Draconic Awakening

Veron had led the group to a particular section of the ship, an upstairs compartment where there were no signs of merchants or just anyone moving, but mainly people clad in armour. Which meant they were either guards or hunters like them.

And then they approached a large man with a scruffy beard, his stature almost spat on the identity of the realms, as this lad was fat.

One thing Ragnar was immediately thrown off about: "How in hell did he get so fat?" He almost yelled that out loud but managed to keep it to himself so as not to anger the man. But wasn't it the same realm the two of them had been sent to? That was the main question.

The man behind the counter seemed to go by the name Jonathan, and just as he was fat, his job explained why—all he did was sit, register new hunters, collect cores from hunts, and sometimes issue missions out to hunters.

Veron talked a bit with the man. Seemingly they were on good terms, and they were all registered by the man in no time.

"Hope you guys get some decent armour, and that beast of yours Veron, make sure he gets some meat under his arms. He can almost be confused for a beast," Jonathan joked, pointing at Ragnar in particular.

This made Veron laugh, not just him but the princess too, and Ragnar frowned in reply. "When a large monster comes in here one day to kill, and you can't manage to get off your seat, then we'll see who would be laughing."

Ragnar's comeback seemed to have reached the ears of not just the small group but other hunters around, who broke into laughter at it, and the large man Jonathan reddened in embarrassment.

With that disgrace to Jonathan, he did not speak much afterwards, handing them makeshift identity cards crafted from wood. They all looked the same but probably were just to identify that they were hunters.

Afterwards, Jonathan got up from his seat and said, "I'll take you to a slave that will take you to your rooms—"

"Excuse me," Ragnar cut in, earning a very possessive, angered stare from Jonathan, but he refused to give in, turning to Veron. "I would like to go off with Veron, so I'll come back for my room later."

With that, Ragnar grabbed Veron by the wrist and pulled him to follow, not hearing what he had to say.

The princess watched as they left, her eyes fixed on Ragnar, and this did not go unnoticed by Cleaver nor Jonathan.

She was a beautiful woman, probably the prettiest girl in all of the shipyard or even the entire realm, and this brought her attention from all the men around, who would usually stare and study her movements.

Jonathan was particularly jealous. "Why the hell is she paying so much attention to a simple rat like that?" His thoughts were the same as every other person who saw Arya staring at the young lord.

---

Ragnar and Veron reached the marketplace once more, and finally when they were there he spoke. "Slaves?"

Veron lingered for a moment before replying, "Those that are too weak or scared to hunt become slaves. It's not exactly a utopia here."

Ragnar shook his head. "No matter where in both worlds, the stench of humans is always filled with contempt, putrescence, and degeneracy."

Veron gave no reply; it was not like he had one to give in the first place. He felt this was Ragnar's moment, so he did not bother him.

"I need you to help me buy food, storage rings, a detailed map of all of Wendigo Crust, and more importantly tell me what you know about this realm." Ragnar was clear with his demands and seemed to have already given it much thought.

Veron let the moment loom for a while, then he replied, "The realm so far is filled with several kingdoms, six to be exact, and each is held by a gatekeeper. But the history behind it is unknown to me. Many said the shipyard was a former sea that held the world's greatest ships in it. The Crust was once a city, and the other two places we have found so far are the same. That's all I know, all rumors."

Ragnar took all of it to mind. It was puzzling and also confirmed some of his thoughts towards Wendigo Crust. He could very much tell the Crust was a city that had long been destroyed by the seething cold and monsters, but still there were a few pieces of the puzzle missing.

While he thought through this, he and Veron made their way into the marketplace once more to purchase all he had in mind. To his surprise, the currency used here wasn't gold, silver, or something made up... it was realm beast cores.

The old trade system. And with a few cores, everything was bought at a good price, especially after the merchants learnt they were hunters and not regular customers.

The shipyard is a city built on cores. People hunt to get cores, sell them to get food. The lords get more cores, take higher grade cores from hunters and give them lower grade cores to pay them back or for anything else. Then they buy again, then hunt... It's an endless cycle, society once more, and the only ones benefitting are the lords and the king. It was his first day here and he was already seeing through the ploy of the society here.

With every society, the people at the bottom were always made to suffer endlessly for those above to live like kings. This was just life as everyone should know it.

Ragnar let out a sigh and turned his gaze to Veron, then smiled. "I will be leaving this ship today. Don't ask me where or how or any stupid questions, but I want you to find a team to hunt with when I return or call for you."

The ideal number for a hunt in the shipyard was five. He and Veron were just two, and he had no idea how things worked in the shipyard or who to pick, so he left him with that job.

But Veron was confused. He had no idea what the young lord was talking about and opted to ask immediately. "Where are you going? Why are you even leaving—you just came here? And... I don't understand you... I'm meant to be your protector. Go anywhere you—"

Ragnar raised his hand and patted Veron on the head with a genuine smile this time. "You really are loyal." He grinned. "But the less you know the better. Just do as I ask, and when you see my shadow you will understand everything."

"I can't let the comfort of this place get to me just yet." With that, Ragnar took the crossbag of all they had gotten from the marketplace from Veron's grasp and began to move towards the exit back to the cursed ice landscape.

He knew perfectly well what he was doing and better didn't want to confront the king of the shipyard after taking his precious core just yet. He knew what human greed was capable of, especially when going up against supreme lords in a very desperate place.

But more importantly... it was time to get stronger, significantly.