KrazeKode

Story Concept - Armored Soul

Not a chapter! But I wanted to show this story concept off and wanted to ask for some thoughts. It's a small prologue for a story I am thinking of writing after Mark of Time is done. Here it is!

Synopsis:

Avlon’s chosen. Blessed warriors and Essence practitioners who had armors of metal, carbon-steel and nanomachines that bent to their whims and bolstered their Mystic Arts.

Drevon could never be one. Born with a Null root, and unable to even touch upon Essence, all he could do was hope his clan continued to tolerate his existence.

But his fate would change when he would stumble upon the true nature of their goddess, Avlon. It just so happened that the goddess of his valley needed a ride to the edge of the world, and Drevon would form the perfect vessel for a goddess to reside in.

---

A world inspired by Cradle and Horizon Zero Dawn where cultivators cultivate nanotech power armour. Expect LitRPG stats, xianxia bullshit, and lots of progression.

***

Prologue:

The rite of awakening. A sacred practice where children of eight summers would gather, as the autumn winds painted the valley red, an auspicious colour matching the occasion. It was a ceremony, where members of all three species of the Valley would put aside their conflicts, and gather under the tree of the awakening. Humans, Avlens and Hanils.

The Elders of each clan would watch as their children would proceed towards the tree, pressing their palms against the glowing core visible through the metallic trunk. A flower would bloom upon the touch; carbon steel and metal fibres imitating life. The colour of the flower would indicate the blessing.

The Elders watched, as one girl walked to the tree, hesitantly pressing her palm against the trunk. Lines of blue ran through the metal, glowing with a bright shimmer, before a single vibrant red blossom opened up at the base. Gasps of wonder rose among the crowd.

“A pure fire root for the Yan!”

The exclamation was met with wild cheers, as the clan proudly welcomed back the confused child, flames burning with glory between her fingertips. A fire root was precious, and a pure one even further so.

Drevon watched in silence, as the girl was welcomed with wide arms by a proud mother. Their family had been blessed by a Talent, and they would receive great boons for such. His gaze drifted to the rows of tall blue people on the other side, four pointed ears poking from the side of their heads. Avlens, the people their clan had the worst enmity with. Fire was also the most effective means of attack on them.

Returning his gaze back, he watched as the children continued to receive blessings from the great tree, members of each clan going one after the other as various flowers bloomed, their souls blessed by Avlon herself.

Drevon's eyes drifted upwards on the tree, to the many withered flowers and some closer buds with no light. Those who’d died, and those who’d left the valley. Their blossoms lost their glow, their souls now beyond the embrace of Avlon.

“Your turn next champ, go show em what you’ve got,” Keriel, his brother, spoke from behind Drevon, dragging him out of his thoughts. Keriel was thirteen summers now, pushing fourteen when the end of autumn arrived. The boy had gained a wood spirit root, impure but still valuable. Drevon had to admit that his personality matched his spirit root. Steady and lively, like a healthy hearty tree.

His brother’s large comforting hands were pressing against his shoulder, and Drevon wanted to swat his brother’s hand away for creasing the expensive robes his mother had dressed him in. Not the most expensive among the many many children gathered near the tree of awakening, but it was the best clothes he’d worn yet.

“I know,” Drevon replied, letting out a breath. “I hope I get a Sky root.”

“No matter what you get, remember to thank the All Mother for her blessing. Or our mother would be very displeased,” his brother said with a smirk.

“And here I thought I was free from mother’s nagging just for the day." Drevon snarked back. "Shouldn’t have let the Elders allow you to come with me all the way this close."

“Hah, I’m not sixteen yet, I can follow along with you however I please,” Keriel replied, and Drevon elbowed his brother in response. He had to admit, though, that he was glad Keriel was here; it would've been worse to stand here all alone in the silence. A few children nearby glanced over at him at the commotion and he was quickly reminded of where he was.

“Drevon Li Yun,” a sharp call interrupted Drevon. With breath held tight, he turned and began to make his way ahead.

“Proceed towards the tree, child,” the Elder said with a kind smile. Returning a tense nod, Drevon began to step towards the large metal tree blossoming with myriads of metallic blossoms. Generations of Essence practitioners in the Valley had begun their journey here, from this tree of metal that rose high above into the sky, covered in flowers that held the light of all its denizens.

The rhythmic beat of his thundering heart accompanied the sound of his footsteps, as he walked up to the trunk. Letting out the breath he’d been holding in, Drevon unclenched his tense body, trying to be as calm as possible.

“Touch your palm against the light,” the Elder instructed as Drevon reached up to the tree. There was an invisible sensation in the air, like a taste that he couldn’t sense. As if he were missing the right eyes to see the true colours on display.

Drevon moved closer to the glowing blue ball of light held aloft in the middle of the tree trunk, and then gently pressed his palm against the tree. A chilling cold that spread throughout his entire body as the intangible something began to lazily move through his body.

A bright light lit up upon the tree branch, as people watched with bated breath. The light on the tree was larger than any other, yet Drevon did not even notice, his mind occupied entirely by the strange sensation permeating his body.

So this was… Essence. The energy of the world itself, the thing that gave Essence Users the powers they possessed. It was his now.

Something stirred in Drevon’s abdomen, a thin strand of something rushing up to his chest, all the way to his shoulders, then through his arm and out of his palm. It sank into the tree with a snap, as Drevon waited with rising anticipation.

Something began to rise upon the tree, a flower bloomed upon the tree, as Drevon watched it with a thundering heart.

Words flashed in front of his eyes, the blessing of mother Avlon. He’d heard of the sacred words before, and now he could see them for himself.

<Spirit Cluster detecting…>
<Creating Report>

Name: Drevon Li Yun
Age: 8 years old
Species: Human (Male)

Stats: Unavailable
Spirit Root—

<NULL ERROR in detection module… Updating report>

“Is this… What in the Mother’s grace?” the Elder exclaimed. The man walked up to Drevon and snatched his hand away from the tree.

“You are never to touch this tree again boy. Do you understand?”  the Elder spoke. His voice was calm, collected, and cold. There was a chill to it that pushed down upon Drevon, as if the world itself was projecting the anger alongside the man.

Terror filled Drevon’s mind as he shrunk back on instinct, trying to pull his arm back, but the Elder’s grip held firm. It was foolish to even try and pry himself free of an Essence practitioner.. Murmurs rose among the crowd as he heard the hurried footsteps of his mother rushing closer.

“Forgive us Elder, he wouldn’t repeat this mistake again,” she replied, gently grabbing his hand back from the Elder. With a deep bow, she bent her head down as she put her hand atop Drevon’s head and bent it alongside hers.

“Take the child away, we’ll discuss what’s to be done with him later,” the Elder spoke, his eyes lingering on Drevon for a moment with cold disgust, before the man looked away.

Tears inadvertently pooled in Drevon’s eyes as he looked around confused. Glancing to the side, he leaned in towards his mother and whispered. “What… Did I do something wrong?”

His mother pressed her hand against his shoulder, a deep frown on her face. There was no reply, as she held his hand firm and hurried him back out, away from the ceremony.

“Will I… not remain for the ceremony at the end?” Drevon asked, trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to pour down his cheeks.

“No, we will not,” his mother replied, her voice clipped.

Murmurs and whispers filled the area from gathered clan members as they made their way through. Drevon could feel their gazes boring deep into him as he passed by, like he was some sort of criminal.

Confused and scared, he still found himself unable to hold his curiosity back. He turned behind towards the tree, to see which spirit root he’d been blessed with. What he saw sank Drevon's heart down to his gut.

The flower to determine his spirit root, the one whose shimmer would determine what his future and the path would be.

It held no light.

22 — Poison and Psyche

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With a crash, the rocks covering the entrance crumbled from the snake’s strike. The large beast made its way through the area, snapping at the slimes as it flicked its tail. Whenever the end struck one, the slimes would pop like overripe berries.

Jennifer watched from the gap of her crack, mentally going through her plan once more. It was going to be risky, a lot of chaotic elements could make things problematic and Jennifer had no good way to properly gather the slimes. She’d have to trust the Mark to follow through on that end.

“Are you sure about this?” Livian asked, his eyes nervously darting outside to the hissing cake slithering through the cavern, attacking the various slimes flopping around.

“No,” Jennifer replied as she flashed Livian a smile. Her heart was racing as she watched the serpent plow through the room, its tongue flicking out, tasting the air for their scent.

<Ready?> the Mark asked, and she sensed some excitement seeping in through the words.

<As ready as I’ll ever be.>

She sensed an acknowledgement coming from the Mark, and began to weave her spells together.

“I’ll send a pulse of mana, be ready to fire when I do,” Jennifer said, as she rushed out of the crack in the wall.

Shards of Glass flew around Jennifer as she stacked glass bolts together. She didn’t bother hiding her magic, rushing straight towards the snake.

The serpent reared up with a hiss, fangs bared as a stream of liquid shot towards her.

“Reflect,” she whispered under her breath, a hexagonal mirror forming in front of her. The jet of poison splashed against her shield, the glass cracked and hissed as the stream of poison pushed against her. Letting her shield block the attack, Jennifer rolled to the side. The glass shield cracked behind her, leaving a trail of poison that let out pungent fumes when it touched the rocks..

Acid-poison. Of course it is.

She channeled Agile Wind, breaking into a run as the snake shot another stream of hissing green poison at her.

“[Enchanted Glass Creation] [Twofold enchanting]” Jennifer murmured, layering her glass with enchantments. Sharpen. Harden.

Three hexagonal mirrors formed around her, flying near her as they blocked the oncoming stream of poison. Jennifer extended her skills to the glass bolts around her as they grew larger and sharper. With a burst of wind she launched them towards the serpent, a barrage of glowing glass.

The snake flicked its tail, cracking it like a whip as her shards shattered. Yet enough pierced the beast's scales, drawing dark blood as the beast hissed in pain.The monster roared leaping towards Jennifer and she rolled to the side, shooting another glass bolt aimed at its eye.

Her glass struck the beast’s eye, sinking in with disgusting squelch. The beast roared in pain, a sound she didn’t know it was capable of making, as it thrashed around for a moment. The monster's eyes snapped towards Jennifer a moment later, its body shuddering with rage.

The snake’s aura flared, pushing down on Jennifer, as its long tail shot forward.

Her eyes widened in surprise as she pulled her glass up front, trying to layer it with her guard. “[Lunestone: Gu—

“[Scorching Ray]!” she heard Livian shout as a thick beam of light struck the snake’s face.

Rocks exploded near Jennifer the next moment, as the serpent’s tail missed her by an inch. Her heart dropped into her gut as she froze at the near death experience. That would’ve been the end of this reset. She would’ve died then and there.

“Jenn, run!” Rumina screamed, the dagger flying from her hand as it cut through the snake’s scale.

Snapping out of her daze, Jennifer quickly pushed her feet to action. Glass shards gathered at her fingertips, as she shot a barrage of those towards the snake. A light bird flew around the snake, shining and blinding the monster every so often before flying away as beams of light hit the beast, leaving its scales bright red and smoking.

“Shoot its eye!” Jennifer shouted towards Livian, as she reached out towards the snake. Little spikes of glass formed near its body, piercing the snake, but the monster’s magical aura was far too strong for her to penetrate as it easily broke through her trap.

The monster turned towards her at the move, hissing, when a beam of light from Livian interrupted it, followed soon by a rock Rumina threw that hit it in its injured eye once more.

Jennifer weaved together a glass blade, trying to keep a shield ready to form in front of any of her friends if need be.

Her glass mana pulsated as the spell took shape, but her attack was interrupted by something heavy falling onto her back with a disgusting odor and wet sensation. Jennifer quickly reached out to her back and saw the slime that was sticking to her clothes, already trying to eat its way through.

Disgusted, she threw the creature away as it plopped onto the ground. Her gaze traveled around the cavern, looking at the increasing number of slimes falling from the ceiling and heading towards the serpent. Tugging at the mind link, she reached out to the Mark.

<Is it working?>

Jennifer sensed a jumble of thoughts reach her in a chaotic mess, before something more coherent flowed in through the mind link. It took a few moments for the answer to form and reach her.

<Slimes will gather. Brace. Will attack Poison-Death. Soon.>

A presence grew in a far corner of the cavern, one she felt her Mark reacting too. Jennifer turned to Livian and Rumina, sending a pulse of mana to both, alerting them to the next step of their plan. She wished she had a convenient method to talk to them like the mind link.

Within a few moments, she felt a wave pass over her, making her stumble. Like a pulsating body, the slimes shifted as one. Large slimes dropped from the walls and the roof, and Jennifer felt another pulse go off even stronger than before. A rain of slimes followed, distrubed from their mindless feast they shivered in place, disoriented and confused.

Jennifer’s eyes shifted to the beast, as it thrashed under the barrage of mind waves, slimes piling over it in a goopy hill.

“Now!” Jennifer screamed.

She felt the mana gathering around Livian, as he weaved his light magic together. His familiar flew around, guiding the mana as a bright ball manifested in his palms. A moment later, a scorching beam of light launched towards the snake, as it impacted the pile of slime. It cut through the gelatinous glob covering the snake, turning the slimes red from the generated heat.

For a moment, nothing happened, and Jennifer feared the worst. Then one slime bloated, expanding to an abnormal size, its membrane stretched further and further to the limit.

‘Pop’ the slime exploded, with a loud explosion that spread burning slime ooze all over. Three more followed in its wake, followed by five, and soon, the entire chamber was shaking from a series of slimey explosions.

“Run!” Jennifer screamed towards Livian and Rumina, rushing towards the crack in the chamber.

Flaming slime rained through the chamber, as more and more slimes continued to fall from the ceiling, and plop towards the serpent. Their membranes popped, a rain of goo, slime and acid spread around the hole, fire spreading faster than she could follow as more and more explosions followed. Jennifer ran, the ground shaking with tremors as the explosions continued to build, dropping even more slimes.

She jumped, rolling into the crack. She turned around, quickly pulling Rumina in, followed by Livian and his familiar now resting on his shoulder.

After making sure everyone was inside, Jennifer spun around and dug her fingers into the narrow rocky walls on both sides of her. She used [Glass Mana Pool], pouring glass mana out from her hands. Glass formed over the rocks, heading over to the entrance, blocking the way in.

“[Lunestone: Guard]!” she cried, using her skill. Her mana dipped rapidly as she spread her spell over the entire section.

“[Light Shield]!” Livian shouted quickly after, layering another barrier on top.

Scorching heat spread through the cavern, as sweat dripped down Jennifer’s forehead. The explosions continued to rattle the ground, soon turning into a flaming inferno that spread across the entire cavern. Acid and fire goo spread along the walls as the cloud of dust rose.

Jennifer heard Rumina say something, but the words were lost in the explosions as they continued building to a crescendo.

As if on cue, a massive blast sent a shockwave that shook the ground under them, cracking the walls and shaking great boulders loose. Rocks tumbled down in her crack, her glass cracking from the strain. Jennifer felt her guard spell straining, and she poured all her mana into it, trying to keep the spell stable.

For a moment, the world was blindingly bright, but the explosions soon began to settle down as the heat started to recede. Jennifer waited within the gap, trying to get a feel for the outside. After a minute of no tremors of noises, she let her guard die off, stumbling back from the exhaustion as Rumina caught her.

“Did… we get it?” Livian asked nervously.

“If it survived that… then it might be time to start praying to the gods,” Jennifer whispered, slinging one arm around Rumina as she let her mana pathways relax.

“You’re insane Jennifer. I mean, I should’ve known, but it is one thing to hear about it all and another to see it in front of me,” Rumina said, glancing at Jennifer.

“She just passed an Apprenticeship Test as a first year student. Jennifer is as insane as they come,”  Livian said, and Jennifer smiled awkwardly in reply.

“We should take what we can from the snake,” Rumina said.

“I’d rather get out of here quickly. Enough adventure for the day, and we got what we’d come for,” Jennifer replied, looking at the little bird of light sitting on Livian’s shoulders.

“Adventurers should be here soon as well. I’d triggered the message scroll Markus had added to our armors,” Livian said.

Jennifer nodded, before diverting her attention towards the mindlink.

<Can you come out now?> she asked.

A wave of impressions came to her, and for a moment she felt the mindlink shudder.

<Wait. Poison-Death. Wrong.>

<Wrong?> Jennifer asked, but didn’t receive a reply. She peeked through the crack they were hiding in, at the corpse of the serpent further in the cavern.

Slowly, Jennifer made her way out of the narrow gap, motioning for the other two to follow quietly. “Something is wrong with the corpse,” Jennifer said, glancing sideways at her two companions.

“It’s definitely not in the prettiest condition,” Rumian said, pointing at the battered and burnt corpse.

Jennifer didn’t reply, sensing a strange sensation from her [Blood Dagger]. She manifested the blade in her hands, sensing a pulsating rhythm rising from the weapon.

Her blade felt… hungry.

[Detect Danger] flared a moment later, as Jennifer turned around in alarm.

<Poison-Death moving! Death-Poison!>

With a shuddering twitch from the corpse, a pulse of poison gas spread out. The cloud of poison swirled around the serpent, seeping into its body and painting its bloodied scales a dark green. The serpent rose, flesh dripping and corroding from its acidic poison, skull showing through as it hissed. Its eyes lit up with a green glow, skeletal wings poking out from its spine.

The plume of poison remaining outside gathered together, forming a secondary spirit-serpent, as the two beasts hissed and rored together.

“A… spirit remnant,” Livian muttered out loud, but Jennifer had no time to think over the beast.

“Get ready!” she shouted, weaving her magic together.

The snake lurched, green fangs of poisonous aura aiming straight towards them, Jennifer tried to call her guard once again, but the spell matrix broke apart in moments. She tried to scramble back, but her foot got caught in an outcropping. Time seemed to slow down as she watched the fanged mouth of death descend towards her face.

With a thud, the snake crashed into a translucent barrier that had formed in front of her. Jennifer shook her foot loose, her heart thundering as she saw the snake hiss. Then it launched itself towards her, colliding against the barrier once more, bouncing off of the protective surface.

<Protect> the Mark said, and she could almost hear its resolution. <Kill.Grow> it sent, the thought whispering seductively in her mind. Her [Blood Dagger] agreed with the sentiment.

“Jenn! Get back!” Rumina shouted, as the girl’s dagger arced around the serpent, yet the moving corpse showed little issues with being stabbed. Beams of light followed soon after, showing little effect as well.

<Bond?> the not-voice asked, and she felt her Mrk grow hot. Magic gathered in her hand, swirling in a whirlpool. Her Mark began to glow, invisible tendrils spreading through the chamber, and even though she couldn't see where they went, she could feel them reaching out towards the mark nearby.

<Strong/Grow/Bond?> it asked again. Jennifer moved a step back, looking at the now slowly crumbling barrier in front of her against the snake’s barrage of attacks.

<Yes> she sent back, and a string snapped into place.

[Bond: Linked Minds] obtained!

Mark of Time:
The Mark of the Chosen of Time.

Bond of Fate: Fated strings
A Bond born from the union of Time and Fate

Bond of Psyche: Linked Minds
A Bond born from the union of Time and Psyche

Abilities: Time Reset
Resets: 4

Integrity: 97.12%
Tier: Undefined

Jennifer let out a hiss of pain, as the magic swirled once more in her hand. Similar to when she'd gotten her mark. It shifted, changing, drawing a new line across her hand.

She looked at her hand, the mark, having subtly shifted, the top crescent moon grew a curving line at its end within which, jagged lines ran, pitch black in color unlike her own Mark. She felt a connection grow, the presence of the other Mark now stable in her mind, its thoughts flowing into her own.

<Words. Can understand better now,> it sent, now in a voice instead of the abstract sequence of concepts. Jennifer acknowledged the information. She felt it searching, as pieces shifted around and images went through her mind, too quick for her to follow.

Jennifer moved back away from the snake, the beast now trapped inside the translucent protective dome. It hissed slamming around as the barrier shuddered.

<Where are you?>

<Wall-nearby. Behind—> the message cut off as a wave of green washed over them. Jennifer felt the scratches on her arm sting, the skin darkening. The barrier shattered into pieces as the snake hissed in triumph. Its aura oozed anger as it launched itself towards them.

“Prepare yourself!” Jennifer shouted as she summoned a pair of glass shards, enchanting their edges. Wind stirred around her, restlessly moving as the glass shards rotated. Livian shot beams of light at the creature as Rumina moved through the shadows, a single glimmer of her enchanted blades the only sign as she struck the snake from far.

“Attacks are doing nothing! It’s a spirit remnant!” Livian shouted, as Jennifer’s heart thundered. What could she do if her attacks didn’t work?

<Attack core> the voice said, reverting to using concepts, and Jennifer felt a pulse of magic shake the area. The ground trembled as rocks and pebbles floated into the air. They hung there just long enough for Jenn to question what was happening before they shot towards the snake.

“Attack it’s core!” Jennifer shouted. She let the wind swirl around her, shooting herself sideways as she moved her glass shards around, letting them launch with a pair of glass bolts.

The snake hissed, the green color washing over its body as its aura deepened. Fangs made of aura snapped her projectiles. The phantom snake of poison coiled around the serpent before it flew across the area, flying straight at Jennifer.

Jennifer leapt to the side, pushing wind around her to speed her escape as the two serpents continued to attack.

<Spirit-Heart. Death!> squeaked the voice in her mind. <Attack!> the voice exclaimed and she saw the rocks rising once more, attacking the snake. Jennifer pulsed her magic, letting her glass affinity tinge her Agile Wind spell. The matrix shifted as tiny shards of glass manifested around her, the wind now swirling harder around her forming a storm of glass.

Jennifer charged her glass with mana, launching off glass tinged mana bolts at the phantom. The beast twirled through the air, its tail flicking at her as it curved, diving towards her.

Her bolts shattered upon hitting the snake, its form wavering as the magic in her spells disrupted its aura. The snake moved in with a whip from its tail, and Jennifer tried to dodge, but the tail hit, cutting through her armor as pain blossomed near her waist. Jennifer hissed, her gut churning from the pain as she felt the blood flow.

She saw the phantom snake move, the aura spreading its poison as the gash darkened. The aura intruded into her body, moving through her blood as it fought against her mana, eating it away.

Anxiety and panic took over, and Jennifer pulled all her mana in, trying to expel the poisonous aura. Her mana churned, coiling and moving against the poison magic, and Jennifer shot off with a burst of wind, away from the phantom.

“Rumina!” she heard Livian scream as fire erupted nearby. Jennifer’s heart dropped as she saw her friend fallen on the floor, Livian fending off the snake’s incessant attack with beams of light.

<Friend-Alive. Injured But Protected. Must End Poison-Fang-Death>

Her gaze snapped back towards the serpent, this time with rising anger and panic. Resolved to end the fight, Jennifer pulled all her mana together, as she weaved another spell. A spell that she’d been working on through her resets.

Glass magic flowed through her, tiny shards of glass forming around her body. She felt the spell forming, shifting in layers, as the glass and poison churned together. Glass storm mingled and merged with glass blades, the two spell matrices colliding into one. Jennifer felt her mana pathways strain, phantom pain rising in her core as the spell matrices began to quaver.

I need more.

She reached out to her skills, drawing as much as she could from her [Glass Mana Pool]. Her core shuddered, mana levels dropping rapidly as she guided a flood of glass mana through her body.

The blood on her waist froze, turning to glass as it fell toward the floor. The snake turned towards her, sensing the forming spell and it shot off, launching itself. The phantom moved with it, as both snake and spirit surrounded her, leaving her nowhere to run.

Which was fine. She was done running.

Jennifer raised her hand, a red and white ball glowing above it. She felt the magic, volatile and unstable, ready to blow. Two two spells warred with one another, set upon her flaming pathways that could barely hold the strength of her magic together. With a small tug, she let it loose.

“Glass Blades Storm”

Bright light filled the area, as Jennifer was knocked back from the strength of her own spell. She screamed as the mana paths in her hand burned from the overload. Glass covered the floor, spikes rising as blades swirled in an inferno of light. The beast screamed as its body was ripped apart by a storm of glass, the phantom dissolving somewhere amidst the explosion of blood and glass.

Jennifer collapsed, her legs failing to hold her up as blood filled her mouth and she coughed, spitting it out. Her eyes spun, as she pulled her body up, something flowing through the link that joined her and the Mark. But she was too disoriented to understand anything.

The glass storm soon settled, leaving multiple small crystalline shards of glass lying all around her. The snake twitched, its mouth moving as a weak hiss escaped. But the beast remained still, blood pooling under its body.

Her eyes turned towards Livian, the boy standing behind a barrier, as he supported Rumina. Jennifer pulled herself up, her whole body screaming in agony as blood flowed freely from her wounds. She avoided looking at her arm. Seeing the dripping blood from the corner of her eye and the lack of sensation from it was bad enough.

Jennifer walked to stand near the snake. The beast’s eyes glowed as it hissed lightly, its tongue flicking out. Jennifer gripped her [Blood Dagger], the blade grown in size as it feasted on her blood. She crouched near the large snake as it bared its fangs at her, glowing yellow eyes looking into hers. It knew of its approaching demise.

Raising her hand up, plunged her [Blood Dagger] into the beat. The glass pierced the flesh easily, like a sharp enchanted blade. Something flowed into her blade, dark green wisps rising and tingling her [Blood Dagger] as it feasted upon the blood of its prey.

Dark blood dribbled through the beast's mouth as it twitched, its whole body spasming once before it stopped, now at rest beyond death for good.

Jennifer shuddered, nausea overwhelming her from the sensation of parting flesh, but she ignored it, standing as she made her way towards her friends. She limped, taking a healing potion out and drinking it. Her wounds closed, an itching sensation covering them. The potion would do little for her busted mana pathways, but it would prevent death from blood loss.

Jennifer paused once more, as she coughed up black bile, the poison coming out of her body now that its source was dead.

<Victory. Will grow> the mark sent, as Jennifer ambled next to Livian.

“Jennifer… you’ve lost too much blood, sit down,” the boy said, leaning as he let Rumina down on a nearby boulder.

“No,” Jennifer replied, as she stumbled towards Rumina. “Is she okay?” She turned towards Livian, asking.

“She’s okay. Just lost consciousness. That barrier thing protected her when the snake came flying. You... on the other hand do not look so alright to me. Please, sit down Jennifer, you just overdrew. You’re drunk on mana and it’ll only make things worse,” Livian said. as Jennifer’s eyes drifted towards Rumina.

“I’ll live,” Jennifer said, but her legs betrayed her as she stumbled forward, soon caught my Livian who set her down next to Rumina. She was grateful for the lack of retort he’d shown her, despite her childish behavior just now.

“I’m sorry, Livian. I just feel very out of it. Can you keep an eye out... I need a moment to rest,” Jennifer said, shifting against the rock.

The boy nodded, walking a bit further away.

<Thank you. For helping> she sent to the Mark, leaning against the rock behind her back.

<Soul-Mark. Felt kinship. Kin should help> the Mark sent back.

Jennifer chuckled. <You might be the only Mark who thinks that> she replied. <Can you come out now?>

She felt a stir of emotions come from the bond, before the Mark shifted. She sensed him drawing closer from the further corner of the cavern, yet despite Jennifer’s best attempts, she failed to find anyone nearby.

Her surprise increased when she felt the Mark move to be right above her. She  almost jumped when she felt something fall onto her head.

A white fuzzy creature with more legs than she currently had the capacity to count jumped onto her hand, a dark symbol on its back. Jennifer looked onto the creature as it moved from her head, onto her shoulder, next to her face and raised its front leg to wave.

<Meet/See/Hello. My Name/Call/Sound is Xardhviladrothic>

Jennifer looked at the spider, unable to understand just what was happening. A laugh pulsed out of her, at the ridiculousness of it.

<Hello, Xardhvi- Xardh- Xar. Hello Xar. I’m Jennifer and I think I need to pass out> she replied, leaning back with a sigh.

She heard words come through to her from the bond as the spider spoke something, but she could not hear anything as her eyes forced themselves closed.

A smile tugged at Jennifer’s lips as she was dragged into the oblivion of sleep. Maybe things would all make more sense when she woke up.

[Class: Glass Mage] has reached level 3!

[Skill: Fusion Casting] obtained!

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21 — Trouble in the Depths

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The illuminated walls of the dungeon shone with their typical blue glow, pouring out mana that spread through the cavernous first layer of the dungeon. Jennifer kept a dagger in her hand, feeling less afraid after shaking off her initial hesitation.

Livian walked behind Jennifer, keeping his pace as little orbs buzzed around him. Jennifer eyed the mage curiously, tracking the little threads of mana extending from him, towards his spell. A strange kind of magical companion formed from a spell, more complex than most spells she’d had the chance to witness before.

"I hate this place," Rumina grumbled, kicking aside a slime that rolled towards her. Her voice echoed through the caverns as it traveled, mixing with the echoes of the dripping waters and the pitter-patter of whatever lurked in the shadows.

“What happened to your enthusiasm, Rumina. You’d insisted on accompanying me hadn’t you?” Jennifer asked, glancing at Rumina, partially as revenge for all the teasing before.

“I know! But I just didn’t think we'd have to walk around in silence, kicking slimes now and then,” Rumina said. “This isn't what I had in mind for our first quest,” she mumbled.

“I wouldn’t make so much noise,” Livian spoke up, his eyes darting around. “This is still a spawn area, so there can be monsters lurking around anywhere.” The boy fumbled with his pouch, taking out a metallic cube with runes carved on each side of the face. The characters lit up with a blue glow as mana flowed through them, light coming out from the cube.

“That is?” Jennifer asked, her eyes fixated on the mysterious artifact.

“A light affinity detector. Or well, one an artifact I worked on to serve as one. I think there’s something nearby but I’m not catching any mana imprints that’re strong enough yet. Still in this direction though,” Livian said  with a frown as he returned to messing around with his device.

Jennifer nodded glancing at Rumina as she gripped her knife tighter, scanning the area around her as she took the lead. The last traces of light from the entrance soon faded, as only the illumination of the cavern walls and Livian’s two floating light orbs remained.

“Gah! Another slime. Why are there so many here?” Rumina said, frowning as she kicked a slime climbing her leg. She flicked her dagger at the monster, the enchanted blade piercing the slime’s membrane as its body collapsed into a gooey pile.

Jennifer bent down, sending a pulse of mana to the slime core. Livian walked closer, crouching next to her as he extended his cube closer.

A little symbol flickered on the top face of the cube for a brief moment.

“It’s here! Slimes eat all sorts of earth, and dirt and this one had traces of light mana. We’re on the right track!” Livian exclaimed, as he turned to look at Jennifer with a bright smile. His expression soon morphed into an embarrassed cough, as he caught himself.

“Let’s speed up a bit then,” Jennifer said, getting up as the trio picked up pace, walking further into through the cavernous walls.

“There has been a strance lack of monsters, don't you think? I would’ve thought the dungeon would be packed with them,” Rumina said, glancing around.

“We did get a lot of slimes. They are monsters too,” Jennifer said.

“Don’t remind me. Nastly goo balls,” Rumina groaned, as she continued walking ahead.

A tiny amount of mana gathered on her right hand as she used her [Enhanced Mana Sense] to scout a bit ahead. Her senses felt sharper, a new set of instincts from her [Glass Mage] class helping her navigate and respond to her mana better. She let the mana dissipate, sending out a pulse. The wave dissipated within a few seconds, returning a blurry mana image of anything even slightly magical in her vicinity.

Was definitely a good idea to study about Adventuring and mages. This would’ve been a lifesaver with Irwys back in the dungeon.

The party made its way through the cavern, the caverns starting to expand further ahead. “I sense something,” Jennifer said, as she pushed her [Enhanced Mana Sense] to its limit. A large blur of mana sat further ahead, beyond which she could feel the higher mana saturation of the dungeon leaking in.

[Danger Sense] triggered a moment later as the clicks of many legs echoed through the caves. “A monster!” Jennifer shouted, her glass mana humming.

Laser beams of light shot ahead, as Livian jumped in with a flickering barrier of light forming ahead. They stood in tense silence, hearts beating for a few moments as nothing moved within the dark cavern.

Jennifer glanced around, pushing all her skills to the best of her abilities as she scanned the cavern. A blur of mana slithered, just outside her senses as if masked by something and Jennifer glanced downwards.

“It’s in the ground!” Jennifer shouted to Livian as she conjured a pair of mana bolts, immediately shooting them at the ground.

Light beams followed behind her own attack, hitting the moving creature from above as it rose. Dark pincers poked through the ground as a massive Centipede made its way out, as it hissed, flaring its mandibles at them.

By Elphion’s unholy name, that’s a large one.

The beast was a dark purple bordering black, with red spots covering its chitinous body as it clicked at them. Its mandibles dripped with dark acid that slid down in fat globules and it’s legs scuttled as it pulled itself free of the ground.

The many legged monstrosity turned it’s dark eyes towards the two of them then let out a sharp screech as it shot across the broken dungeon floor.

Jennifer quickly used Agile wind to jump away from the beast, a cluster of glass-tinged mana bolts striking the monster head on. Livian fumbled for a second as he retreated alongside her, beams of light shooting at the creature as it continued to dash towards them.

“Stay back, Livian!” Jennifer shouted, a pulse of glass mana pouring through her. Twin Blades of glass formed above her hand as the wind howled at Jennifer’s ears.

“[Hidden Strike]” Rumina intoned, her dagger flying out as it struck the massive centipede, clanging against its chitin as it cut through the monster, striking under its head.

Jennifer charged her spell, as she shot the Glass Blades at the centipede. Her head snapped towards Livian in surprise as she felt him charging his light beam. The cube floated in front of Livian’s hands as a charged beam collided with her spell.

She felt the two spell matrices colliding into one other, links and threads of mana snapping across both. Within a moment, the spells collapsed into one another, two large blades of light hitting the centipede head on. The creature screeched as it’s chitin cracked, green blood pouring out.

Jennifer stopped her retreat, watching the twitching insect as its insides leaked from its cracked shell. Another beam of light hit the beast, vapourizing its insides while tearing the monster’s long body into two.

Blood pounded in Jennifer’s ears as she stared at the burning flesh of the centipede. A moment later, she glanced up, checking on her team.

“Are you guys alright?” Jennifer asked, glancing around.

“Yeah,” Rumina muttered, recalling her blade to her hand. “That… was a big one.”

“A Veripede, although I've never heard of one this big. At best they get as long as a short person… this was a giant.”

A soft beep chimed making Jennifer jump as she prepared for another monster.

“It’s the device,” Livian said, as he pulled out the cubic box. His eyes widened in surprise. “There’s some light affinity monsters nearby, a whole bunch of them!”

Livian glanced around in excitement, and Jennifer nodded. The three of them ran ahead, leaving the corpse to slowly degrade to be reabsorbed by the dungeon walls.

The dungeon caerns soon started to shimmer and glyster and soon crystals grew out of its surfaces, glowing with a dim light. Strange plants made of transparent glowing crystals covered the caverns around them as the walls started to widen, expanding into a wide open expanse dominated by the crystalline plants.

“I never knew something so beautiful was in the first layer…” Jennifer muttered as she stared at the bizarre landscape in front of her.

The bright crystal filled area was filled to the brim with light affinity mana, rays of rainbow colored light refracting off the crystals to form a dazzling sight. A large crystalline tree stood at the center of the area with more than a dozen fruit, blue orbs of light hanging from its branches.

Jennifer called for the system prompt as it displayed the area's name for her.

The Great Dungeon of Lienmont

Location: First Layer
Cavern of Light Crystals

Light-Crystal Affinity Biome.

“It’s an affinity biome. They’re rare outside, but in dungeons you can find quite a few of them,” Livian replied, putting away his cube as he stood next to Jennifer. “This one is still quite a bit larger than I’d expected it to be. I’m going to set down a bait to try to trap the creature. Can you two keep an eye out for any monsters?” Livian asked.

“Yup, it’s why we’re here,” Rumina responded with a smile.

Livian dipped his head, as he turned around and got to work. He set down the cube on the ground, taking out a scroll from his pocket that he set next to him carefully. A slight application of mana had the cube glow, its runes dancing across the surface. Livian took a small shining mana core, setting it onto the cube. He held it there, remaining motionless as the runes transferred from the cube to the core.

In a few minutes, the core had been prepared and Livian set the completed, now extremely complex, mana orb near the scroll. The next step that followed was even more complicated and Jennifer had to strain her senses to get a good grasp of what was going on.

A spell circle formed of pure light floated around Livian’s hands, the scroll on the ground mimicking the spell circle as the two resonated with mana.

Jennifer was worried that the resonance would attract the attention of the light attuned creatures nearby, but all she noticed were blurs of light zipping around through the various crystals, paying little to no attention to his work on this end of the cavern.

“I’m going to start now. Try to stay back, or else it might scare away whatever comes in to take a look,” Livian whispered in a quiet voice as he crouched. Jennifer took a few steps away as she placed herself out of sight. Mostly. She wasn't going to let him completely out of her sight until they left the dungeon.

Livian set the orb in the field of crystalline plants, and moved back, placing his feet around the crystals on the floor, making sure not to step on any that might crack and create a disturbance. A few moments later, he joined Jennifer near the entrance, and they began the wait.

A few minutes passed, none of the creatures moving close to the bait. Jennifer turned to Livian with a questioning look.

Did he mess up somehow?

She didn’t ask the question, seeing the frown on his face as they continued to wait for a while longer.

Jenn glanced over at Rumina, who stood around looking somewhat bored as she kept a look out for creatures. The red head noticed Jenn’s glance, turning towards her with an inquisitive look.

