《The First Shadow Assassin》 A New Life ¡°Great, another day of avoiding the guards and starving to death,¡± I think to myself, ¡°At least the 7 youngest boys will have food tonight.¡± ¡°Earth to Ethan, you there man,¡± Said a boy whose name is Seraph, ¡°How long do you think that lock is gonna take for you to pick.¡± ¡°Shut up Seraph, I¡¯ve got to focus,¡± I mutter under my breath as I attempt to pick the lock for the 3rd time, ¡°Just keep an eye on the others, and make sure we¡¯ve not been followed.¡± ¡°I know Ethan, just relax you can do it,¡± He says before heading to the rear of our group to check the roads and alleyways to make sure we¡¯re clear. ¡°Confound this damned lock, it¡¯s like the 5 Divines are trying to spite me,¡± I curse annoyed, ¡°By the grace of the Shadowless one, grant me the power to pick the lock of fate.¡± As I finish muttering my small prayer to a divine that doesn¡¯t even exist the lock-pick clicks in place telling me that I¡¯ve managed to open the door. Once the door is open for everyone to run in and get warm, I notice that it¡¯s nothing but a dust and cobwebbed infested warehouse, however, the upside is that a few small chairs that haven¡¯t rotted down to anything but firewood along with about 4 straw beddings to allow the younger boys to sleep on. ¡°Everyone start preparing a fire for us I¡¯ll go see if I can secure us some rabbits from the hunters guild, I¡¯ll be back in an hour okay¡± I tell the group of 13 boys, ¡°Seraph, I¡¯m leaving you in charge until I get back, don¡¯t open this door for anyone unless I knock on it 3 times like this.¡± As I show Seraph the knock that will tell him it''s me, I take off towards the hunters guild, where I managed to steal 2 rabbits and 3 loaves of bread. Once I make it to the back of the warehouse, I start to slowly walk around the side of the building upon which I see one of the boys sat with his back to the wall like he was asleep. ¡°Strange, there shouldn¡¯t be anyone out here,¡± I say quietly to myself, ¡°I¡¯ve got a bad feeling about this.¡± As I get closer to the boy the distinct metallic smell of blood fills my nose causing me to check the boy for any cuts, It¡¯s only then that I notice that his throat had been sliced open and the door has been kicked inward bending it in such a way that would allow me to squeeze past it so I can hide behind the door. ¡°Tell me where he is you piece of shit,¡± A voice from across the room yells causing me to freeze behind the door, ¡°I know he leads you pathetic street rats, maybe this will refresh your memory.¡± As I look around the side of the bent wooden door I catch a glimpse of Seraph tied to a chair, then all I hear is him screaming as I notice that he¡¯s been stabbed in the leg by who I believe to be the leader. ¡°Piss off scumbags, I¡¯ll never tell you where he is,¡± Seraph says spitting at the leader, ¡°He¡¯s going to become the most powerful adventurer this crappy country has ever seen.¡± ¡°A street rat becoming an adventurer, Like fuck will I allow that, only people with lives can gain the blessing, not parasites like you,¡± the leader says stabbing Seraph in the gut before kicking him to the ground causing the sword to get ripped out of him. ¡°Crap, I think you killed the piece of shit,¡± a man who is dressed in light Armour and a pitch black cloak which just about hides his twin daggers that are strapped to his lower back. ¡°Who cares, the elven boy will return if he was with them, let¡¯s just wait here for an hour then if he doesn¡¯t return we¡¯ll go kill the next group of beggars until we find him,¡± a big looking man dressed in what looks to be a chainmail Armour set, while resting a giant looking Warhammer on his shoulder. CONGRATULATIONS!! I HAVE CHOSEN YOU ETHAN SHADOWMARK TO BEAR MY BLESSING OF SHADOWS Species: Elf Species Traits: Increased experience gain in Archery skills, Magical Resistances, and Stealth Skills This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.You may pick 1 Class: This will be your secondary Class, Primary classes set as Shadow Novice by default. Mage (Common) Thief (Common) Archer (Common) Scout (Common) Priest (Common) Warrior (Common) Alchemist (Uncommon) Rune Weaver (Rare) ¡°Okay, what¡¯s going on?, I only know of 5 gods, the god of Light, Fire, Water, Air, and Earth,¡± I think to myself, ¡°who cares, I¡¯ve got to save Seraph, I guess I¡¯ll pick Thief as my Secondary Class, however why is my primary set to Shadow Novice?¡± You have selected Shadow Novice as your Primary Class. +2 to all Stats every 2 Levels, 20% to Learning and Leveling all Shadow Skills. You¡¯ve Gained 2 New Skills. Shadow Bind (Level 1/10) - This skill allows you to Bind 2 bodies to your shadow. Shadow Step (Level 2/10) - This skill allows you to become your shadow for 5 seconds per level, which will hide your voice, presence and magical power. You have selected Thief as your Secondary Class. 10% to learning stealth Skills. You¡¯ve gained 2 new skills. Quick Strike (Level 1/10) - A basic melee strike used by thieves and assassins. Steal (Level 5/10) - Lets you steal Items from monster and people. ¡°Okay, they would be usefully, but I¡¯m not sure how I would use the skills,¡± I think to myself. ¡°Hello, Ethan Shadowmark. My name is Yra Nightblade, I am known as the Goddess of Shadows, The Shadowless one, and The Immortal Darkness,¡± a voice that is both soothing and terrifying at the same time informs me. ¡°In order to open your menu, all you have to do is swipe your finger down in front of you, and a list of different options will appear. Give it a try now.¡± I do as she continues, ¡°Furthermore, you don¡¯t have to worry about your friend dying, I have frozen time for a short period in order to teach you the basic controls.¡± ¡°Hey, Yra, I can guess what Inventory, Stats, Skills, and Quest Log are for but what does the one called Divine do I can¡¯t open it,¡± I ask confused. ¡°In time, Ethan Shadowmark, I¡¯ll teach you all about that menu option now to use your skills and spells all you have to do is say the name of the skill/spell clearly,¡± Yra tells me before continuing, ¡°Now I must set time back into flow, good luck, young shadow.¡± As she finishes saying that I hear from behind the door, ¡°Well how else are we going to find an elven boy of 16 with a pale complexion and violet eyes and blond hair.¡± ¡°Well, this brat is still alive although barely he could tell us,¡± the bigger man with the Warhammer says. ¡°Fuck you all, Ethan will kill you all I know it and he¡¯ll avenge all of us, He¡¯s the only one who could awaken the GODDESS OF SHADOWS,¡± I hear Seraph shout at the top of his voice even though I can see that it''s causing him immense pain. ¡°Dammit, Seraph, stay quiet for a minute and I¡¯ll save you,¡± I say standing up and walking around the side of the door, ¡°Shadow Step,¡± as I say the skill like Yra taught me I immediately notice that I look completely invisible. As I run towards the two Adventurers at the back I shout with all my might, ¡°QUICK STRIKE,¡± dealing two very fast strikes to their throats before saying ¡°Shadow Bind,¡± keeping them standing before turning towards the leader and muttering ¡°Steal,¡± taking the leaders sword from his sheath and raising my knife to his throat as my Shadow Step skill runs out. ¡°Why are you hunting me down, also where have you taken my friends,¡± I say in a harsh voice, ¡°I¡¯ve already killed your friends, so just tell me and I¡¯ll make your death as painless as their¡¯s was .¡± ¡°Like hell you killed my friend¡¯s you pathetic brat,¡± the leader says turning around cutting himself slightly as he turns to face me and his friends, ¡°The big guy right there is a level 15 Paladin and the smaller guy he¡¯s a level 12 Hunter there is no way you could have killed them both without alerting him.¡± ¡°Shadow Bind,¡± I growl dropping my skills effect causing both the Hunter and Paladin to drop the floor in a loud crash, ¡°That skill is unique to me, It allows me to bind 2 bodies to my shadow after I kill them. I¡¯ve only just got my blessing from the goddess of shadows and honestly, I don¡¯t understand a thing that is going on but I want you to know this, my name is Ethan Shadowmark. I have the Primary Class of Shadow Novice and the Secondary Class of Thief, I am going to find out why I have been hunted down and then I¡¯m going to found a country of my own where there will be no nobility and no beggars. Everyone there will be equal and everyone will work together as one.¡± Chapter Two: Lessons in Shadows ¡°Well, who hired you,¡± I say before kicking the Leaders knee causing him to drop to one knee, ¡°Was it the guards or some stupid noble I pick-pocketed.¡± ¡°Fuck you, kid,¡± the leader says spitting at my face, ¡°If you want to know so badly about who hired us, go find the King and ask him yourself.¡± ¡°What does the king have to do with me,¡± I ask confused. ¡°Everything scum bag,¡± the leader says before going to grab my throat, ¡°DIE.¡± ¡°Quick Strike,¡± I yell my skill¡¯s name just in time to activate a lighting fast slash to the guy''s throat just as his hands grab''s my throat, ¡°Damn, I needed him alive.¡± As I curse at the leaders lifeless body I hear coughing from behind me causing me to look at Seraph clutching his gut in pain, ¡°Seraph, thank the gods your alive still,¡± I say rushing over to him, ¡°I¡¯ll get you fixed up I won¡¯t lose you as well okay.¡± ¡°Ethan, find the crown prince, he¡¯s an ally,¡± Seraph says before coughing up blood, ¡°He¡¯ll protect you and you¡¯ll be able to make your dream come true.¡± ¡°Seraph, no, please don¡¯t die on me,¡± I say panicked as Seraph goes limp in my arms, ¡°No, no, no Seraph please.¡± As I hold Seraphs lifeless body in my arms I feel the same sensation as when Yra spoke to me, ¡°Ethan, I¡¯m sorry, but he¡¯s dead, however, what he said is true the crown prince is your ally,¡± Yra says sincerely, telling me she is sad by seraphs death, ¡°Ethan, I¡¯m sorry to say, but now isn¡¯t the time to mourn, you have to leave and fast.¡± ¡°Okay, I understand, but there¡¯s something I need to do first,¡± I tell Yra slightly annoyed at her for not letting me mourn my friends, ¡°I¡¯ll be about an hour, then I¡¯ll head to the tavern that adventurers frequent, and see if I can find a group to take me to the capital city of Esellda.¡± After approximately an hour I¡¯ve finally finished my mourning of my friends, I head back inside to loot the bodies of the adventurers, however, as I¡¯m taking the cloak off the Hunter I notice that the two daggers on his lower back are made of Viridian steel a highly prized metal that is said to be able to withstand any form of corrosion be it magical or alchemical, I also notice that the pack he has would be well suited to my needs. ¡°So altogether they had 3 gold, no food, medicine, or supplies that would be useful for long trips,¡± I say annoyed, ¡°These guys were fucking idiots.