Vlad made his way to the edge of the inner city, passing through a quieter part of Skyreach as the towering buildings began to thin and soften.
The sharp steel-and-glass architecture of the central spires gave way to more refined structures, less about display and more about comfort and quiet prestige.
He eventually reached a tall, two-story house nestled along a cobblestone path. It was styled after old European hos, with walls of pale stone, elegant framing, tall vertical windows made of tempered glass, and a steep slate roof.
Vlad climbed the few stone steps leading to the entrance and reached for the iron door handle. He knocked twice and then stepped back.
A few seconds passed, and then the door opened with a muted creak.
A woman stepped out, her features soft yet alert. Her pale, golden hair was braided neatly to one side and fell over her shoulder. Her almond-shaped eyes, warm and bright, lit up with a polite smile the mont she saw him, but there was also a flash of alertness behind them, subtle but unmistakable.
Noemi smiled but then froze as her gaze shifted to the side. Her eyes landed on Vel, who sat still and tense, perched on Vlad’s shoulder.
But this ti, Vel didn’t shy away, she held her breath and stared back with all the strength she could muster, refusing to shrink back like she usually did.
"A... King-grade spirit?" Noemi murmured, her voice hushed, surprise leaking into her words.
She blinked once, then quickly gathered herself, smile returning, though a bit more formal than before.
"Sir, I am Noemi. How can I help you?" She asked politely.
Vlad took a step forward and presented his adventurer card. The sleek black badge shimred faintly under the light, the letters etched in silver.
"V. A D-rank adventurer," Vlad said, his voice calm and respectful. "Miss Noemi, I am here regarding the job you posted about needing the fangs of the Moon Wolf."
She looked at the card for a second, then back at him. Her eyes flicked briefly toward Vel again with barely contained surprise before she nodded slowly.
She took a breath, then smiled brightly, though a hint of caution remained in her tone.
"You must want to discuss the reward. And I understand that Moon Wolf fangs go for a high price on the market," she said, her tone polite but firm. "But I’m sorry. The epic-grade daggers and two hundred fifty gold are the best I can offer."
"No," Vlad replied with a slight shake of his head. "I am not here to discuss the reward but sothing else. Before I search for the Moon Wolf, I wanted to ask why you need the fangs." He paused, then added,
"As far as I know, Moon Wolf fangs are used in dicine for cold poisoning, forging accessories that resist extre cold, and sotis as charms for good luck."
"So I thought, if I knew the reason you needed them, I might be able to suggest an alternative material that serves the sa purpose," Vlad said, steering the conversation exactly where he wanted it to go.
The Moon Wolf was an extrely rare creature, even in high-danger zones, so its materials were extrely pricy, and what Noemi was offering was not even half of what the fangs of even a weak moon wolf went for.
However, Vlad knew that she was not doing it because she was cheap but because that was all she could likely offer.
As for why Vlad was seemingly trying to convince her to use so other material for her needs, it was simply to have a conversation with her.
It wasn’t that Vlad doubted his ability to find a Moon Wolf, but quite the opposite. He already knew exactly where one could be found, and that place was not even dangerous for his current level.
As for why Vlad wanted to have a conversation with her before filling her request, it was to leave a strong impression.
Vlad ca to et Noemi so he could let her know that he was the player who had stopped a world event. So when he brings her the fangs just hours later, she would be both fascinated by his ability and indebted to him.
He also planned to tell her that he needed sothing from Duke Elarcrest’s personal collection, sothing he couldn’t obtain at a fair price, even with his rising fa.
He planned to keep that need visible in her mind, present but never demanding.
He would keep solving problems for her and helping her until she felt indebted, until she finally spoke, giving him exactly what he wanted.
As for why he couldn’t just bribe her or use force, he had considered both. But from what he had learned about Noemi, money wouldn’t move her as she was the kind of person who was not attached to money.
And force, well, that ca with its own consequences.
