The Gems Ch. 04

Time: Year 1739 Beginning of Month 8

Location: Riventra in the Derigan Kingdom

The Wooden League

Riventra was a city growing alongside the kingdom's main water source, the Silver River. Just as it was in Shinora, Riventra had a Post Office where they could receive requests. But the best part had to be that they didn't have to walk through the forest to go back to Shinora just to complete the quest. They simply brought the quest to the front desk workers who used mana to communicate with the Shinora Post Office and have them paid.

Since he was cataloging their inventory, Emerald tasked the ladies with getting new quests. They agreed and marched away almost immediately as he wondered how to spend two hundred coins wisely. He bought enough bread for each of them to have their own loaf, as well as another shield for his own protection. He didn't have any other reason to spend more money but a quick glance at apparel merchandise a merchant was selling made him doubt his sowing skills.

"Is there anything here that fancy's your eye?" The merchant grinned welcomingly.

"I'm looking for something durable," Emerald replied.

"I sale clothes, not armor," the merchant said, crossly.

"Do you know where I might be able to find a merchant selling armor?" Emerald asked.

"Good afternoon! I must say, sir, you have fine taste," the merchant said, turning towards another customer.

Emerald frowned and walked off. He'd just have to find the guy himself, though with all of the merchants looking somewhat similar, it was a pain to see them brush him off rather rudely when they realized he wasn't a paying customer. Though, the good news was that once he saw weapons being sold, an armor merchant wouldn't be too hard to find and eventually he found his guy.

The merchant was in a sea of young adventurers, like Emerald, buying all the new, better armor they could afford and leaving with arms full of protection. When it was Emerald's turn, the only armor that was available was used or torn. Still, Emerald wasn't opposed to sewing them up and as a result, he got a little discount for their usage. He backtracked his way to the entrance of the marketplace and went looking for his female partners. They were actually sitting on a bench close by, watching the kingdom's soldiers make their rounds. Their uniforms were shiny, gleaming in the sunlight and making a lot of female citizens gush at them.

"You ladies want a snack?" He asked. The ladies obliged as they watched the soldiers in silence. Once they passed, it was time to see what quests they got their hands on.

"Take a look at this," Diamond said as she opened the quest for them to see.

"Nice, another quest for protection," Emerald said as he skimmed over the quest.

"Not just any quest for protection, Rolly," Diamond pointed out. "It's a town takeover quest."

"What? Is it more bandits?" Emerald asked.

"Yes, but it's a bunch of them," Sapphire answered. "They're trying to take over a small town near here so the city is asking for help to fight them."

"But... what about the soldiers?" Emerald asked.

"Apparently, the town isn't big enough for a garrison to be stationed here," Diamond replied. "Those soldiers were the governor's protection force for he and his family."

"Well, what are the rewards?" He inquired.

"Gold, of course," Sapphire replied. "But, although it's not specifically stated, the people in the Post Office were hinting there might be some bigger reward for those who've stood out amongst the others."

"Yeah, I've been trying to figure it out," Diamond said. "What if it's a new sword? A secret ability? Or maybe even an ancient item?"

"Slow down, when and where does this event take place?" Emerald asked.

"In about a week at one of Riventra's towns called Aboen," Diamond said. "We need to prepare and possibly recruit another person before it starts too."

"Then we don't have time to spare," Emerald replied. "I got food and armor, for you Diamond, so we shouldn't have any issues in that regard. But we're going to have to improve our teamwork if we're going to be dealing with a large amount of bandits."

"Are we that bad?" Sapphire asked.

"Yes," Emerald said bluntly. "Diamond is getting injured over and over again. I'm running around getting abused until the Malevolent One is bored of me and I can miraculously swoop in to heal Diamond so she can continue to fight. Sapphire, you're good, but you're not experienced enough to be on the front lines."

"That's... brutal," Sapphire said as she took in the criticism.

"And these aren't going to be our average joes either," Emerald continued. "I'm certain we'll find a couple of big guys coming at us or a bunch of weaker bandits trying to cut us off. And then—"

"We get the picture Emerald," Diamond smiled. "You're worried about us."

"Yeah, I guess I am," he sighed. "But that's because you have something to prove. And to prove it, you have to win your fights."