¡± As I leave the warehouse, I turn and look back towards the room that is stained with blood I vow that I will never rest until the person behind this attack is dead. Walking towards the main road I lift the hood up over my face, stopping as I try to remember the directions to the tavern. After walking around for about an hour, I finally make it to the tavern. Upon entering the tavern known as the Singing Dragon I see 5 small tables and 4 rows of booths all the booths are occupied and 4 of the 5 tables are filled with mostly drunk and passed out adventurers but I notice one group of people sat next to the only open table, They look as if they¡¯ve been there for hours but none of them happens to be drunk or passed out. ¡°Miss, could I please get a drink of chocolate milk please,¡± I ask the young women, who came over to me as I sat down. ¡°Sure thing Honey, is there anything else you¡¯d like to order,¡± she asks me as I look over the menu she handed me. ¡°Um, I was wondering if you know how to get to the adventurers guild in Esellda,¡± I reply trying to catch the attention of the adventurers behind me ¡°I just received my blessing a few hours ago and I was wondering if they could teach me what I need to know.¡± ¡°Well I¡¯m not entirely sure on how to get there but I know that its a three to four-day trip,¡± She says clearly upset that she can¡¯t help me. ¡°Hey Kid,¡± I hear a voice from one of the tables call out, ¡°You¡¯re an adventurer too are ya, we can take you to Esellda for a fee,¡± ¡°What would the fee be, kind sir,¡± I ask trying my hardest not to kill the drunk bastard. ¡°Oh, the fee would be 5 gold and those fine daggers you got right there,¡± He says smirking and walking over to my table, ¡°Place the gold and the blades on the table and you got a deal.¡± Once he puts his hand on the table to steady himself I stand up and take out the daggers placing one on the table, ¡°Thief and Quick Strike,¡± I whisper quietly as I steal his money and stab my other dagger into his hand, before turning my piercing gaze to his eyes as he screams in pain ¡°I¡¯m not some idiot who would willingly hand over all my money and my weapons, now get out and don¡¯t ever return.¡± ¡°Ethan, you know that is reckless right, what would you do if that group decides it¡¯s too risky to travel with you,¡± Yra says scolding me for my behaviour. ¡°Yra, it¡¯s fine, trust me, the adventurers didn¡¯t even look at me when I asked that question to the young women who served me,¡± I think to myself knowing Yra can hear me, ¡°Now look at them, they can¡¯t keep their eyes off me.¡± ¡°Hmmm, that man he can¡¯t be, can he,¡± Yra says causing me to be confused, ¡°If he is him, then you have unknowingly found a powerful friend. I¡¯ll talk to you more in the morning I have some things to find out Ethan.¡±The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°The hell, Yra!¡± I say causing the barmaid to look at me strangely, ¡°It¡¯s an um skill I have, it allows me to talk telepathically to a friend no matter the distance.¡± After I say that I notice two of the men at the booth behind me look at each other strangely whispering something to each other before one of them turns and starts to speak to me. ¡°Hey kid, come take a seat at our table we¡¯ve got room for one more, plus it looks like you know how to use those daggers you got there, so we¡¯d be glad to help you get to Esellda for free,¡± The man who looks to be the leader says impressed, ¡°My names Eric, what¡¯s your¡¯s, kid.¡± ¡°My names Ethan Ser,¡± I say trying my hardest not to sound polite and well raised, ¡°Thank you for letting me sit at your table, I¡¯m sorry for interrupting your drinks and meal, however my father always taught me to never show weakness when it comes to people who would try to exploit me,¡± I say adding a slight hint of sadness to my voice. ¡°Your father taught you?¡± Eric asks me before continuing, ¡°That explains the fast reaction time nicely done with the double skill usage, I particularly liked the Quick Slash and Steal combo you did.¡± ¡°Yes Sir, my father taught me, he was a renowned swordsman around my hometown,¡± I lie to Eric, ¡°We was camping in the woods about 3 hours out of town.¡± ¡°I see, is that when you got your blessing Ethan?¡± He asks me. ¡°Yes, Ser it is, my father and I was going on our usual hunting trip, however, we were attacked by some monsters and he died defending me,¡± I say crying as to add to the story, ¡°I was lucky to escape with my life.¡± ¡°Well Ethan, I am glad you managed to survive, and I¡¯m terribly sorry to hear about your father,¡± One of the men with a bow next to him says but I can tell he¡¯s lying and just trying to sound polite. Skill Gained: Lie Detection Level 1/10 ¡°You¡¯re lying,¡± I say pretending to sound hurt, ¡°I got a skill called Lie Detection just now when I thought that you were lying and just being polite.¡± ¡°HOW DARE YOU,¡± the man yells, ¡°I am not lying, Eric are you seriously going to bring a kid like him, who is just going to cause problems.¡± ¡°Oh shut up, have you forgotten that I have Lie detection to 10,¡± Eric says looking at me smiling but it was a weird type of smile, ¡°I saw through your lie before you even thought of it remember I¡¯m the party leader so I decide who joins and who doesn¡¯t.¡± The man glares at me then looks back at Eric, ¡°I¡¯m going to bed,¡± He says continuing to glare at me and Eric but all I can do is smile at the man as he storms off to the stairs to the rooms. ¡°I think its time I got some rest too, good night Ethan,¡± the two other men say as they stand and say their good nights and head upstairs to bed. ¡°Now, Ethan as I can already guess by the look on your face, when you found out about my level 10 lie detection you knew that there was no point in continuing its why your holding your daggers and readying to use a secret move you got am I right,¡± Eric says still giving me that weird smile, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we won¡¯t let anyone harm you but those 3 men will, we work for the prince, you know my name already but this man is James he¡¯s my brother.¡± He¡¯s lying about something I think its about James being his brother, Lie Detection Level 2/10, Strange It went up that must mean I was right, James isn¡¯t his brother, ¡°James isn¡¯t your brother is he, my lie detection went up when I thought you were lying about James being your brother,¡± I say looking closely for any change in their behavior but not finding any. ¡°He is and he isn¡¯t,¡± Eric says keeping his expression solid, ¡°Also your perception won¡¯t be high enough yet to detect any changes in our behaviour, why don¡¯t you bring up your stats and share it with me and James, so we can have a look at it.¡± ¡°Okay, but I¡¯m not sure how to share it as I said I only just got my blessing,¡± I say bring up my stats for myself. ¡°There should be an option on the bottom left of the stats screen that you have up that¡¯s the share button,¡± Eric tells me as I click it and select Eric and James from the share with options, ¡°Okay, let¡¯s see now.¡± Name: Ethan Shadowmark Age: 16 Blessing: Shadow Blessing Species: Elf Level 1 0/100 Primary Class: Shadow Novice level 1 30/100 Secondary Class: Thief level 1 30/50 STR:15, AGI:20, WIS:20, PER:15, CHA:18, CON:25, INT:10, LUK:15 Health: 250/250 Mana: 300/300 SKILLS: Tier 1: Quick Strike (LVL 2/10), Steal (LVL 7/10), Lie Detection (LVL 2/10) Tier 2: Shadow Bind (LVL 1/10), Shadow Step (LVL 3/10) ¡°James, have you heard of that primary class before?¡± Eric asks James, ¡°How did you manage to get Steal to level 7 already and what are these Shadow skills and that Shadow Blessing.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of it before, however, I¡¯ve heard Master Magikan muttering about it now and then,¡± James says as he studies my stats, ¡°Your attributes are quite high for a kid it must be from how you were raised, Furthermore, being an Elf with that name it makes sense to assume you to be the target of the crown prince.¡± ¡°As there¡¯s no point in lying, tell me what the royal family want with me, I have already killed 3 adventurers who killed my friends looking for me, furthermore, I have the skills to be able to do it again with you two,¡± I say threatening the two of them as I grip my twin daggers and ready myself for an attack. ¡°Calm down, Ethan, we mean you no harm, if we wanted to we wouldn¡¯t have spoken to you and waited for you to leave then attacked,¡± James says smiling the same smile Eric had what is with these two, ¡°Plus look above you, and you¡¯ll see why we said your perception isn¡¯t high enough spot any changes.¡± As I look above me I see a magical circle, ¡°What type of spell is that, and why hasn¡¯t no one else noticed it,¡± I say preparing to dive out of the way hoping I can avoid it. ¡°That¡¯s a spell known as, Heaven¡¯s Fist, It¡¯s a tier 4 Lighting attribute spell,¡± James informs me before continuing, ¡°The reason no one else has noticed is because of a skill Eric uses known as Deception you need to have a perception of 45 to be able to see through any it.¡± ¡°Very well, it would be pointless if I tried to attack you as I¡¯ve no way of knowing what defenses you have up, so I¡¯ll remain your prisoner until I find a way to escape,¡± I tell them honestly, ¡°However as I¡¯m your prisoner you¡¯ve got to feed me and make sure I survive the trip to the capital right, so you can collect the reward for the quest on me.¡± ¡°Ethan, you¡¯re not our prisoner,¡± Eric says holding his face, ¡°look eat up and then get some sleep and meet us at the gate at 9 A.M sharp or else we¡¯re leaving without you.¡± Chapter Three: Apprentice of the Shadows "Ethan, wake up," Yra says quite loudly. "Ethan Shadowmark, wake up this instant." "Gods, Yra, I¡¯m up for divine sake," I groan frustrated. "I had to be blessed by a dictator, it¡¯s only six A.M Yra." "Ethan, I wanted to teach you a special skill," Yra states annoyed. "Fine, what¡¯s this new skill?" I groan. "I hope it¡¯s worth being woken up at six A.M." "It¡¯s a tier 5 skill Ethan," Yra states annoyed. "If you¡¯re going to act like a child I can treat you like one. Don¡¯t forget, you put your trousers on one leg at a time, do you understand Ethan." "Oh, shut it Yra, unlike you some people actually need sleep," I groan angrily. "Just tell me what the new skill is." "Its name is Shadow Drive, It¡¯s a rare magic type known as Awakened magic," Yra informs me before continuing. "This skill allows you power up your shadow attribute Spells/Skills tenfold for10 seconds per level." "Shadow Drive sounds like it would be useful," I exclaim. "Teach me it, please Yra, I¡¯m sorry for snapping earlier." "Very well young Ethan, I shall teach you how to use two new skills since you apologized, the first being Shadow Meditation," Yra Instructs. "Yes, Master Yra or wait is it Mistress Yra?" I question. "Master Yra or just Yra is fine. Now young Ethan, I want you to close your eyes and visualize yourself being surrounded by shadows, however instead of blocking your senses you feel them opening to a new level making them sharper and more alert," I¡¯m instructed to do. "Now once you¡¯ve managed to heighten your senses I want you to open your eyes." After about half hour of focusing on my senses, I start to hear the breathing of everything around me, also I can feel the heat from the candle that is on the other side of the room as if it was next to me, the dampness of the morning dew on my tongue whenever I open mouth. As I slowly open my eyes to let them adjust to what I imagine will be a blinding light from the candle, I instead see myself surrounded by nothing but darkness. No not darkness but instead shadows moving like a wave all around me. "Welcome Young Ethan, to my realm the Shadow glade, here in this realm is where you will learn all the shadow attribute skills and spells I have to teach you," Yra''s voice echoes all around me. Skill Gained: Shadow Meditation Level 10/10 Skill Mastered: Shadow Meditation Title Gained: The Shadow¡¯s Chosen "Oh wow, I mastered a skill straight away