"Here we are! Welcome to DryRock!"

Issac turns to the open area of desolate sandy flat land in front of the Red Mountain range. Immediately after he speaks these words, I feel the space around me begin to tingle and buzz.

The air before my eyes waves and shifts, giving off a rainbow hue. Almost like the rippling sensation of a heat wave, but there's definitely some kind of mana-powered illusion at play here.

I activate my All-Seeing Eye and everything becomes clear...

Literally.

A dome of transparent magic covers an entire city in the middle of the desert. It's nearly 1 kilometer wide, stretching all the way to the base of the mountains and completely hiding over 100 buildings in plain sight.

Smaller huts similar to the ones in the last village we just left line the streets, but there are many taller buildings made from the same color stone as the mountains in the background.

There are 3, 4, and even 5-story structures with modern windows and metal frames to them. There are flat stone streets that divide merchants from residential areas.

People line the roads, buying and selling goods, while the occasional city guard walks by to keep order. This looks like a much more civilized city than I expected to see.

Without my perception skill, this would have been invisible to the naked eye. I shut it off, then look at my teammates.

They're all still staring in awe at the twisting rainbow light in front of us.

It looks like a portal is opening, but I know that's not the case.

The smaller man that Issac talked to before we entered walks in front of us, toward the light as it begins to expand.

He taps the source of the illusion with a silver object and a small gap in the transparent seal opens.

The hole gets larger and larger until it stops to make a 5-meter wide gate in the illusion magic to show us the city with our unaided eyes.

As we walk through on our camels, the gate monitor speaks up, as the wobbling entrance of rainbow-tinted magic slowly fades shut.

"Enjoy your stay at DryRock, hope your business dealings go well."

The concealment magic completely closes, but we can still see the man standing outside behind it.

He stares forward with a blank expression for a moment, then smiles to himself and turns away walking back to his small tent like nothing happened.

I look at him curiously for a moment, then Issac turns to me.

"He can't see us now."

I raise an eyebrow, but Issac continues before I get a word in.

"If you were wondering, he can't see us anymore... This barrier is a one-way illusion. It's pretty heavily guarded, I've just known that guard since I was a young kind. He's one of the only exceptions to security."

I nod slowly as I hear the camel's feet below me transfer from the soft sand onto a hard road beneath us.

I reply while keeping my face hidden under the red clock, looking around the town.

"That... makes sense. I got it.... "

I activate my All-Seeing Eye again, but the only reading I pick up are the various collections of mana crystals in shops. The massive mana-imbued barrier around the city is the only high-density magic I can sense.

I mutter under my breath, squinting at the fire user.

"There's no breaks anywhere near here..."

I quickly lock eyes with Abby, but she gives me a shrug while Arie also extends a confused but relaxed expression.

The green-haired mage speaks up.

"Oh, we're definitely in there right place. He didn't lead us astray. There should be breaks here..."

I scratch my chin as I keep following Issac through the emptier streets of the outer area of the town.

"Then what happened to them...?"

Eventually, we hit a much busier street. The 5 of us begin leading our ride through one of the open market squares.

There are all kinds of items being bought and sold from level E-Class to high D and even low C-Class rated items. They're all mostly protection items and crafting materials. Combat items aren't too common out on these streets, but I still spot a few dozen shields and swords.

Lush greens and ripe fruit along with glimmering potions and mana crystals fill my vision for over 200 meters as we walk through town.

Kids playing by their parent's merchant carts look up at us, pausing their games to admire the camels that strut through town.

No one has said a word yet, and most people ignore us just like regulars in the streets. There are other groups coming from other directions on camelback as well, so we're not too far out of place here.

The 4 of us keep our heads down and faces covered anyways. Issac leads without covering up.

Finally, we come across one of the tallest buildings in the city.

Issac waves us down to stop about 1 block away from a 5-story tower. It's made of red bricks and blue glass windows.

It looks newly built, and of great quality. The base is nearly 20 meters wide. It stands out from all the buildings surrounding it.

"Alright, here's the quest office. Wait for me outside, I'll accept our two break quests and be right out in a minute."

I grit my teeth and instantly combat his statement.

"Hey! We're still the ones in charge here. I'd like to see what all of this is about..."

He rolls his eyes and hops off his ride, tying it to a rock structure on the side of the road. I hop down too, giving Maria the reins, and walking over to the fire wielder.

He stares me in the eyes and leans in, whispering in a low tone.