"Then let's get this training underway," Diamond said. "If we use the map, we should be able to locate the Training Grounds pretty easily."

With their task now confirmed, the group of three walked the streets of Riventra, looking for the Training Grounds. Upon finding it, they saw many people sparring together or fighting earth dummies and using most of the field. Nonetheless, the group found an open spot to use and chose to use earth dummies to train with. Without so much of a preamble, the group split off on their own to fight their opponents.

Diamond blindly cut through the dummies, cutting off their body part with ease as they moved slower than real bandits. Sapphire created spears of ice and shot them at her enemies, piercing some on a single spear. They were doing pretty good, but if they did get hurt from a dummy getting too hurt, Emerald was already racing in to heal them after dodging the dummies attacks. However, the dummies soon became a little more resilient, a little more evasive. They became increasingly aggressive and even tactically focused on targeting Emerald. It became even more apparent when they tackled him, forcing him to yell in pain.

Hearing his distress, Diamond disengaged from her false opponent and rushed over to defend him. She sliced his dummy assailant apart but was pulled back her dummies advancing from behind. Sapphire had come to his defense as well and made a large wall that split the group of dummies in half. But there was still dummies putting pressure on them as the army started to be completely immune to their attacks. Unable to see her partners, Sapphire launched parts of the wall of ice at the dummies, knocking them back a considerable distance. As however, she was only able to keep up the barrage until her wall of ice was gone.

And then they all were fighting for their lives. There was no way they could help anyone else when they couldn't even help themselves. They were literally being buried alive and there was very little they could do... until the dummies sunk back into the ground, leaving the trio covered with all sorts of external physical damage.

"I take it you three are training for the event, right?" The group heard as they struggled to stand.

"Yeah," Diamond said, wincing from her injuries.

"Well, you won't last long fighting like that," the person said. "If you want, I can help you guys train and give you some pointers on how to fight better."

"How much would it cost?" Diamond asked as she gingerly dusted herself off.

"Only a handful of coins," the person replied. "My name is Peter and I'm a veteran adventurer. So what do you think?"

"A handful?" Emerald asked.

"Did you forget you were buried alive by practice dummies?" Peter smirked. "Besides if you take my words of advice, it'll be a lot better for you than finding it out the hard way."

"What do you ladies think?" Emerald asked in a hushed voice.

"I guess we could use some help," Diamond whispered back. "Although, if it's just some rudimentary common knowledge bullshit, I'll get my money's worth out of his ass."

"Okay, Peter, we'll take you up on your offer," Emerald said as he dumped a handful of coins in Peter's hand.

"Thank you," Peter replied. "Now, off the top of my head, I see a lot of things that needs to be corrected. For one, you guys are too far apart. Being in a group is all about watching your partner's back. You can only do that when you're in close proximity to each other. Unless you're Crimson Craig and can mow down enemies with one swing of your sword, you need to be mindful of your position and move forward in one direction together."

"He's not talking out of his ass, I'll give him that," Diamond muttered.

"Well, sticking together is important," Sapphire said.

"Second," Peter continued, "your fighting style is erratic and full of openings."

"Now that's a potful of shit, you little—," Diamond jumped up.

"Whoa, Diamond!" Emerald exclaimed.

"I'm not going to let someone criticize me just because I swing my sword a certain way," Diamond vehemently said.

"He's just giving advice," Emerald responded. "You paid for his advice. You can disregard what he says later but if we force him to leave then we just gave him money for nothing in return."

"And remember, he's criticizing all of us," Sapphire pitched in.

"Are you guys done with your little group chat?" Peter asked impatiently.

"Although he is getting a bit rude," Sapphire said with displeasure.

"So anyway, you fighting style is all over the place," Peter continued. "You want to make your attacks smaller so that you're more effective at defense when your opponent or more tries to counterattack. Don't beat their sword with heavy attacks. Stay light on your feet and keep your eyes on their hand. In doing so, you'll find that you can parry or dodge, though it's entirely your discretion. And in some cases, you may be able to disarm your opponent entirely."

"I guess he has a point or two," Diamond conceded after thinking it over.

