show them how powerful I really was. My last venture had been to destroy a B rank hyper spider nest , and all I simply did was use the electrical current in the brood mothers’ brain to kill all her young herself and the I blew her up.

  I had been working on that mind control spell for a while. And it all took under two minutes to finish the job. As I lay staring up at the ceiling of my room at the inn. I worked on a plan.

  The next day I went to the adventurer’s guild. The lady at the front desk smiled as I came forward to her, “shall it be the usual I have a whole bunch of good B rank jobs if you fa…” “That won’t be necessary I actually came here to post that I am available to any S rank parties if they need anyone.”

  “Oh, are you sure, I mean, your only C rank and…” “I just think it’s about time I started really taking this seriously, and besides I have been taking B rank jobs and succeeding enough times to almost be promoted to B rank.”

  “You aren’t wrong but S rank jobs and B rank jobs are vastly different.” “I know, this isn’t just a fleeting decision I have been thinking it over for quite some time.” “Okay, then I shall put you up on the party seeking group, it’s probably about time. Most people immediately start looking for or making their own groups, I was kind of worried when you kept going at it solo.”

  The way that S rank parties worked was that every now and then they would be required to take on someone of lower rank, however the choice was up to them, as such was the case those that wished to join a S rank party had to be listed on the S rank bill board with their respectful ranks.

  I was certain I would get taken sooner, you did not usually find a C rank looking to join, they are usually already in a party at that point. I would only have to make sure now that I held my power in check.

  When I had asked Adviser at which rank he estimated my power, he said “Surpassing even SS rank adventurers, and there was only seven of those on this world.

  It only took a few hours when an S rank group came to look at the billboard and saw my name and rank posted there. I sat staring at them from the corner of the room sipping on a mug of sweet coffee, one of the only things they had figured out how to create correctly.

  I used the appraising sight on them, and was astounded at how low their levels were compared to mine, I had always known my mana amount was monstrous, but I did not suspect that me being level 1643, would be that much higher.

  The strongest in their group was only level 453, and he only had a small number of skills compared to mine. Do you see now why I said you are stronger than even SS rank adventurers. Yeah, yeah do not have to say it, I know.

  As they talked to the receptionist she pointed at me and spoke to them. Here we go brace yourself. Their party was composed of three people a guy and two girls, what a cliché.

  The guy had dirty blond hair and it was cropped short, the girl on his left side had auburn hair and it was long, but tied back in a pony tail. She was carrying a staff with a crystal on top, which meant she was a spellcaster.

  The girl on his right side however, had medium length black hair. She towered over the two and her body and skin was incredibly tan, she looked Amazonian. Which meant that she probably came from the Cendar rain forests, they call themselves Cendarians though. She carried a short sword on her hip and a longsword on her back.

  The man in the middle carried a bow and quiver and his features were a lot more angular but the thing that marked him for what he was, was his long lobe less ears, he was an elf. A rare sight, considering most elves tend to stick closer to their forests down south past the Hero’s frozen tundra, (the place where the Bocwusop plant grows.)(it was the place where the elven hero Arialy used an immense ice spell to destroy the demon king of that time.) and rarely ventured forth to do anything for the mortal races.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  Being of a race blessed with a larger Sethananian cortex (the nub that grew to take the excess energy and turn it into magic.) their race became an impressively long-lived race.

  Same as for the dwarves however they had a larger liking to the minerals of metals and as they had lived in their caves and mines since first creating it they had become shorter but more compact and stronger.

  The elf in front of me was tall, maybe not as tall as the Cendarian he still looked about 6’2 and he was lanky. I had only become 5’8 by this point, though taller than most my age I still had to look up just to look into his eyes.

  He started talking to me, his voice soft yet strong with a wind like swish to his syllables. “Hello, my name is Gilnair this is Tania.” He said as he pointed to the auburn-haired girl, “and this is Norena.” he said pointing to the Cendarian.

  I stood up and said “hello, my name, as you know, is Lucian, it is nice to meet you.” I said looking straight into his eyes. He started smiling. “I like you; you don’t seem to have any aversion to my kind.” “I have no need; you seem to act with a slightly more human aura around you. And I have no aversion to those of fast movement either.”

  “Ah you are a perceptive one, I was hoping you would like to join our party, we have gone long without someone in it, most, decline.” “I would be glad to, it’s not every day you get to work with an elf, it would be a very good lesson indeed.”

  I had not noticed it but I had slightly started talking in the same wayward manner he had, which surprised him. As we walked to the board of quests again Norena asked me.

  “How is it that a C rank is looking for a party.” “Norena, that is very rude to ask, he has only just joined ours.” Gilnair said.

  “No, it is fine, I would be curios too, well I had been trying to gain levels more than I had been trying to gain rank, so I had decided to go alone into this business, it is only now that I want to rank up faster that I have decided to join a party.”

