Ethereal Ascendance: A Journey of Transformation(1-3VOL)

Missing

"Here is your reward for completing this quest. Please count it carefully."

The staff at the Adventurer's Guild counted out the exact amount of silvers and placed them in my hands.

"Oh thank you!"

I quickly grabbed the coins and shoved them into my pocket. It's common sense to not flash your money around.

But that's not the only reason I'm being so careful. In the past half month since the war broke out, security in the city has become much more lax. The number of adventurers has also greatly decreased.

This has led to several chain reactions.

First, many quests are going unfulfilled, forcing the guild to lower the difficulty and deposit requirements. This allows me to take on some high-paying quests I normally couldn't get. Well, that part is good at least.

Second is the public security issue. All kinds of violent crime in the city have suddenly spiked, with frequent reports of robberies and thefts.

And most troublesome, it's not just the commoners being targeted, but many adventurers as well! This is a huge problem, meaning the criminals are very powerful, likely fellow adventurers themselves. That's why I'm being so careful.

Even as an angel, I'm still just a small fry at level 3. I can't afford to tangle with the big shots!

Speaking of which, I wish Nicola was here with me. With her strength, I wouldn't need to worry so much.

But lately, she's been immersed in the Magic Card arcade almost every day. She still goes out on the occasional quest to change things up, but I rarely see her. The only thing I can count on is her coming home on time for dinner.

"Did you hear? There seems to be some female pervert causing trouble lately!"

As I exited the payment office, I happened to brush past two female adventurers who looked to be turning in quests as well. Both were good looking, and one was whispering something to the other.

"I heard she's quite pretty, just going around hitting on girls everywhere..."

Hmm?

Why does that sound so familiar? I immediately thought of Nicola.

Could it be her? Did her old habits flare up again? Wasn't she just buying two angel assistants the other day? How could she lose control of her urges so quickly?

But that doesn't make sense either. She's transformed now, would she still have those kinds of thoughts? I certainly haven't noticed anything myself.

Oh well, whatever. As long as she doesn't cause any real trouble. She's a girl now too, it's not like she has the equipment to do anything anyway!

I checked the time after exiting. It was already quite late, so I hurried back home.

When I got back, Nicola still wasn't home.

How strange...what's going on today? I'm starting to feel something is off. Could she have lost track of time at the arcade?

If things were normal, the scene I'd see upon opening the door at dinner time would be like this:

Two angel assistants - one six-winged, one eight-winged - sitting on either side. One would be nestled intimately on Nicola's shoulder, a suggestive smile on her face.

And our young master Nicola would be half-lying in bed, an assistant under each arm, taking turns nibbling on them. The sheer clingy-ness was enough to make one nauseous.

And she'd often ask me to join in the "fun" too, claiming it was pleasurable. But no way was I that shameless! I righteously refused each time.

Yeah right!