"As for you, Ms. Mage," Peter turned to address Sapphire, "your control over water is finite. It's not earth magic where you can use it everywhere. Without a source of water for your attacks, you will have to be very precise and accurate with whatever you're trying to do. Keep your water and ice attacks small enough to make it hard for your enemies to defend themselves as you whittle down their stamina and health. Keep your distance but never stray to far from the group."

"Okay, so he's making a lot of sense," Sapphire said as she winced from her wounds.

"Let me take care of that for you two," Emerald told them. Placing a hand on each of their shoulders, he said, "Heal."

Peter tilted his head as he watched them. "What... what are you doing?" He asked.

"I'm healing them," Emerald replied.

"You're not a Monk in the name of the Benevolent One?" Peter frowned.

"No?" Emerald answered with uncertainty.

"Then that's a problem," Peter told them. "As much as they are effective, Healers are not viable partners in small groups. They have no true offensive or defensive capabilities, their stamina is limited, and if a group is dependent on one, a Healer that has been taken hostage can critically cripple that group. My suggestion is to rely on the health bottles they sell in the market. They don't compare to the strength of a Healer's ability to fix you up but they allow you to stay in the fight without being reliant on a person with low physical maneuverability."

The girls sat in silence as they watched Emerald struggle to keep a straight face. This was the biggest reason Healers weren't around a lot in the recent years. Essentially, they're the weakest link in a group. Sooner or later, groups with a Healer get tired of having one and end up kicking the Healer out. The nice ones ban their Healers in the city, though they might take the belongings for their own gain. The bad ones ban their Healers in the middle of a quest and let them fend for themselves. The worse ones are nightmares Healers have when they're being recruited by a suspicious group.

"If or when you ladies tire of me," Emerald said, "then I will heed to your wishes and leave the group."

"You're going to give up that fast, that easy?" Diamond glared.

"I won't stay where I'm not wanted," Emerald nodded.

"Then I'm leaving with you," Diamond declared, "and we can start over."

"Be rational, Mondy," Emerald crossed his arms, "groups don't include a Healer in their roster these days."

"And that should matter to me because?" Diamond demanded.

"I'm a liability," Emerald answered.

"Sure you are, just like I can take on multiple bandits alone," Diamond remarked.

"Emerald, I haven't been with you two for long," Sapphire said, "but don't discredit what you've done and how hard you've worked. It's not easy being out there in the middle of the violence and chaos. You put your life on the line just like the rest of us... to protect us."

"And besides, Rolly," Diamond added with confidence, "if the rest of the group doesn't like you, you don't have to worry about healing them. You can just heal me... and Sapphire."

"You girls are the best," Emerald said with relief.

Peter shrugged uncaringly as he walked away. The trio then went and paid for a lodge, grateful to be sleeping on a soft surface after days on the ground. When morning came, the trio went back to the Training Grounds and decided to put most of what Peter said into practice.

Keeping a tight formation, the team went at the earthen dummies with determination. Sapphire led the charge this time, using her ice shards to target the joints and neck area to weaken the dummies. Diamond cleaned them up with jabs and stabs. With the girls in front, Emerald was calling out stray dummies that attempted to flank them so they could quickly deal with the lone wolf.

As the dummies began to get tougher, the group changed tactics. Diamond led the way with Emerald directly behind her. With her wounds being consistently healed, she was able to stay in the fight almost three times as long as before. Sapphire was tasked with the flank, so she made a spiked wall that the dummies pressed themselves against. Whenever it began to crack, she melted a part to let a dummy in and quickly refroze it. The extra water pushed out would then go to making the wall even bigger.

When the third set of dummies showed up, time to switch strategies once again. Sapphire collapsed her wall of water and curved the water, and it's previous frozen inhabitants, around the group and knocking a majority of their enemies to the ground. As their opponents tried to stand, Sapphire made the water form ice spikes beneath them and to immobilize them as Diamond dealt with any standing enemies.

But when another set of enemies began to emerge, the team fled from the field. Emerald was practically drained from his constant use of mana and Diamond was just as tired. Even Sapphire was woozy from the excessive amounts of water she used. In the end it took the team longer than normal to make it back to the lodge and went to a deep sleep. The first to rise was Sapphire. Stretching, she figured it was time to get her day started with a bath and grabbed her other set of clothes.