and gained a title for it," I exclaim. "How do I apply the title, Master Yra?" "Swipe your finger down until you come across, profile." I do as ordered. "Now a new option will have appeared known as, title." Name: Ethan Shadowmark Title: The Shadow¡¯s Chosen Age: 16 Blessing: Shadow Blessing Species: Elf Level 1 0/100 Primary Class: Shadow Novice level 1 30/100 Secondary Class: Thief level 1 30/50 STR:15, AGI:20, WIS:20, PER:15, CHA:18, CON:25, INT:10, LUK:15 Health: 250/250 Mana: 300/300 SKILLS: Tier 1: Quick Strike (LVL 2/10), Steal (LVL 7/10), Lie Detection (LVL 2/10) Tier 2: Shadow Bind (LVL 1/10), Shadow Step (LVL 3/10) Tier 5: Shadow Meditation (LVL 10/10) "Now I¡¯ve learned how to change the titles!" I exclaim. "Hey, Yra, you said Shadow Drive was an Awakened Magic type, so how many different types of Magic and Skills are there exactly?" "Well, from what I remember there are ten different types of Magic and Skill powers," Yra explains. "They are as listed; Awakened, Celestial, Curative, Alteration, Incantation, Destructive, Summoning, Possession, Creation, and Caster." As Yra finishes listing out the different Skill and Magic types I hear a loud knock coming from out of no-where so I focus on the tavern room again, the shadows seem to flow back into my body as my senses dull and go numb for a second. Once I come back around to being able to move without stumbling I walk up to the door and open it seeing the waitress who served me last night holding a tray with some sausages, bacon, scrambled eggs and toast with a glass of Orange juice which she leaves on the desk in the corner of the room before saying that my "friends" aren¡¯t up yet. "Ethan, I¡¯ve got the books here on all the Magic and Skill types for you to study and read," Yra informs. "Thanks, Yra, I appreciate it," I say digging into the breakfast.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. After she left, I decided to study the book on Awakened Magic and Skills, however, as I read through I notice that using Awakened Magic alters the appearance of my physical body. "Uh, so it alters my physical appearance, nice to know," I say as I chew on a piece of sausage. After about an hour of reading the books, I decided to go outside and practice one of the skills I saw in the Destructive type book. The skill was known as Frost Arrow, it summons up an arrow made of ice that the caster can control. As I walk around to the training yard that the tavern has set up out back I aim at the trees in the distance and hold my hands as if I¡¯m holding a bow as I say Frost Arrow, an arrow of ice forms as I shoot it at the tree missing it. Skill Gained: Frost Arrow (Level 1/10) "Guess I need to practice some more, however, this will be a useful Spell if I need to hit a target who¡¯s far away," I mutter. Quest Received From Crown Prince Alexi Lightheart Quest Requirement: Meet with the Rebel High Command in the Scorching Magician Tavern in Esellda Bonus Requirement: Meet with Royal Grand Magician Vulmer Magikan Quest Reward: 200 Class XP, 200 Species XP, 200 Gold Pieces, and a Quantum Pack "Mister Ethan, I have a message for you from Mister Eric," one of the waitresses informs me. "Go ahead, Miss," I ask politely. "Mister Eric requested that you meet him at the table they were at last night in ten minutes, Sir," She says nervously. "Okay, thank you for the message," I say handing her a gold coin causing her to look at me confused, "Think nothing of it, Miss, you were very nice to me last night when everyone else just shrugged me off or ignored my existence." As she walks away, I decided to carry on practising Frost Arrow until I get it up to level 2. After six minutes go by I managed to get Frost Arrow to level 2, however, at the same time I have completely exhausted my Mana, deciding now would be a good time to go back inside and wait for Eric. Once inside I make my way over to where Eric would be meeting me, As I sit down at the table, I look around the room trying to figure out how to increase my perception, So as I¡¯m about to close my eyes to try and use my senses to increase my perception, I hear some yelling coming from across the room, causing me to turn my attention to it. As I turn to look at the obnoxiously loud disturbance, I notice some slight movements coming from one of the shadowy sections of the tavern, which would normally be of no concern for me, but I managed to pick up on what one of the three adventurers saying. It was along the lines of "I believe he is the target the king is after. What are our orders, Sir?" However, when I looked closer at the one, I notice one of the hooded Adventures had a tattoo across his cheek, it was shaped like a lightning bolt, and furthermore, the spiritual pressure he was letting off was heavily soaked in death and blood-lust. Just looking at him is sending all my survival instincts into overdrive. As I attempt to look away, his eyes lock onto mine and all the pressure he had that was coming off him was directed right at me, it took all my strength to just stay conscious. Perception Increased +3 Resistance Skill Gained: Mental Resistance Level 1/20 "Ethan, you''re early, I expected you to be training that new spell you learned," Eric says coming from the door to the tavern. "Yeah, I exhausted my mana practising it though, so I decided to come in and wait," I say still recovering. "You look like you¡¯ve just fought against a dragon," Eric says Laughing. "I¡¯m guessing you¡¯ve felt the spiritual pressure of our friend with the tattoo, normally you need to have a Mental Resistance level of 12 or higher to withstand it without dying or passing out. Yours must be fairly high." "My Mental Resistance skill is only level 1," I replied breathing heavily. As I fully recover, I notice that Eric is looking at me stunned and shocked that I¡¯m alive or even conscious. After about ten minutes of him just staring at me shocked, he finally told me about the route we will be taking to Esellda and what we might expect along the way, such as goblins, wolves and if we¡¯re unlucky a wyvern or two, furthermore he told me the different weak points on each creature we might face and what element they align with the most goblins being fire, wolves being earth, wyvern¡¯s are unknown to most people, but they¡¯re shadow elemental creatures. The whole conversation took about two hours during which James met up with us and the other three adventurers went to different shops to stock up on supplies they needed. "So, Ethan, do you understand the basics of the different stats, we¡¯ve covered skills and magic usage," James asked. "I¡¯m not really familiar with what each stat is I understand that PER is perception as it went up by 3 earlier before Eric joined me," I say honestly knowing it¡¯d be better to trust them. "Okay, Ethan, we¡¯ve got another hour before we¡¯re due to leave let''s start off with Perception as that one''s the easiest to start you with," Eric informs me before continuing. "Perception is one of eight different attributes these attributes are, Strength, Perception, Wisdom, Agility, Luck, Charisma, Intelligence, and Constitution. Perception controls how you see your surroundings, which allows you to spot useful traps and clues or it can allow you to tell when someone lies to you about something, furthermore, it allows you to be able to increase the range you fire a bow of long-range spell such as your frost arrow spell." "Okay, I think I understand perception what about Wisdom, what does that control," I ask writing down everything they¡¯re teaching me. "Wisdom influences how much pain both physically or mentally you can take without passing out. However, it also determines the likelihood of falling victim to mind-altering spells or skills such as the skill known as Fearful Roar/Terror¡¯s anchor, which both alter your fear making you more likely to run in fear when you¡¯ve no need to fear anything," James says. "It also helps contribute to your mana pool and the ability to learn magic. It works in tandem with Intelligence which is pretty simple to explain. Intelligence determines how much you know and how likely you¡¯re going to succeed at puzzles and riddles." "Also, Ethan, Strength is pretty straightforward too. It determines the amount of damage a skill can do and how much you can carry on you if you don¡¯t have an extremely rare bag called a Quantum bag. Furthermore, Constitution determines how much health you have, and influences your poison, heat and physical damage resistances, like how wisdom affects magical resistances Constitution affects Physical resistances," Eric explains. "The only attributes left are Luck, Agility, and Charisma." "I think I know what Agility influences and effects, wouldn¡¯t it be the speed you can travel at for example running, as well as how many strikes you can do before your target can react and how fast you can react to attacks right?" I ask. "Yes, Ethan, but that''s not all it also works in tandem with your perception as the faster you strike, if you have a high enough Perception then, you can target critical points on the target." Eric adds, "It also works with Luck too as Critical spots are usually well defended if you know where you own is, so you need to be lucky enough to land a hit, furthermore, it also determines the likelihood of avoiding dangerous encounters and how much loot a creature will drop and how rare the loot will be." "Lastly, Ethan, Charisma it¡¯s pretty straightforward as it determines how people will react to you when you speak, depending on how high your Charisma attribute is, determines how likely you will intimidate a person or impress them," James says. "It also helps you when your bartering with traders as they are more likely to lower the prices of items they sell and offer you more for items your trading." Intelligence Increased +8 "Okay, I understand now, thank you, Eric, James, I appreciate you teaching me this," I say sincerely. "Isn¡¯t it about time that we head to the main gate now, I¡¯m sure the other three are waiting for us." "Yeah, we best be. Let''s get going Ethan," Eric says. as I run up to my room and collect my things. "Ethan, be careful on this trip to Estella, I sense that dark forces are at work here," Yra says. Chapter Four: A Shadow鈥檚 Road As I ran out of the tavern after saying goodbye to the waitress and bartender, I proceed to run down the alleyways towards the main gate, however, out of nowhere I¡¯m being grabbed by someone causing me to fall on my butt. ¡°What the hell!¡± I shout getting to my feet and drawing my daggers, ¡°Who grabbed me.¡± ¡°Just be careful of the other three adventurers in your group, Ethan Shadowmark,¡± the mysterious female says before vanishing. ¡°What the hell was that about,¡± I mutter, ¡°Crap, I¡¯m late.