Chapter – 14

A bolt of lightning shot across the training field, forcing Arvel to abruptly dive to the side. The spell struck the ground where the Garud had been standing only a moment earlier, leaving behind a scorched crater.

Arvel recovered almost instantly, releasing the arrow he had already drawn at his opponent.

Aman flared his lightning mana into a shield, altering the arrow’s trajectory just enough for it to miss him. He stomped his foot, arcs of lightning racing through the ground toward Arvel.

The Garud beat his wings and took to the sky, the spell missing its intended target before harmlessly fizzling out.

Hovering overhead, Arvel launched another arrow at Aman. Aman tried to repeat his earlier tactic and raised another shield, but this time it failed. The arrow, imbued with wind mana, scored a thin line of red across his leg.

Aman dropped to one knee, glaring up at his opponent.

The next moment, a loud clang echoed from beside him.

He instinctively glanced toward the source of the sound, watching the fight unfolding on the other side of the training field.

While Aman was struggling to fend off the Arcane Rogue, his friend Sarai was having the time of her life.

She twirled her staff before slamming it against Stella’s sword, forcing the warrior back as her boots carved furrows into the dirt. The next moment, she drove the staff into the ground. Vines erupted around them like living tentacles, lunging toward Stella in an attempt to trap her.

The warrior moved like the wind, weaving fluidly between the twisting vines as her sword, glowing blue with mana, carved effortlessly through them.

Stella swung her sword, sending a glowing arc of mana racing toward Sarai.

Sarai hastily conjured a wooden shield a heartbeat before the attack struck. Though it blocked the slash, the shield exploded into splinters.

Sarai grinned.

The shattered splinters glowed before transforming into dozens of wooden spikes that shot toward Stella.

Aman’s jaw dropped as Stella bent backwards with impossible flexibility, the spikes harmlessly sailing over her before she flowed into a graceful backflip.

The moment her feet touched the ground, she accelerated.

In the blink of an eye, she appeared before Sarai with an overhead slash.

Sarai barely managed to raise her staff in time. Even so, the force of the strike launched her backwards.

At the same time, vines burst from the earth and wrapped around Stella’s feet, preventing her from following up.

“What are you lot doing just standing there? Focus on your own fight.”

A deep voice suddenly rang out across the training field.

Aman huffed before doing as their tormentor instructed.

Arvel had been just as distracted, hovering in the air while watching Stella and Sarai’s duel.

Which meant he was currently open.

Taking a page out of Stella’s spellbook, Aman thrust both hands forward.

Chains of lightning erupted from his palms, catching Arvel by surprise.

The crackling chains wrapped around one of the Garud’s legs before Aman yanked downward, grounding him as Arvel crashed back to the earth.

While Arvel was still picking himself up, Aman already had his next spell prepared.

A dagger forged from pure lightning shot toward his opponent.

Arvel wasted no time.

As he rose to his feet, the earth rose with him.

The lightning dagger embedded itself into the hastily raised stone shield before exploding, throwing up a cloud of dust and debris.

Aman was already moving.

He released a weak pulse of lightning mana, using it to sense Arvel’s position through the obscuring dust.

He needn’t have bothered.

The dust cleared on its own, revealing Arvel exactly where he had expected.

Only then did Aman realize why the Garud hadn’t moved.

Arvel was no longer bothering with subtlety.

Wind mana swirled around his arrow, forming a miniature cyclone.

Aman immediately skidded to a halt, sparks erupting from his hands as he prepared one of his strongest spells.

The moment Arvel released his arrow and the shrieking winds raced toward him, Aman unleashed his own attack.

A hawk formed from crackling lightning burst into existence, letting out a piercing cry before streaking toward Arvel.

The two attacks collided in midair.

An explosion rang out, the brilliant flash blinding Aman for a brief moment.

Aman panted heavily, already short of breath.

Though he still had plenty of mana remaining, he simply wasn’t used to such prolonged battles.

A few days of intense training weren’t going to solve that problem overnight.

Still, he had no choice but to endure.

Aman blinked away the lingering spots in his vision and prepared to continue the fight.

Then he felt something cold press against his neck.

He froze.

Only then did he realize what had happened.

Unlike him, Arvel hadn’t remained standing after releasing his last attack.

He had followed behind it, using the chaos of the explosion to close the distance unnoticed.