Jenn shook her head, returning her sight to Livian’s work. She used the opportunity to study light magic, likely one of the few opportunities for her to closely examine something like that. Time flew past, as the crystals dimmed and glowed with a steady rhythm. Without the light of the sun, Jennifer felt herself losing her sense of time, a strange unease beginning to fill her heart.

To her relief, a small golden-red bird, with a fluffy chest plume of golden light and wings of crystalline shards flew through the area as it examined the bait.

Jennifer lightly whistled towards Livian, sending him a pulse of mana as she quietly pointed him towards the bird.

Livian’s eyes brightened upon seeing the creature. A smile decorated his face as his eyes shone, reflecting the light filled biome in front of them and Jennifer felt a smile rise on her face as well.

They watched patiently, as the bird slowly pecked at the mana core a few times before it grabbed the whole thing in its beak and swallowed it in one go.

A moment later, a spell circle formed beneath the bird, as the creature froze in place. Livian let out a whoop of excitement as he rushed ahead, muttering some kind of chant as his mana flexed, extending forward towards the creature. Jennifer took out her knife, keeping a few mana bolts ready as she followed behind Livian, maintaining her distance so she didn't disturb his spell.

A few minutes of spell-crafting later, Jennifer sensed a pulse of light mana and a thin bond solidified, joining Livian to the bird.

The bird flew towards Livian, settling on his shoulders as the boy gently petted the critter. Jennifer smiled at his success as the Light mage returned a smile of his own.

“That’s such a cute little bird,” Rumina said, her hands twitching as if to reach out and snatch the bird for herself.

“I’m glad you got a nice little partner there, what will you call it?” Jenn said, eyeing the bird as it preened it’s feathers. Its eyes met hers with little semblance of intelligence, although she was sure if Livian continued to grow then the creature would become far more intelligent.

“I’m not sure of the name yet. It’s a light crested falcon, a young one, so I’ll have to come up with a suitable name,” Livina said, as the bird on his arm chittered.

Jennifer looked at the bird with a longing look, an odd instinct rising in her. She really wanted to pet the bird.

Livian laughed as he looked at the two girl’s expressions. “You can pet him, if he allows you to. And it’s a he, I can feel it.”

Rumina squealed in delight, moving in closer as she touched the little bird, Jennifer walked in closer, soon joining in as she touched the soft feathers, feeling the light mana tingle her fingers. The little bird chirped, before shaking its head and jumping away.

“I think that’s enough for now, he’s getting a bit anxious. I still can’t feel his sensations too well, but that one is clear,” Livian said, as Rumina walked away, smiling happily.

“Thank you, Jennifer, and Rumina. I wouldn’t have been able to come this far without your help. If you have anything you want, don’t hesitate to ask. I’ll help anyway I can,” Livian said, as he let the bird sit on his hand.

“Can you take me out for dinner- Ouch,” Rumina broke mid-sentence as Jenn elbowed her. The red head returned a glare towards her direction. “That hurt.”

Jenn ignored her friend, turning towards Livian and his curious bird familiar. “Can you dematerialise it? Since it’s Light affinity and all?”

“Not yet, it’s still Iron rank. I’ll be able to do that once it grows to Bronze. But for that I’ll need to be at Tier 3 or higher myself,  so it’ll be a while,” Livian replied, stroking the bird again.

Jennifer hummed to herself, before she turned around. “We should move out, best not to stay for too long.”

“Actually, I’m tempted to check out the tree. I’m sensing a really strong light affinity from there and…” Livian’s voice died down at Jennifer’s glare.

“I concur! I want to check the tree out too! Maybe I can find a pet for myself too,” Rumina exclaimed with a grin.

“Rumina, monsters are not pets. The guild can imprison you if you bring out monsters into the city without properly bonding with them.” Jennifer said.

“I know! I was kidding Jenn. But there’s no harm in exploring a bit more is there? It’s such a pretty place too,” Rumina said, her eyes shining.

Jennifer sighed. “Fine, but I want to be out of here before long. Something has been bothering me.”

Rumina exclaimed happily, and Livian smiled as the trio walked ahead, towards the center of the area. The fields of crystals passed by, as the tree grew larger and larger the closer they walked.

“Do you feel this?” Livian asked, turning towards Jennifer. “There’s an affinity core here. It’s the course of this biome.”

Jennifer’s eyes widened in surprise as she turned towards the tree. She extended her senses, feeling at the concentrated bundle of light mana burning at the center of the tree.

“That tree is growing on an affinity core- I’ve never seen something like this before. This could be such a big discovery,” Livian exclaimed, turning towards Jenn in excitement.

“What’s special about this tree? If you forgot, I don’t speak magic like you two do,” Rumina said, glancing at Jenn.

“It’s a source of affinity magic, and can be used to craft really strong artifacts in the hands of the right [Enchanter]. You could probably sell a core like this for… I don’t know. 20 gold coins or more at least,” Jennifer said, as Rumina gasped.

“Twenty gold?”  Rumina exclaimed, and with a sudden burst of energy, walked towards the three. “I’m sorry, pretty light tree, but I love money more than I love you.”

Jennifer laughed at her friend's antics patting her shoulder, as Rumina pretended to drive over the loss of a dear friend. “Slow down Rumina, we need to—” she froze as a presence touched her mind.

<Soul Mark?>

“D-Did you hear that? ” Jennifer asked, spinning in surprise as she searched for the voice. “I heard a voice.”

<Run/Escape. Anger>

A barrage of emotions hit Jenn, ringing in her mind. She paused, her eyes widening in surprise. Telepathy? A [Mind Mage]? But the voice sounds so young.

She turned towards her friends, both of whom met her gaze with confusion and surprise mixed in their expressions.

Jennifer felt her Mark pulse, reacting to the presence of another. She turned, staring at the direction she felt the Mark, tendrils of something reaching into her own mind, brushing against it briefly.

<Blood/Scent. Attracted Poison-Death. Run>

The thoughts were cut short as Jennifer pulled upon her own Mark's presence, deflecting the message being sent to her mind.

A sudden sense of alarm filled her chest, her [Detect Danger] activating as a blur leapt from the shadows. Jennifer ran, tackling Rumina to the side.

A giant snake leapt where her friend had been moments ago, crashing into the tree. its green scales shimmered with a green glow as the monster spread opened its fanged mouth, letting out a threatening hiss as it bounced off the wall where they'd been standing.

Jennifer rolled through the crystalline plans, hugging Rumina close. She coughed from the muck entering her mouth, as the two of them hurried to their feet. Her eyes widened as she regarded the giant hissing serpent, and felt the poison aura spreading around her, originating from the monster.

What in Sera’s name is a Bronze rank magic-beast doing in the first layer?!

Jennifer scrambled away on her back as the snake slithered its fangs bared with venom dripping down their lethal surface.

“Stay back!” she shouted.

“Don’t attack!” Jennifer screamed, but it was futile. She watched as a beam of light flew through the air, hitting near the giant snake’s head. A blast resonated through the tunnel as the beast turned its eyes towards Livian.

The boy cursed and dived as the snake lurched, slamming into the wall where he'd stood. The impact caused cracks to form on the old tree sending, as the various light creatures swarmed out and began to run.

Jennifer ran ahead, sending two mana bolts towards the disoriented beast, trying to give Livian time to create some distance.

She felt the presence of the other Mark flare once more, a strange pulse making its way through the dungeon. The beast hissed, its eyes flickering as it slammed into the side walls, as if disoriented.

<Distracted. Poison/Snake. Mark/Soul. Escape>

“We need to run!”  Jennifer shouted, as she channeled her mana into Agile Wing, the spell quickly boosting her. Her team followed behind as they all began to rush out of the cavern of light.

A sickly aura of green spread through the area, prickling her skin as nausea began to build in her chest as it gave chase.

Livian ran just nearby panting as magic flowed through him. His bird familiar flew nearby, screeching and throwing beams of light.

The snake spat, thick streams of poison floating through the air and Jennifer pulled up her guard spell on instinct.

“[Lunestone: Guard]” she intoned, extending the guard outwards.

The snake crashed into her spell as Jenn stumbled back from the sharp drop in her mana from the impact. Dizziness assailed her from the exertion as the world began to spin for a moment. Jennifer bit her lips, as she regained control over herself. She dissolved the guard a moment later, rushing ahead.

The crystalline caverns receded as the tria rushed into the dungeon caverns once more. Spells of glass and light, alongside Rumina’s knife strikes, struck at the beast, as it continued to give chase.

“What do we do?!” Livian shouted, shooting another beam of light at the snake, the creature hissing angrily.

“I don’t know!” Jenn shouted back, her heart pounding in fear. Was this how she was going to die this time around?

<This way/direction>

The Mark whispered in her mind, as she felt it pull at her. Jenn gulped, her mind going through the possibilities of a trap.

I’m dead in either case.

“Follow me!” Jenn shouted, turning a sharp left.

The beast lunged fangs bared as it hissed toward her, it’s tail striking out with the crack of a whip and Jenn leapt, closing her eyes for her imminent death. A dagger cut through the strike, piercing the tail of the snake as another deflected the strike just enough to miss Jenn’s head.

Rumina grabbed Jenn’s hand, pulling her up from the ground. “Run!” she shouted, as Jenn followed, soon taking the lead.

Her Mark thrummed, as a new sensation reached her eyes. Jennifer saw a new strand of silver fate extend from her hand, outwards and towards the direction of the unfamiliar [Mind Mage] Mark.

She had little time to contemplate over the change, as the snake shot towards them with renewed vigor and the three continued to dash through the dungeon.

Another turn in front had Jenn sensing Mark's presence stronger than ever in her mind.

The snake hissed, coiling itself for another lunge when a wave passed over them all, striking against the snake. She turned to see the snake biting at unseen shadows, its eyes glazed over.

<Distracted. Poison-Death. Hurry>

Jennifer nodded in gratitude as she hurried with all her strength, Agile Wind howling in her ears. The path ahead soon came to a stop with a collapsed section of rubble ahead.

“Elphion damn me, the path is blocked!” Rumina shouted, turning around with her blade drawn, her chest heaving from exertion.

“There is a gap, we can blast it with spells and crawl through,” Jennifer said, turning towards Livian who nodded.

Mana rumbled as the two mages poured out their spells. Jennifer prepared a glass blade, changing it with two more, before shooting the spell. Pillars of light shot right beside her spell, the mana swirling in a frenzy.

Her blades cut through the rock, the light beams blasting through the gaps as a narrow section opened up.

“Hurry!” Jenn shouted, rushing ahead. Rumina dove into the gap, quickly making it to the other side. Jennifer followed behind, pressing herself against the jagged rocks as she walked across.

Livian followed the last behind, a scream escaping his mouth as the snake opened its mouth, trying to  squeeze in, but failing.

Jennifer felt her heart thundering, her body aching as blood pounded in her ears. That had been close. She grabbed the fallen Livian up, gulping as she watched the serpent slamming against the rubble trying to break in.

“Jenn…” Rumina called out, a nervous hint to her voice.

Jennifer turned around and froze at the sight in front of them.

“Just what in Elphion’s twisted name is this?” Rumina mumbled, staring wide eyed at the massive cavern section.

Green, brown, and various shades of transparent goo covered every imaginable surface as Hundreds moved about.

The whole room quivered and shivered like a single large organism, sending a similar shiver down Jenn's back. Acid dripped down the walls as the slimes shifted, eating through the dungeon walls.

“I...think we found a slime infestation,” Jennifer mumbled, staring in surprise. She took a step ahead, moving through the slimes covering the floor. “We need to find a place to hide. The snake's still following us.”

Jennifer focused on the mental link, forming a message.

“So many slimes, yuck. At least the snake can’t come in here.” Rumina said, before nervously checking the blocked path back.

Jennifer closed her eyes, trying to feel at Mark. There was a tendril of magic that reached her mind from the Mark, and she let it touch upon her, as a connection was formed.

Nervously, Jennifer manipulated her mana, focusing her thoughts onto the strand, as she projected them outwards with her magic.

<Who are you? How do you know I’m a Mark?> Jennifer sent the message, feeling a bit dizzy at the telepathic communication.

<Can sense Mind. Mark shines brightly. Hidden Mark shines still> The voice said, and Jennifer took a moment to parse the message.

He can sense me despite my veil? Because my Mark shines?

Jennifer turned around as a hiss resounded through the room. She felt the snake’s aura deepening, the poison-like aura making her shiver. “Keep your magic output low. Don’t use any skills,” Jennifer whispered to her team as she leaned onto the walls, peeking through the crack.

<What happened? How are you stuck here in the middle of this slime infestation?> Jennifer sent, as she watched the snake turn back and forth, flicking its tongue, its eyes scanning as its head swiveled. It was using every sense at its disposal to root them out to devour them.

<Chased/Attacked by Poison-Death> the Mark sent back, as images of a large snake chasing something through tight and dark tunnels came to her mind.

Jennifer leaned back as the image caused another throb to go through her head. The visual message felt unhuman, and the world seemed far far larger than what she was used to.

Is he... not human? He sounds like a child and yet I haven't heard him transmit a single word. Or does he not understand common and is using mind magic to compensate?

Rumina shifted, as she squeezed in below Jennifer. The girl crouched there, peeking out from the crack alongside Jenn as she whispered. “What do we do now? Wait? What about the voice you heard? You said it came from another one of the Marks right?”

“I don’t know. The mark is nearby somewhere, he seems to be hiding. He’s been talking to me through telepathy. The snake must have followed him from within the dungeon.”

“Is it an adventurer? I wouldn’t think a random mind mage would be roaming the dungeon by themselves,” Rumina said.

Both of them froze as the snake flicked its tail near at the rocks like a whip, the rocks rumbling and rustling as it hissed angrily. It reared up, baring its fangs at the empty air as if it could frighten them out.

“That...doesn’t look good, we need to find a way to lose the snake and escape,” Rumina whispered as they moved away from the crack.

Jennifer closed her eyes once more, reaching out to the Mark.

<Is there a way to get out of here?> Jennifer asked.

<Blocked path. Leads further into Dungeon-Home. Stuck. But Safe. For now>

Jennifer felt her fear rising at the words. If the only way out was going through the snake…

<Can you help us? You’re stuck too right?>Jennifer asked, as the snake struck the rubble of rocks once more, the rubble shifting.

The three of them moved further into the cavern, wading through the slimes, to move away from the snake. It wouldn’t be long before the wall collapsed.

<Can help. Have idea. But risky. Might die/end/gone>

Jennifer paused midstep at the words. She looked around the dungeon, and then towards Livian and Rumina, with varied looks of fear and anxiety on their faces. She took a deep breath in.

<I can do it. Tell me what it is>

Ideas and concepts floated through her mind, and slowly but surely, a smile started to tug at her lips. She hates loud noises,or  any kind of explosion, as it always meant an enchantment gone wrong, but just this once, she looked forward to them.

“I have a plan,” Jennifer said as she turned to take a closer look at the area, looking at the many slimes around.

“Livian, I’ll need your help to set off the acid slimes and then form a shield quickly,” Jennifer said.

Livian looked around as realization dawned on him soon, his brows rising high on his face. “Jennifer, have you gone mad?! The explosion will bring this whole place down!”

“It’s the only way. We’re stuck with no way out. It’s either this or death after being mauled by that snake,” Jennifer snapped back as Livian stared at her, before glancing at the snake.

“This is stupid. I’m telling you this is stupid. Sera help me why I’m agreeing to this,” Livian said, and Jennifer nodded.

“We’ll be fine. I promise,” Jennifer said, trying to project confidence she struggled to feel.

And if we die. If… we die, then you will not be there to remember any of it.

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20 — Adventuring Team

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Glass shards twirled around Jennifer’s hand, bending and twisting to form beautiful crystals that refracted light into multiple colors. She held one in her hand, playing with it. She nudged the composition of the glass shard to have different colors shining through its edge.

It had been a day since she'd had her talk with Livian, and Jennifer had spent most of it pouring through the books she'd gotten from Derim. There had been a surprising amount in those books that had caught her fancy with some sections even delving into soul magic. Probably the most illegal form of magic she knew of.

“Busy are we?” Jennifer heard a voice as a finger poked her nose.

Jennifer looked up to see Rumina standing in front of her wearing a grin. “Ah, sorry. I was lost in thought,” she replied, dissipating the shard of glass from her hand. She glanced around to see if anyone seemed to be noticing the two girls.

“So, where’s this mage guy who’s dragging you out to the dungeon?” Rumina asked with a cursory glance behind Jennifer.

“We’ll meet him in the dungeon plaza. He mentioned that we’d be grabbing some gear before heading into the dungeon,” Jennifer said. “Let’s head out? I wouldn’t want to be late.”

Jennifer walked ahead, with Rumina following behind her as the two continued on their way towards the dungeon plaza. Jennifer eyed her friend briefly as she hummed something under her breath, watching the city pass by.

“You’re taking all of this awfully easily. I’d expected you to be a bit more nervous about the dungeon. Or at least suspicious of some guy asking me out to a delve in the dungeon,” Jennifer said.

“Not my choice for a first date, but you aren’t exactly normal either, bringing your friend out for it,” Rumina replied with a cheeky grin, winking at Jenn.

“Rumina!” Jennifer exclaimed, slapping her friend’s shoulder as she cackled gleefully.

“Fine, I’m sorry! And I’m not silly like you. I’ve got his whole history checked out,” Rumina said, glancing at Jenn. “Wanna listen?”

“I know you’re going to tease me about it if I say yes, saying something stupid like ‘Oh so you’re interested in him afterall?’ and then laugh like a mad woman all by yourself,” Jennifer said, as her friend’s face fell.

“You’re no fun Jenn!” Rumina exclaimed and Jennifer decided to kindly ignore her.

“[Information Recall], ah yes. Livian Firgold, the second son from a family of gold merchants. Ancestry from the empire, decently rich. The father is a particularly high level [Gold Merchant] I suspect in around 35-40 for his level. Quite rich, and they come from the Empire, so they’re used to all the nobility and ranking systems. Not human supremacists despite what their origins may suggest, and a line of newly established lines of [Mages] starting from Livian’s uncle. The boy started going to the-”

“Sera’s grace Rumina, that’s more than enough. Did you end up digging into his entire family history?”

“Yup! I had to make sure. Can’t have the boyfriend of the soon to be saviour of Lienmont be a nobody afterall,” Rumina said, and Jennifer lost her footing for a moment as she glared at her friend, who giggled back at her.

“Shush you. You know I’m not interested in that stuff. I have far too much to do instead of jumping at boys.”

“Precisely why I love to tease you about it,” Rumina said and Jennifer shook her head in amusement, giving up the argument as she resigned herself to the incessant teasing.

“Did you find anything on the orc captain?’ Jennifer asked before Rumina could get lost in the teasing.

“Ah, unfortunately not much. Captain Drighak Khazir, orc mercenary captain of an all orc percenary group Wandering Blades. In the city from roughly a week ago, around the time the Southern caravan had arrived to the city. Family unknown, current loyalties unknown, the man loves to fight, and loves to eat even more. Which is just about any orc out there,” Rumina replied.

Jennifer nodded. The two friends continued to talk idly for a few more minutes before the gates to the dungeon entrance began to appear from within the city.

Walls were erected around the end of the plaza, with a massive gate covering the cavernous entrance that led into the dungeon, manned by guards at almost all times of the day with the gates perpetually opened to allow for the flow of mana from the dungeon, out into the city.

The dungeon shift had not yet occurred, and the guard around the dungeon was still low, which would allow all of them to enter far more easily.

Jennifer and Rumina stood within the plaza for a few moments, glancing around as they waited for Livian to arrive.

“Hey!” a shout came from across the plaza, as the blonde haired boy ran towards her carrying a large bag on his back that rattled with each step.

“Sorry... for... being… late,” Livian panted, his breath heavy. Jenn eyed the bag the boy carried in his bag, large enough to fit all her clothes in if she wanted to.

“It’s alright. We just arrived a few moments ago as well,” Jennifer replied, before turning towards Rumina as the two waited for Livian to catch his breath. “Livian, this is Rumina,” Jennifer continued once the boy had settled down. “My friend, and the one I’d talked to you about who’d be accompanying us to the dungeon.”

“Ah, my apologies. I’m Livian Firgold. It’s a pleasure, and thank you so much for helping me out.”

“I’m Rumina Floreth, a pleasure here as well. It was a favor from Jenn, I wouldn’t have said no to her.”

Jennifer looked at her Rumina, surprised at the lack of teasing when Livian came around. She decided not to mention it, grateful for it. It would’ve just made things awkward between all of them.

“Anyway- umm. So, I’ve planned to head out to The Serfield Wings to get some gear,” Livian said.

Before Jennifer could say anything it was Rumina’s turn to jump in surprise.

“What?! Are you sure it’s Serfield Wings? The Serfield Wings?” Rumina asked, her voice rising towards the end.

Jennnifer looked around, slightly confused at her friend's reaction. “Why is that such a big deal?”

“Are you kidding me? You really have no interest in the market and anything like that do you? I knew you weren't interested in clothes or dressing up but... Sera’s grace Jenn, this might just be a good thing,” Rumina turned towards Livian. “You know the way right?”

“I most certainly do. Follow along,” Livian said, walking ahead, as Rumina shook her head at Jennifer, with a look of disappointment in her eyes.

“What’s the big deal?” Jenn asked in a hushed tone as she stared at Rumina.

“Serfield Wings is a branch for one of the largest names in the clothing industry. Alongside many other things. They’ve got a hand in many businesses in the entire alliance, and are famed for working with Ranked Plates and even Royalty! I can’t believe I’m going to be visiting one of their shops,” Rumina said, a bright smile plastered on her face.

“My father happens to know the owner, so I suspect we could get some good gear there as well. I don’t have too much money but it should be enough to supply all of us,” Livian replied with a smile.

Rumina nodded along happily as Livian turned back ahead when her friend suddenly moved in closer to whisper into her ears.

“I’ve never been more happier to help you. You said you’re not interested right? Can I take him? He’s rich, he has a pretty face. A bit too soft and clumsy for my preference, but that may change with time. And he can take me to nice places.”

Jennifer stared at her friend with an unsure expression. “What about everything I told you about the city?”

“Well, it’s not like I’ll remember afterwards. And if I do, I’d like to remember nice things. Like eating at very expensive places and wearing beautiful dresses,” Rumina said, cupping her cheeks with her hands as her eyes glazed over with daydreams.

This girl…

“You’re being silly. We’re here to go on a delve, now focus,” Jennifer said, grabbing Rumina’s hand as the two continued on their path.

The roads widened as the dirt path gave way to paved pathways with decorated plants. Jennifer inspected her surroundings, glancing at Livian occasionally as they entered the richer parts of the city.

“And here we are,” Livian said, as the two of them turned to look at the shop.

It was a large building, built more like a manor than a store. Expensive decor lined the front of the shop, the design followed the Empire’s design architecture very closely, adding embellishments to the theme wherever it could. A beautiful insignia made of a pair of wings was carved onto the front section. “Let’s head in,” Livian said, walking ahead.

Rumina laughed in delight, walking ahead as a hesitant Jennifer followed behind her.

A beautiful interior greeted Jennifer as she entered Serfield Wings, glancing about in curiosity. The inside was densely saturated with mana, even the air felt fresher somehow, a slight smell of flowers present in it.

“Ah, welcome. Please come in,” an old pot bellied man spoke, rising from his seat behind the shop counter.

“Hello, we wanted to look at some gear for a delve into the dungeon,” Livian said, as the man behind the counter nodded.

“Well, then. I assume you’d want some light armor. Perhaps a [Detect Danger] accessory, along with something like a Tier 3 Protection Field. Maybe an Ironskin bracelet,” the man said, going through the pile of stuff as he waved some away into a dimensional storage.

Jennifer looked at the man, something about his features making her feel as if she’d seen the man before.

Hold on, isn’t Serfield Nathaniel’s surname?

Jennifer looked at the man once more, finding a startling resemblance to Nathaniel in the man. His chestnut brown hair, almost the exact same.

“Would you happen to know the Gold Plate adventurer Nathaniel?” Jennifer asked, looking at the man curiously.

“You know Nat?” the man said, turning to look at Jenn and she nodded in reply.

“He taught me some magic and helped me with my training,” She replied, before pausing. That didn’t happen in this reset. We haven’t even met yet.

“I see. That is quite rare. The boy was never the type to be too keen on teaching others. Perhaps he’s changed recently. If only he came home more often,” the man said with a sigh. “Excuse me, I was getting a bit reminiscent. It is a pleasure to meet you young lady. I’m Markus Serfield, Nathaniel’s father and a humble [Merchant].”

“You’re Mr. Serfield?” Livian asked in surprise before dipping his head in greeting. “Please forgive me for not recognising you, I’d assumed your employees would be manning the shop. My father has worked under you before, and he talks fondly about the lessons you taught him.”

Markus laughed, patting Livian’s shoulder. “No need to be so stiff. I just like to sit in my shop sometimes. Return to the time when I was just starting out, and doing everything myself. It’s a good feeling to be reminded of your roots.”

Jennifer dipped her head as well. “I’m Jennifer Laine. Nathaniel has been a great help to me in my lessons.”

“I see. Perhaps if it wouldn’t hurt you, would you care to tell me a bit more about him? The boy rarely returns home and as ashamed as it is to admit this to you, I haven’t talked to him in a few months.”

Jennifer turned to look at Rumina briefly, but found her friend fawning over a dress. She nodded to Markus, the man smiling happily in return.

“Alright, let us sort this business out first. A simple leather armor. Minor enchantment for durability. I assume you can tell that already. The leather also has minor mana resistance, so it’ll hold against magical projectiles and attacks as well,” he said, laying the armor onto the counter.

Jennifer touched the leather armor, feeling the enchantment on it, interwoven carefully across the whole armor. She couldn't help but notice that it was sized for someone twice her size as she held it up in front of her.

“You can try it out as well, hold on. [One Fits All],” the man intoned and the armor began to shift beneath her hands, changing its shape.

“Try it on now,” he said, and Jennifer flipped the armor, sliding into it like a sweater, placing it over her clothes. A single strap on each side secured the armor snugly and she felt it hug her body like a second skin.

“Hold this crystal, it’s a Skill stone. [Detect Danger]. You can bind it to you by sending your mana into the stone. Make sure it's touching your skin at all times if you want the skill to work properly. Maybe tie it around your arm,” he said, handing her a small red crystal.

Pouring her mana into it, the shard lit up with a soft crimson glow. She looked at it for a second when an idea struck her.

Jenn triggered her [Blood Dagger]  forming it around the skill stone as it was embedded snugly into the hilt. The glass was formed of her blood and would count as a physical contact. So long as she could stay connected to her dagger, she’d be in contact with the skill stone.

A system prompt popped in front of her

[Detect Danger]
Tier 2
Status: Bonded

A Skill Stone with the [Detect Danger] Spell, able to detect danger to the bound owner of the skill stone and grant them the [Detect Danger] skill.

“Blood and Glass magic? That is a very rare and impressive form of magic you have, young lady. I think I’ve only known a handful of people who've had the affinity,” the man remarked, raising his eyebrows.

“Jenn! Come here for a second!” Rumina shouted excitedly and Jennifer turned to see her friend holding out a dark crimson dress, black cuts and patterns decorating it with ribbons hanging from it’s sleeve.

“How do you think this looks on me?” Rumina asked, holding the dress in front of her. A subtle magical aura wafted off the dress, and she felt her new skill [Minor Danger Detect] flash for a brief second.

“I don’t know...it looks great, but maybe a bit too violent? A tad bit mature for you as well,” Jennifer said, eyeing the dress skeptically as Rumina pouted, waving her away as she returned to fawning over the dress.

“Why are you suddenly looking into these and waiting... are those ribbons knives?” Jennifer asked as she looked closer at the strands of ribbon hanging from the dress, gleaming in the light.

“Just having a look, there’s a lot of interesting dresses here. It’s not like you'll have any interest in this stuff. So I went ahead and had a look for myself. I do need gear as well after all, since I decided that I’d form an adventuring team with you,” Rumina stated calmly, turning away as she went around to inspect the accessories in a different section of the shop.

“A new adventuring team is it? Very exciting to see. Tell you what, I’ll prepare something for all three of you. In the meantime, you head on inside and have some tea. I'd love to hear a bit more about Nat, Jennifer.” the man said, laughing pleasantly.

“Thank you very much for the hospitality Mr. Sefield,” Livian said with another bow as the three of them headed further into the shop.

A small, but tastefully decorated room awaited her, four wooden chairs around a low table. Each chair looked as if they'd been woven by taking individual stands of wood, then weaving them together one strand at a time.

She took a seat, discovering the chair was practically made of cloud as it absorbed her weight. Extremely comfy.

“You know Mr. Serfield’s son? A gold plate? Forgive me for this but- I wasn’t aware that you had such good connections,” Livian said, eyeing Jennifer.

“Ah, well. I do know him. Some weird circumstances led me to meeting with him, and we got to talking,” Jennifer replied, avoiding going too deep into details. Livian eyed her for a moment, before letting the topic go.

A few moments later, Markus walked into the room, a single tray with a teapot and a few teacups upon his hand. Jennifer got up, offering to take the tray from him but was refused by the older man as he poured a cup of tea for each of them.

“Have a drink please. And don’t mind my presence, I enjoy the work. Not much else to do at my age besides count numbers and direct people. So a change of pace is just what I need,” Markus said, as he took a seat at the table. With a wave of his hand, multiple items appeared beside the teapot.

“I’ve got a few enchanted daggers for your [Informant] friend here. And a thin armor-dress that'll allow her to blend in the shadows better. A simple fireball and shield ring for the [Light Mage] here, along with a simple barkskin ring and a few healing, mana and stamina potions,” Markus said, as his gaze landed on each of them around the table.

She turned towards the items on display, confusion evident on her face as she saw the various expensive looking equipment.

“Hmm, nice daggers. Better than mine for sure,” Rumina said as she spun the dagger, the blade curving back towards her as it returned to her hand.

“Now then, would you care to share a bit more about Nathaniel?” It's been a while since he was home. My brother Zaress keeps him in the guild most of the time, and Nat has a tendency to get lost in work as well. I don’t remember the last time he came for dinner,” Markus said, as he looked at her.

Jennifer almost spit the tea she’d been drinking. She coughed, turning to stare at Markus in surprise. “Guild head Zaress is his uncle?”

Markus nodded, glancing at her as he sipped at his tea.

“I-I umm, how? He... isn’t his name Nathaniel Serfield? From what I know the guild head’s name is Zaress Keinor…” Jenn trailed off as she stared at Markus, unsure of what to say.

“It’s a long story, and I married into my wife’s family. Taking up her last name. Some people did not like that, let me tell you. Ah, I see Nat hadn’t told you. That boy never liked talking about home, I should’ve expected that.”

“Well, I don’t know too much about Nathaniel. He seems to be doing well. And he was an amazing teacher to me, helping me with my glass magic and spells. He even taught me a mana channeling method which ultimately helped me get my [Glass Mage] class,” Jennifer said, and Markus nodded contently.

“I see, it is good to hear that he’s doing well. Raising a new generation of adventurers, almost makes me feel young again,” Markus said with a laugh. “Have you guys decided on an adventuring team name?”

“I’m not sure what would fit us three,” Livian said, looking around nervously. The boy seemed at ease with his surroundings and Jennifer couldn’t help but notice how much better his table manners were in comparison to her.

“How about Meifor’s Wings? In folklore the beast Meifor had three wings after Sera clipped his fourth before taming him. And there’s three of us,” Rumina said, looking around excitedly.

“That is certainly an excellent name!” Markus said.

Thinking for a moment, she realized she didn't have a better idea. Jennifer turned to look at her friend smiling cheerfully at her. “Sure, let’s go with that then.”

“Let me add a little something then,” Markus said, snapping his fingers as three small leather patches plopped onto the table. “[Instant Stitches]” he said, and she watched as ‘Meifor's Wings’ was etched in a beautiful design on the leather piece, three wings joined at their edges forming a triangular shape.

“I can add these to your armor and gear. It has a little spell on it, which you can trigger during an emergency to call for help from the guild. Just a little trinket,” he said, handing her the patch of leather.

Jennifer grabbed the piece, the leather soft to her touch. She stared at the name written on the patch, dull light reflecting off of its surface. A small smile tugged at her lips.

"Would you have an enchanting crystal?" Jenn asked, looking up at Marcus.

The merchant swept his hand over hers as one dropped onto her palm. "I like to keep them handy," the man said with a wink.

Jennifer smiled, taking all three leather patches. She held the crystal in her hand, mana pulsating through her before as she carved a Tracking enchantment onto all of them. The rune lit up for a moment before fading away as the spell matrix attached itself to the object.

"Aha, clever indeed," Markus replied with a nod as Jennifer smiled.

"What's that?" Rumina asked, looking over curiously.

"A tier 1 tracking rune. I can tell where this patch of leather is if I'm within a radius of about 50 to 100 feet from it."

"How much would all of this gear be?" Livian asked, turning towards Markus.

“That’ll be about two gold pieces, all together,” Markus said.

Jennifer’s smile slipped slightly, her eyes widening as she stared at Markus.

“I’ll throw in a discount of fifty silver for a new and upcoming adventuring team,” Markus added with a wink.

Jennifer glanced at Livian, who nodded at the words. Digging into his pouch he handed over the coins that vanished into Markus’ storage ring with a pop.

“Now, I won’t hold you for too long. Something tells me, you have a delve to get to as well,” Markus said with a light smile and Jennifer dipped her head thankfully. It had been a strange experience to come to such a fancy place, but she also had a surprising amount of fun. Something she could almost never say for any shopping trips.

The kind merchant stood up and escorted the trio to the door, after they'd donned their respective gears, and the three of them dipped their heads as they took their leave.

Jennifer saw Rumina fiddling with her dagger, and Livian briefly examining his robes as they stood outside the store.

Jennifer fiddled with her new armor, turning to take a better look for herself. As they were leaving, she’d decided to quickly change out of her clothes and shift into loose shirts that didn’t bite her body as hard when layered with armor on top.

Her eyes shifted towards Rumina and Livian, her red-haired friend wearing a slim armor that fit in with her leather one, and Lixian wearing spell warded robed, above simplistic leather armor.

“We at least look like adventurers now. Which may be the only common thing between our team and them,” Rumina said, glancing around at Livian and Rumina.

Jennifer smiled as she looked around. Three teenage kids wearing fancy armor and with expressions varying from nervous, excited, and carefree. They certainly looked the part for young fool hardy adventurers.

I hope the similarities end there as well. Young naive adventurers don’t get happy endings to their journeys into dungeons.

“Let’s head out then?” Rumina asked, receiving a nervous nod from Livian. Jennifer nodded as well, as the party walked towards the dungeon plaza.

The afternoon sun hung high above the plaza as the trio made their way. The bustle of Lienmont felt subdued as people took cover under shades, away from the light of the sun.

The trio made their way towards the two guards manning the way in. Jennifer remembered them as the same guards who'd been here during the dungeon break she'd gotten caught in. The same ones who'd refused to come in and stop the brawl with the orc mercenary.

The guards in question noted their arrival, and greeted them by barring the way in by tilting their spears.

“Plate?” One of the guards asked.

Jennifer dug into her pouch, pulling out her Apprentice Mage card, and handed it to the man. It qualified her as a certified mage apprentice, arguably a higher qualification than an Iron plate.

After a cursory glance from the guards, the spears moved aside, and the three of them walked in. Jennifer took a glance back at the plaza outside as she walked into the dark entrance, feeling her heart starting to race as memories from her first trip within the dungeon came to her.

She took a breath, calming her nerves as she turned around, and began to make her way ahead. If she wanted to make a change, she couldn’t allow herself to be so weak and cower from the dungeon.

She turned around and walked further in, as the system message from the dungeon greeted her.

You've entered the Great Dungeon of Lienmont.

It was time to put her new magic skills to the test.

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19 — Mage Apprentice

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There had been multiple choices in front of Jennifer. She could’ve waited for a while till whatever combat test had been happening was concluded, before asking for her own test. It would likely have given her something more reasonable to work with rather than the shield breaking exercise. But two thoughts had made her decide on continuing as she had the first time around. The first was the fact that she’d spent a non insignificant time preparing counters to the given exercise, and to learn how to win it. The second was that she wanted to win, and changing the test would feel like she ran away.

Which was how Jennifer found herself walking up the incline to the entrance of the Academy, as she envisioned the fight in her mind, and prepared countermeasures. Her walk quickly took her through the Academy, even as she was lost in her thoughts. Jennifer had been visiting the place frequently in the past two months, and had grown quite familiar with her way around.

Walking into the central building, she was about to head to the reception when a voice interrupted her.

“Hey, hey you!” a boy shouted, wearing white robes with blue trimmings typical of a senior at the Academy. Jennifer now knew that almost no one wore the academy uniform, making the boy even more weird than she’d first realised.

“Do you know if the combat test has begu- oh, sorry, first year?” the boy asked, curiously looking at her up and down.

“Should still be a few minutes before he begins. I’m heading there myself,” Jennifer replied, as she continued on her way to the reception.

“Wait, you’re not a first year? Umm, sorry, that was rude of me. I’m Livian Firgold, a light mage,” the boy said, extending his hand forward as he began to grow calm.

“Jennifer Laine,” she took his hand, returning a light shake.

