《A Guard's Dream》


 Ch. 1 – A Guard’s Dream

    Ruten steadied his bow, breathing slowly as he took aim at the deer grazing in the field before him. With a deep breath in and out, he released the bowstring letting the arrow fly. With a thwack, the arrow bounced off the deer and fell to the ground.


    Ruten may not have been the most skilled of hunters, but he knew enough that this wasn¡¯t normal. Even if the arrow could not pierce the deers hide, it would have at least fled. The deer stood eerily in place unmoving, head up and alert. Ruten decided to leave; something wasn¡¯t right in this situation. As he began to take a step back, dry twigs cracked beneath his feet.


    Immediately the deer turned in his direction; it moved bizarrely as it darted towards him. The deer''s form shifted and vanished, replaced with an enormous beast at least the size of a large cow. Now a mass of tentacles outstretched towards him. Instinctively, Ruten grabbed his short sword at his side and swiped at the incoming barrage of appendages. Cleanly he sliced through the closest one.


    The beast gurgled, retracting the rest of the tentacles back towards its body. Its body consisted of a large central mass, the large mass which Ruten assumed was his body had no eyes or nose, just a large mouth lined with sharp jagged teeth. Ruten braced himself for the next attack.


    Ruten had a general idea of what this creature was. There was a dungeon called Black Gate not too far from here. He heard adventures talk at the tavern in Ullmet of creatures like this, it was called a mimic. He hadn¡¯t encountered one himself, but from what he had heard, it was equally as grotesque and terrifying. They would change their form somehow and lie in wait for adventures to come to them. Frequently as treasure chests and other things adventures were searching for in dungeons.


    Rolling to the side, Ruten dodged a swipe from another tentacle. It landed with a heavy thud on the ground just where he was standing moments before.


    ¡°Focus,¡± Ruten thought to himself. He couldn¡¯t let his guard down. He didn¡¯t think he could outrun it, and he also didn¡¯t want to turn his back to it, allowing it to attack.


    He began to focus his magical energy allowing it to circulate through his body, strengthening it. With what little magic he had left, he focused on his sword, and it began to glow with a light blue aura. He wouldn¡¯t be able to keep this up for long. He needed to end this quickly.


    With the beast¡¯s next attack, several of the tentacles outstretched straight towards Ruten, narrowly he sidestepped between the front on assault, plunging his sword straight through the center of the creature¡¯s mass. He was up to his elbow in the monster now. With all his strength, he ripped sideways with his sword in hand. The creature let out a horrific screech as its tentacles trembled and collapsed.


    Ruten took a few steps back, keeping his eye on the beast. Then exhausted, fell back and let out a sigh.


    *****


    I worked up a sweat and enjoyed the gentle breeze as it blew through the trees. Eying the corpse of the Mimic, I couldn¡¯t believe I killed it myself.


    Oh man, sucks that I ran into this thing, but boy will I have a story to tell once I get back to the camp. Hopefully, someone else found something to eat¡­ Or is this thing edible?


    I was eager to get back to camp so I could gloat to Merle, the daughter of the merchant who hired me as a guard for their caravan. She was the entire reason I decided to take this job in the first place. I was hoping to get cozy with the family during this trip. It was my dream to travel the world with a beautiful woman on my arm, and what better way to do that than living off some wealthy merchants coin.


    Merle had returned my flirtatious advances, but her father, the one who hired me, was having no part of it. Every time he caught me flirting with his daughter, he would go off on a rant about how he wasn¡¯t paying me to stand around.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.


    Standing up and dusting myself off, I noticed it was starting to get a bit late; I should start heading back. Hopefully, one of the other guards that came along caught something to eat, and if not, maybe I could get someone from camp to help me bring this thing back. Surely Merle¡¯s old man would warm up to me after he has seen that I had defeated this creature.


    *****


    I made my way back to the camp, Merle was there and had finished setting up a large pot, she was the one cooking for us on this trip. Now all she needed was the meat. She noticed me and began to wave.


    ¡°Were you not able to catch anything, Mr. Ruten?¡± she asked in a polite voice.


    ¡°She was kind, polite, beautiful, and could cook. She just kept hitting all my checkboxes.¡± I thought to myself, ¡°Unfortunately, Ms. Merle, I stumbled on a mimic in the form a deer. Before I realized what it was, it noticed me and attacked. I managed to bring it down.¡± raising my arm, showing the green stain of Mimic Blood up to my elbow. ¡°I don¡¯t know if they are edible, but I would need some help moving the corpse back here.¡± giving a triumphant grin.


    ¡°Really!¡± She shouted in amazement. ¡°I have to tell father.¡± She made her to the back of one of the carriages. ¡°Father! Mr. Ruten said he found a Mimic and defeated it! Isn¡¯t that impressive?¡±


    The older man stepped down from the back of the carriage. Clearly aged, the man had a scraggly gray peppered beard. He wore a cloth vest over his shirt that traditionally merchants would wear. His eyes narrowed on me then looked back at his daughter. ¡°Merle, you can¡¯t trust what this man says at face value. Where is the corpse at then? I have never heard of a creature from the dungeon leaving the dungeon. I find it all too hard to believe.¡± Narrowing his eyes back in on me. ¡°He is not as altruistic as he makes himself out to be, and there is no way a two-bit guard will be worthy of you. I should have known he would be trouble when he said he would take this job for half the rate.¡±


    Oh, now he had said it. He must have seen right through me. But you know, that¡¯s not enough to make me give up. The old man loves his daughter, and if I can make her happy, he would eventually cave. It¡¯s all about perseverance.


    About that time, as I was deep in my thought, we heard some shouting. It was another one of the guards that went out hunting. We all went our separate ways hoping that one of us would bring back some fresh meat. Raising my hand to wave, I realized this wasn¡¯t the ¡°Hey, I¡¯m back¡± type of shout; it was more of the ¡°Holy shit run for your lives.¡± Type of shout. He was running at full sprint, flailing his arms.


    I could make out just before he was taking down ¡°Wolves!¡±. Immediately on guard, I told the old man Merle to get in the carriage. Dire wolves were worse than any bandit we would meet on this road. They would chase you nipping the horses until they fell. Once they caught the scent of their prey, they wouldn¡¯t let up.


    There were at least six of the beasts. I called out to the other guards to help me protect the carriage. However, they stood there, dumbstruck. Their fear clearly showing on their faces. I couldn¡¯t really blame them. Chances we all would make it out of this alive wasn¡¯t very likely. Dire wolves wouldn¡¯t usually be this close to the road. Each was easily three or four times larger than a regular wolf and typically stayed deep in the forest, hunting the larger prey that lived there.


    ¡°Hurry up, you igits¡¯ grab your weapons and guard the carriage.¡± Not having too much faith in my fellow guards, I looked at Merle, her brown hair dangling down around her shoulder¡¯s, her eyes filled with tears. ¡°Merle, old man, you should go we will try and hold them off.¡±


    The old man leaped onto the coach¡¯s seat and grabbed the reins. ¡°Maybe you¡¯re not as bad as I thought, lad! Good luck!¡± as he snapped the reins down and took off.


    ¡°Ruten! Be safe!¡± I could hear Merle¡¯s voice trailing off.


    We can do this. I looked towards my fellow guards. My jaw dropped; out of the five of us, two were chasing after the carriage, and the other two still hadn¡¯t grabbed their weapons.


    Maybe I shouldn¡¯t have tried so hard. The first wolf made it¡¯s way to me, ready for the battle I expertly sidestepped its lunge, slashing its throat. Its massive body landed with a thud and writhed on the ground. A lot of blood poured from its wound onto the earth. I had hoped the others would see this and think twice about continuing, but we were dealing with Dire Wolves here. Seeing one of their packmates slain, they didn¡¯t even drop a beat. As I turned to face the others, one already had my neck in its mouth and another with my ankles lifting me up from the ground.


    I tried to swing my sword, but to no avail, a burst of burning pain wracked through my body, and then a warm feeling enveloped me. All I could feel now was the pressure of tearing tendons as my consciousness began to fade. Ah man, I bet the old man will let me marry his daughter now¡­ Ohh, wait¡­ yeah, there is not later, huh? My surroundings went to black, and the last thing I remembered was the gnawing, tearing, and crunching of my bone.

 Ch. 2-1 – Ah Man… I Died…

    The twin moons shined brightly in the night sky. Illuminating the clearing along the road. Grass swaying as the night breeze lightly brushed the countryside.


    I stood staring up at the night sky entranced by the twin moons. Was it Heaven¡¯s Day already? No, that couldn¡¯t be right; we still had several more months until then. Heaven¡¯s day was when both moons were full at the same time. People used to say this is when the land of the dead is closest to the land of the living.


    Everything was foggy. I was trying to think of what was going on and how I had gotten there. Oh, that¡¯s right; there were dire wolves¡­ and Merle and the old man, hopefully, they got away safely. As I stood there, I realized my memory wasn¡¯t the only thing that was foggy; my body was too. My body was like a translucent mist, only reflecting in the moonlight.


    ¡°What was going on!?¡± I tried to say, but nothing came out. I guess that would make sense. If I¡¯m a mist, how could I speak? Still in shock over my current situation, my memories started to return. The dire wolves ripping the other guards and me to shreds. I cringed a bit at the memories that were returning. I stood there for what felt hours contemplating what had happened, repeating the events in my head.


    The darkness creeping in like on that day. My consciousness slowly starting to fade, then I remembered my dream. That¡¯s right! My dream to travel the world with a beautiful woman on my arm. I had so much I still wanted to do. I wanted to visit cities I¡¯ve never seen, go exploring deep dungeons like the adventurers, eat exotic cuisine in the coastal towns. There was so much I had left to do; I couldn¡¯t let it end here.


    With a renewed sense of purpose, I set off. To where? I didn¡¯t have a clue. I knew I just had to press forward. How was I supposed to do that? I hadn¡¯t the slightest idea; I continued to walk, thinking along the way. Maybe, find an Arch Priest? I had heard from some adventurers Arch Priests sometimes could resurrect the dead. There might be someone who could bring me back to life.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    *****


    After traveling a fair distance, I noticed the light from a campfire in the flickering about. Oh, good, finally, people! I drew closer, then it dawned on me if they were adventures, would they cut me down as soon as they saw me? I could see three men were sitting around a campfire, and nearby there was a fancy looking carriage. It had had engravings that looked like flowing waves along the outside. I stood there listening, wondering if I should approach.


    ¡°This is decent pay for just escorting some nobles son.¡± A gruff sounding voice chuckled.


    ¡°Well, it isn¡¯t just some noble. It''s Duke Strafton¡¯s first son. If anything happens to him, it will be our heads on the chopping block too.¡± Another man spoke up.


    The third man sat there dressed in plain gray robes and had a staff with a sizeable red gem affixed to the top was laying across his lap. He spoke up in a cheerful tone, ¡°It¡¯s simple, just don¡¯t let anything happen to the young man.¡± Then clapped his hand like he solved their problems.


    The other two belted out some laughs.


    Maybe this third man was a priest. Perhaps he could help? Caught up with that thought, I briskly walked up to the fire. All eyes immediately turned to me. All the men now were scrambling to get up as I tried to speak, but nothing came out. I waved my arms about, trying to explain to them the situation. How did I think this was going to go again?


    I could feel the man in the robes gathering mana. I had some aptitude for it myself, but I never could sense it to this degree, like it was some tangible force. That mana gathered at the tip of his staff. This must be it the resurrection I was hoping for! I let a huge smile slip across my face and put forth both my hands, gesturing that was ready. Finally, I would get my body back.


    ¡°Infernium!¡± The robed man shouted. An enormous ball of flames shot straight for me. I was stunned; both my hands were still out. It happened so quick, then well then nothing it passed straight through me. It felt a little strange, but there was no heat or pain.


    Dejected, I sulked back into the shadows. I could still hear the men shout something and scrambling around. I continued walking away. After getting my hopes up, the following hopelessness I felt seemed to double. My consciousness once again faded off.


    *****

 Ch. 2-2 - Gray Robes Viewpoint

    ¡°What are you doing, Gregor? I thought you went to get firewood.¡± I said sternly


    ¡°No, Hemlet is doing that. He¡¯s better at that sort of thing.¡± Gregor replied while trying to explain his reasoning.


    We were escorting young master Servil between the towns that his father controls. Who am I? I¡¯m the Strafton¡¯s court magician Dustin. I was lucky enough to get hired as an apprentice to their court magician when I was young and have been serving them ever since. Duke Strafton wanted his son to see the world a bit. Stating he couldn¡¯t know the faintest about managing the lands if he hasn¡¯t even visited them.


    We hired a few retired adventurers who were supposedly pretty highly ranked. First, we have Gregor; he is a bit of a meathead, but he moves as if he was still in his prime. Earlier, when we were attacked by some dire wolves, he took care of them all without any help.


    Our other escort for this trip is Hemlet. He may not seem like much, but he detected those dire wolves before they showed up. I believe they said he was an expert scout. I¡¯m not sure how he does it, but he sensed the wolves long before they approached us.


    ¡°Hey, where is the young master?¡± Hemlet asked on his way back from the forest. Carrying an armful of firewood.


    ¡°He is already asleep.¡± I replied, ¡°For the first time leaving the mansion, I imagine all this travel is a bit much for him.¡±


    ¡°I bet it is. Seems like he is having plenty of fun, though. Never met a kid his age with so many questions.¡± Hemlet said as he threw some of the timber into the fire pit. ¡°If you would be so kind, sir Dustin.¡± Gesturing towards the fire pit.


    ¡°Ignitius,¡± I murmured; a small fire sprang to life in the fire pit.


    ¡°That sure is handy,¡± Hemlet said watch intently as the flame spread across the wood.


    We all sat down around the fire as the sunset, letting the fresh night breeze pass by. Lightly joking amongst ourselves. I could tell these men were good at heart. They were earnestly trying to speak correctly in front of the Duke¡¯s son as not to offend. However, when it was just us, they were letting their formality slip just a bit.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    ¡°This is decent pay for just escorting some nobles son.¡± Gregor chuckled.


    ¡°Well, it isn¡¯t just some noble. It''s Duke Strafton¡¯s first son. If anything happens to him, it will be our heads on the chopping block too.¡± Hemlet spoke up.


    ¡°It¡¯s simple; just don¡¯t let anything happen to the young man,¡± I said, then clapped my hands together. They got a good laugh out of this as if it were that easy.


    At that time, a chill ran down my spine. Emerging from the darkness was a see-through form of what used to be a man. It strode right up to the campfire and began waving its arms around. Missing flesh and parts of bone exposed. Its throat ripped out. It was a truly horrifying sight.


    I was speechless, and so were my companions. Whatever this thing was, it surely meant us harm. The eerie aura it gave off it had to be evil. Grabbing my staff, I began to build mana at the tip to cast a spell.


    Which spell should I cast? It was a spirit of some sort. However, I wasn¡¯t a priest or a cleric; I couldn¡¯t use holy magic to purify it. Undead and spirits should be vulnerable to fire. I chose a second-tier attack spell Infernium. A powerful fire-based attack spell.


    I pointed my staff at the specter, forming the spell. The creature put out both hands as if inviting me to attack it head-on. A sinister smile creeping across its half-eaten face. I launched the spell, ¡°Infernium,¡± I shouted, releasing the magic.


    The creature didn¡¯t as much as flinch. Standing there with both arms out, taking the spell head-on. The spell had passed through the specter and vanished. Almost as if the energy had been sucked clean out of the spell. The spirit''s face turned sullen, peering downwards as it faded back into the shadows.