¡± As I ran to the main gate I stopped to look around for Eric and James I notice that they¡¯re not here, so I went to check some of the local shops, however, none of them had seen them apart from the last shopkeeper who tells me that they left heading north about forty minutes ago. ¡°Damn, I¡¯m really late,¡± I curse myself as I pull up my stats to check what my AGI stat is at. Name: Ethan Shadowmark Titles: The Shadow¡¯s Chosen Age: 16 Blessing: Shadow Blessing Species: Elf Level 1 0/100 Primary Class: Shadow Novice level 1 30/100 Secondary Class: Thief level 1 30/50 STR:15, AGI:20, WIS:20, PER:18, CHA:18, CON:25, INT:18, LUK:15 Health: 250/250 Mana: 380/380 ¡°Okay, I can run about twenty minutes before I¡¯m worn out,¡± I state readying myself to start sprinting north-wards. As I ran along the mud and animal dung covered path, there were fields as far as the eye could see, however, they were interrupted here and there by patches of forests left for local animals and plants. Furthermore, as I ran forward nearing my limit, I catch the glimpse of a small group of goblins setting up an ambush in my path, thankfully, I was prepared for the four arrows that came flying at me from each corner of the small box they set up as the staging area for their trap, I quickly slide along the ground bringing my arms to the position a bow would be as I jump high into the air blinding the four level 5 goblins who stupidly looked up at me when the sun was right behind my head, since they¡¯ve been blinded I quickly pull my arm back as if drawing the string of the bow I quickly state Frost Arrow as I launch two arrows at the two goblins in front of me killing them as they freeze over, then the ice and their bodies explode into crystal like bubbles that shine like rainbows that float up into the sky, It¡¯s only then that I notice a count down in the top left corner of my vision saying ¡°Bonus Loot Count Down Ends: Ten Seconds Remaining.¡± ¡°Strange, but first things first I need to deal with these goblins,¡± I say charging the still blinded goblins, ¡°Quick Strike, Shadow Step.¡± As I say my skills I reach the first goblin and kill it as its body explodes into the same strange Crystal like bubbles, before I turn to the final goblin as my Shadow Step skill activates allowing me to cross the large distance quite quickly allowing me to decapitate the goblin as the countdown hits one second remaining. However, before I have a chance to run after my friends a menu pops up saying. Loot Obtained: Eight Goblin Ear¡¯s, Four Goblin Totems, Twenty Five Bronze Coins, Two Rusty Knives, Two Splintered Bows, Four Goblin Hearts Experience Gained: 40 XP Please choose the amount of XP to be distributed to your Primary and Secondary Class ¡°Wow, I can pick how the XP is distributed from monster kills!¡± I exclaim happily, ¡°Let¡¯s see Thirty XP to primary and Ten to secondary.¡± Primary Class XP: 80/100 Secondary Class XP: 40/50 Bonus loot: Amulet of Detection As I click on the Amulet of Detection, a Pitch black gem with a coarse string appears, ¡°So this must be the Amulet of Detection,¡± I say examining the Amulet. Once I place the Amulet around my neck, I raced towards Eric and James finally reaching them as they finish killing the last of the goblin horde as the last remaining goblins explode into bubbles and float to the sky I run up to them. ¡°Where is Ethan?¡± Eric shouts as he brings his sword down into the last goblin¡¯s neck, ¡°he should have caught up with us long before now.¡± ¡°Eric,¡± I gasped. ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­ I¡¯m late. Some girl¡­ stopped me¡­ to warn me about¡­ the other three in our group.¡± ¡°A girl?¡± James says before being interrupted by Eric. ¡°What did this girl look like? Did she have strawberry blond hair and bright blue eyes? Did she hand you anything? What else did she tell you?¡± Eric asks bombarding me with questions. ¡°Um, Eric, I don¡¯t know, all she said was to watch out for the other three adventurers in our group,¡± I state confused, ¡°Why is it important to know Eric?¡± ¡°Never mind, if that¡¯s all she said then let¡¯s just be careful okay,¡± Eric states, ¡°let¡¯s get a move on, we¡¯re late already because of this horde. Ethan, stay close to me or James okay.¡± All I could do is nod due to the look on Eric¡¯s face that was both of anger and relief. Along the grassy plane, we walk pass some farmer¡¯ heading back to their farm so I decided to try and increase my perception by listening to what they were saying. ¡°Did you hear, The pastry thief is known as, Pwyll the Cookie Thief, has struck again this time hitting the bakery shop called Paradis de la Patisserie,¡± The female states shocked. ¡°How many is that this week five shops, how have the guards not captured this ruffian,¡± The older fellow grumbles, ¡°Rumor has it that he¡¯s only sixteen years, however, others say that he¡¯s actually 200.¡±This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. PERCEPTION +2 I wonder how it decides how many points to increase could it be the difficulty or just the number of things I look out for who knows, I would ask Yra but she¡¯s been hiding in her realm, I¡¯m starting to get worried as she promised to teach me Shadow Drive. However, as the hours go by agonizingly slow with no one saying a word, and just the sounds of the wyvern''s in the mountains to the west, the forest creatures to the east, along with the birds above¡­ I decided that I had to hear someone else speak so I stopped to let James catch up with me as he was trailing along at the back while Eric and the other three walked ahead of us. ¡°Guessing you got bored of the silence too,¡± James says once he reaches me, ¡°It¡¯s always like this with Eric on missions, what did you wanna talk about I can see there¡¯s something you¡¯re confused with?¡± ¡°Hey, James, how would you increase your Agility and Willpower?¡± I asked thinking about how I don¡¯t know any ways to increase my stats apart from Intelligence and Perception, ¡°Oh also, what about Charisma and Strength?¡± ¡°Well Strength and Agility are the simplest to increase simply because your training them now, us walking is slowly filling the bar for a point of agility but you¡¯d need to walk about 10,000 steps just to get 1 point, believe me I know I¡¯ve tried it,¡± James informs me as I write all the information he gives me down, ¡°However, a faster way to do it is by jogging or running laps. Strength, you increase by doing physical training carrying items in a backpack or on your belt increase it slowly but again it¡¯s not a useful way to train it, as you can go your whole life without gaining a single point that way. The best way to train it is by doing push-ups, pull-ups, or simply practising your swordsmanship.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± I mumble as I finish writing it all down in my notebook, ¡°So, what about Charisma and Willpower?¡± ¡°Willpower is the second hardest to train. The only surefire way I know of to train it is to study different types of magical spells and attributes relating to it. Another and more dangerous way is to try to expand your Mana pool though expanding your Mana reserves. However, the reason this is dangerous because if you expand it to much you could burst your mana pool, causing you to lose mana instead of gaining it. You would also lose points into Willpower as well,¡± James instructs before continuing, ¡°With Charisma, it¡¯s a little easier but still one of the hardest to train. Learning different languages help to increase it. There are skills that increase it too like Cuteness, but I think that skill unlocks when your aged 16 and hit 20 charisma, then when you turn 18 it becomes attractiveness, but I digress; basically learning how to communicate better is another way to increase your charisma.¡± As I finish writing down all the information James gave me I end up bumping into Eric, causing me to fall onto the floor, ¡°Right, it¡¯s pretty late due to the horde being closer to the slums than originally estimated, so we¡¯re gonna set up camp here now. Everyone knows their jobs apart from Ethan, so get to it,¡± Eric instructs, ¡°Ethan, I want you to scout around the area for any monsters and place these runes around the camp, however, one condition you can only use the trees to move.¡± ¡°What, how do you expect me to search for monsters without looking on the ground for clues?¡± I exclaim, ¡°That¡¯s virtually impossible.¡± ¡°Are you going to quit¡­ On your dream, on Seraph, on your family,¡± Eric states in an annoyed but caring voice, ¡°If you want to throw away his death as if it never happened then turn around, leave, and never come back!¡± As I lunged forward connecting my fist to his jaw I screamed, ¡°HOW FUCKING DARE YOU! You know nothing about what my life has been like¡­ all you adventurers are the same highborn scumbags who treat beggars like me and Seraph as if we were the dirt on their shoes." After screaming at Eric I decided to climb up a tree and scout around for monsters after half an hour of jumping from tree branch to tree branch as I keep an eye out for monsters and creatures but all I¡¯ve come across are deer, rabbits, and the occasional lone wolf. However as I was about to make my way back I stumbled across a cave with a shimmering blue haze over the entrance, deciding that it could be a goblin cave, I rushed over to the entrance readying my daggers, however as I raise my hand to the shimmering fluorescent blue barrier, a bright blue message pops up in my view. DO YOU WISH TO ENTER THE REALM OF THE GOBLIN KING YES/NO ¡°No, thanks,¡± I say unamused, ¡°Maybe some other day I¡¯ll return.¡± As I walk towards the camp, I run across two level three wolves along the way. I quickly deal with both using Quick Strike and Frost Arrow earning myself twelve XP, which I placed completely into Thief, furthermore, I gained four Wolf Fangs, Two Wolf Hides, Ten Wolf Meat, and Two Wolf Hearts. ¡°Where on earth do the items go, and why would we need to carry stuff if everything just goes into the inventory?¡± I ponder as I walk back into camp seeing that everyone but Eric is sat around the fire, ¡°Hey, James, I got a question about the inventory setting on the menu. What does it actually do?¡± ¡°Well, firstly, I want you to go and apologize to Eric or else you¡¯re not having any food!¡± James exclaims annoyed. ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything wrong,¡± I state, ¡°He¡¯s the one in the wrong.¡± ¡°Go¡­ Now Ethan!¡± James yells at me, ¡°If you don¡¯t make it up to Eric, you can go home.¡± After about two minutes of walking away from the camp. I stumble across a cave where I see Eric surrounded by a bubble of crystal clear water, however, as I approach I trip some sort of trap because the next thing I see is five throwing knives flying at me from all sides, luckily for me I able to dodge them all just barely missing the last knife as it passes by my face. After catching my breath I start to sense the same sensation coming from Eric that I felt when I was using Shadow Meditation. As I sat waiting for Eric to come out of the bubble I decided to see what Yra was doing in the Shadow Glade. ¡°Yra,¡± I say as I enter her realm, ¡°You here Yra?¡± ¡°Ethan, what¡¯s the matter child of shadows,¡± Yra asks, ¡°You seem distracted and confused.¡± ¡°It¡¯s just¡­ I don¡¯t understand anything that¡¯s going on, Yra, with how Eric and James are acting around me and with those adventurers who attacked my family¡­¡± I pause remembering the scene, ¡°It¡¯s like everything I do will affect the world as we know it.¡± ¡°Ethan, you''re like a pebble that has been thrown into the river of fate, creating your own ripples in fate and changing it in ways that aren''t clear. Your actions will ripple into the furthest reaches of the land, altering the destinies of even the smallest of children,¡± Yra cryptically informs. ¡°You, Ethan, are most likely the most important and seemingly unimportant person in the whole of the six kingdoms.