“I yield,” Aman declared, raising his hands as Arvel’s dagger rested against his throat.

Arvel lowered his dagger before giving Aman a reassuring pat on the shoulder. “You’re getting better.”

Arvel was right. This had gone much better than last time.

He had managed to hold his own against the experienced adventurer for nearly five whole minutes.

Even though Aman remained the only one among them without a single victory, he didn’t mind.

Every day, he grew a little more accustomed to the rhythm of battle, both his body and mind slowly adapting to keep up with his teammates.

He was confident that, by the end of the week, he would manage to defeat at least one of them.

Okay, maybe not Stella.

Aman glanced over just in time to watch her use Sarai’s own vines as stepping stones, bounding over the young half-druid’s head before sending a crescent-shaped slash of mana crashing into her back. Stella landed gracefully behind her opponent as Sarai collapsed to the ground in defeat.

Even though it had been his best friend who had just lost, Aman found himself applauding the display.

That had been an incredible fight.

Now, for those wondering how they ended up here, we need to rewind time a few days, to just after the elders’ meeting.

Even though Mayor Simon had issued an official statement the very next day, it had only put the rumors surrounding Seibel to rest. It had done nothing to curb the speculation surrounding the dungeon.

In fact, the confirmation of the dungeon’s existence had only poured fuel onto the fire.

A new dungeon appearing near their town was probably the biggest piece of news the people of Brendon had ever heard. It had the potential to change both their lives and the town itself, for better or for worse.

Since no one was brave enough to disobey Mayor Simon’s orders or risk their lives by personally investigating the dungeon, they did the only thing they could.

Gossip. Lots of gossip.

About how close the dungeon was to town. Whether it was beneficial or hostile. Whether it would elevate their little town into something greater or force them to relocate somewhere else.

While the older townsfolk were content to simply speculate, the younger generation was far less patient. The adventurers even more so.

No matter whether the dungeon turned out to be good or bad, it represented a treasure trove of resources, riches, and opportunities.

A chance to become something more.

Even if they weren’t allowed to visit it right now, they could certainly be first in line once it opened to the public.

The mayor had asked everyone to remain patient and let the Crown handle the situation for now, but that wasn’t enough to satisfy them.

Since none of them could get an audience with the elders, they settled for the next best thing.

The entire town turned its curiosity toward Aman and Stella’s team.

As a result, whenever Aman stepped outside the Arcane Guild building, he was constantly followed by curious stares and hushed whispers. People he was familiar with even approached him directly, hoping to learn more about the dungeon.

As previously agreed with his master, Aman kept his mouth shut. He simply claimed he didn’t know much and redirected them to Master Aenul.

At least he had that option.

Stella and her team had no one to hide behind.

As soon as the meeting concluded, Guildmaster Bern had done exactly as instructed, removing every quest related to the Emerald Forest and forbidding anyone from entering it. Then he promptly locked himself inside his office, leaving the poor guild receptionist to deal with the ensuing chaos and becoming the only person to have seen Guildmaster Bern’s face over the past few days.

Since Stella and her companions were staying at the Adventurer Guild, there was no escaping the attention.

The moment they stepped outside their room, adventurers would already be waiting with ears perked up, hoping to overhear something useful.

Some suddenly declared themselves Stella’s longtime admirers, attempting to flatter their way onto her team.

One particularly bold fellow had even tried to pay Stella for information regarding the dungeon.

As if her family wasn’t already among the wealthiest in the kingdom.

After enduring the constant harassment for a day or two, they decided to convene in Aman’s room, where they could finally enjoy some peace and quiet.

At least there, people respected Aman enough not to disturb them without good reason.

As for Sarai, turns out she hadn’t fully believed Aman when he claimed he’d nearly died inside the dungeon.

She had assumed he was simply exaggerating the danger to stop her from tagging along.

Well…

Now she believed him. Perhaps a little too much.

After the fright she’d received upon hearing the rumors of his near death, she refused to leave his side, only returning home to sleep each night.

Thus, the five of them spent their time gathered in Aman’s room, chatting to pass the time.

Once everyone had settled in and Aman had firmly shut the door, the first thing he asked Stella about was her plans moving forward.

Mina wanted to return home.

With Stella’s adventurer license temporarily suspended, there wasn’t much point in remaining in Brendon.