"You know... this building is one of the Dark Continent's unofficial government hubs. It's like the Association, but for the wall's insiders. Basically, you're walking into enemy territory. It'd be unwise to show your face in here. Especially as one of these so-called, Elites...That's what you are... right?"

I swallow hard, still staring at him with a stern expression, then begin to lighten up. I close my eyes for about a second, then open them to stare at Issac with a calmer tone.

"That... makes sense."

I pause, then turn to my team.

"Stay back for a few minutes, out of sight. Issac and I will return shortly."

They all agree without a shred of doubt but Issac looks at me like I'm crazy. Struggling not to raise his voice he speaks again through a clenched jaw as I start walking forward towards the quest office.

"Did you not hear a word I just said?!?"

I wave for the fire user to follow, keeping my head down and activating conceal.

I turn my status into what looks like a mid-level D-Class Swordsman at level 220. Taking off all of my stat-boosting items as well, only to leave the red cloak of protection giving me a 100+ defense boost.

I use my [Special Grade] Concealment attribute to disguise my face. I shift it to a generic tan-skinned, brown eyes, middle-aged, black-haired man.

I look like I could be any villager picked off the street.

The only thing I won't change is my voice, but I don't plan on doing much talking.

I respond to Issac with my head still down.

"Yeah, yeah. I heard you the first time. You make an excellent point. It'll be fine, I have a plan."

The fire user catches up to me in silence, then we turn to face the front side of the tall building.

He begins to say something to me but is cut off by one of the workers standing by the front door.

He's a tall, very skinny, dark-skinned man in a professional-looking black suit. I see a bright smile from him as he speaks up, looking right passed me.

"Welcome back, Issac. We haven't seen you here in DryRock in quite a while. Are you looking to pick up some new quests?"

The grunt straightens his posture and takes a step back from me to greet this worker.

"Oh- Good to see you too. Long time no see! I was just passing through, I thought it'd be a good idea to check out the guest guild. Old habits die hard.

He laughs, shaking the worker's hand and continuing, now in a much more confident tone.

"You know this is where I got my start, It's always nice to come back and see how much the place has grown. Are there any good new quests up for grabs? I'm looking for some tough ones before I leave in the morning."

The tall man grins and nods slowly.

"Of course, we always have new quests available."

He turns to me.

"And who might you be."

He stretched out his right hand, looking me in the eye.

I stare tight back, using Inspect and Appraisal. I only glance at his level and skills before shaking his hand with a firm hold.

________________________

[Lv. 297]

Active Skills:

Inspect [Special Grade]

Body Hardening [Special Grade]

________________________

I clench my jaw and squeeze his hand a bit harder than I mean to when I see he has a [Special Grade] Inspect skill.

The guard winces, and I reply as we both step back from each other.

"I- sorry about that- I can't control my own excitement sometimes. Just- looking forward to some quests, that's all."

He lets out a nervous laugh, then stands up straight with a smile, flustered at my strength.

"No, no problem at all. Quite a firm handshake for a D-Class. You must have an extremely high natural strength aptitude. I'm impressed."

He turns back to Issac, giving him a firm nod, then opening the heavy brown wooden front door.

"Well, I see why you're heading off for some quests. I can't keep a man from his business for too long, please don't let me keep you waiting."

Issac smirks, walking past the guard.

"Yep, appreciate it. Good to see ya."

I follow quietly, speaking to the man in a suit in a low voice before ether door shits behind me.

"Nice to meet you."

He waves us through, not saying another word.

I gulp.

That was awkward...

*Click*

The door shuts and I step inside onto a smooth white floor. Immediately, the sound of abundant chatter fills my ears. There are hunters, businessmen, workers, and casual villagers going about their daily business.

I lift my gaze, shifting my eyes left and right.

There are quests on the walls, just like the mercenary guild. The ones here just seem to be a bit more ordered and much easier to read.

There are basic mana crystal quests, various magic crafting items, escort missions, hunting gear, and even food and water requests.

All of the prices are a bit more stable, not varying as much as the smaller town's erratic pricing.

I continue to scan the room, then my eyes land on a troubling sight.

There's one bulletin board near the entrance that makes my stomach drop. It's a wall with Large newspapers showing the faces of familiar-looking Association hunters.

Some look very old like they've been on the wall for years, but sticking out like a sore thumb, I see 4 brand-new papers.

It's [The Newest Vice Region Association Elite Squad] in bold letters with all four of our mug shots posted and bounties labeled underneath them.

It looks like our dealings in DryRock are not going to be as easy as I thought they'd be.