Five gogliaths were heading towards Harwin's party. The latter group was already at their limits.

  Winston had fallen on his back at the mere sight of the giants. Stein was in no condition to fight for now. Eiza was already a non-combatant. The pair — the ones who had been saved by Harwin's party earlier — were in no condition to defend against the monstrosity nearing them as well. Infact, they were petrified.

  One soul was different, however. Harwin stood with his weapon in hand. Barely being able to do so due to depleted magika, but still standing none the less. His body was on the verge of collapse , yet his eyes told a different story.

  The young mage had changed. He would have panicked in such a situation before, but now, he stood against the odds. It was due to various reasons, but most importantly, he no longer had a boulder to hide behind. Neither Graftel nor any other of his comrades were present beside him, on whom he could have relied on.

  Of course, only courage was not enough to overcome such a great hurdle. It had taken the entire effort of the lot to take down a single one of the giant. Defending much less defeating five was out of question.

  Even with all hope lost, Harwin took a stance. It was only when death was certain that an inferno blade went right past him, taking down a gogliath in a split second.

  The young mage looked back to find Lyam — Harwin's library acquaintance — along with several other adventurers including Kaith — the man who had basically bullied Winston before. The latter stood beside Harwin and placed his hand on the lad's shoulder. His grip was firm yet not aggressive.

  "You are a brave one, friend. More than I can say for the others. Rest up, we will take up from here." Kaith said. His tone was not of pity but respect.

  "Leave it to me, you have done enough already." Lyam added.

  After saying their piece, the men charged forward with ferocity. Their eyes glinted with confidence and ruthlessness, not uncertainty or fear.

  Harwin relaxed a bit. He glanced back at his party members who were relieved as much as astonished. As his worries were finally clearing up, he began to shake violently and uncontrollably. Soon blood trickled down his nose. The others began to rush towards him, this was when he started to vomit blood. In a matter of moments, Harwin lost consciousness.

  Just like many times before, he found himself in the void. Standing before him was the same deity, divided perfectly in light and shadow. His face was featurless yet his expressions could be seen, as usual.

  The figure was frowning. Harwin did not bother questioning the annoyance of the divine being, he simply did not care much.

  There was silence for a while. However, the young mage did not feel awkward at all. It was not as if he was dying to converse with the person who had basically disrupted his life twice. Soon, the strange fellow spoke:

  "It is the fourth time, I am getting tired of it...." He almost muttered to himself, yet Harwin could hear everything clearly.

  "Fourth time of what?" He asked, regretting it the very next second.

  "Never mind that. Tell me human, why do you need to be a hero everytime?" The figure asked, piqued by the situation.

  "Not a matter that I am obligated to answer. What is that you want from me, eh? Miss me already, now do you?" Harwin's reply only further vexed the deity.

  It was strange, however, the figure did not argue nor threaten anymore. In fact, he fell back to his chair which was similar to a throne. Harwin felt as if the being was exhausted. His hypothesis was somewhat correct.

  "Its tit for tat, that is the expression common in your world for such situations, I suppose. You are a troublesome man, more troublesome than....Never-mind." The figure stopped mid-sentence which made Harwin suspicious, but he did not pursue the matter.

  "Again, what do you want?" He repeated his question.

  "Nothing, really. But as you are here already, what progess have you made so far? I mean, do you have a plan in mind, or do you intend on just strolling around, waiting for the time period to end?

  "No, I am not someone like you. I keep my words. This mysterious fellow of yours—" Harwin was inturrupted.

  "It is not mine!" The divine being lashed out for the first time.

  "Very well, very well. The mysterious person is in the capital city of Guilmeshan, or so I had concluded. If the individual is indeed in these vast lands and is indeed blessed, according to you, then they might be in the most dangerous zone aka the region surrounding the capital. They are probably trying to utilize their talents for fame, glory or just good deeds. I intend to make a journey there, but it is a trivial task." Harwin explained.

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  "I guess, you have not spend your time idle then. Good. Just remember your words, otherwise, the consequences are dire, to say the least." The figure warned.

  "How about teleporting me to the city yourself? It will save me quite the hassle, and you will have your problem dealt with much faster." He inquired, although, he already had the answer himself.

  "You know that I can not do that. If you do not, then you are an idiot, fool of the worst sort." The divine being berated Harwin.

  "Hmm. Never seen you so exasperated. None the less, I do not care for it, either. Let us not wast anymore time. Send me back if you have nothing else to say." He taunted. It was the first time that Harwin had given the deity a taste of his own medicine.

  "I see that you have grown a pair. What exactly is the source of this confidence? What leverage do you hold, human?"