¡± ¡°That was vague and unhelpful,¡± I state annoyed. As I focus back on the physical realm, I sense a powerful energy coming from a few feet in front of me, however, this energy isn''t one that belongs to a person it¡¯s more refined, purer perhaps¡­ But, there¡¯s a second energy coming from within the first, could that be Eric. As I return to the physical realm to see Eric standing in front of me with his arms crossed. ¡°So, you decided to come back did you,¡± Eric states staring at me unimpressed. ¡°Ye-yeah¡­ I¡¯m so-sor-sorry, Eric,¡± I mutter barely audible. ¡°It¡¯s fine, just don¡¯t do it again, Ethan,¡± Eric says, ¡°Now, what is it you wanted to ask?¡± ¡°Oh, um¡­ well, I had a question for James, however, he told me to apologize first¡­¡± I say when suddenly we hear a loud explosion come from the campsite Chapter Five: The Shadows Past "What the hell was that?" I exclaimrushing out of the cave. "Over there, there''s smoke coming from the camp. James, he''s gotta be in trouble!" Eric and I raced through the thick brush and hanging ivy, Eric effortlessly striding across the crowded forest floor, whereas I was leaping from branch to branch, trying to keep pace with him. As we approached the camp, we hear the ringing sound of steel clashing with steel. "It sounds like a fight, Eric!" I yell, "Eric, what''s happening? Answer me!" As Eric broke through the brush that leads to our camp, I notice five hobgoblins with their backs to him when suddenly he yells out "Whirlwind Surge!" Once Eric finishes shouting his skills name, he swings his Nandao, which he has modified with a pitch black chain connected to it, at the hobgoblins decapitating them in one clean strike. As Eric decapitates five hobgoblins at once, I finally reach the west side of the camp using the trees as stepping stones, before diving in front of three hobgoblins as I cast Frost Arrow in mid-air at two of them before casting a Quick Strike at the third hobgoblin''s throat taking down each of their health down to fifty percent. As I look around the camp, just about holding my own against the hobgoblin, I spot James by the fire with Archer kneeling at his side, his longbow aimed right at the chest of the hobgoblin chief, which is at level fifteen with a Melee resistance at level six, Ranged resistance at four and a Magic resistance of one. I spot Archer drawing his bowstring to shoot the three arrows he''s nocked as James uses an enchantment on the arrows turning them into lightning bolts. As Archer fires the arrows at the hobgoblin chief, the bolts explode, bringing the hobgoblin chief''s health down to seventy-five percent. However, as I finish fighting the hobgoblins I''m attacking, I realize I''m back-to-back with Tamer. "Where the hell did these creatures come from!" I exclaim as I parry a downward strike. "It looks like a hobgoblin raiding party," Tamer answers. "Ethan, stick close to me, and we''ll survive okay." As Tamer cuts down the hobgoblin he''s fighting with a skill called Bolt Wave, however, the second Tamer''s hobgoblin burst into those strange crystal bubbles. I jump up, launching two Frost arrows at the two hobgoblins clumsily stumbling towards us, freezing them in place as Tamer pulls out a crossbow and uses the skill known as Thousand Needles. I use a new skill called Dancing Slice, which I read in one of the thief books that Yra snuck into the stack of books on different magic types at the tavern. Unfortunately, it only works if I''m wielding both my daggers at the same time, as it allows me to strike at multiple different spots as if the target and I are caught in a deadly dance. Once I kill the hobgoblin, I roll backwards, standing back-to-back with Tamer again when I feel an intense pain in my left leg, causing me to fall to the ground screaming. As I do, I realize that the hobgoblin chief has turned his attention on us as it charges straight towards us, but Eric and Warrior haven''t had time to intercept the chief as they''re both pinned down by 5 hobgoblins each. As the hobgoblin chief reaches us and swings downwards at me, I feel myself being kicked out of reach of the blade. A sticky red substance sprays into my face, blinding me in one eye, which is when I realize that Tamer is the one standing in front of me. I also notice that there is a severed arm lying at my feet, furthermore, just as Eric slams into the chief using a skill known as Tempest Rage, I let out a blood-curdling scream as I fall unconscious just as the hobgoblin chief bursts into bubbles. SEVERAL HOURS LATER As I groggily wake up, pushing my aching body up using my hands, I notice that the ground is soft as my eyes still haven''t adjusted correctly. Once they do, I realize I''m in a bedroom with medical devices and magical medicinal runes. I decide to try and stand up, but as I do, I''m reminded in a painful way that I was shot in my leg, but then I notice that there are crutches next to the bed. I pick them up and hobble out of the room when I hear yelling coming from downstairs. "He almost killed Tamer!" Someone whose voice I don''t recognize yells angrily. "He''s brand new at the whole adventurer obligation. You were new to this to a year ago!" a voice I recognize as Eric''s bellowed back, "Also, Archer, what the hell? You shot Ethan with your arrow!" "I didn''t intend for Ethan to get hit with the arrow, the hobgoblin Chief moved at the last second, resulting in Ethan getting hit," Archer defensively yells. "Don''t blame Archer Eric. That kid has to go!" The other voice bellowed loudly like he was using the skill known as Warrior''s Roar. As I make my way down the stairs, I notice in a room off to the side Tamer lying on the bed with the area where his right arm should be bandaged with James talking to a female. Maybe she''s the doctor, but I can''t be sure. As I recall the events of what happened before I woke up here, I feel a sudden urge to scream and throw up as I remember Tamer''s arm falling in front of me as my right eye is covered in Tamer''s blood. Deciding to get some fresh air, I sneak out of the house. I walk into the street and walk across the dirt path towards a bench, when a kid about my age runs into me, knocking us both to the ground.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. "Ow, be careful kid, you could hurt yourself if you aren''t paying attention," I say calmly and soothingly, not wanting to upset the kid. "Sorry, that''s my bad," the kid says looking up at me. "Oh, wow! You''re an adventurer!" "How did you know I was an adventurer?" I ask, completely confused. "There''s no visible mark that the blessing gives you is there." "Oh, that''s easy! It''s my Blessed Skill, I''m an adventurer of the wind blessing deity," the kid says with glee. "Oh, sorry, I didn''t introduce myself; I''m Kenneth, Son of Rylmir, Son of Ascelindia." "Oh, it''s nice to meet you, Kenneth. My name''s Ethan," I smile at him. "You still didn''t say how you knew I was an adventurer." "It''s my blessed skill. It''s a skill known only to people who are of direct relation to the six deities. You can call me Kenny." Kenny and I sat there talking for what seemed like hours, sharing cookies, Kenny''s awful attempts at cartwheels, and overall just laughing and enjoying ourselves like kids should. Finally, I notice it''s dark the night sky is amazing, so full of stars. Tears start to wet my eyes, the image of Seraph and I sitting on top of a hill that overlooked a small town just like this one filling my mind. It''s only been a few years since we both looked up at the sky together when Seraph asked me out. "You okay, Ethan?" Kenny asks, noticing I''m now crying. "Yeah¡­ Just remembered something about my boyfriend," I say when suddenly I''m gripped by sadness at the realization that Seraph is really dead. "What did you remember?" Kenny asked. As I peer up at the night sky from Kenny''s lap, my eyes blurred a little with tears, what I notice is that he is genuinely concerned. Overcome by my emotions, I find that I am unable to speak. An eerie silence descends like a blanket, offering no real warmth to my frozen soul. Not even Kenny''s companionship seems to thaw it. "How could this have happened to me?" I ask no one in particular, "I''m just a beggar from Nefradin." I hear Kenny giggle softly, "I''m from Nefradin too." As we look at each other for a second, we both burst into laughing fits, which cause the pair of us to fall to the ground, our sides hurting from laughing so much, however, our laughing fit was soon cut short when we heard the screams of the people near us followed by the sound of glass shattering and wood splintering. As we looked in the direction of the noises, ready to act should the need occur, I spot Eric laying on the ground, covered in debris and glass, in front of the Doctor''s house with Warrior in mid-fall from the same window. "AND STAY OUT, THE PAIR OF YOU!" A man roars, scaring Kenny and me as he walks out of the shattered remains of the window just as Warrior crashes into the ground. As Kenny helps me stand, I spot James sitting next to Tamer''s bed, Tamer sitting up, looking as if he''s in severe pain. "Ken-Kenny, can you help me to the person sat in the bed over there please," I ask, pointing towards Tamer and James. "Sure," Kenny says softly, kneeling in front of me. "What you doing?" I ask, confused as to what he''s doing. "Well you''re hurt, so I may as well carry you," Kenny replied and I think I spot his face going red a little. "You okay with that Ethan?" "Yeah but you sure you can carry me without breaking," I mock jokingly at him as I climb onto his back. "Wow, Ethan, you''re so fat," Kenny mocks. He picks me up, and we walk to the doctor laughing loudly, making James and Tamer smile while watching us walk towards them. "Ethan, who''s your friend here?" James asks, indicating Kenny. "My names Kenneth. Nice to meet you, but I really must go," Kenny says urgently. "Sorry, Ethan, I hope to see you again." Before I have a chance to reply, Kenny runs out the house and down the road. I look over at Tamer, feeling sick. "I''m so sorry, Tamer, I''m sorry," I say, unable to hold back the tears. "You lost your arm protecting me." "Ethan, it''s fine, honestly," Tamer says in a sympathetic tone. "I''m not mad at you, I chose to save you." "Ethan, Tamer is right," James states. "He doesn''t regret the choice to save you." As I limp over and hug James and Tamer, I notice that Warrior and Eric have gone in separate directions. "How long has it been since the hobgoblin attack?" I inquire. "Three days, Ethan," James states, causing both Tamer and me to look at him. "WHAT!" Both Tamer and I yell deafening James slightly. "Three days, James, we''re late returning to the capital," Tamer says. "I know, I sent a raven as soon as we got here, informing the king of our delay," James informs us before turning to me but gets interrupted by Archer. "Guys, I''m gonna look for Warrior and Eric, I''ll be back in an hour or two," Archer states, walking out the door. "Guys, I have a warning for you," Tamer says urgently causing both James and me to look at him. As we look at Tamer collected his thoughts, he let out a deep sigh as he started talking. "I, um, think, um, that maybe, um, Warrior and Archer¡­" Tamer stutters trailing off. "Tamer, what do you think Warrior and Archer are going to do?" James asks which for some reason makes Tamer even more nervous. "James, could you stand outside the room please?" I ask, thinking if it was just me, then Tamer might be more open. "I think, given the nature of the information, he might be a little hesitant." James looks at me confused before reluctantly saying, "Sure¡­ Ethan, I trust you. I''ll