Dungeon Raider System

Chapter 102 : West gate

"Why is Nika not coming?" Sam asked, seemingly dejected by her absence.

"I don't trust her one bit, besides, she would only make things more difficult for us by drawing too many cryptids. Even though she doesn't look like it, she's still a heavenly rank." Uriel shrugged as he entered the Cryptid hunting agency.

Sam was surprised to learn that Nika was actually a heavenly rank. She was beautiful and fit, which could be considered signs of a heavenly rank hunter, but she acted subservient to Uriel the whole time.

Something like that didn't make any sense considering how Uriel was an evolved up until not too long ago and only recently became an ascended, but even an ascended was a full rank beneath a heavenly. He wanted to inquire about this, but they were already inside the agency and there was no time for such matters.

The place was exactly the same as it had been the other times Uriel visited. There were the signs, the tough looking hunters crowding the place, even the receptionist was the same. But now it felt smaller and less imposing and he found himself to be relaxed and comfortable in that place.

"Good morning, how may I help you?" The receptionist said mechanically. It was too early and she felt like she was in autopilot.

"Hello, I'd like to form a party." Uriel said.

"Alright! I need your hunter card and... wait! You're that kid!" The woman behind the counter exclaimed. "You abandoned your companions in the middle of a fight and yet you have the gall to come back here and ask to form a party!? How shameless!" Her outburst called for the attention of the hunters in the hall and they glared daggers at Uriel.

"I'd like to form a party anyways." Uriel said, completely unfazed by her rant.

"Who did you trick into joining you this time? Who can be so stupid as to join a treacherous bastard like you?" She scoffed.

"Me, I'm that stupid!" Sam came to the rescue and said loudly, without realizing the meaning of the words he just spoke. The reason why he rushed to defend Uriel was because it had been actually him the one who froze in the middle of the battle against the skinwalker and he couldn't bear the guilt of seeing Uriel being mistreated because of him.

"Oh!" The woman was taken aback by the presence of the same group that defeated the skinwalker, all backing up Uriel. "Are you sure you want to be on his team?"

"Yes, we are!" Medusa insisted.

Realizing her mistake, the receptionist quickly shifted her attitude and became professional again.

"Who will be the leader?" She asked, but when everyone pointed towards Uriel it was difficult for her not to scoff. In the end, she completed the registry and took the payment. All she wanted was for them to disappear from their sight but she couldn't be disrespectful towards the famed hunters that took down the skinwalker during their first independent incursion.

"We'll also need a list of the cryptids with bounties on their heads... wait, do all cryptids have heads?." Luna said, but then fell into a series of ramblings about cryptids. Annoyed, the receptionist handed her a sheet of paper with the updated information the Cryptid hunting agency had.

"Be warned, we usually don't give this information to ascended, but since you've already defeated one of the most dangerous ones out there I believe you'll be fine... as long as you don't let a certain someone drag you down." She whispered the last part to herself, making sure no one else could listen to her words, though her face showed her true emotions.

Since they didn't have a recycler, scavenging would be pointless and so would be renting or buying a vehicle since they wouldn't be carrying much weight. Although renting a vehicle could potentially save them some time, it could also draw unwanted attention and it would stop functioning as soon as a cryptid appeared.

There were vehicles able to whithstand a cryptid's FOD, but those were too expensive for a bunch of beginner hunters.

"What do you guys think about buying armor or weapons?" Asked Uriel.

"It's a must!" Sam hurriedly say.

"No, we won't be needing armor." Luna replied. "We won't be able to afford advanced armor yet. The cheap kind is... uhm... uncomfortable to wear and not really effective, in other words it'd be a waste of money. The same applies to weapons, especially considering the only one with experience with firearms is Uriel and his aim is...

defective."

Sam really wanted to buy some armor, but if he used his own money to buy it his family would know he went hunting and that was something he preferred to keep a secret. If his father found out about this he'd probably scold him for playing around and avoiding his studies.

Left with nothing to do in the Cryptid hunting agency, the group grabbed their respective batteries, backpacks, lanterns, flares and miscellaneous supplies and exited the city through the main gate.

The first part of the trip was slow, but also quite enjoyable as they were able to fully appreciate the sights. Nature was brimming al around them as it claimed for itself the land humanity lost. Weeds sprouted all over, bushes surrounded the path thy walked and trees could be seen at a distance.

Last time they passed through there, they were riding on the back of an armored vehicle along with veteran soldiers. Now, they were just a bunch of kids walking with barely enough supplies to last for a few days, and yet they felt much more confident than last time.

Even the scaredy Sam walked with a wide smile on his face.

"There's nothing on sight at the moment." He said confidently.

The reason why they were so relaxed, of course, was because now they all had traits. Even if they weren't carrying any weapons with them, safe for Uriel who still had his trusty Magnum revolver stored inside his museum, they were certain they could defeat anything they encountered.