"Diamond, wake up," she nudged her teammate.

"Ugh, no," Diamond sleepily muttered. "No more rocks."

"Come on, wake up," Sapphire tried again.

"Damnit I said... S-S-Sapphire, what is it?" Diamond asked.

"Bath, let's go," Sapphire said.

"Too afraid to go by yourself?" Diamond teased and then yawned.

"You want strange men to stare at you when the sun rises?" Sapphire teased back.

"Oh hell no," Diamond declined, jumping out of bed.

With their belongings safe with Emerald and a note detailing where they're going, the girls went out into the dusk and went to the Silver River. It was a slow moving river with signs pointing out the deep areas to avoid. There were already some small soap bars and a few towels so the ladies had everything they needed to clean clean themselves. They even swam for a bit to let their hair flow. Once they dried themselves and redressed, the duo went back to their lodge. Emerald was still out cold though they understood the toll his body took yesterday.

"Hey Sapphire, I'm going to get a little bit more sleep," Diamond said as she stretched her arms. "Emerald looks like he's enjoying whatever dream he's having."

"Alright, I'll be going to get some breakfast," Sapphire replied.

The moment the door closed Diamond knew she had twenty minutes at the most before Sapphire came back. She crept over to Emerald and rubbed his legs, seeing how deep of a sleep he was in. In response to her rubs, Emerald twitched a bit and mumbled in his sleep. Working quickly, Diamond rubbed his cock and gently removed it from the enclosure of his pants. Out in the open, Emerald's cock thickened in her hand as she rubbed it lovingly. But she was on a timer, so the rubs came to an end and her mouth took it in.

It was wider than she expected for her mouth but she managed to take it to the throat. She bobbed quickly, never letting his cock leave her mouth. She let it bulge her cheeks and let some saliva drool down his erected meat. Then she ran her tongue along the veins on his cock before licking the head sloppily. As she continued her administrations, Emerald's body contorted with pleasure. As his muscles tightened, his hips rose off the bed as his cock painted the inside of her mouth with his seed.

"Eeeeeaargghhhh!" Emerald yelled as his eyes snapped open.

"Morning, Rolly," Diamond greeted, lying beside him.

"Mondy?" Emerald blinked a couple of times. "Was... by the Benevolence, you are something else."

"I can't have you wasting the day away," Diamond said. "Sapphire is already getting something to eat and it'll be all gone if you stay in bed."

"That's fine," Emerald said as he rolled on top of her. "I got some breakfast right here."

Before she could say a word, Emerald sealed her lips with a kiss and let his hands roam her body. They moved in sync with each other, sliding her garments off and copping a feel of her luxurious bosom. They even twisted her nipples a couple of times to elicit that moan only she could do. But, the look in Diamond's eyes told Emerald time wasn't in abundance so the hands were sent south to remove her trousers and undergarments. Diamond was getting excited at his hastiness and wrapped her legs around his waist, her greedy impatience showing on her face.

Since his cock was already out, Emerald was in her pussy in a matter of seconds, rocking her body and the frame as he pumped her good and hard. His hands went to her muscular toned abdomen, tightening his grip on her sides so that he could pull her closer to him as he plunged deeper into her. They embraced with another kiss, hungry to fill their lust. As Emerald moved to suck on her neck, Diamond's hands clawed at his back, quite painfully but he didn't notice. But he did lay her back down and held her legs up so her cunt could squeeze his cock in a tighter, but different way. And with her legs in the air, Diamond's body shuddered as she came, writhing and shaking around his cock.

Emerald slowed down a little so she could bear through the convulsions. Only when her convulsions cease did he increase his pace, albeit not for her, but for his own sake. He pumped her pussy once again as he liked, moving desperately until his own seed was ejected into her lovely hole. They panted heavily for a minute, taking their time to catch their breath as their sweaty body slid against each other.

"You're... making me... glad that we... have you... on this team," Diamond smiled.

"And I'm glad... that you're not... a Beast Class," Emerald replied, gingerly touching his back. "You could fight with those nails."

"Rawr!" Diamond playfully swatted him.