“Are you sure we’re not late? What am I saying, I don’t even remember the combat chamber the Magus had specified,” the boy said with a sigh, before looking at Jennifer. “Not to impose on you but… is it fine if we go together?”

“Sure, but I have something to do at the reception first.”

“That’s fine, I can wait. I think,” the boy replied, and Jennifer walked up  to the reception. She tapped the counter once, waiting for Minceli to make her way up the little ladder she kept behind the counter. It always amused her to watch the gnome woman climb up that thing with all her creative cursing, it made her wonder if the mages had not made the table more appropriate or given her some kind of spell or tool for the exact same reason.

“What do you want?” the gnome woman asked.

“I’m Jennifer Laine, here to take my Apprentice Mage test,” Jennifer replied. She could sense Livian’s gaze settle on her back from behind her, but she didn’t make any motions to acknowledge it.

“Hmm, first year. Enchanter at that. Confident eh?” Minceli asked, adjusting her glasses as she flipped through the thick registry book.

“Yes,” Jennifer replied, smiling.

“Is the boy with you?” Minceli asked, glancing to the side.

“No no no, I just wanted to get to Magus Beritross’ class,” Livian replied, waving his arms around in denial.

“Well good for you that we’ll be heading there anyway,” Minceli replied with a snort, jumping off her ladder stand. “Follow me.”

Jennifer glanced back at Livian momentarily as the boy gathered himself, before the three of them began to make their way to the combat chambers.

I wonder if Loux is somewhere close by too. Likely either at the spot training or in her room I suppose.

Thoughts of the various spell combinations and way to counter them filled Jennifer’s mind, and she tried to put them all off. No counter plan she prepared now was going to be of any help. She just had to trust herself and give it her best shot.

“So… you are a first year,” Livian said from behind.

“Yeah, I am. Is there some problem?” Jennifer asked, glancing back.

“No, nothing. Just, I thought First years would be arriving later this year. And, well. Applying for an apprenticeship so early, I’m just surprised. Students usually only gain an apprenticeship in their third year, and it’s a tough competition to get one under the strongest mages of the Academy.”

Jennifer hummed at the words. “Well, I sure hope I make it in that case. I definitely can’t wait two years,” she replied as the conversation ended.

They walked in silence for a few minute before Minceli spoke up.

“We’re here,” she said, walking up to one of the combat chambers. With a grunt the gnome opened the door, as Jenifer watched Magus Beritross standing inside with his class, about two dozen students glancing her way in surprise.

“Beritross! There’s an Apprentice mage test taker, take care of it,” Minceli replied walking into the chamber.

“What! I have a class ongoing Minceli, get some of the new [Mages] to do it,” Beritross replied, glancing towards Jennifer.

“There’s no one around,” Minceli replied, turning as she handed a card to Jennifer.

Beritross looked up towards Jennifer, and then livian before the Mage turned towards the gnome. “Both of them?” Beritross he asked in surprise.

“Just the girl,” Minceli replied, as she began to make her way out.

Jennifer felt pity for Livian, who stood in front of the class and awkwardly began to make his way to the rest of them.

“Apologies for being late, Magus,” Livian said, dipping his head. The Magus grunted, before his gaze returned to Jennifer. With a motion of his hand, he called her and extended his hand forward.

In a smooth motion Jennifer walked towards the mage, and handed her card to him. With narrowed eyes, the Magus inspected the card, before he turned to face her.

“I didn’t lose any bet Magus,” Jennifer replied, remembering the Mage’s next words from the last time. A wave of laughter spread through the crowd as Magus Beritross coughed in embarrassment, glaring at the class once.

“Very well. A first year who has not attended the Academy for a single day asking for an apprentice test. I wish I could say this was a first, but we already have a weirder case in here,” the magus replied before turning to address his class. “Change of plans! The Mage Apprentice test will be your combat evaluation test as well. We’ll work on the linked-barrier spell.”

Jennifer carefully listened to the rules the Magus laid out for the test for any changes, but from the sound of it, there were no significant deviations from the first version. Tier-1 linked barrier, with Tier-1 rebound spells and five skills.

“Remember, if you guys somehow manage to fail, this girl will become an apprentice before all of you get to,” the Magus replied, turning to eye Jennifer.

I’m surprised I hadn’t noticed the ways he had tried to test my resolve the previous time around. Giving an unfair test may be part of that too, or to ensure that I got at least some education before trying again. I would’ve too, if I had the luxury to wait.

Jennifer turned to meet the Magus’ gaze. “I’m ready,” she replied.

The Mage clapped his hands.“Alright! Take your formations and begin casting the barrier spell.”

Jennifer watched the students spread across the chamber, taing their position. Unlike last time, she could now tell why they were spaced in the way they were. It was a requirement to cast a linked spell without practice, a method to structure the linked matrices while also extending control over the spell.

Jennifer eyes three strudents standing at three different seemingly random locations. She could tell by the way the mana shifted around them that they were the ones directly in control of the barrier. The other students jobs were to maintain the matrix and provide it enough power, but the maneuvering ability was in the hands of these three, with one of them being incharge. They would also be the only ones capable of using their skills on the barrier itself.

It should’ve been obvious to her that leaving the control of a unified entity in the hands of almost two dozen individuals would merely lead to disaster during her first test as well.

Locking targests onto the three mage students, Jennifer took a breath and began to channel her mana. Nathaniels’ technique ensured a quick array of spells that she could stack and cast one after the another, and with Loux training? She could do all of that silently while also maintaining Agile Wind around her.

The mana in the chamber swirled, forming into a shimmering barried that spread in all around the students, forming a circular dome. Jennifer inspect the barrier visually. It was almost identical to the last time, and this time, she was a lot more prepared than she’d ever been.

“Ready? Begin!” the Magus announced and Jennifer shot forward.

Mana thrummed around her, accompanied by powerful gusts of wind as she rushed around the dome. Three hexagonal glass plates whirred around Jennifer as she used one of her newly learned spells on them.

“Reflect,” Jennifer murmured as her mana dipped and the glass gained a white sheen to them, glowing dimly with magic. They would act as a barrier against the oncoming barrage of attacks, reflecting any attacks that did not outright break her spell.

Her defences prepared, Jennifer silently weaved together a mana blade. Using the trick she’d learned from Loux, she split her thoughts across two different motions, her mind busy casting the glass blade as her body shot around the barrier with a constant stream of glass bolts shooting at the armor.

One by one, her attacks hit the barrier, flickering it at a steady interval. She knew she could not even come close to breaking the shield this way, there was no way for her to beat the combined mana pool of a class of two dozen second years. But if she continued to maintain her steady rhythm, the mana input from the students will slowly but surely begin to sync up to her rhythm. They will anticipate her attack, and will brace for it. Even if subconsciously, the mana output into the matrix would lower at the low beats, and that would be her chance to strike.

Her attacks didn’t go unanswered as three students broke off from the chained casting, together she shot bolts of mana, at her, with one of them throwing a massive fireball in heer direction. Jennifer whirled Agile wind further, using a gust of wind to dodge the fireball as her hexagonal mirrors moved at her will, reflecting the bolt of mana back towards their assailant.

She continued her consistent glass bolt attack through the barrage, allowing the students to slowly but surely break off and begin to shoot spells at her of all sorts.

Wind stirred Jennifer’s hair as she skid across the arena, kicking off the walls and running in circles as beams of light and bolts of thunder chased behind her. Her mana, even with it’s substantial increase with her [Glass Mana Pool] began to draw low, but Jennifer felt no concern. Her mana limits had been drilled into her through her practice with Loux, each session letting her run almost empty on Mana through it.

The running around and chase continued for a moment, and she began to saw murmurs beginning to rise through the students.

“You won’t outlast the class if that’s what you’re hoping,” Magus Beritross spoke, taking Jennifer by surprise. The man had not uttered a word in their last fight.

She nodded her head, not replying in any way as she continued to run circles. A smile tugged at her lips at having her ploy succeed well enough to be missed even by the Magus, or perhaps he’d merely not mentioned it because he knew.

Doesn’t matter. It’s time to attack.

Slowing down on her mad dash Jennifer brought the hexagonal mirror in front of her, joining them together to form a shield that covered her almost completely. An assault of spells quickly began to rain upon her mirrors, being reflected back, yet the draw on her mana would quickly mean an end to it. She had to act quick.

Jennifer tugged on the three strands of mana she’d carefully been threading through he ground. Something she’d learned while talking with Ithea in the Academy’s library had been how barriers had no way of preventing mana intrusion from underground, and she had all the intention to exploit it.

Carefully planting her spell, Jennifer waited for the low beat from the steady attacks of her glass bolts hitting the barrier. As her bolt hit the shield, and she sensed the rising mana flow through it in anticipation, Jennifer sent a pulse of glass mana towards the three students in control of the spell matrix. Glass shards rose from the ground beneath the barrier, forming three spikes that curved around their feet, trapping them in place.

A brief moment of shock reflected in their eyes, followed by a stumble as the barrier flickered visibly.

Now.

Putting together her Glass blades, Jennifer tied their ends together, weaving and stacking three blades all together. Shattering her hexagonal mirrors as the last of the spells being reflected stopped, she shot forward.

“[Repair Matrix]!” one of the students screamed in a panic, followed by the others who soon caught up. “[Reinforce], [Strengthen Magic], [Guard].”

The shouts rolled over Jennifer and she ignored the barrier rising. A lance of glass, tied of three merged blades rose from her hand, a tornado of glass ripped through everything around her, carried by sharp winds as Jennifer poured more magic than she’d ever used through her pathways.

“[Twofold Enchanting] Sharpen, Harden!” Jennifer screamed not having the time to cast silently as she layered her enchantments onto her spell.

A glowing lance of glass shot from her hands, crashing into the flickering barrier like a speeding arrow. A burst of powerful wind spread out from the explosion, accompanied by screams and curses as the two spells collided their spell matrices tearing into one another.

Jennifer didn’t let the chaos distract her as pulled up another spell, calling for a glass blade to shoot towards her when a bolt of lightning interrupted her.

“[Lune stone: Guard]!” she shouted, as her guard spell manifested, tanking through the attacks. Her heart thundered as she rushed ahead, prepared to hit back at the barrier when a loud shout cut through the chamber.

“Enough!” Magus Beritros spoke, his voice amplified by magic. Jennifer stumbled from the intensity of the sound, clutching her ears. She looked up a moment later, fighting her disorientation to find the other students similarly bent over with hands over their ears. She turned to face the Mage.

“The winner is Jennifer Laine. Stop all combat spells right this instance or I’ll fail you instantly,” Magus Beritross said, glaring at his students. A moment later, his eyes rested upon two students. “You and you. Why did you attack even after the Barrier had fallen,” the Magus asked with a heavy frown.

“Apologies Magus,” the boy replied, the girl next to him quickly following after.

“I’ll need a report from you two specially on what disciplinary action should be taken on breaking the honorary rules of a Mage spar. From the rest of you, I expect a full report on how a first year mage bested all of you combined, and exploited the flaws of your spell casting with such ease. Your combat evaluation grades will rely on the report. Class is dismissed,” the Magus said, as a groan passed through the class, though Jennifer also noted some relieved sighs.

Her gaze travelled back to the Magus who was now staring at her. “Direct close body manifestation, linkage breaking, and the silent spell casting. If I wasn’t so familiar with her I wouldn’t have even noticed the similarities,” the Magus said out loud, staring at Jennifer intently.

She held back a gulp, looking back at the Magus as she did her best to feign ignorance.

The man continued to scan her, before eventually he lifted her card set in his hands and looked down. “Level 14. [Enchanter] at that. If I wasn’t seeing things myself I’d probably never believe it,” the man replied, before glancing back up at Jennifer. “Follow me to my office. I’ll need you to sign some documents and leave your mana signature. Elphion, a first year who hasn’t even began classes, the paperwork will kill me.”

Jennifer pretended not to hear the man as she followed behind him. She heard the thundering of her heart increase in intensity as the realisation settled down. She had won!

The jovial celebration was made even brighter by a screams of ‘What’ and ‘That was a first year?!’ that Jennifer caught the moment she left the chamber. Even the dull ache of having abused her mana pathways did not take away the joy at seeing her growth.

I did it. I came to the Academy, and I beat a class of Seniors.

The realisation was a surreal thing. This had been the dream she’d one day wished to achieve. A dream that had always been haunted by the realisation that she would always be behind the mages with the many resources their families could afford them. She had been afraid, that she would only lag behind and had done her all, even before her entrance, to learn spells on her own and gain a mastery of magic that would ensure she would be the best in her class.

And now, I can compete with second years. No. I can beat them.

Jennifer felt joy filling her heart, as a strange sensation filled her. She wasn’t sure how she could tell, but somehow, she knew that if she closed her eyes for but a moment, the voice of the world would whisper upon her ears.

She was close once more. Close to another level up.

***

Magus Beritross walked inside his chamber, holding back a sigh. He’d already been preoccupied enough when the Dryads had sent a child to their Academy, and of all the Mages to get stuck with the job. Now, a girl with glass magic and a fighting style eerily similar to Loux had appeared randomly and had beat a class of Second years by herself. As an [Enchanter].

“They don’t pay me enough for this,” the Magus muttered under his breath. Walking up to one of his desk, he turned to see the gir Jennifer standing behind as she looked around the chamber curiously.

Walking ahead he quickly ran his fingers through the inscribed runes on a slate made of mana stones nearby, before he turned towards the girl. “Put your hand at this slate here. It’ll show a brief description of all your classes and levels.”

Taking a moment to look at him, Jennifer walked up the the platform and pressed her palm against the runes inscirped. A moment later, mana flowed through the area as the spell activated and letters began to appear on the table. Beritross took out the girls’ card placing it on the array as the letters transferred over.

Watching the array stop, he picked up the card and glanced on it.

“Level 17? And level 2 [Glass Mage]?” Beritross said, turning towards Jennifer. “When did they take your damn assessment?”

He watched in silence as the girl squirmed uncomfortably for a moment. “Last month,” she muttered.

Beritross stood in silence, staring at the girl. Her squirming grew more and more as he stared before the Mage caught himself and coughed. Taking a moment to gather himself, he looked back up at the girl. “Are you force levelling yourself?”

Jennifer shook her head. “No, I just. Had some insights. I got a level up really quickly after my last assessment, and then another two. The glass mage class also just… happened.”

Beritross’s eyebrow twitched as he stared at the girl. “You’re telling me, that you just happened to gain three new levels, and two more in an entirely new class in a month?”

The silence grew longer at his words and Beritross let out a sigh. “Listen. I don’t even know what would push a girl like you to level rapidly. So either you lied on your entrance assessment for Sera knows what reason, or you genuinely have had the most fortunate month ever and grown monstrously. And I can think of some things, but none of said things are nice, so I’d like to hear from you before I’m forced to look into things myself.”

Beritross waited a few moments, to see how she would respond.

“I-I actually found a new channeling method. Well. Sort of developed one, after reading some really old notes I had. It turns out, this was a method very similar to the Gold-plate adventurer Nathaniel, which is what’s helped me propel my growth so much,” the girl replied and Beritross raised an eyebrow. That felt… a bit too detailed to have been made up on the spot.

“I actually wanted to get an apprenticeship to study under him. I think he’d be interested in my mana channeling method enough to be convinced. I’ve also heard that there’s another student at the Academy, looking for a combat teacher. If the Academy requests him on behalf of two students, I believe it might be possible,” Jennifer replied, looking at Beritross.

“Nathaniel… Serfield? You’re asking for him?” Beritross asked, unable to believe what he was hearing.

“Umm, yes?” Jennifer replied, looking back in confusion.

“He was a menace. One of the most talented mages we’ve had in the academy, and the biggest pain in the ass I’ve ever had to teach,” Beritross replied with a grimace and a chuckle. “Well, I’ll believe your word for now. Nathaniel had been the last person to be on my mind for the role, but given the circumstances, I don’t see any reason not to,” Beritross replied, and he saw the girl let out a quiet breath of relief.

He’d definitely have to dig more into her. A glass mage and an enchanter that just gained 5 levels in a single month. He’d heard of stranger things, but this was still abnormal enough to pique Beritross’ interest.

“Alright. Now all that’s left is a heap of paperwork, mostly for me. Go through these documents and put in the request for Nathaniel in there, leave your signature and your mana signature at the bottom once you’ve read through and put the papers at my table. Now if you’ll pardon me, I have a class to attend to,” Beritross said. He watched the girl go through a series of expression that he could tell she was trying to hide.

With a light smile on his face, Beritross stood up but paused mid-step. “Oh, before I forget. It’ll take some time to get you your Apprenticeship license, but in the meantime this card will do,” he said extending the girl her card.

Beritross noted a bright smile reflect upon her face as he handed her the card, one he saw no indication of her hiding. A similar smile tugged at his own as he turned around and walked out of the chamber, leaving the girl to settle down.

Two new girls, vastly different in personality, and equally strange. This year was already starting to feel interesting.

***

Jennifer sifted through the papers, most of it just informing her of her responsibilities and the rules of the academy. Along with a form to pick her choice of tutoring she’d like to receive. Attached was a short list of suggested tutors, but none of the names were anyone she recognized.

She picked up an enchanted quill nearby, inspecting it for a moment before she began to fill in all the necessary details. There thankfully didn’t seem to be much, just a little entry on her class type, number of classes, and other details about herself. She went through them one by one, feeling strangely elated at the sequence of events that had since followed.

I do wonder why the Magus hadn’t reacted this strongly the last time. Is it because I’d just gained my [Glass Mage] class?

A moment later, the realisation came to Jennifer. Minceli. She’d asked me my level and changed it at the counter. The Magus never knew I’d gained 3 levels.

Jennifer felt a bit weird at how such a small action had changed the talks she’d had with the mage so greatly. I’ll defintiely need to find a way to hide my class. Things will only grow worse as more and more resets happen.

Minutes passed in silence as Jennifer carefully filled the form, after checking for everything she put the form aside and sat in silence wondering what she should do next. She hadn’t made any plans for after getting her Apprenticeship except meeting Nathaniel again, and that would likely take a few days to happen.

Maybe I can visit some of the sections in the library that I couldn’t before.

A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. A strange sense of deja vu filed Jennifer.

“Come in, it’s open,” Jennifer replied and saw the blonde boy, Livian, open the gate. She suddenly remember a very similar encounter with the boy the last time she’d visited the academy.

“Hey uhm. It’s me, not sure if you remember my name,” the boy said, looking inside.

“Livian, right?” Jennifer asked, and saw the boy nod along.

“Yes, I’m Livian Firgold. I must thank you Jennifer. My combat skills were really not up to the mark and I was slightly worried about fluking the class. Being able to make a report instead just saved my life, so I felt like I had to say thank you.”

“It’s no problem. Glad that I was of help, especially after putting you in that awkward position,” Jennifer replied with a smile.

“Oh that’s on me. I was late and everything. Got too lost tinkering with my light cube. Anyway. You’re really amazing for a First year you know that right? Most first years barely know a spell or two by the time they join, and you were fighting so well. I think only a few people in our class could beat you. Though I doubt anyone could beat that crazy green girl that also joined,” Livian said, as he closed the door behind him and stepped inside.

“Loux Nekrot?” Jennifer asked.

“You know her? Wow, is there some prodigy meet up or something?” Livian asked, and Jennifer inadvertently found a blush rising to her cheeks.

“No, I just. She’s famous.”

“You’ll be too, if you aren’t already. I still can’t believe what I saw, even when I was there to see it. It wasn’t even overwhelming power, more like, you seemed to just know what we were going to do, and had a countermeasure ready for it. It was shocking,” Livian said, and Jennifer had to resist the wave of embarrassment that filled her.

“Yeah, so, what did you need?” she asked, trying to steer the conversation away.

“Oh, I just. So, since you’re an apprentice mage. I actually had an offer for you. You’re new to the academy and I'm assuming you're unfamiliar with the responsibilities of an Apprentice Mage as well, since you’re skipping like a whole year and a half and jumping directly into the position. So, I'll help you out with the work involved and the paperwork etc, in return for a favour,” Livian said, a nervous smile plastered on his face.

“What’s the favour?”

“Ah, well. This will sound odd... I need to enter the dungeon. But not to adventure. I need to find a Light affinity spirit beast. I’m a [Light Mage] and having a light attribute familiar would be great.”

Jennifer nodded. She had already known of the request and normally she’d quickly refuse wasting her time on a trip like this, but until Nathaniel came to the Academy, she didn’t have too much to do and had found herself itching to test out her new abilities.

She could feel her [Glass Mage] class sitting right at the edge. She just needed one last push, and she would leve once more.

“How deep do we need to go?” Jennifer asked, looking at the boy.

Livian smiled a bright smile, quickly pulling out a map, the lines on it vague, yet drawn with magical ink that marked the entrances to the dungeon.

“It’s in the first layer, the dungeon area under the north west section. Shouldn’t be too far in. And I have an artifact to detect when the beast is nearby.”

A delve might be just what I need.

Jennifer looked up, seeing a nervous Livian look back at her. She flashed him a grin, a predatory look in her gaze as she eyed the second year boy.

“Tell me more.”

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18 — Changing Directions

AN: Please read the previous chapter. Important changes have been made, and this chapter will not make sense if you have not read those.

***

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Mark of Time:
The Mark of the Chosen of Time.

Bond of Fate: Fated strings
A Bond born from the union of Time and Fate

Abilities: Time Reset
Resets: 4

Integrity: 97.12%
Tier: Undefined

The system message floated in front of Jennifer’s eyes, prompting a blink from her. A blink that turned into two, and then three. Jennifer sat in a daze, waiting for her memories to return, for the tide of everything to come crashing to her. Yet all she could remember, was a sinking horror, and the sicking smell of blood permeating her being.

Jennifer looked down at her hands, and found them shaking. There was an unnatural blanket of calm over her mind. ‘Calm Mind’ or some variation of the spell, she noted mutedly. This wasn’t a first time thing either, she quickly realised. The same daze had blanketed her thoughts subtly ever since the beginning. But it was only now, when the Blanket was so thick it seeped directly into her thoughts and muffled them, that she began to notice its presence.

Yet, even through the blanket muffling her mind, Jennifer found a deep dread rising inside her chest. She’d lost herself to the madness. To those red tendrils that had burrowed in her soul, and had changed her very being.

Her memories returned. Of the blood-red messages. That deep red that had permeated the words of the System itself, seeping through her soul. A deep seated revulsion rose from her soul as she remembered. She had gained a [Race]. She had levelled up in a [Race]. There was no such thing as a Racial level. You could not level up as a human, it went against the nature of the system. Yet. She had.

She had been a demon, one who could level.

“Sera take me,” Jennifer breathed out loud, her heard thundering. She sat silently upon her chair, feeling as if she could hear the screaming cries of her city dying. A spell that could turn a human into a demon. One with levels. The world was going to change forever.

Jennifer curled up, her gut churning. She gagged, remember the smell of blood that had filled her mind. She’d wanted to drink in it till she was full. To tear flesh out and eat. She had almost… almost done something horrible to Keith.

If it wasn’t for Loux I…

A chill traveled down Jennifer’s spine. This was worse than her worst nightmare. She could not afford to tarry on her own anymore.

She needed to tell Prince Laiken. She needed to tell someone. Never before, had she truly believed that the Alliance could fall to the demons. Even with everything they’d seen, the join strength of all the major species on Zweiril sounded like an impossible enemy to defeat.

But if they can turn us into demons. Indiscriminately kill us all, and use the surviving turned humans to level up… Sera.

Jennifer raised a shivering hand up to her hair, finding sweat beading her forehead. She was grateful for the strange ‘Calm Mind’ spell that was keeping her together. She suspected it was what had kept her from falling apart even with her repeated deaths. Though that did nothing to reduce her dislike at her thoughts being forced into a calm against her wishes, she was grateful for it nonetheless.

My bond. [Fated Strings] has not worked after my first encounter with a demon. Perhaps if I can figure out how it works, I may be able to get to Prince Laiken.

There were far too many things to do. Far too many questions to answer. Yet, at the end of all her thoughts, one particular one came to her mind. A promise.

Jennifer leaned over to reach out towards a particular book on her desk on enchanting perimeters and wards and began to write down notes.

She had promised her brother that she would prevent that future. And she had every desire to live up to her promise.

***

“Jenn! I heard! Congrats on getting accepted!” Rumina shouted, tackling Jennifer, spinnig her around in circles.

“Sera, put me down Rumina,” Jennifer laughed, hitting her friend’s shoulder lightly which made Rumina spin her around even faster.

“Are you kidding me! I’m so excited Jenn!” Rumina exclaimed, but despite her words the girl soon let Jennifer down.

“Alright… maybe I over did it,” her friend winced, patting at her back once and Jennifer let out a genuine laugh at the reaction.

“In any case, we need to celebrate!” Rumina exclaimed, grabbing Jennifer’s hand and scooping them up.

“Not today Rumina, I’ve got something I need your help with,” Jennifer said, receiving a raised eyebrow from her friend. She ignored the reaction, focusing on tracing the spell she’d memorised overnight and practiced multiple times.

“Muffle Sound,” Jennifer murmured under her breath, moving her fingers in the casting symbol to help her use the spell properly. A pop in her ears told her she’d succeeded, a little area of sound dampening surrounding her as her mana dipped slightly to manifest the spell.

She immediately sensed Rumina’s guard start to rise.

“Do you have any strong wards that can keep our conversation private?” Jennifer asked, glacing around.

“You’re starting to worry me Jenn,” Rumina replied, as she walked to the back of the store. A moment later, the girl motioned for Jennifer to follow.

Walking in, Jennifer felt a light tingle of mana pass over her skin as she entered a side chamber filled with stacks of parchments, ink bottles, letters and envelops lined up.

“There’s a ward setup in here,” Rumina said, turning to face Jennifer, her arms crossed. “What is it Jenn?”

Jennifer glanced around the chamber, before turning towards Rumina. “I need you to take me to Derim. Fallow’s skull.”

Rumina’s eyes widened in surprise. “How do you—”

“Take a seat Rumina,” Jennifer said, walking to the nearby chair and taking a seat. “I have a long story to tell.”

***

“Do you really think that was what you’d said it was? The thing you saw at the end?” Rumina asked, and Jennifer nodded. The walls of Fallow’s Skull passed by the two girls as they walked deeper into the shifting caverns.

“There’s no other good answer that I can think of. I may be wrong, but that is irrelevant. What it is, I need to stop it. And for that, I first need to get my hands on that apprenticeship,” Jennifer replied. She would need to read extensively on blood magic as well, and to find her hands on books she could not find normally was just one of the reasons for her trip today.

“I’m still having a tough time wrapping my head around all of this,” Rumina said, and Jennifr glanced at her friend, a strange feeling building in her. How many more resets before she found herself growing distant from her friend? Their shared memories all lost to months that never even happened?

She shook the thought off, glancing forward. They’d arrived at Derim’s shop. “It’s me,” Rumina called out, walking through the vases and miscellaneous things lying all around outside the place.

Jennifer followed behind, walking into the shop.

“I don’t remember their being any delivery today. Something from the guild?” Derim asked, before her eyes rested upon Jennifer. “Who’s the girl?”

Jennifer walked ahead, not waiting for reply. “I’m Jennifer. A [Resourceful Enchanter] and a [Glass Mage]. I want to buy every book you have on blood magic, and life glass. And three Lune stones engraved with the ‘message’ spell.”

Derim raised an eyebrow at her, glancing at Rumina for a moment. “I know better than to ask questions.”

The elc scuttled into his shop, the sound of clangs of metallics parts and items falling coming from inside.

“You really do know him…” Rumina whispered under her breath, and Jennifer glanced to the side, a light smile on her face.

With a light cloud of dust surounding him, Derim walked out, coughing as he waved the dust away. With a few stumbling steps, he set down two large tomes onto the table with a pair of shining blue stones set on top.

“Thirty silver for the lune stones,” Derim coughed out, taking a moment to gather himself. “The books though… they are priceless. I see no reason to give them to some kid trying to dabble in blood arts for the fun of it.”

Jennifer looked up to meet the Elc’s eyes, staring into them for a moment. Silently, she lifted her hand, as the blood dagger manifested in it, glistening in the dim light of the dungeon wall, filtering in.

“That- a lost skill,” Derim breathed, his eyes fixated upon the blade.

With a quick motion, Jenninfer pulled her hand back, dematerialising the blade. “I doubt you will have a better method of studying life glass than this Derim. If you agree to give me those two books, I will give you a shard of my [Blood Dagger],” Jennifer replied, keeping her gaze firm.

“[Key Information],” Rumins spoke up. “IIf you take of 10 silver from the lune stones, I’ll call in a favour from the guild on your behalf aswell.”

“That dratted skill of yours. Fine. Life-glass… the things I could craft with this,” Dremin muttered, before looking up at Jennifer. “It’s going to cost you if these books are damaged or lost.”

Jennifer nodded in reply. A moment later, she summoned her [Blood Dagger] once more, before tugging on one section of it. A little piece of her dagger broke off, floating around her palm which she sent towards Derim.

The elc quickly snagged the shard out of mid air, putting it in a pouch that he clutched carefully.

“How much range do these have?” Jennifer asked, picking one of the stones up.

“Roughly about fifty feet in all directions, give or take,” Derim replied and Jennifer hummed in thought.

“Can you make it so that the only  thing they do is send a signal but their range is a few miles?

Jennifer took out 20 silvers from her pouch, setting the coins on the table as she grabbed the two books when she realised a problem.

“I’ll probably need something to hide them in. Wouldn’t be smart to walk out with these in broad daylight.”

“5 silver for a concealment cloth that I can wrap them up in,” Derim said, and Jennifer smiled. The man did know how to do business.

Taking out the silver coins, she quickly got the books wrapped up by Derim, before leaving the shop.

“Thanks Derim,” Jennifer muttered as she walked out.

“I never gave you my name,” Derim replied, and she ignored his words stepping out of the place. Rumina followed behind shortly after, a frown set on her features.

“What do you plan to do now?” Rumina asked, walking alongside her.

Jennifer dug into her pocket to pull out one of the two lune stones she’d gotten. Sending a pulse of mana, she connected the engraved message spell to her mana signature. “Keep this with you. If anything, happens. Send me a message through this Lune to me. I’ll receive it on my end. I need to teach how to use this to Keith and then head off to the Academy,” Jennifer said, feeling her nerves rising.

She hadn’t levelled in her Glass Mage class since her last fight, but she’d grown extensively as a mage. And Jennifer had a feeling, that the only think she needed now was a push, and a real combat scenario to get her over the edge.

“Anything I can help with?” Rumina asked.

“Just be careful. And. Look into what the Orcs are doing. Specifically, Captain Drighak, an Orc Mercenary captain I’m interested in. If you can get more information on him that’ll be amazing. He’s connected to Irwys Silveran, the knight I want to get in touch with.”

Rumina nodded, the rays of light coming in fromt the outside interrupting the two. Jennifer walked outside the shifting caverns of the Fallow’s Skull, and glanced towards her friend.

“Good luck Jenn, show them you’re the best!” Rumina cheered, and Jennifer smiled.

“Stay safe Rumina,” Jennifer replied, turning around. Holding the two books in her hand, she made her way towards her home.

Just one last thing remained, before her test at the Academy.

***

“You’ll teach me magic?!” Keith exclaimed, jumping out of his chair as he leapt at Jennifer. “Really? That’s not a lie right? Can you say it again?”

Jennifer put a finger to her loud brother’s lips, shushing him as best as she could. “Keep quiet or you’ll learn nothing,” she whispered, staring at her brother.

Keith returned an enthusiastic nod.

“Okay. Yes, you head it right. I’ll teach you magic,” Jennifer said, and saw Keith’s mouth open in disbelief, yet his response caught Jennifer off guard.

“But why?” her brother asked. “Is it because you got accepted?”

It took Jennifer a moment to understand what her brother meant, and she remembered the promise she’d made all those months ago to teach him magic if she got accepted. It had been a way to get him off her back while she was preparing for her entrance tests, she hadn’t expected him to remember it for so long.

“Yes,” Jennifer replied, as Keith’s eyes began to sparkle with excitement. She felt some guilt at having forgotten her promise so easily even before the reset. It wouldn’t have taken more than a couple hours to teach her brother a basic cantrip like light, but she’d been too occupied by the Academy and her own things to ever spare the time.

“First things first. What do you know about magic?” Jennifer asked, looking down at her brother.

“Umm, magic. You need mana to use it, and the ability to sense mana and control it. Not everyone can use magic, and not everyone who can will become a Mage,” Keith replied, and Jennifer nodded.

“What’s correct. But do you know how spells are formed?”

Her brother spluttered for an answer, before settling to stare blankly at her with an embarrassed smile. Jennifer smiled back, patting his head.

“Okay, from the very basic then. There are twelve tiers of magic. Tier 1 to Tier 12. These tiers define all forms of magic, both known and unknown. Now, magic is made up of spells. What’s a spell? Do you know?”

“Oh! A spell is, like, it’s when you use mana in specific ways to make it do things.”

“Not wrong. A spell is two things. The spell matrix, and the implementation of mana through that spell matrix. There are essentially three components to spell casting Keith. We shape a spell in our mind, the shape of the spell, the way all the mana threads connect. We shape this spell, and then manifest it. The process of manifestation is when you actualise the spell matrix by putting mana through it. This is what casting is,” Jennifer said.

“Then… why do people call casting the thing where they say a lot of words?” Keith asked and Jennifer stared at him, one of her eyebrows raised.

“Do you mean chanting? That’s part of vocalised casting,” Jennifer replied, before extending her hand in front. A white ball of light blinkned into existence above it. “Here. You didn’t see me say anything did you?”

“Whoa!” Keith exclaimed, staring at the little ball. “Show me more!”

“Later, silly. You’ll be able to do this much yourself in a few weeks. Just don’t tell dad I taught you this, it’s supposed to be a secret,” Jennifer said, putting a finger on her mouth as she leaned down.

“I promise to Sera,” Keith replied in a similarly hushed tone.

“Alright, then we can begin. Sit down and cross your legs, we’ll get you to develop a mana sense first.”

She guided her brothers through the steps of sensing mana, trying to remember how her own father had taught her. Sitting next to him, she sent a contant pulse of mana through his hand, trying to help guide his senses to where his own mana pathways were, and how to correctly channel mana through them.

To her surprise, it only took her brother a few minutes before he could already send a small amount of mana to his palm. Almost half the time it had taken her, if she remembered things right.

“You’re a quick learner aren’t you?” jennifer said, to which her brother shot her a cheerful grin.

“If you don’t go fast, I’m going to beat you Jenn!” Keith shot towards her, which prompted a laugh from Jennifer.

“Oh? Is that so? Maybe I shouldn’t teach my rival then, it sounds counter-productive,” Jennifer replied back, watching as Keith’s expression paled.

“No, I didn’t mean it. You’re gonna be the bestest one around, I’ll be the second bestest,” Keith offered, hugging her slightly from the side, and Jennifer couldn’t help but ruffle his hair up.

“Enough games Kei, pay close attention. I’ll teach you the light spell now,” Jennifer said, and Keith pulled back, straigthening his back, brows set in concentration.

Extending her hand, Jennifer slowly moved her mana through the extremely simple spell matrix of the light spell. It was so simple that there were ongoing debates about whether it qualified as one or not.

“Focus your mana at a point above your palm. Just one point. The ball is not a sphere filled with mana, but a single point emitting light. The ball is formed from the mana boundary that you set for your spell, and how far you want it to extend it to,” Jennifer said, glancing at her brother.

Hesitantly, Keith extended his own palm and began to focus. Jennifer could sense the mana flowing through his pathways, all the way up to his palms through [Enchanced Mana Sense]. It was a feeble flow, but she could tell that he had good control. Better than hers, when she’d started.

After a few minutes of sitting down and concentrating, Keith slumbed back onto the ground with a defeated sigh. “I can’t do this. It’s too difficult.”

Jennifer moved closer to her brother, before flicking his forehead.

“Ouch,” the boy exclaimed, clutching at his forehead as he stood straight back up and glared at her. “What was that for!”

“That’s what my master does when I give up. Except he’s ten times stronger than me.”

Keith grumbled under his breath at her words, before extending his hands out once more. With effort, he channelled his mana, and tried to use the light spell.

“You’re spreading it out Kei. It’s one point. As small as you can make it. Just put it together, in the smallest area possibe, and the mana will light itself up,” Jennifer said, as her brother shifted his position, his frown deepening.

Jennifer sensed his mana shift, from the wide spread out vapour that drifted aimless, a small portion began to coalesce together. She could tell he was struggle to contain it, and sent a small strand of mana above his palm that nudged his mana slightly closer.

“Keith! You did it!” Jennifer exclaimed, as her brother opened his eyes to see a tiny flicker of light above his palm. The spell broke the moment he opened his eyes, the light fading, but it had been enough time for the boy to see it for himself.

Eyes wide open, Keith looked down upon his hands. “I.. did that? I can do magic now?” There was a shiver of unrestrained joy in his voice, that brought a smile to Jennifer’s lips. He really was her brother.

“Yes, Kei. You can. Though you will need a lot of practice to beat me,” Jennifer replied with a wink.

Rather than laugh, or be embarrassed, her brother stared at her with the most serious expression she’d ever seen on his face. “I’ll beat you. I’ll become the strongest [Mage] ever.”

“I look forward to the day,” Jennifer replied, smiling. A moment later, she stood up, dusting her clothes from having sat on the ground, she turned towards Keith. “Would you like to see something special? I’ll only share this if you swear to Sera that you will not tell anyone.”

