More Gamer Notifications came through after the rewards finished calculating. I was left pleasantly surprised. Everyone successfully benefited from it!
[Ding! You have Leveled Up! 60 -> 61!]
[Ding! You have Leveled Up! 61 -> 62!]
[Ding! You have Leveled Up! 62 -> 63!]
[Ding! You have Leveled Up! 63 -> 64!]
[Ding! You have Leveled Up! 64 -> 65!]
[Ding! The top three contributors will receive boosted rewards while everyone present in Gamer Naoto's Party will receive an increase in a desired Parameter.]
[Ding! Gamer Naoto's Status has been increased by 10%!]
[Ding! Aurelia's Status has been increased by 10%!]
[Ding! Phillip's Status has been increased by 10%!]
[Ding! Emma has received a large boost in ATS.]
[Ding! Zin has received a large boost in STR.]
[Ding! Colonel Richard has received a moderate boost in SPD.]
[Ding! Scherazard has received a moderate boost SPD.]
[Ding! Mueller has received a minor boost in STR and DEF.]
[Ding! Kevin has received a minor boost in STR and DEX.]
[Ding! Ries has received a minor boost in DEF and ADF.]
[Ding! Cassius has received a minor boost in STR.]
[Ding! Olivier has received a minor boost in ATS and DEX.]
[Ding! The rewards have finished being handed out. Due to the completion of the Instance Dungeon, Gamer Naoto's Party will soon be dissolved. All Party Members will return to the site of origin, the Bracer Guild.]
[Ding! The flow of time will soon resume. Any guests related to Gamer Naoto that watched the Instance Dungeon from afar will not have their position adjusted.]
Wooosh! Wooosh! Wooosh!
All of us felt several boosts in our Status during these Gamer Notifications. This time around, no one received any extra Craft as an award. Aurelia was initially disappointed, since I got to see her new Craft displayed in all her glory. She danced around on the battlefield like she was attending a waltz. That was partly why Aurelia managed to score the same as me, if I had to take a guess. In my defense, Verbrannteis was just that strong of a weapon. I swept up entire monsters like slicing through butter. Let alone the previous hundred-thousand damage mark I hit back on Nemeth Island, I already encroached the five hundred thousand and even a million damage.
I know in Reverie if you play on the hardest difficulty, bosses end up having millions of health throughout the game. The False Reverie had a whopping ten million health, but that was likely due to our inflated Party. If we didn't have twelve people, it would have fallen instantly, haha! It definitely made for a good boss fight, to say the least.
"It looks like I have another favor to pay for.", Aurelia said, basking in her newfound strength. Her entire Status increased thanks to being placed in the top three of our Party. Phillip, likewise, also didn't expect to feel a sensation he hadn't felt in years. It was as if he had undergone a full experience course of his own.
"Thank you for giving me this opportunity, Young Master.", Phillip said, and thanked me.
"It is no problem. I'm equally as surprised that one showed up here. And since I was given the chance to do so, I invited you all to participate in it with me. At the very least, each one of you should have grown stronger from these results.", I said, explaining the situation.
"Ya can say that again. We were part of the lower ranks, but even I felt a little boost in my abilities. Ya sure have a weird ability, Yer Highness. And don't forget what we discussed prior.", Kevin said, looking at me.
"I won't. That spot is saved for you.", I said. He was referring to the Vermillion Trials. Even I don't know where that will lead. It will definitely be a full-blown proving ground. Rean had the entire Old Schoolhouse to explore during the first game of Cold Steel, only to encounter Valimar at the end of it. Then he had that weird phase space, the Reverie Corridor. That place was meant for all past trial-goers. I just didn't know if it was only for those who piloted Valimar, or other Divine Knights.
"Haha! Thanks a million.", Kevin said, and smiled back at me.
"Then this is where we will part ways. If time is going to resume, the weird changes we see will soon dissipate. Job well done.", Colonel Richard said, still giving his authoritative tone.
"That sure was a good workout. I feel I can tackle that promotion even better now.", Zin said, and pumped one of his arms showing just how much energy he still had.
"Is that right? Then I will wish you well in your upcoming Bracer duties. We are nearing the height of Her Majesty's celebration, so I will have to return to my duties posthaste. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to fight alongside my teacher, Your Highness.", Colonel Richard said, and cracked open a rare smile.
I'm not sure what to feel here...
I'm pretty sure Colonel Richard and I will become enemies in these next five years. That's such a big grain of salt. While I could come knocking at The Faceless's doorstep, that would cause all of Sky to blow up into pieces, and I don't want such a story to get ruined. Yes, I know I'm here now in Zemuria, but there are events that I want to watch from the sidelines. Sky is one of them.