    ¡°Get some torches!¡± I shouted to the other two.


    ¡°Uhh¡­ Uhh... On it! Boss!¡± Hemlet replied.


    ¡°Just what the hell was that!¡± Gregor exclaimed while grabbing his sword.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure. But it seemed malevolent, did it not?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I dunno, but it sure gave of some seriously creepy vibes,¡± Gregor spat as he continued looking towards the shadows.


    Needless to say, none of us got any sleep that night except for the young master. When we had finally made our way back to the mansion, I had asked the church to send out some priests in search of the creature. To find it and purify it.


    It had crossed my mind; maybe it wasn¡¯t evil, but instead was searching for salvation. When my magic didn¡¯t so much as faze it, it had left with a sullen expression. Sadness, perhaps, that I couldn¡¯t destroy it and end its suffering? That is what I had thought, at least.

 Ch. 2-3 - Ah Man... I Died...

    *****


    I found myself once again staring up at the rising twin moons. Where had I gone after I had run into those travelers? I couldn¡¯t remember; a cold empty void filled my memory. Somehow, I was back. Standing in the spot where I died. Just like when I first awoke.


    It looks like it is Heaven¡¯s Day again. Had another six months passed, or had it been longer? I had to come up with some other strategy. I couldn¡¯t just approach travelers. That didn¡¯t work out so well, and I wasn¡¯t sure if there would be another chance if I lost consciousness again.


    Whatever my next move was, I had to be smart about it. I seem to be some sort of monster based on the way those travelers acted. I heard from the town''s adventures that monsters don¡¯t leave the dungeon because they live off the mana that emanates from them.


    That would be my next step; I would go to the closest dungeon, Black Gate. It wasn¡¯t too far from here. I should be able to walk there before daybreak. I went back down the road towards Ullmet and took the path leading north towards the dungeon.


    As I walked, I realized I could sense the creatures in the forest around me. The tiny field mice in the tall grass. The owls flying overhead in search of food. It was a bit surreal, but so was being a ghost. It was strange how well I was handling this, but how else could I feel about it?


    I managed to make my way to Black Gate while lost in thought. I could see the wooden walls built around the entrance with guard towers on either side. Both were unmanned. It seemed the entire camp set up at the entrance of the dungeon was abandoned.


    I continued walking straight through the wooden gate that should have barred my path. My mist-like body seeping through the cracks and forming on the other side. I had thought I would just try going through because I¡¯m like a ghost, right?


    Standing before the enormous twin black gates, I was in awe. The colossal gates were pitch black, and appeared to be carved from a single piece of stone. One of the gates was slightly opened, but the gates themselves were so large I don¡¯t think they would typically be able to move them. They probably just left them open or couldn¡¯t close them.


    I walked inside the gates looking around; the inside was much like a cave. It was dark, but I still had no problem seeing. To begin with, I didn¡¯t have physical eyes, so I wasn¡¯t too surprised. I was wondering how I could hear and see for a while now and yet couldn¡¯t speak.


    I traveled down the winding passages of the cavelike structure, noticing a few goblins along the way carrying torches. Constructing what looked to be a crude shrine. Twigs and branches wrapped together and ordained with shiny bits of coins and other metals. They didn¡¯t seem to mind me too much before scurrying up into a tunnel on the adjacent side.


    It was one of my dreams to explore dungeons. When would be a better time to do that than right now? I went closer, inspecting the shrine, and noticed what they had done. Adventures traveling down this dark path would see this glimmering shrine. It would pull their attention away from the path on the adjacent side. With low visibility and only torches to see in this cave, most people would have missed that. When they walked forward, the goblins would most likely ambush them from behind.


    Wow, even goblins couldn¡¯t be underestimated. Especially if there was another group of goblins attacking them head-on. I could imagine that ending badly for any adventures who were distracted by that totem.


    As I ventured further into the dungeon, I could feel new strength flowing into me. So my idea coming to the dungeon did seem to have some merit. Maybe I really was some sort of monster now.


    According to the adventures I drank with at the pub in Ullmet, the monsters would get tougher the deeper you went. The reasoning behind it was, the closer you were to the heart of the dungeon, the denser the mana was. If the mana was denser, I hoped it would help me stay conscious. So I continued to look for a way further down into the dungeon.


    I had met a few monsters now, those goblins and some giant spiders about the size of a dog. The spiders didn¡¯t seem to mind me as I proceeded further into the dungeon. Eventually, I came across a large archway built of sperate stone blocks; faint glowing runes were inscribed on each. I''m not the most knowledgeable person, but they were completely different from any writing I knew.


    Inside the archway was a set of stair leading down. I usually would have been too scared to proceed, but so far, nothing had attacked me. Even if it did, I don¡¯t think I would get hurt. It would be like trying to fight with fog. You just couldn¡¯t do it.


    *****


    The second floor had more of an outdoor feel to it. It was spacious and filled with all types of forest growth. Looking up, I could see the night sky, or at least what looked like the night sky. On closer inspection, the stars that were twinkling turned out to be small glowing stones. It was hard to distinguish the walls and ceiling since they seem to be so far away.


    It was bizarre. I didn¡¯t think I had walked down far enough for the ceiling to be this high, and why was there such dense vegetation here with no sunlight. There was something else going on. Dungeons really were mysterious places after all.


    The mana did seem thicker here on this floor. Since becoming whatever I am now, I could feel the flow of mana much more acutely than I could when I was alive. When I was alive, I did have a knack for manipulating mana but not enough to become a mage. I had tried to apprentice to a mage in Ullmet when I was young, but I just didn¡¯t have the talent for it. However, now I seem to be able to easily sense mana. It was almost tangible.


    I wonder if I could now manipulate mana better too? The most recent magic I have seen was that mages fireball spell he cast at me. If I were to try that I could foresee it going wrong. It just wouldn¡¯t be a good idea for a novice like me with all the dense plants on this floor. I thought back to when I was trying to be an apprentice, and the mage was seeing if we had talent by using a small innocuous spell called create water.


    I began to focus, trying to take in the mana around me. I then attempted to push the mana out to form a ball of water. However, I immediately began to feel tired as the mana left me. I quickly stopped, sensing that I might find my way back to that empty darkness if I continued.


    Well, that was a failure. A bit disappointed, I continued my journey looking for the next floor. Paying more attention to my surroundings now that I realized I could sense the flow of mana more accurately. I could detect giant monsters and smaller monsters in the denser part of the forests. Even though I was quite confident, nothing could physically harm me, and I wouldn¡¯t fade as long as I kept taking in mana. I still didn''t want to come face to face with them in this scary underground forest.Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!


    Focusing on where the mana was thickest, I continued along my way until I came upon another of the archways with similar runes etched into the stones glowing faintly.


    ¡°Ahh, it looks like I found my way down.¡±


    I made my way down through several more floors, each with the mana getting denser. Some more cavelike floors, some more forest and field type floors, A floor which seemed to consist of flowing lava and fire elementals. I stumbled upon the likes of ogre¡¯s, goblins, spiders, snakes, different types of elementals as I progressed through the floors. None of the creatures I came across seemed to pay me much attention as I continually searched for the next archway leading further down.


    *****


    I stepped out of the archway, and this floor was beautiful. Unlike the other floors, it looked man-made, but who would have crafted something like this so deep in the dungeon was beyond me.


    It was like the passageways in a castle. The floors were polished white marble with decorative grayish marble inlaid in it. The pathways were decorated with wooden end tables, vases with flowers, scones attached to the walls with magic crystals that gave off a crisp blue light. Along the walls were arched windows with crosshatched glass covering them. The glass itself was rare enough, but my attention was on the sunlight streaming in. Just as quickly as I got excited, I was equally let down. The sunlight was an illusion from magic stones on the other side, much like the other floors making it seem outside.


    Still, this floor is impressive. The walls of the corridors were carved from precisely cut stone. Something I would have thought befitting of a noble or someone of high society. If adventurers made it down this deep, they would be able to fetch I hefty sum just from the light crystals and glass alone. To do that, though, they would need to be extraordinarily skilled.


    As I continued my way through the hallways, I heard what sounded like people walking. This caught me off guard since I wasn¡¯t able to sense them like I had the other creatures so far. I quickly made my way around a corner, peeking so slightly to see what it was.


    Down the hallway came two skeletal soldiers, as if they were doing patrols. They wore beautiful looking metal armor, it looked like what guards of a noble house would wear. Each wielding a halberd was they walked along¡ªtheir metal armor clanking with each step.


    ¡°Strange, I can¡¯t sense them.¡± I thought to myself as I watched them march onwards toward the very corner I was hiding by. Maybe I was unable to sense them because they were undead? Technically not alive? I wasn¡¯t sure how they would respond to me. Still, if they were monsters of the dungeon, surely they would just look at me and carry about their business like the other creatures of this dungeon have done.


    I stepped out from the corner, and both skeletal knights stopped where they stood. Blue flames flickering in their eye sockets as they stared at me. I began to walk past them as their heads turned, keeping their eery gaze on me as I passed.


    Stupid skeletons starring at me like that. Geez, who do they think they are. Just because they got bones and I don¡¯t.


    After I passed, they continued their forward march patrolling the area.


    Exploring the floor, I found lavishly decorated rooms complete with elegant beds; it did seem that this floor was modeled after a nobles home of some sort. Complete with skeletal guards, and a few skeletal mages from what I could tell.


    Really, what were dungeons? I thought to myself as I kept exploring.


    After the excitement of exploring this floor died down, I decided it was time to head down to the next. Focusing on my surroundings, I tried to sense the flow of mana. It was getting more and more difficult with each floor, the thicker the mana was, the harder it was to detect the subtle differences in it. I had managed to pick up on the general direction of where the mana was thickest and began to head that way.


    Even if I don¡¯t get my body back, this may not be so bad. This way, I could explore this dungeon all I want. No wait, that would be horrible to be trapped in this dungeon for the rest of my afterlife. What was I thinking! I still had my dream to travel the world. I would just wait until someone came that was capable of resurrecting me.


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s a solid plan for now,¡± reassuring myself.


    The archway leading down this time was a little different. In addition to the runes being different, they had a red glow instead of blue. I took a step back to think about this. Why were these runes different?


    Could it be this is the last floor? Or could it be it just meant the following area was more challenging? I really didn¡¯t have a clue about dungeons, only what I have heard from the adventures in the taverns. They said on the last floor there was a boss monster and if you defeated it, the dungeons treasure room would open up. Making it that far in a dungeon usually didn¡¯t happen as dangerous as it was. Once you made it that deep, and if you defeated the boss monster, you still had to go all the way back up carrying your treasure. With no rest stops, it was very tough.


    It had always been one of my dreams to go dungeon diving with some adventurers, but as a guard, my skills were not on the same level. One day though, I wanted to join a party and give it a try.


    Even if it was some grotesque monster down those stairs, I wasn¡¯t too worried. Nothing else seemed to care I was casually strolling through their dungeon.


    I went deeper; as I stepped out on the other side of the archway, the pathway closed behind me. The cave walls were made out of some crystal and giving off a glow that illuminated this area. A throne of made of the same crystal sat at the far end of the room. On the throne was an enormous minotaur, a creature with a man''s body and the head of a bull.


    Enormous may have been close to being an understatement. The creature was at least 15 feet tall, muscles bulged all over its body. All it wore was a small loincloth and some boots. Next to it sat an equally large double-headed ax.


    With a roar that seemed to shake the very foundation of this cave, it stood up, grabbing its ax. Quickly lifting the ax with no effort, it charged for me.


    For some reason, this got my blood boiling if I had blood. This was my first boss room fight. I was going to enjoy it! I was ready to go running forward; I charged toward the minotaur.


    Swinging the giant ax in front of it as it ran trying to hit me head-on, I expertly dodged sliding underneath the swing. Sliding between its legs, as I did motioning like I cut its legs as if I had my sword.


    The minotaur let out a painful howel falling to one knee. Shocked, I stood up. I was only doing this on a whim because it seemed fun. Did I actually hurt it?


    While I was contemplating what just happened, the minotaur had turned, tossing his giant ax straight for me. I didn¡¯t have enough time to move, it stuck into the floor right where I was standing. Right where I was standing, if I had a body, it would be in two pieces at the moment.


    I clutched my chest and staggered back and fell to the ground. I wasn¡¯t actually hurt, but it occurred to me the minotaur must have been faking too when he feigned pain when I pretended to cut its legs.


    The minotaur let out a loud chuckle with a snort. Picking up his ax and heading back for his throne before setting back down.


    I guess it must get really boring down here too.


    Attempting to communicate with the minotaur did me no good. It would just look at me puzzledly before waving his hand through me, after a while of doing this back and forth. It irritatedly stood up and pointed to a set of doors behind its throne. Shooing me in that direction.


    The way I came down had not opened back up nor had the doors. The boss must need to be defeated before the doors would open back up. However, if we were to really fight, it would be a stalemate. He wouldn¡¯t be able to hurt me, nor would I be able to beat it.


    I moved towards the doors behind the throne. They were made of the same black material the gates at the entrance were made of, just on a much smaller scale. One of my new perks was that I didn¡¯t need to worry about opening the door. I could just walk right on through.


    I stepped forward through the door.

 Ch. 3–1 - The Devil In The Basement

    <h1>Chapter 3 ¨C The Devil In The Basement</h1>


    Mist seeped through the black door''s seams and began to take form on the other side. It was still a bit surreal. When I did this, I didn¡¯t really understand how it worked. To me, it just seems like I simply walked through the door.


    The room was lit by four bright light crystals. The room was small enough to be lit by only this many. Extravagant red banners, outlined with gold embroidery, decorated the walls. Giving the treasure room a regal feel to it.


    In the center of the room, on an ornate rug with similar patterns to the banner, a large chest filled with jewels, enchanted weapons, and gold coins. I stood there in awe staring at the chest. The treasure in the room alone, someone could live a life of luxury for several lifetimes.


    I approached the chest wishing there was some way to dig through the treasure and inspect it. However, in my current condition, not having an actual corporal body, I couldn¡¯t.


    As I stood there, greedily eyeing the chest, a cold chill ran through my entire being. Something akin to what I felt when I had vanished. A sudden fear rushed over me as I looked up saw a dark hooded figure walking towards me.


    ¡°What are you doing down here! Get back upstairs and patrol,¡± it shouted.


    Even though the voice was oddly feminine and reminded me of getting scolded when I was younger, the fear did not subside.


    It approached even closer when I didn¡¯t respond right away.


    ¡°Hmmm¡­¡± it let out as she lowered her hood.


    I was immediately drawn to her blue eyes that seemed to stare through my very existence. Well, she probably was seeing straight through me¡­


    She reached up and pulled her hood down¡ªvibrant red hair out of her robes, letting it fall down onto her shoulders. I continued staring at her blankly. How could such a divine beauty give off such an impending sense of dread?


    She continued looking me up and down, ¡°There shouldn¡¯t be any specters in this Dungeon. Wait, you are not quite a specter, are you. What are you?¡±


    ¡°¡­¡± I was still stuck in some sort of feedback loop at what was going on.


    ¡°Hey, it''s rude not to answer a question when you asked,¡± she began to pout.


    ¡°Uhh¡­ Uhh¡­ Hello, I¡¯m not exactly sure what I am, young miss,¡± I stammered.


    ¡°Young miss,¡± She repeated bashfully, ¡°You can call me Zozi,¡± she smiled.