be just outside." As James leaves I noticed that Tamer''s nerves seem to lessen, causing my perception to go up, which makes me start to wonder how afraid he actually is of James and Eric. "Okay¡­ Ethan¡­ I have some very very important news," Tamer starts, still nervous, but less so now that James is out of the room. "Archer, Warrior, and I are all on a mission to find an Elven boy who looks like this," Tamer pulls out a piece of parchment with a magical sketch. "This boy, the others haven''t worked it out yet, however, this boy is you, isn''t it?" As I look at the parchment, I start to back away to the door, my face growing more and more white, my stomach feeling like a whole swarm of butterflies had moved in. Due to my leg being in a cast, however, I fall on my butt as I start to panic screaming and feeling like my arms and legs weighed a ton. James to comes charging into the room, wielding a 2-foot tall Ironwood staff that is etched with twin white snakes spiralling from top to the bottom. Unlike a normal staff, however, this one seems to draw in magical energy that causes the snake spiralling around the staff to glow white. Tamer, however, doesn''t seem to notice the white glow. "Libertine, scorch the flames of truth. Manifest blazing sword," James says. Fire shoots out of the staff, almost as if it is on fire, save for where James has his hands. The fire is so bright and hot, it forces me to look away, and when I look back what was once a staff has formed into a literal sword of fire. "I-I-I-It''s okay," I stammer. "Tamer¡­ just showed me the reason¡­ why I''m being hunted," I take a minute to collect my thoughts and composure before resuming. "The king put a bounty on me." "It''s¡­ true, James¡­ I was one of twenty teams of three adventurers that were given a royal-level quest," Tamer states quietly. I start to feel woozy and faint as Tamer and James start to spin, I feel like I''m falling as everything goes black as I hear James and Tamer yelling, but I can''t make out what they are actually saying. Chapter Six: In the Shadow of Betrayal I awaken feeling extremely tired and weak, however, it¡¯s then that I notice we¡¯re out in a field. ¡°Jam-James?¡± I call out, my vision blurry in the darkness. ¡°I¡¯m here, Ethan,¡± James reassures me. I look over and see him sitting beside the fire, which blinds me temporarily, ¡°You gave us all a fright, passing out like that.¡± ¡°Sorry,¡± I look at the ground, rubbing my eyes. ¡°How long was I out?¡± ¡°Two months, Ethan,¡± Tamer says resulting in a slap across the back of the head from James. ¡°Please tell me I wasn¡¯t out for two whole months!¡± I exclaim, panicking a little. ¡°No, Ethan, you was only out for a day,¡± James glares at Tamer, who holds his head as he laughs. ¡°Oh, okay. What happened?¡± I ask, worried and trying to remember. ¡°Tamer showed you the bounty,¡± James looks around quickly to make sure that no one heard him. ¡°Then you passed out. The doctor said it was from exhaustion.¡± ¡°Oh, yeah, I remember now¡­ This um, bounty on me, what¡¯s it all about?¡± I¡¯m both curious and scared to learn more about the people who took my family. ¡°I think it¡¯s best if I explain the quest system. There are three types of quests. First, you have the level of difficulty: Common, Uncommon, Rare, Colossus, Royal, Legendary, and Divine.¡± I open my notebook, which I had in my back pocket. I begin writing down everything tamer tells me about the quest system. ¡°Okay, next I think would be the, um,¡± Tamer pauses. ¡°The three categories that the quest fall into are: Hunting, Gathering, and Escort.¡± ¡°So¡­ I¡¯m a hunting type quest objective for you all?¡± I ask in confusion, since I¡¯m being escorted instead of killed. ¡°Yes, however, it appears Eric and Jame have an Escort quest,¡± Tamer confirms as James nods. ¡°It¡¯s because of those two that you weren¡¯t killed in the slums where we found you.¡± ¡°So if I¡¯m getting this right, you, Archer, and Warrior all want to kill me?¡± I state shocked and feeling a little sick as Tamer nods, ¡°And James and Eric are protecting me?¡± James nods in agreement. ¡°I want to make things rig¡­¡± Tamer is suddenly cut off when Eric flies past us. As we look back in the direction that Eric came from, I see three arrows flying right towards me. Because of my bad leg, I barely manage to avoid them. It¡¯s then that I notice that James and Tamer are already on their feet, casting spells and firing bolts. ¡°Ethan, go hide! Quickly!¡± Eric yells as he clashes into Warrior, and the sound of metal hitting metal rings loudly echoing around the camp. As I run off towards the nearby woods, barely dodging the arrows that Archer seems content with firing at me from a hidden location. I hold my head in between my legs as I start to mumble a chant I remember from my childhood, but don¡¯t remember where from. ¡°Shadows protect, Shadows hunt, Bring forth the Wolf of darkness, Arise and Protect me, Keito!¡± As I finish the chant, my body starts to glow black as a dark mist flows out of my body originating from the birthmark below my heart. As a large black wolf jumps out from where my heart is, I scream in pain, but calm down when I realize that I¡¯m not in pain. I reach out my hand, which shakes in fear of the battle yet. Suddenly, I feel a cold wetness touch my hand, causing me to open my eyes and I stare right into the wolf¡¯s menacing silver eyes that feel as if they¡¯re piercing right into my soul. ¡°Greetings, my Prince of Shadows,¡± a gruff, menacing voice booms inside my head, causing me to panic a little. ¡°Wh-Wh-Who said that?¡± I stutter in my panic. ¡°It was me, my prince,¡± the voice responds making me look at the wolf confused.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. ¡°You? How? What is happening?¡± I shoot off questions. ¡°You summoned me, to defend you and your companions,¡± the wolf states as it growls towards where Warrior is. ¡°O-O-Okay. Let¡¯s save my friends, then can you answer some questions for me?¡± I stand. ¡°At your command, my prince," the wolf responds. "However, your friends are in trouble.¡± The wolf runs off towards Tamer, the one in the most immediate danger. I run after the wolf and I dive forward, launching three Frost Arrows at the arrows that Archer fired from an unknown location. My magic freezes them and they drop to the ground, shattering upon impact. Dodging a downward slash from Warrior, I draw both my daggers so I can use the skill Dancing Slice to send Warrior on the defensive as I search for an opening in his defence. An arrow flies past my face, slashing my right eye open. However, before Warrior has the chance to finish me off, Eric resumes the assault on Warrior. I clutch my eye as I scan my surroundings for Archers location. ¡°Where the fuck are you, Archer?¡± I grumble loudly. A voice, seemingly coming from all around me, taunts, ¡°Just die already.¡± As I look around for the source of the taunts, I find myself unable to find the source and let out a massive scream of frustration. ¡°What the hell? What¡¯s happening?¡± I hear a voice that I recognize as Archer¡¯s. ¡°Why the hell is it so dark all of a sudden?¡± Looking around I realize that the area around me is getting darker as if the shadows are devouring all light. I then think of what Archer has said about it getting dark. It sounds like he is unable to see what¡¯s going on, but I can see perfectly. Suddenly, a notification alert pops up. SPELL GAINED: Roar of Shadows (Level 1/10) - This spell is a tier 5 Shadow attribute spell. It allows the caster to absorb all light from the surrounding area impeding the vision of everyone in the area but the caster I read the notification as I realize that Archer hasn¡¯t thrown or shrouded his voice like he did last time. Charging towards Archer I notice that Warrior and Eric are holding a defensive stance scanning around for the enemy. ¡°JAMES! AT YOUR TWELVE O¡¯CLOCK USE A LIGHTING STRIKE SPELL RANGE FIVE METERS! ERIC! SLASH DOWN IN FIVE SECONDS AFTER HEARING THE LIGHTNING STRIKE, THEN JUMP RIGHT! AND TAMER! USE BINDING SHOT BEHIND YOU AT ELEVEN O¡¯CLOCK RANGE TEN METERS!¡± I yell, hoping that they¡¯ll listen. As I run, a lightning strike hits right in front of Warrior, blinding him temporarily, causing him to drop his weapon as Eric slashes down, killing him. I jump up into the trees towards Archer as two arrows zip past me with a magical rope connecting them. They pierce into Archer''s shoulders binding him in place. I jump high into the air above Archer, then dive down. The light seemingly returns to the area just as I use my skill Dancing Slice, killing Archer with shock plastered across his face. After I land on the ground, I pick up Archer''s bow, admiring the craftsmanship and wondering if anyone would mind me taking it considering Archer won¡¯t need it anymore. ¡°Ethan, you okay up there?¡± Eric calls up to me, causing me to drop the bow over the edge of the cliff. ¡°Ye-Yeah!" I yell back down. "I¡¯m okay!¡± As I slowly make my way back down the cliff towards everyone, I notice that Eric is holding Archer¡¯s bow, causing me to get a little scared that I¡¯ll be yelled at for looting the dead. ¡°Ethan,¡± Eric says my name, and I jump a little. ¡°Was you wanting Archer¡¯s old bow?¡± ¡°Wait, aren''t you mad that I was going to loot his body?¡± I ask shocked and confused. ¡°No, why would we be?¡± Tamer and Eric exchange a look of confusion between themselves as James walks over. ¡°Ethan, looting the fallen is how you make money and survive. Plus it¡¯s better if we use the high tier weapons and gear than goblins or other monsters,¡± James explains. ¡°Oh, okay,¡± I say in relief. ¡°Well, I would like to learn how to use a bow, that way, I can fight from a distance, too.¡± ¡°I can teach you, if you¡¯re interested?¡± Tamer suggest. ¡°Really?¡± I ask. "You know how to use a bow?" ¡°Yep, Tamer, Archer, and Assassin classes all have a ranged set of skills to go with the melee skills,¡± Tamer informs me, and I write the information into my notebook. ¡°Then please teach me how to wield a bow!¡± I exclaim happily Tamer nods to me as James decides now would be the best time to head off to Estella. Picking up the bow, I climb back up to Archer''s body and take the quiver of arrows and other useful loot before making my way back down to the others, who are working out which way to go. As soon as I reach them, James states that we¡¯re taking the forest route, as it¡¯ll be a little longer, but it¡¯ll give Tamer longer to train me in archery before he heads back to his hometown. After an exhausting two day trek through goblin-infested forests, we make it out of the forest. In the distance, I see the enormous pitch black walls of Estella¡¯s outer city, which is home to farms and hunting guilds. Behind those, however, is the inner city, which houses the houses and stores, and beyond those is the guild district and the royal palace, which is home to the royal family and all the guilds where adventurers can train and hone their skills. The guilds also offer housing to any adventurer hired by the crown. ¡°Ready, everyone?¡± Eric asks. ¡°Ready!¡± We all affirm. Suddenly, we¡¯re suddenly surrounded by about 20 guards, which order us to drop our weapons and to place our hands up. Looking around I notice Eric, Tamer, and James have done as they said, but the second I go to disarm my daggers I¡¯m struck on the back of the head by a blunt object. As everything goes black, I make out Eric yelling. Chapter Seven: The Truth Behind the Shadows ¡°Ethan, Ethan, wake up, Ethan!