Keith looked up at her, standing from the ground as well. “What is it?” he asked curiously.

“Magic,” Jennifer replied.

“Okay. I swear on Sera’s name, I will not share what you will show me,” Keith said, and Jenn saw his eyes grow wide. She smiled.

“You’re a mage now Keith. And a mage’s promise has a lot more worth than a normal person’s. If you gain a class tonight, then tell me,” Jennifer said, and Keith turned to stare at her in disbelief, before nodding.

“Okay, then watch. I’ve been working for almost three months on this,” Jennifer replied. She extended her hand, a single ball of light forming above her palm. Yet unlike the flicker her brother had prduced, her light ball was smooth, spherical, and uniform from all directions in a manner that showed a high level of shaping mastery.

With a pulse of mana, Jennifer broke the ball of light, forming hundreds of glittering light dust particles that swirled all around her, sparkling in multitudes of colors. She heard the exclaimations of surprise coming from her brother, but she was far from done.

She reached out to the glowing swirl of light fust, multiple mana threads running through the cluster. With an exertion of her will, she changed their shape, forming small leaves of light that swirled around her in an unseen breeze. With a tug on the multitudes of mana threads tying each leaf, Jennifer pulled, as the leaves twirled and twisted and fluttered all around her.

With the last of her concentration, she manifested her glass, little particles shining with the colorful light, as they reflected the radiance back, and formed a haze of glowing particles.

Jennifer turned to her brother, her hair rustling in the wind generated from her mana. Her blue eyes had turned reflective from the glass mana flooding her pathways as she cast her spell. Combined with the glittering light and glass, it gave her an otherwordly look.

“I have a secret, Kei. I’m actually a time traveler,” Jennifer replied, as her brother continued to stare at her in bewilderment.

“You are… a time traveller?” he repeated, as if struggling to internalise the words.

Jennifer returned a nod.

“Is- why are you back here then Jenn? Did you become a famous [Enchanter]?” her brother asked, and Jennifer found herself taken aback. The surprise was enough for her control to slip as the flowing petals blinked out of existence.

Pulling her glass mana back as her eyes returned to normal, Jennifer smiled, shaking her head. She walked closer to Keith, putting her hand in the pouch next to her waist.

“There’s something bad that’s going to happen Keith. Something really bad. It’s why I’m back. And I need your help to stop it.”

Jennifer felt her heart tighten, when she saw her brother return a serious nod. Grabbing the remaining lune stone, she pulled it out and set it onto Keith’s palm.

“Don’t tell mom and dad. You must absolutely not. There are dangerous people that might be listening and I don’t want them to get hurt. It’s why, I want you to stay with Mom and Dad, and if you ever think that you’re in trouble, send some mana into this stone. It will send a meesage to me, and I’ll come running to help you as fast as I can.”

Jennifer met her brother’s gaze, as he looked down on the smal blue stone in his hand, engraved with runes.

Looking up, he met his sister’s eyes. “I promise.”

Jennifer pulled Keith into a hug, pressing him tight to her chest. “I promised you that I’ll prevent things. And I plan to keep my promise,” Jennifer murmered back, feeling one weight off her chest.

Now all that remained, was a visit to the Academy.

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Slight Delay

Today's chapter will be slightly delayed. I'll upload it on Monday along side another chapter to make up for last week's missing chapter upload. 

Really sorry about the sporadic uploads. Exams weeks are quite rough :/

My last exam is on 8th May, which is Sunday, after which I'll be home so uploads should go back to normal by that point. 

17 — End of the Month

A/N: This chapter was difficult to write. At first I thought it would only be 3,000 words, but it somehow kept growing and growing untill it got all the way to 5,000. I'm not sure if I did this one chapter right, and I may redo it and change some things, do let me know what you think.

***

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The end of the month approached closer and closer as Jennifer trained frequently with Loux. She spent most of her time sparring with the girl, growing quite proficient with casting her spells silently. By now, her glass bolts were accompanied by faint murmurs at best, with Agile being completely silently upon use. She could now launch glass blades without relying on vocalization every two in three casts as well, though the same could not be said for any combat situations yet.

The thing that had surprised her the most though, had been watching Loux use her Skills without saying anything. She’d wondered if the girl had some strange class that only gave her passive skills, but the method Loux had been using was far stranger and far more fascinating. The girl had shown Jennifer that the link to vocalization, which was part of basic manifestation theory, was not limited to magic, but extended to the system itself.

Instead of using words, or speaking a skill out loud, she could train herself to activate the skill by using a different gesture. Something that Loux confirmed, worked with a distinct enough thought as well. She could essentially remap the activation trigger for a skill by practice, a possibility Jennifer had never even considered. The idea opened up many different applications but even more so than that, Jennifer couldn’t help but wonder how the intricacies of an interaction like this worked.

Eager to learn the method, Jennifer had asked Loux for training, but she’d quickly been shown that voiceless Skill activation was a far more complicated task than she’d assumed. She’d continued training the skills, spending the rest of her time teaching the girl on the basics of Magical Application Theory and other Academic topics. A part of her had wondered whether it was a waste to spend time teaching Loux when she would most likely just forget again. But the lessons were entertaining to her, and being able to get back at Loux for being so rough with the combat training was an additional perk on top.

She did not mind the revision either. At some point, she would have the invasion worked out, and when all of it was over, she’d need the knowledge to go to the Academy. Jennifer would not mind spending ten years learning everything she could as she learned all she could about her enemies, and helping Lienmont win the war, before moving in as a prodigy within the Academy, if she even needed that by then.

Besides training with Loux, her time had been spent reading about demons. The library once again served to provide a lot of information about her enemies. Jennifer had avoided trying to pick out anything too obvious in her books just in case she was being observed, but even then, she’d managed to learn a lot about the mysterious enemies the demons presented themselves as.

Unlike all of the other species on Zweiril, there was no single type of ‘Demon’ but instead, a myriad of creatures that fell under the blanket term. The word signified more so than anything, an animosity of these species with the church of Sera, and the Alliance itself, but Jennifer had found magical precedence for such grouping as well that had left her immensely fascinated. Unlike the system, which was maintained by the gods - though this was a topic of heavy debate - monsters were incapable of leveling. This fact had been observed universally across all monster origins and types. The Alliance consisted of the major primary races which had access to the system, humans being the predominant of them.

But, according to some texts, Mages had found another source of magic. Older than the very system that governed her world. The rise of the demons had been linked all the way back to the foundation wars, as the continent had been taken in the hands of people, which had paved the way for the birth of the Alliance.

Jennifer didn’t hold much interest in the historical background of things too much, though she did consider it a fun read if she was bored. The thing that caught her attention was the ties of demons to sources of old magic, which had formed the distinction between them and the other monsters.

Old magic wasn’t anything inherently new. The Dryad’s used a magic source outside of the system, so did the Elven tribes, though that magic was fading and weak. The runes of Giants were also written long before there was any evidence of the system arriving. Even Arcane magic, the basis of the magic used by her, was divorced from the system at its core, which had caused the greatest and longest running debate in Magecraft history. Who had made the system and why?

It had been a topic of many debates, and at this point, Mages considered it foolish to even begin tackling the subject, most agreeing to leave the subject as an unsolved mystery. Leaving the origins of magic aside, a larger question has also arisen upon her discoveries. No matter what source of power the demons drew on for their magic, it was clearly opposed to the gods, who had fought against it, establishing the system. Yet, in that case, how had a demon gained a Mark from one of the gods? Was there conflict amongst the very gods, their quarrels now reaching down to the mortal plane, or was there something else at play, some clue that she still lacked.

The mysterious origin of demons aside, their abilities were largely quantified as having three derivatives. Land, Sea and Sky, with the last somewhat unintuitively representing fire. Any clear differences between the three were difficult to spot, except that fire was the strongest remaining source of demonic magic, being widely used in skirmishes that happened across the border of the Alliance.

As curious as all of this was, it had shown Jennifer little on shapeshifting demons, or even what kind of demon the Mark of Deceit may be. She knew of slither blades, and shadow wraiths and a couple more. But demons were only found in the scarred lands, outside the Allied territories, making any information on them rare.

Jennifer put the thoughts of demons aside. She would have time to think over all of this, but for now, she needed to get her final preparations in place before the invasion happened.

After thinking over how she planned to go through things, Jennifer decided that the safest place to be was most likely the academy. With the magical wards put all over it, alongside the many mages, and the fact that it was on the northern side of the city would mean that it would be the best place to keep her family when the invasion happened.

For both her Master and Rumina, Jennifer had written letters, explaining things. She had not given any details inside, but had warned them enough about what was to come. Beyond that, she could only hope that they got to safety in time.

The last thing that had remained after sending both the letters, and getting permission to visit the Academy with her parents had been convincing her parents to visit the place. She had been unsure on whether she wanted to tell them about what was to come, but remembering how the demons had reached all the way to her home, Jennifer decided to play it safe and keep any details of the invasion and her own Mark hidden.

Taking a deep breath, Jennifer walked down the stairs and found her mother, working on some clothes for Keith. Smiling, she walked up to her mother and glanced at the shirt that had a big hole cut near the belly and shook her head. That little rascal, always poking at things he shouldn’t be poking at.

“Need help with that?” Jennifer asked, trying to get her mother’s attention.

“Hmm? Do you need something Jenn?” her mother asked, looking up in surprise from her chair.

Jennifer’s smile slipped a tad at her mother’s words. “Not really,” she said, watching her mother’s hand move in a steady rhythm as she mended the cloth. Not surprising, given her mother’s profession. ”I was just wondering if you needed any help. It’s not like I only come to help you out when I need something.”

Amantha glanced towards Jennifer, setting the shirt down on her lap. She lifted one hand and began to raise her fingers, one at a time. “Last time you helped me out, you wanted a new enchanting crystal because you cracked your old one. The time before that had been to buy a few more books than you could afford that month for your studies. The time before that was because your father had told you he would get you a lune stone if you helped me out, which had lasted for roughly a day before you went back to playing with magic in your room. The time before that-”

“Alright alright! Sera, I get it. I’m sorry I don’t help you out more often,” Jennifer replied, a flush rising to her cheeks. She really did not help out at her home did she?

“Oh it’s no concern of mine. You’ve always been your father’s girl, studying book after book and only talking about magic all the time. I’d be really concerned if you suddenly stopped that to help out around the home, especially with the Academy opening in just a week,” her mother replied, an amused smile on her lips as she returned to fixing the tear in Keith’s clothes.

Jennifer stood around awkwardly, unsure of how to reply when her mother continued. “I definitely wouldn’t mind spending some more time with my precious child before she leaves her home to be a famous [Enchanter] though.”

The words were like a stab of guilt to Jennifer’s heart. Walking closer, she crouched down near her mother’s chair, and wrapped her hands around the woman’s back, resting her head onto her shoulder. “I’m sorry I don’t help out more often mom. There’s so much happening in my life right now, and so much that I have to prepare for, that I keep forgetting to spend any time with you, or dad or Keith.”

“It’s alright dear,” her mother replied, raising her hand to cup Jennifer’s cheeks gently. “As long as you do well, I’m happy.”

Jennifer leaned further into the hug, enjoying the warmth of her mother’s hands. Her mother could not use mana like all the other members of Jennifer’s family, yet ever since she was a child, Jennifer had had this strange sensation that her mother’s hands were filled with magic.

“What level are you at?” Jennifer asked, eyeing her mother.

Two pair of light blue eyes stared at her in surprise. “You never ask that Jenn. Is something up today? Or are you afraid of finally leaving home?” her mother asked, pulling back her hand.

Jennifer blew the wild strand of hair that had fell over her face in all her snuggling, before replying with a light pout.

“[Head Seamstress] level 29,” her mother replied with a smile.

“Wait what?! You levelled up? Twice? You never told me!” Jennifer exclaimed, pulling back from her mother as she stared at the woman.

“Shhh! Keep quiet,” her mother whispered, glancing to the side. She then leaned in towards Jennifer. “If you agree to keep this a secret then I’ll show you something,” her mother said.

Eyes shining with curiosity, Jennifer nodded, moving ahead.

Her mother dug in the pouch set at the table nearby filled with little needles and spools of threads. Jennifer’s eyes widened in surprise when her mother pulled out a mana crystal from within, alongside a thread spool.

“I’ve been learning how to sew mana threads. One of the [Seamstresses] told me about her daughter learning cloth magic. I knew I couldn’t, but I if it was just working with magic threads? Well, I wouldn’t mind giving your father a surprise by getting a [Manathread Seamstress] class at level 30,” Amantha said, a bright smile on her lips as she ran the mana crystal through a little piece of thread.

Jennifer felt the mana layer itself on the thread, giving it a light glow. “I… how long have you been learning this?”

“Four months I think? It’s been some time,” her mother replied. “Now, I’ll be very cross with you if you tell your father.”

“On Sera’s name, I promise I won’t,” Jennifer replied. She watched her mother’s smile grow wider as the woman leaned in and hugged her tight, and gave her a light peck at her cheek.

“Sera, I still can’t believe you grew so quickly Jenn. You’ll be going out in the world on your own now, joining the Academy and everything.”

Jennifer held her mother’s hand at her words, feeling a light flush rise to her cheeks at being treated like a child. She tried to remember how long it’d been since she’d spent any time with her family. Even before the whole Mark business, she’d been far too busy preparing for the Academy, and her own studies.

“So… I actually did have something I wanted to ask you for,” Jennifer admitted, flushing when her mother laughed out loud, but she continued undeterred.  “I want all of you to visit the Academy with me tomorrow.”

“Oh?” her mother asked, turning sideways to look at her. “That’s quite unexpected. And will the Academy allow that?”

“I’ve already gotten permission. I just wanted all of you to see the place, and well, I also wanted to show Keith a while. He seems interested in magecraft. Which might just be general interest like most young kids, but it couldn’t hurt to see the Academy either way.”

Her mother sat for a moment, as she pulled her hand back. “Hmm, I did have some work tomorrow. But perhaps I can take some time off. I’ll have to ask your father though, but if he says yes, why not? I’d love to see the place too.”

Jennifer smiled at her mother’s words as she pulled herself out of her hug and stood up once more.

“I’ll look forward to it then,” she replied, smiling, as she began to make her way back to her room.

Walking over to her bed, she took a seat, trying to find what else she needed to do but came up with a blank. Everything that she could think of to prepare, she’d already done. She was still alive, with a day left till the invasion began, and Jennifer found herself feeling lost. She’d never come this far before, besides the very first time when she’d gained her Mark.

Jennifer felt nervous over the prospect. The academy was the safest place she could think of, but what would she do if it fell in the invasion too? Or, moresoever, what would she do if she did not die this time? What would happen afterwards? Would Lienmont fall? Would they be forced to run? What if… someone she knew got injured or worse?

Jennifer felt her [Blood Dagger] summoning the blade in her hand. She lightly pressed it against her palm, feeling the sharp blade’s edge against her skin. There would be difficult choices to make up ahead, one way or another.

Letting out a deep breath, Jennifer decided to close her eyes for a few hours. A long day awaited her tomorrow, and she wanted to be ready for it.

***

The next day had arrived a lot faster than Jennifer had anticipated. Her memory for the day was fuzzy outside of the events that had taken her to Irwys and the fight, and Jennifer found herself curious as to whether that whole incident happened even without her interference, and how it ended. She knew that there was no rush order of any kind that her Master was working on today, the shop being closed for the day.

Perhaps I can go take a look.

“Hey hey Jenn, do you think I’ll get to join the Academy too?” Keith asked, holding onto her hand as he walked alongside her.

“Sure, if you study enough for it,” Jennifer replied, smiling as Keith’s smile fell. Her brother was always excited at the prospect of magic, yet hated even hearing the word study. It was amusing to her to remind him about how much work it took whenever she could.

“Jenn, you really should’ve put on some better clothes, aren’t those the same clothes you wear for work?” her mother asked, and Jennifer struggled not to roll her eyes.

“They are fine mom,” Jennifer replied. Her mother had always cared far too much about making sure Jennifer looked her best, something that Jennifer struggled to appreciate too much with her distaste for any kind of fancy clothing.

“It’s fine, we’re just visiting afterall,” her father interjected on her behalf and her mother relented.

Her eyes soon reached the dungeon plaza up ahead and she turned towards her family. “I have something I need to check at the plaza. You guys head towards the academy, I’ll be there in a minute,” Jennifer said, before she glanced down at Keith and grinned.

“Watch this,” Jennifer said, channeling Agile Wind silently. A burst of wind blew all around her, as she kicked off, rushing ahead at high speeds. She laughed upon hearing Keith’s excited shout come from behind as she quickly made her way towards the dungeon plaza.

Taking a few turns, Jennifer reached the area and noted the lack of any brawl. Seeing that she’d arrived far earlier than the first month didn't surprise her. She glanced around the area, trying to see if she could spot Irwys.

As Jennifer walked through, her eyes fell onto a large burly Orc wearing leather armor, sitting inside with a couple more as they drank ale. There were few orcs in the city, with fewer still wearing armor that was made specifically to be able to expand over time.

Curiously, Jennifer walked closer, stepping into the tavern. The musty smell of alcohol mud and filth reached her nose, and she reflexively took a step back.

“What’re you doing here girly? Lost eh?” one man drawled, snickering as he glanced at her. Jennifer ignored the man, walking further into the inn, before she walked up to the tavern keeper nearby.

“Was there a silver haired guy here today?” Jennifer asked the Tavern keeper, who replied with a shake of his head. Nodding, Jennifer turned around, about to leave the tavern when a rumbling voice called out to her.

“Hey girl, you looking for the Zandrian?” the voice came as Jennifer turned to face the massive mercenary orc.

“No,” Jennifer replied, turning around as she began to walk away. She didn’t need to get involved than she needed to.

“It isn’t my business to know how you know him, but I’m in a good mood today, so I’ll give a word of advice. Stay away from that man if you know what’s good for you,” the orc said in a low rumbling voice.

“Listen to Captain Drighak girlie! Don’t go after men so soon!” Another orc said, as they all laughed together.

Jennifer turned back to look at the captain, nodding, before she turned and left the tavern.

So he knew Irwys, even before the fight. Or perhaps the fight had already happened? But the orc looked uninjured. Healing potion? Difficult to say. His name was Drighak, and the other Orc said captain. Mercenary team captain? Not surprising seeing how strong he was. I think I’ll ask Rumina to look into this.

Her side trip done, Jennifer looked around one last time before shooting off with Agile Wind as she began to make her way towards the Academy. In a few minutes, she spotted her family near the entrance of the Academy, as she rushed to catch up to them.

“Sorry, took me a while,” Jennifer replied, running up to them. She quickly walked up to the entrance, giving her name to the guards before all of them entered the academy gates.

“Are those magic lights?” Keith asked excitedly, pointing at the little ball of light meant to illuminate the academy during nighttime.

“Yes, they are,” Jennifer replied, smiling. She continued to watch happily as her brother glanced around excitedly, looking at every little thing on the way and pointing towards them. She did not blame him either, having felt something similar when she’d first visited the Academy, and seen a world so covered and filled with magic through every inch.

“It’s quite big isn’t it?” her mother said, taking a look around. Jennifer nodded, and a moment later, began to take her family through the various spots around the Academy. Time began to fly by as Jennifer walked around happily with her family, forgetting the invasion for a moment.

“How do you know the place so well Jenn?” her mother asked, curiously, as they stood in front of the entrance with the two golems.

“I’ve just been coming here in my free time,” Jennifer replied smoothly, as they walked into the central hall. A moment later, she felt a large pulse of mana travel through the ground, accompanied by a tremor. Quickly realizing the event, Jennifer found her mirth fading as she turned to her family.

“We should head in,” Jennifer said, walking ahead quickly without giving them much time to say anything back. In a few minutes, she noticed mages walking out and about, rushing outside as magic began to flare around the academy.

“What’s wrong?” Keith asked, looking around nervously and Jennifer grabbed his hand, squeezing it lightly.

“Please remain inside, there’s been a Dungeon Break. The guild should be taking care of it, but for now, please remain inside the academy premises,” a Mage said, walking past as he glanced at all of them.

“A dungeon break?! Now?” her mother exclaimed, looking around in surprise. Jennifer noted a frown settle onto her father’s face as he glanced at her, but she simply avoided his gaze, looking around for a familiar figure.

“Mom, dad, take Keith and head to the combat training hall just in case. I’ll be there soon,” Jennifer replied.

“Where are you going Jenn?” her father asked.

“I’ve got a friend here, I need to check up on her,” Jennifer replied, rushing ahead as she left her family behind. A part of her wanted to stay behind so that they were safe, but she was a lot less concerned now that they were in the academy. And there were other things that she had to make sure of.

Rushing about, she quickly headed to Loux’s room and knocked on the door. A moment later, the girl opened the door and looked at Jennifer in surprise.

“What are you-”

“No time to explain. There’s been a dungeon break, and I need to get to someplace high in the Academy to take a better look,” Jennifer said in a rush.

Loux stared at her for a moment, before returning a light nod. “The location is locked, but I can get you there from your training spot,” Loux said, as the two of them headed out.

Quickly, the two girls rushed out to their usual spot, and Jennifer looked up at the high rooftop of the academy building, wondering just how the girl planned to get her up there. The top of the building was three floors, with little to no places to grab onto to climb up.

Turning around, she noted Loux stretching, as Jennifer’s eyes widened in surprise. “Stay back,” the girl said, as she shot ahead in a rush. Vines burst forth underneath her foot as Loux jumped up, grabbing onto the wall as she kicked off. Little plants sprouted one after the other onto the wall as the girl practically ran up the wall, before jumping onto the roof top and pulling herself over.

Jennifer stared, her mouth hung open, as she scarcely believed what she’d just seen. She was about to ask how she would get up when a vine stretched on from Loux’s hand, slithering down. Jennifer looked at the plant, before looking up as she reassessed the girl’s abilities. A moment later, she began to climb up the vine, making her way up the wall.

A few minutes of climbing later, Jennifer pulled herself up top, panting for her breath, as she felt her hand stinging from pain. She really missed all the muscles she’d gained in the first reset.

“Monsters,” Loux said, as Jennifer wiped sweat off her brow and stood up. In the distance, through the buildings, she could see the horde of monsters rushing out from the dungeon, as the adventurers fought to hold back the horde. Tremors shook the city repeatedly as waves of mana traveled out from the dungeon one after the other.

“Yeah,” Jennifer replied. And this is just the start of everything.

She glanced around, using [Enhanced Mana Sense] to try and get a sense for things, but found herself too far away to be able to gauge anything. Scanning the city with her eyes, she tried to spot any other locations with demons and the sand tribes, yet if there were any then she could not see them.

“Why did you want to see this?” Loux asked.

Jennifer turned to look at the dryad girl, finding her deep green eyes staring back, observing.

“To do things right the next time,” Jennifer replied, and Loux frowned. Jennifer ignored the girl, turning back to the city as she began to take notes. There was something strange with the mana waves going through the city, alongside the way the dungeon was rumbling so often. Her eyes glanced towards the city walls and she noticed the sun starting to reach closer and closer to the horizon.

Jennifer continued to watch, minutes turning to hours as the monsters were slowly but surely fought back and the dungeon entrance was sealed. Chaos still covered the city, but the dungeon break was stopped quickly, the dungeon settling down in a few moments.

As she watched the sun start to reach the horizon, Jennifer felt a strange calm cover the city. The silence that came after a stressful event, as people began to settle back down again.

Then, like the rise of a second sun, a pillar of fire rose, as a powerful blastwave shook the city. Jennifer used Agile wind, keeping herself in place as the shockwave almost knocked her back. Her heart sank back into her gut, as she felt the vast amounts of mana moving around. With a powerful flash, figures appeared outside her city, as the invasion began.

Jennifer felt her heart thundering, yet for some reason, she found herself detached, as if she were not the one there. She continued to watch, taking note of every little detail, of the spells they were using, of the attacks her enemies were making.

Explosions after explosions shook the city, before soon, she felt a spell set off, as the wall collapsed. Hordes of demons and the sand tribes rushed in, before soon, she noted walls of sand pouring into the city and sweeping through everything in their path.

Her heart thundered as Jennifer felt her Mark stirring. This was the future she had to stop.

“We need to get back,” Loux said, and Jennifer looked to the side, noting the other girl was oddly calm despite everything going on. In silence, the two of them jumped down, Jennifer using Agile Wind to break her fall.

Without saying anything, Jennifer began to walk in, making her way to the Academy premises. She noticed the wards flaring as Mages stood in every corner, rushing about activating the defensive wards. A shimmering barrier covered the entire building, as a storm of mana swirled around the academy.

Jennifer put it out of her mind, walking through the combat chambers where the students were all gathered, before soon she found her family inside one of them.

“Jenn!” her mother exclaimed, running ahead as she grabbed her and dragged her into a hug. “Why did you run off?! I was so worried.”

Jennifer stood silently, as her mother wrapped her arms around her, before soon returning the hug. “I’m sorry mom,” she replied, feeling a strange sense of powerlessness. She wondered if Rumina and her Master were able to get to safety in time.

Jennifer walked back with her mother, staying with her family, as she looked around. Quiet whispers filled the entire chamber, rising to a high as a mage walked in.

“Please stay calm. News has arrived for the source of the explosions. The city is under an attack. It’s unknown how things will go. Everyone present inside will be working under emergency protocols and will obey the word of any Mages,” his voice grim, and a frown on his face.

“May Sera grace us,” the mage murmured at last, before walking out as the gate closed behind.

Murmurs filled the hair, rising to a high as people whispered. The voices washed over Jennifer, as she stood silently, waiting. Her Mark pulsed within her soul, as the only sensation she could feel of what was happening outside was the tremors that shook the ground every so often.

Time passed by in a blur, the day turning to night, as the fires spread through the city. Jennifer felt as if she could hear the screams from that night once more, the smell of blood tinged with flames reaching fresh in her memory.

She glanced downwards, noting her brother, standing with tears in his eyes, as Jennifer bent down and hugged him tight.

“I will prevent this. I promise,” she whispered into Keith’s ears as her brother looked at her in surprise, before nodding.

She felt her mother’s hand on her shoulder, before she joined in on the hug, accompanied by her father. Jennifer remained there, with her family, in a safe location, feeling her heart beating in her chest, as something stirred in her soul.

This isn’t right. None of this is right. I need to be out there, to do somethin-

A sensation had Jennifer look up. A massive wave of mana gathered in an amount that shone like the sun itself to her senses. Eyes all across the room shifted outside, sensing the powerful wave that shook Jennifer’s soul to the core.

Her eyes drifted downwards as she noticed something move through the ground.

Red lines flickered on the ground, throbbing and pulsating as if revealing the bleeding insides of the very earth itself.

One strand of runes shifted nearby, leaping towards her brother. Before she could even think, Jennifer found herself moving to shield her brother. Something shivered within Jennifer's soul as she buckled over, grabbing her mother's shoulder for support. She heard her mother’s scream, a dim faded voice in the distance as the red runes touched her skin, burning her body.

Her Mark burned with increasing fury, as her eyes wandered in surprise by the sudden pull. She looked around and saw people, lying on the floor, clutching their chests as they writhed in agony, the red runes starting to crawl upon their skin.

A sudden presence flooded her mind, bringing her to her knees and she choked on her breath, grasping for freedom. The red runes began to flare near her feet, now reaching towards her. Slowly but surely they crawled on her body, the sensation of burning flesh permeating her. She writhed, trying to free herself of their grasp, but to no avail. Never before had she been so certain of her own demise than in this moment.

The red lines bore into her soul. They bore, deeper and deeper, until they touched something at the very core of her soul. The System.

[Race: Human → Weeping Blood Wraith]

[Race: Weeping Blood Wraith] has reached level 2!

[Skill: Glass Blood Phantom]

[Skill: Blood—

The world was blood-red.

The magic changed her. She was more now. They were more now. The others had risen, just like her. Waking up to the other side.

The scent of blood was clear, as it filled the air around her. Her previous form had been unable to see. It had been blind. Weak.

But now she could smell. The lingering scent of Death. The blossoming screams carried upon the wind. And the fire.

She felt her body shift. Growing. This power was new. Different. Not tied to the other. It drew from the depths of the world, an old power. The blood of the dead gods that lay buried deep within.

A sense opened in her sight. She could feel the blood flowing through the veins of those around her. She could reach out for it. Turn it to glass and kill them where they stood.

Just as she was about to reach forward with her magic, something touched her body. She looked down and saw a small child clinging onto her leg with tears in its eyes. Human. She could smell its fear. Delicious.

Vague memories filled her mind. She was supposed to know this human. It was… her brother. She extended her talons, her skin pulsating red. He would join her. He would understand soon as well.

Her claws clicked at the floor as she moved, still sensitive from being just formed. She walked closer to the child, to bring her brother alongside with her and join her in this new world. Free of the tethers of their previous feeble form.

“Stay back,” a voice warned, stopping her mid-step. Magic cut through her limbs, drawing blood as she glanced to the side. A girl stood nearby, green hair danging to her side. Mana gathered at her limbs, shooting outwards, as green tendrils climbed rose from the ground, wrapping around her feet and preventing her from moving.

She hissed back.

“Jennifer you- ” the words cut off as she lashed out with her talons. Blood. She needed more blood.

Mana gathered in her body, rising as it flung itself outwards. Her blood turned to glass, rising in spikes that tored through her veins, to jut forward and shoot towards the girl. They cut through the tendrils restraining her, leaving a trail of red crystal near her as she moved.

It shot through the girl in front, piercing her body as her control slipped. Now. She would feast.

She leapt forward, ready to tear flesh from bones and drink in the blood of her prey when a voice rose form her Mark, halting her in her tracks.

Enough.

A hand grasped her soul.

{System Override detected}
{Checking permissions… granted}

The words flashed in front of her eyes, ringing with power as the red tendrils shuddered within her soul. They knew the end was near.

[Race: Weeping Blood Wraith] removed

{Forbidden system locked}

Her Mark shone with searing light burning through the red lines, growing in intensity with each second. The tendrils retreated from the depths of her soul, being forced outwards. The light burned them. It consumed them from within. Soon, the blood was no more.

The hand grasped her soul once more, now free of the red taint. With a tug, it wretched her soul out of her body, dragging across the unending void.

There was no command this time. Merely silent fury.

***

AN: The [Race] notifications and skills are all blood red in color. 

***

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16 — Combat Magic

A/N: So, I think this chapter will likely get one more scene added to it. Maybe. But for now, here it is! 

***

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It had taken a week for Rumina to get her hands on the information, and the details behind Loux Nekrot had taken Jennifer by surprise. As she made her way towards the Academy grounds, Jennifer carefully began to go through everything that Rumina had told her about Loux. The biggest surprise had been to learn that the girl wasn’t fully human, having part-dryad blood within her. Jennifer was aware of the predatory nature of dryads, yet she had never known they could bear half children. But it also explained how the girl had managed to skip grades and directly enroll as an Apprentice Mage.

The second biggest surprise that Jennifer had learned quickly afterwards was that Loux was the daughter of royalty. Or the equivalent of such among the dryads. Her own research into the dryads had revealed the structure to be something akin to a matriarchal monarchy, with the dryad queen being bonded to the ancient spirit tree at the heart of their domains.

I vaguely remember seeing the woman. The dryad that had arrived with the war council, a beautiful white flower decorating the sculpture-like woman. I wonder if she was the queen?

Jennifer wished she had paid more attention and memorized the name, yet the only thing she could recall was the mention of the White Blossom, but any research into the name had yielded next to nothing. I can only hope that the name holds some meaning to Loux, it seems to be my only good card to get her attention.

Being a princess among dryads, Jennifer had wondered what the girl was doing all the way out at Lienmont, in the Academy of all places. She couldn’t imagine the dryads suddenly taking an interest in Zwerilian magecraft all of a sudden. Shamanism and Arcane based magics rarely meshed well, and tended to be a topic of eccentric study for scholars at best, given how closely the dryads guarded their secrets. Perhaps they had come to an agreement of some sort to trade spells and information.

Or perhaps she is here for some other purposes, related to the happening of this month.

The academy soon arrived within her sight, as Jennifer walked up to the main entrance of the grounds. Quickly getting her name registered with the entrance guards she was let in and began to climb up the hill of magic to the entrance of the administrative and academic buildings. After having climbed the hill a few times, she’d started to notice how cleverly the Academy had placed all its displays of magic all across. Rather than blatantly display everything they had in the visitor's face, they’d spread all the various wonderful displays of magic across the grounds. Visible from the main path, yet far enough to be non intrusive. She had to admit that it was a clever way of doing things.

Making her way past the two tall statues that she was now certain were golems of some sort, Jennifer walked up to the counter in the hall, knocking on the desk.

“Yes yes, I’m here. Stop being so impatient,” Jennifer heard Minceli, the gnome woman speak, as she moved her small ladder, and climbed atop it, grumbling at human furniture once more.

“What do you need?” the woman asked, adjusting her glasses as she looked at Jennifer.

“I wanted to find Miss Loux Nekrot,” Jennifer replied, pausing when she noticed Minceli narrowing her eyes.

The gnome woman stared at Jennifer, looking her up and down once. “First year, from the look of it. Are you sure you’ve got the right name?” she asked.

Jennifer nodded in reply.

“Huh, I guess even that girl can make friends, surprising that she went out of her way to befriend a first year though,” Minceli said, glancing at Jennifer. A moment of silent staring later, the gnome continued. “She’s in the second dorm building, room 106. I’ll need your name before you go though. Only students are allowed in. If you somehow manage to sneak past the gates, this is where you turn around and walk away.”

“I’m Jennifer Laine. First year, specializing in Enchanting.”

Minceli opened up a drawer, pulling out a large book whose pages flipped open on their own as she quickly checked for Jennifer’s name.

“Alright, go ahead Jennifer,” Minceli replied, closing the book. Jennifer nodded, smiling at the gnome woman in thanks as she began to make her way. She could’ve just walked up to Loux’s door, having already been there once more, but that would’ve led to even more questions from the Academy, in case things had not gone too well, or from any potential demons stalking her. She wasn’t above considering the possibility anymore.

Time travel, a boon and a curse all in once. So easy to trip up and give yourself away.

Jennifer made her way towards Loux’s room, thinking over how she was going to approach the girl. Her plan was fairly simple for the most part, to make use of the information Jennifer had obtained and convince Loux to teach her, somehow. The only thing she could say about this plan of hers was that she’d made worse ones.

Reaching the girl’s room, Jennifer quickly made use of [Enhanced Mana Sense] to try and feel if anyone was inside. Despite the magical wards layered on the room, she was able to get a feel for Loux’s mana from within.

Alright, just stay calm, don’t act suspicious and approach her like a normal person.

With a light rap, Jennifer knocked on the door once. A moment later, wondering if she’d been too light, she knocked once more. The door opened part way through her knock as Jennifer found her knuckles hitting sharp teeth.

“Ouch,” Loux said, recoiling backwards as she turned to glare at Jennifer.

“I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to, wait hold on!” Jennifer shouted, fumbling over her words, as Loux stepped back, moving her hands up to slam the door shut. Moving quickly, she stepped foot in the gap of the doorway as the door slammed shut.

A sharp spike of pain made Jennifer wince as she pulled her feet back, yet she pushed through the pain. With tears glazing her eyes, she looked at Loux. “I know you’re a dryad, and I really need to talk to you.”

Wide eyes greeted her proclamation before a wave of hostility washed over Jennifer. Loux moved swiftly, grabbing Jennifer’s collar as she dragged her into the room and shut the door close behind her. With a rough shove, she pushed Jennifer against the door, still grabbing onto her collar and twisting lightly as she glared at her in silence.

“How?” the girl asked, her eyes focused.

Jennifer took in a breath, feeling uncomfortable at having her collar grabbed. She felt panic rising, as the memories of being strangled by the Mark of Drought started to tense up her body. Trying to curb the panic, Jennifer flared with glass mana, flooding her pathways as her eyes turned reflective, shimmering with power.

Turning towards Loux with mana burning through her pathways, Jennifer felt the grasp of panic slip by as a cold expression took over her. “If you let go, I’ll be able to talk.”

Loux watched her silently, her eyes set upon her, as if waiting for any suspicious movements. A few moments of silence later, the girl loosened her grip, yet refused to let go.

“Talk.”

Realizing that this was as far as Loux would give in, Jennifer decided to just go right for it, without pointlessly jumping around the topic. She’d lost her opportunity for being subtle when she knocked at the girl’s teeth.

“I know that the Dryads have sent you here for some reason. It’s not too difficult to learn if someone knows to look into you. I’d assumed it wasn’t a secret,” Jennifer replied.

Loux maintained her grip on Jennifer’s collar, her expression wary, but Jennifer could feel the hostility emanating from the girl starting to fade.

“Why look into me?” the girl asked.

Because you seem like my best bet to learn everything I can about Magus Beritross, and how I can beat that test of his.

“You’re well known Loux. A strange girl that’d arrived and quickly managed to skip grades, being taught personally by the Mages. Of course people will talk.”

Jennifer watched Loux’s eyes flutter around, as she glanced downwards for a brief moment, her lips puckered. A strange realization encroached Jennifer at the girl’s reaction.

“Do you… not want to be talked about?” Jennifer asked in surprise.

Loux looked at Jennifer, meeting her eyes. A moment or two passed in silence before she gave a light nod.

“You do realize that if you never talk to anyone it only adds to your mysteriousness making others talk even more?”