    ¡°Zozi? Wait, you can understand me!¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I guess I can,¡± putting her finger to her chin, ¡°I¡¯m not quite sure why that is. Maybe your some sort of new rare monster,¡± She said, her eyes wide and her smile growing more prominent as she closed in on me, inspecting me as if she had just gotten a new toy.


    ¡°You think? I mean, I was attacked by people when they saw in on the road.¡±


    ¡°The road? You mean you weren¡¯t always in the Dungeon?¡±


    ¡°No, I used to live in Ullmet. I took a job to guard a caravan and was killed by some dire wolves,¡± my head dropping down as I thought about it.


    Zozi quickly took a few steps back and brought her finger to her chin once again, contemplating something.


    ¡°Well, your not human, right?¡± she asked as she stared at me.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think so, not anymore. I remember dying¡­ and I don¡¯t have a body,¡± I said dejectedly.


    ¡°Phew, well good. I¡¯m not supposed to talk to humans. My father said; No going to the surface, no influencing humanity, and keep the dungeons running,¡± as she numbered them off on her fingers.


    ¡°Wait¡­ you''re not human?¡±


    ¡°Oh no, I¡¯m what humans call the dark god. I don¡¯t like that name much. I mean, I don¡¯t do no mean stuff or nothing. Sure, people die in the dungeons, but I would help them out if I could.¡±


    ¡°The dark god Zozrollal? I thought your name was Zozi?¡±


    ¡°My friends call me Zozi,¡± she said, beaming a smile. ¡°Well, I really don¡¯t have any friends, but I always imagined that¡¯s what they would call me if I had some.¡±


    It made sense if I thought about it. Why would a cute girl be in the treasure room of a dungeon? The boss hadn¡¯t even been defeated yet.


    ¡°Well, my name is Ruten. Nice to meet you. I guess we are friends then.¡± I tried to smile, but I wasn¡¯t sure it was getting across. My detached ghost form jaw hanging half off.


    We continued talking to each other, and I explained my situation of how I ended dying and going into the Dungeon so that I wouldn¡¯t disappear again.


    ¡°So, coming to the dungeon really kept you from fading?¡±


    ¡°It seems like it so far.¡±


    ¡°Well, since your not technically not part of humanity, I think I should be able to help you out. I can link you to the same energy that circulates the dungeons. So when you leave the Dungeon, you shouldn¡¯t disappear then.¡±


    I wasn¡¯t too sure about being linked to the same power that powers the Dungeon, and I hadn¡¯t given up hope yet on being able to find someone to resurrect me.


    ¡°I appreciate it, but I haven''t given up hope on someone being able to resurrect me.¡±


    ¡°Resurrect you? Resurrect what? You have no physical body to bring back,¡± Zozi plainly stated as if it was common knowledge. ¡°You need to have something to bring back, and if the body isn¡¯t in good enough condition, it won¡¯t work.¡±


    I stood there, dumbfounded for a second. I knew there was such a thing as resurrection, but I didn¡¯t know how it was performed.


    Zozi continued, ¡°A priest may be able to purify you if you want to move on. Actually, that is what they would probably do as soon as they saw you. You do look pretty grotesque.¡±This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    She waved her hand. A body mirror appeared in front of me, revealing my horrid form. This was me, a pale mist that looked like a body that was missing flesh. Exposed bone on my forearms and legs, my throat was ripped out. One side of my jaw hanging half off. I would have emptied the contents of my stomach right then if I could.


    I turned to Zozi and nodded, ¡°I do look pretty bad. I¡¯ll take you up on your offer,¡± if it was the only way for me to explore the world, I would have to risk it.


    Zozi looked at me excitedly, ¡°I do have a favor to ask, though. If you can go back up to the world above, would you bring me back some treats?¡± with an expectant look while waiting for my reply.


    ¡°Sure, I don¡¯t mind, but how am I supposed to do that? I can¡¯t touch anything.¡±


    ¡°We will figure something out, I¡¯m sure,¡± she sounded confident, so maybe she had a plan in mind.


    Zozi reached forward, placing her hand on my chest where my heart would have been. A brilliant light erupted from her hand, and a burning sensation wracked my chest with pain. Like I had been stuck with a hot fire poker. As the light subsided, so did the pain leaving the dark god''s emblem branded on my chest.


    Did I just make a pact with the dark god? She is supposed to be evil and humanity''s bane. However, I just don¡¯t see it how could such a cute cheerful girl be evil incarnate.


    I felt energized and no worse for wear. I didn¡¯t realize how sluggish I had felt only moments before. I could feel the energy filling my being. It didn¡¯t feel ominous or evil like I would have expected from a power coming from dungeons.


    ¡°I think I can feel the energy. I would have thought it would have been a bit more sinister, though, no offense.¡±


    ¡°Uhh¡­ that¡¯s kind of rude,¡± Zozi¡¯s face forming a frown. ¡°I told you I ain¡¯t evil or nothing. I am just doing what I was ordered to do by my father. My power is just as divine as my brothers and sisters,¡± clearly pouting now.


    ¡°No..no¡­ I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t mean it that way. I was just a bit surprised. You said it¡¯s the same source as the power for the dungeons, and people say the dungeons are evil, so I just thought, you know,¡± doing my best to apologize.


    My flustered apology must have worked because Zozi laughed.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it were friends, right! More importantly, we need to get started on operation tasty treats!¡± as she pumped her fist in the air.


    Zozi waved her hand once more, and the full-length mirror vanished, and in its place was a wooden mannequin.


    *****


    Zozi explained that specters and some other ghost-type monsters can possess objects to move them. The mannequin she had summoned was for me to attempt this. At first, it was hard for me to get the hang of, but before long, I moved the wooden arms and legs ever so slightly.


    My progress was slow, but the more I practiced, the easier it became. Still, for some reason, I didn¡¯t really feel fatigued from continually trying. It must have been the mark Zozi put onto my chest that filled me with the energy to keep going.


    Every time I made some more progress, Zozi would cheer and clap excitedly, keeping me motivated. Her motivation was the operation tasty treats, as she put it.


    Apparently, not long ago, an adventure had lost his entire party to the Dungeon. As a last effort to survive, he had prayed to the dark god to let him live. It was tradition to offer up prayers and leave and offering, so the man had offered up a piece of bread glazed with honey. Ever since then, she has been on the lookout for any food adventurers leave behind.


    Zozi was forbidden from interacting with humanity, so she couldn¡¯t help the man, but he did manage to find his way out of the Dungeon. Her task was to build these dungeons and keep them operational until they were conquered. Then she would be tasked with creating a new one somewhere else. There was a total of 40 dungeons she was supposed to keep active at all times. So when one was conquered, she would build a new one.


    When I had asked why her father tasked her to build dungeons, she thought for a moment then replied, ¡°He said it had something to do with trials for humanity, but I¡¯m not sure really what it meant.¡±


    I decided not to continue probing into this father''s business. It was bad enough to be mixed up with someone called the dark god, but this father would be the father of gods then? I really didn¡¯t want to get mixed up with someone who was that powerful.


    When my training had yielded enough results to walk the mannequin around the room, Zozi clapped her hands together. ¡°It''s about time to up the difficulty; give me a second.¡±


    Zozi outstretched both arms in front of her and closed her eyes, and began to focus. Unlike before, when things simply poofed into existence. A complex glowing magic circle appeared on the floor in front of her. I could sense an unfathomable amount of mana coming from her. In front of her, bones and muscles began to form as a body began to be built. A fully developed humanoid body wearing simple farmer''s clothes crumpled over onto the floor when it was complete.


    The body looked eerily similar to me except with broader muscles and a more defined chin. Zozi must have made it based on what she thought I had looked like before I was eaten.


    ¡°Wow, that was amazing!¡± I said


    ¡°Ahh¡­. that ain¡¯t nothing,¡± as she flexed her arms and slapped her muscles. ¡°You should see it when I make a dungeon,¡± She smiled, obviously happy with my compliment.


    ¡°So, you can make humans too?¡± I asked.


    ¡°No, this is just a unique one-off. It¡¯s not quite human. I can¡¯t make souls or anything. Only father can do that, I think. But I can make golems pretty well. So I just made a golem out of flesh,¡± she beamed.


    The absurdity that this made sense to me was a testament that I began to acclimate to this world I found myself living in.


    I started the same way I did with the wooden mannequin. Slowly sliding my mist-like form into the golem body. Trying to attach to it the same way as the mannequin was exponentially more difficult. It seems the golem had lungs, heart, blood, the same as a real body. All these tiny little factors upped the difficulty by a lot. When I finally could wiggle the golems fingers, Zozi shouted with glee, ¡°One step closer to operation Tasty Treats being a success!¡±


    ¡°What wasn¡¯t confident?¡± ¡°Grreara¡­.whha,¡± the voice came from the golem at the same time.


    I was shocked. Did I just speak? It wasn¡¯t coherent, but it was something. I could cry¡­.If I could figure out how to make the golem body do it.


    I continued working on controlling my new golem body. I couldn¡¯t tell how long we had spent down in the treasure room of that Dungeon practicing the control of my new body. It could have been days or weeks I had no way of telling. However, I didn¡¯t once feel tired; it was strange. I should have easily reached my physical or mental limit by now and needed a rest, but of course, I wasn¡¯t quite human anymore.


    When I had finally mastered the basics of walking, running, and speech Zozi announced it was time for my debut in the town of Ullmet. She handed me a pouch and a shortsword like I was used to. I hadn¡¯t done any training, but it was probably to keep me from standing out. I wasn¡¯t sure I would be able to use it if I needed to.


    ¡°That bag is enchanted, so don¡¯t lose it, okay. It can hold a lot, and best of all, the food won¡¯t rot or go bad while it''s in there.¡± Zozi continued, ¡°I put some money in there too. All you have to do is think about what you want to take out, and you will grab it. If you want to put something in you, just have to open the bag and think about putting it in there.¡±


    ¡°Why give me something so important? ¡±


    ¡°This is part of operation Tasty Treats. I want you to go and buy a bunch of yummy things from Ullmet. You put them in that bag, and then I can eat all I want,¡± she said with a self-satisfied smile.


    With a look of concern, she continued, ¡°You should be pretty durable.¡± Then she placed her hand over my heart where her emblem should be. ¡°But don¡¯t let that seal be destroyed. It¡¯s the source of your mana, and I would feel awful if you disappeared.¡±


    With such an honest show of concern, I could only do my best to put her mind to ease. ¡°I¡¯ll be fine,¡± I said, striking a similar pose as she did when she made my new meat suit and slapped my bicep, giving a toothy grin.


    ¡°I¡¯ll clear a path out of the dungeon for you just in case,¡± she said while holding back a snicker.


    *****


    I made my way back up out of the Dungeon with not a lot of trouble. Whenever I almost ran into one of the dungeon creatures, they would skitter off in a different direction, avoiding me. This must have been what Zozi meant when she said she would clear a path for me.


    When I stepped out from the twin black gates that were the dungeon entrance, I was greeted by several guards setting up for the day. It was still dark out, but I could make out the sun peaking over the treetops in the distance.


    ¡°Hey! What are you doing here!¡± one of the guards shouted as I was apprehended.


    ¡°Uhh¡­Nothing sir. I am just leaving the Dungeon.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, not buying it, son.¡±


    The guards restrained me and marched me to a smallholding area in a building near the entrance.

 Ch 3-2 - The Devil In Th Basement - Zozis Viewpoint

    <h2>Zozrollal The Dark God</h2>


    Zozi watched as Ruten made his way out of the Dungeon. The familiar loneliness crept over her. ¡°That was the most fun I had in a while.¡± She said to herself as she sat down on an ornate marble throne.


    When was the last time she had so much fun? She couldn¡¯t remember. It had to have been before she was tasked with maintaining the dungeons. Back when it was just her and her siblings. She thought back, nostalgically.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    A bitter expression clouded her face. When humanity started calling her the dark god, her siblings no longer wanted anything to do with her. ¡°I might as well get back to monitoring the dungeons,¡± pulling up her hood, she let her focus drift to the multitude of dungeons she maintained.


    However, there was something new there now. Among Zozi¡¯s links to the dungeons, there was something else she could see clearly. It was Ruten exiting Black Gate up on the surface.


    He was surrounded by guards and being taken somewhere. Zozi was frantic with worry, but it came down to the fact she couldn¡¯t interfere. With a sigh of resignation, she slouched back in her chair.


    ¡°Ruten better bring me back some good treats.¡±

 Ch. 4-1 - Going Home.

    As I exited Black Gate, several guards that were setting up for the day noticed me. Apparently, I wasn¡¯t supposed to be in the Dungeon. They kept logs of who enters and who left and would send in search parties if a group of people didn¡¯t return before they left for the night.


    No one was currently missing, and I didn¡¯t sign in, so they suspected me of something. I was being held until the guards figured out what I was up to. I understood where they were coming from; I was clearly suspicious. Another guard entered the room, his leather armor more decorative than the rest of the guards.


    ¡°Captain!¡± the guard at the door saluted by placing his fist on his chest.


    The captain took a seat on the opposite side of the table, looking me up and down. ¡°You don¡¯t seem like someone who would enter the dungeon alone.¡±


    He must be referring to the simple farmer¡¯s clothes I wore. Yep, why would a simple farmer be wandering a dungeon alone?


    ¡°So, what were you doing down in the dungeon by yourself?¡±


    ¡°I was just exploring.¡±


    ¡°Uggh¡­¡± The captain pinched the bridge of his nose and looked down. ¡°Bring me the truth crystal.¡±


    ¡°Yessir!¡± the guard at the door left, returning with a clear palm-sized crystal.


    They put my hands on the table, placing the crystal inside my palm.


    ¡°Okay again, what were you doing down in the dungeon,¡± the captain asked again, sterner than before.


    ¡°I was exploring the dungeon,¡± I answered. The crystal gave a faint blue glow.


    Flustered, the captain asked, ¡°Okay, when did you enter the dungeon?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure how long I was down there,¡± the crystal gave a faint blue glow. That must mean I was telling the truth again. Technically I was exploring, and I really wasn¡¯t sure how long I was down there.


    The captain looked at the guard by the door and back to me, ¡°Did you enter the dungeon last night.¡±Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    ¡°No, it was a few days, maybe a week or more ago. I¡¯m not really sure,¡± the crystal gave a faint blue glow again.


    Wide-eyed, the captain asked, ¡°How did you survive that long.¡±


    For a moment, I thought, how could I answer without saying, ¡°Zozi, let me stay with her most of the time,¡± I just needed to respond with something that was technically the truth.


    ¡°Well, the monsters didn¡¯t really seem interested in me and didn¡¯t give me any trouble,¡± the crystal gave a faint red glow.


    The captain smirked as if with a gotcha moment, ¡°The crystal says your lying you best start telling the truth now.¡±


    Oh, that¡¯s right. The minotaur did attack me, but I didn¡¯t think he was serious. I think it was more because he was bored being alone in that boss room.


    ¡°I forgot there was one monster that attacked me. It was a giant minotaur; I think he was just playing around because he was bored,¡± I answered as if it were no big deal. The crystal gave a faint blue glow again.


    Rubbing his forehead, the captain asked, ¡°So were you up to anything illegal?¡±


    ¡°Nope, not that I¡¯m aware of,¡± the crystal gave a faint blue glow.


    ¡°Uggh, I don¡¯t have time for this. Let him go.¡±


    ¡°Yessir!¡± the guard at the door responded.


    ¡°I won¡¯t be charging you with any crimes today, but if we catch you again, I will. If you want to go exploring still, you need to register with the adventurer¡¯s guild, and then you need to sign in before you head down. It¡¯s for your own good,¡± he said before leaving the room.


