Greatest Legacy of the Magus Universe

Chapter 1982 Biggest Advantage

A few weeks later, Adam and Luca had finally returned to Adventurers' City.

The journey back had been long and arduous. They had traversed the wilderness and spent countless nights hiding from the monsters that roamed the land. Neither of them had spoken much along the way.

At last, the familiar walls of Adventurers' City came into view.

They did not approach the main gates. Instead, the two climbed the city wall and reached the concealed opening that was Luca's secret entryway into the city. The concealment mechanism was still intact, hiding the hole from prying eyes.

How the Paladin had managed to hide it from the people of the City Hall remained a mystery to Adam. He figured it had to do something with magical artifacts, as Luca always seemed to have an abundance of them.

Luca carefully removed the concealment, and the two slipped through. They had finally returned to the city, yet there was no relief. Not yet, at least.

The streets were still infested with monsters. There were only a few hours left until sunset, giving them a narrow window to reach their destination. They moved silently through the abandoned streets, keeping to the shadows and avoiding the monsters wherever possible.

Neither Adam nor Luca wanted to attract unnecessary attention. Every so often, a distant roar or howl echoed through the ruined city. They would stop and wait. And only after the sounds faded would they continue.

As the sun gradually descended toward the horizon, light began to fade, and the shadows grew longer. The monsters became more active.

Adam and Luca quickened their pace. They had to reach the house before nightfall. Finally, just as the last rays of sunlight disappeared beyond the horizon, they arrived.

Luca stood at the familiar entrance to his home. For a moment, he simply stared at it. After everything they had endured over the past couple of months, seeing that door again felt strangely surreal.

"We're finally here," he murmured.

Adam glanced at him before looking toward the dilapidated building. "Let's go in."

Luca nodded. Together, they quietly opened the door and stepped into the darkness of his home.

They did not lower their guard just yet, however.

Luca had been gone for a long time, and though they had set many safety mechanisms in place to prevent monster break-ins — or other adventurers, for that matter — he still had to be sure that no one was inside.

A sweep of the building, which took more than an hour, confirmed that no one had broken in. Adam specifically made sure all the doors and windows had been sealed shut. He didn't want to receive a surprise while he was asleep.

He let the Sphere of Resonance wash over every inch of the building. He double-checked just to be sure. Only then did he finally heave a sigh of relief.

"You're really cautious, huh," Luca commented.

Though Adam could tell his words were not mockery. Instead, there was genuine acknowledgment in them.

"Better safe than sorry," Adam replied.

He plopped down on the ground and rested his back against the wall.

What a tiring journey it had been.

And he still hadn't properly recovered from the werewolf's torture. The injuries had affected him more than he cared to admit.

Even after all this time, the lingering pain and exhaustion had yet to completely fade. Ironically enough, there were no mental scars from that ordeal. It was his physical body that fell behind in terms of full recuperation.

Adam was thoroughly spent. The only silver lining was that they hadn't encountered too many monsters on their journey back. The return journey had been relatively uneventful.

Something flew through the air, and Adam easily caught it. His eyes lit up when he saw it was a wine gourd. He quickly uncorked it and began gulping it down.

"That's some really strong stuff," Luca said as he prepared dinner. "How do you drink it like water?"

"High tolerance level," Adam replied after quenching his thirst. "Most liquor doesn't have any effect on me. It's hard to come across ones like these. They're either too expensive or too rare."

Luca scoffed. "This is expensive and rare."

Despite the initial suspicions, he had grown a strong camaraderie with Adam. So he didn't mind sharing his liquor with him. He still suspected him a little, though it was not to the point of hostility.

Besides, the man had saved his life. That meant a great deal to someone like Luca.

"Are you rich?" Adam asked with a smirk. "What're you? A young master?"

Luca snorted. "Fuck off with you."

Adam couldn't help but chuckle. He took another swig directly from the gourd. Then he looked at it with curious eyes and asked, "How do you have an endless supply of wine and ale, anyway?"

"I told you, right? I was on my way to the Wall, but then I got sucked into this place," Luca said casually as he started roasting the meat in the fire. "I had planned more than enough supplies for my journey to the Wall."

"I see." Adam nodded, absentmindedly staring at the fire.

A long time later, he said, "Don't forget what we talked about, Luca."

"About what?" Luca turned to Adam and asked with a quirked eyebrow. "Ah, you mean the people from the City Hall."

"Yes." Adam nodded, his voice turning solemn.

"We don't know if it's just the people on the council or those beneath who are in leagues with the monsters. Better to be cautious than to let them discover that we're alive. The fact that the vampires think we are dead is our biggest advantage."

"Aye." Luca nodded. "Don't worry. I'll always leave the house with my concealment artifact on."

He paused for a moment, then asked, "And you? Are you going to start advancing soon?"

"No, not yet." Adam shook his head.

He took a few more gulps of wine and emptied the gourd, causing Luca's eyes to twitch in response.

"I'll first heal my injuries," he continued. "They've been a constant thorn lately. Until I've recovered completely, I won't advance."

"Very well." Luca nodded.

And just like that, a month passed.

The time had finally come…

To attack the Mana Seed Rank!