The Homeseeker: Elemental Adventurer LitRPG [Isekai] (Series Complete!)

After some rest they went to replenish their arms. Junill didn't even make mention of them losing their swords, a somberness in her granting new weapons, but a tenderness in how she made sure Rep was well-balanced with his blade.

Rep and Zalan journeyed outside the walls in the arid lands just outside Oriton. The normally flat terrain was riddled with indentations and scars in the earth from unknown creatures traveling upon them. Some mossy green breaks in the earth were a clear guide for the path the Swampstomp took to Oriton. Formerly safe paths were covered in evidence of danger having crossed them. The realm was no longer what it was before the Elementals began their migrations to flee Morloch.

Travel was a lot slower than usual, having to watch their step and keep their eyes especially wary of new monsters on the horizon. Everything Zalan knew about the realm had been pulled out from under him, making him feel as uneasy as he did when he was first new to the world.

"How much further to Wollstone?" Zalan asked.

"I do not think it is wise to go directly to Wollstone. I do not want to remain outside overnight and keep watch," Rep answered.

"Haven't we done that every time before?"

"That was before we were surrounded by monsters we do not know how to cope with."

Zalan nodded, quickly agreeing to Rep's point.

"Okay, then what's next? We going to a nearby city on the way?"

"Indeed. The city of Moonwell. Unless we are prevented by some monsters, we should arrive just before the sun sets," Rep explained.

"I sure wish we had a few Belt of Bolts right now," Zalan admitted.

Rep nodded, smiling at the thought of warping through the realm at immeasurable speed.

For the next few minutes, Rep and Zalan traveled in silence, taking in the world around them. Zalan stumbled on an indentation left in the earth by something the size of a Swampstomp and began to wonder how many similar creatures were around. If Rep and Zalan met something that large on their own, they would have no way of defeating it. Even trying to run felt like it would be futile if they were spotted. Seemingly unbeatable creatures now roamed the land.

About an hour into their journey, Zalan spotted something on the horizon that looked like a long line of people. Stopping to look, Rep slowed his step and followed his gaze. Taking a few moments to assess the crowd, Rep frowned slightly, turning his head away a few inches in shame.

"Refugees," Rep said sadly.

"What do you mean?"

"Their walls must have been shattered by monsters. Their homes, destroyed. Without safety in their homeland, there is no Healing Rest. You can not live in the realm without a place to heal. They have been forced to flee elsewhere."

Zalan looked back out to the stretch of people. Bags were slung over shoulders, wagons dragged behind them. Rep's conclusion should have been more obvious to him, but he didn't consider the realm to be a place with refugees. He had never considered why guards were stationed at every city they had ever been to. Then he remembered Nightfall had no walls and hoped they were faring well these days.

In silence, Rep and Zalan scanned the horizon of ragged people, walking together in search of a new place to live. Zalan had a pit in his heart, sympathy for those being pushed from their homes. He had been pulled into this realm from his own home, and knew what it felt like to be scared and powerless.

"We should continue," Rep said.

"Is there anything we can do for them?" Zalan asked.

"Stop the calamities that caused them to lose their homes," Rep answered.

Zalan sighed in frustration and nodded, continuing their way down the destroyed path. It only took a few steps for Zalan to yelp and jump back several feet. Rep exploded in imbued flame, and drew his sword.

"What is it? Where?" Rep asked, bracing himself.

"R… Roaches!" Zalan said, trembling.

Rep's flames went out in a puff of pathetic smoke.

"Roaches?" Rep repeated.

"I hate Roaches."

Rep turned to look at the nest of creatures. Zalan hated them with every fiber of his being, disgusting creatures that looked like cockroaches the size of dogs. They jittered to and fro, twitching tiny mandibles and antennae in unsettling fashion. Zalan took a few steps back, going pale in disgust.

"Zalan, they are the weakest creatures in the realm. You can kill them," Rep said in a mix of amusement and annoyance.

"Oh yeah, right," Zalan said, raising his arms.

He emitted a blinding ray of supercharged Elemental Light, putting all his revulsion into his attack. Rep shielded his eyes as the Roaches disintegrated into oblivion. Zalan lowered his hands and assessed the area, looking at the smoldering ashes that used to be an entire group of Roaches.

"I forget how much of a difference all these Levels make. I didn't even gain any Experience from killing all of them," Zalan said.

"I forget how pathetic you look whenever in the presence of Roaches," Rep said.

Zalan smirked and scoffed simultaneously.

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"Did I look as scared as you did when you were talking with the girl you wanted to propose to?" Zalan jabbed.

"Remind me, which of the two of us are married?" Rep said, eyebrows raised.

Zalan laughed and shrugged, accepting verbal defeat. Rep smiled and continued to lead the way. Keeping his eyes peeled for any Roaches that ended up surviving, Zalan tailed behind him.

A few hours later, a deep grumble in the distance caught Rep and Zalan's attention. They turned to the source and stopped in their tracks, Zalan's heart going cold.

An ice behemoth the size of a skyscraper was trailing on the horizon, a blizzard swirling around it like an icy tornado. The creature looked like it was born from a glacier and left a trail of frost wherever it stepped. Luckily for Zalan, the monster looked like it was headed somewhere very far away from their destination and they wouldn't have to cross its path for any reason. The image was astounding to Zalan. He watched as it crushed a small forest of trees under it, covering any surviving plants in feet of thick snow and ice. Zalan felt like he was watching a living natural disaster.

"What's it called?" Zalan asked quietly, a hint of awe in his voice. He felt so small in the face of the mountainous creature.

"Snowscourge," Rep answered, a similar veneration in the word. "Another Beast of Slumber."