"It is no problem. I'm sure Elnan and the others are waiting for us back at the Guild. After giving our respective reports, we can part ways. The Instance Dungeon should be closing up any moment now.", I said to everyone, and they nodded their heads at me.
Sure enough, our bodies began to glow a bright blue glow, and the colors began to return to normal against our entire surroundings. Woooosh!
[Ding! Gamer Naoto's Party will now be disbanded. Time has now resumed.]
After that final Gamer Notification, we all found ourselves getting warped from our current positions. Crack!
As if someone had cracked a large, standing mirror, reality that we once knew returned to ourselves. Our visions went blank, but we soon quickly regained our composure.
All of a sudden, we were now found inside the first floor of the Bracer Guild. It didn't take long for us to hear the sounds of several feet hurrying along the staircase from up above.
"You guys did it!", A very familiar voice said, only to enter a dash my way, and gave me a big hug. Who else could it be but Princess Alfin.
"Haha. I wasn't worried. We have several strong people with us, and the Divine Blade watched over everything. It was a piece of cake.", I said, and ruffled Princess Alfin's hair, causing her to wince one of her eyes.
"Yes. That was a job well done, everyone. I see eyes full of confidence, so I take it you all managed to get something out of this excursion. The city was quite flashy for a while. I've taken note of several monsters I haven't seen before, so we might be able to build a more fleshed out compendium with this new information. On behalf of that, I thank you, Your Highness.", Elnan said, and thanked me. So even he gained something from this Instance Dungeon, eh?
Hearing that, I saw the ever-so-familiar violet hair next to the group. Julia was next to her.
"Heh. You sure stayed busy, eh, Kloe? I take it you used Sieg to gather around various kinds of information while we were kept busy.", I said, wondering if that was the case.
"That was the gist of it. We learned quite a bit from this Instance Dungeon. Thankfully, I can tell the atmosphere around us has returned to normal. I can hear a lot of voices outside.", Kloe said, and smiled. She wasn't wrong. We heard the clamor of travelers passing by to enjoy the rest of Grandmother's birthday celebration.
"Then what are we waiting for? We have the rest of the day to go out and have some fun. That is, if a certain wandering musician doesn't object~", Princess Alfin said, happily teasing her older brother, who was still in his disguise. Oh she definitely knew, haha!
"Shall I escort Your Highnesses back to Grancel Castle then? Or do you have other areas to visit first? I have to return to my duties like I said, but I do not mind being an escort. It's the least I can do for giving me such a reward.", Colonel Richard suggested.
"Hmm, I thank you for the offer, but we still have Scherazard to guide us around. The day hasn't ended yet, so I want her to continue her fulfillment to the Quest we posted.", I said, quickly shaking my head.
"Then I wish you all the best of luck in your next endeavors. Lieutenant Schwarz, I shall take my leave.", Colonel Richard said, and did a flutter of his cape.
"Ha!", Julia said, who remained beside Kloe during this whole thing.
"I too will make my timely departure at once. I wish we could chat around some more, but there is a lovely wine waiting to be called upon by my name at the nearby bar. Until then ladies and gens, tata. Let us be off, my sword-gifted friend!", Olivier said, and did a strut of his lute. His smile widened, and Mueller sighed.
But Mueller had to listen to him, so he could only tuck his sword behind his legs and follow behind him. Hahaha! See what I did there?
Shortly after Colonel Richard was the first to leave, Prince Olivert and Mueller soon followed. I'm sure they had to return to the Erebonian Embassy, but I have a feeling we'll see "Olivier" again before the day is over.
"This was the only piece of interest that was left on my plate. Now that time has resumed, the airships should be up and running again. If I go now, I'll make it to the next flight. Continue to grow strong, Naoto. One day, we'll see it through.", Aurelia said, and nonchalantly bid us farewell, only to wave her hand back at us.
"I too need to return to His Excellency's side, if you all will excuse me.", Phillip said, and did a deeper bow at everyone. Just like that, Aurelia and Phillip vanished from sight. Our group was becoming smaller and smaller.
"I think that's our cue to leave too. We still have some matters with the Bishop back at the Church to take care of before the day is over. Ya know how to give us a holler if ya need a helpin' hand again.", Kevin said.
"Likewise. Thank you for this opportunity, Your Highness. Let's be off, Kevin.", Ries said, and urged Kevin to leave the Bracer Guild. Nothing was keeping them any longer, so we bid them farewell. We started with twelve people for this Party, but half of them have departed back into Grancel City, going about their daily lives, while Aurelia was en route back to Erebonia. Like she said, we will have our duel to see if I can claim her hand in matrimony. But until then, I will continue to train~
That left the Bracers amongst our Party.
