Stygian Mage

The luscious and dense jungle resonated with various sounds that combined with the morning mist and created a serene harmony. Bathing in this morning mist and accompanying that serene harmony was a line of carriages that were traveling on the dirt road cutting through this jungle.

Inside one of the carriages in this group sat Soren, doing his simulations on the defensive spell. It had already been a few days since they left Kilguard. Some of the hired Initiators had decided to leave the group back in Kilguard so the merchants had hired some new people; most of them were Hunters. Olivia was also amongst those Initiators who had left the group. Soren was not sure of it but he could guess that her reason for leaving was probably related to him and their conversation that night. Of course, he cared not one bit about that and was instead glad that there was no one left to bother him anymore; if he left out Argus, that is.

As Soren had been very busy with deriving a new cultivation technique and a defensive spell these days, he couldn’t play with Argus that much. Because of this, Argus had started to turn into an attention whore as he constantly disturbed Soren with his antics. On this matter, even Soren felt slightly apologetic towards Argus as he couldn’t give him as much time as he wished he could.

Simulating and combining different spells took a lot of his time; much more than his research on the cultivation techniques that he owned. Soren felt that he was quite close to finding the right direction for his spell. So, he now spent more and more time trying to figure out the correct path for his defensive spell. As for the cultivation technique, he had done almost all that he could with the data that he currently had. For any further progress in that aspect, he needed more cultivation techniques; especially the high-grade ones. And he knew that the only place he could get those was the royal capital. Of course, that was the case only during peaceful times; now was the time of war.

War brought chaos and destruction to the kingdom and its people, but at the same time, it also brought opportunities for those who could grab it. Soren was betting on that; he was planning on joining the war.

…..

“Isaac, combine the <Wind Shade> and the <Water Curtain> spell,” Soren said as he checked out the data displayed on the screen in front of him.

“Yes, Master” Isaac replied as he simulated the spells according to Soren’s instructions.

The two spells mixed together on the screen and produced a wall of mist around the caster. The defensive power of this simulated spell wasn’t much but it instead created a layer of dense mist that allowed the caster to hide inside; it became a completely different kind of spell. Soren had seen things like this many times during his research on the spells. But as he was only going for the defensive spell right now, he didn’t focus too much on these and just made Isaac record these findings for future use.

The combination of <Wind Shade> and <Water Curtain> was also a failure so Soren ditched this combination and moved on to another one.

Time passed by like this as Soren researched and simulated different types of spells.

.…..

One afternoon, this group of merchants had stopped for a break in an open area by the dirt road. Going by the usual routine, the maids and the servants started setting things up and prepared to cook food. The low-level Initiators also took out their liquor bottles and sat around the fire; taking a rest while indulging in the intoxicating taste of the good alcohol.

After a while, the smell of the roasted meat with spices on it permeated the air as it made everyone salivate without control. The Initiators also stopped drinking their alcohol and started eating their food while waiting for the next dish; the vegetable stew.

But just as they started to enjoy their meals….

“Argus, you fucking twerp!! How many times do I have to tell you not to fucking pee on me!!” Soren shouted loudly in an annoyed voice as he chased after the little guy who had already jumped out of the carriage window and was now running towards the jungle.

Wan!!

Wan!!

Wan!!

With these barks, Argus made his point clear, ‘It was not me!!!’

Of course, after living together for so long, Soren could easily understand what Argus was trying to say. And that pissed him even more as he hurled a few ice arrows towards the little fox. Given his control over his spells, it was obvious that he didn’t intend to hit Argus with those ice arrows at all; his action was only out of annoyance and he just wanted to vent some frustration. But seeing those ice arrows coming towards him, Argus suddenly turned around and jumped in their path.

Although Argus’s actions shocked Soren and made his heart jump with fright, he did not delay at all in controlling the projectiles with his <Vornea> and changed their path. However, the ice arrows were flying at a high speed and even with Soren controlling them, one of it nicked Argus. Seeing this, Soren cursed out loud and quickly ran towards Argus; immediately picking him up and casting his <Withering Wood> on him.

This was the intended purpose of the little Beast’s actions as he snuggled in Soren’s arms without caring about his wound. Soren also didn’t dare to delay as he snapped his fingers and started the second phase of the spell; his control over his spells had increased drastically during these days, so this much was not difficult for him at all.

All of this was witnessed by the people who were enjoying their meals. But none of them were surprised or had any weird expression; all of this seemed like a common occurrence to them. In their eyes, this pair of Initiator and the fox was very weird. These two fought a lot, argued a lot, and were always at each other’s throats; yet, they always stayed together, ate together, and slept together. The Initiator sometimes used his spell against the little fox when they fought, but the moment the Beast was injured, he would instantly heal him with his healing spell. The fox also sometimes bit the Initiator hard with his immature teeth, but after he would see blood on this person, he would instantly start licking the wound hoping to heal it with his saliva.

Seeing such actions from these two, all of the people had only one comment in their mind: ‘A weird pair indeed’.

……..

A few more days passed like that as the group made their way towards the next town; Bellfalls.

During this time, Soren continued his routine while trying to give Argus as much time as he could. On top of that, he also contributed and did his share of work once the group was attacked by the Beasts or the bandits. Of course, the threat level never reached that point where he had to exert his full power; at most, he used his <Withering Wood> to protect and heal the core of the group.

