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Noah's party had finally finished their hunting session around 5 AM, most of the group seemed mentally exhausted, although their bodies were fine, because they had used their Skills so much, their minds felt tired.
"Noah-sama, shall we go to my manor? I believe there should be enough rooms for everyone," said Arthur.
"Very well then, lead the way. We have worked diligently, all of you deserve to rest a few hours… Because we will be working twice as hard after that!" said Noah with a proud smile, as everyone nodded tiredly, even Adamantine seemed exhausted despite being always energetic.
"T-Twice as hard… W-Well, it is all so we can grow stronger… So it is fine… As long as I am with Noah-sama… and my friends…" said Iris, she was mildly falling asleep, so Noah had to grab her while he flew with the rest of the members jumping over the buildings of the city.
Noah glanced at Iris gave in to her sleepiness, as her adorable face slept soothingly.
Noah was expressionless, and his eyes seemed to simply lead to an abyss, so he was not particularly moved by Iris or something.
However, he kept looking at her sleep while in his arms, as he considered what she had gone through, and about all the things she had endured and forced herself to do after becoming a Dhampir and his subordinate.
Although Noah knew that he was a prideful man now, he still could not help but feel grateful for her help.
"Thank you, Iris," murmured Noah into Iris's ears, as Iris moved a bit as she made herself more comfortable in Noah's chest.
After half an hour of traveling as fast as possible through the beautiful city, the group finally reached Arthur's territory, the entrance seemed highly guarded by Guards, whose strength was equivalent to E-Rank Hunters.
"Oh, Lord Arthur, welcome… Timassa is here as well and- Who might these people be?" asked one of the guards, a tall man with silver hair and sharp blue eyes.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt"Ah, Gray, these are my friends, the ones that I will build a Guild in the future… I brought them here to pass the night and spend the weekend with me," said Arthur.
"Oh, I see! How wonderful, it is nice to see that my Lord has found reliable friends that you trust so much… Please come in," said Gray, opening the large gates as Noah and the rest of the party entered a large front yard, resembling a beautiful garden, with a large group of normal trees and plants, which were now often rare to see in the dystopian world they lived in.
"What is this?" wondered Jon, glaring at the green grass below his feet.
"This is grass… it once used to cover the world. It is a type of plant from the old world, which has not undergone mutation into a Mutated Beast. Those are trees, Orange Trees, which produce delicious fruit," said Arthur.
Arthur showed the large garden that their family had to everyone, in such a future where most plants had gone extinct, only rich families such as Arthur's family could ever hope to have actual plants or normal animals that were not all Mutated Beasts.
"Amazing… plants from the older world? I was… born after the… catastrophe… so I have never… seen them…" said Jon.
"Well, most of the vegetables, mushrooms, and fruits we eat are synthetically made in laboratories, so it is understandable," said Arthur.
"But didn't we enter a jungle the other day where we killed Lizardmen?" asked Timassa.action
"Oh right… well, the world used to be like that too, Jon," said Arthur.
"Really? I thought… it was something of fantasy… like dungeons always are… so such places… existed in real life…" said Jon.
"They still exist. The media tells you that this world is just a wasteland now, but that is false," said Noah.
"Eh?" asked Arthur.
"Noah-sama…? Have you explored the rest of the world?" asked Timassa.
"Master…?" asked Jon.
"How do I know you must wonder? Well, I was born outside of Sector D. I remember the world outside… the places I and my parents explored. There was not an infinite desert with horrible monsters everywhere… several areas seemed like this place… surrounding large masses of water we named Oasis. Alongside this, normal animals were living together with Mutated Beasts… Some places even had clear water rivers… This world is definitely not as ruined as might it seem… Even more, because many Subhuman people are living in these areas," said Noah.
"Is that so…? I wonder if we could explore such places one day…" said Arthur.
"Perhaps, there are many places around this world, and Dungeon Gates not only appear near cities, but they also often emerge in the middle of a wasteland, and if they are not treated quickly, monsters might begin emerging from it…" said Noah.
"So you're saying that we might go to these dungeons in the future?" asked Timassa.