    After that, the guards released me, returning my belongings and escorting me outside the Dungeon''s fortifications. The guards explained that reforms had been passed, and now the guards only monitored the Dungeon during the days. No one was allowed to enter the Dungeon after a specific time. The new Duke had implemented recent reforms across the territory to reduce costs; this was one of them.


    With the new schedule, some would take advantage of it. Dark god worshippers may sneak in and try to commune with the dark one. Bandits would dispose of bodies after dark, dungeons would absorb corpses left there long enough. Hiding the evidence of a crime being committed.


    Stretching, glad to be free of my bindings, I set off on my trip back to Ullmet


    *****


    Zozrollal sat on her marble throne, watched Ruten and the guards. This is quite entertaining, she thought as she hummed to herself. It''s like she gets to explore the world above herself.


    ¡°This would be great with snacks,¡± she said as she pouted. At that time, she realized something had happened to one of the dungeons; a boss was defeated somewhere on the eastern continent. She was glad that someone didn¡¯t die fighting the boss, but that also meant she had a lot of work created for her.


    She would need to create another dungeon. She was tasked with maintaining the dungeons, and that also meant when one was defeated, she had to create another.


    Usually, this would have excited her. Changing it up from her regular tedious duties of just upkeep, but now she had a new hobby of watching Ruten stumble along his way in the world above. She wanted to hurry up and get this new Dungeon completed so she could get back to watching Ruten.

 Ch. 4-2 - Going Home

    I approached the town of Ullmet. The wooden palisades surrounding the town were further from the town than I remembered. As I approached the gate, I heard the bustling of the residents inside. I was positioned behind several carts of varying sizes. At each stop, the guards would inspect the cart before waving them in.


    When it came to my turn, the guard just waved me in since I didn¡¯t have a cart. It must have something to do with taxes. Ullmet had grown quite a bit. The old dusty road was now paved, new buildings lined the streets. Many more people seemed to live here.


    I began to worry about how long I had actually been gone. I needed to check on Merle. Weaving myself through the traffic, I made my way to a familiar storefront and was greeted by a familiar sign. ¡°Bigg¡¯s Goods,¡± this was Merle¡¯s old man¡¯s shop.


    I entered the shop, and a young shopkeeper boy greeted me. I didn¡¯t recognize him.


    ¡°Excuse me, but was Merle in?¡±


    ¡°You a friend of grandmother¡¯s? She doesn¡¯t come by the shop much anymore.¡±


    I stood there in silence as I let the reality wash over me. I had been gone for a really long time. The once small village had enough time to become a bustling town. It wasn¡¯t surprising that Merle would move on without me as well. I mean, I did die, so I can¡¯t really blame her. Still, it was a bit much to take in so suddenly. I had thought I had prepared myself for this as it was the most likely outcome. I had no sense of time while I was away.


    What I had to do now was what I had always done. I needed to face forward and continue on towards my dream. I wasn¡¯t going to let a little thing like death stop me. Why should I let this?


    With a concerned look, the boy asked, ¡°You okay, mister? Do you need me to take a message?¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s okay; I need to be on my way.¡±


    =


    I would be doing her no favors now by introducing her to my new problems, so I decided I would try and stay away from Merle for the time being. Looking up, I realized I followed the smell of food to an area where several food carts lined the streets.


    Gazing at a particular food cart, the owner held a funnel, dropping batter into the oil and frying it till it was golden brown. She would then scoop it out and cover it with finely ground sugar. I hadn¡¯t seen this before, and it smelt wonderful. Then I remembered the real reason I came back to Ullmet, operation Tasty Treats.


    I came here to get Zozi some treats, so that is what I will do. My existential crisis would have to wait for a later date.


    ¡°Excuse me, mam, do you do large orders?¡±


    ¡°We sure do, handsome. How large we talking about?¡±


    ¡°Could we do about thirty of them?¡± Zozi had given me this bag with some money for this very reason.


    She nearly spat, ¡°Sure can sweetie. If you got the coin. It will be¡­¡± she counted on her hand, ¡°Twelve silver.¡±


    That was pretty expensive, but sugar was pretty expensive too, and she was using it as a topping. One silver was worth ten copper, so each of these fried cakes I bought would be four copper. ¡°Sounds fair; it¡¯s a deal,¡± I said


    ¡°Great! I can¡¯t get it all ready until tomorrow. I¡¯ll need to pick up some more ingredients. Would you be able to come by tomorrow and pick it up? We could do half payment now and half tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t have any plans to leave today, so that sounds fine to me, but on the payment, would you mind if I paid you completely upfront,¡± I was a little worried about how much money I had. Zozi had said she put money in the bag but didn¡¯t say how much.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine with that if you are,¡± she said as she gave me a toothy grin.


    I reached into the bag and thought about twelve silver coins. Immediately I felt something in my hand and pulled it out. It was twelve silvers. So far, so good.


    I handed over the money and agreed tomorrow after she got the ingredients, I would return to pick up the fried cakes. I examined the rest of the stall, making my way to each one that looked like it offered sweets; they were my target for today.


    I found some fudge, cupcakes, cookies, chocolate-covered bananas, and made similar deals with those shopkeepers. Tomorrow I would come back, load up on the snacks and head out back to Zozi. I could just imagine her salivating over all the treats.


    I wouldn¡¯t have dreamt of finding all these shops in Ullmet back when I lived here. It sure did grow while I was gone.


    Now that I had some time to kill, I should register with the adventure guild. The guard had mentioned that I would need to be an adventurer to enter the Dungeon, which might come in handy on my way back. I made my way to the maze of streets until I came across the familiar adventurer guild building.


    I hadn¡¯t actually ever been inside before. Sometimes I would drink with adventurers at the local pub and had one day wanted to become an adventurer so I could explore dungeons. They always held a mysterious air about them when I heard the adventurers talk.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    I entered the building; it was surprisingly clean. The floors looked freshly swept, and there was a reception area with benches that filled a considerable portion of the space. Considering the adventurers, I knew I was surprised by the cleanliness of the place.


    On the opposite side of the entrance, there were two counters separated by dividers. One was labeled drop-offs, and the other had no label. The drop-off counter was most likely for those returning from a job and needing to turn in whatever they were sent out to retrieve.


    I approached the unlabeled counter. The stern-looking woman with short brown hair operating the counter greeted me, ¡°How can I help ya¡¯. You here to request a job?¡±


    ¡°No, actually, I was hoping to register,¡± she must have mistaken my farmer garb for a country bumpkin needing some pest exterminated.


    ¡°Oh, yer want a join do ya. That¡¯s simple enough,¡± handing me a form, ¡°Just fill out this form here, and you''re registered.¡±


    That was pretty easy; the form asked for your name, role (Priest, Mage, Archer, Swordsman), and next of kin. After filling out the form, I returned it to the receptionist.


    ¡°So Ruten the swordsman with no next of kin,¡± she said after looking at the form, ¡°Why do you want to become an adventurer.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve always wanted to explore dungeons and heard I needed to be an adventure to enter them.¡± The real reason, though, was so I wouldn¡¯t cause any more trouble at the checkpoint in front of Black Gate and could enter and leave without incident.


    ¡°Hrm¡­ You know, dungeons are hazardous places. Not just anyone can enter, right?¡± she frowned and stepped back from the counter, showing her leg or absence of one. Where her leg was supposed to be was a pegleg. ¡°You¡¯ll need to be rank C or higher, and new recruits start off as D rank.¡±


    This was news to me. I thought I would have been able to enter the Dungeon immediately. It did make sense the guild wouldn¡¯t want people who couldn¡¯t defend themselves just wandering around the Dungeon. It would hurt morale and probably make a lot more work for the guards if they had to come looking for someone every day.


    The receptionist explained you could increase your rank by completing several D and E rank quests. E rank quests were usually relatively safe things, like cleaning or delivering letters throughout the town. Working on construction projects as a laborer. Something you would generally stay in town for.


    D rank quests were still particularly safe but involved leaving the town''s safety where you could be attacked. If you completed enough of these quests, the guild figured you would have made some connections with people who could train you or would help you with your C rank quests.


    There was a third option to advance from D to C, and that was to take a combat exam with someone from the guild. However, I wasn¡¯t sure of my combat prowess. I had basically just relearned to walk, so I wasn¡¯t sure I would be much good in a fight. That option wasn¡¯t currently available to me anyway as the examiner wasn¡¯t in at the moment.


    The receptionist provided me with a pair of copper dog tags to be worn around my neck. They engraved with Ullmet, Ruten, D. City, Name, Rank. They could apparently be used for identification when on a job. Not that D ranks would have much need to travel, so I wasn¡¯t sure how much they would help.


    I could see this being useful though if I were to increase my rank in the guild, I could take on higher-rank jobs requiring me to travel, which would fuel my excuse to explore the world.


    I thanked the receptionist for her help before leaving the guild. By the time I had finished up, it was beginning to get dark outside. I wasn¡¯t feeling tired, and come to think of it, I hadn¡¯t felt tired since Zozi put her mark on me. I touched my chest as I thought about it.


    Even if I didn¡¯t need to sleep, wandering around town at night would draw too much attention to myself. Ullmet may have increased in size, but it still didn¡¯t appear to have a red light district. So I thought it would be suspicious for an outsider to snooping around after dark.


    I found my way to the old inn I used to stay at, the Crowned Pig. Once again, seeing a familiar site stirred up some emotions, but I didn¡¯t let myself get carried away like I did at Merle¡¯s.


    The old man that used to run the inn was nowhere in sight. Instead, there was a cute girl with wavy black hair behind the counter. It was an upgrade as far as I was concerned.


    ¡°Excuse me, miss. Do you have any rooms open?¡±


    ¡°We sure do, sir; it will be fiver copper for the night and seven copper if you want some soup and bread.¡± She smiled back.


    Yep, it was an upgrade compared to that grumpy old man. I reached into my bag and retrieved seven copper, and handed them over. ¡°I¡¯ll take a room and some food.¡±


    ¡°Sure thing, mister,¡± smiling, she handed me a key with the number two engraved in it. ¡°You''re in room two; the soup should still be warm. I¡¯ll be right back,¡± she headed back behind the counter and returned with a tray that had a piece of bread and some mystery soup on it.


    ¡°Thanks!¡± I nodded, taking the tray and heading up the stairs to my room.


    When I was about halfway up, she shouted, ¡°Oh, you can leave the tray in your room, and I will get it tomorrow. You don¡¯t need to bring it back down.¡±


    I nodded and continued to my room. Compared to how it used to be, it was quite the upgrade. The sheets were clean, and the room was freshly dusted. There were a bed and a nightstand in the room. It may not be much, but compared to the old dirty sheets and the mystery smell used to be in the rooms back when the old man ran it, it was definitely an upgrade.


    On the nightstand was a small lantern that was filled with oil. It must be complementary. I don¡¯t know how the inn could keep people from just walking off with it. A lantern was easily worth the five copper it cost to stay the night here.


    I sat down on the bed and began eating my food, not because I was hungry, but because I wondered if I could. The bread was hard and chewy, I took a spoonful of the soup to wash it down, and it wasn¡¯t half bad. The soup had A saltiness that paired well with the vegetables packed in it. The only concern I had was the mystery meat. It looked well cooked, so I went ahead and ate that too. The meat was stringy, and I avoided eating any more meat.


    I placed the tray on the nightstand. I hadn¡¯t planned on actually sleeping, so I just laid in the bed; it was soft and had a nice springy feel to it, yep an upgrade. I closed my eyes and just listened to the sounds around me. As I relaxed, I realized I could still feel the flow of mana around me.


    I wasn¡¯t sure if I had just gotten better at it or just didn¡¯t notice before, but the ambient mana bounced off objects and passed through them at different rates. It was almost like I could see my room with my eyes shut¡ªthe outline of the door, nightstand, even the silhouette of the lamp.


    Unlike sight, it was more like sensing a sound. The slight vibrations of mana as they collided with the door then passing through. I could almost tell what was made of wood and what wasn¡¯t. The metal on the lamp didn¡¯t move through quite as quickly as the wooden door. This must be how I was able to see with no eyes as a specter.


    How far could I push this?


    Focusing on the door, I was able to get a general idea of what was past it. Instead of sleeping that night, I practiced with this new ability that I just realized I had. By morning I was able to reach the first-floor lobby. I would have to remember to keep practicing. I could see this becoming useful.

 CH. 5 - The Time In Ullmet

    <h1>Chapter 5 ¨C The Time In Ullmet</h1>


    The morning sun crept through the window of my room at the inn. The town''s sounds began to pick up, chatting in the streets, carts being pulled, and children playing. I had grown bored with practicing what I would call Mana Sense.


    Determining it was time for me to get up, I stretched out of habit. It really was nice to have a body. I would have to remember to thank Zozi again, but before that, I would need to go and pick up the food I had purchased from the food stalls yesterday. It would still be a while before the orders were ready, so I should go by the adventure¡¯s guild.


    First, I headed back down to the street with the market stalls, and like I thought, they were still setting up for the day: my next stop, the adventurer¡¯s guild. I wanted to check if anyone could give me the rank-up exam the receptionist mentioned taking me from a D to C rank.


    The adventurer¡¯s guild was pretty busy as the adventurers picked from the quests on the board and taking them up to the receptionist. The line was growing as more and more adventurers lined up. I made my way to stand in line too.


    The adventurers were a lot less rowdy than how I remembered them. After thinking about it, not only was the town different but the people as well. The standard of living had improved, and there were smiles on most people''s faces. It was a far cry from the town I remembered.


    As I was lost in thought, my turn came up. I was greeted by the same receptionist as yesterday.


    ¡°Ya¡¯ find a job? Mr. Newbie?¡± she asked.


    I shook my head. ¡°Actually, I had other business to attend to today. I just wanted to check if there was someone available to give me the rank up exam?¡±


    ¡°Nope, the earliest someone should be here is next week. Sorry, I should have told you that yesterday. If you got time, though, we do have some free combat training going on.¡±


    With the shops still setting up, I did have some time to get some practice in. It would even be a good thing.


    ¡°I have some time for that.¡±


    ¡°It should be starting out back behind the guild in a few.¡±


    The area behind the guild had straw dummies used for practice strikes and archery. It looked like they were set up for the bare minimum of training, which was expected. The attendees were a group of 5 men. They were all relatively young, still in their teens. In front of them stood the instructor, he didn¡¯t appear to be much older, but he at least had some facial hair.


    The instructor called out to me, ¡° Hey, you here for training?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m a bit rusty and was hoping to sharpen up.¡±


    ¡°Well, we are glad to have yah. We had 5 and 6 will make an even number.¡±


    I lined up with the rest of the men, and we started with some light stretches. Then proceeded into some jogging to get the blood flowing. Pretty standard stuff. I was glad to know I could handle it with my new body. After the light warm-ups, we got down into practice strikes.


    Against the straw dummies, we each held a dulled practice sword. These were lent out to the attendees for practice. The instructor had us practicing our stances and our strikes on the dummies. Pretty basic stuff that even I knew from my job as being a guard.


    For the others, they were all ears soaking up the information because, to them, it indeed could mean life or death. I mean, look at me. I had managed to at least take one of the dire wolves with me when I died just because I understood these basics.


    The sun was still high in the sky, and I could feel its warmth on my skin. Unlike the other attendees, I hadn¡¯t even broken a sweat. It wasn¡¯t because I wasn¡¯t exerting myself but because this new body was more efficient. I wasn¡¯t even feeling the least bit tired from our training.


