Our Dharma Masters are like this.

Chapter 81: Far Gate
By the time Zell returned to Blackrock Town, the last rays of sunset had been swallowed up by the mountains.

As the lanterns along the streets lit up one by one, the whole town seemed to come alive with activity.

The still-charming tavern owner was beckoning customers at the entrance, and the aroma of various snacks wafted through the air. People came and went, shoulder to shoulder.

At the street corner, a bright-eyed bard sat on a small stool, holding a weathered lute in his arms.

Today he will be telling the story of "The Dragon of the Fallen Mountains," which is also everyone's favorite story.

As a result, most of the street was filled with people, all standing on tiptoe and craning their necks to look ahead.

The melodious sound of the piano mingled with a captivating, husky voice.

"The dragon's breath scorched the earth, its claws tore through the sky..."

The hero drew his divine sword, which shone with holy light, and marched forward without fear!
He traversed muddy swamps and climbed icy snow-capped mountains.

Thorns tore his battle robes, but they could not stop his unwavering belief.

The hero said, "For the smile of my beloved, for the peace of my kingdom!"

He roared before the dragon's lair, and the sword light rose like the blazing sun!
The dragon cried out in agony, and its blood splattered everywhere!

At the climax of the song, the bard suddenly swept his harp strings, playing a stirring melody!

The onlookers felt as if they were actually there, as if they were really witnessing the hero battling the dragon, and they burst into enthusiastic applause and cheers.

The bard stopped playing at the right moment, and with a smile, he took off his hat and placed it in front of him.

"Ding ding ding..."

Copper coins were tossed in like raindrops. Zellier was caught up in the atmosphere and took out two copper coins from his pocket, tossing them in as well.

A bolt of lightning streaked across the sky, followed by a deafening roar of thunder.

The rain poured down, the water columns tilted, and the crowd that had been so crowded just moments before scattered in all directions with a "whoosh".

People rushed to the nearest eaves to find shelter from the rain, and the bard hurriedly packed up his harp and hat, disappearing around the corner in a flash.

A black stray cat nimbly darted out from behind a wooden barrel at the end of the alley and leaped into a house's windowsill in a few bounds.

In just a short while, the once bustling street became bright and empty again, leaving only the bluestone pavement wet with rain.

Zellier pushed open the door of the Nightflower Inn, shutting out all the wind and rain outside.

"Good evening—oh dear... Zelier, you're soaked!"

Zellier was greeted by Auro's energetic voice as always; she had now switched back to the night shift.

Auro, carrying a clean towel, came to greet her with small steps.

"Come warm yourself by the fireplace, what would you like to eat tonight?"

"same as usual."

Zellier smiled. "Beef shank in red wine sauce."

"okay!"

……

early morning.

The sun had already climbed onto the windowsill, and the chirping of birds filled the air.

Zellier sat up and, after a few minutes of light meditation, shook off the drowsiness of just waking up and became refreshed.

He opened the window, and the sky was a clear, bright blue, with the fresh air after the downpour rushing in.

Yesterday's rain seemed to wipe away the dust from the entire Blackrock Town, giving the outside scenery a filter-like quality, making even the colors much more vivid.

A night of high-quality, deep, dreamless sleep allowed Zellier to recover to her best condition, and the fatigue she had accumulated earlier was swept away.

"So……"

Zellier stretched, his joints cracking. "It's time to prepare for my promotion."

His gaze flickered slightly, and the attribute panel appeared.

lv.8 (55/275) Strength: 65
Agility: 61
Constitution: 68
Spirit: 71
Intelligence: 90
Perception: 30
Charisma: 51
Luck: 41
Talent skills:
Techniques and evolution.

Both Source Overclocking and Magic Energy Contract are currently in a pending unlocking state.

In the quest queue, Healing has reached 83% and Extraction has reached 72%. These two level 4 spells will be fully analyzed in two or three days.

There's also the Great Creation Technique, analysis progress—1%.

Zellier shook his head, no longer thinking about things that were so far removed from his life.

I'm still 220 experience points short of leveling up.

Not too many. If you can take down two [Hard] rated monsters in one mission, that should be enough. It's roughly equivalent to a two-star lower-level mission.

If it really doesn't work, just do it one more time.

Taking a steady and methodical approach is also a viable option.

With a goal in mind, action will no longer be hesitant.

Zellier's first thought was to choose Hill as his teammate.

With Hill around, the range of tasks you can choose from is much wider, and you can even accept three-star lower-level tasks.

After washing up and having a breakfast of fried eggs and bacon pie, which Oro had specially prepared for him that day, Zellier left the Nightflower Inn.

It was broad daylight, and Zellier figured nothing unexpected would happen, so he came to No. 7 Dark Alley Street alone.

Even under a bright, sunny day, the entrance to the street felt somewhat eerie.

The rain from last night has not completely dried up, and a pungent, fermenting smell lingers in the air.

Underneath the pile of empty boxes, a dirty-furred rat darted out with a "whoosh," quickly darted past Zellier's feet, and disappeared into the darkness of another corner.

Zeller frowned slightly as he followed his memory and found number seven on Dark Alley Street.

"Knock knock knock knock..."

The password was still five knocks.

A moment later, a soft "click" came from the door, and the familiar little slide was pulled open again, revealing a pair of eyes full of vigilance and scrutiny.

“I’m looking for Hill.” With that, Zellier handed over the black feather token.

However, the person inside didn't answer, but coldly uttered a single sentence.

"She's gone on a long trip, so the message won't get through. Don't bother looking for her anymore."

"You've gone on a long trip...?"

Zellier paused for a moment, then asked, "When will you be back?"

The person inside didn't bother to answer, and slammed the sliding door shut, plunging the area behind it into dead silence once more.

"What kind of attitude is that..." Zellier's eyes twitched slightly, and he had a strong urge to smash the broken door with an arcane missile.

Going on a long trip...

I wonder what Hill has been up to. Could he have taken on some mysterious assassination mission, or perhaps he's gotten into trouble and gone to lay low?

Zellier made wild guesses in his mind for a while, then sighed softly.

It seems we won't be able to recruit her into the team for this mission.

Zellir had no choice but to turn around and go to the Redbeard Inn to call Marcus, and the two of them headed to the Adventurers' Guild together.

Amid the bustling crowd, Zelier also spotted that conspicuous figure—Gak.

He was still the same as before, with a robust build like a small mountain, but the broad axe on his back was new and looked to be of better quality.

Although Zeril already had some understanding of the warriors' self-healing abilities, he was still shocked once again after seeing Gak's good complexion.

"Do you warriors slowly revive as long as you have a breath left?" Zellier couldn't help but turn to Marcus and ask.

(End of this chapter)