Loux’s eyes widened a touch at Jennifer’s words, as the girl turned to look at her like she’d just had a big revelation.

“Do you… want me to help you?” Jennifer asked, looking at Loux silently. The girl’s dark green eyes remained on Jennifer, as the minutes passed by in silence.

“I’m not going to do it for free,” Jennifer added, and she felt the girl’s grip on her collar relax ever so slightly. Taking the signal, she continued with her offer. “I want you to teach me combat magic. I’ve just unlocked a [Glass Mage[ class but… I’ve only known enchanting until now. I’m an [Enchanter] first and foremost. I can cast spells, but I’m not good at it. And I want to be. In return, I’ll be your pretend friend. We could walk around and do things together, and it’ll help take away from the mysterious lone girl thing you’ve got going on.”

A frown set upon Loux’s eyebrows, as she glanced downwards, as if considering the idea. Realizing something a moment later, Jennifer added another thing to her offer.

“If you promise to teach me, then I’ll also help you out with the academic side of things. I can tell that you have some of the language, and I can’t imagine you’ve undergone the basic education that people in the Alliance would’ve gotten,” Jennifer said.

Her words seemed to have captured Loux’s attention as she looked up. “I don’t know,” the girl replied, letting go of her collar. Loux stood frowning, keeping a close eye on Jennifer as her green hair swayed behind her, tied in a ponytail.

"I don’t like you,” Loux said, looking at Jennifer. “You’re coming here with schemes and plans, and I dislike that. I also dislike that I’m very tempted to say yes.”

Jennifer stared at the girl as Loux continued to murmur something under her breath. A moment later, she looked up to face Jennifer. “Give me some time to think.”

Nodding, Jennifer left the talks at that and turned around. Despite knowing that she should, Jennifer couldn’t keep the smile off of her face as she walked out. There was little left to do now, besides continuing her studies as she waited.

It didn’t take long for Loux to call her back.

***

The wind rustled Jennifer’s hair, flinging her light brown hair over her eyes as she stood in a small field behind the Academy’s buildings. Loux stood nearby, the girl’s hair flying in the breeze, as she looked back at her with the usual blank face she had equipped by default.

“So, uhh, why have we come here?” Jennifer asked, glancing at the empty field. There was nothing special about the area, besides the fact that it was slightly out of the way, and difficult to find if you didn’t know which turns to take to get to it.

“To train,” Loux replied, as the girl glanced around, before beginning to do some stretches.

“Okay? And why can’t we do that in the training hall? Students can make use of them, right?” Jennifer asked.

Loux stopped mid-stretch as she turned towards Jennifer, her eyes narrowed in a way that told her just how highly the girl thought of Jennifer’s words. “Too visible. Everyone watches the combat halls. You’ll be presenting all your spells to them to work on and counteract. It’s stupid.”

Jennifer almost asked her why she’d then been practicing with Beritross in one, but she swiftly caught herself. That hadn’t happened.

“Alright. But then why are you stretching? We’ll be practicing our spells right?” Jennifer asked, and saw Loux continue without glancing back. A few seconds passed without a reply, and Jennifer decided to just follow the girl’s lead and do some stretches of her own.

Going through the motion, Jennifer started to feel the pull on her muscles. There was a slight disconnect between her body and her movements, and she noticed that a part of it was her overestimating her flexibility and strength in each motion.

I don’t have the muscles I’d gained so rapidly in the month I’d trained with Viel.

Jennifer lightly rubbed her belly, feeling a bit sad about the lost muscles. She’d never been skinny and had always had a decent amount of muscle on her body for a girl her age, yet the smooth toned muscles she’d gained so rapidly from the hellish potion infused workout Viel had given her was definitely something she wished she still had.

Adjusting her body and her own expectations accordingly, Jennifer spent a few minutes warming up properly. Once she was ready, she got up and found Loux standing up front, and facing in her direction. Her hands were positioned in a way that made Jennifer feel as if there should’ve been a blade in her hands, but the girl stood unarmed.

“How many spells do you know?” Loux asked.

Jennifer went through her spell list, counting all the combat spells she knew of, alongside the new ones she’d learned from Nathaniel. “Seven spells, with a few that I know but can’t cast yet. A few more that can possibly be used in combat, but are not direct combat spells.”

Loux frowned, humming. “You have… glass. Rare. Show me a spell.”

Jennifer ignored the strange tone, as she followed the girl’s word. Drawing on her mana, which was now a lot deeper and had her affinity a lot stronger thanks to [Glass Mana Pool], Jennifer weaved a glass bolt.

She silently shot the shimmering bolt of glass forward, as it struck a nearby tree, digging into it before exploding with mana.

“Hmm. Creation? No, Alteration too. Lucky,” Loux replied, thinking over something. “How many of those can you shoot?”

Jennifer realized that she didn’t know. Her mana pool had been growing at a quick rate already before she’d gained her [Glass Mage] class and [Glass Mana Pool] skill. She closed her eyes, feeling at the ball of energy near her abdomen as she tried to guess.

“About forty? Fifty maybe?” Jennifer replied, receiving a nod from Loux.

“Decent. Your casting speed is good, but you’re clumsy. You show exactly where you will shoot. Your eyes follow your target too closely, and you move your hand to gesture what you’ll be shooting next. All of that is a weakness,” Loux said, looking Jennifer in the eye.

Ignoring that, the words were likely the longest she’d seen Loux talk without a pause, Jennifer gave the thought some consideration. She was used to gesturing, as doing so helped her better cast any spell. Same with calling out the spell name for anything she was going to be using. It was just silly to not rely on every toll she had for better control over her magic, so that she could work as precisely as possible on her enchantments.

“Cast another spell. A stronger one,” Loux said.

Jennifer began to weave her glass blade. Mana thrummed, filling her pathways, as she focused and a shimmering blade of glass formed in front of her hand, glowing with power. The wind rustled around Jennifer in a frenzy as she shot the blade. Her spell flew like a speeding arrow, as it cut through the area, tearing out a massive chunk of the ground.

“You’re not used to casting silently,” Loux observed. “That’s the first thing to work on. Using spells or skills out loud is foolish. It helps, but it’s also a crutch you become dependent on. Half the mages out there keep on blabbering their spells out loud to allow themselves better basic control that they already should’ve had.”

Jennifer felt a light heat flush to her cheeks at Loux’s scathing words. She’d indeed never tried to improve her silent casting before, not finding any real need for it prior to the recent events.

“Hmm. Let’s spar. I’ll show you how you should fight,” Loux said, and before Jeninfer had any time to prepare the girl shot towards her. A blade of glowing magic appeared in Loux’s hand as she swung it towards Jennifer.

Dodging backwards, Jennifer felt the blade slash at her wrist drawing blood. She quickly realized that the other girl had a very different definition of spar when compared to her. WInd burst around Jennifer as she flooded her pathways with mana, quickly using Agile Wind to create some distance.

Gliding back, even while off balance, Jennifer shot off a glass blot towards Loux as she turned mid air. Using a gust of wind around her wrist she rolled to the ground, finding herself on her feet again.

A slash swept past Jennifer’s face as she barely dodged back. On instinct, she called on Glass storm, forgetting to even prepare the spell matrix, as the spell formed itself purely on instinct. Shards of glass danced around Jennifer in a hurricane of glass particles. Jennifer quickly used Wind Blades alongside the spell, as a howling sharp wind swirling with the glass, forcing Loux to create some distance.

Taking the opportunity, Jennifer dashed ahead, going on the offensive. Glass mana roze in a haze around her, as she stacked glass bolts upon glass bolts. Forming a chain of five bolts she fired them all together.

With a kick to the ground, Loud shot a precise shot of mana bolt, so fast Jennifer could barely see it. One of her glass bolts shattered, exploding as the green haired dryad-girl dodged to the side with inhuman speed, rushing towards her with her sword based.

Without realizing what she was doing, Jennifer reached out to the chain of her glass bolts and stringed them together on a mana thread. The same trick she’d used to swirl her leaves of light. Tugging on the mana string, she pulled backwards as her bolts curved backwards, following her command as they went after Loux once more.

For a brief moment, Jennifer saw Loux smirk, before five blades appeared around the girl, all formed of glowing blue magic. Shooting out, they struck at her bolts, crashing together and nullifying her attack, while the rest went after Jennifer.

With a quick bolt of her own, she destroyed one of the spells. Dodging the other mana blades, Jennifer quickly started to prepare her own attack. Wind burst around her in a frenzy as she ran to the side, letting Loux chase after her. The other girl was faster, but Jennifer had ways of preventing Loux from reaching her, and the range of her blade limited the other girl severly.

Forming shards of glass Jennifer used [Enchanter Glass Creation] to layer them with ‘Sharpen’. She focused on the shards of floating sharp glass around her, as she started to crash them into smaller and smaller pieces. Soon, Jennifer found herself running amidst very fine shards of glass swirling all around her. Sharp enough to poke an eye out.

“Annoying,” Loux grumbled, as mana flared around the girl. With a powerful shot, she rushed towards Jennifer, swinging her blade. Blades of wind shot forward, formed from the mana blade Loux held as they cut through the sharp mist of glass shards, and towards Jennifer.

Stumbling backwards, Jennifer rushed on ahead, as she shot another mana bolt. Her mana was dipping rapidly, and Loux was chasing her at a steady rate, attacking her just enough to keep her occupied, and retaliating.

Frowning, Jennifer felt her glass blade spell. Weaving her mana together she began to stack the blades one at a time.

Sensing the influx of Mana, loux shot forward, her movement speed rapidly increasing. With a powerful slash of wind that kicked up a dust cloud, the girl launched herself ahead. A fist came forward, landing on Jennifer’s gut as she tripped. Her control slipped from her magic, her spells dissipating as Jennifer crumbled onto the ground, clutching her gut.

Before Jennifer could snap back about being hit so hard, she felt a hand rest upon her abdomen as a soothing sensation filled her body. Within moments, she found all sensation of pain gone, feeling as good as new.

“Clumsy. You got your affinity recently didn’t you?” Loux commented.

“Is it really that obvious?” Jennifer asked. She’d have thought that with her practice and training she would’ve overcome any such issues by now. Taking a moment to check for injuries, Jennifer pulled herself to her feet.

“Was the healing your Dryad abilities?” Jennifer asked. Loux nodded in reply, but didn’t deign to comment any further on the topic.

To think I’m not even angry at being attacked so suddenly in the ‘spar’. All these combat mages and their violent tendencies.

“Why didn’t you try to use your glass on me?” Loux asked.

“Huh?”

“Why didn’t you try and stop me with your glass?” Loux asked once more, frowning.

“What do you mean why? I can’t use my glass directly on you can I? Unless you don’t know about mana saturation boundary, because if not, everyone could just summon things inside of people and kill them instantly,” Jennifer replied.

“Yes, I know about the mana thing. But the boundary is stronger inside the body than outside. You don’t need to form anything in direct contact, ust around it, to restrict them. Like this.”

Plants rose near Jennifer’s feet, latching onto her ankles as they grabbed her foot tightly. She pulled her feet up, straining as she tried to pry them out. After a few moments of struggling with the plants, she looked up at the girl, who continued to look back at Jennifer with an impassive expression.

“You try it,” Loux said.

Hesitantly, Jennifer raised her hand, reaching out with her mana. She summoned glass around Loux’s feet, fighting through the resistance she was facing. Her first attempt failed, the glass not forming at all in the way she wanted it to. Her second attempt was closer, with three spikes of glass that formed around her feet. She could still pull her feet out but the glass could dig in and leave an injury. By the third try, she managed to form spike traps around the girl.

“Good. Doing it while fighting is the difficult part. We’ll practice that. You should also try to form glass on your body. If you can do it quickly, you’ll be able to protect yourself from blades and other weapons,” Loux said.

Jennifer tried it out, extending her hand, as she tried to cover her hand with glass. She managed to form a thin layer that cracked far too quickly, and if it was too thick, then she could struggle to keep it on her body. Jennifer frowned, experimenting with her new techniques, before she looked up towards Loux and dipped her head in thanks.

“Let’s practice a bit more. After that, I want you to help me with Manifestation Theory - II,” Loux said, grimacing at the words Manifestation Theory and Jennifer couldn’t help but laugh at that.

Taking a stance, the two girls started slinging spells once more as they trained.

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15 — Scampi Tails

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After quite some thinking, Jennifer had decided not to share anything about the invasion or her Mark to either her Master or Rumina. She wasn’t sure who was listening and how far the demons had ears but her last death had informed her plenty to know that she wasn’t safe even just letting the information slip.

Jennnifer had spent roughly five days trying to think of a set of plans to execute for her month. By now she was fairly confident in her assessment that her Mark had roughly about 10 years worth of integrity inside of it. That is if the Mark continued to follow the same linear drop it had been so far and if she couldn’t find some way to return the integrity of the Mark to it. Regardless, she had some time to think over things. A part of her had realized that she’d been taking things in a rush. Even if she managed to stop the invasion in this very reset, if that meant having to live through some horrible fact like a permanent injury for her or any one of her family members, would she be fine with that?

No, I’d rather brave the blade and try again. If I truly have the time, then I would not want to settle for a suboptimal outcome.

This chain of thought had led her to decide to spend the next few resets in relative quiet. She would not go to the guild, and she would not tell her friend or master about the invasion. What she would do instead, was focus on training her magic and training her skills. But even more so importantly, she needed to gather information. And I know just the person for the task.

Jennifer quickly arrived at Green Flower bell, noting Rumina sitting inside. She waved, catching Rumina’s attention as the girl quickly got up from her seat and rushed outside.

“Jenn! I heard! Congrats! You got accepted!!” Rumina said, rushing out and jumping onto Jennifer, as she hugged her tight and spun her around.

“I did Rumina! Let me down first though,” Jennifer said. Rumina let go of her after one last spin, grinning at her from behind her freckled face. “Let’s head inside first, I’ll tell you more,” Jennifer added as the two walked inside.

“So, what took you this long to tell me? I’m kinda mad that I had to find out from others that my best friend's dreams had come true,” Rumina pouted.

For a moment, Jennifer felt an odd sensation fill her chest, talking to her friend who did not remember any of what had happened in the past three months. She let the thought go, extending her hand as she quickly summoned a shard of glass atop it.

“I awakened to glass magic,” Jennifer said, watching Rumina’s eyes spread wide open.

“Elphion damn me, is that- is that real? I’m going silly, of course it is. When? How?! Why didn’t you tell me?! Now I’m even more mad!” Rumina exclaimed, making Jennifer grin. Some things didn’t change even across resets.

“I had a nightmare, Rumina. Five days ago. It was the most realistic nightmare I’d ever had, and in it, I was chased by monsters, I fought demons and gave a trial, and then I was hunted down by a man. Then I woke up, and found that I’d awakened to glass magic.”

“A nightmare? I’m not sure whether to be envious or not.”

Jennifer shook her head in reply. “There’s not much to be envious about. It was awful, extremely so. I was certain that I’d died and lost everything. Despite that, I can’t deny the benefits either.”

“Sounds like it was quite difficult on you,” Rumina said.

“A bit,” Jennifer replied. She’d already gotten more in depth than she’d have preferred to. It was difficult to hide things from her friend, Rumina had always been great at sniffing out any lies, and not just because she had the Skills for it.

“In any case though… this is great news! Glass magic is so rare, the academy is going to love you! I can’t wait to brag about you when you become a famous [Enchanter]!” Rumina exclaimed.

“About that Academy thing. I’d actually come here to get some help from you in regards to that,” Jennifer said, as she dug into her leather pouch and pulled out the little parchment sheet she’d scribbled down the details about Loux on. “There’s this girl called Loux Nekrot in the academy. I want you to look into her,” Jennifer said, as she handed the sheet of parchment to Rumina.

The red-head took a quick look through the details she’d written. She muttered a Skill under her breath as the note vanished from her hand. “Will be done within a week,” Rumina replied.

Jennifer nodded in thanks, watching as her friend’s jovial expression returned. Rumina had never tried to hide her work as an informant for the thieves’ guild, but it was not a job she loved to get Jennifer involved in.

“Anyway, we need to celebrate! There’s this new shop by a lizardfolk called Scampi Tails, and I hear it’s really good! Wanna go? My treat!” Rumina said, her eyes sparkling with excitement as she gave Jennifer the most unfair pleading expression ever.

“You know I can’t say no if you ask me like that…” Jennifer muttered, eliciting a cheer of excitement from Rumina.

The two girls quickly left the shop, and began to make their way towards their destination. Jennifer walked along, answering Rumina’s question as she showed off her ‘new’ affinity to her friend.

The dungeon shift should happen anytime now as well. I wonder if Viel will notice me with my presence hidden.

It didn’t take long before Jennifer could test that hypothesis. A tremor shook the ground underneath their feet, as the dungeon plaza shuddered with power. Jennifer frowned, sensing the strong wave of mana that accompanied the shift from within the dungeon. Something about it felt strange to her senses, an oddity that she’d failed to notice in the previous few resets.

“Jenn, you okay?” Rumina asked, grabbing her hand, as she looked at Jennifer in concern.

Jennifer clenched her friend’s hand, nodding, but she didn’t reply. Her eyes were occupied, tracking the chaos at the entrance of the dungeon. Cracks ran through the dungeon entrance as guards and people ran about in a hurry.

The familiar presence of a Mark brushed against Jennifer’s mind. The Mark of Valor stood ahead, spreading his presence like a beacon, as if he wanted people to discover who he was, and where he was.

Perhaps it’s more than just confidence on Viel's part. The confidence with which he broadcasts his presence would make any unknown Mark curious or nervous. It’s a good way to find new Marks, especially if he’s confident that he can take on any hostile ones. I may just have fallen right into his hands the last time around.

Jennifer’s eyes remained on the tall adventurer, his blonde hair glistening in the sun alongside his pristine armor. For a brief moment, she felt as if Viel had turned back towards her, and met her eyes, but the gaze did not linger as the man walked away.

So it’s not me stupidly spreading my presence everywhere that’s getting me caught. That is good to confirm.

Waiting a moment longer to observe the movement near the dungeon, Jennifer turned towards Rumina. “Do you still want to go to the shop? That was a pretty bad earthquake.”

“Let’s take a look at least. Maybe it’s still open?” Rumina said, to which Jennifer merely returned a nod. She could afford to spend a day with her friend. It’d help settle her nerves somewhat, and curb the desire to rush into things.

Still holding hands, the two girls headed through the chaos of the dungeon plaza and towards their destination.

***

“Shop’s closed girlsss, quite a lot of stuff broke in that earthquake and it’s a messs. You should come back some other daysss,” A blue scaled face poked out, yellow reptilian eyes turning to look at them. “I’d take you in, but my cooling enchantment got busted and it’ll cost me a fair bit to get that fixed. I might have to close shop for a few days,” the lizardfolk said, walking out.

“Oh oh, Jenn’s an [Enchanter]! She even got accepted into the academy, so she’s gonna be pretty famous in a few years!” Rumina exclaimed excitedly.

Jennifer almost let out a groan, trying to hide the blush that threatened to rise to her face. There were a lot of preconceptions about the Academy with people, one such fact being that everyone who went there became a graduate. The dropout rate of the academy was extremely high, with only about 10% of the students completing the 5 years required to become a proper graduate.

The Lizardfolk’s eyes swiveled to her, and she jumped a bit, as the frills at the base of their neck rose up. “Is this true? I have the reagents for the enchantment, I always keep a stock. I’d be truly grateful if you could fix the enchantment, even temporarily.”

“Sure,” Jennifer replied, as the Lizardfolk let out a hiss.

“Follow me pleassse,” the Lizardfolk said, walking in.

Jennifer nodded and both of them walked inside the shop. Rumina snickered as they did and she hit the red-head with her elbow.

The inside of the shop was decorated with a variety of decorations. Little tables and chairs dotted the entrance area, with a counter having tapestry from what looked to be the Elven-tribes. Jennifer would’ve whistled if it wasn’t rude to do so, getting hands on elven artistry was rare. Her eyes scanned the little shop, finding similar works of art and decorations from all over Zweiril. It was possibly the most varied collection of items she’d seen in any single location.

“Do you collect items from different cultures?” she asked the lizardfolk.

“Yesss, I do. I’ve traveled across Zweiril, and everywhere I went, I tried to bring one thing from that place back with me. It’s turned into something of a prized collection by nowss,” the Lizardfolk said, their eyes turning back without much movement from the neck.

“It’sss in here, the whole room is covered with a [Preserve Perishable] field,” the lizardfolk said, walking inside the kitchen area.

That’s a lot of enchantments for a kitchen.

They opened one of the cabinets, cold mist wafting out of it. “Thisss is the cold box, the only thing that’s workingsss. I’d normally have an enchantment on this whole section of this side to keep stuff coolss. But it’s busted, as you can seess.”

Jennifer walked to the cold box. It was made of wood, with metal engraving set on it, covered under a thin layer of mithril. Likely quite expensive. She set her hand against the box, as she used [Enhanced Mana Sense] to have a closer look.

Spell lines ran through the enchantments, and she noted a [Temperature Resistance], [Ice Ward] and [Cooling Flow] enchantment layered in a three way segment, but the enchantment had been frayed in a few locations. Cracks in the spell matrix were causing it to leak mana into the surroundings before reaching the functional part of the enchantment, cutting the spell off.

Jennifer used [Lesser Arcane Analysis] to try and feel at the spell. Her recent practice had shown her that, outside of the vocalized active effect of the spell providing her a system interface, it also had a passive ability that better allowed her to analyze any spell to a certain degree.

Feeling at the enchantment, she carefully analyzed the spell matrix. The enchantment on the box was complicated, and roughly of Tier-3 in complexity. Jennifer wasn’t sure if she’d been able to work with it so well before her practice in the resets. She focused on the spell matrices and their tie in segments, trying to trace back the source of damage. A sudden gap in the matrix caught her eye and she focused her attention at the location.

Ah, a damaged link in one of the runes. Should be easy to fix.

She reached out with her mana, grabbing the leaking spot with her will as she guided it back into the circuit. “[Lesser Restoration]” she said out loud, as the mana began to weave itself back together. With a sputter, a cool breeze started to flow through the area again.

“That was very quicksss,” the lizardfolk said, flicking their tongue out.

“No, I’ve just sealed the leak for now. Do you have three, no four, mana stones? And two lengths of mana saturated wood? I need to put back in the scaffolding and renegrave one section of the rune,” Jennifer asked, as she continued to repair the circuit. “Honestly, it’s quite lucky that nothing too important broke, as I cannot tie in the multi-layered enchantment back together if it’d broken.”

“Yesss, I think I have what you needsss. Let me grab itss,” the Lizardfolkk said, as they shuffled around the room, coming back with a pile of stuff in their arms.

Jennifer took the mana stones, setting them into the cabinet. She then covered the area with some of the wooden planks, holding them in place as she concentrated. Grabbing one mana stone, she used it as an impromptu engraving crystal and began to carve the enchantment. She wasn’t familiar with runes on this one, but the mana traces left by the previous enchantment were strong enough for Jennifer to figure the rest out.

“[Quick Repair]” she used her skill, the enchantment snapping into place, buzzing with mana again. Jennifer let out a breath as she turned towards the now visibly excited lizardfolk.

“That was wonderful! I never got your name, I thinksss. I’m Kariss Blueclaw, a [Sweet Chef],” Kariss said, offering a clawed hand to Jennifer.

“I’m Jennifer, just an [Enchanter].” she replied.

“Oh, anything but just an [Enchanter]sss. That was a wonderful display of skill for one so young! And I know just the way to repay you, young ladiesss. Please, wait as I make something special for the two of you. You’ve saved me days of hassle! Daysss!” Kariss said, sharp teeth showing as they smiled and Jennifer stopped herself from taking a step back.

“Thank you,” she nodded as politely as she could before returning to the front room.

Rumina walked ahead of her, taking a seat, and Jennifer followed, sitting nearby. Kariss arrived a second later, setting a pair of tall glasses on their table before hustling away.

“It’s so empty here, feels like we rented the place for a date, doesn't it?” Rumina asked with a smirk.

Jennifer just rolled her eyes, not dignifying her friend's attempt at humor with a response.

“I guess we can talk a bit more now. Who’s the girl? And why’re you so interested?” Rumina asked, glancing at Jennifer curiously.

Jennifer leaned on her chair, going through the words she’d prepared beforehand. It would’ve been tough to convince her friend if she hadn’t already thought the possibility through.

“I went to the academy when I got the glass affinity. It just felt like the place to go to. After looking into things, I found out that if I could complete a test, then being an apprentice mage would be possible. After looking into whether someone else had a position like that, I found Loux Nekrot. I found the girl in one of the combat classes. She’s the same age as me, but she was way way better than everyone else. I think she could probably take on an entire class of 2nd years if she wanted. So- I decided to ask her to teach me.”

Rumina eyed Jennifer, listening to her words. “That doesn’t sound like something you’d do normally. What brought on the apprenticeship? Wouldn’t your master be annoyed you jumped off a month before you’d planned?”

Jennifer grimaced. There we go, didn’t think about that.

“I’ll need to talk to Master, yeah. But, I’m not sure Rumina, so far, I had very few advantages. Even my class of [Resource Enchanter] is because Enchanters need a lot of resources and I had to make do with what I had available to me. I had to work extra hard to beat all the kids with so many resources given to them by their families, and so many kids simply born into bloodline magic. Gaining my glass affinity… It feels like a chance. Like I can do greater things now, if I try to,” Jennifer replied, looking Rumina in the eye.

A part of her was surprised at her own words. Was she merely lying for her friend’s sake, or was this truly how she felt? She couldn’t deny envying the many many resources that people like Nathaniel had. She’d never been one to begrudge natural talent, even just being able to use magic was a talent. But the effort she’d had to put, the spells and magic and proficiency in spellcasting she’d had to gain had all been put in to level the playfield. To be able to compete on the same grounds. And she’d done it, and done it well enough to even be above average when compared to others of her age. Yet, the fear of being left behind, that she would always be left catching up to the rest of the world had not left her.

Jennifer remembered Viel’s words, on the nature of her first ability. The Mark provided her what she needed. At first she’d assumed it had been the need to keep her alive upon her death. But the longer she spent her time in these resets the more it felt as if perhaps, the true thing that she’d hoped to have all along. The one true thing she wished she could have over other, was time.

“You’re amazing just the way you are Jenn. But I understand. I’ll look into this girl,” Rumina replied, resting her hand briefly on Jennifer’s.

Jennifer smiled back at her friend. Each further reset pained her heart to talk to Rumina, yet each further one only made her realize what a great friend she had.

“I don’t deserve to have a friend like you Rumina, you’re too awesome,” Jennifer replied, catching a wide eyed stare from her friend.

“Sera, is this really you? That has to be the most un-Jenn like line I’ve ever heard! Who’re you and what did you do to my friend?!” Rumina exclaimed, jumping back in mock fear and Jennifer couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Kariss stepped out of the kitchen, blue tail dragging behind with a tray containing two glass bowls held in hand. For a brief moment, Jenifer felt as if she could tug on the two glass bowls to lift them up, but she kept the instinct in check. Are my alteration abilities growing stronger?

“Here it is, girls, one of my newest creations. One for each of you!” Kariss said cheerfully. A glass bowl was put in front of each of them, containing small balls of brown with various kinds of fruits and nuts poured atop them sat in front of her. Cold mist wafted off of the bowls and a sweet scent touched Jenn's nose, mixed pleasantly with the tingle of mana rising from it.

“What is this?” Rumina asked, her brow raised in curiosity as she glanced at Kariss.

The Lizardfolk smiled, waving at the bowls with a grand flourish, frills spreading out around their neck. “It’s a dish popular within the central empire. It’s called gelato, quite popular among the [Ladies] there. Although I added my own twist to it, some little ingredients from the Verhiz and other locations to spice things up. This here, my dear, is my own version of Gelato, made from a rare sweet called chocolate!”

Jennifer turned to stare at little brown balls in front of her, a bit hesitant. It looked like a ball of mud to her. She turned to Rumina, unsure of what to do. She didn’t want to be rude, and she could tell it was expensive by the slight hints of mana wafting from it.

Jennifer waited, as her friend picked up the spoon and took a small piece, before taking a bite. Her eyes widened in surprise before she quickly went for a second bite and then a third. A bit confused yet amused at the same time, she watched Rumina who seemed to just be holding her spoon in her mouth with a blissful look on her face.

Really that good?

She picked up her spoon, about to take a bite from the gelato when something soft pressed against her feet.

Jennifer jumped, pulling back as she exclaimed. A brown figure ran up the table, climbing next to the bowl as it tried to take a bite from the gelato.

“Frillsss! Badss! Get back here, I’ll give you some. No stealingss!” Kariss hissed at the creature as the small animal deflated. Jennifer almost jumped once more when the small mammal vanished, appearing on Kariss’ shoulder as the lizardfolk scratched its head.

“I apologize for Frillss, she loves chocolate and it is rare enough that she doesn’t get muchsss” Kariss, said, in what Jennifer couldn’t decide was an unnerving eye blink or a friendly wink.

“Oh it’s fine, I was just surprised that’s all. If it’s not rude, what kind of familiar is Frillss?”

“She’s a spirit river-ottersss. I found her lost in the woods and decided to give her some leftoversss. She then decided that I was a very convenient source of food and protection and decided to stick aroundsss,” Kariss said with a trailing hiss.

“That is quite curious. We don’t see too many Lizardfolk here in Lienmont, so I’m not extremely aware of the happenings in the southern swamps,” Jennifer said, and Kariss smiled, sharp teeth showing.

“Indeed, I’ve observed as much. I was afraid that like the other human cities, Lienmont would not be very accepting of my kind, but things seem to be not as bad in these parts,” Kariss said.

“We can’t afford to. Lienmont depends on trade, and the swamps are a big source of trade. The dungeon of Lienmont is what the city is known for, but the adventurers are not the real money maker at the end of it. It’s all the merchants they draw and gather. It’d be more than stupid to go about being an asshole human-supremist in these parts, and a good way to get caught by the [Guards].”

Kariss nodded, as Jennifer gestured for the Lizardfolk to take a seat.

“What brings you to Lienmont Kariss? It’s not a common city for any sort of permanent location like this one,” Jennifer asked, eyeing the lizardfolk.

“Oh I need a reason to visit placesss. I’ve even been to the Murks, and the dwarves hate outsidersss, but I managed to get a mithril hammer out of themss,” the lizardfolk said with a grin.

Jennifer stared wide eyed, turning momentarily towards Rumina. “A m-mithril hammer? Really? They give those to outsiders?”

“I’ve a hobby of smithing, it took some convincing, but I managed to get my hands on oness. The dwarves didn’t all like itss, but I had friendsss” Kariss said with a laugh. “But besides my love for traveling, Lienmont seemed like a good city that I could set up shop at. It is close to the swamps for a human city, and there seems to be enough business to be hadss. With the curse causing trouble in the swampsss, things were bound to be difficult, so I decided to move somewhere close, but far enough to remain unaffectedss.”

“Curse?” Jennifer asked.

“Yess. Curse. It is an unknown one, but there have been many many still-birthss. Many illnesses too. Things are difficultsss,” Kariss replied, and Jennifer nodded.

“Oh Jenn, if you’re not gonna eat that, I don’t mind having it,” Rumina said, eyeing the gelato in her bowl that was slowly starting to melt with a predatory look. Jennifer swatterd her friend’s encroaching hand’s away.

Kariss laughed, before getting up from their seat. “I’ll let you girlss eat in silence. Both of you are welcome here at any timesss!”

Jennifer nodded, smiling at the grin full of sharp teeth that did not look nearly as intimidating anymore. She picked up her spoon, turning towards the gelato and took a small bite. A cool sensation spread through her mouth before a sharp sweet taste took over. “Sera, this is good!” Jennifer exclaimed, staring at the gelato.

Her eyes met Rumina’s and both of them laughed out loud. A serene feeling washed over her, as she cherished the rare moment of calm and peace, her mind drifting peacefully.

This? This was exactly what she needed. A break. For just a little while, her problems could wait.

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?? — A Strange Encounter

A/N: My exams are DONE!! Also, I noticed that it was 1st April and couldn't help myself. Enjoy! (Actual chapter will be out probably this sunday)

***

Jennifer walked through the streets of Lienmont, trying to dodge the burning rays of the midday sun that showered upon her with vengeance. The city itself was in the central plains of Zweiril, but she often felt the climate not much better than the southern deserts in how warm it got during the summer months.

She walked, going from shade to shade provided by the buildings before eventually reaching the academy library. The place was slowly turning to be one of her favorite places to be in, due to the quiet it provided. It also helped that the library seemed to contain almost everything that she could hope to look for within it, and more.

If only I had access to the deeper regions of this place. The things I could learn…

Putting the thought behind her, Jennifer walked further into the building. A brief nod to Ithea at the desk later, Jennifer was quickly scouring through the books, trying to find something that would reveal more information on time magic, or perhaps what had happened to the giants when her eyes stumbled upon a decrepit book.

She stared at the odd book that seemed extremely out of place amongst the shelf with every other book layered with enchantments to keep them preserved. Her curiosity sufficiently piqued she picked up the book, flipping it open. A little cloud of dust had her in a coughing fit, her eyes stinging. Jennifer quickly used agile wind to blow away the dust, before taking another look into the book.

Strange characters that she couldn’t recognise were written inside, with what looked to be a list of names and some descriptions. She continued to flip through the book, trying to see if she could find some resemblance to any language she was aware of. Jennifer was no linguist, but she knew a fair number of languages well enough to at least know what she was looking at.

Some words caught Jennifer’s eye, characters different even from the rest of the entries. With strange strokes and symbols drawn that resembled, more so than any other written language. Yet for some reason Jennifer found her eyes drawn to them, a strange tug compelling her to pour her magic within.

Yeah, right. As if I’d go about pouring magic into strange unknown books that have clearly got something shady going on with them.

Jennifer closed the book, putting it back on the shelf as she began her search anew for time related books. A sudden shudder halted Jennifer’s steps that ran through the shelf, she turned to look at the source of disturbance when all of a sudden, words began to float in front of her eyes.

Ding! Integration of Alpha system initiated!

"Huh" Jennifer muttered, staring at the message prompt but the words faded away before she could give them a second look. A system prompt while she was wide awake? That was... unusual. The system messages were a quiet thing, a whisper of the world within your mind, heard near the edge of sleep, or as she'd found out, near the edge of death as well. But in either case, the system was never this loud boisterous thing, and what was that odd chime when it had spoken?

Ding! For awakening the Alpha System, you’ve obtained the title “System Forerunner!”

Processing…

Please check your ‘Status’

"Status?" Jennifer muttered out loud, and almost jumped when a blue screen manifested in front of her face with no warning.

Status

Name: Jennifer Laine
Age: 17
Species: Human
Soul Rank - Unranked

Class: [Resourceful Enchanted - lvl 16]
Titles: Mark of Time, System Forerunner.

Skills:

[Enhanced Mana Sense]
[Twofold Enchanting]
[Quick Repair]
[Hastened Enchanting]
[Lune Stone: Guard]
[Enchanted Glass Creation]
[Lesser Arcane Analysis]

Stats:

Vigor: 20
Strength: 14
Dexterity: 17
Endurance: 12
Perception: 16
Magic: 34
Arcane: 28

“Sera, what is going on?” Jennifer said, looking around confused as she tried to find if there was someone else who was seeing something similar. Why had… the system itself changed? Was it because she had touched that strange book?

She took another look at the screen, reading through it once more. Her skills were all listed out within it, alongside titles? She knew of titles, rare things gained when someone had achieved an accomplishment worthy enough to gain a name forever tied to them. It shouldn’t have been so easy to gain one… unless.

Jennifer found her eye drawn back to the old book. I need to see. Is this an illusion? Mind trick? But then why would they keep something like that out in the open here?

She picked up the book once more, quickly reaching the page upon which she had seen the character. The strange pull tugged at her once more as she saw the words, and even though she did not know the language itself, the meaning of the words made itself aware to her.

“The 3rd Law of Cultivation… Qi = MC^2?”

Thunder crackled around her, as light erupted in a frenzy. The world split in two, as an unending darkness peeked from behind. Then, from within the dark, a man stumbled out, his hair long, falling down to his waist, and with dark black hair and eyes that looked about in confusion.

Jennifer jumped back, clutching the book to her chest as her heart thundered in her chest. She stared at the man as he muttered something, cursing a couple of times as he looked around before his eyes settled onto her.

“你知道这个地方在哪里吗？对不起，我想我有点迷路了”

Jennifer blinked at the man, his words sharp and nasal, different from any language that she’d ever heard of. “Umm, I don’t think I know that language.”

The man’s eyes widened in surprise as he heard the words. “Wait, English? No hold on, this is something different. Similar but not quite. Huh, how strange. I can still talk though,” the man spoke, this time in common tongue and it was Jennifer’s turn to stare.

Her eyes looked the man up and down, observing the strange robes he wore. The clothes reminded her of the garments of people from a far off land, far to the east, but Jennifer knew precious little about the other continents. There was almost no contact between them and Lienmont, with its central location on the continent.

“I still can’t believe I got transmigrated again! Or is this isekaied?” the man muttered, rubbing his chin in thought. “Wait, can I still use Qi?” he added suddenly, before pushing his hand forwards. Fire erupted on his palms and Jennifer found herself, staring, her eyes stuck on the flames.

What? Just how- there was no mana used!