If he threatened her or tried to use other ans to get the information, he would have to cover his tracks. The forr ant silencing her for good, while the latter would require the use of a mory loss potion.
But Noemi worked seven days a week and only returned ho for a few hours each day. A mory-erasure potion took two to five days to fully recover from, and the side effects were obvious.
If she was missing for a day, the guards would co to check and search for her, let alone five to seven days.
So, there was only one real path left. Vlad had to win her trust, and fortunately for him, she seed in desperate need of help.
Desperate enough that just solving this single request might be enough to earn her confidence, and even if it was not, then Vlad would simply create a few more problems for her that he could solve.
Then, it would only be a matter of ti before she gave him the information he needed to repay his continued help.
Vlad was willing to take his ti with her because if she did not have the information he needed, the only other safe option would be to acquire a legendary grade mask to change his identity, infiltrate the palace, and search for clues there.
"V... thank you for coming and offering to help," Noemi said, her voice softer now, her expression touched with sothing sad. Her bright smile faded slightly, and her eyes dimd.
"But I am sorry. I need the Moon Wolf fangs." She looked down, then back up again. "I need them to create a cold-siphoning trinket for soone very special."
She paused, breathing shallowly, trying to keep her emotions from spilling out.
"It’s not going to be anything powerful... may be completely useless, but maybe... it will help."
"So I want... no, I need the Moon Wolf fangs," she said, wiping away the tear that quietly filled her eye.
’Must be a loved one,’ Vlad thought, but he was slightly taken aback because when he had gathered information about her, no one had ntioned anything about this to him.
But it wasn’t anything alarming.
"Miss Noemi," Vlad said, offering a calm, confident smile, "then you are in luck. Because you see, I have a bit of a knack for doing impossible things, and compared to my previous accomplishnts, finding a Moon Wolf is a walk in the park."
"Haha," she giggled, the sound small and slightly strained but genuine. "Oh yes? Then, great, Sir V. Please, tell about your accomplishnts so my heart can rest easy, and I can start my celebration early."
Vlad smiled faintly. "I am V322... I am the player who recently stopped the world event, The Rise of the Demonkin."
She froze, and her eyes widened. "...Only if..." she whispered, then hesitated. Her lips parted again. "You’re lying, right?" she asked, her voice trembling slightly.
"I don’t have any real proof that I can show you," Vlad said, raising a hand calmly. "But have you ever seen a first-rank adventurer at D-rank... who also has a King-grade spirit?"
Noemi stared for a mont, then slowly, she nodded. A rush of emotion flickered through her eyes, sothing between disbelief, hope, and awe.
"Thanks... thanks, Sir V," She said, bowing twice, her voice shaking. "Thank you for accepting my request."
"I will pray for your success," she said, her voice soft but sincere. She tried her hardest to keep her breathing calm as she smiled.
"Let’s hope I can get lucky and find the Moon wolf quickly," Vlad said with a small smile, his voice calm as ever.
With that, he gave Noemi a polite nod. Vel waved cheerfully from his shoulder, and without waiting for further words, Vlad turned and walked away, his coat trailing behind him as he stepped down the stone stairs and onto the quiet path.
Vlad’s next destination lay to the north of the city, past the dense urban walls and far beyond the inner districts, toward the towering, jagged ridgelines of Titan’s Crown.
There, nestled in the frost-covered heights of those ancient peaks, was a place that few adventurers and many players visited. A field-type dungeon, the Frostveil Expanse, with fixed Heroic difficulty.
Hidden behind a dense, supernatural wall of mist that never dispersed, the Frostveil Expanse was a sprawling, frozen landscape buried in near-eternal winter.
It was one of the lesser-traveled dungeons, not because of its danger but because of its unpredictability. The terrain shifted subtly from day to day, and the beasts within followed no known schedule or pattern.
But with danger ca opportunity, for those who could et the rare conditions would have the chance to hunt the Moon Wolf or be hunted by the heroic-grade
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