After Tom and I got our new clothes, we headed to a tavern to find a place to eat and discuss our current situation.
We made sure to secure a room first. We got the food and locked the door, and set up a barrier before we spoke. What we had gone through wasn't something meant for open ears.
The faint murmur of the tavern below barely reached us. Inside the room, it was quiet.
"So... you both destroyed a planet because you couldn't defeat a regenerating dragon during a mission?" Tiavus asked, his voice measured, though the faint horror in his eyes betrayed him. "Why would you go that far? It seems... excessive. You could have banished it to another plane of existence."
"The thought crossed our minds," I replied calmly. "But as long as that demon remained tethered to this realm through the dragon, neither of them could be banished. We had two options, completely erase the vessel..."
I paused briefly.
"...or destroy the entire planet in a way it couldn't survive."
"That was mostly him, by the way," Tom added, jerking a thumb in my direction. "I'm not at planetary level yet. We only reached my current level a few weeks ago. He just has more mastery than I do right now."
"Skill issue... ahem," I muttered under my breath.
"How are you even alive?" Tiavus asked, the question slipping out before he could restrain it.
"We were extracted at the very last second," Tom replied. "He got knocked out, and his vessel was almost completely destroyed. But since I was in my vapor form, I managed to stay conscious through the blast."
He raised his hand slightly.
"I did lose some mass... but I condensed what I could into this."
Resting in his palm was a small, dark red pellet, dense, almost unnaturally so.
"A compressed blood orb. It holds most of what I managed to gather back there."
Tiavus stared at it, his expression tightening.
"...That might be one of the most disturbing things I've ever witnessed," he said quietly. "I suppose... even if your magic lacks versatility, its specialization certainly has its advantages."
"But what do you intend to do now?" Tiavus asked. "Are you simply going to announce to everyone that you plan to take over this planet?"
"...That was my first thought, actually," I admitted.
I brought both hands up to my face, covering it completely before dragging them down slowly, as if trying to pull the exhaustion out with them. "But right now... I just want some damn time off."
"Post-war trauma?" Tom asked, glancing at me.
"Yeah..." I exhaled.
"And the fact that I had to kill a version of myself just to create an explosion that large..." My voice faltered slightly. "God, I hate that part."
For a moment, I just stared ahead, unfocused.
"The thought of my life fading right in front of my eyes... knowing that it was still me... thinking the same thoughts... feeling the same fear..." I clenched my jaw. "I don't know, man... That was messed up."
"I mean... they did send us on an exploration mission, so..." Tom said, carefully choosing his words, his tone hinting at something more.
"We could take as long as we want... to explore," I continued, catching on immediately.
"That is certainly one way to put it," Tom replied, a grin spreading across his face. "Well, we could go on an actual adventure. I've always wanted to experience one in a medieval world."
There was a spark of excitement in his voice now, something lighter, almost boyish.
And honestly... he wasn't wrong.
While it was true that we weren't exactly supposed to rest during a mission, taking some time off wouldn't be that big of a problem...
Right?
"I could arrange a ship," Tiavus offered. "If you're interested, we could explore the different kingdoms, and perhaps even the oceans and as we go we could share our knowledge with each other about your technology... and our magic."
"Why not?" I replied, a faint smile forming. "Let's set out tomorrow."
However, just as I was about to move on from the topic, one word caught my attention.
"Ship."
"What do you mean by ship?" I asked, frowning slightly. "Are we on an island?"
"No," Tiavus replied, glancing at me with mild confusion. "It's simply more convenient than a caravan."
"How exactly is a ship supposed to travel on land?" Tom added, equally puzzled.
"Not on land..." Tiavus paused, his expression shifting as realization dawned on him. "Wait, don't you have flying ships? Vessels that travel through the air? You said you could travel through space."
"Oh... we call those planes," I replied. "And the ones that travel through space are called spaceships. But you're talking about an actual ship... flying through the air, right?"
"Precisely," Tiavus said with a small nod. "We inscribe them with runes, enchantments that allow them to defy gravity. It's far more efficient than traveling by caravan, especially with bandits roaming the roads."
He adjusted his monocle slightly. "Of course, one cannot entirely rule out encountering sky pirates... but such incidents are relatively rare in this region."
"Man, that must mean you're insanely rich to afford something like that," Tom said, letting out a low whistle. "What kind of job do you even have?"
"Well, individuals like us, those who rank highly within our respective organizations, are compensated simply for holding our positions," Tiavus replied calmly. "Even without actively taking on missions."
He adjusted his monocle, a faint hint of pride in his posture.
"I currently hold the rank of Fifth High Scholar of the Red-Scaled Dragonborn. So yes, you could say I have a rather stable income."
"Sounds like one way to cheat the system," Tom said, nudging me with his elbow.
"Hey, I earned my money," I shot back, meeting his gaze. "I didn't take any help from my uncle when I built those thirty-two companies from the ground up."
I held his stare for a moment longer than necessary.
Well... aside from the underground organizations I control... I was lucky enough to find Loken for that. I thought.