"Most likely. Whenever we become a Guild, we will be clearing Dungeons all week, that's our work, and the best way to grow stronger and acquire resources after all," said Noah.
"Makes sense…" said Arthur.
"Hmm," said Jon while nodding.
"I-Indeed… Although I am rather excited about it, I can't help but have a slight fear of the dangerous future ahead of us…" sighed Timassa.
"Don't worry, as long as we can become stronger, the danger will keep decreasing… Albeit new dangers might arise as well… The only way out of this is by simply becoming strong enough… I know I am repeating myself but in this world… I have to be repetitive," sighed Noah.
"I understand… Noah-sama, let me tell you that you are not alone, we'll also make sure to stay at your side and become strong to protect you," said Timassa.
"Protect me? I have been the one protecting you this whole time… But I would be happy if you could become strong enough to protect my back a bit, at the very least," said Noah.
"Well, we will make sure to grow stronger… Just like today- No, we will work even harder," said Arthur.
"Yes… I will work hard…" said Jon, his adorable and big eyes gleaming with conviction.
"That's a good spirit," said Noah with a mild smile, although he might look creepy for anyone except his subordinates.
"My parents must be sleeping at this moment, so why don't we go to the Manor that will be our Guild HQ? It used to belong to my grandfather, and I had recently made sure to clean it… Oh right, the Robots are there, such as Sakura, Sugar, and more, some were repaired while others are still waiting their turn… Big Sis rests behind the manor, we could go see her if you want," said Arthur.
"No need, let's go rest, I am not going to stay with Iris on my arms all this time," sighed Noah, who was also rather mentally exhausted.
"Very well then, let's get in," said Arthur, showing the beautiful and large, gothic-styled manor to Noah, it was made of gray and black bricks, long windows with black metallic decorations, a large entrance which had gargoyles atop as decorations too, and it also had a small garden of crimson roses around.
"This garden is the one that my mother likes to take care of, she likes red roses quite a lot," said Arthur.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm"I see… This manor is… quite good. It fits our aesthetic as Vampires quite well… Although I never expected it to be an actual gothic-styled one," said Noah.
"Ahaha… Well, my grandparent was someone that liked these styles of things… He used to have an Ability that helped him speak with Spirits before, and such a place seemed fitting for him… so be built it… When he passed out this house was left mostly abandoned… Until you requested it and I asked my servants to clean it," said Arthur, as he gently opened the door, turning on the lights.
"Talk with Spirits? Did he left an Ability Core when he died?" asked Noah.
"No… I don't think so. Well, here we are, the servants must be sleeping and most of them are inside the main manor, so forget if there is no service at the moment…" said Arthur.
Noah glanced at the vast space, beautifully decorated, there were many paintings, and the place had a fine combination of dark and crimson colors, with gold and white floor.
There was a large Hall in the middle of the manor, where events such as ballads or parties between aristocrats could be made, and there were two stairs that led to the second floor around such a large hall, where over twelve rooms were.
"The rooms are on the second floor, here, please," said Arthur, walking at the side of Timassa as he showed his friends the rooms for them to stay.
Jon and Adamantine walked to their new rooms and immediately fell over the bed, falling asleep.
Meanwhile, Arthur and Timassa went to their respective rooms as well, as they were just very tired.
Noah carried Iris towards a room that Arthur had designed for her, gently putting her over the bed.
"She's still sleeping even after I carried her around everywhere… Is she a stone or something?" sighed Noah, as he suddenly felt a sharp pain inside of his chest.
"Ungh…! W-What…?!"
Noah suddenly felt his entire senses dulled, and he began to become even dizzy!
The pain continued, as it spread through his entire body!
Reaching his head… he fell unconscious.
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Author's Note: If you're enjoying this make sure to check some of my other works, such as Epic of Summoner: Supreme Summoner System in the Apocalypse!
It's a about an Interdimensional Apocalypse where the main character is thrown into it! Using his amazing Summoning System, he crawls his way to the top and survives the turbulent and chaotic era!
I am sure that you won't be disappointed at all if you like Action and LitRPG elements! Check it out if you can!