"Will you come back with us, Cassius? You decided to meet up with your children after so long, right? Do you want to continue hanging out with them while I'll take Kloe and Alfin to another part of the city?", I asked, wanting to know what Cassius wanted to do.
"Nah, you kids go have your fun. I will stick back and hand over my report of what happened to Elnan. I can use some assistance with that, Zin.", Cassius said, looking at the giant bear beside him.
"No problem. This is a lot to compile so the more hands the better.", Zin said, and nodded.
"We'll see you at dinner then, dad. I still want to see more places around the capital!", Estelle happily said.
"Mind if I tag along? I didn't think I'd catch you here in the capital today, Naoto.", Angelica said, wanting to see if she could join our group.
"More the merrier~", Princess Alfin happily replied before I could even give an answer. Oi!
But that was a welcome addition to our group. Angelica smiled and arrived beside us. Now, it was me, Princess Alfin, Emma, Estelle, Joshua, Scherazard, Angelica, and Kloe. Julia too, returned to her duties, and mentioned she would always be within a hair's reach after seeing what went down. I don't think anything else is going to happen here during this celebration.
All that's left is to have some fun, and go pick up my order that I have for Kloe. We bid Elnan and the rest of the Bracers farewell, and entered the streets. They still had to deal with a collapsed building, and I still feel guilty about that, but I told him I'd pay for it all, so hopefully it won't make Elnan's job too stressful, haha!
Using the rest of our time, we had a blast exploring Grancel City to our heart's content. We stopped by shops, several stalls, and happily conversed away with what we wanted to do. It was a great time to celebrate the upcoming year, cause S1198 was going to be a tumultuous one. Many organizations are going to come together to take down one of the most evil organizations still lurking here in Zemuria.
At the end of the day, I made my way to the Orbal Factory in South Block with a hand-crafted item now in hand. It wasn't for me. Kloe was spot on with her deduction earlier. It was a gift for me. After presenting it to her and showing the hidden compartments, she saw a couple photos tucked inside, which included the photo of the Osborne Villa. I felt I could entrust it to her, so she was happy to receive it. In return, I was given a big hug. Now, she'll have her own customized Combat Orbment she can start using.
We finished the day off by visiting one of the local pubs and had a big dinner party. We just so happened to encounter "Olivier" again who was already drunk out of his mind by the time we arrived. Scherazard wanted to join the fun as I'm pretty sure she's already drinking by now, but I warned her she was still on the job.
After stuffing our faces silly, Princess Alfin was reluctant, but she bid us farewell. Cassius finally came by to pick up Estelle and Joshua, while Angelica made her way toward the airport. It seems she too had a flight that was due, so she had a flight bound for Erebonia. It was nice to see everyone like this, and I had a blast. The Favorability Meters constantly shot up in response, but no one reached 100% yet. My newest blessing unexpectedly came from General Morgan, and granted me that overpowered Craft. But I quickly learned it was for my allies. Not for me.
Before long, it was just Kloe, Emma, Tamamo, Celine and me approaching the gates of Grancel Castle. The sun had already set and it was well into the night now.
"Did you have a fun time, Kloe?", I decided to ask.
"Of course. We shared a lot of laughs today with our friend. I only wish we could do this more often.", Kloe responded, and smiled at me.
"I know, right? You feel the same, Emma?", I asked, and looked at Emma this time. I could see her stomach was slightly bloated from all the good food she ate.
"It was fun, yes. But I think I need to lie down and let this food digest. I ate too much..."
"I warned you, Emma. You should know how much you can candle by now.", Celine retorted.
"But everything was so delicious. I didn't want to skip out on something!", Emma shot back, and complained.
"Haha, we've not anything else planned for the evening, so you can enjoy a good rest Emma.", I replied, letting out a laugh.
"Alright.", Emma responded with a nod. Yet she let out a little burp from her stomach, causing Emma to blush a bit.
Still, we soon arrived in front of the large marbled gate, only to spot the head maid Hilda waiting for us. We sent a notice beforehand, so she quickly guided us back inside.
Seeing us return safely and happy, Queen Alicia saw that our time was well spent. She too observed the Instance Dungeon from afar so she was able to enjoy a little show. She was in agreement with me paying the Bracer Guild for immediate repairs. I bet Hilda here was already filing away the paperwork.
The rest of the night soon crept upon us. Our two familiars quickly got ready for bed, but I decided to stay up for a little while longer so I could account today's activities down onto my laptop.
Unexpectedly, I heard a few taps from our sliding window...