¡± A voice shouts from all around me, ¡°GET UP ETHAN!¡± I bolt upright head butting whoever was yelling, as I recoil in pain I notice that it¡¯s a young girl around my age is looking down at quite annoyed and holding her head. ¡°Um, hello, where um where am I?¡± I ask confused as the last thing I know is we were being surrounded by guards. ¡°You¡¯re in the royal palace''s dungeons,¡± The mysterious girl informs me before throwing me some clothes, ¡°Get dressed and meet me outside.¡± As I watch the girl leave confused I look down realizing that I¡¯m naked causing me to blush like crazy as I start pulling on the pitch black trousers and navy blue shirt, however, I notice that I wasn¡¯t given any underwear shrugging it off as nothing unusual. Running outside I¡¯m temporarily blinded by the sun as it glares down at us from high in the sky. ¡°Fuck, what time is it?¡± I ask rubbing my eyes as blurry spots could my vision. ¡°Midday, Ethan, You remember me right?¡± The mysterious voice says. I vaguely remember her voice from the slums where I met Eric and James. ¡°You¡¯re the girl who attacked me a couple days ago!¡± I say going for my weapons just to see she¡¯s holding them. ¡°Yep, the name''s Astrid,¡± Astrid states unimpressed. ¡°Okay?¡± I look at her confused, ¡°Am I meant to know you from somewhere else?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, go meet this person,¡± She says handing me a piece of paper with an address on it. Once I sorted all my equipment out I look up to ask this mysterious girl named Astrid a question, only to find that she has vanished into thin air. As I look around for her I start walking towards the market square. ¡°Where the hell am I meant to go,¡± I groan to myself. Taking out the note to see where I¡¯m meant to go it reads ¡°See the Dragon of the Four Forts AKA Jasper Fort, at the Scorching Magician Tavern,¡± once I figured out where I was meant to go I asked around at some of the shops for directions to the tavern most told me to get out and to not bug them but after asking at a hunting shop after forty minutes of asking around they pointed me towards it, after saying my thanks I made my way to the tavern reaching it in about fifteen minutes. ¡°So this is the Scorching Magician Tavern I wonder what this Jasper Fort person was like and why I needed to speak to him?¡± I mused to myself as I walked inside. As I walked inside I was taken aback by how fancy it was inside compared to the old oak wooden exterior. The interior was a stone flooring decorated with a few rugs which look like they were made of the finest furs possible, the tables and chairs were beautifully crafted from I think maple or maybe yew, the fireplace was made of solid marble adorned with flickering candles. ¡°Wow,¡± I gasp shocked as I make my way to the barkeeper, ¡°Excuse me, Ma¡¯am, I was just wondering if you could tell me where I could find someone known as the Dragon of the Four Forts?¡± ¡°Why¡¯d you wanna find him, kid?¡± The barkeeper asked me slightly confused. ¡°I was told to seek him hear by a girl called Astrid,¡± I reply, confused myself a bit. ¡°I¡¯m new in town and she gave me this note.¡± I dig the note out of my pocket as I show the barkeep she points me to a dark corner that seems devoid of any light. I thanked her and made my way over to the corner. ¡°Um sorry for intruding, but I was wondering if you were Jasper Fort the Dragon of the Four Forts?¡± I asked slightly nervous. The elderly man simply ignores Ethan and grunts at him annoyed that his peace and quiet has been interrupted. ¡°I really am sorry sir, but please it¡¯s important that I find this man,¡± I say practically begging him. ¡°Hmph, such an annoyance,¡± The man grunts at me causing the waitress nearby to drop her tray of drinks and food as everyone stops and stares at the two of us. As the man stands and moves to the stairs presumably heading to his room I move to the waitress and help her pick up the mugs bowls and plates as I hear people starting to whisper in hushed tones. Once I helped her carry the plates and bowls to the bar I decided to ask her what happened. ¡°Excuse me, ma¡¯am?¡± I timidly ask as several patrons were still watching me, ¡°I was wondering why you got so shocked when that man spoke just now?¡± ¡°Well, that man is the legendary warrior, Jasper Fort the Forth,¡± She explains as I look to the stairs to see him disappear up the final steps, ¡°He must see something in you as he doesn¡¯t talk to anyone.¡± As I take in what she said, I thank her for the information. After getting his room number I decide to head out to the training dummies out the back of the tavern to practice my swordsmanship wondering why his room''s window looks out directly on the training ring. ¡°I hope he¡¯ll speak to me again maybe he can explain why I¡¯m meant to meet him here, I also need to figure out this quest. I¡¯m at the tavern but I don¡¯t know who the rebel high command is,¡± I mutter to myself as I draw my short sword and start to practice. After 3 hours of training my sword skills, I managed to increase my Strength and Agility by six points each when I hear the light tapping of a cane hitting the wooden terrace behind me. Deciding now would be a good time to take a small break I head over to where I placed my shirt and where the waiter has placed my food and drink along with a towel to wipe the sweat from my body, as he sits on a chair watching me from the patio. ¡°You¡¯re dropping your right arm when you strike it makes your attack more shallow and won¡¯t do as much damage,¡± He lectures.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°Why are you speaking to me?¡± I ask confused, ¡°Also why are you lecturing me?¡± ¡°You¡¯re the one who was looking for me right?¡± He says with a bitter tone. ¡°Well yeah but I don¡¯t know why. Astrid told me to find you here.¡± I state annoyed at his tone as I pull out the note and walk over to him. ¡°Hmmm, so the queen wants you to meet me?¡± He states in an amused tone. ¡°What? The queen?¡± I ask getting more confused. ¡°Very well, I¡¯ll give you a week¡¯s teaching, however, I will not address you by your name you are simply boy to me,¡± He commands scaring me a little at the sudden change in his tone from gravelly and grouchy to a commanding presence, ¡°Now take your attack stance.¡± I groan and grumble as I haven¡¯t had the chance to sit yet, but reluctantly I take my stance as he hobbles over and pushes me over with his cane. ¡°HEY!¡± I snap at him for shoving me with his cane. ¡°What the hell was that for?¡± ¡°Again boy,¡± He commands as I stand up and take my stance again getting annoyed, ¡°Legs wider, back straight, arms loose but stern.¡± As he orders me about he hits my arms and back and drags my body around until he¡¯s satisfied with how I am then he shoves me with his cane again but this time I don¡¯t fall. ¡°I didn¡¯t fall over?¡± I ask confused. ¡°That is a proper stance to take when attacking,¡± He states, ¡°Now I want you to attack the dummy, boy.¡± I groan as I go to slash at the dummy, however, I fall to the floor unable to get the momentum to slash due to being inexperienced in this new stance. ¡°Keep practicing, however, for now, go home,¡± He says hobbling off. I groan and grumble as I decide to eat the food the waitress brought me. Once I rested for an hour I decided to head back to the market square to see if Eric and James were there, however, as I entered the tavern to pay I bumped into Eric. ¡°Ethan, where have you been?¡± Eric says worriedly. ¡°Um, a strange girl called Astrid told me to meet someone called Jasper Fort the Fourth,¡± I state confused ¡°Lord Jasper?¡± Eric questions to himself, ¡°Ethan, What did Lord Jasper want with you?¡± ¡°Um well, I¡¯m not sure,¡± My words cause Eric to look confused as he tries to work out the reasons. ¡°He did help me with my stance,¡± I say as I think back to the training, ¡°Although he¡¯s kind of strange and a bit rude.¡± Eric chuckles as we head to the barkeep to pay. Heading into the market square after paying, Eric pulls me down a path leading to the palace. ¡°Hey, Eric, why are we heading towards the palace?¡± I ask confused assuming we would be heading to the adventurer''s citadel for the continent. ¡°James and I have to report our success to our employer. Yelvun has gone to get us lodgings at one of the taverns in the upper districts,¡± Eric explains to me that Yelvun is tamers name while we walk, ¡°And I thought it¡¯d be better if you came with us to confirm some things for our employer.¡± I nod as we walk, taking in the stunning surroundings of the cobblestone paths, lined with houses made of thatch and stone with the occasional store dotting the street, the street lit up by the magical warm glow of blue flames inside of the lanterns that line the streets, fire sprites dancing majestically in the midday sun. As I watch we arrive at the palace gates, large towering obsidian gates lay open with the royal crest sat in a shield of gold lined with rubies, diamonds, and emeralds forming a serpent above the open gates. ¡°We¡¯re here to see Prince Alexi Lightheart,¡± Eric says as the guard nods and directs us to a golden white building. Once we arrive at the building Eric guides me inside, the hallway decorated with red curtains lined with gold edges, silver framed pictures dotting the walls at regular intervals and the occasional ceremonial weapon displayed. After walking down the long winding hallway we arrive at a large room with a stone table in the center with eight chairs surrounding it. Five people are already seated including Astrid and James. ¡°Ethan time to take our seats, sit next to me,¡± Eric says in a serious tone. Eric takes his seat next to James leaving the seat next to the golden white-haired boy free. I take my seat as a woman wearing the most elegant of gold and silver dresses, adorned with a pattern of a crimson fox running along the dress'' sides meeting in the middle, walks in from the side and takes a seat next to the boy. Looking around I see six of the seven seats taken as I wonder who the seventh person is. ¡°Your majesty,¡± James starts talking in a formal manner, ¡°We¡¯ve brought Ethan Shadowmark here, per his highness request, however, we did run into a little issue along the way.¡± ¡°Please explain Master James,¡± the women replies. ¡°The three adventurers your husband ordered us to bring betrayed us, however, Yelvun, the Tamer class adventurer helped defend Ethan,¡± James explains before looking to me, ¡°he, unfortunately, lost an arm in the skirmish defending Ethan.¡± ¡°I see, Alexi, what are your thoughts on how mister Yelvun should be dealt with?¡± the Women questions looking to the golden white-haired boy next to me. ¡°I believe to be safe we should lock him up until we can be sur¡­¡± Alexi says before being cut off. ¡°THAT¡¯S NOT FAIR!¡± I yell standing from my seat, ¡°He saved my life and almost died you can¡¯t lock him up.¡± ¡°Ethan, sit down now!¡± Eric scolds me, ¡°You¡¯re in the presence of Queen Rosella and Prince Alexi. Forgive him, my queen, he was brought up on the street.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine Master Eric, I believe it¡¯s time to inform young Ethan of the true reason he was picked,¡± Queen Rosella says in a calm and relaxed voice causing me to become anxious and on guard. ¡°Are you sure, my queen?