They watched it nervously, wondering if it was going to end up headed anywhere near Oriton. It looked like something that would give even Ma a hard time in battle. Not that Zalan had ever seen her at her limits. The Snowscourge took another ponderous step, covering hundreds of feet in a single movement.

"We should keep moving," Rep said.

The sun had crossed its zenith and began its slow fall toward the horizon. Rep seemed somewhat confident in their path, but Zalan started to feel anxious. He had no sense of direction of the area and feared being left out overnight with creatures like Swampstomps and Snowscourges prowling around. With a sinking feeling in his heart, he realized that being inside of a city would all be security theater. There was no real safety in the wake of Beasts of Slumber, they could destroy the walls surrounding a city just by walking into them. It made Zalan even more determined to destroy Morloch for having made the realm so dangerous. Things had never felt so dire when traveling before.

Far ahead, there were two flocks of creatures battling in the sky. Rep and Zalan continued forward nervously, knowing that two groups of monsters fighting would probably be a dangerous situation to insert themselves into. Squinting his eyes, Zalan realized that he recognized the monsters from previous adventures.

"That's a bunch of Bloodbeaks. And the others are the monsters that we saw in the Castle Docrun. The ones that cut up your arm," Zalan pointed out.

"Razortongues," Rep identified.

"Yeah. I thought Bloodbeaks normally stay near coasts? And Razortongues normally in dark places?"

"Usually."

"This is ridiculous," Zalan said, watching as felled creatures spiraled down from the sky.

"Every system in the world affects the other systems. Humans are normally the most harmful to a system, but Elemental migration at this scale has never been seen before," Rep said.

"And it was still caused by a human," Zalan replied.

"Indeed."

As they passed under the two warring factions of monsters, Zalan kept his neck craned upward to keep a close eye on any attackers. The battle in the sky was brutal. Teeth tore into wings and legs, and tongues lashed out and lacerated entire bodies. Zalan thought that the Bloodbeaks would have been the clear winners by strength, but they were far outnumbered by the swarm of Razortongues.

"Heads up," Zalan said as a few Razortongues split off to charge Rep and Zalan in a frenzy.

"I will take care of them," Rep said, confidently.

He imbued his sword and threw it spinning upward like a boomerang. Using his redirection, he was able to adjust its flight. The burning blade cleaved through each of the monsters with expert aim, killing each one before they could get anywhere near the duo. Pulling back on the blade with his Elemental Power, Rep brought it straight back to his hand.

"I really need to learn how to redirect my power better. How did you get so good at a trick like that?" Zalan said, impressed by Rep.

"After gaining more Wisdom after the Swampstomp. As for you, we can take some time to practice overnight in the city," Rep said.

Zalan nodded, and they kept moving. He kept turning his neck to check that nothing was trying to sneak up on them from above and was pleasantly surprised to find they were too focused in aerial combat to send any more creatures their way.

When Rep and Zalan reached a temperate forest, the trees' shadows stretched long and ominous before them. Normally, Zalan wouldn't have been so worried about the dark, but he could feel the need to be behind walls he could heal in. Rep seemed to silently agree with his urgency, doubling his walking speed as they pushed through foliage. A slight paranoia began to take hold on Zalan as the darkness grew closer. He felt somewhat like the Depths of Despair would drop down around him and keep him stuck in an unending maze of shadows. He kept himself imbued to light the way ahead, despite it still being bright enough to see. If Rep cared, he didn't mention it to Zalan.

"Rep? The sun?" Zalan asked as the bottom of the sun touched the horizon.

"I know."

"How far are we from Moonwell?"

"I do not know."

Their walk became more brisk, one step behind a total run. Zalan's heart quickened and he blasted Elemental Light at the slightest thing that might try to sneak up on him. He had no idea what kinds of monsters migrated to the forest as a result of the Elementals. The tall, overlapping shadows of plants surrounding him made him feel like everything shifting around him was hostile.

The sun was halfway down, the semicircle of remaining rays moving too fast for Zalan's sanity.

"Rep?"

"I do not know how far we are."

"No, I was just wondering… I mean I just thought about… What are we gonna do if the Moonwell's already been destroyed while we were on our way there?" Zalan asked.

Rep hesitated before his next step, then shook his head.

"We can not think like that. There is no benefit to consider scenarios that we have no solutions to," Rep said.

"Unless we think of a solution on the way."

Zalan felt his leg pulled out from under him and he fell fast, barely catching himself before hitting the ground. Something had snatched him from behind and his blood went cold. Images of the Swampstomp and its oppressive mind flooded his head and he yelled in panic. Rep spun around and blasted Zalan in flames. Zalan cringed, thinking he would be burned but found that Rep was imbuing him with his own Elemental Flame, scaring off the vice wrapped around his leg.

Zalan felt the flames dissipate and crawled forward a few feet before looking behind him. A small, long, noodle-like creature was smoldering, dead at the touch of fire. Zalan breathed heavily.

"What was that?" Zalan asked.

"I believe it was a snake you must have stepped on," Rep informed him.

"Like a monster snake?"

"No. That was just a regular snake."

Zalan looked back at the smoking remains. The sun had been dunked under the horizon and its rays were dimming away. Zalan pushed himself back to his feet and brushed himself off.

"We really need to get behind some walls soon," Zalan said. "All this outside stuff is driving me crazy."

"Fortunately, we will be free soon," Rep said, pointing just beyond the forest.

The walls of the city of Moonwell stood a few hundred feet in the distance. Silhouettes of guards were marching up and down the perimeter, weapons at the ready. Zalan sighed with immense gratitude, feeling a wave of stress flow out of him.

"Let's go get some sleep," Zalan said.