    After practicing the basics of our footwork and strikes, he had us pair off against each other. This was the part that I was most concerned about. How far behind would I have fallen, being I had just relearned how to walk.


    A young man squared up in front of me, bringing his feet shoulder length apart with one in front of the other. His body was turned ever so slightly, making him a somewhat narrower target. Both hands gripped his sword. Even though the blade was dull, it didn¡¯t mean it couldn¡¯t hurt or even cause severe injuries. The instructor told us to not try and harm each other. It was more of a mock battle to practice movements with a living opponent.


    I wasn¡¯t going to circulate my mana through my body like I did when I had fought the Mimic. It would be overkill, and I could hurt the kid.


    He stepped forward, swinging his sword from the side. The kid''s movements weren¡¯t half bad for a newbie. I brought my sword to parry on the side. I clang rattled through the air. Moving my feet to adjust my stance for a counter-attack took me longer than I had expected. I was still green in this new body. The kid was able to back up before I could launch my counter.


    I would have to get more into this. I stepped forward to continue my assault. I launched off my foot, jumping right in front of him¡­ but I was a little too close to my surprise. I body slammed right into him, we both fell down.


    Neither of us was injured, well, except for my pride. Considering I should be the veteran here, I just kind of ran face-first into someone. If this was a real battle, I¡¯m sure I would have been skewered on the end of his sword. They say the secret to becoming a master is a ton of practice, and that is what I did for the rest of the training.


    Luckily there were no more instances of my pride being wounded so bad. By the time we were done, I was moving pretty well again. Not as good I used to but good enough, I wouldn¡¯t look like an idiot. I would have to add this to my training, and I wondered if Zozi could create something for me to practice strikes and dodging with.


    With the training concluded, I said my goodbyes and thanked the instructor. Back when I was still alive, you would have to have paid for training like this. I could add that to the list of how things had changed.


    ?????


    It was already in the afternoon I needed to get the food I had ordered for Zozi. I made my way back to the food stalls I had found yesterday. I made my way through the crowds of people who were here shopping. The first shop I visited was the fried cake lady.


    ¡°How you doin¡¯ sonny? I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d see you today; it was getting pretty late.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry about that. I got caught up in some training at the adventure¡¯s guild. I thought I would give you some time to set up, but I spent more time there than I thought I would.¡±


    ¡°No problem, your order¡¯s ready, but how you going to carry all of it? You don¡¯t seem to have a cart.¡±


    I blinked a few times, astonished I hadn¡¯t realized that. I had this magic bag, but things disappearing right in front of everyone would cause a panic. Even if people knew magic items existed, something like the magic bag wouldn¡¯t be something people typically see.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.


    I let out a chuckle. ¡°I can¡¯t believe I didn¡¯t think about that. Would you be able to bring it by the Crowned Pig? That¡¯s the inn I¡¯m staying at.¡±


    The fried cake lady let out a sigh. ¡°I can, but it will cost ya¡¯.¡±


    I made the arrangements with the fried cake lady and the other shopkeeps to bring the foodstuffs I had bought to the inn. I¡¯m sure Zozi wouldn¡¯t mind spending a few more copper so I wouldn¡¯t cause a commotion. I would bring a lot of unwanted attention to myself if I were to use this bag in public.


    Once back at the inn, I let the receptionist at the front counter know I would be staying another night and that I had some deliveries coming. I decided not to get food tonight as I had planned to snack on some of the tasty treats I was hoarding for Zozi.


    I spent the spare time I had waiting practicing my mana sense. I could tell where the receptionist was and sense her coming up the stairs to my room up until the very moment she was at the door.


    Knock, knock knock. ¡°Mr. Ruten, your delivery is here. They placed it in the storeroom.¡±


    ¡°Thanks! I¡¯ll be down in a moment.¡±


    ?????


    In the storeroom, they had packaged the sweets in cake boxes. There was a pretty good number of them. Considering how much I spent there should be. Zozi would be happy with this.


    Opening one of the boxes to check the contents, the smell of fresh fudge-filled the air. The receptionist was standing next to me; her eyes seemed to shine as she stared at the chocolate fudge. Her wavy black hair bounced around as her head turned back and forth, surveying all the boxes. She must have just realized what they were filled with.


    I think this was the first time I seen her not act extremely professional. Maybe she was getting comfortable, or she was like Zozi, where the only thing on her mind was treats. Either way, seeing a beautiful woman exude such innocence made my heart skip a beat.


    ¡°Excuse me, but would you like to travel the world with me?¡± I asked.


    Her brow furrowed as she looked at me and her cheeks began to blush. Perhaps from the out of the blue question from a stranger or realizing how she acted just moments ago. ¡°Sorry mister Ruten. I couldn¡¯t do that; I need to tend to my inn. I couldn¡¯t just pack up and leave.¡±


    It was my turn to blush.


    Akk¡­ How could I ask something like that? That was so embarrassing. I can¡¯t believe I blurted that out. Maybe dyeing made me bolder, but I couldn¡¯t believe I asked her that out of the blue.


    Deciding to pretend I didn¡¯t just say that, I offered her some of the fudge. Nodding her head up and down as she eagerly reached for the fudge, I had safely rebounded.


    After I set a portion for myself to eat aside, I opened the magic bag and thought about storing all these boxes with the sweets. In an instant, all the boxes vanished.


    Mouth half-full of chocolate fudge, the innkeeper gasped. ¡°Graaghhh! Whagh was that?¡±


    Grinning as I tied the magic bag closed. ¡°It¡¯s a magic bag from a dungeon. Pretty cool, right!¡±


    She nodded, then her eyes widened. ¡°We can¡¯t have anymore?¡±


    ¡°Nope, that was it. I have to get this to someone who ordered it. In fact, they might be a little angry we took some. I need to get going, so I won¡¯t need to stay for the rest of the night.¡± I handed the receptionist the key and left to go back to the Dungeon.


    She looked a little dejected, and I was sure it wasn¡¯t because of my manly charisma but had to do more with the boxes of treats I had stored away.


    ?????


    ¡°Halt, we have closed the gates for the evening. You shouldn¡¯t head out after dark. There have been reports of a gang of bandits attacking merchants recently.¡± The gate guard said while standing in front of the gates to exit Ullmet. He was dressed in the same leather tunic and light armor I used to wear when I was a guard.


    I was still a D rank adventurer, so my guild badge wouldn¡¯t help much.


    ¡°I¡¯m not carrying cargo. I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll be fine. The bandits probably wouldn¡¯t go out of their way for me anyways.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t really stop you if you want to leave, but I really would suggest you stay put in town and leave in the morning with other caravans heading out.¡±


    He must have been a good guy to stop me from making a stupid decision, but I really wanted to get these treats back to Zozi. I enjoyed my time in Ullmet, but I was too embarrassed to stay another night there after being rejected by the innkeeper.


    ¡°Thanks, but I really would like to leave.¡±


    The guard moved aside hesitantly, letting me leave the town.


    ?????


    The dirt road was illuminated by the light of the moons high in the sky. They were no longer full. That was proof enough that Zozi¡¯s mark had kept me from fading back into the empty void.


    Not long after leaving the town, I could sense people off in the tree line. They began approaching me, several of them holding torches to light their surroundings. It didn¡¯t seem that dark to me with the full moon out.


    A few were circling behind me under cover of darkness, but I could senes them with mana sense. They were clearly going to use those others sneaking around to ambush me.


    A rather large man that looked like he hadn¡¯t bathed in months was the one to first approach me.


    ¡°Haar harr¡­What have we here?¡±


    ¡°Just I traveler,¡± I said.


    ¡°Well, we are just some traders. We will trade your possessions for your life,¡± the rough-looking bandit said as he belted out another laugh.


    They all clearly wouldn¡¯t hesitate to kill me.


    The men that were circling around seemed to have gotten into their positions as they had stopped moving.


    ¡°I see¡­ an interesting offer, but I have nothing of value I can offer you.¡±


    ¡°Well, you can start by handing over that pouch.¡± He gestured over to the magic bag that was hanging at my hip.


    ¡°Of all the things I have, this is the one thing I can¡¯t let you have.¡± Zozi had to give me this bag for operation tasty treats, and after everything she had done for me, I wasn¡¯t going to let her down.


    I felt like I wasn¡¯t in any real danger. Perhaps it was the cold nighttime air or the moons high in the sky, but I felt like I couldn¡¯t lose at the moment. An urge to fight was filling me.


    The large man reached for my collar, I expertly sidestepped, and he was left grasping at air. The shocked look on his face didn¡¯t last long as I followed up with a kick to the back of his head, sending him tumbling.


    The surprised look on the faces of the other men he had with him vanished as they charged me. Expertly I dodged their incoming attacks as if dancing around their swings and grabs. They were not even on the level as the boys that the adventure¡¯s guild was training.


    I had no room to counter-attack among their barrage, but I kept up with dodging them until suddenly I felt a searing pain in my back. Looking down, I saw the tip of a sword protruding from my belly. I had completely forgotten about the other sneaking up from behind and hadn¡¯t kept track of them.


    The blade slowly slipped back out, blood dripping from the wound. It hurt, and it hurt a lot. However, I didn¡¯t feel any fear. The urge to fight only grew stronger, almost as if I couldn¡¯t contain it anymore.


    The smug looks of the bandit staring at me began to change into looks of confusion. I imagine they were expecting me to cry out in pain and start begging for my life, but what they were getting was a sinister smile that had spread across my face.


    I began to circulate the mana through my body and through the tip of my sword. Spinning around in one quick motion, I cut the man behind me in half at the waist. The mana enhanced blade slid through him like a hot knife through butter.


    The bandit''s confused looks quickly changed from that of confusion to fear, and the ones who had the most sense began to make a run for it.


    I launched my sword through the air at one of the ones that had begun to run. It hit its mark, sticking out of him like a dart. Causing him to fall face forward.


    Next, I leaped forward in between two of the guards that were too dumbfounded to move, grabbing each of their heads in each of my hands and slamming them to the ground. The force was so overwhelming that their heads split like melons.


    The running bandits turned back to see what had happened; they were horrified by the grisly scene.


    Running forward, I grabbed my sword out of the man¡¯s back and gave chase. Not giving them another chance to run. Each of their heads fell to the ground. It was almost if they were in slow motion.


    Only one more bandit was left that had attacked me, one of the ones from the ambush group. He was darting in the opposite direction as these ones. I was going to give chase, but then I had realized I had just taken so many lives without giving it the slightest thought.


    I could easily have given chase, but I was confused. Confused by the lack of guilt I was feeling. Mixed emotions ran through me, but the guilt of killing so many wasn¡¯t among them. I was afflicted by the urge to give chase and squash him. The let down of the fight being so one-sided, but there was also happiness at getting my revenge for stabbing me.


    Concerned that if I continued down this path, I might really become a monster. I decided I shouldn¡¯t continue, so I let the last bandit escape.


    Massacring all these people wasn¡¯t what the human would have done. He would have been scared but fought. He would have also been torn between killing but not if it meant his own life.


    At the moment I don¡¯t think they could have killed me and it was more me killing them for sport. The human me wouldn¡¯t have done that.


    I just wasn¡¯t human anymore¡­


    I checked my wound; it had already healed since the time the battle started. Zozi had said this body would be hard to kill, and she wasn¡¯t wrong. After being stabbed clean through, my wound had already healed. Not even a scar remained.


    What if they would have taken my head instead? Could I have healed from that? I would have to be more careful going forward.

 Ch. 6 - Becoming Someone Dependable

    <h1>Chapter 6 ¨C Becoming Someone Dependable</h1>


    Giving the wooden door a few good tugs, it didn¡¯t budge. I stood outside the fortifications of the dungeon Black Gate. The gates were closed, and the smaller wooden door next to the gate was locked for the night. It appeared all the guards had already left.


    That meant I didn¡¯t have to wait around for them to leave. Despite my best efforts, I wasn¡¯t able to obtain C rank before leaving Ullmet. I had registered but was only D rank, and I found you needed to be C or greater to enter the dungeon.


    The last time I entered, I simply could phase through the door in specter form. However, now I was corporeal and had a magic bag full of treats for Zozi I needed to bring in.


    The massive wooden palisades ran around the entire entrance. Circulating mana through my body with Mana Strengthening, I sprinted at the wall. Jumping at the right moment, I cleared the 10-foot tall structure.


    Landing on the other side with a thud, and then I fell into a roll. It wasn¡¯t the most graceful landing, but I was still getting used to my new strength. Over the past few days, I had come a long way, in my opinion. However, what would have happened if I didn¡¯t clear the wall and ran into it at full sprint.


    I dusted myself off and shook my head. That wasn¡¯t something I should be thinking about. I needed to get into the dungeon just in case someone was still around.


    ?????


    I made my way through the dungeon Black Gate without issue. Like before, Zozi had instructed the denizens of the dungeon to stay clear of me. I made it to the lowest floor in the dungeon, the boss room. The Giant Minotaur that guarded this room sat there on his throne. It looked like he was grinning as he held his giant ax. Each breath was visible in the cold atmosphere of the boss room.


    I pounded on the treasure room door. I desperately wanted it to hurry and open. The Minotaur was a bored battle junky from what I had gathered, and I was a prime candidate for a training dummy. Unlike before, he would actually be able to hit me.


    The door creaked open, and I slid inside as fast I could. Zozi was on the other side, grinning from ear to ear. Her blue eyes never leaving the bag at my side.


    ¡°Zozi! I present to you the fruits of our labor!¡± I grandiosely gestured as I swung the bag around. ¡°Legends will spread our deeds here this day!¡±


    ¡°Just give me the treats already!¡± Zozi shouted.


    Done teasing, I undid the strap on the bag and began to pull out cake box after cake box of sweets. After I had finished unloading the boxes, I turned to Zozi.


    ¡°Uhm¡­ Zozi,¡± I gestured toward her chin.


    Her pale skin reddened, she quickly wiped the drool from her mouth.


    ¡°Have at it!¡± I said.


    She franticly began running box to box, picking out the different types of sweets and munching on them. Before I knew it, she had summoned a plate stacking more and more on it as she went along. When it looked like the plate couldn¡¯t fit anymore, she waved her hand, and the boxes vanished.


    ¡°Uhm, where did they go?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Oh, I put them in dimensional storage. Time stops there, so they will stay fresh. It¡¯s kind of like the magic bag.¡±


    Gods really were something else, but there was no way I could believe this god here was evil incarnate.


    ?????


    After Zozi had finished a good portion of her plate, she asked, ¡°What are you going to do now?¡±


    ¡°Well, it has always been my dream to travel the world with a beautiful woman going on adventures together.¡± I shot Zozi a smile. ¡°Would you like to travel the world with me, Zozi?¡±


    A smile crept across her face. ¡°I would love to,¡± she said, slightly blushing. ¡°But I can¡¯t go to the surface. However, as proof of your friendship to me, I will make it my mission to help you out.¡±


    She stopped in thought for a few seconds, then said. ¡°Hmmm¡­ you already have the looks, then we will need to get you stronger. Ladies love a strong, dependable man. I¡¯ll have you train with Gary!¡±


    ¡°Gary, who¡¯s that?¡±


    Gary was apparently the name of the giant Minotaur in the boss room.


    ?????


    Gary was swinging an enormous club my way. The giant club was as big as me. Attempting to dodge was no good; I was too late. Smacking me square in the chest, I flew across the boss room straight into one of the walls.


    When the dust settled, I stood up, letting out a few coughs. That was why he was using the club instead of his usual large battle-ax.