¡± James questions confused. ¡°Yes, it is time for him to know his past,¡± Queen Rosella says smiling towards me. ¡°Oh boy,¡± Alexi states chuckling next to me, ¡°Well you''re in for the shock of a lifetime Ethan.¡± ¡°Ethan, you are the second Prince of Estella, youngest son of King Aratax and Queen Rosella, younger brother of Alexi Lightheart,¡± Eric explains. As I try to comprehend what''s being said, an elderly man in a navy blue robe adorned with a winding silver dragon that seems to move as he walks enters the room and takes a seat in the remaining chair. ¡°I see we have forgotten my advice already your Highness,¡± The strange new man speaks as his words seem to carry a mystical feel to them. ¡°Welcome Master,¡± James stands and bows to him, ¡°Her Highness believed it was best he knows now.¡± ¡°And do you support this James?¡± He queries but his eyes never leave my face. ¡°I do Master Magikan,¡± James respectfully bows his head. ¡°I see, well young Ethan¡± the man named Master Magikan addresses me. I don¡¯t respond to the man, however, I look up at him waiting to see what his question might be. ¡°It seems you are at a loss for words aren''t you?¡± Master Magikan rhetorically asks. ¡°I am Vulmer Magikan, Grand royal Mage to Estella and dear friend to her Majesty Rosella.¡± ¡°And he¡¯s the one who¡¯s been helping my uncle keep an eye on you,¡± Alexi blurts out resulting in Vulmer to stare at him with an unamused look, ¡°Sorry Master Vulmer.¡± ¡°Is this meant to be a joke?¡± I ask confused and annoyed, ¡°and what do you mean to keep an eye on me? I was abandoned when I was three to fend for myself, and not even a week ago my family and boyfriend were slaughtered in the king''s name hunting me!¡± ¡°Yes, we knew about the king''s bounty on you, which is why we sent Eric and James to protect you,¡± Vulmer says in a calming voice. ¡°Protect me or my family?¡± I ask with a hint of venom to my words not really wanting anyone to answer. ¡°Ethan, we are sorry about your family, I have tried to protect you from a distance as much as I could without letting on that you were still alive,¡± the queen states near in tears. ¡°Why did I have to be hidden away? Why am I being hunted by the king?¡± I ask with more questions than answers. ¡°Ethan, the king had a vision that he believes to be a prophecy¡­¡± Vulmer pauses as he tries to work it out, ¡°his vision is of an elf-child born to the human kingdoms royal family will bring about his end¡­ you are that child, an elf born with the blessing of shadows to the human royal family.¡± As Vulmer explains the vision I slump back into my chair conflicted and confused. After half an hour of sitting in silence, Alexi suggests that we all take a break and resume the meeting in a few days'' time to give me time to adjust. Chapter Eight: Yra鈥檚 Shadow Training ¡°Ethan, will you calm down already,¡± Eric calls to me as I storm into my room. ¡°What happened?¡± Yelvun asked, confused as I barged past him. ¡°He¡¯s angry and confused right now,¡± James states. After slamming and locking my door, Eric kept knocking on the door demanding I let him in, however, after an hour he gave up and left. Deciding to see if Yra¡¯s busy I begin to meditate causing the shadows around me to envelop my body and mind. ¡°Ethan, I see you¡¯ve found out the truth,¡± Yra states, ¡°You must be angry and annoyed, however, I have some training for you to do, furthermore, I want you to think on the skills you¡¯ve learned from your personal experience and how that relates to the 6 blessing elements.¡± ¡°What?¡± I ask entirely confused. ¡°Enough questions, Ethan, are you ready to begin the next step in your training?¡± Yra asked, however, it seemed to be more of a statement. ¡°I guess so,¡± I reply scratching my head in confusion. ¡°I want you to control your shadow¡¯s movements,¡± Yra instructs, ¡°Imagine your shadow as yourself and make it take move.¡± I nod as several braziers light up with an ethereal midnight blue glow illuminating the area, revealing what looks to be some sort of throne room made entirely of pitch black marble that seems to ooze shadows, a crimson red carpet runs from the grand elder wood doors to the mithril throne that seems to radiate in the soft blue light of the flames. ¡°Wow, this place is beautiful,¡± I gasp stunned at the beauty of the room. ¡°Thank you, I¡¯m happy you like it,¡± Yra¡¯s words seem to carry a sadness as she looks around throne room, ¡°But let¡¯s start training.¡± I sit on the floor crossing my legs and placing my clenched fists together with the knuckles touching as I start to imagine my shadow moving, however, while I meditate on my shadow flashes of images of my childhood pour into my head. As I sat meditating, a candle that had been burning since I started says three and a half hours have gone by, my cheeks stained with the dried tears of joy, anger, and sadness, thinking that my efforts have gone to waste I feel my shadow start to pull away from my body. Opening my eyes, I see my own shadow sat in front of me causing me to smile, raising my hand out to touch the shadow causing it to mimic my movements until our fingers touch. ¡°So you¡¯ve managed to make it move with you,¡± Yra states as she remains sitting on the throne, ¡°Next I want you to merge with your shadow and allow it to be one with you.¡± As I ponder how to merge with my shadow I decide to see if I could spar with my own shadow, standing with my shadow I turn and walk 5 paces away from it, watching as my shadow walks the opposite way to me. I turned back around to face my shadow and I draw my daggers; my shadow draws his own with me, however, before I can even make the first move my shadow charges forward unleashing a flurry of strikes taking me completely by surprise, blocking all the strikes with my own flurry the sounds of metal hitting metal rings out echoing off the marble walls, Yra watching closely. ¡°Well it¡¯s not what I wanted you to do but you¡¯ve learned how to infuse part of your mind into the shadow to give it instructions,¡± Yra chuckles as I finish blocking all the attacks. ¡°I don¡¯t know how to do what you asked Yra,¡± I say panting for breath. ¡°Imagine your shadow is clothing,¡± Yra explains after giving it some thought, ¡°as with clothes you put them on one at a time so start with covering parts of your body one at a time it¡¯ll take you a while to master so relax, time moves differently here.¡±Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. I look to Yra as I nod confused by her comment, however, deciding to ignore it for now I move towards my shadow as it mimics me I sit and meditate focusing solely on coating my left arm with my shadow, furthermore, I decided that while I meditated, I would reflect a little more on the news of my real family. As I start to come out of my meditated state having accepted the news of my family and realigned with my goals, I glance to my arm as I see it distorted, like it¡¯s made of smoke, I smile as I stand and it¡¯s then that I release my entire body has been surrounded by my shadow as it clings to me like a second skin. ¡°Congratulations, Ethan, you seemed to have mastered both Shadow Possession and Shadow Cloak,¡± Yra states smiling happily with herself. Skill Gained: Shadow Possession Level 10/10 Skill Gained: Shadow Cloak Level 10/10 Skill Mastered: Shadow Cloak Skill Mastered: Shadow Possession I smile as I get the notification alerting me that I¡¯ve mastered two new skills, when suddenly my stomach growls loudly. ¡°Guess I¡¯m off Yra,¡± I wave my goodbyes. As I exit the Shadow glade, I make my way downstairs to see Yelvun talking with Vulmer Magikan and Queen Rosella in the kitchen luckily for me they haven¡¯t seen me, deciding not to get into it with them right now, I sneak towards the door only to stop in my tracks as I hear some shocking news. ¡°It¡¯s been three months since he vanished are you certain he didn¡¯t leave a note?¡± Rosella says saddened. ¡°He didn¡¯t his bed wasn¡¯t even touched and his equipment and bag wasn¡¯t in the room,¡± I hear James say, ¡°You don¡¯t think it had something to do with the meeting, where he learned the truth.¡± ¡°I hope not, but we must fear the worse.¡± Vulmer states as he strokes his white beard, ¡°Prince Alexi hasn¡¯t returned from his search to the north yet, and Master Eric will be returning tomorrow from the south.¡± As I remain frozen in shock that it¡¯s been three months instead of a few hours, once I gain my composure back I stumble and knock over the hat stand the metal ringing off the wooden floor alerting everyone in the kitchen. As they run out to where I am. ¡°ETHAN!?!?!,¡± They all yell in surprise. ¡°Hey,¡± As I mutter my greeting the queen grabs me and hugs me tight. ¡°We thought we lost you,¡± She says hugging me tightly causing me to tense up, ¡°What was you thinking of running away for three months.¡± ¡°Run away? I didn¡¯t, I was in my room the whole time meditating and training in Yra¡¯s shadow glade?¡± I say confused. ¡°Ethan, you wasn¡¯t in your room, you wasn¡¯t even in the city,¡± James states, ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter now, you¡¯re back and I can sense you¡¯ve gained new powers and abilities, Master Vulmer can you summon the prince back to the city for me please.¡± ¡°Of course, I assume you¡¯ll be contacting Master Eric?¡± Vulmer queries. As James nods, I look around confused as my stomach growls loudly again causing us all to start laughing a bit. ¡°Well, let¡¯s sit down and eat,¡± Yelvun states. We all nod our agreement to eat as he heads to the kitchen and starts to cook up a meal for us all, once we¡¯ve all taken our seats at the table James and Vulmer bring me up to date on what¡¯s happened the past three months. As I take notes I learned that the king had departed for the western border to fight back against the Llianin, which are a race of Dragonkin that live in the mountain kingdom of Acleon, furthermore, I learned of the kings war on the eastern border with the elves of Liththyr, so far though the king has ignored the Dwarven kingdom of Efrar, due to a fragile if near non-existent peace treaty. After we finished eating Yelvun and James took me out to the adventurers guild to sign up and get the extra benefits that are bestowed on people who have a blessing, of which include, a living place in the adventurers district, access to the guild trainers of all different classes, access to the guild bank and guild inner sanctum, and discounts on equipment in guild affiliated shops in all countries. ¡°Ethan, now that we have you signed up with the guild hall, did you want to pick a sub-class to learn?¡± Yelvun says. ¡°You can have up to three sub-classes, I have the Chef, Enchanter, and Scribe sub-classes,¡± James states ¡°And I¡¯ve got two sub-classes, Alchemist, and Tailor,¡± Yelvun says smiling, ¡°Having the Chef sub-class just makes cooking easier with monster dropped meat such as wolf meat, dragon meat and goblin meat for instances.¡± ¡°Ah okay,¡± I say thinking about what sub-classes would suit me, ¡°I think I¡¯ll go with Scribe, Chef and Blacksmithing sub-classes, is that okay?¡± ¡°Sound¡¯s perfect for your skills and primary and secondary class,¡± James states, ¡°I can teach you everything you need about the Scribe and Chef sub-classes, and Eric can teach you about the Blacksmithing sub-class.¡± I nod my understanding while smiling; I ask ¡°what do we do now?¡± ¡°If we head back to the house I¡¯ll start to teach you Scribing while we wait for Eric and Prince Alexi to return,¡± James says as we make our way home.