"Hmm, looks like Lucy's started getting into the restaurant business."
Jason was sitting in a high-end hotel in a small city at the southwestern end of the Rhine Empire. Judging by its name, Lucy had opened it.
Though it was a small city, it was considered important because it was one of the main routes from the Rhine Empire into the Sunset Mountain Range. A sturdy fortress also stood to the south to guard against invading beast tides.
That was why one of the imperial princess's businesses had set up here.
Three days earlier, Jason had reached the fifth level as a Necromancy mage.
Necromancers were different from other magicians. The power of death they used came directly from their contracted undead, so they had no need to refine magical power. They could advance simply by improving their spiritual power.
But they also had to devote part of their spiritual power to their contracted undead, greatly reducing the effectiveness of meditation. On the whole, the gains and losses balanced out.
Jason could now summon fifth-level undead, a level that was already quite useful to him.
Several dishes were brought out.
Jason still kept the eating habits from his previous life. When he ate alone, he ordered only two or three dishes. Even though he had gone more than a month without a decent meal, he still avoided extravagance and waste.
A wine flask was brought over. It belonged to Jason; he had just asked a waiter to fill it with wine.
Jason had gradually grown used to drinking spirits diluted with water, because low-alcohol liquor kept longer than water in the wild, especially in the hot, humid environment of the Sunset Mountain Range, where fierce beasts often lurked near water sources.
There was a snake gallbladder in the flask, taken from the green-striped python he had hunted earlier. Jason wasn't short of money, so he had tossed it in to soak.
After eating and drinking his fill, Jason spent another night sleeping in his suite.
The next day, he packed his belongings and prepared to head west along the northern side of the Sunset Mountain Range, going around the Yulan Kingdom and into the Dark Alliance.
Normally, the safest route would have been through the Yulan Kingdom, then across the Mountain Range of Magical Beasts with a merchant caravan to reach Fenlai City. But the two countries were at war, so it was better for Jason, as an imperial prince, to avoid it.
Before leaving, Jason wrote Lucy a letter to let her know he was safe and asked her to pass the news on to his imperial father and mother.
With the Rhine Clan's crest and fifty gold coins, the hotel owner readily agreed. Jason also took the opportunity to ask about the royal capital. Hearing that nothing major had happened, he felt reassured.
A year passed in a hurry.
The Sunset Mountain Range stretched across the southern end of the continent, spanning a vast distance from east to west. Jason traveled on and off for a year before finally reaching the Dark Alliance.
Throughout that year, Jason had stayed in the middle region of the Sunset Mountain Range. He occasionally encountered Seventh-Level Magical Beasts, but in the end, he came through without harm.
He also often headed north into human towns to rest for a few days. He had rarely shown his face in public before, so he wasn't afraid of being recognized by people from the Yulan Empire.
In that year, Jason had reached the peak of the Seventh-level Warrior level, and his spiritual power had reached the peak of the fifth level.
He had Thunder Swift Lightning Battle Qi to thank for that. Its cultivation speed really was frighteningly fast. In the original story, Linley seemed to have taken less than three years to go from the seventh to the eighth level in human form; Jason might take even less time. Of course, Linley had also been cultivating magic, while Jason devoted much less effort to it.
"Should I contract a magical beast?" Jason wondered, troubled, as he ate in a shop.
He had previously taken it for granted that he could use the skeleton rhinoceros as a mount, but human activity in the middle region of the Mountain Range of Magical Beasts was more frequent than Jason had expected.
Knowing that openly using necromancy would cause unnecessary trouble, Jason ultimately had to give up the idea of riding the skeleton rhinoceros and travel on foot.
The dual-sword skeleton, however, had given Jason quite a few pleasant surprises. Because he often made time to summon it and spar with it, his fighting ability had improved rapidly. He was no longer afraid of adventurers at his own level.
After finishing his meal, Jason went to a magic shop and spent over three thousand gold coins on a contract scroll.
Finding a magical beast to contract really needed to be put on the agenda. After entering the southernmost end of the Mountain Range of Magical Beasts from the Dark Alliance, Jason would probably still have to walk for another year to reach the area where Linley had adventured.
Jason tried taking a stroll down the street. Listening to the clamor of the surrounding vendors, he felt something he hadn't felt in a long time.
"The Yulan Empire and the Rhine Empire have finally stopped fighting. Our chamber of commerce can finally open a trade route to the Rhine Empire."
Jason listened to the merchant beside him and cursed inwardly. I went all the way around for nothing. A whole year wasted.
"Brother, join our Zhuola Greatsword Adventurer Group!" Various voices reached him as soon as he walked through the door.
It was Jason's first visit to the Adventurers' Association.
Each country had its own independently organized Adventurers' Association. They had little binding authority and merely provided a place where adventurers could form parties, take on missions, and exchange information.
Jason had shed his former youthful inexperience, and his every movement showed that he was no weakling. Judging by his nineteen-year-old face, the adventurers all assumed he was a young sixth-level warrior.
That also drew recruitment offers from many adventurer groups.
But Jason walked straight to the counter. "I'd like to take a mission going to the Fenlai Kingdom."
The Light Alliance and the Dark Alliance were currently at peace. Jason had already asked around, so if he wanted to go there, nothing could be better than taking a mission and traveling with a group.
"What level are you, young brother?" The middle-aged receptionist sized Jason up.
"A sixth-level warrior."
He carried a shield and a one-handed saber at his side, with a two-handed saber on his back. The receptionist had a sharp eye and could tell that Jason's weapons were no ordinary items. Jason's movements also showed that he had seen plenty of combat.
A noble out to gain experience, the receptionist thought.
Jason really couldn't get used to using a bow, and the bow he had seized earlier was wind-elemental, so he had taken an opportunity to sell it. Now he used only two sabers, leaving ranged attacks to the three undead archers he could summon.
"There are five current missions going directly to the Fenlai Kingdom. If you want something a little more adventurous, choose this one."
Jason looked over. "Accompany a prince of the Leici Duchy on a training expedition in the Mountain Range of Magical Beasts. Travel north through the middle region of the range, then visit Fenlai City before returning. You may leave partway through, but the commission will be halved."
A prince with nothing better to do, going out looking for something to occupy himself, Jason thought.
"If you want something a little more comfortable, choose this one."
Jason looked again. "Escort a merchant caravan north to the Fenlai Kingdom. The cargo is of ordinary value, but there are too many wagons, making it easy for some to fall behind. Constant vigilance is required. The journey will take quite a long time, and you may not withdraw partway through."
Jason chose the third one. "Escort a senior member of the Dawson Chamber of Commerce to Fenlai City to take up a post."
There were three reasons he had taken a liking to the mission: "Dawson Chamber of Commerce," "directly to Fenlai City," and "short journey."
The Dawson Chamber of Commerce should be the business belonging to the family of Yale, Linley's roommate in the original story. Of course, Yale hadn't been born yet, but Jason wanted to make contact in advance.
As for the latter two points, Jason didn't want to spend too much time on the road. With his strength as a seventh-level warrior, he could accept a little danger.
The receptionist looked at Jason hesitantly and said, "Be careful on the road."
He then wrote Jason a letter of introduction.