    Gods, that hurt!


    The icy wall behind me had been cracked, but the cracks were slowly fusing back together as it repaired itself.


    Gary must have been holding back; otherwise, I would have just been a smear on his club.


    We had been training for what felt like an eternity, but Zozi said it had only been a few days. We trained all this time without sleep or rest. Zozi would just watch and cheer when I managed to dodge or make a counter. It was an awfully one-sided fight, though.


    It went like this, I would attack, Gary would block and counter, then I would have to pick myself up and heal.


    However, I can¡¯t say the training was wasted. I did seem to be improving. Considering this was a monster that a group of the best adventurers would have trouble with, and me going one on one with it, I thought I was doing alright.


    ¡°Hey, Zozi, how long do I have to do this?¡±


    ¡°Hmmm, I think when you can actually start putting up a decent fight against Gary. You should be a bit dependable then,¡± she said as she smiled back.


    ?????


    I wasn¡¯t sure how long we had been training. It could have been months by this point, but I was finally getting good. When in battle, I was able to increase my senses, and time seemed to slow down. I wondered if this is how Gary fought so well.


    With my senses pushed to their limit, I could also pump more mana into my body, increasing its speed, strength, and durability. By doing both simultaneously, I could put up a decent fight against him.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    Gary¡¯s club came down, outstretched towards me. Jumping, I landed on top of it, pushing my body to adjust for the swing angle. I ran up the club and his extended arm. Delivering an enhanced kick to the side of his head, he was the one who went tumbling.


    Rising up from the ground, his eyes were bloodshot, his warm breath visible with every pant. It looked like he was going to have trouble holding back at the moment. He charged at me, his horns pointed in my direction like you would see with a charging bull.


    Clap¡­Clap¡­ ¡°That¡¯s enough!¡± Zozi shouted.


    Gary stopped mid charge obeying her command. I wasn¡¯t sure even after all this training if I would have survived him going all out.


    ¡°Good job, you two,¡± she said.


    Taking out a piece of fudge and sharing it with Gary and me. If you knew Zozi, you knew her sharing her treats was the highest form of praise she could give.


    ¡°I would say you are at an acceptable level of dependableness now, Ruten. We need to make you look the part.¡± She said as she made her way to the treasure room.


    She returned with a set of equipment that wasn¡¯t too flashy. She tossed me some light leather armor that a scout would wear, the magic bag I had used earlier, and A short sword.


    ¡°Here you go, you¡¯ll need to change out of what¡¯s left of those farmer¡¯s clothes and dress as an adventurer.¡±


    ¡°Thanks,¡± I said.


    ¡°What not happy? If you were to run around in some gaudy armor and have a fancy looking sword, people would notice. I don¡¯t think that¡¯s the kind of attention you want to attract.¡±


    Thinking about it, she did have a point.


    ¡°Thanks,¡± I said with my sincerity in my voice this time. ¡°I¡¯ll take good care of them.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t go that far; this is just some throwaway equipment. Except for the bag and the sword, of course.¡±


    I could understand the bag but the sword too?


    ¡°Wait, what¡¯s so special about the sword?¡±


    ¡°I made this sword have an extra affinity for mana. I guess you could call it a magic sword,¡± she said while beaming a smile. ¡°This sword will be able to handle a ton of mana being pumped through it, so when you use it, don¡¯t be afraid of breaking it. You can go all out.¡±


    ¡°Thanks again!¡± I said, bowing my head this time.


    Zozi grinned and made her best noble pose. Crossing her arms and holding her head up, trying to look dignified. I did have to admit she did look a bit noble.


    Explain to me again how this cute softy of a girl was a dark god again¡­¡­


    ¡°I filled that bag with quite a bit of coin, so I don¡¯t think you will need money for a while if you live frugally. Remember when you are traveling to get me all kinds of tasty food!¡±


    ¡°Wait, I thought you said you said I would have to live frugally? How am I supposed to buy your sweets?¡±


    ¡°Well, of course, my treats come first; that is why you will have to live frugally!¡±


    Laughing, I said, ¡°Okay.¡± I could just earn some more coins if I needed to. I did have so much I was thankful for thanks to Zozi, and I would do my best to meet her expectations.


    Smiling at Zozi, I said, ¡°I guess I should be going then?¡±


    Shaking her head, Zozi responded, ¡°Nope, not yet; I told you it was my mission to make your dream come true. I¡¯ll tell you when you can leave.¡±


    ?????


    A few days had passed, according to Zozi. I couldn¡¯t really keep a sense of time down here. During that time, I practiced with Mana Sense and did some more training with Gary.


    I was beginning to think Zozi just didn¡¯t want me to leave, and she was going to keep me locked up down here for eternity, but ¡°Alright, time for you to head out!¡± she said suddenly.


    With a look of surprise on my face, I asked. ¡°What why now, why not yesterday?¡±


    ¡°Haven¡¯t you ever been told don¡¯t question the will of the gods¡­¡±


    That was a saying, so I guess I would have to go with it. Nodding to Zozi, I set out, ascending the floors.


    Everything was normal until I got to the top floor. The monsters up until now had been avoiding me. Once I reached the top floor, goblins would come and block specific paths forcing me to go through another route.


    The monsters wouldn¡¯t attack, but they wouldn¡¯t let me pass either. They would grab at my clothes, so short of killing them, I would have to take a different path. I could kill them, but I wasn¡¯t sure if Zozi would be upset if I did.


    Making my way through the winding paths, I sensed someone that wasn¡¯t a monster. I usually was further down in the dungeon, where most people would die before making it that far. So, this was my first time seeing another person in the dungeon. Curiously I started to make my way toward them.


    I was stopped on my way by a single goblin. His beady eye¡¯s starred up at me, holding a single lit torch. I quizzically stared at him as he motioned for me to take the torch.


    After I took the torch, it scurred off down one of the paths. Up until now, I had been walking in the darkness. I didn¡¯t have a problem seeing in the pitch black of the dungeon. This must have been Zozi¡¯s way to make sure I didn¡¯t stand out to the other adventurer.


    ¡°Help! Helpp me!¡± I could hear the screams of someone echoing through the cave-like paths.


    Quickly I took off toward the other adventurer¡¯s cries.


    A giant web stretched from one side to the other, over 30 feet from one side to the other. On the web was a Giant Spider, and hanging next to it on the web was a cocoon that I could hear muffled screaming coming from.


    Jumping into the air, I cut the cocoon free from the enraged spider monsters. Angry at just having its prey stolen away. From the screams inside the cocoon, I imagined they were okay. I tried cutting them free, but the web was strong.


    Focusing my mana through my sword, I tried again, quickly cutting through the cocoon. Luckily the cocoon itself wasn¡¯t nearly as sticky as the actual webbing.


    For a moment after I had cut the cocoon away, our eyes meet. Her disheveled blonde hair falling down around her shoulders. Her teary green eyes looking up at me.


    ¡°Behind you!¡± she shouted.


    For a moment, I was awestruck. I think I have a severe problem where I just lose track of my surroundings when it comes to beautiful women.


    I turned around to block the spider creature''s attack with my sword in one hand and bracing the flat end with my forearm. Blocking with my sword, the creature was aiming for my head. My legs nearly buckled under the pressure. This attack was meant to kill.


    Using mana strengthening, I focused the mana in my sword; I countered, pushing it away, then slicing cleanly through the leg that had just tried to spear me through.


    The large spider creature was easily my height. Its hairy legs shook for a moment after losing one of them. The multitude of beady eyes seemed to now be looking for an escape, not for more prey. Jumping into the air, it attached to the web on the ceiling and scurried toward an open path.


    I jumped up after it swinging my sword, taking another leg. However, it did not stop; it continued towards its escape.


    I could make another attack and maybe even pursue and kill it, but what about this woman. I couldn¡¯t just leave her here, still half wrapped in the cocoon.


    The spider had made its escape. I was sure it wouldn¡¯t be coming back, but I kept my guard up with mana sense as I continued to cut away the cocoon from the woman. On her petite frame, she wore a similar outfit to mine. It was a bit nicer quality, though with fancy engravings on the leatherwork.


    ¡°Th..Thank you for saving me!¡± she shouted as she hugged me.


    ¡°Nn..noo problem. I¡¯m sure anyone would have helped out.¡± I said as I scratched the back of my head awkwardly.


    She let go and separated herself from me; still teary-eyed, she went and picked up the torch I had been carrying. I must have dropped it when I went to cut the cocoon free.


    ¡°Are you here alone?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Yeah, I was just leaving the dungeon when I heard your cries for help.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m here alone too. Thank you again for saving me. I¡­I couldn¡¯t do anything. I got stuck in that web I didn¡¯t even have a chance, but you¡­¡±


    She looked at me; her eyes were still glossy with tears and face flush from the recent fight for her life. Shaking, she asked, ¡°Will you train me?¡±


    With a clearly puzzled look, ¡°Me train you. I don¡¯t think I can.¡±


    I was just some random guard; I wasn¡¯t a hero or someone with even that much formal training.


    She finally broke down again, now crying tears running down her face, ¡°I¡¯m never going to be good enough.¡±


    I couldn¡¯t handle this. Shouldn¡¯t this be my moment to shine? I had successfully saved the maiden. Shouldn¡¯t we be setting off for our happily ever after now? Why is she crying!?!? This isn¡¯t how it goes in the stories.


    ¡°No¡­no¡­ It¡¯s not that you¡¯re not good enough; I just don¡¯t think I would be a good teacher. Please stop crying. I would be glad to help you train if you just stop crying, please.¡±


    Wiping the tears away, she looked up at me. ¡°Really, you mean it, you will train me?¡±


    ¡°Yes, we can train, but we got to get out of here. It¡¯s dangerous to have such a leisurely conversation in the dungeon.¡±


    A smile spread across her face for the first time since I meet her.


    ¡°My name is Cora.¡±


    ¡°Nice to meet you. I¡¯m Ruten, but let¡¯s keep our voices down.¡±


    The rest of the trip out of the dungeon was quiet. The creatures were no longer avoiding me, but I was able to avoid them with mana sense. Cora followed along behind me, no longer crying or teary-eyed, but with a look of determination and focus.


    We exited out of the giant Black Gates. The sun was high in the sky, its warmth spreading across my skin. After all the time spent in the cold boss room, the warmth was refreshing.


    Noticing me, a guard that looked familiar checked the note board he carried.


    Oh, crap, it''s morning, and I¡¯m not supposed to be in the dungeon.

 Ch. 7 - Setting Out

    <h1>Chapter 7 ¨C Setting Out</h1>


    ¡°Hey, you! Did you sign in this time?¡± The guard said as he approached me.


    I stepped back a few feet, my eyes darting back and forth. Should I run? I have Cora with me. If I took off, I didn¡¯t want all the blame forced on her.


    While I was thinking of what to do, Cora stepped forward. She had noticed the worried expression on my face.


    ¡°I signed us in,¡± she explained.


    The guard gave Cora a skeptical look. ¡°Oh yeah, what''s the name?¡±


    ¡°Cora Wimark.¡±


    ¡°Wimark¡­Wimark, you say.¡± Looking her up and down, without checking his note board, he responded. ¡°Okay, then my apologies, carry on.¡± Then he walked off.


    My questioning gaze fell on Cora. ¡°What was that about?¡±


    Beaming back a smile. ¡°I¡¯m glad he didn¡¯t check. I only signed myself in. So, where are we heading?¡±


    ¡°We?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I can¡¯t stay here, and what if they catch on to my little lie. I¡¯d be in trouble.¡± She pouted. ¡°Plus, you said you would train me. Remember?¡± She asked, looking up at me with her green eyes.


    I did say I would help her train, and with the look she was giving me, I didn¡¯t think I could tell her no. Just remembering her sobbing down in the dungeon was enough to break my heart. Plus, on the other side, this could be my chance.


    I was 0 for 2 since I had died, but I was going to ask.


    ¡°Cora, would you like to travel the world with me?¡±


    Those eyes looking up at me blinked a few times, then filled with a new fire.


    ¡°You mean like a traveling swordsman training his apprentice!?!?!¡± She said, practically bouncing up and down. ¡°Yes, I will travel with you!¡±


    I was at a loss for words. What was she talking about? That wasn¡¯t the response I expected.


    Cora continued. ¡°I used to read stories like that all the time! This is going to be so much fun, Ruten!¡±


    We were beginning to get a few stares from people in the encampment with how excited Cora was getting.


    ¡°We should probable get going.¡± I slightly gestured to the people now staring at us.


    Realizing a few people were staring at her, Cora turned slightly red then nodded.


    ?????


    ¡°So, where are we going?¡± Cora asked.


    A merchant wagon passed us as we walked down the dirt road. The sun was still high in the sky, but I didn¡¯t think we would reach our destination for a few days.


    ¡°Strafton,¡± I said.


    Cora frowned. ¡°Why are we heading to the capital?¡±


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s the next town on this road, and I have a request that I need to fulfill for an important client,¡± I said, trying to sound like it was an actual request and not something Zozi had asked me to do.


    ¡°What type of request is it that would require you to go to the capital?¡± A look of worry crept across her face.


    ¡°Well, the request was to gather sweets from everywhere I visited. Since the closest city is Strafton, I figured I would go there first.¡±


    The worried look slowly faded, returning to her usual smile. ¡°Ha! That part wasn¡¯t in the stories I read. So about our training, when can we start?¡±


    ¡°Well, this trip should take us a few days, so how about in the mornings when we are refreshed?¡±


    Cora nodded excitedly.


    ?????


    A few hours had passed since we started walking. I could tell Cora was beginning to get tired. It might take us more than a few days if this was the fastest pace we could keep. I had to remember Cora was already in the Dungeon when I found her and fighting for her life. So the fact that she was only just now showing signs of fatigue was impressive.


    ¡°How about we set up camp in the next clearing we find?¡±


    ¡°No, I can keep going.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve been through a lot, and it was rude of me not to notice until now. As a master, I¡¯m making the decision.¡± I grinned.


    ¡°Fine, Master as your humble apprentice, I accept your decision.¡± She said as she laughed.


    The clearing we found was surrounded by trees. It wasn¡¯t deep into the forest but did have enough trees to stifle the wind.


    ¡°This looks like a good spot. Let''s set up camp here.¡±The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    Cora nodded in agreement.


    We both stood there for a moment. I don¡¯t think I had camping supplies, and from the look of Cora¡¯s pack, I don¡¯t think she had any either. I had planned to continue through the night when I left, so I hadn¡¯t asked Zozi about any camping supplies.


    I undid the string on the magic bag. Hoping there was something we could use for camping supplies in the bag.


    Reaching in, I thought of bedrolls and was happily surprised when I felt something in my hand. I pulled a rolled-up bedroll from the bag. Cora stared at me in surprise. There was no way this long bedroll should have fit in that bag.


    ¡°It¡¯s a magic bag. The person who gave me the request for sweets gave me this bag to store them in.¡±


    ¡°Wow! That¡¯s amazing. I can¡¯t believe someone would let an adventurer just take a magic item like that to gather sweets.¡±


    ¡°Well, she was a rather eccentric person.¡±


    We continued setting up camp. Digging out a campfire pit and gathering firewood. Setting up the bedrolls around the fire since we didn¡¯t have a tent. Luckily this was one of the warmer seasons, and it shouldn¡¯t get too cold outside.


    As we lit the campfire, I heard a deep rumbling growl. Instinctively I grabbed for my sword at my side. Then I realized it wasn¡¯t the growling of a predator but Cora¡¯s stomach. Cora hadn¡¯t apparently brought any rations or food with her. She thought she was heading back to Ullmet after leaving the dungeon.