  "Nothing actually. However, it is also true that you need me for the time being, so I can be little rough with my words. Do you mind our banter so much?"

  "Hmm, it is true that you are harmless. Very well, I reckon, I can forgo this matter now."

  Harwin did not reply. It was true that he had crossed the line multiple times already. Playing too much with divinity could have caused unnecessary problems, so he stayed quiet this time.

  The silence lingered for a while, as the figure was concentrating. Soon the void began to fade. It did not take much time for Harwin to gain his consciousness back.

  "You are awake! Thank Alomos, we thought you would never open your eyes again!" Winston shouted, his eyes wide-opened.

  Harwin recognized his surroundings. He was in the party's headquarters, more precisely, the room in the shabby building. However, there were more people than before this time, the archer and the mage also stood nearby. Eiza was standing beside Winsotn while Stein immediately began to lick the face of his master.

  "Winston! Speak softly in front of him, he is still recovering! Stein, you get away as well." Eiza scolded the two. She ended up being the nuisance herself but none complained.

  "How are you feeling now? In pain?" She asked.

  "Surprisingly, no. I feel refreshed." Harwin replied.

  "Should be, you were unconscious for two weeks straight. We had to give you a great number of potions as well as constantly perform healing spells. The internal bleeding was terrible, to say the least." Winston explained.

  Harwin could not believe that he was out of his senses for such a long time. The conversation with the deity could not have lasted for even an hour.

  "Oh coming to that matter, are you hungry? You have lost quite the bit of weight, having only been fed porridge for the entire duration. I will prepare something delicious for you, just wait." Winston claimed.

  "Something easy to digest is what you should mean!" Eiza argued.

  The other two glanced at Harwin from time to time, trying to say something but constantly interrupted by the bickering between Winston and Eiza. Soon, the latter pair finally noticed, and quietened.

  "I can not thank you enough. We would have died back there if not for you. I apologize, on behalf of my companion as well, for putting you through so much trouble." The mage said. They both bowed their heads after this statement.

  "Um, please leave your heads. It was only because of the efforts of everyone that we came out alive." Harwin argued, but none in the room agreed. It was true as well, it was only due to the spell casted by the young mage that they managed win.

  "What became of the rest of those giants? Are Lyam and Ser Kaith alright?" Harwin asked with concern, but everyone in the room laughed at him.

  "Are you kidding? They are part of 'The Mortis', I would sooner see the ruined creatures extinct then their group losing a fight." Winston explained.

  Harwin already understood that Lyam was incredibly powerful, but he had no idea that he was learning spells from such a big shot.

  "Hmm, I see. Well, moving on, what became of the items obtained from imourte? Are we good on funds?" Harwin asked something that really mattered for him right now.

  "That should be the least of your concerns now. Infact, here." Winston handed a large pouch to Harwin. "The horn of a gogliath is incredibly valuable, as you took it down so the reward is yours as well. With share from the hearts of the imourte, there are twenty silver teeth in it." Winston said.

  Harwin was shocked, he had earned quite an amount from a single venture, but it was also true that it had nearly brought his own demise. However, he had a different plan in mind: he shared the amount equally with the others. Even though, none of them wanted to accept it, they were still in no position to reject it, either. This was especially true regarding the archer and the mage who had recently lost their party and most of their belongings.

  As Winston was preparing a meal, Harwin learned their identities: the archer was Ava, she was from the Yogsalvia as well. The mage was Daren, he was from a place called 'Belarit', a town lying north from here.

  A great feast was organized by Winston and Eiza for the celebration of Harwin's recovery the very next day. Ava and Daren were part of it as well. It was during the meal that the latter finally proposed something:

  "If you two do not have any other party to join, why not join us? We are a small group, but with your help, we can certainly reach new heights. We do not have much to offer, but if you do decide to join us, we can divide the rewards equally amongst ourselves regardless of the contributions of the individual." Harwin had already discussed it with Winston and Eiza.

  It was true that their party was far too small to be considered by many, but there was something appealing. None of the larger parties offered equal division much less the guarantee of reward without any contribution whatsoever. The pair did not have to think much and immediately nodded.

  It was a great boost for their small group. They now had enough members to stay in the shadow ruins for much longer, albeit, they still lacked a tank. It was unfortunate that Sif — the burly friend of Ava and Daren — died during the encounter against the Gogliath.

  Just in the mist of their celebration, someone knocked on the door of their headquarters. They were expecting no one, so it was certainly suspicious. Upon answering, five men entered without any invitation. One of them pointed towards Harwin and ordered:

  "Your presence is demanded at the guild. Make haste, if you do not want trouble."

  Flabbergasted by this sudden interruption, Harwin was left speechless. None of his associates stood in opposition, either.