The matter regarding the dungeon had already reached the Crown, meaning their families would soon learn what had happened whether they liked it or not. It seemed better to return voluntarily than wait to be dragged back.

Stella, however, had a convincing counterargument.

If they returned now, there was no chance they would be allowed anywhere near the dungeon again anytime soon. Especially since Stella hadn’t even informed her family where she had gone.

That would leave them with nothing to show for the entire trip except failure.

Instead, Stella wanted to remain in Brendon until the royal appraiser arrived.

If she could plead her case and prove her worth, she could have her adventurer’s license reinstated.

She might even be permitted to join the scouting expedition. The official one this time.

Aman wholeheartedly agreed.

He would almost certainly be assigned to that expedition regardless of whether Stella was involved or not.

Since his master hadn’t mentioned the appraiser bringing an escort of adventurers from the capital, Aman was fairly certain the responsibility would fall on him instead.

He had no desire to travel all the way to Brislin in search of capable adventurers when Stella’s team was already here.

He only hoped the appraiser shared that opinion.

Once the discussion regarding their immediate future came to an end, the conversation naturally shifted to the one topic they all had in common.

Magic.

Arvel possessed the basic [Mana Manipulation] skill, though he was proficient in wind, earth, and mind mana.

The others all had dedicated manipulation skills for their respective affinities—Life, Nature, and Lightning.

Even though Stella didn’t possess even the [Mana Sense] skill, her noble education still allowed her to contribute to the discussion.

As everyone gradually became more comfortable with one another, the conversation drifted toward more personal topics.

The adventurers told Aman and Sarai about growing up among the nobility, how Stella had grown bored of playing the role of a noble lady and decided to form her own adventuring team, dragging Mina and Arvel along with her.

In return, Aman and Sarai spoke about growing up in the small town of Brendon and life within the Arcane Guild.

Though Aman didn’t feel comfortable mentioning anything about his life before Master Aenul had found him. That was one chapter of his life he would much rather leave behind.

They were in the middle of recounting their latest adventure inside the dungeon when Aman casually mentioned that he had finally updated the Pokédex with the rest of the Pokémon he had encountered during his last visit.

And that was how they ended up spending the rest of the day with the Pokédex resting in Sarai’s lap, talking about nothing but Pokémon.

As the sky darkened outside Aman’s room and evening approached, the group decided to have dinner at the guild before retiring to their respective rooms.

Aman accompanied them, partly to escort Sarai home and partly in the hopes of catching Uncle Malrick if he happened to be available.

As they walked through the quiet streets of Brendon, Stella’s steps suddenly faltered.

“Something wrong?” Mina asked, noticing her friend slow down.

“I think someone is following us,” Stella whispered.

“Did you actually see someone, or is that your skill?” Arvel asked, quietly falling into step beside her.

“It’s my skill. I haven’t actually seen anyone.”

“Neither have I,” Arvel replied with a nod. “Stay alert. We don’t know what they want.”

Aman was about to turn his head and look for their mysterious stalker when Arvel grabbed his wrist.

“Don’t. You’ll only alert them that we know they’re there.”

“So what do we do?” Mina asked in a hushed voice. “Run? Or stay and fight?”

Arvel’s gaze drifted toward Aman and Sarai before he made his decision.

“Aman, take the girls back to the guild. Whoever it is, they won’t dare try anything with Master Aenul nearby. I’ll take to the air and see if I can find them with my skill. If I don’t, I’ll meet you back at the guild.”

“Very well. Be careful,” Stella replied, the others nodding in agreement.

Just as they prepared to hurry back toward the Arcane Guild and Arvel spread his wings to take flight, a deep voice suddenly rang out around them.

“Don’t bother, hatchling. I’m here.”

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The next moment, Stella’s shadow rippled.

A humanoid figure cloaked in darkness slowly rose from the ground.

A heartbeat later, the shadows peeled away, revealing their pursuer in all his glory.

The man stood nearly seven feet tall, dark brown fur covering every part of his body not concealed beneath his armor. A pair of obsidian horns sprouted from his temples before curving back along his head.

He was one of the Yeti, a race renowned for their immense strength and martial prowess. They usually resided far to the north, in their mountain city among the frozen peaks.

What was one doing all the way down here in Brendon?

Lightning mana instinctively gathered in Aman’s hands as he sensed Sarai doing the same behind him.