    I didn¡¯t know I would need food for this trip either. Hoping Zozi had packed me something, I reached into the bag, trying to find some food. However, I only returned empty-handed. It appeared Zozi had taken all the sweets and didn¡¯t throw in any food for my trip. I expected that much, though. As much as she loved treats, she wouldn¡¯t leave any, and why would I need food.


    I guess hunting it is. Hopefully, Zozi threw in a bow and some arrows. Luckily, reaching back into the bag, I pulled out a bow and a quiver of arrows. With those, I should be able to hunt something.


    ¡°Let me find something for us to eat,¡± I said as I strung the bow.


    ¡°Sorry about that. I didn¡¯t bring any food with me. I wasn¡¯t expecting to set out on a journey.¡±


    With my mana sense, I started to look for any small game I could catch. I found a rabbit not far from us, and it didn¡¯t look like there were any larger predators in the area, either. As I went in the direction of the rabbit, I could feel strange mana coming from deeper in the forest.


    I wasn¡¯t able to pinpoint where it was coming from, only the direction. The mana was different because it felt similar to Zozi¡¯s mana when I watched her create the golem.


    It put me on guard, but it did seem far enough away that it wouldn¡¯t cause us any problems. I would just keep monitoring to make sure nothing snuck up on us tonight.


    It took me no time at all to find a small rabbit scurrying around in the underbrush of the forest. Making my way to it, I focused on not making any sound.


    Sorry rabbit, in this world, it¡¯s always the predator or the prey. I let the arrow loose and was relieved when it had impaled the rabbit. The last time I had used a bow to hunt a deer, it had turned into a giant mimic, and was glad this didn¡¯t end the same way.


    I quickly made my way back with the rabbit in hand.


    I pulled a small knife from the pouch to skin the rabbit. Cora watched in amazement as I pulled yet another item from this bag.


    ¡°You caught it; the least I could do is clean it.¡±


    She must have been feeling awkward about not doing much to set up.


    I handed over the rabbit and knife to Cora. She made quick work of it expertly cutting the fur away and gutting the rabbit. I could tell she had done this a few times.


    This should be enough since I didn¡¯t need to eat. I could let Cora have all of it.


    The scent of the cooked rabbit reached my nose. I didn¡¯t think I was hungry, but when the smell hit my nose, I heard my stomach start to rumble too. Okay, maybe I would have some.


    ?????


    ¡°You are a pretty dependable guy, aren¡¯t you, Ruten,¡± Cora asked as she took another bite.


    The sun had already set, and the twin moons were rising off in the distance. The calm nighttime breeze made its way through the trees carrying the scent of dew. The flickering light of the campfire illuminated our bedrolls nearby.


    ¡°Dependable? You think so?¡±


    Wait, didn¡¯t Zozi say something about making me dependable before I left. I thought back to the events that had transpired throughout the day. The strange monsters blocking paths in the dungeon, like they were herding me to Cora. Even going so far as to give me a torch, so I didn¡¯t look suspect.


    The lack of food but putting a bow in the magic bag to hunt, even though I don¡¯t need to eat. Wait a second! How much of this did Zozi orchestrate?


    ¡°You okay?¡± Cora asked, snapping me back from my thoughts.


    ¡°Oh yeah, I¡¯m fine. I was just thinking of the person who gave me this quest. She had said something similar.¡±


    Cora smiled, changing the subject. ¡°I can¡¯t wait for training tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°You may be expecting too much. I don¡¯t know if I¡¯m as good as you think I am.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not trying to back out on our training, are you, Ruten?¡± narrowing her eyes on me.


    ¡°N-No.¡± I put my hands up. ¡°I just don¡¯t think I¡¯m all that good. I haven''t had much formal training.¡± I smiled back.


    Cora¡¯s glare subsided after my explanation.


    ¡°Why do you want to train so much, though?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Well, I used to read stories as of knights who would protect the weak. I just always admired them.¡±


    ¡°From a few stories you read, you wanted to dedicate your life to becoming a knight?¡±


    ¡°My family actually has a history of becoming knights, but my father wouldn¡¯t let me become one. So I trained with my brothers in secret.¡±


    ¡°Wait a second? You¡¯re from a family of knights. Does that mean you''re from a noble family?¡± I asked. I was a little worried about the answer.


    ¡°Y-Yeah, I kind of ran away after my father wanted to marry me off.¡± She shot me a worried glance.


    ¡°What!¡± I shouted. I gathered myself back together after my outburst. ¡°So, you are on the run?¡± I questioned.


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s why I couldn¡¯t stick around after I told the guard my family name.¡±


    Come to think about it, she did say her name was Cora Wimark when the guard asked for her name.


    After some time passed in silence, I spoke up. ¡°You told me about your dream, so it''s only fair if I tell you mine. My dream is to travel the world and see lots of places.¡± I purposefully left out the part about a beautiful woman. I could only see that freaking her out, and I couldn¡¯t stand to be so embarrassed again if she rejected me.


    Cora smiled back. ¡°Then, let''s reach for our dreams together.¡±


    ¡°Let''s.¡±


    We continued chatting into the night about the dungeon and swordplay.


    ?????


    Cora was sleeping next to the fire.


    I offered to take the first watch, keeping guard for the night. I was supposed to wake her up after my shift to switch, but since I didn¡¯t need sleep, I thought it would be best for her to rest the entire night. She had been through quite a bit the previous day, and I don¡¯t think I would have handled almost dying as well as she did.


    Wait, didn¡¯t I die, though. I did handle that pretty well. Maybe I would have dealt Cora¡¯s situation as well as she did.


    Having nothing better to do, I decided to get some practice in with Mana Sense. I was already using Mana Sense to scan our surroundings, but there was nothing except small animals around. I wanted to see if I could reach that strange mana I and sensed earlier while I was in the forest.


    Focusing deep into the forest, I sensed the strange mana from before. It was still flowing from somewhere even further in the woods. Still, I couldn¡¯t pinpoint the location, only the direction it was coming from.


    Now that I had more time to examine it. The mana felt divine like Zozi¡¯s did, but there were apparent differences between Zozi¡¯s and this mana. Where Zozi¡¯s mana had a more ethereal nature, this mana I was sensing felt more rugged, seeping deep into the earth.


    I had an urge to search for the source of this mana, but looking down at the campfire or more precisely next to the campfire, I saw Cora, sleeping. I couldn¡¯t just up and leave her. Maybe when the morning comes, and we finish our training, we could search for the source.


    For now, I would continue to practice my Mana Sense.

 Ch. 8 - Coras Past

    Chapter 8 ¨C Cora¡¯s Past


    The carriage bounced as it traveled down the dirt road.


    ¡°Cora, would you like a pillow to set on?¡± Randolph asked.


    Randolph was my older brother and a knight in training. He looked down at me with his brown eyes and chiseled features. I could see why the maid¡¯s of the house were always gossiping about him.


    ¡°Thanks, Randolph,¡± I said as I rubbed my bottom.


    ¡°No problem, I couldn¡¯t bear to see my sweet little sister suffer so.¡±


    I wasn¡¯t used to such long rides in the carriage. We had quite a ways to travel. Lady Pricsa, the duke¡¯s daughter, was hosting a tea party. This was an important event for her as this was her introduction into noble society. We were expected to mingle, make friends during this tea party, and build relationships among the other noble houses.


    Even though I didn¡¯t want to go, my father made me. ¡°Socializing is an essential part of being a noble¡± I could see him lecturing me in my head. So here I was on this long carriage ride to the capital city of Strafton.


    The carriage came to a stop, and shouting could be heard off in the distance outside the carriage.


    Concerned, Randolph stepped out of the carriage.


    He looked back at me. ¡°Stay here.¡±


    I nodded, staying behind in the carriage. Opening the small window on the carriage door, I peeked out to find out what was causing all the commotion.


    Up ahead of us on the road, I could see several men surrounding a merchant¡¯s wagon. An old man sat in the wagon next to him was what I assumed to be his wife and his two children. The two children were maybe seven or eight, about the same age as me. They cowered in fear from the men that surrounded the carriage and waved their swords.


    Immediately I was struck with fear like any little child would have been. This was my first encounter with bandits. I lived a secluded life in my family¡¯s mansion with only people I meet being either tutors, servants, or family. My head was racing with thoughts. What would they do when they were done with the merchant and his family? Would they come here and kill my brother and me? I began to shake with those thoughts racing through my mind.


    Unlike me, my brother didn¡¯t look the least bit scared. He stood tall, taking quick strides straight for the wagon. Watching him this way made all the fear wash from my body, and I couldn¡¯t take my eyes away.


    ¡°Hey, Boy! We will get to you after we finish up here!¡± One of the bandits shouted. Sending my brother a dirty look.


    Quickly Randolph made the rest of the way, positioning himself in between the three men and the merchant''s family.


    He gave the men a cold stare. ¡°I am Randolph Wimark. As no one has been hurt, I will give you the chance to flee now.¡±


    ¡°Ha, some nobles too. Looks like today we have a good haul. How about this, you put down your sword, and we won¡¯t make the young lass there watch as we kill you.¡±


    Randolph removed his sword from his sheath and faced the men.


    The words should have sent shivers down my spine. However, the knightly image of my brother was still seared into my mind. To me right now, he was the very definition of a knight. He exuded such confidence that I was filled with confidence too. I couldn¡¯t imagine a scenario where he would lose.


    ¡°One of you would fetch a high enough price for us. Men, kill him.¡±


    The other two men charged my brother, swinging their swords.


    Randolph parried one of the men with his sword, and it let out a loud clang as the two swords came in contact. My brother then turned towards the other, raising his foot and kicking him directly in the stomach.


    The man he kicked didn¡¯t have enough time to react while he was charging my brother. He fell to the ground gasping for air as the other backed up after being parried.


    I could tell from watching them that they were not skilled swordsmen. I had watched my brother practice with his tutor many times. The openings his tutor would always point out these men displayed in abundance.


    The third man stepped forward. ¡°Maybe we will leave you alive and kill your sister in front of you, runt.¡±


    I didn¡¯t think the cold stare my brother was giving them could get even darker, but it did. As soon as the word left the man¡¯s lips, my brother began to move. He dodged past the two who had attacked him; before they could even move, he was upon the third man.


    Randolph plunged his sword straight through the man''s heart. The man tried to move away, but it was already too late. Letting out a gurgle, he fell to the ground.


    The other two bandits turned around to see their boss slumping to the ground. Randolph turned back towards them with the same icy stare he had before. They didn¡¯t even have enough time to react when he sprinted in between them.


    The two men readied their swords, pointing them at Randolph. With a mix of fear and uncertainty in the eyes.


    I couldn¡¯t take my eyes off my brother. Even the gruesome combat, I couldn¡¯t take my eyes away. Was this what knights were? People to protect the weak and wash away their fear.


    ¡°Surrender?¡± My brother asked.


    The two men looked at each other, then dropped their weapons.


    The merchant handed my brother some rope. Randolph used it to bind the living bandit''s hands and tie them together.


    My brother walked back to the carriage, his familiar gentle smile returned to his face.


    ¡°Hey Randolph, when we get back home, can I start training with you and your tutor?¡± I asked.


    Randolph looked troubled for a moment before his smile returned.


    ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll talk to father.¡±


    ?????


    The clack of wooden swords being smacked together could be heard in the courtyard. Two people were engaged in a practice battle¡ªa handsome young man and a young girl in her early teens. Sweat dripped from both of them as they danced around the courtyard.


    ¡°Watch your footwork,¡± Randolph said.


    I looked down at my feet then felt the sting of a wooden sword slap my arm.


    ¡°Ouch! You told me to watch my footwork.¡±


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t mean you can take your eyes off your opponent.¡±


    I glared at my brother and swung my wooden sword at him.


    He batted it away, knocking it from my hand. I looked to where my sword had fallen then felt his wood sword against my neck.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Randolph laughed. ¡°Didn¡¯t I just say don¡¯t take your eyes off your opponent?¡±


    Our sparring matches always ended like this. Randolph would give me a chance and danced around before he would brutally crush me when he noticed an obvious opening.


    ¡°You¡¯re getting much better.¡± He said as he slapped my shoulder. ¡°If you keep it up, you may even be as good as me one day.¡±


    ¡°Awfully full of yourself, aren¡¯t you, brother.¡± I rolled my eyes.


    ¡°No really, you have improved a great deal. I¡¯m actually impressed you are better than some of the men in my regiment.¡±


    Randolph had finished his knight in training and joined the regiment of knights directly under the control of Duke Strafton. He had worked his way up to vice-captain. That was an influential position and propelled our family up in the ranks of the nobles. My brother was next in line to inherit the family name. On top of that, he was vice-captain of the soldiers that served directly under Duke Strafton.


    ¡°I¡¯m beat, want to take a break and have some lunch?¡± Randolph asked.


    It was around noon and time for lunch anyway, so I agreed.


    ¡°Yeah, that sounds good. Let¡¯s get some food.¡±


    I took out the basket of food I had brought with us to the courtyard and handed Randolph a sandwich. Brother was away from the house most of the time with his new duties as vice-captain, so our time to practice and hang out was limited to the few times he got to return home.


    I looked up to Randolph and asked, ¡°How long till you have to leave again?¡±


    ¡°Tomorrow at the latest,¡± he sighed, ¡°I wish I could stay longer, but I need to get back to Strafton.¡±


    ¡°Ugh¡­ Can¡¯t you stay a bit longer? I barely get to train with you anymore, and Dillion doesn¡¯t put up much of a fight.¡±


    ¡°Hahaha¡­ where is he? I haven¡¯t spared with him in awhile. I think it would be fun.¡± Randolph eagerly looked around.


    Dillion was my brothers'' old tutor. After Randolph became a knight in training, my father had asked Dillion to stay and be my swordplay instructor. Whenever Randolph would come home, he mysteriously always had matters to attend to outside of the mansion, only to return once Randolph had left.


    ¡°When I told him you were coming home, he said he had business to attend to and wouldn¡¯t be around.¡±


    ¡°Guess he didn¡¯t want to spare.¡± Randolph let out another laugh. ¡°Well, in any case, I¡¯m glad you are doing so well in your training.


    ¡°Of course! I want to join the knights. I¡¯ll at least have to be this good. Right?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, yeah, you¡¯re plenty good.¡±


    ¡°Could you ask father then if I could become a knight in training?¡±


    Looking away, Randolph furrowed his brow. Every time I asked father myself, he would just answer with ¡°We¡¯ll see¡± or ignore the question outright. Father must understand how I feel, right? He used to be in the same regiment that Randolph is now, just like grandfather before him. If Randolph tells him how hard I am working, he¡¯ll have to let me join.


    Reluctantly Randolph answered. ¡°I¡¯ll see what I can do. In the meantime, you want another go?¡±


    Only now I realized we had both finished our lunch.


    ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll win this time!¡±


    ?????


    I stood in my father¡¯s large study. Behind a large oak desk sat my father. He had gotten a bit of a belly now that he had retired from the military, and you could tell his age from his peppered hair and beard. He stared at me as if he was deep in thought. Paperwork was scattered on the desk. I¡¯d never understood his organizational method, but once I had tried to clean up in here for him, and he scolded me for moving things around.


    ¡°Good evening, father,¡± I said.


    I wasn¡¯t sure why my father had called me in here, but I was hoping it had to do with becoming a knight. I had asked Randolph several times to talk to father about it, and he said he would each time. Maybe he finally sees how much I want to be a knight and let me join the knights in training.