Jennifer stared at the man, as he blinked out the flame. For a moment, dark wisps poured around him, and she saw his form shifting. The color of his eyes inverted, as a sinister aura covered them. The feeling faded within moments and Jennifer felt herself getting more and more confused.

“Who are you?” she asked the man. “A spirit? From this book? But you’re so real and I don’t sense a single spell on you…”

“I think I’m the one who wants to know honestly. Where the fuck is this place? Looks like a library, but a lot more- not modern. Western? A lot more familiar somehow. There’s no Qi here either, but I still have what’s in my dantian. How did I even get here? Last I remember, I didn’t just die again,” the man said, scratching his head.

Jennifer felt her chest tighten at the end of the man’s words. Die again? So has he… died before as well? Does he know something? No, first I need to figure out what in Sera’s name is going on.

“Oh, hold the fuck on. This is a LitRPG??” the man let out a long pained groan, as his fingers pointed at something in the air. Jennifer assumed it was a screen like the one she’d seen.

“Out of Xianxia and in a LitRPG. Fuck me man. Labby isn’t around either. This is such a pain in the ass,” the guy muttered, before turning towards her. “Sorry, I just- anyway, I’m Lu Jie. Not really sure how I got to this world, but I’m pretty sure I’m not supposed to be here. What’s your name?”

Jennifer stared at the man, and the hand he’d extended before she went ahead and grabbed it. “I’m Jennifer Laine. I… think I might’ve got you here by mistake?” she replied and the man calmly nodded.

“Seeing that old, clearly magical book in your hand that you’ve been clutching, I’m assuming it’s that. I’m just surprised that no one came around to check in with all that noise. You’d think someone would notice in a Library.”

Now that he mentions it… Jeninfer looked around in surprise. Why hadn’t Ithea come in to check? Or anyone else for that matter? She hadn’t exactly been quiet, and with so much magic being thrown around, it was odd for no one to notice.

“Oh shit. Come with me,” Lu Jie said, grabbing Jennifer's hand. A strange energy passed over her, before the man ran ahead at inhuman speeds, pulling her along with him. Jennifer stumbled for a moment, before she gathered herself, with a pulse of mana, she flared Agile Wind all around her and began to run on her own.

The two quickly reached the other end of the library, where Jennifer noticed a massive crack cutting the building in half. Outside swirled a storm larger than almost anything she’d seen, with islands that floated across the sky. The sky that the library was now floating in.

“I’m… assuming this isn’t normal?” Lu Jie muttered, turning towards a similarly stunned Jennifer.

She shook her head in response, turning to look at Lu Jie. Just what had she gotten herself into?

“Ah well, crap. We’ll need to find some other way back. For both of us. But for now, since we’re stuck together and might die here tragically and very awfully, how about we both get to know each other better? It’d suck to-” before Lu Jie could finish his words, Jennifer felt something pull at her. Words floated in front of her eyes as she turned, and saw a massive beast flying towards them.

Ding! You’ve encountered a [Tyrannical Abyss Dragon - ???]. Your movement has been restricted for 15 seconds.

“Of fucking course,” Lu Jie cursed.

Jennifer couldn’t help but mimic the sentiment. Sera, I’m so dead aren’t I?

Art for Jennifer!

I got some art! I can't believe it took me this long before I got some. She looks... not much like how I envision her, but this image also sorta grew on me. Behold, anime MC Jenn! 

Also, if anyone would be kind enough to leave a review on RR I'd really appreciate that. The story is on Rising stars, and any reviews and so on would help push it on the list.

14 — Hidden Clues

A/N: Sorry for the late chapter, this one took me a bit. Both due to moving into the college dorm and because there was a fair bit to piece together. The chapter will likely go through another editing pass, but for now, here it is!

***
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Little leaves of light swirled around Jennifer’s hand, moving about as if strung together by an invisible thread from their tips and being swirled around. Which was precisely what Jennifer was doing as she manipulated and worked on her light shaping exercise. The idea had struck her recently to attach the leaves of light together with a mana thread which she could then manipulate, to simultaneously move all the other leaves.

It’d partially done the trick, allowing her to move multiple leaves together, without dividing her attention in every other way to keep the spell from breaking apart, but the trick lacked the fluttering motion typical to leaves, as the leaves were simply pulled along together. Nonetheless, the progress pleased Jennifer. She quickly dispelled the spell upon reaching the academy gates, glancing briefly at the two massive statues set on both sides as she stepped into the wide hall within.

Jennifer had spent the last few days reading up on chained casts, glass magic, and exploring her own new class. [Glass Mage] was fairly different to her [Resourceful Enchanter] class as her own mana was now distinctly tinged with glass affinity. It’d affected her wind based spells, manifesting little shards of glass and interrupting proper spell matrix formation. While the reduced control was annoying, it was more than made up for by the increased firepower of her glass spells.

She had almost blown a hole into her room's hall when she’d mistakenly let loose a glass blade at home. It was a warning to be careful with her rapidly growing skills and magic, lest she end up hurting Keith, or someone else without intending to. The close call with her spell had quickly made her realize the need for a proper training space for her magic like she’d had with the guild. Which had brought her back to the academy, looking for precisely that.

She doubted that the academy would spend even close to what the guild had in terms of potions and resources to train her. Just the thought of all the progress she could make had been enough to tempt her to reach out to the guild once more, and spend the rest of this month training with Nathaniel, but Jennifer had decided to exercise some patience, and head to the Academy first. She did not want to risk another encounter with the Demon either, seeing how her life was dependent on her Mark, which, based on the nature of the trial, she assumed could be taken away from her.

Unless my Mark is different somehow, but having someone be able to go back in time upon death is far too ridiculous an ability. Why even bother having a trial then? Far more likely to think that there is some method to overcome the time reset ability. I just hope I can find it before the demon does.

The pristine interior of the academy halls greeted her with its slick tiled floors that shimmered with magic filling each crevice. She wondered just how much magic was hidden in these halls.

“Back here are we?” a voice called out, breaking Jennifer out of her thoughts. Her gaze traveled forward, at the little head rising just above the table of a familiar gnome.

“Yes, I was hoping to meet Magus Beritross,” Jennifer asked the woman, walking up to the counter as she placed her card on top.

“He’s around, although I can't say if he’ll be accepting visitors. Head to the third training facility, down the left corridor in the combat training section and you’ll find him there,” the gnome woman, Minceli Togglecloack as the little card on the desk said, eyed Jennifer briefly. The woman inspected her card with a quick glance before returning it to Jennifer’s hands. “From now on, try to leave a message spell before looking for any of the Mages. Beritross is one of the few people who entertains uninvited guests, you won’t find such luck with the others,” she added.

Jennifer nodded briefly, picking up her card as the woman registered her name in the entry book. Looking around for a moment to find where she needed to go, she quickly made her way towards the training halls.

She quickly found the magus, firing off glowing projectiles at a girl that was swiftly dodging through them all, as she made her way towards the magus. A sharp beam shot towards the girl as she twirled around the attack, her green hair coming loose from the knot she’d kept it in and flowing all around her face.

The magus stopped upon noticing Jennifer standing, quickly dodging the other girl’s attack before sending her sprawling across the room. Jennifer stared wide eyed at the girl, before turning towards the magus with a concerned look. That last hit hadn’t been light.

“Changes your mind about the grade skipping?” the magus asked.

Jennifer stared blankly, unsure of what to say as her eyes remained fixed on the girl with odd green hair slowly pulling herself up.

“Is she alright?” Jennifer asked.

“Ah, she’s fine. If her guard was broken by just that then we wouldn’t be training here,” the Magus replied, before turning towards her. “And you didn’t answer my question.”

“No, I actually wanted to talk about being able to train here. Or perhaps get some instructions from a teacher about my new [Glass Mage] class,” Jennifer said, as the Magus frowned at her.

“Well, any form of proper apprenticeship cannot happen until you have qualified for the position,” the Magus replied as Jennifer’s heart sank. She’d been afraid of hearing that. “But,” he added, glancing at the green haired girl. “What do you think Loux? Care to teach a promising mage enchanter with a rare affinity?”

“No,” the girl - Loux - replied curtly, gathering her scattered hair into a ponytail that she tied tightly behind her head.

“Don’t be like that. You might change your mind if you see Jennifer fight. She has a surprising drive for someone with such methodical casting methods,” the Magus added, but Loux didn’t reply, standing silently next to Jennifer with a straight gaze set at the Magus.

Magus Beritross turned to regard Jennifer. “This is Loux Nekrot, the same age as you, and a certified tier 3 apprentice mage. I’m training her till the academy can find a more suitable teacher for her, and if Noux agrees to teach you, then we can have you here without officially establishing any form of apprenticeship,” the magus said.

Jennifer glanced over to the girl hesitantly. She had a feeling that she wasn’t too well liked by her. “Will you—”

“No,” Loux cut Jennifer off, extending her hand as a glowing blade of mana appeared in it. “Can we start again already?” she grumbled at Beritross.

“My apologies Jennifer, I’ll talk to you properly at a later period of time. In the meanwhile, I suggest heading to the library and asking Ithea to show you some spells and books on glass magic and records of glass mages. I think you’re the ‘learn by preparing beforehand’ instead of a ‘learn by practice’ type anyway,” the magus said, as mana swirled around him, forming projectiles that shot towards Loux in a frenzy.

Jennifer stepped back, watching the fight continue for a few more moments as the girl continued to run around madly with high speeds, slicing through projectiles and launching boltes of mana towards the mage. The method of fighting was oddly reminiscent of her own, and Jennifer felt an itch to bring out her [Blood Dagger] and test it out somehow.

Later. I should probably head on to the library first.

With a set of conflicted emotions at the rejection, that was very quickly replaced by excitement to see new spells and look at the many books in the academy’s library, she made her way ahead.

***

Jennifer had expected the library to be big, knowing that it was one of the things that made the Academy famous, but she still hadn’t expected it to be bigger than the central city plaza itself. Her eyes wandered around in wonder at the massive library that stretched on high above to upper floors as well, stacked full with books upon books present on them, set firmly with powerful wards to prevent any form of theft.

Space magic and internal dimension expansion. There’s no other way this place can be so big otherwise.

Forcing her eyes to prey away from popping out like a country bumpkin, Jennifer walked up to the counter near the entrance and spotted a woman standing there, wearing a cheerful smile on her face.

“How can I help you?” the woman asked upon noticing Jennifer walking towards the counter.

“Magus Beritross sent me here for some books,” Jennifer replied, watching as the woman’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Beritross? Oh my. That man actually sent someone to the library of all places? Astounding,” Ithea, the librarian with light brown hair tied in twin braids, gasped, staring at Jennifer as if she was some mythical creature. The look was quickly starting to bother Jennifer.

“Oh I tease, forgive me. What are you looking for?” Ithea asked, smiling cheerfully as she dropped her astounded expression and Jennifer took a breath, re-preparing herself for the conversation before she spoke.

“Magus Beritross had sent me here to look for books related to [Glass Mages] and glass magic. I’m afraid he didn’t say anything more than that.”

Ithea nodded. “Sure, let me just look for a second.” The woman bent down behind her desk, before picking out a massive tome from within that dropped down with a heavy thud onto the counter. She heard the woman mutter something under her breath, as the pages flipped open. Likely a skill, as the gnome Minceli had used a very similar skill as well.

“You want to look at the 27th row’s 134th shelf, right there on the right side. It’ll contain information on glass magic, and the Glass eye of the sun.”

“Glass eye of the sun?” Jennifer asked, confused at the name.

“A desert made of glass, and the largest source of glass magic related items. There used to be an empire there, or so a lot of people believe. It’s actually a really fascinating piece of history, as the empire had vanished practically overnight centuries ago, with almost no traces of it left behind, and if you let me go on any longer then I’ll start rambling. You should read about it, if you have the time,” Ithea said, smiling and Jennifer nodded, turning around. Even if the topic interested her, she had better things to look into right now.

“Oh, one last thing. Where can I find a Tier-0 divination spell? To find books for example,” Jennifer asked.

“I know one, so I can simply teach you whenever. But if you want to read up more books on divination magic and so on, then it’s on the second floor, the 58th row, 98th shelf to the left. The stairs are to the left. There’s signs everywhere, and a map as well if you need it. I know I did the first time I came here,” Ithea said, and Jennifer thought on it for a second before accepting the offer for the map. She walked around the big library, glancing at the map in her hand before she took a deep breath.

Jennifer had a feeling that she was going to be in here for a while.

***

The dying rays of the run filtered in through the magic tinged windows, as the mage light illuminating the library lit up the inside of the area. Jennifer silently flipped through her book on the history of glass magic, sitting next to a large bundle of books next to it ranging from information on glass magic, spell types, chronomancy and time magic fields, and history of the Giants and their runes pertaining to time.

Yet, it had been something completely unrelated to all of those topics that had caught her interest. A little something called a Death skill. A skill of strength beyond the level it was gained on, obtained by the truly desperate, or those pushed to the very brink upon the edge of death. There were rituals of blood magic, and necromancy that utilized this method and sacrificed people to obtain these forbidden skills of power, one of which mentioned a dagger of blood-glass.

The tangent had taken Jennifer down ancient history and the old utilization of glass as a soul gem. A device meant to harbor souls, and contain them, with glass being one of the few materials that was exceptionally good at the job. Blood-glass, doubly so.

I wonder if my soul can get trapped in something like this too. Would my Mark’s ability still be able to save me? Or- what if I could trap someone else’s soul in this and drag it back in time with me. What would happen to their old soul?

A myriad of questions and hypotheses had arisen as Jennifer had continued to look into the history of soul gems, forbidden glass magic, and the lost empire in the dessert of glass. The glass eye of the sun.

Jennifer heard the sound of steps coming from behind the table she’d taken a seat at, and turned around to see Ithea smiling at her. “Having fun?” she asked, and Jennifer nodded in response, trying not to act too suspicious about the fact that she was looking into forbidden magic.

“Ah, blood magic. Reminds me of my youth,” Ithea said with a laugh. Jennifer felt the blood drain from her face for a moment.

“I jest. But not completely. Every mage has tried to learn more about the forbidden fields of magic out of curiosity. They wouldn’t be here if they lacked that curiosity in the first place,” Ithea said, winking at Jennifer, who took a silent breath of relief.

“In either case, I’m afraid that I have to close the library now. Students are allowed to stay till midnight, but since the first year hasn’t started yet, I can’t allow that just yet,” Ithea said with an apologetic smile, and Jennifer nodded. She’d gotten enough material to think over and go through for now, and she’d already made plans for revisits to the library at a later point. It’d likely be a big help in her research to find methods to counter a linked shield effectively. She did not plan to fail the second time around.

“It’s alright, I was almost done anyway,” Jennifer said, as she quickly stood up and started to pick the books. After walking around for a while with Ithea, and returning the books to their places, she paused when the older woman grabbed her hand.

“As promised, let me show you the divination spell,” Ithea said, drawing a little spell matrix on her hand with lines of mana traced upon them. Three straight lines with a single circle at the center. “Try it now?”

Jennifer tried the gesture, drawing the spell lines with her finger in the air as she poured her mana, and the divination link manifested, waiting for something to attack itself to. Jennifer stood in silence for a moment, before tying the spell to the Mark at her hand.

The spell shuddered once, stretching thin for a moment before snapping. Jennifer turned to look at Ithea and found the woman frowning.

“That’s odd. The thread shouldn’t have snapped if it found nothing. It would just float about and then fade. What did you look for?” Ithea asked, turning to look at Jennifer.

“Uhh, some old cryptic murals I’d found somewhere. I hadn’t recognised the language and thought maybe something might be in here,” Jeninfer replied with a half lie.

“Hmm, strange. Oh well, practice with it and it’ll serve as a really handy tool for whenever you’d like to visit the library,” Ithea said with a smile and Jennifer returned a smile of her own. She couldn’t deny that she’d enjoyed her time here a lot more than she’d expected to.

Gaining clues on her [Blood Dagger] and the mentions of Death had also been a surprising find. With the death skills being something that Jennifer could try and leverage to obtain with her unique circumstances as well.

“When is the library open?” she asked Ithea, as the older woman walked her out.

“All days of the week, from sunrise till about sunset,” Ithea said and Jennifer nodded. She was already estimating that a large part of this month would be spent here, looking for information and details about demons, glass magic, time magic, her Mark, and the hundreds of questions that she was looking for an answer to.

I’ll also need to find a way to talk to that Loux girl. It’d be a shame to miss out on the combat lessons.

With a plan slowly forming in her mind, Jennifer stepped out of the library. It was time to make a new friend.

***

“No,” said Loux, shutting the door on Jennifer’s face with a slam.

Jennifer stared at the closed door for a while in silence, taken aback by the response. Definitely off to a good start here, Jennifer.

“Can you just hear me out?” Jennifer called out to the closed door, but heard no response from inside. What’s up with her? Did I do something?

“Hello? Loux? Just hear me out please? I promise it won’t take long,” Jennifer said to the door, and heard a loud smack come from inside, followed by quiet murmuring that she could barely catch.

“I just need you to agree to teach me. I don’t plan to be a bother to you, I just need some help with figuring out my new class,” Jennifer continued talking to the door. “Magus Beritross said the academy was looking for an instructor for you. If you help me out, I could get you in contact with a member of a Ranked plate team.” She held her breath, waiting after her proclamation. The plan had always been to get to Nathaniel, and if Jennifer could get her apprenticeship, then she could get Loux in talks with Nathaniel, so it wasn’t technically a lie.

Moments passed in silence, as Jennifer stood outside the door. She was just about to turn around and walk away in defeat when the creaking sound of a door opening pulled her back.

Loux stood silently, opening the door lightly as she watched Jennifer with a wary gaze. “How?” the girl asked, and Jennifer tried to not smile at finally getting the girl to talk to her.

“I plan to get an apprenticeship under an adventurer called Nathaniel. I know him- sort of. And I’m fairly confident in being able to convince him, all I need is some training and practice to be able to qualify on the test,” Jennifer replied, carefully watching Loux’s expression. The other girl held a passive face, her deep green eyes looking back at Jennifer with an odd intensity.

“No,” Loux replied, closing the door shut.

“Hey! Hold on-” Jennifer said. She called out a few more times, but received no further response. Deciding that she was not going to get anywhere with this method, she turned around and began to make her way out of the Academy dorms.

There went the direct approach plan. Oh well, if it doesn’t work then I can try again in the next reset.

Jennifer paused in her steps at the thought, frowning. Since when had she gotten so used to the fact that she could try again? From what she knew, the only real way for her to go back in time was to die somehow, an experience that she didn’t want to re-experience. Yet the casual manner in which she’d brushed off the task for a future reset on her own took her off guard.

Am I just getting numb to it, now that I’ve died twice? Or is the Mark somehow making me more accepting of these resets and my potential death?

Having her mind, or perhaps her very soul tampered with was an unnerving thought that made Jennifer panic for a brief moment. She soon calmed down, realizing the futility of the thought, but decided to be vary of any thoughts that casually brushed off her own death. She didn’t want to get too used to dying if she could help it.

Jennifer walked through the academy grounds, thinking over the topic. If Mark was having an influence on her behavior, then she had no real way to tell. It could also be the fact that she’s simply changed from everything that's happened since the first invasion.  Wars change people, or so they say. I imagine dying does the same.

Brushing the thoughts aside, she began to plan for her next steps. Loux was a hurdle she needed to overcome, and for that, she needed more information on the girl. As things stood, all she knew about her was that the girl was a transfer student, and something akin to a prodigy in combat magic.

Jennifer walked out of the Academy gates, slowly starting to come up with a plan. Even with her hesitation of dying, she knew that there was no real way for her to stop the invasion from happening again this month. She just needed to not get stuck on the thought of her death, as if that was all it took to keep her family, friends and everyone’s life safe, then it was a small price to pay.

Grim thoughts later. I should meet up with Rumina now.

With a budding plan for her actions over the next few weeks, and lots of magic to practice, Jennifer headed back from the Academy.

***

“Elphion damn me, this is the funniest thing I’ve heard all week!” Rumina exclaimed, cackling with mirth. Jennifer gave her friend a silent glare of frustration. It wasn’t funny to her.

“You actually found someone more antisocial than you, now you’ll know what it’s like for a stranger to interact with you,” Rumina said with a grin and Jennifer struggled not to roll her eyes. She wasn’t that bad.

“Leaving that aside, I do need you to help me out with the girl. I need to know a bit more about her to understand how I’ll talk to her and convince her to help me out,” Jennifer said, looking at Rumina.

“Sure,” the red head replied, twirling her dagger. “It shouldn’t be tough to find out more about her. I probably won’t even have to go through the guild, there’s enough information that passes by through the guild that I can simply filter and point in the right direction to find who she is,” Rumina said, smiling.

“Well, I’ll leave the sneaking around and finding information up to you. I still need to practice my magic, and look into chained cast shields. That and ‘Death skills’ and my [Blood Dagger]. Talking about the dagger, do you think the thieves guild could be asked to move out and look into the demon’s movements?”

“No,” Rumina replied. “The thieves guild isn’t really a unified entity in almost any scenario. Members of the guild could be working against one another within the same guild at any given time. The only rule is that any conflict will not be brought within the workings of the guild itself. The only real way to move the entire guild would be to meet the guild head. You really don’t want to do that.”

Jennifer nodded at Rumina’s words, but the idea remained in her mind. She couldn’t move the guild right now, but if she took her time and found the right pieces, then perhaps it wasn’t an impossible scenario. Having the guild counteract the demons and their movements would help immensely with finding the demon as well.

“Anyway, I do have some news. I’ve found some information about an Ostiri caravan arriving at Lienmont. The timing is a bit too suspicious so I’ll be looking in that direction as well. Beyond that though, there’s been next to nothing on the demons themselves. If they’re in the city, then they’re hiding really really well.”

Jennifer frowned at the words. She remembered hearing about the Ostiri caravan that had arrived, but the event had slipped her mind with the new dungeon branch and her own admission in the academy.

“I remember the caravan. But unlike what people had expected, there had been little to no trouble from them. If anything, the orc mercenaries that’d arrived had caused a lot more of a ruckus, an abnormal amount. I’d met irwys in a fight with one of them as well, which is extremely odd knowing the man and how calm and collected he tends to be. The Orcs on the other hand had been provocative, in every incident that had occured, almost as if… they wanted to draw the attention away from something,” Jennifer said the words, her eyes widening in realization as she turned to look at Rumina.

“Do you think the orcs are working with the demons?” Rumina asked, her voice suppressed to quiet whispers.

“I don’t know. But it would explain why the orcs who have been trying to finally step into the Alliance would suddenly start causing so much trouble in an allied city like Lienmont. But why? What could possibly come from working with demons?”

“If only we knew,” Rumina replied. “I’ll look into the orcs as well,” the girl added.

Jennier nodded. The more she looked, the more hidden layers began to appear. She planned to leave the investigation to Rumina - there were other things that demanded her attention.

***

The rhythmic clang of her Master’s hammer filled the smithy. Jennifer found the weeks to have flown by in between her frequent visits to the library, her repeated approach with Loux, and her own training and practice with her magic. Over the weeks she’d started to gain increasing control over her glass mana spells with time, but while the glass magic progressed steadily, the light shaping trick remained a frustrating endeavor that she just couldn’t seem to overcome. The lack of progress had almost made Jennifer quit on it, but she’d stubbornly clung on, refusing to give in so easily.

There had been little news from Rumina about the caravan or the orcs either. If there was any connection then Rumina hadn’t been able to find it so far. Jennifer had made sure to visit her friend frequently and check in on her through the past weeks. She did not wish to lose her friend again.

“What’re ye so lost in thought about?” her master asked, looking at her.

Jennifer stared back, realizing that her mind had drifted apart once more. “Nothing, sorry,” she replied, as she picked up her crystal and began to trace the spell matrices onto the piece of armor. A few moments paused as Jennifer worked in silence.

Should I tell him? It’s almost the end of the month, and if I do nothing now then the invasion will begin soon.

Glancing up at her Master, Jennifer called out. “Master, I have something to say.”

“Aye, what is it?” her master asked, turning to look at her.

Jennifer walked closer, and took a breath and lifted her hand to show the Mark. “I’ve gained this Mark which sent me back in time. Multiple times. There’s an invasion coming and I need us to be somewhere safe when it happens.”

Her Master stared at her, his eyebrows settling into a frown. Keeping her mind from being distracted, Jennifer continued. In a go, she gave her master a brief rundown of the invasion and the demons, mentioning the demon in the guild alongside showing her mark and glass magic.

Time flew past as she talked with her Master, thankfully not breaking down like she had the first time around. This being the second time she’d done this helped her settle her thoughts and present them in a much more calm and collected manner.

“You can bring out the truth scroll if you want, or the Appraisal ring. I can speak on both of this, each part and each aspect. None of this is a lie,” Jennifer said, and saw her Master halt.

The man turned to stare her in the eye, assessing her expression. She watched his frown deepen, as curses filled the smithy, as the realization settled upon him. “Well damn me lass,” Haireth cursed. “Ye’ve convinced me, more than convinced me. Rotten depths, the blasted demons of all things. Lass, head home. I’m heading to the guild. I need to sort some things out.”

Her master walked out briskly and Jennifer soon followed, closing the smithy as she left and made her way towards her home. If she remembered right, then there should still be a week or so left before the invasion began, but Jennifer did not plan to wait long enough to find out and risk her family.

Running quickly, she opened the door and walked inside her home. She quickly made her way up to her room and went through her notes. There were still five days left for the invasion. She had some time.

Jennifer breathed a sigh of relief, which was soon replaced by anxiety that filled her chest. She needed to talk to her parents. The hours started to fly past as Jenn remained in her room, trying to think of how best to talk about everything. The thought of telling them that she’d failed to do anything, that she didn’t even know if they’d survived was a heavy weight on her chest, and one that bore down upon her all the more at this time.

Gathering her will, Jennifer stepped out of her room. She needed to talk to them, one way or another. Delaying was not going to help. Walking down the stairs, Jennifer went to the living room, where she saw her mother walking about, as she worked on preparing dinner.

“Hungry? Food will be ready soon,” her mother said upon noticing Jennifer.

“Where’s dad?” Jennifer asked, looking at her mother.

“He went out for some work, should be back soon. Do you need something?” her mother asked. Jennifer shook her head in reply.

Walking ahead, she felt her chest straining. A hole began to bud in Jennifer’s gut as she walked around restlessly, unsure of what to say. Feeling sick of the anxiety and the rising stress, Jennifer walked up to her mother.

“Mom, I need to talk about something,” a tremor interrupted her words, accompanied by a powerful explosion as the ground shook beneath her feet. Jennifer’s eyes widened in surprise. There was no way the invasion was happening this quickly. In a burst of panic she rushed to the door, slamming it open as she tried to look at the city walls. She frowned in surprise when she saw no flame pillars or massive beasts tackling the walls. There was nothing.

“Just what is happening-” her lips clammed up as a sudden weight descended onto her mind. The piercing headache descended onto her as the world began to spin rapidly. Her body turned heavy, her legs giving out. A shadow writhed in her dimming gaze, as Jennifer fell.

With a swift motion, a dark tendril shot towards her chest, piercing her heart, and her world turned dark.

***

Mark of Time:
The Mark of the Chosen of Time.

Bond of Fate: Fated strings
A Bond born from the union of Time and Fate

Abilities: Time Reset
Resets: 3

Integrity: 97.78%
Tier: Undefined

The system message floated in front of Jennifer’s eyes, prompting a blink from her. She stared at the message, as her mind played through a jumble of thoughts.

The image of a dark tendril piercing her chest had Jennifer freeze up, and stumble back. She gasped for breath, clutching her chest as she doubled over in the shock and surprise. Just what had happened? She… died? How was she even found? Was the demon able to find her so quickly after her Master had gone to the guild, even after she’d warned him? Was the tremor an illusion?

Clutching her chest, Jennifer took a long deep breath, wiping the sweat off her forehead as she ignored the numb phantom pain that lingered in her chest. She needed to think, think about how she’d been found, and what mistake she’d made this time. The demons had a way to find her, and if they did, then they also had a way to get to her family. Jennifer suppressed the shiver in her hand as she focused and began to write.

She had underestimated her foe - not once but twice. She did not plan to make the same mistake again.

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Moving Out

I'm finally moving out to my college tomorrow, and it's been a crazy busy week. Chapters should be posted as normal, but catching up to the 10 chapter ahead for the gold tier may take a couple extra weeks. I'll try my best, I've got the next few chapters ready but there needs to be  a few extra chapters that need to be added in between and I can't say if I'll get the time to write more than one in the next week.

The story is also on Rising stars! So if anyone would like to leave a review, now would be the time. If you're waiting till things reach a solid endpoint and we're further in the story that's perfectly alright as well.

Thanks for all the support and for reading, I'll try my best to catch up and get all the advanced chapters out, hopefully by the end of this month.

13 — The Mage Academy

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A/N: Changes have been made to the second half of this chapter. Story takes a different direction.

***

A pulsing rush of excitement filled Jennifer’s heart as she walked up the hill, following the neatly brick road that led to the Academy’s ground. The place she’d dreamt to join on her goal to becoming an [Enchanter], it stood in front of her now.

Lienmont's Academy for Mage Crafts and Arts. Much better known as The Academy, was a well known institution with one of the largest libraries of the many magecraft academies in Zweiril.

Most, if not all of the well known [Mages], [Enchanters] and other magic related professions had graduated from this Academy and the name had become synonymous with success in any magical crafts or scholarly pursuits.

Jennifer dusted her clothes, as she walked ahead, trying her best to maintain a proper look as she walked ahead.

Little blobs of light floated across the path, lightly illuminating the path. Jennifer saw the spell matrix spread all across the Academy powering them, though the circuits remained dormant during day time, likely absorbing the sunlight to store some of it as Light affinity mana.

Jennifer felt her fancy tickled, as her eyes danced across the pathway. Little buildings with many wards shimmered and Jennifer noted little rock structures floating in a display of some sort of art, held together by an earth shaping spell.

The building itself had multiple wards set on it, a lot of them as a display of their capability and a lot others as simple life convenience. Patches of flowers bloomed all across the path, a sight that could be seen even during winter due to the Climate control wards present on the area.

This was a place of Magic, a place where she was among peers. Others who could touch the mana and bend it to their wills to form the many spells, those who studied and honed their abilities to the best. She felt surrounded by magic all around her here, even the tiles of stone beneath her feet were layered with mana to prevent cracking.

It wasn’t the fancy shimmering wards that the Academy held atop its sprawling buildings that made Jennifer’s heart leap. But instead, the ignition runes used to start fires, the little water taps with the water runes, or the heat preservation enchantments to keep regulate the temperature instead.

Magic seemed mundane within the bounds of the Academy, and she hadn’t even stepped within the building yet. She wished to live this life one day, to live surrounded by magic in all aspects of her life. To learn the secrets of magic itself.

And none of this will happen if I cannot stop the invasion from happening.

Jennifer clenched her fist, recementing her purpose for being here. She wasn’t here as a student, or a young [Enchanter].

She was here as a Mark, and she had a task to fulfill.

Jennifer walked up to the entrance of the Academy, a large entrance surrounded by two statues. The gate thankfully was open, and Jennifer walked within the premises with a final lingering look.

A pristine interior awaited her, layered with polished marble on the floors with little runes carved into them. Jennifer looked around at the expansive entrance. A reception hall, but Jennifer spotted no one manning the location. She looked around in confusion as a thought occurred to her at last.

She had no idea where to go.

“Hey, hey you!” a voice shouted from behind. A boy ran up the path, wearing a simple white robe with blue trimmings that marked him as a senior at the academy.

“Uhh, yes?” Jennifer asked, looking at the stange, boy, his golden hair glimmering as he ran up to her.

“Do you know if the combat test has begu- oh, sorry, first year?” the boy asked, curiously looking at her up and down. “Doesn’t matter, do you know Magus Beritross is holding his class? Wait, why am I asking this a First year, sorry!”

Jennifer stared as the boy began to rush away. “Hey! Hold on!” she called behind him as the boy stopped, looking at her in a rush.

“Can you point me to the reception?” Jennifer asked, as the boy looked at her strangely for a moment.

“Right there, knock on the counter if you see no one. I need to go now, see you!”

Jennifer watched the boy run off, amused by his strange antics. She noticed the little glistening blobs of mana that flowed around him. A [Mage] most likely.

A smile curved Jenn’s lips up upon meeting a [Mage] so close to her in age.

Jennifer followed the path the boy pointed her towards, inside a reception hall. The tinge of mana touched her nose pleasantly, her eyes wandering across the statues and paintings lining the walls, alongside other decorations in the large hall-like area.

Jennifer walked up to the counter, looking around hesitantly. Then, she extended her hand, and knocked onto the wood.

“What do you need?”

Jennifer jumped at the sharp voice, looking around to find the source of it. A woman climbed from walking back, as she placed a tiny platform on the floor before climbing onto the desk, accompanied by grumbles. Jennifer had never heard such an interesting assortment of curses for furniture in her life.

“I’m Jennifer Laine, first year,” Jennifer said, watching the woman with fascination. Even in Lienmont, she’d never met a gnome before.

The short woman put on a pair of comically large glasses as she turned to look at her. “First year? You didn’t get the notice? First years will join late this year.”

Jennifer stared blankly for a moment, before words returned to her. “I wanted to apply for the position of certified Apprentice Mage,” Jennifer said.

The gnome woman who looked up at her, raising her eyebrows comically high, the effect enhanced by her small stature and already large head for her size.

The woman opened a drawer, pulling out a large register. The pages flipped open, flapping across the table before they settled. The gnome woman dragged her finger across the page before settling onto one entry.

“Jennifer Laine. Seventeen years old. [Resourceful Enchanter] level 14. No special background,” the woman flipped the book close, before looking back at her as she added. “Confident are we?"

“Level 17,” Jennifer replied with a nod.

The woman stared at her a moment longer in surprise, before picking out a quill. “That’d explain it,” the woman muttered as she adjusted the entry in the book. "Well, follow along then.”

With a comical jump the gnome jumped down, cursing human sized furniture once more as she walked ahead.

Jennifer followed the woman, her nervousness building. The academy blurred past her, as she  failed to keep track of the many many wards, spells, artifacts and magical items she saw covering every inch of the academy. It was almost as if the Mages were afraid of having any spot be non magical.

A chamber appeared further ahead as Jenn followed the gnome woman. With a push, the gnome woman pushed open the gate. Jennifer walked in from behind her a moment later.

“Beritross! There’s an apprentice mage test taker here. First year, deal with it.” the gnome woman said as she stood on her tiptoes,  pointing towards Jennifer.

“What! Get someone else, I have a class today,” a man grumbled from further ahead.

Jennifer saw a group of about two dozen students standing in front of her, a quiet whisper going through them.

“No one’s else is free, you’ll have to take care of it. Or do this some other time,” the gnome woman replied, turning to look at Jennifer.

The Mage turned to face Jennifer and sighed, motioning her to come forward.

Jennifer thought she saw a smirk on the gnome woman’s face as she handed her a card and turned to walk out the chamber, leaving her with two dozen people staring at her.

Jennifer felt her gut churning. She’d never been good at dealing with attention, and being on the spot like this only made everything worse. As her eyes drifted across the students, she stumbled upon a familiar head of blonde hair looking back at her in surprise.

Jennifer stared at his outstretched hand, not sure of what he meant.

“Your card, give it here,” the Mage spoke.

Jennifer fumbled around, looking at the card the gnome woman had given her for a moment before handing it to him.

“[Resourceful Enchanter], decent-ish level, average mana output, but an enchanting class?” the mage raised an eyebrow as he turned to look at her.

“Did you lose some kind of bet?” the mage asked and she heard some giggles sound out from the group of students behind her.

Jennifer felt a flush rising up to her cheeks. She bit the inside of her cheek lightly, as she controlled her expression and looked at the mage. “I did not. I am quite certain about taking this test.”

The mage returned her card, as he continued, “Very well. As long as you know that you only get a limited number of attempts at the position, I have no issues.” The mage turned towards the group of students, as he paused, scratching the stubble on his chin.

“Change of plans. We’ll be working on linked-shield casting today. The class will be limited to a linked Tier-1 spell that they have to maintain against you. Any counter attacks must all be Tier-1 and rebounds. No direct casting. You can use up to five skills and that’s it. If you guys lose, you’ll have a Fresher beat you to being an Apprentice Mage,” the Magus spoke, a grin forming on his face.

A wave spread through the students, some groaning and others muttering excitedly as they looked at her.

Jennifer stared blankly, as the words caught up to her. “What? But- an entire class of second years, isn’t that… Unfair?”

“Do you think combat is ever fair?” the Magus asked, turning to look at her with a serious expression. She noted the little scar on the right side of his chin, hidden beneath his beard. This was a man who lived within combat.

Jennifer nodded, as she turned to face the group of second years in front of her. She felt surprised when she didn't feel the crushing pressure she would’ve just a while back.

These were second years, second years who’d spent an entire year in this Academy of Magic. Yet, none of them had faced an invasion that burned the city to the ground. They hadn’t been trained by ranked adventurers and faced monsters straight out of a nightmare.

They hadn’t faced a Demon.

Jennifer let out a breath, calming her heart. She had gone through this month twice now, and lost her life two times to the upcoming invasion. It wasn’t a lot of time, but it had been enough to see her change.

“I’m ready,” Jennifer said as the mage clapped his hands.

“Alright! Take formation and start conjuring the spell,” the mage said.