  “Wait you reached C rank all on your own without any help.” Said Tania “yes, although I had previously already been strong to begin with.” I said, I was not going to tell them that back then I was already past there level. “That is an impressive feat even for a race like mine.” Said Gilnair.

  The fact that that sort of praise was rare for an elf, did not go past me. “Thank you, although I am certain you exaggerate.” Nothing better than making sure to flatter the elf’s race, and he was most probably waiting for such a response, elves were sneaky in their double meanings and their social politeness.

  He picked up a page which read, leineen boar hunt, it was a hunt job, however the boars and other animals that comes from the dwarven mountains of leineen, are uncharacteristically large, the boars and mountain goats however migrate to lower areas in autumn which usually means they travel to at least three days travel of Werow by foot, one day’s travel by carriage.

  Most quests for A and S rank take place further away from Werow, and that was why initially I did not want to take A rank jobs, it would take more time to finish and I would not get any more rank out of it as with B rank jobs. But if you take S rank jobs it boosts your rank a lot.

  And as we exited the building he asked, “where are you from?” I knew he meant place of birth so I said. “My family has a farm just a few kilometres away from the town of hearthsmeth. My mother and father were both adventurers in their younger years, and I was not one for the idle life.” I did not need to say more they figured the rest out on their own, I did not ask the elf where he was from, they were not as open about their cities and so forth as we were. Few humans have seen their homes , and those were a few of the most trusted friends of elves.

  Instead, I said, “I can see she I is from the woods of Cendaria, but where from are you?” I asked Tania, Norena merely bobbed her head. “I am from Angralia, I was an adventurer there, however, I met Norena as she was traveling to here, we met Gilnair on the way.” Tania said with a smile, as she looked at the elf, slightly doughy eyed.

  Great, now I am in a group with a girl who is in love with a shrewd elf and her friend that comes from a rainforest tribe of woman known for their strength.

  The elf looked at my gear, I was carrying a knife on my belt, and I had a hood cloak over my armour (light) and my bracers were leather. It looked like iron (it was all my own creation, but my bracers were fitted with titanium alloy, and had hidden blades within them. The kind I had seen in a game I had played in my previous life; the bracers even had the same pattern used on its top.)

  I also had my belt satchels on around the cloak. But I never really used them. “You seem to only carry a knife, but your equipment seems finely crafted. Your bracers though I cannot place where it comes from, I have never seen that sigyl before. Are you a thief class?”

  “No, I am a mage, my gear I crafted myself, so I thank you for the complement, and the sigyl I used to be just a pattern I had created, it is the shape of an eagles under beak. I had found it looked nice in this metal.” He could not see in my cloak to the armour beneath it.

  “I see no staff or wand on you.” Said Tania “yes, I do not use them, I find them a hindrance if I do not create them myself. I am also quite adept at the sword, although my sword is much different than most and as such, I keep it in my room locked away.”

  “I must say you are one of many surprises, but it makes sense what you say, who knows the equipment’s abilities better than the creator.” The elf said, “if you wish you can go and fetch the valuables you need, we will meet in the centre of town tomorrow morning just before the sun rises, I suggest getting a good night’s rest we will be traveling a while.”

  ***

  And with that they were of, I went to my inn and had a meal. I went to sleep and made an alarm spell that would wake me up two hours before dawn. When I was awoken, I cleaned up my room, and told the inn keeper (owner) that I was going to be away for a while, and that I had cleaned out the room. She thanked me and gave me the deposit I had given her for the other nights.

  I came there only about fifteen minutes earlier than everyone else. I had my usual on, just now with my katana. I had enchanted my cloak when I had made it to change colour depending on time and how stealthy I wanted to be, I also had my other spells, but I deemed it overkill unless necessary to fight, run, or follow.

  Not just to be sneaky I did use silent walk. And so, I stood against the wall, I had just eaten an apple. I had a travel bag with me, even though I did not need it, better to look the part of a traveller than to look suspicious. I could at least say I had given it an enchantment to make its storage more so.

  The three of them came together and stood in the centre, waiting for me, the elf moved most silent, the mage girl almost as, however the Cendarian’s sword kept hitting the back off her leather armour with a soft thud as she walked, she seemed not to care about stealth now.

  As they stood waiting, I stepped out of the shadows, silently, even more than the elf, it was harder to see me, because of my cloak. So, they were at first startled when I suddenly whispered right next to them, “When shall we be off?” The elf stepped back and slightly readied in a stance, the mage girl almost tripped and the Cendarian pulled her short sword half way out her scabbard before she saw it was me.

  “You move quite stealthily human.” The elf said coming out of a crouch, although narrowing his eyes. “I enchanted my equipment; it helps not having to cast spells each time.” Norena, and Tania relaxed and we set of toward the north gate.

  At the gate the night watch asked for our adventurer cards (had to be an adventurer to be allowed to exit the city so early or late.) and when he was satisfied, we were let

  through.