    ¡°Evening Cora.¡±


    ¡°A maid said you wanted to speak with me?¡±


    ¡°Oh right, it''s about your knight''s training.¡±


    It really was about me becoming a knight. I could have jumped with joy if I wasn¡¯t in front of my father. I would have been scolded again if I did.


    ¡°Yes, Father, I have been training hard.¡± I could hardly contain my excitement.


    ¡°Yes, Well, about that, you won¡¯t be able to do that. You just had your 18th birthday not long again, and it is about time you married. If we wait much longer, no one will want your hand.¡±


    ¡°What!?!?¡± I blurted out furiously. I had spent all this time training, waiting for him to okay the next part of my training, and he was telling me now that I have to become a housewife.


    ¡°NO¡­No!¡± I shouted, ¡°I will not be marrying anyone. I am going to become a knight, and only after I have become a knight, will I even think about marriage.¡±


    I had never spoken to father this way, and he blinked a few times, shocked at my outburst. He stood up from behind his desk. The pressure he radiated could kill. I thought Randolph¡¯s glare was scary, but father¡¯s was like hell had frozen over.


    ¡°You will marry Marquess Claytree¡¯s son Edgar, and that¡¯s the end of it.¡± He said in a deep stern tone.


    I was stiff with fear. I couldn¡¯t believe I had talked to father like that. What was I thinking? No, No, I am going to become a knight. I shouldn¡¯t be afraid of my father, and I will not be marrying someone I didn¡¯t know.


    ¡°No, father,¡± I said as I matched his stare. ¡°I will not be marrying anyone until I become a knight, and then only if I want to.¡±


    Father¡¯s anger seemed to subside somewhat after I had put my foot down.


    ¡°Cora, this is an important marriage. Your brother has raised our house''s influence, and marrying into the Marquess house would be great for both of our families.¡±


    What father said made sense. Our house was only a small barony, and with my brother¡¯s rise through the ranks, it had painted a target on our back. Those who were jealous and envious would be coming out of the woodwork to use us. We would have a hard time declining an offer of an Earl or a Viscount. However, I wouldn¡¯t abandon what I had worked so hard for.


    ¡°Father, I can¡¯t. I can¡¯t give up on my dream. I won¡¯t; I¡¯ll pursue it even if I don¡¯t have your support.¡±


    My father turned towards the window behind his desk and stared out the window. The sun was slowly setting out in the distance. I couldn¡¯t see the expression he was making now, but the pressure in the room had subsided a great deal.


    ¡°Leave if you must then.¡±


    The silence in the room was deafening.


    ¡°I will leave, father, I will.¡±


    ¡°Then Go!¡± he shouted, his voice slightly cracking.


    With tears in my eyes, I ran to my room. Gathered my gear and what I could pawn for money and took off out of the mansion. I wasn¡¯t sure where I should go, but in the stories I used to read, the knights that saved the day always got stronger in dungeons. That¡¯s what I would do. I would go to the closest dungeon and train. I would become stronger and show my father I could become a knight.


    ?????


    Lord Wimark¡¯s Viewpoint:


    I slammed my fist down on my desk, startling Everly, the maid standing next to me.


    ¡°This is ridiculous!¡± I shouted.


    ¡°What is my Lord?¡± the Everly asked.


    ¡°This!¡± Showing her the letter I was holding. The Marquess Claytree sent a letter demanding that Cora and Randolph be married into his family in no uncertain terms. Being as he was of a higher rank, I wouldn¡¯t be able to tell him no.


    ¡°That vile man! He thinks of his own children only as pawns!¡± I spat.


    I crumbled up the letter and threw it on the desk. ¡°I can¡¯t tell him, no, he will just have me killed and do it anyway.¡±


    Everly came over and rubbed my back. ¡°We will figure something out. I love that girl as if she were my own daughter. I won¡¯t let some man treat her as a pawn even if he is a Marquess.¡±


    Her gentle, reassuring smile calmed my nerves. Everly had been in my service since before the children¡¯s mother passed. We had slowly gravitated towards each other over the years, but I wouldn¡¯t be able to come out and wed her due to our positions.


    ¡°Then, we need an excuse to refuse,¡± I suggested. ¡°If Cora were to run away, that would throw a wrench in his plans.¡±


    Everly gave me a quizzical look. ¡°How does that ruin his plans?¡±


    I explained to Everly that with Randolph¡¯s recent achievements, the Marquess was likely attempting to absorb our family name. By having Randolph and Cora married into his family, he would essentially absorb our noble house into his. By naming Randolph as his successor and having Croa marry into his family too. However, if Cora didn¡¯t marry into their family, she would still carry on my family name and continue to be my successor.


    ¡°If she were to just venture out on her own, there would be nothing I could do, and if the Marquess doesn¡¯t get both of them, then it will just be a wasted attempt on his part and will likely not waste his pawn marry her off to my son.¡± I shrugged.


    ?????


    ¡°No, father,¡± Cora said as matching my stare. ¡°I will not be marrying anyone until I become a knight, and then only if I want to.¡±


    Everly had summoned Cora to my study. The plan was to give her an ultimatum. She either gives up on her dream and marries Marquess Claytree¡¯s son or goes off on her own. As a father, I didn¡¯t want to push my little girl away like this. If I were to tell her the truth, she was naive enough to think there was a way to bring justice down on Claytree.


    If I knew my daughter, though, she wouldn¡¯t let me destroy her dream. She would fight for it with everything she had. Randolph said she has made substantial progress and is actually a better fighter then some of the knights in his regiment. If I were to send her out into the world, she could handle it.


    ¡°Cora, this is an important marriage. Your brother has raised our house''s influence, and marrying into the Marquess house would be great for both of our families.¡±


    ¡°Father, I can¡¯t. I can¡¯t give up on my dream. I won¡¯t; I¡¯ll pursue it even if I don¡¯t have your support.¡±


    I turned to the window behind my desk, staring out across the horizon, the sun setting off in the distance. Holding back the tears, trying to form in my eyes. I couldn¡¯t let her see me like this.


    ¡°Leave if you must then.¡±


    There was a silence that seemed to last for an eternity, and I was slowly breaking. I wanted to turn around and hug my darling little girl, but this was for her own good. I had to play the part of the bad guy right now.


    ¡°I will leave, father, I will.¡±


    ¡°Then Go!¡± I shouted, tears now running down my cheeks.


    Cora stormed out of the room without so much as a goodbye. I looked over to Everly, and she looked like she was in as much pain as me.


    ¡°She will be alright?¡± I asked


    ¡°I¡¯m sure she will be. She has grown into such a fine, strong woman.¡± Everly forced a smile, trying to reassure me or maybe herself.

 Ch. 9 First Day Of Training

    Chapter 9 ¨C First Day Of Training


    ¡°Ruten! You fell asleep!¡± Cora shouted.


    The sun rose over the tree branches glistening on the dew speckled grass. The campfire in the middle of our site was still warm; I made sure to put more firewood on when it ran low. Two bedrolls lying next to the fire, but I wasn¡¯t in mine. I was lying against a tree, combing the area with mana sense.


    ¡°What? I¡¯m awake? I wasn¡¯t sleeping.¡± I pleaded.


    ¡°Then why were you sitting there with your eyes closed? You were supposed to wake me up for my shift,¡± she said, her hands on her hips staring at me. ¡°We could have been eating by wolves. You can¡¯t fall asleep on watch.¡±


    I opened my eyes and looked at her cute petite silhouette standing over me. ¡°I thought you needed the sleep more than I did. You had a pretty rough day, and again I wasn¡¯t sleeping.¡± She had almost died the day before; besides, I didn¡¯t really need the sleep.


    When our eyes met, it must have caught her off guard; she took a few steps back. ¡°If you weren¡¯t sleeping, what were you doing?¡±


    Hesitantly I tried to describe it. ¡°It¡¯s hard to explain. It is like feeling the mana around you. If you get good enough at it, you can almost see without opening your eyes.¡±


    Cora gave me a skeptical look. ¡°That sounds like an excuse to take a nap. I¡¯m sure you can come up with a better one than that. If you fell asleep, just admit you messed up.¡±


    ¡°Hey! I¡¯m telling the truth; I¡¯ll prove it.¡±


    ¡°Ok, go on, do it then.¡±


    Feeling as if I was some street performer getting ready to perform a magic trick, I asked Cora to hold up any number of fingers behind her back.


    Cora started to laugh, but I cut her off. ¡°Come on, just do it.¡±


    She put her hands behind her back. ¡°Fine, I¡¯m Ready.¡± She said.


    With my eye closed, I said, ¡°Seven, three, five¡­¡± Each time she would change the number of fingers she was holding up.


    Wide-eyed, Cora looked at me. ¡°Are you a psychic, Ruten?¡±


    Stifling a laugh, I responded. ¡°No, I¡¯m not a psychic. It¡¯s the mana sense I told you about.¡±


    Cora pursed her lips because she could tell I was holding in laughter. ¡°Don¡¯t be mean. Psychics can read your mind and stuff, but if you can sense mana that must mean you have an affinity for it, right? Can you use magic?¡±


    I did attempt to use magic back in the dungeon but it didn¡¯t go well. That was before I had Zozi¡¯s mark filling me with power; I should probably try again and see if I can perform proper magic this time.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure; let¡¯s give it a try. I haven¡¯t tried to actually cast anything in a while.¡± I gathered the mana around me how the old lady taught me they were testing if I had an aptitude for magic as a child. I would use that same spell I had back then; it was the only one I was familiar with.


    ¡°Facere Aquam,¡± I uttered. It was the basic create water spell. I felt the pull of magic as a ball of water formed in the palm of my hand. Shocked, my concentration waned, and the water ball fell apart, leaving a small puddle on the ground.


    ¡°It worked!¡± Cora shouted.


    The spell wasn¡¯t anything fancy but the fact that it even worked amazed both of us. I was a child the last time I had tried to cast the spell. A mage had come to the orphanage looking for those with talent in magic. She could tell I had A bit of mana and had me try casting this spell. At the time, I didn¡¯t have enough magic to cast it. Since I failed her test, she didn¡¯t take me on as an apprentice.


    Focusing, I tried again. ¡°Facere Aquam.¡±


    Once again, a palm-sized ball of water formed in my hand. As long as I kept focus, it didn¡¯t fall apart. With mana sense, I could see how the mana was being formed how it changed from mana into the water as it converged from my body with the ambient magic in the air. I let the water ball fall to the ground again.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Cora stood there, staring at me. Her eyes twinkled with excitement. ¡°This is the first time I¡¯ve seen magic.¡±


    I focused again, but this time without uttering the spells name, I tried to form the magic in the same way. Pushing the mana from my body, swirling it around in my hand, changing it into that pale blue mana I seen when the water formed. A ball of water began to form in my hand.


    Cora gasped, ¡°How did you do that without an incantation!¡±


    I stared at the ball of water in my hand. ¡°I-I just tried to match the mana I seen with mana sense. It actually worked¡­¡± I was still a bit shocked too that I was able to form the water without the incantation.


    The mana I was controlling faded when I stopped focusing, causing the water to once again fall into the puddle below. ¡°Magic sure is something else.¡±


    ?????


    ¡°Come on, Ruten, where was that strength you had yesterday?¡± Cora chided.


    After my little attempt at magic was successful, Cora was eager to get into training. Hardly missing a beat, she picked up a small log about the size of a sword and tossed it to me, and found herself one too. I hadn¡¯t been using my mana strengthening because it wouldn¡¯t exactly be fair to use that during our training. Cora was the one that seemed to do the teaching, though, because she easily outpaced me in swordplay.


    She caught my attack with her stick sliding it down to my hand, smacking it. That caused me to drop my stick, and she followed up by slamming the handle side of her stick into my diaphragm.


    ¡°You were much quicker when you fought that spider.¡±


    Cora stood over me after whacking me in the stomach. One hand on her hip and the sword sized log in the other¡ªher shoulder-length blonde hair disheveled wet with sweat caught in the breeze.


    ¡°Well, I was using mana to strengthen me yesterday. I didn¡¯t think you would be this much better than me, though.¡± I responded.


    ¡°Mana, to strengthen yourself? How do you do that?¡±


    It wasn¡¯t a very well-known use of magic, and it took a lot to maintain. You had to have an aptitude for magic, so not many people could do it¡ªthose who could typically become full-fledged mages instead of warriors.


    ¡°It¡¯s where you focus the mana in your body for bursts of strength, speed, or defense. Most people that can do it just become mages. I only learned it because I didn¡¯t have enough mana to cast any spells, but I could use it to give me a small burst of strength and speed.¡±


    The disappointed look on Cora¡¯s face vanished as she ran up to me, helping me up.


    ¡°Can you teach that to me?¡±


    I did notice Cora did have some mana. I wasn¡¯t sure how much mana would be enough, though. ¡°I don¡¯t know if you have enough mana, but we can try.¡±


    ¡°Thanks!¡± she said, pulling my arm to her chest. When she realized she was hanging on to me, she quickly let go, and it looked like her cheeks got a tint redder.


    ¡°I¡¯m not making any promises. Don¡¯t get mad if you can¡¯t do it.¡± I didn¡¯t want her to get angry at me if it turned out she was unable to.


    ?????


    Ruten and Cora sat in the clearing of their campsite facing each other. Cora''s palms were face up, and Ruten¡¯s hands slowly slide over them.


    ¡°First, you will need to be able to feel your own mana,¡± Ruten said


    Closing her eyes, Cora could feel a warmth spreading through her body. From Ruten¡¯s hand, there was warmth. It would spread then recede back as his other hand pulsed with the same heat.


    While lost in thought, she began to think of yesterday when he saved her. Remembering when she was had encountered that spider. She was prepared for goblins, but not that massive man-eating spider. She had carefully made her way through the dungeon killing a few goblins until she leaned back onto a wall. Only to realize it was a spider¡¯s web.


    Pulling on the web is what must have alerted the spider because, after a few moments of trying to get untangled, the spider came out of one of the holes in the ceiling. The spider quickly grabbed Cora, squeezing her tightly as it began to spit more web covering her.


    She began screaming for help. She couldn¡¯t get away and didn¡¯t even have a chance to try and escape. It was happening so quick. Before she knew it, she was already completely covered by the web, it was difficult to breathe, but she wasn¡¯t dead yet.


    Cora struggled with every ounce of strength she had, trying to free herself, but the web was not budging. The spider hung her up high on the web. Probably saving her for a snack later. Hanging there, she tried to scream, and all that came out were muffled sounds. Thinking back, she was sure this is where she was going to die, but at that moment, when she was about to give up hope, she felt herself falling.


    She began trying to scream again; Cora was only able to produce muffled sounds through the cocoon. Shortly after, Ruten started to cut the web that covered her face. She saw Ruten, his dark eyes staring back at her, a smile on his face. How could he smile at a time like this?


    Noticing the giant spider pouncing down at him from above, Cora shouted, ¡°Behind you!¡±


    Ruten quickly turned around, entirely blocking the spider leg that tried to pierce him. Then just like that time when Randolph had saved the group of merchants, the fear washed away.


    Was this my knight? My knight like in the stories that comes and saves the maiden? She thought


    No, that can¡¯t be it. I¡¯m a knight; I am just admiring his strength. That¡¯s all, I just need him to train. He jumped back up in the air chasing after the fleeing spider.


    That¡¯s right, I¡¯m a knight. I¡¯m just impressed with his skill. I can¡¯t let him go. I¡¯ll have to make him train me so I can be as good of a knight as Randolph and him.