The other Rank 1 Initiator, Alrule, also chipped in many times and protected the group when things started getting hectic. Alrule was actually a Dark Elf with long black hair and dark silver eyes; he also wore a circular earring on his elongated right ear. As for his clothes, it was the traditional attire used by many Warrior type Initiators; brown leather armor on top and thick survival pants on the bottom.

And seemingly, this Rank 1 Initiator didn’t like to socialize much as he never took the initiative to approach Soren; even when they were the only high ranking Initiators left in the group. Of course, that was what Soren also preferred, so it wasn’t a problem for him. Both of them just minded their own business and continued on with the group.

….

After traveling for a few more days, the group strangely started encountering more and more Beast attacks, annoying both Soren and Alrule to no end. This increase in the Beast attacks caused many low ranking Initiators to get hurt with some casualties; making the whole atmosphere of the group somewhat somber and gloomy.

Seeing the situation, the head of the merchant group, Hamish, consulted with Soren and Alrule and decided to send a scouting team ahead to the town to figure out what was going on; they were not that far away from Bellfalls.

While the scouting team rushed towards the town on the horses, the rest of them settled down by the side of the road and tried to strengthen their defensive perimeter. Many things could go wrong if they tried to rush ahead without a plan, so they decided to stay put for now. They had two Rank 1 Initiators with them, so at least the safety of the core of the group was guaranteed; unless they suffered an attack from multiple Rank 1 Beasts, that is.

The group waited for around twenty-eight hours before the scouting team returned with the bad news. Apparently, a Beast Tide was about to happen in the area soon. Because of that, the whole Bellfalls and the small towns in that area had fortified their defenses and were not allowing anyone to enter anymore. Concerned about the remaining resources in the town, they were denying entry to any outsiders.

Of course, this was true only in the case of common people. Initiators were granted entry without any hassle as that would increase the chances of fighting off the Beast Tide; especially the high ranking Initiators like Soren and Alrule.

With that news, the group started their journey once again and moved towards Bellfalls; it took them one whole day to reach the town even when they moved as fast as they could. Fortunately, though, they didn’t suffer from many Beast attacks on the way.

Seeing so many Initiators in the group, the guards stationed above the wall quickly opened the gate and let them in while staying on guard against any sudden attack from the Beasts. After entering the town, the group first met with the City-Guard Captain, Hans Dewhurst. This man looked quite aged, around seventy years old, with white hair falling on his shoulders. His stature was also small and he looked quite weak, physically. But his eyes gave off a sharp glint which caused even Soren and Alrule to take him seriously. Even if not for that, Soren would not take this old man lightly as he already had the result of the scan; Rank 1: Layer 6. This old man was the highest-ranking Initiator that Soren had met up close so far; of course, if Princess Azure and Livan were not taken into consideration.

“Welcome to Bellfalls.” The old man, Hans, said politely after taking a good look at the two Rank 1 Initiators in front of him. If it was any time else, he wouldn’t have paid much attention to these Initiators. But the situation of the town had become such that he needed all the help that he could get right now. As such, he had to stay polite to them.

“What can we do for you, Captain Hans?” Soren asked in a similar polite tone.

“I wanted to hire you guys to help out in the upcoming Beast Tide. Is it possible?”

Both Soren and Alrule first looked at each other and then nodded towards Hans with Soren replying, “It depends on what you can pay for it.”

A warm smile formed on Hans’ old and wrinkly face after hearing this answer. He was well aware that only benefits could move the Initiators like these two. And so, he was already prepared for it as he waved his hand and put out a few things on the table in front of them; it was from his Storage Pearl.

These items included a few thick books, a ring, and a long sword with various designs on it.

“I have a few things here. You can take a look at them. If nothing among these catches your eye, we can then discuss further.” Hans said as he pointed to the items on the table. He had already hired a few Rank 1 Initiators in these days, so he was well prepared with the items that could move their heart.

Both Soren and Alrule took their time and checked out each of the items. Alrule’s interest was clearly in the ring; it was an Enhancement Artifact which increased the recovery rate of ‘Stamina’. As for the skill books, most of them were made for Warrior type Initiators which disappointed Soren. But one book on the right side of the table caught his eye. The title of this book was ‘Introduction to Potioneering’.

“Captain Hans, do you have any more books like this?” Soren asked after checking out a couple of pages from this book. He had been quite interested in potion making, pill concocting, and things like that for quite some time. It was only that the situation back then wasn’t something that allowed him to divide his attention. But now, he was free to use his time as he wanted.

“I do have one more book on that topic, Mr. Soren, but you would have to pay extra for that,” Hans replied with a simple smile. He knew he already had this Rank 1 Initiator in the bag.

“Hmm, is that so…,” Soren muttered after hearing Hans and put the book down.

“Well, Mr. Hans. It was nice talking to you.” But contrary to Hans’s expectation, Soren actually didn’t ask for the book anymore and instead got up to leave.

“Wait, please wait. I’ll include the other book in the hiring fees too.” Time was not on Hans’s side, so he knew he would have to be the one to compromise.

A smile formed on Soren’s face as sat down again and kept the book in his Storage Pearl with a wave of his hand. He then looked towards the City-Guard Captain with his expression clearly saying, ‘Take out my book.’

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