The third monster was called The Shrouded Grasper, a monster that was extremely hard to kill. All of the monsters presented to him had one thing in common, they were hard to kill with a ranged weapon that needed proper aiming, it was something especially curated for him, and they were not trying to hide it.
The Shrouded Grasper was a more humanoid monster but with an outer layer that seemed to distort like smoke. The hard part began from its surroundings, it would constantly exude a layer of thick, black smog that it would use to hide its existence, so ranged attacks were a no-go.
Its entire body was just a physical projection that it would use to move itself, so even if he shot it after taking care of the smoke it would still would not be enough. The real body was a precious tiny pearl that was somewhere within its physical projection. The pearl contained a lot of ether and so the monster was highly sought after, but the supply was low since there were not any effective ways to hunt it.
So if he had to hunt it, he would have to offset the smog somehow, and then he had to locate and shoot at such an accuracy that it should hit the tiny core.
Judge smiled, his excitement was building up. Such a fine prey, how could I pass up this opportunity?
"I take this, Shrouded Grasper seems like a prey worth hunting." He revealed a gentle, yet dangerous smile. A smile that reminds one of a calm, serene lake that hides the depths of its hidden currents— beautiful, but capable of swallowing you whole without warning. The receptionist shuddered, her trembling hands were shaking more.
"Alright, The shroud grasper it is. We will provide you with something that you can use to collect only the core pearl after you kill it." She was quick to take back her composure.
Judge nodded, he would shatter the whole pearl when he killed the monster. So having an artifact that could 'collect' the core was something he needed. Unless of course, he liked spending time collecting all the fragments.
As the receptionist was typing something, probably about who took which commission, Judge felt a hand on his shoulder— a firm but gentle, yet rough and dangerous hand.
He turned to look at who would be accompanying him in this commission, and as he had expected, it was the same gaze that he had especially paid attention to— the gaze that was filled with a peaceful malice.
"Are you the one who would accompany me?" Judge feigned ignorance.
"Don't act like you don't know lad, you sensed my gaze didn't ya?" The man had a rough voice, his dark blue hair had grey streaks. There was a long mark that started from his brow and spanned all the way over his closed eyes and across his left cheek. The other eye had a silver luster with a strong hint of the color red, he was almost two meters tall.
"I don't know what you are talking about." Judge still feigned ignorance, but he knew that response was the best there. The man gave a loud laugh, he then patted Judge's back and motioned him to walk with the other hand.
"Let's collect material shall we?" He said as if he was sure that Judge would succeed.
Judge need only to look once at the man, he knew that the person in front of him was a woman. A woman he had hoped to never meet, someone he was all too familiar with.
Meanwhile, out on the deck, Amber found the cold outside biting, but her father's warm arm around her shoulder kept her cozy enough to ignore the chill. They stood on the edge of the Drakonis lands, with a dense fog enveloping them so thickly that she could barely see past her nose. Her father's grip was firm, as if he thought she might drift away into the mist if he let go.
Amber blinked repeatedly, trying to see past the fog that clung to everything. The mist dampened her face and felt odd against her eyes, but she didn't want to miss what her father had promised would be an extraordinary view.
"And now," her father, Alex, announced with theatrical flair, "behold! The grand vista of our lands, a sight to humble any heart! Just beyond this fog, dear Amber, you'll see it all." He was clearly trying to sound grand, but the effect was closer to a wayward bard attempting to sound noble. Amber laughed, giving him an amused look.
"Dad, really?" she giggled. "That's so unlike you."
Alex chuckled and shrugged, lowering his hat in mock defeat. "Alright, alright, I won't oversell it."
At last, the fog began to part, revealing a breathtaking sight. Amber's eyes widened as her vision settled on a vast valley flanked by towering, snow-capped mountains. Below, lush, green valleys stretched endlessly, dotted with thick forests, and a grand river carved its way through the landscape, flowing gracefully from a large lake fed by three other rivers.
High above, wyverns soared majestically in the clear blue sky, their wings glinting in the sunlight. Amber knew that these winged forms weren't mere beasts— they were her kin, dragons in their wyvern guise. The sight made her feel oddly at home, a sense of peace settling over her.
In the valley below, she spotted a sprawling village, vibrant with activity. Fields of golden crops stretched for miles, with workers tending to their harvests, a beautiful testament to the strength of her people.
"Wow!" She just stood there, not being able to say anything as she took the scene in all its grandeur. She felt like she had swallowed he tongue and was unable to speak. Her father was true when he said it was breathtaking— she nearly forgot to breathe. Such was the beauty of the scenery, no wonder many chose to stay instead of heading to the land of dragons.
It took a full minute for her to grasp the unbelievable feeling that she had left home after ten years, she had left the place, her home— Terra Draconum.
Norris, the co-owner of a large legal arms dealing shop. Most customers inside the shop were mercenaries, with only a few being people from other professions.
Soon, the doorbell tinkled and two people walked inside. One was wearing a plain white mask with a smiley face, while the other was a known mercenary who, although he was only seen around here for a year, was extremely strong.
"I need a revolver and a long rifle, both ether-powered or gunpowder. No steam." The man in the mask said in a relatively younger voice compared to the man next to him.
"Aah, right away Sir!" He answered with a smile. As he always dealt with mercenaries, he knew the level of their patience, they were all hot-tempered and disliked repeating themselves, at least most of them.
Norris sprang into action, he was one of the owners of the shop. According to the partnership agreement, he would work in the shop and manage it, but he would also be paid for it accordingly which was given before the revenue was split.
"Right this way gentlemen," he showed them toward a shelf that was very visible due to the sunlight seemingly focused on it. Norris wore a dark green vest and a white shirt as well as black blazers, which was unbuttoned but he swiftly put on the buttons as soon as he got up.
He walked towards the glass shelf, blocking the excess sunlight and turning on the light inside, the light was kept off since sunlight was enough to see the contents but not study them. And saving on the ether bills that powered the lights was something he could profit from.
Judge looked at the display of different types of handguns inside, there were normal revolvers, and those were the popular choice. There were flintlock pistols and pistols which varied in types like pepper-box pistols and dual pistols.
He scanned through each one of them, but decided to go for an all or just these gamble, there was nothing to lose after all. "I need some special ones. Revolver I mean, you know what I meant."
This shocked Norris, special revolvers were specially made guns that were used to target enemies that had a huge defense and were hard to crack. People who requested them were both rich and knew the secret workings here. "Just wait a minute sir." He bowed and headed towards an 'employee-only' door.
As they saw Norris out of the hearing reach, the man next to Judge turned to him. "How do you know about the special guns?" This was a genuine question, not something he had answers for.
"There are specially made guns from where I came from," Judge was telling the truth, he was dying to leave that place he mentioned, (and he did *spoiler for chapter 1). "And I just tried if they would work here, after all, what do I have to lose if there was not."
The man looked at him seriously, then he chuckled lightly. "You are a funny one."
Judge did not know whether it was a joke or an insult, but he decided not to probe into it, instead, he decided for a small talk, "What is your name by the way?"