Mana flared all around Jennifer as the twenty or so people around her took their position. She felt the spell forming, a glimmering barrier forming around the students. Jennifer took a deep breath. She wouldn't underestimate these students. They had many advantages she did not.

The barrier flickered for a moment, before the chained spell stabilized. Jennifer used [Lesser Arcane Analysis] to look at the spell.

Barrier (Linked)
Guard/Defense
Tier 1
A jointly cast barrier spell that provides a sturdy shield.

The spell has to cover all of them. It’s going to be thinned out. I just need to hit the right spots.

“Ready? Begin!” the mage shouted at the start.

Jennifer shot towards the shield with her Agile Wind. Mana circulated along her pathways, flowing as she’d been taught by Nathaniel. Jennifer stacked five glass mana bolt spell matrices on top of one another as she rushed directly towards the shield, and shot them all at once.

The shield flickered but maintained its shape. Beams of light shot ini her direction upon the attack. Jennifer swirled her magic, forming a shard of glass that shattered and blocked the attack.

Two blades of glass formed within her casting. Each taking one slot as she launched them towards the shield. The students took a step back from the impact as the barrier shuddered, but it was far from broken.

A few students broke off, as she saw a ball of fire form outside the barrier and shoot at her. A few other attacks followed behind.

Jennifer dodged to the side, swiftly turning around as she prepared a few more mana bolts. The students shifted as one, as did the structure of the shield, a second layer forming as it started to thicken in the direction she was in.

I need to find a weak spot and slam it. Hard.

Jennifer charged a mana bolt, pouring as much mana as she could into it while continuing to dodge. The bolt began to glow with a bright light, almost blinding her as it shot off towards the students like a lightning strike. Yet instead of touching the shield, the bolt shattered mid air, scattering into shards that pummeled the shield from multiple directions.

Jennifer saw the shield flicker to the left, a small dent in the spell matrix. She weaved a glass Wind blade, letting the magic flow through her with as much power as it could. Then, she layered another Glass blade spell into it, letting the two feed on each other. A pair of blades manifested on her hand with the sound of howling wind.

A whirlwind of glass spread around her as glass shards grew from the ground where she stood. Jennifer let the spell loose, her hand starting to numb from the magic flowing through.

The blades shot ahead, cutting through the spells as they slammed into the shield cracking it slightly.

A portion of it crumbled as the students within cried out. Jennifer stumbled as her mana buzzed through her body. Her eyes widened in mute surprise as she saw a large bolt of lightning rushing straight at her face.

“[Lune stone: Gu—” she canceled the skill mid way, leaping to the side. Lightning surged through her skin, making her tumble as beams of light followed behind.

Jennifer turned rolling as she saw the crack she’d formed slowly start to close up. She needed to hurry up.

“[Repair Matrix]” a voice spoke as the buried flickered, reasserting itself. “[Reinforce], [Guard], [Barrier]” other voices followed behind and Jennifer felt her heart sink. There was no sign of damage on the spell anymore, as it shimmered stronger than ever before.

I don’t have any mage skills. I can’t- how am I supposed to win here?

Jennifer channeled her mana, leaping as another bolt of light shot towards her. She turned, ready to cast her bolt when a thin bolt of light blinded her sight as another hit her chest, sending her tumbling.

“I think that’s enough—”

“No,”  Jennifer spoke, mana swirling around her.

She rushed to her feet, as the attacks resumed once more. Jennifer remembered the world Nat had told her, a realization that she’d failed to grasp.

All this time, she’d been fighting like an [Enchanter], sticking to the ingrained habits she’d formed over the years. Meticulous, and step by step, with each rune accounting for one section of the spell.

But this was a fight of [Mages], and to win, she would have to fight like one.

Mana channeled in her core, as Jennifer tapped into her glass affinity. It swirled, slowly rising to a crashing tide as her spell formed. Jennifer let go of her spell matrices, relying purely on instinct to guide her mana channeling.

Bolts of mana swirled around her, shooting ahead as she kicked off carried by wind. A single blade of glass remained held within her mind. Slot one.

She jumped, as fire licked at her, the students turning and distributing the mana across the shield to face the direction she was in.

Jennifer rushed faster, pouring more mana into Agile wind as she shot ahead.

“[Light Rebound]” a voice came, as a thick bolt of light shot at Jennifer. Jennifer formed a shard above her hand, leaping backwards as she dodged the beam, wincing at the heat of it.

Another spell thrummed in her core, as she rushed, ready to be used, and Jennifer drew on her mana all that she could. She couldn’t treat her spells like normal. It was glass, and it was meant to be used like glass.

The second blade was formed. Slot two.

Glass erupted all around Jennifer as hundreds of tiny shards shot towards the shield, pummeling it all around. Beams of light shot at Jennifer as she formed floating shards to deflect any that came close.

Magic brimmed to her core, as she held her stance, channeling both her spells together and piercing the blades together. The final blade slid into place. Slot three.

“[Triple Glass Blade]”  she spoke, as she felt herself reach at a skill she didn’t possess. Her mana shuddered at her words.

The glass blades shot off, howling with the promise of destruction as a frenzy of glass shards trailed behind them. The tiles cracked from the cutting edge, a smooth line running through the stone.

The shield flickered for a moment, but the structure remained sturdy.

A large bolt of lightning shot at Jennifer with a cry of frustration. Jennifer stumbled, failing to garner enough mana to deflect the spell as she watched the spell head right towards her.

“Enough,” A sharp clap sounded out as the mage spoke, the lighting bolt dissipating mid air.“All of you will write a report on why a linked guard struggled against a single mage, a young one as well. And what you could’ve done better."

The students groaned and glared at Jennifer, but the mage held up his hand, cutting them off. "But, you won’t have to re-take your tests,” the mage added and the students let out a collective relieved sigh.

Jennifer crouched on the floor, a throbbing pain coursing through her hand. A pair of boots entered her sight and Jennifer looked up to see the mage standing over her, a slight scowl on his face.

“I’m of half a mind to cancel the test entirely with how recklessly you blasted off that last spell. But you did compete with a second year classroom as a freshman, and as a non-mage too. It would be a waste to not have you,” the mage said, eyeing her as he grabbed her hand and pulled her up.

“Come to my office, I’ll check to make sure there’s no lasting pain. You didn’t overdraw though, so you should be fine,” he said, to which Jennifer simply nodded.

She turned back to see the boy from before standing in the group, glancing at her before turing his eyes away. Jennifer clenched her fists, feeling frustrated. She had been close, so very close. If she had pushed her pathways further, or if she’d known about how to deal with a chained cast shield then she would’ve won.

I can try again. And the next time, I’ll know what I’m up against.

She tried to pull herself up to her feet and found her legs giving out. The tension in her body let go all as one and Jennifer found the smooth tile rushing towards her face. She heard shouts, as a pair of hands grabbed her, arresting her fall. The quiet thrumming of glass mana pulsed between her ears, as her mind drifted through a haze.

Then, she heard the voice, a whisper of the world speaking in her mind, before it all faded to darkness.

[Class: Glass Mage] obtained!

[Glass Mage] has reached level 2!

[Skill: Glass Mana Pool] obtained!

***

Jennifer opened her eyes, finding mana being pulsed through her body. With a drowsy mind, she looked around the chamber from her bed. Someone sat on a seat nearby, and she noticed the man to be Magus Beritross, who was holding onto her palm. She tried to pull back but the Magus’ grip was firm as he continued to pulse mana through her hand with a frown set on his brows.

“Don’t move, you almost overdrew,” Magus Beritross said, as Jennifer gave up any resistance, and stared blankly at the white roof above.

“How long was I out?” Jennifer asked the mage, struggling to think. Post mana exhaustion symptoms. It had been a long time since she’d been that reckless with her mana output.

“About an hour,” the magus said, continuing his work. A few moments later he patted her hand, cutting off the mana flow. “You’re lucky there was no damage. Overdrawing can be the end of your spellcasting days. I’m as of yet unsure if your test should be nullified or not due to that act of recklessness.”

Jennifer closed her eyes, nodding at the Magus’ words. She already knew what overdrawing had done to her father.

But do I have that luxury? Especially if each death will just send me back?

She heard the magus sigh, and she opened her eyes, finding the frown softened on the man’s expression.

“I’ll overlook it this time, as long as you do not strain your mana pathways again. I don’t understand what made you desperate enough to try a reckless stunt like that in the first place. You’re not even a first year student yet, and perfectly capable of mingling in a class one year ahead of you. Why do you need to become an Apprentice Mage so quickly?”

Pulling her hand back from the Magus, she stared at him for a while longer, before replying with the most honest answer she could pick. “I have my reasons.”

“Very well,” the Magus replied with a tired sigh pressed underneath his words. “I suppose congratulations are in order. Glass magic is quite rare, and rarer still is a [Glass Mage] capable. Even if we disregard your aggregate level, just your affinity alone will help you with picking a mentor for your apprenticeship,” the Magus said, eyeing her from his seat.

Jennifer pulled her up, seating herself against the backrest of the bed. She was surprised by the lack of a pounding headache upon the motion, something that typically occurred after she went too hard on her mana reserves.

She ignored the lack of her headache for the moment, returning her attention to the Mage. “Did I… pass then?” she asked hesitantly.

“Of course not. You’re impressive but that’s it. The test was still breaking through a linked cast shield and you failed in that. But you don’t necessarily have to be an apprentice to learn from a teacher here. You’ll get the opportunity directly in your third year, and we could skip you over to second year after we take some tests,” Magus Beritross replied.

She nodded at the magus’ words. It was about what she’d been expecting.

“Before we proceed, I must ask you how you managed to increase your mana pool so substantially. Normally I wouldn’t care, but from what I’ve recorded it’s close to double your last registered output in roughly two months of time. That isn’t normal. Are you using some magical enhancement substances? I won’t be using any truth spells but I’d suggest not lying.”

Jennifer stared at the mage in surprise. She inspected her mana pool a moment later, and found the depth of her mana a great deal larger than before. A size that had already been steadily growing from Nathanie’s mana channeling method.

“It’s my new skill. [Glass Mana Pool]. I gained it alongside my level 2 [Glass Mage] class,” Jennifer replied, inspecting her spells. She tried to form a glass shard and found her mana flowing with ease as a shimmering shard of glass manifested above her hand.

“A mana pool skill at level 2, quite enviable. But with your overdrawing and desperation to continue, I’m not surprised that you got the Skill,” the Magus rubbing his chin as he eyed Jennifer. “I admit, you’re quite a curious girl. Glass mana and an enchanter who unlocked a [Mage] class post fight. Are you trying to forcefully level yourself through high-stress situations?”

“Force level myself?” Jennifer asked.

“Are you not aware of the concept? Levels are especially easier to acquire if you’re under duress. It’s a common practice during war to level up new [Soldiers] up to a suitable level. There are casualties, but those that survive level far faster than they would’ve otherwise. It’s applicable to all classes but the effect is most pronounced in combat related classes, like say, a [Glass Mage] class,” the Magus said, his eyes locked into Jennifer’s.

Jennifer chewed on his words as the realization of how she’d leveled up began to become more clear. She’d been a level 15 [Resource Enchanter] before the invasion had occurred, and within the last two months or so she’d gained an aggregate of 4 more levels. It was an unheard of growth, even if it was distributed across two separate classes.

Almost all my levels had also resulted in a skill as well. I even got a Skill with no level up for my glass affinity.

“Regardless, I’m not your parent and you aren't a kid. The skill is a boon for sure, and it'll continue to help along your natural mana expansion,” Magus Beritross said, and Jennifer nodded.

“Thank you.”

“Thank me after you’ve successfully become a [Mage]. Or an [Enchanter], I’m unsure of what you wish to do with such divergent class focuses. Some sort of Combat Enchanter hybrid?” the Mage asked.

Jennifer returned an awkward smile at the mage’s word, not elaborating any further. I wish I knew.

“Anyway, if you want to skip a grade, you might be able to, with a month of classes on theory if you pick a combat specialization.” Beritross said.

Jennifer shook her head and the Magus nodded.

“Very well, in that case rest up. I’ll look forward to seeing you in the Academy,” the Magus asked, extending his hand towards Jennifer.

Jennifer shook the mage’s hand before the man walked out. After making sure the Magus wasn’t around, she let out an exhausted sigh as she slumped down onto her backrest.

It was probably a bit stupid to head in so quickly to the Academy without preparing. And I still haven’t gotten anywhere close enough to being good with the light shaping exercise either. I’ll need to look into combined spell casting and shields, and how to counteract them. Would the library even have books on that? Maybe I can somehow send a letter to Nathaniel privately. Although sending it through the guild would be just another risk and might alert the demon. Then what if-

A knock on the door interrupted her.

“Come in, it’s open,” she said. The door opened with a click as the boy she'd run into before the combat class walked in.

A familiar boy walked within the room, light blonde hair glistening.

“Hey, I spotted magus Beritross walking out of here. Are you alright? I hope we didn’t go too hard with the spells,” the boy said, staring at her with an awkward expression.

Jennifer stared at the boy, who stood at the gate, the awkward expression growing on his face as the silence extended.

“I’m alright, thanks for asking. And also for helping me earlier even though you were in a rush,” Jennifer replied.

The boy laughed lightly. “It’s alright, our class got cut short after that spar anyway. I should probably be thanking you if anything. I wouldn’t have done too well on an individual combat test, and Magus Beritross is known for randomly changing up the tests. You never know what he’ll end up doing,” the boy said, closing the door behind him as he walked closer.

“So, you’re a first year right? What family? I don’t think I know of one that specializes in glass affinity, and that was some serious firepower for a first year, all the more so for one that hasn’t even joined,” the boy said, his light golden hair glistening. Jennifer felt the mana faintly covering the boy.

He smells like sunlight. That’s an odd thought.

Jennifer eyed the boy. “I don’t come from a Mage family. I’m Jennifer,” she said, extending a hand.

“Ah, right. I’m Livian, Livian Firgold. Second year [Light Mage].” Livian said, giving her a shy smile.

“I’ve never heard of a [Light Mage] before. Those light beams were you?” Jennifer asked, her curiosity piqued.

“Ah yes, those were my spells. As a [Light Mage] I can control light, and a lot of other things. The primary advantage is being able to turn invisible, along with other light based attacks that can pierce through barriers, but I think the class has more use in a utility field and research.”

Jennifer found her interests piqued at a new branch of magic she hadn’t heard much of. Light magic was rare, perhaps not as rare as Glass magic, but still quite rare. She cut her excitement short, reminding herself of why she was here. “Did you need something from me?”

Livian stared at her, his eyes diverted for a moment as he fumbled for his word. “Right. So, I actually had an offer for you. I’ll help you out with the academy and stuff in return for a favor.”

“What’s the favor?” Jennifer asked, her suspicions rising as she looked at the boy.

“Ah, well. This will sound odd... I need to enter the dungeon. But not to adventure. I need to find a Light affinity monster, for a familiar.”

Jennifer folded her arms, raising her eyebrows at his words. “Can’t you just buy those?”

“Well, yes and no. The bond is stronger if I capture it directly. And I can’t survive in the dungeon without hiring a team. Which is what I was doing. But now the team I was talking to is refusing to go because of the earthquake. I’m hearing things about some Dungeon shift or something from my father. In any case, I wanted someone to go with,” the boy said.

“Why me? There should be other people you know, second years who may be willing to go,” Jennifer asked.

“Well. You don’t know my parents, and you aren’t in my grade, so it’s unlikely that you’ll tell on me to them. And, it felt like you knew how to fight. I hadn’t seen anyone just tackle spells like that and narrowly dodge them while swinging back with their own. It was almost like how a [Warrior] would fight,” Livian said.

Jennifer felt a light smile threatening to rise to her lips. Viel’s sword fighting lessons had paid off. She shook her head of the thoughts, she couldn’t afford to be randomly wandering around.

I can’t waste my time on random trips, not with the demons and the invasion still lurking around. And I still need to look into the Academy for the next month. Finding a safe place to go to when the invasion happens also takes priority. Even if I reset, I wouldn’t want that to happen with any of my family or Master or Rumian dying. Not if I can help it.

“I’m sorry. I’m a bit busy,” Jennifer said and watched as the boy’s jovial expression dropped.

“Ah, alright. Sorry for disturbing you,” Livian said, as he turned away. Taking a last glance in, the boy walked out, closing the door shut behind him.

Jennifer took a deep breath in, before sighing. There was a lot to do. A new class to explore, magic to practice, Nathaniel’s mana pool expansion technique, her new skill.

Gathering her mind, Jennifer got up, and walked out. She had a month to prepare. She’d need to make it count.

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Mark of Time — Release on Royal Road!

Mark of Time — Truth Seeker's new name — will be released on RR by March 1st, at worst within the first week of March. I've got  enough chapters setup and I've come up with all the plans so I'll be finally re-releasing the story!

But, to do that, I also need to edit all the current chapters and add roughly anywhere from 3-4 chapters in the already existing number of chapters as some of the plot has been changed, and events progress differently.

So, sadly, there won't be any chapter this week, possibly next week either, but after that I should publish everything I have, I estimate 17-18 chapters total of 5k words or so, on Patreon and a portion of that on Royal Road as well.

That's all, thank you to all of you for sticking around for so long. I've got some fun ideas for the book, and I feel like I've finally managed to solve some MAJOR issues that had been stuck with me. So this should be the final version for the book to be released!

Table of Contents

I've made a table of contents for easy access of the chapters. The story has also been renamed to "Mark of Time" and the chapters are now in the range of 5,000 to 8,000 words.

Table of Contents: 

15 — Scampi Tails
14 — Hidden Clues
13 — The Mage Academy
12 — A Second Time
11 — Rumbles of Deceit
10 — Whispers of War
9 — Leaning Magic
8 — Combat Training
7 — A Meeting of Marks
6 — Sudden Encounter
5 — Glass Truths
4 — Back in Time
3 — The End of a Mark
2 — A Mark and A Trial
1 — Silver Meetings 

Spin off chapters:

?? — A Strange Encounter 

Changes to Chapters

So, after quite some thinking, I've decided to make a change to the current chapters, notably their length, and how often I'll be uploading them.

Previous  chapters, (the 25 of them that're here right now) will be combined into larger chapters of around 5k to 7k words from the previous 2k to 3k words. The chapter count, as such, will be going down to 14 chapters.

I also need to make some few edits to the earlier chapters for the sectioning off to make sense. And so I'll be uploading the next chapter on Sundays.

The Bronze and Silver tier will also be gaining access to more content due to the change.

12 — A Second Time

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Mark of Time:
The Mark of the Chosen of Time.

Bond of Fate: Fated strings
A Bond born from the union of Time and Fate

Abilities: Time Reset
Resets: 2

Integrity: 98.47%
Tier: Undefined

The system message floated in front of Jennifer’s eyes, prompting a blink from her. She stared at the message, as her mind played through a jumble of thoughts.

Where am I? I thought I had…

Jennifer paused. Something was wrong. She’d been here before, in this place. Sitting in her chair. This wasn’t the first time.

A sharp pain assaulted her head, yet the pain wasn’t as bad as she remembered it. Jennifer clutched her head as her mind began to filter through vague images, memories she didn’t recall filling her mind, then, she sensed it once more the burning presence in her soul.

The Mark.

“Rumina!” Jennifer exclaimed, shooting to her feet. Her eyes darted around the room as her memories returned and she realized where she was. She was back, two weeks ago, to the start of the month.

A hollow emptiness filled Jennifer’s chest as Jennifer slunk back onto her chair. She was back here, right at the very start. A part of her wished she hadn't woken up after everything she'd seen. She'd tried. She had told the guild, trained hard, and fought demons. She'd done everything she could think of.

It wasn’t enough. None of it was enough. The demons still came. The guild was invaded, attacked from the inside. Not to mention, that demon with the Mark. Mark of Deceit. And Rumina…

She had been stabbed by her friend. The same friend she’d failed to protect. It was as if her heart had been stabbed and scraped raw, and Jennifer wished she could scream till her throat turned sore. Why was she so weak? Why couldn’t she protect anyone?

Jennifer felt her thoughts withdrawing into her, as she sat silently on her chair, the world drifting by.

"Jenn, Dinner's ready!" Her mother called out from outside, breaking her out of her fugue.

I need to go to Rumina. I can’t- I can’t let that happen again. Never again.

In a rush she got up from her chair, opening her door as she called out to her mother. “I won’t be eating dinner tonight, I feel sick, don’t disturb me!” Jennifer shouted, slamming the door shut before her mother could protest.

Forming a thin shard of glass she wedged it in the gap to the door of her room. She used [Enchanted Glass Creation] to harden the glass and traced the rune onto the gate, layering the enchantment to lock the door completely. That done, Jennifer turned to face the window. A calming breath and a moment of consideration later, she stepped out.

The night’s cool breeze brushed against her face as Jennifer walked out onto the ledge outside her room’s much-too-high-above-the-street window, clutching on for dear life.

By her lady, if I fall that’s at least a couple of broken bones.

Jennifer kept a death grip on the window of her room as she crawled to the side, one step at a time. Agile wind continued to thrum in her mind, and she was ready to launch off a strong gust to catch her fall the moment she needed it.

A strong sense of dizziness assaulted Jennifer as she looked down and she gulped, hurriedly looking back up to keep her balance. A few steps to the side, she found the foothold she'd been searching for. The wooden beam running horizontally to the walls groaned slightly as she put her weight on top of it. Jennifer carefully bent down, lowering herself from the ledge.

Wind whipped her clothes in the air as a gust shot up from the ground arresting her fall momentarily. Jennifer manifested a glass column on the ground, making it as tall as she could. She managed to aim her fall with Agile Wind so her left foot could land on the small platform.

The glass cracked from her weight, having not been enchanted for strength and she jumped down from the small platform, shooting off into the streets before anyone could spot her sneaking out.

The quiet city before the dungeon felt surreal to her, the sensation of being back in time still difficult to internalize. And with the dark and quiet city around her, arose a thought she didn’t dare think of.

What if Rumina doesn’t come back? Because of that demon?

Jennifer’s heart sank as she pulsed her spell harder, rushing ahead. Within a few moments, she found herself standing in front of Rumina’s house.

Jennifer stood silently for a moment, fearing to step ahead in fear of being told that she’d lost her friend forever. With a deep breath, Jennifer stepped ahead, and knocked on the door.

The door creaked open as a small head of red hair peeked out from behind, emerald eyes shining with curiosity.

“Jenn?” the little girl asked curiously as she held onto the door, only peeking out from behind.

Jennifer blinked in surprise, as she looked down at the little red head peeking from inside, like a smaller Rumina walking around. A smile formed on her face as she regarded the little girl.

“Sera take me Sophie, you look so big. It’s been a while, huh?”

“But you were here last week?” the little girl asked curiously.

“Oh right, yes I was. I forgot somehow, anyways, is… is your sister home?” Jennifer asked, her heart thundering as she spoke the words. She wasn’t prepared to hear a no; or worse.

“Yeah, she’s home. I’ll call her,” Sophie said as she ran inside before Jennifer could stop her. Jennifer stood outside, staring blankly as Rumina walked out in a few seconds, staring at her in surprise.

A fear bloomed in her hand. What if her friend had been taken over by the demon from the start?

“What brings you here so late, Jenn? Oh and I heard! Congrats on getting accepted!” Rumina exclaimed, rushing out as she hugged Jennifer, spinning around.

“I totally thought you’d forgotten to tell me, but it seems I was wrong. Sorry for assuming you’d do that. Now I just have to wait a few years before I can tell everyone I knew the [Archmage of Awesome]!” Rumina exclaimed, smiling.

An odd mixture of relief and fear flooded Jennifer’s heart as looked at Rumina, standing in front of her. This was her. This had to be her. It was the Rumina she knew. Yet, a part of her was scared that all of this was just another dream, and that she was still stuck with the monster.

Jennifer shook off the feeling as she walked up and hugged Rumina. In silence, she remained, clutching her friend close to her chest.

“What’s wrong?” Rumina asked, noticing her shivering hands.

Tears pooled in her eyes, pouring down Jennifer’s cheek. “I’m sorry Rumina, I’m so sorry. I swear I’ll never let it happen again,” Jennifer whispered.

“You’re scaring me Jenn, what happened?” Rumina asked. Jennifer remained silent, as she hugged her friend for a few minutes.

Once she’d gained some composure, Jenn pulled away, wiping her tears as she sniffed her stuffy nose. She feared she’d burst out in tears once more.

“I need to tell you something. A lot of things,” Jennifer said, wiping her eyes as she looked at her friend.

“Come in, let’s head to my room. We’ll talk there,” Rumina said, grabbing Jennifer’s hand as the two of them walked inside.

***

“I don’t understand. You died but you didn’t die because this Mark sent you back in time, because you died?”

“Yes, no- it’s not that complicated. If I die, then this Mark brings me back to the start of this month. I’m not sure how that works with all the Marks trying to steal from each other if I can just come back but that’s how it works,” Jennifer said, glancing at her Mark.

“Maybe the Bond I saw had something to do with it as well,” Jenn muttered, glancing at the little silver thread heading out somewhere from her Mark.

“From the [Prince]? The Mark of Fate one?” Rumina said.

“I’ve only ever met one [Prince], Rumina,” Jenifer replied, looking at her friend, who rolled her eyes at her.

“One more than I’ve met, or will meet. Meeting a demon sounds a lot crazier to me. I’d want to meet that more than a regular [Prince].”

“Don’t say that,” Jennifer said, clenching her fists. “That demon… that thing. It talked like you Rumina, it-it knew my name. It knew how you talked. It was, I couldn’t tell. Right up until it was next to me, I couldn’t tell,” Jennifer said, as tears began to pool in her eyes once more and Jenifer wiped them away. She’d cried enough.

“I’m sorry Jenn, I just- none of this feels real to me,” Rumina said, placing her hand atop Jenn’s “Even that Mark you are showing me, or your glass magic. None of it makes sense. I’m having such a hard time just, trying to even imagine all of this happening. An invasion of Ostiri and all these Marks and talks of demons. Do you see how all of it sounds? It sounds like the story of heroes you tell to children. Or the legends of great adventurers.”

Jennifer looked up, staring into Rumina’s emerald eyes. “I wish it was a tale to tell Rumina. I wish I was a hero. This Mark- it should belong to a hero, an adventurer who can actually save everyone. I’m just an [Enchanter]. I can’t do all of this- what am I supposed to do?” Jennifer spoke, her voice cracking.

Rumina stared at her friend silently, before she leaned in for a hug and Jenn swept her arms around her friend’s back.

“I’m such a mess Rumina. I just- I almost lost you. If I didn’t have this Mark, then I would’ve lost you. Maybe mom, dad, and Keith as well. Perhaps even Master. The entire city was burning. So many people were dead, gone forever. I died Rumina, I died. If I didn’t have this Mark, I would’ve died. Not once but twice,” Jennifer said, as the words flowed out in a rush.

“Nat should’ve gotten this Mark. Maybe even Anghul or Viel. I don't know. Why did I follow Irwys in that dungeon? Why did I get this Mark and not him? Anghul was right. I’m not the one who should’ve gotten this Mark. I can’t do anything. I just… I’m so scared, Rumina. I’m so scared that I’m going to lose everyone I love. But I’m nowhere near strong enough to protect them all,” Jennifer whispered, as her friend sat silently.

“Do you know what I think Jenn?” Rumina asked. “I see you, talking about Ranked plates. Ranked plates. People who I’d consider myself lucky to meet once. You trained with these people, and met guild heads, and the Alliance and a [Prince]. You fought demons and you died. Not once but twice. And then you tell me that you still haven’t given up. That you’re scared that you’ll lose. That you think you can win,” Rumina said, holding Jennifer’s hand as she looked her in the eye.

“Jenn, just when did you grow so strong? I can’t even begin to imagine the things you are talking about, I still can’t. I would’ve long given up and run away. Did the thought even occur to you? To just run, leave the city behind and live somewhere outside of Lienmont peacefully? You could tell your parents, tell me, your Master, anyone who’d listen and warn us and just not save the city. Did you even think about that?”

Jennifer stared at her friend, unable to come up with a response. “But, I can’t? I-I can’t just give up Rumina. What about- what about our homes? And everything our lives had been leading to? How would I convince everyone to leave all of it behind just because I said so?” Jennifer said, frustration building in her voice.

“Just like how you did with me. I believe you Jenn. I know you, and I know you aren’t lying. That glass you showed me? That wasn’t a lie. This Mark? It’s not a lie. None of this is a lie, even if I still struggle to believe it. Just like that. They’d believe you if you told them, if you showed them what you showed me,” Rumina said, grasping her hand tighter.

“But you won't will you?” her friend said with a sad smile. “In all the years I’ve known you Jenn, I have come to realize just how much you hate to give up. Entering the Academy had been a dream, something only Nobles and kids with wealthy parents managed. But you never let that stop you, and you managed to do it. Your eyes had burned with desire at the challenge in front of you.” Rumina said, and Jennifer’s chest tightened.

“I see that same fire now, even as you’re terrified. Terrified of everything you’ve seen and that you won’t be able to do it. You still keep on going. Ready to stop an invasion all by yourself.”

Jennifer stared at Rumina in surprise. Words failed to come to her as an odd emotion built in her chest. A strange belief that she hadn’t known she had arose within her.

“I… can’t do this alone, Rumina. I need your help,” Jennifer said, looking at her friend hesitantly. She was afraid to ask this, afraid to put her in danger. But to not ask would be even worse, and so she asked.

“Will you help me?”

A smile formed on Rumina’s lips as she leaned closer, knocking Jenn’s head. “Of course silly. Who says no when their best friend comes and calls them on an adventure?”

Jennifer laughed, hugging Rumina. "We need to make a plan. I have so much more left to talk about."

***

The night had passed by in a blur. The morning rays had started to edge over the horizon by the time she'd returned home.

Things hadn’t gone too well for Jennifer upon her return. Thankfully neither her mother or father had tried to barge in her room despite her sudden excuse to not eat dinner, but a quick look up her window had shaken off any thoughts of climbing back in. She’d been greeted by a none too pleased mother glaring at her for an explanation on her escapade.

Jennifer shuddered as she remembered the memory, feeling guilty about leaving the feast her mother had prepared for her. She hadn’t been scolded like that since Keith had been born.

Really should’ve thought that one through.

Jennifer walked through the city streets, the morning sun shining high up an unusually clear sky. She’d taken the night, to catch up with her friend, and explore the odd skill she’d gained upon her second death.

Neither her nor Rumina had any inkling on what sort of skill it was, or how she’d even gained what seemed to be a blood and life based skill. Jenn didn’t remember participating in any blood rituals at least.

She felt at the [Blood Shard], feeling it’s hunger for blood, and felt a shudder go up her spine. The two girls had decided to use today to look a bit more into the Skill.

Jennifer had spent the last couple of days going through the public library archives and her Master's and father's books. None of which had led to anything of much use, which had led to her friend calling her out on this sudden trip. Rumina had mentioned an acquaintance who was likely to know more. Jennifer found herself not too keen on knowing more about someone who would know about blood magic.

The city drifted past Jenn as she walked, her mind still on the events of last night. It had been a relief to finally get things off her chest to Rumina. The thought that her friend would inevitably forget this talk forever soured the joy, but she clinged on to it nonetheless.

Her walk took Jenn near the familiar shop that Rumina worked in. The red-head stood nearby in the side alley next to the building, wearing washed out and dull clothes that covered her features more. It was a side to her friend that Jenn didn’t often get to see.

Walking closer, she nodded to Rumina as the two of them headed further into the alley.

“Where’s this… market?” Jenn asked, as Rumina walked in front of her, a dark gray robe on her.

“Fallow’s skull,” Rumina said, in a quiet voice, her eyes glancing around as she took a turn into a particularly narrow gap between the buildings. Jenn followed, squeezing through.

“It’s not a fixed place. Keeps moving around as the Dungeon shifts, but there are a few fixed entrances,” Rumina said.

“Wait, it’s in the dungeon?” Jennifer said, her unmodulated exclamation startling a crow feasting upon some dead rats, who cawed back angrily. Jenn cringed, and turned to find Rumina sending an admonishing look her way.

“Yes. It’s in the sewers, and try not to speak too loud. The thieves guild runs Fallow’s skull so there’s some semblance of regulations there, but it’s still a bad idea to speak more than you need to about it.”

Jennifer nodded, nervousness building in her chest. She’d heard of black markets before, but only in passing and as tales in stories. Despite her friend’s involvement in the underground world of the city, Jenn herself had never once been introduced to this side of Lienmont.

Mana wafted out in little vapors from a broken down shack within the cramped alleys. [Enhanced Mana Sense] told Jennifer of the mana waves coming from the dungeon faintly.

Rumina walked around the collapsed structure, ducking under rotting planks that stank of filth and mud as she walked behind a wall. Jenn grimaced, staring at all the grim around her before she followed suit.

The sewers had been worse. I’ll be fine, as long as there are no slimes around.

Jenn’s eyes widened in surprise as she noted a hollow cavern leading down into the earth neatly hidden behind the walls, a flimsy Tier-2 ward obscuring it’s location. Anyone who’d wish to enter could, but it’d divert the eyes of unknowing strangers away from this location. Clever, Jennifer had to admit.

The descent into the cavern soon took on a hint of blue, as the dungeon walls began to shower the tunnel with their pale blue glow, and the rising mana levels tingled Jenn’s nose. Her heart jumped lightly at the prospect of a black market within the dungeons.

Jenn soon found the narrow tunnel expanding into the wide dungeon walls, plastered with smooth carved stone on both sides that lay covered in loose cobwebs and filthy water.

A few turns and twists within the caverns later, Jenn found herself walking amongst people once more. Yet these people, she’d rather not associate with. Jenn lamented a lack of hood to cover her features.

The area ahead expanded into a row of merchants hawking bloodied monster parts and weapons. Yet instead of the noise one would expect from a bustling marketplace, the area was filled with a series of silent whispers and grunts. The mixed noises remained hushed as wary eyes scanned their surroundings.

Jenn walked closer to Rumina, tapping her shoulder as she whispered in her ears. “Are you sure that we should come here? I know I talked to you about the [Blood Shard] but this place seems a bit dangerous,” Jennifer muttered, looking at Rumina.

“It’ll be alright Jenn. As long as you pay attention and don’t let this happen,” Rumina said, her hand rushing to Jenn’s waist.

Jenn jumped back, crashing into something. She stared at a boy, desperately pulling at his arm as he tried to escape with Jennifer's pouch. Her heart leapt as she stared at how quickly and easily she’d almost lost all her money.

“Get an [Analysis] skill idiot, I’m at least seven levels higher than you,” Rumina said, taking back Jenn’s pouch, letting the kid go. The boy swiftly ran away, clutching at his arm and Rumina returned her pouch to Jenn.

“There’s a lot of [Thieves] here, and even some who got the specialized [Pickpocket] class. Keep an eye out. While they don’t usually jump people as it’s an easy way to lose your head, any easy target will be brutally robbed,” Rumina said, as Jennifer grabbed her own pouch, nodding blankly.

She hung it at her waist belt once more, keeping one hand on it at all times as the two walked further ahead.

Jennifer eyed her surroundings as she walked behind Rumia. The dungeon walls had been set up with many leather clothes and ropes that formed impromptu shops for selling wares. Jenn spotted many monster parts, weapons, jewelry, alongside a bundle of white powder that Jenn knew to stay far away from.

“We’re here,” Rumina said.

Jennifer turned to notice one dangly shop with more permanence to its structure than most others nearby. Vases were littered in front of the shop, and the inside, from what little Jenn could peek inside and see.

“Derim, it’s me,” Rumina called out, walking around the vases as she walked into the shop, and took off her hood. Jenn followed behind, making sure not to step on any of the many breakable things surrounding the entrance.

It’s almost as if they don’t want people coming into the shop. Wait.

Her eyes widened as she realized that it was a defensive measure, so no one would be able to walk in without hitting the vase and making noise.

“Red? Strange to see you here today. Who’s the girl?” A man said, grunting as he pulled to his feet, setting aside the little metallic bits in his hands.

“A friend. Need your help for a new Skill she gained recently. It’s blood and glass magic,” Rumina said, as the man walked out from inside his dimly lit shop.

Jennifer stared at the man with dark frizzy hair that covered his sunken eyes and green skin. Her eyes went to his long pointed ears cut off at the edge and the tribal tattoos that ran down his thin frame, marking him as part of an Orc tribe. She stared at the oddest person she’d ever seen in her life.

An… elven blooded orc? An elc in Lienmont? Not to mention… those ears. An outcast from his tribe.

If any person had ever oozed ‘complicated family background’ with every part of their being, it was this man.

“[Enchanter] huh? Good level for your age too,” the elc, Derim, said, his red eyes turning towards Jenn. “Show me the Skill.”

Jennifer started, turning towards Rumina for a moment who nodded. Taking a deep breath, Jenn formed a thin shard of glass, crystallizing it. She pricked her skin with the little piece of glass, staining it red with her blood.

“[Blood Shard]” Jenn said, as the droplet of blood crystallized, expanding further to grow into a much larger crystal floating above her hand.

Derim hummed, staring at her floating blood shard above Jenn’s hand as he walked closer, his eyes narrowing. “You dabble in blood arts,” he asked, looking at her, his long green nose to close to Jenn’s face for comfort.

She shook her head.

“Unfortunate. You have potential,” the man said, grabbing the blood shard which Jennifer pulled back on instinct, dematerialising it.

