As everyone relaxed, the door suddenly creaked open. William, the suited man, stepped in and smiled.
"Hello, everyone. Today's the day. You're heading out on your first expedition!"
"Expedition!?" Eldric's eyes lit up. "Wonderful!"
William nodded. "So get ready your ship is waiting." With that, he closed the door behind him.
"We're going on a ship?" Eldric blinked in surprise.
Nova nodded. "Yeah. We're a low-ranked guild, so we only get ships. If we rank up, they start assigning beasts as transport."
"Beasts?" Muscle's eyes widened.
Luna quietly headed to her room, grabbed her bag, and took a long sip of water.
Asher, meanwhile, was still sound asleep.
Ronan clenched his fist in silence, thinking: My first expedition...
Muscle marched into his room to gather his gear. Nova was already geared up and waiting.
Suddenly a loud bell echoed through the Ashborns' castle.
One by one, the team assembled Luna, Nova, Ronan, Muscle, and Eldric. The bell was the signal: departure time.
As they exited, Eldric spotted Asher lounging in the hallway.
"Hey man, aren't you coming?" Eldric asked.
Asher yawned. "Hmm… not today. You guys have fun."
At the association port, waves splashed gently against the docks.
Eldric's eyes widened. "Whoa… what a giant ship!"
Muscle scoffed. "Tch, this piece of junk is small!"
The five boarded: Luna, Nova, Ronan, Muscle, and Eldric. The ship's engine hummed to life as the driver prepared for launch.
Eldric turned back and waved. "Bye, William!"
William smiled, waving from the docks. "Good luck, Ashborns!"
The ship cruised silently into the open sea.
Eldric broke the silence. "So… where exactly are we going?"
"To Lemuria," Nova replied calmly.
"Lemuria?" Muscle tilted his head. "What's that?"
"It's a country in northern Sentus. We're heading to the western region," Nova explained.
"Will there be monsters? Demons?" Eldric asked, eyes glinting.
Luna finally spoke. "Yeah. There will be monsters. We're investigating a mysterious land within Lemuria."
"Oooh, look who finally opened her mouth," Muscle teased.
Luna ignored him. "We'll need to fight."
Eldric nodded. "Got it."
"Let's check each other's Kai symbols," Muscle suggested.
He glanced at Luna's neck.
"I have moon-based abilities," she said coolly.
"Moon? Wonderful," Eldric commented.
Muscle turned to Nova. "What about you?"
Nova clenched his fists. A glowing white crystal emerged from his hand.
"Mine's crystal-based."
Muscle whistled. "That's pretty strong."
Eldric yawned, grabbed a bottle of water, and stepped outside the cabin. The ocean stretched endlessly before him, the wind tousling his silver hair.
Inside, Muscle turned to Nova. "Hey… what power does that sleeping guy Asher have?"
Nova shrugged. "No idea."
"You don't know?" Muscle frowned.
"He hasn't joined any expeditions yet," Nova replied. "But he's a 5-star Argonaut. A mysterious one."
Ronan sat quietly, fists clenched. His eyes burned with a quiet fury. Luna watched him, curious about the storm inside him.
Suddenly, Eldric shouted from the deck, "Land ahead!"
Ronan stormed outside. "Oi, idiot don't yell."
The others followed. The fog grew thick around them, masking the coastline of Lemuria. The ship slowed as it neared the shore.
Eldric leapt down as a rope ladder dropped. The others followed Ronan, Nova, Luna, and finally Muscle, who jumped straight from the deck.
Their journey had officially begun.