However, he stopped himself from casting a spell the moment the stranger spoke.

“Well done, little lady. You’re getting better. You even managed to sense me this time.”

The man nodded approvingly toward Stella.

“I had a good teacher,” Stella shot back.

Did Stella know this man?

The two of them seemed awfully familiar with each other.

“Stella, do you know him?” Aman asked, noticing that he and Sarai were the only ones still on guard.

“That is my master, Darsun, a retainer of Lord Lucian Crestel,” Arvel supplied from the side while Stella remained locked in a glaring contest with the towering Yeti.

At the sound of his student’s voice, Darsun finally turned toward Arvel.

“I expected better from you, hatchling. You were about to leave the little lady alone.”

“I’m sorry, Master. I didn’t want my new friends getting caught in the crossfire if someone truly dangerous was after us. Besides, with Master Aenul nearby, I thought they would be safe.”

Hey.

Aman could protect himself just fine.

…

Okay, on second thought, maybe not.

Aman barely reached the man’s chest, forcing the young mage to crane his neck just to meet his gaze.

Good job, Arvel. You were doing great.

Apparently, his master disagreed.

“I know you’re not a mind mage, but the least you could have done was check for any active minds nearby. This street is completely empty, and I wasn’t even trying to hide my thoughts.”

The giant man ruffled the normal-sized boy’s hair as though he were a little child.

“Besides, if you truly wanted to protect your friends, you should have had them split up while you watched over Stella from above. No one is foolish enough to attack Master Aenul’s disciple in his own backyard.”

Before Darsun could continue the lecture, Stella rudely interrupted him.

“Why are you here, Darsun? Did Grandfather send you?”

“Well, little lady, I was originally sent to bring you home—”

“I’m not going back. Not yet.”

Darsun tilted his head, an amused smile spreading across his face.

“Oh? And what makes you think you can stop me from taking you back by force?”

In response, Stella drew her sword and leveled it at him.

Darsun burst into laughter. A deep, hearty laugh.

“Foolish girl. Do you really think you can defeat me, the one who taught you how to hold a sword properly?”

“No.”

Stella smirked.

“But I can certainly keep you distracted long enough.”

What did she mean by—

The shadows beneath Darsun suddenly stirred.

A tendril of darkness shot upward, catching an arrow inches before it struck him.

Aman whipped around.

Arvel stood several paces behind them, his bow already drawn.

When had he even done that?

Rather than looking offended that his own disciple had just tried to put an arrow into him, Darsun looked proud.

“That was a good attempt. If I didn’t already know all your tricks, you might actually have caught me by surprise. Though I have to say, the neck or the hamstring would’ve been a better target for a sneak attack.”

“That arrow was supposed to put you to sleep, Master,” Arvel replied, lowering his bow after the failed attempt.

Darsun’s grin widened.

“Really? You finally figured out how to do that?”

The shadow lengthened, bringing the arrow up to his face for closer inspection.

“Hmm. Still a little sloppy, but it’s good enough. If you only want to make someone dizzy for a moment, that is. You’ll need a lot more power before you can put even a Tier I to sleep with this.”

That wasn’t meant as an insult.

Aman quickly consoled himself.

Arvel’s spell had been wrapped around a physical object, whereas Aman had taken the full force of the sleep spell through direct contact.

Besides, he’d never received any proper training in resisting mind magic.

While Aman was busy justifying his rather weak constitution, Darsun turned back toward Stella, casually tossing the arrow over his shoulder.

“And what exactly was your plan after putting me to sleep? Run away and hide somewhere? Did you really think I couldn’t track you down again?”

Stella sheathed her sword with a huff.

“I was actually going to borrow a pair of suppression cuffs from the Guard Captain and keep you hostage until the appraiser arrived.”

Darsun simply shook his head.

“Still so impulsive, little lady. You’re a noble. If you hope to inherit Lord Lucian’s position someday, you need to think ten steps ahead before you act.”

Stella raised an eyebrow.

“This is Brendon, not Brislin. They have no need for suppression cuffs when their Tier III Guard Captain can simply beat any troublemaker into submission. Master Aenul probably owns a pair, but he certainly isn’t going to lend them to a brat like you, even if you are friends with his disciple. Your plan was flawed from the start.”

Stella glared back.