“Ah, so a manifestation skill, not creation. Even stranger. How would a level 17 [Enchanter] gain a skill like that?” Derim said, looking Jenn in the eye for a brief moment, before he turned away. “What do you want me to do?” he said, turning towards Rumina.

“I haven’t found any records on the [Blood Shard]. Glass magic is rare, and blood magic is illegal. I want you to analyze the skill and see what it does. I can tell it’s strong,” Rumina said, turning to glance at Jenn briefly.

Derim walked ahead, grunting. “You bring too much trouble with you Red. I’ll be needing some favors in exchange for this. Bringing a lost Skill to me like this, what were you thinking?”

“Lost skill?” Jennifer muttered, and Derim turned to face her.

“Lost skill. It’s called Life-Glass as well. The glass will drink blood and life energy to grow alongside you, and will remain bonded to you. The reason you need to cut yourself to summon it is because the blade response to your vital energy. The [Skill] was lost a while back when the blood-cults got wiped out,,” Derim said, walking up to a nearby counter as he scavened around in his drawers.

“There’s still practitioners of blood magic, but blood and glass is not a combination seen often. Let’s see, I think I’ve got some parts here,” Derim said, pulling out scrolls and little metallic bobs layered with enchantments and spells.

“You think you can do something with it?” Rumina asked.

“I can make a blade from it if you want. A bad one, but it’ll work. I can graft a spell onto it that can sting you just enough to form a droplet of blood as well,” Derim said.

Rumina turned to look at Jennifer, as if seeking her permission. Jenn shrugged her shoulders. Having a summonable blade sounded nifty to her.

“Give me the shard,” Derim said.

Jennifer summoned the shard, handing the elc her glass. It felt wrong to let someone else hold the glass, as if she were letting someone grab a piece of her.

Not entirely wrong I guess. That’s my blood right there.

Derim walked to a desk, pulling up his chair as he spread a sheet out. Little blue circles lit up on the parchment, floating above the scroll as Derim hung the shard in the air above the scroll. Mana flared within the scroll as little runes began to run all around the shard, and Jennifer found her interest being piqued, her wariness lost in the face of new magic.

“Skill Analysis? Is that a Lune Stone scroll?” Jennifer asked, looking at Derim.

The elc raised an eyebrow. “Not entirely ignorant are we?”

“I have a skill for it. [Lune Stone: Guard]. At least, I’ve got a Guard spell stored in it right now,” Jennifer said, as Derim stopped his work on the [Blood Shard] turning towards Jenn.

“[Lune Stone: slot?] Spell only or can you get skills too? Which tier? How many slots? What level did you gain it at?”

Jennifer took a step back, as Derim walked towards her, subconsciously weaving a bolt of glass in her mind, ready to be fired.

“Ah, apologies,” the elc spoke, stepping back.

“So… I feel stupid now but. What’s a Lune Stone?” Rumina asked, looking at Jennifer.

“It’s a [Skill Stone] that can be used to permanently add a [Skill] or a Spell to it. The Skills themselves don’t have a tier, but since the Lune Stone does, the skill will be dependent on the tier of the stone,”  Jennifer said, turning towards Derim. “Level fifteen, single slot. Not limited to just spells. Tier-2 right now, but it depends on which lune stones I can get.”

“I’ve got a few Lune Stones around that you may want to absorb,” Derim said with a nod. “Of course, for a price. But I’m almost tempted to give them away for free just to see what comes of it,” he added, his voice rising in excitement as the elc walked back to his desk, and continued to fiddle with the [Blood Shard].

“Have a look for yourself,” he said, as a prompt floated in front of Jennifer.

[Blood Shard]
Blood/Glass
A shard of glass, holding the life-force of its wielder and forged from their very blood. The glass can feast on the life of its prey, including the one bearing the shard.

Jennifer read through the text, feeling a sinister sensation crawl up her spine. She did not like the last part mentioned within the skill description.

“Which Lune Stone would you prefer? I can go as high as tier-3 but it won’t be cheap, I’ll need to see some gold for that,” Derim said, and Jenn turned towards Rumina, who shrugged back. Neither of them had that kind of money.

“Can you give me a blank one? Tier-3 stone, but empty. I’d like to craft something of my own,” Jennifer said, and Derim turned to stare at her.

“Elphion, suit yourself. It’ll take you months before you can get to the level of crafting a Tier-3 girl. But I’m not gonna deny a sale,” Derim said, as he walked back inside the side dark chamber.

A blue stone shot towards Jennifer, who stumbled to catch it. The stone itself was a pale sky blue, but lacked the typical runes and luster that Lune Stones did.

“The spell is almost ready. Take the blade and add some drops of blood onto the scroll, rest it’ll do on it’s own,” Derim said, pointing at his desk, where Jenn’s [Blood Shard] floated, surrounded by floating runes of mana.

Jenn nodded, pocketing the Lune Stone as she walked up to the [Blood Shard]. Taking the blade, which Jenn noted was quite sharp, she pressed it against her palm. Flesh soon parted as a small drip of blood flowed down her arm with a stinging pain. Pouring her mana she pressed her hand against the scroll as the runes on it lit up.

Her blood spread out through the scroll, staining the floating blue runes of mana red. Yet, Jenn hadn’t been prepared for what came next.

Pain shot through her mind, as Jenn felt something reaching out to her soul, trying to attach itself to it. Jennifer pushed on instinct, yet the spell continued to worm it’s way in, tying itself into the [Blood Shard]. Jennifer clenched her teeth, fighting through the pain. A wave of dizziness assaulted her, as the world blacked out for a moment.

[Skill: Blood Shard → Blood Dagger]

Jennifer saw the world spinning around her, as she woke up to Rumina holding her shoulders, arguing with an increasingly nervous looking Derim. She grabbed her friend’s shoulder, pulling herself up.

A sensation bothered her. A sensation deep within her soul, like the itch of a new limb that she couldn't stretch properly. Jennifer felt at the limb, as a red form appeared in her hand. A shimmering dagger of pure red formed in her hand, resting snugly as it reflected her face back at her.

Her [Blood Dagger].

“Are you okay?” Rumina asked, holding on to Jenn’s shoulders. The red head turned to glare at Derim. “Explain yourself, Derim.”

“Elphion Red, I didn’t decide which skill the girl would get. The world responds to your wishes when providing skills and you know that.”

“I’m alright, just got a bit dizzy,” Jenn said, interrupting as she grabbed Rumina’s shoulders, stabilizing herself. She inspected the blade resting in her hand, feeling the connection to the weapon as if it were a part of her. Like a newly formed limb that she instinctively knew how to control.

Derim walked closer, wearing two thin spectacles that hung on his long nose as he walked closer. “[Blood Dagger] is it? Never heard of it. I had expected some kind of transmutation ability that let you form blades, not a permanent skill.”

Jenn eyed the blade, urging it to float above her hand. The blade obeyed, hovering above her palm. She nudged it to twirl and it did, wavering awkwardly in its path. It was like moving a hand that could rotate however she wanted to, free of any restriction.

“An innate attachment. Control needs work but this is a bit stronger than I’d expected,” Derim said, looking up at Jenn. “You may have potential to be a [Blood Mage].”

Rumina hissed at his words, glaring at the man. The elc continued to look Jenn in the eye, watching her silently.

“I’m just fine as an [Enchanter],” Jenn replied. “But I won’t mind your help if you tell me how to get a [Mage] class.”

“A shame,” The elf said, turning around as he walked back. “You seem to be in a rush. It takes time to gain a second class, more so than the first one. But if you really can’t figure out, think about how your magic as a [Mage] is different from that of an [Enchanter], and that should be enough.”

Jennifer nodded in gratitude. “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me. I want to see that blade of yours, and how it works in exchange,” Derim said, his hand on another spell nearby that flared to life. An analysis spell of some kind, possibly one that may allow him to replicate another version of her blade.

“Five silver off on the blade,” Rumina spoke up and Derim glared at her.

“Bit harsh today aren’t we Red?” Derim said, clicking his tongue. “Three off, and you bring me information about the dwarven guy who’s trying to force his way in here,” Derim countered back.

“Three and I bring you his name and location. Nothing more,” Rumina said, and Derim nodded.

Jennifer watched the back and forth between the two in surprise. It still felt strange to see her friend so comfortable and at home in this unfamiliar and shady place.

“Now,” Derim said, turning towards Jenn. “Can you change the blade’s form at all?”

Jenn clutched the blade in her hand, inspecting it briefly. She pushed on it, in a sensation she couldn’t quite describe. Mana flowed into her hand, as the dagger elongated, it’s blade lengthening in size for a few more inches.

“Limited size adjustment, hmm. Throw it on the way there,” Derim said, and Jenn shortened the blade. Lifting her arm, Jenn took aim, feeling quite clumsy and awkward as she threw it. The blade struck the wall with a clang and fell down. Jenn looked around awkwardly to find an unamused Derim look at her.

“Don’t throw it with your hand, use your mind to shoot it. Well, whatever. See if you can call the blade back. Or dematerialise it and resummon it in your hand.”

Jennifer followed along, trying to call back her blade. It flew towards her, gently returning to her palm. Focusing once more, Jenn focused, hovering the blade just above her palm. She mimicked the motion of throwing the blade once more, but this time, launching it with her mind.

The blade shot ahead in a curve, slicing right into the wall, through it’s magical wards. Jenn stared at her blade before raising her hand up front. The blade vanished from the hand, before a thin mist-like stream of blood flowed around her arm, and the blade was formed once more.

“Ranged. Likely can be changed mid flight and thrown. Almost a waste to have an [Enchanter] have this skill,” Derim said, turning around as he walked to his desk. “That’ll be eighty three silver for the Lune Stone and the skill change. After accounting for your information Red.”

“[Key Information],” Rumina murmerred, using a skill. “Seventy five, and I’ll put in a good word for you with the Thieves Guild. I’ve got one favor left to draw on,” Rumina added, folding her hands.

“This is why I hate dealing with you. All your pesky skills,” Derim said, shaking his head.

Jenn looked at Rumina who smiled, and Jenn nodded. Reaching out to her pouch, Jenn took out silver, looking at it with a heavy heart. This was almost everything that she had managed to save up over the years for the Academy.

Somewhere I can’t go to anyway if the city is lost. And if I fail again, the money will hold little meaning.

Jenn placed the coins on Derim’s table, briefly looking at the elc who already seemed to be busy with fussing over his metallic enchanted contraption. “Thanks for your help, Derim,” Jenn said.

“You bring money, and I will help you. Since you don’t seem the type to be familiar with these parts I’ll warn you early on. Don’t think of this as a favor,” Derim said and Jennifer nodded. She turned towards Rumina.

“Let’s head out,” Jenn said, and the two walked out of the shop.

***

The cavernous dungeon walls drifted past Jennifer and Rumina as the two made their way out of the ever shifting black market. Jennifer turned to briefly pat her pouch, feeling the lighter weight of its insides. She hoped Nathaniel had a spell or skill that’d make it worth the price.

“I still can’t believe that he didn’t tell me that you’ll just faint like that with blood flowing all around you. I was so scared,” Rumina said.

“He said he couldn’t have known, and It’s not even a big deal, it was just a haze induced by a Skill change. I would’ve needed to sleep to see the message anyway,” Jenn said, watching Rumina glance at her briefly but the red-head’s brows remained furrowed.

“The blade was eating on your blood. An entire stream was flying towards it. I think I may have rushed this a bit. From what you’d shown me it was clearly a strong skill and I had gotten excited at the prospect,” Rumina said, coming to a halt.

“That’s not true Rumina. I asked you for this. I need to be strong if I want to make a difference. I was too weak last time and I let something so terrible happen. I don’t want to go through that again,” Jenn said, staring at Rumina as she clenched her fist. She wasn’t going to let lose again.

Rumina sighed. “I know Jenn but. I’m still sorry that I brought you here. I keep my Thieves guild business separate whenever I can, but with everything you told me last night. I felt like I had to do something and I put you at risk.”

“Elphion, Rumina. I have a new blade now, something I can rely on if need be. Not to mention the lune stone. I don’t know if we can win this time around, Rumina. I don’t know. But even if I have to go through everything over and over, I plan to prevent this invasion. And this is just one step towards that. A step I’m glad I had you there with me for. I’m already a lot stronger, imagine what I could do if I had ten more months like this.”

Jenn manifested the [Blood Dagger] in her hand, and took the stance Viel had taught her. The [Blood Dagger] hovered above her palm trailing along her hand and shooting ahead when she willed it too. The dagger clanged, cutting through the dungeon walls.

With a pulse of her will, Jenn pulled the blade towards her hand, and it returned in a flowing arc. Feeling a lot more comfortable with the maneuver with each passing second. As if getting used to a new limb.

“See?” Jenn said with a grin.

Rumina rolled her eyes, a light smile returning to her face. “You’re just a showoff. Don’t over do it, this is still not a place you want to draw attention to. Let’s head out now. There’s only a few windows of time when the exits are open, we’ll be here for hours if we miss it.”

Jenn nodded, dematerialising her [Blood Dagger] as she followed behind. The brimming light of the sun hit Jennifer head on as she squinted her eyes, looking around. They’d walked out through a different section of the alley way, one rather close to her own home.

It really does move around. Even the dungeon doesn’t shift this much naturally. Perhaps a spell of some kind… but I wonder what.

Walking a suitable distance further, Rumina stopped, turning to look at Jennifer. “What do you plan to do now? Go to the guild again? It’s not like we can stop an invasion on our own.”

Jenn stopped, staring at her friend for a moment in silence.

There’s clearly some method with which the demons found out about our plans. The teleportation directly into the guild on the day of the war council’s gathering, and… not to mention. It knew me. That demon knew me and it had enough time to go after Rumina as well. So it had known me for a while.

“I don’t know,” Jenn admitted. “ I don’t think I can go to the Guild. The Prince had warned me of the invasion, and I think I trust him. Not to mention, the bond. He shared his Mark’s strength with me, and I shared mine. I can still feel him, vaguely tied to my bond, but there’s no way I can reach a prince without going to the guild.”

Rumina frowned in silent concentration. “Maybe… you can reach out to someone in the guild, without revealing your identity? Then, if and when you can be sure that they are who they appear to be, you could reach the Prince that way.”

Jenn thought over Rumina’s words, failing to think of anyone who she could go to for help. Even with all the time she’d spent with them, it had consisted mostly of training and nothing else.

“What about the Mage who taught you magic? You seemed close to him,” Rumina said, and Jenn frowned.

“But I don’t have a way to reach out to Nat. He’s a gold plate, and part of a Ranked plate team. I'm nobody. I don’t see why he’d bother,” Jennifer said, pausing as an idea struck her. “Unless… he did say that he went to the Academy as well. I think- Sera, this might just work. I think I know Rumina,” Jenn said looking up at her friend. “I’ll need to qualify as an Apprentice Mage. But if I can manage it, I can ask for Nathaniel as my teacher. And- and I have his mana channeling technique as well, he’s bound to take interest in that.”

Rumina smiled. “Well, then we have a plan. I’ll be heading to the guild to sort Derim’s things. I’ll keep an eye out for anything suspicious.”

Jenn nodded, going through the various things she’d need to explain and plan for. But the idea was sound enough, and Jenn felt her excitement building.

I can even ask him for a good skill or spell for my Lune Stone! Unless he’s the demon and kills me somehow.

Jenn paused, when Rumina walked closer, taking her in a light hug. “I’m still not sure how you’re so alright after going through everything you told me you did. But I wish you the best of luck Jenn. Show them you’re the best Apprentice Mage to exist in history!”

Jennifer smiled, looking at her friend and nodding. The two parted, heading their own separate way.

Excitement rose in Jenn’s chest. She grinned, a childish grin of glee as she made her way towards the Magic Academy. The place of her dreams.

I hope they have lots of new magic to see.

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11 — Rumbles of Deceit

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Jennifer couldn’t tell how many hours it’d been since the council had arrived, but it felt like many. She watched the magic flicker, as the various figures vanished from the chambers one after the other with the talks finally ending. The two mages took a seat, Nathaniel stumbling onto his.

There were only a few members remaining in the chamber. The [High Priest], Viel and Anghul had already left the chamber a while back. She’d been asked to stay, and so she’d remained, wondering just how much longer she’d have to wait.

“Guild head Zaress. I’d like to have a talk with the Mark of Time. I’m sure you have a lot of preparations to do as well,” Prince Laiken spoke up, his hands held behind his back. The prince still looked as if he’d come out of a refreshing walk in his garden, a smile still etched onto his face.

Somehow, that scared her more than the many intimidating figures present around her.

Guild head Zaress grunted, not bothering to respond as he turned around and with a wave of his hand, the few remaining members left, leaving Irwys, Nathaniel and Jennifer in the chamber, alongside the prince.

“I hope you don’t mind having a talk, Jennifer?” the prince asked, and Jennifer stood awkwardly, unsure of what to say.

It’s not like I can say no to a [Prince]

“It is a pleasure, if anything, your highness,” she said, bowing in the appropriate courtesy. She regretted not paying more attention to her mother’s lessons.

“Can I? Umm, have a moment? Please? I’m a bit dead,” Nathaniel said, leaning on his chair in the corner of the prince white room. A chair Jennifer was sure hadn’t been there the last she saw it.

“It is of no bother, Magus Nathaniel. My mages are capable of sustaining the spell from this side, so long as you keep holding the connection from your end,” the Prince said with a smile.

“Ah, Sera’s grace, thank you Prince Laiken,” Nathaniel muttered, as he drank another vial of mana potion and closed his eyes.

Jennifer just realized that she hadn’t seen Magus Peiross show any signs of strain despite keeping the spell remaining active for hours.

The more I look, the more monstrous everyone here becomes.

“You can lift your head, Jennifer. There’s no need to be courteous. Treat me as you would any other Mark. I’d prefer it that way. And if you could, maybe teach Irwys to do that one day too,” the Prince said, turning towards Irwys as his smile extended on his face.

Jennifer turned to look at Irwys, who continued to lean against the wall, a stoic expression set on his face. “Your highness should not waste this opportunity,” the [Knight] muttered at last.

“If only you weren’t always so right Irwys,” the Prince said, turning towards Jennifer. “While we have already met now, allow me to formally introduce myself to you Jennifer. I am Laiken Re’an Zandria, the crown prince of Zandria, and the holder of the Mark of Fate.”

Jennifer saw the silver Mark on the prince’s head light up with ripples of magic. She stared, dipping her head in response.

“I’m Jennifer Laine, just a regular [Enchanter],” she replied.

The prince’s smile widened upon her words as he stared at her. For a moment, Jennifer almost felt as if the prince would walk out of the communication array and step in front of her.

“I’ve been meaning to talk to you Jennifer. And as Fates would have it, a delightful opportunity presented itself. Say, this place is quite dreary, would you like to go on a walk?” the prince asked and Jennifer stared at the man.

A walk? Where?

Jennifer turned to look at Irwys for a moment, before turning back towards the Prince. “A walk? Err, that is, I’m not sure what you mean, your highness?”

“Laiken is fine, and you’ll see. It should be better than a dreary chamber, no offense intended, Magus Nathaniel.”

“None taken,” Nathaniel replied in a weary voice.

“So, what do you say?” the prince asked, his red eyes shimmering, and Jennifer almost took a step back from his presence.

She stared around her, struggling to come up with a response. “Yes?” she replied at last, looking uncertainly at the prince.

“Excellent! Step closer then, Jennifer and take my hand,” the prince said, and Jennifer walked closer, as she hesitantly took the Prince’s hand, feeling the mana tingle as the spell tingled against her skin. She looked up at the man to see his shining golden blonde hair, covering his ruby red eyes.

“Let me take you to a special place today Jennifer,” the prince said, as he grasped her hand.

“[Sanctuary of Fates]” the prince spoke, his words tinged a golden color.

The world rippled around Jennifer, and the ground slipped away from beneath her feet. Jennifer screamed in horror and surprise, watching darkness spread in all directions into an unending abyss.

“What have you done?” Jennifer said, staring around in surprise. No longer was she in the room with Irwys and Nathaniel looking on. Instead, she stood in a dark space dominated by a silver and gold throne up ahead.

Ethereal threads of silver extended from the throne, spreading out towards images and scenes that hung from the walls like paintings with borders of mist surrounding them. The scenes so vibrant and real, she felt as if she could walk into them.

Wars played out in front of her eyes, Coronations that witnessed the rise of legends, swords flashed in battles as arrows blotted the sky. She watched the cycle of a kingdom.

“This is the skill granted to every crown prince of Zandria. A skill formed by Zandria itself. Here lies the living record of the foundation of this kingdom, right till the last heir to inherit it,” the Prince said, his arms sweeping across as he led Jennifer’s eyes across the throne room of darkness.

“Beautiful isn’t it? The fate of each person in Zandria has a string attached to this place. All its history and legacy, tied by the strings of fate,” the prince said, and Jennifer found herself staring mutely. Skills that could create a secluded space were exceptionally rare, and often unbreachable by normal means, but this? This was not just a chamber, it was an entire kingdom's legacy. The skill of a [Prince].

Jennifer eyed the Prince next to her, her mind still struggling to fathom just what strange twist of fate had brought her next to one. The prince wasn’t too tall, standing less than a head taller than her. Neither was he built athletically.

But she could feel the pull of his presence, stronger than anything she’d felt before. He didn’t use his aura. He didn’t need to. This was a [Prince], and she finally understood what it meant to stand in front of one.

She hoped she only ever stood in front of him as an ally.

As she looked around the chamber, her eyes noted a particular image that stood out from the rest. An image not on any side of the room, but behind the throne instead. No strings of silver tied the image to the throne, yet the image still shimmered on the wall, projecting power.

“Ah… so you can see it too. My, aren’t you full of surprises,” Prince Laiken said, smiling as he walked towards the throne, gently brushing against the pristine throne.

“Those are the titans. A people of old and great magic that once called Zandria home, before the kingdom had ever been founded. They were the greatest seers of their time, not just witnessing the fates of worlds, but guiding them. All of Zandria still lives under the shade of these titans, hoping to match the glory they once possessed,” Prince Laiken said, as Jennifer’s eyes turned towards the image.

The image was old, brimming with strength and power. And she looked, the image moved, showing her the titans walking the earth, roaring as they fought. Watching the last of their kin die. Their blood marred the ground a deep red, as the proud creatures fell to armies of humans much smaller than them.

Jennifer turned to look at the Prince. “Why did- why did we kill the titans?” She had recognised the army to be a predated version of what the Alliance’s army looked like now.

“We didn’t. Our forefathers did. And even they didn’t know what they were truly up against. The Alliance was being born, still led by the Old Order of Archmages that had first united the continent against ‘monsters’. Any who weren’t blessed by the system. The titans were one such race,” Prince Laiken said, his hands behind his back as his smile took on a hint of sadness. He turned to Jennifer. “Let’s take our walk shall we?”

With a nod, the two of them walked through the seemingly endless throne room, passing by many images and scenes that would have Jennifer gaping in awe and reverie. Yet right now, she only felt numb.

“Mark of Time,” Prince Laiken told and Jennifer stiffened up, turning towards the prince, who returned an amused smile. “Should I call you Jennifer? Mark of Time sounds all stiff.”

“Sure- yes, I mean. No. Umm that is…” Jennifer fumbled with each spoken word, and soon, she just stood silently, her face a burning red. “Jennifer is alright, Your Highness,” she squeezed out, as the prince laughed, and Jennifer almost ran away to hide somewhere far away.

“Very well Jennifer, if I must do so. Then I insist that you call me by my name as well,” the Prince said, turning to give her a grin.

Jennifer began to feel sympathy for Irwys.

“Alright, Your high— Laiken,” she said, wondering if she was about to lose her head when the prince laughed once more.

“Good, it is a pleasure to meet you Jennifer. Many have met the Crown Prince of Zandria, but I’m afraid there are only so few people around who’ve met Laiken Re’an,” the prince said, his lips curled in an odd expression of both grief and joy.

“Why have you brought me here, Prince Laiken?” Jennifer muttered.

The Prince eyed her for a moment, but didn’t comment on her addition of the title to his name. “I’ve kept an eye on you Jennifer. Ever since you’d mentioned the future, and called Irwys’ name, I’d been interested in meeting you for myself. I had suspected that you’d been hiding some secrets, and had wished to see them for myself. But after arriving here, I realized that you were a far bigger anomaly than I’d ever expected.”

Jennifer paused, as the Prince stood in front of her, and his Mark began to glow.

"I, and the many [Seers] of Zandria have been divining the outcomes of this war, or what would lead to a war from the aggression on Lienmont. The signs had been chaotic, as is the case with many wars yet there had been something tying them together, something outside our sight,” the prince’s eyes met hers. “You.”

“Jennifer, you claim to have seen the future. To have seen a war that threatened your city. The Alliance has already sent hundreds of scouts to discover the scope of the war. You may have single handedly shifted the fate of the continent with this information. Yet, why is that when I see your future Jennifer- all I see is darkness? Even dead people leave an impact on the world. Death is not the end of one’s destiny after all. But somehow, just for you, I cannot see what the future holds.”

Jennifer stared at the prince, her heart pounding.

“There are eight Marks. Eight who were chosen in this trial that spans centuries. Yet now, suddenly, there are nine,” the prince turned, staring at Jennifer.

“Who are you, Mark of Time?”

Jennifer felt her Mark pulsating as the Prince’s Mark glowed with an increasing intensity. It brushed against her Mark, yet, it didn’t seek press against her. It was comforting, welcoming.

“Let me show you something Jennifer. The thread on which all our fates are hanging from,” Laiken said, as his red eyes began to light up. The Prince turned, silver threads extending into the endless sea of darkness as mist pooled, and a vision began to play itself.

Jennifer watched as silver threads carried her through the darkness, as the familiar blue tinged walls of the dungeon passed by, soon followed by the deeper layers of the dungeon, until they reached a narrow chamber, at the very heart of the great chamber.

The vision twisted, shifting, as Jennifer struggled to see what lay in the darkness. Shivers crawled up her arms, and her chest tightened as rumbles shook the ground of the vision, and a massive shadow shifted in front of her.

Then, it opened its eyes, larger than her entire body, with rage that burned within each inch of the creature, and Jennifer’s mind blanked.

Undulated terror shook her heart, as she stared at the wispy shadow, feeling her legs tremble. She had seen death, felt its numbing cold embrace. Yet, as she stood in front of the beast, she couldn’t help but find even death itself comforting.

“Sera take me,” Jennifer whispered, perhaps meaning it for the first time ever.

“We don’t know what the beast is. Where it came from. We know pitifully little. Yet, all I see beyond the end of this month is endless darkness, and the threads of the fate of millions being cut short,” Laiken said, turning towards Jennifer, his eyes grim.

“Mark of Time,” the prince said, as his Mark lit up. “The fate of many lies upon your shoulders. It is a heavy burden to carry, but it is the one you have been destined to. Yet, as the Crown Prince of Zandria, and the Mark of Fate, I know a thing or two about bearing the fate of hundreds upon my shoulders. As such, I have only one request of you today,” the Prince said, and Jennifer listened intently, as her own Mark lit up.

“Would you be willing to share this burden with me?” The Prince asked, and an ache bloomed in her heart. In front of her, Jennifer saw a boy, of twenty five or twenty, with the weight of a kingdom, and perhaps the entire continent. She saw someone who understood, who more than just understood. Someone who could guide her through her own fate.

Silently, Jennifer extended her hand and the Prince grasped it. Their Marks intertwined, pulsing as one, and a smile formed on her face.

“I will, Laiken.”

[Bond: Fated Strings] obtained!

Mark of Time:
The Mark of the Chosen of Time.

Bond of Fate: Fated strings
A Bond born from the union of Time and Fate

Abilities: Time Reset
Resets: 1

Integrity: 99.16%
Tier: Undefined

The world spread out in front of her, silver threads stretching to infinity. Jennifer's Mark began to burn as magic spread all around her. She stood between a hundred possible futures, as various possible worlds spread out in front of her.

In one world, she stood back in the streets as her city collapsed around her, going up in flames and she walked through its remains alone. In another, she talked with the prince, as he excitedly shared stories about his kingdom and his aspirations and she laughed as she found an unlikely friend. In another she watched her mother grieve her dead daughter.

Magic spread through her arm, her mark pulsed with each breath as she lived the same moment a thousand times over.

And then, with a sudden blink, it was all gone.

Jennifer stumbled, heart pounding as she wondered what she had just witnessed. The Prince stood still nearby, frozen in place with his eyes wide. Slowly, he turned towards Jennifer.

“I was too late,” the Prince muttered and Jennifer felt her heart sink. “But you… you can go back in time. Perhaps, if it is with you. If I send you back now would it be enough?” The Prince muttered and Jennifer stared.

Send her back? Was he going to… Jennifer dared not think of the possibility, not after what she’d seen in her vision, but her heart thundered regardless of her wishes.

Red eyes turned towards her, as the Prince stared at her, his eyes regarding. Gently, he extended his hand to her shoulder. “You need to run. It is far too late, but I still wish for you to survive. My Mark should protect you.”

“What? I don’t understand. Run? Where?” Jennifer blurted as the world around her began to shake.

“There will be an attack on the guild by the demons soon, and we're far too late to stop it," the Prince said, his mouth curved downwards in a glower. "You carry many fates, and it would be a lie to say that I do not wish for you to sacrifice yourself here. To forfeit your life, and return in time once more, to save us. But I have given my word, and the Prince of Zandria is no liar,” the prince said, as cracks spread around the throne room.

“Run Jennifer, and live. As long as you remain, our hope remains. But if the time comes where you must return, and try to save us from our follies, then listen to my Mark, and it shall aid you,” the prince said, turning towards her with a smile full of sorrow.

“It was good to meet you, Jennifer, may the Fates be by your side,” the prince whispered as his form faded and with a threatening shudder the throne room collapsed, breaking apart into pieces.

***

With a snap, Jennifer found herself back inside the council chamber. The world spun in circles as her legs buckled from the sudden transition. Coarse hand arrested her fall, grabbing her shoulders and Jennifer looked up in gratitude to find Irwys staring back at her.

Jennifer stared at Irwys, her mind still reeling from everything that had happened. She struggled to form words, fumbling as the [Knight] held her straight, a concerned expression on his face.

“I apologize if Your Highness caused you any trouble, he can sometimes—”

“No!” Jennifer said, interrupting Irwys as her mind finally began to catch up to the events around her. “We need to run. Everyone needs to run. The Prince warned me of an attack on the guild.” Jennifer looked up to meet Irwys’ silver eyes. “The demons are going to attack.”

The [Knight] frowned, his eyes shining with magic for a moment. “I can’t reach His Highness,” he said, turning to the side.

Jennifer glanced to the side and found Nathaniel standing amidst runes that circled around him in an array of intricate and complex mana.

“I can’t either. The Prince, or anyone for that matter. No message spells either. Sera, this is bad. There’s an interference field over the guild,” Nathaniel said, as the runes faded from around him. “Take Jenn and bring her to safety. The upper chamber of the guild should be secure,” Nathaniel said, as Irwys gave a nod.

Jenn turned towards Nathaniel. “What about you?”

“I’m on overtime today,” Nat said with an amused smile. Magic swirled around him as he shot out of the chamber.

Irwys grabbed Jennifer’s hand, nodding to her, and Jennifer nodded back as the two of them dashed out of the chamber.

The ground beneath their feet rattled, magic coursing through it. Blue shimmering wards shot up all around the guild as shouts and cries began to fill the chamber. Adventurers stumbled out in confusion as the building shook from the onpour of mana, staring at their surroundings.

“The guild is under attack!” Jennifer screamed as she ran past onlookers, unsure of what was happening.

“Why aren't we warning them?” Jennifer shouted towards Irwys.

“They’re adventurers. The civilians and staff will be protected and guided. We need to get you somewhere safe first,” Irwys spoke, his words kurt and Jennifer found herself failing to come back with a suitable response to his words.

Frustration bubbled in her chest, mixing with fear. The smell of burnt flesh and blood refreshed itself in her mind. She didn't want to live through that night again.

I thought we had time. I even went to the guild. I warned everyone of the coming invasion. All these people, and adventurers. How did this happen?

Jennifer cleared her head. She had no time to think over what and why of her situation. Dragging her feet was only going to endanger her further. Drawing on her mana Jenn quickly weaved Agile Wind together, as a burst of wind accelerated her forward.

Jennifer let her spell run wild, glass mana pouring into the spell matrix. Little shards of glass followed her trail as she followed behind Irwys. Together, they rushed towards the upper chamber.

The building shook once more, this time with far more power all around her. The wards on the guild’s wall flickered, tier mana supplies running dry. [Enhanced Mana Sense] flared in Jennifer’s mind, as the sensation of a tidal wave of pana pouring out almost knocked her off her feet.

“Teleportation wards breached! Tier-8 spell!”  a mage screamed as the building vibrated with mana overflowing in it. The walls glimmered a light blue from the flow of mana, spell threads latching onto each source of power within the guild.

Mass Teleport- that should be impossible, the spatial anchors should stop any teleports. Unless it has been taken over somehow?

A sinkhole of mana opened in Jennifer’s senses within the guild, sucking all the mana in its vicinity. She felt her core being drained dry and struggled to prevent her mana from being leached out.

Runes flickered underneath her feet, spreading out in a wide array as Irwys stopped running. Amidst the shouts and screams in panic, the two of them stood in tense silence, watching the spell from around them.

A bright flash flared from the spell underneath. Dark, misshapen figueres rose from the spell, surrounding them on all sides. They stood and bloated, screeching, roaring and hissing as they shot towards any human nearby. Demons.

Jennifer’s heart raced but her mind had no time to catch up. She quickly pulled up her spells, taking stock of her environment as the training from the past few weeks started to kick in.

“[Sword Art: Mistblade]” Irwys said, as wisps of mist covered his sword. A single slash turned into three, tearing through the demons nearby.

Corrosive hissing smoke rose from their corpses, rising to take the form of smaller imps that shot towards the two of them. With each passing seconds the demons began to gather, cutting off their pathways, as the two of them struggled to hold the horde back.

“The pathway ahead is blocked. We need a new place to go to,” Irwys said in between his swings. With a twirling motion the demon’s insides were put on display for a world. Jennifer held back a gag at the stench.

Glass shards spun around Jenn, as mana bolts shot at the smaller imps that tried to reach her. She kicked the little misshapen pests off her ankle, launching blades of glass that slashed through the demons whenever one got too close.

“The library! It has wards that could keep the demons out,” Jeninfer said, her back set against Irwys as she fought the slithering forms.

“Stay close,” Irwys muttered, sheathing his sword. The demons leapt in, taking the chance when  the [Knight] burst into a fog of mist.

The same spell he used in the Trial.

Irwy’s hand grabbed Jennifer amidst the thick fog, as the two of them ran through the horde of demons. With a sudden flicker, a piercing screech shot through the mist. Jennifer felt her [Enhanced Mana Sense] detect something behind her.

A dark figure bubbled and boiled, rising from the ground. The shadows around her shifted, turning into scythes aimed for her throat. Her mind didn’t have a moment to think and on instinct she formed a collar of glass around her throat.

With the cracking of a whip the tendril struck her throat, breaking the glass. Jennifer was shot off her feet, thrown onto the floor as she clutched her neck, pain shooting through her entire body.

“[Piercing Edge]!” Irwys screamed the next moment, as his sword slashed through the shadowy wraith.

Jennifer remained curled up on the ground, blood rising in her throat. Absently, she felt at her wait, taking out the vial of healing potion that she tipped over onto her lips. The liquid poured down her jaw, soaking her chest and neck, as she struggled to open her mouth, yet the potion had done its job as the familiar sensation of tingling mana covered her throat, the injury starting to heal.

Irwys grabbed her hand, lifting her up as Jenn gathered her bearings. With some support from the [Knight] she began to run once more.

Jennifer’s heart thundered, her near death experience having shaken her spirit. She’d almost died there, just like that, without a moment’s notice, she would’ve been gone. What if she hadn’t returned? The urgency of her situation was the only thing keeping the lurking fear in her heart at bay.

A trail of mist covered their path as they ran to the library, when a familiar scream halted Jenifer’s steps as she ran, her eyes darting around before they finally settled on familiar red hair.

“Rumina! How did you get here?!” Jennifer screamed.

The red-head stood nearby, holding a dagger with her clothes slashed and blood soaking them red. Rumina’s eyes widened as she saw Jenn, the girl rushing towards her, when demons blocked her path.

Irwys grabbed her hands, pulling her ahead. “We need to go.”

Jennifer stood, frozen, and pulled her hand back from the [Knight]. Irwys turned to look at her, and Jennifer stared at the knight, as she spoke in a voice filled with ice.

“I’m not leaving my friend to die.”

A moment of silent consideration, Irwys shot towards the girl, his blade humming as arcs of mist shot out.

Jennifer flooded her mana pathways, weaving glass storms and mana bolts together. The spell hummed in her mind, the matrices colliding with one another as she coaxed one to merge into another. She channeled using Nat’s technique, drawing on her weeks of training as she stacked the two spells atop each other. Then, with a light nudge, she let the glass explode out.

Glowing blots of glass mana swirled in a storm spreading from Jennifer’s hand as they tore through the demons. Jennifer followed her spell, with mana bolts, piercing and stabbing through the slithering shadowy demons that lashed out blindly from within Irwys’ mist.

Red hair soon began to appear from within the mist us Irwys walked with Rumina next to her. Jennn leapt at her friend, hugging her.

“Head to the library now!” Irwys screamed as Jennifer let go of Rumina, grabbing her hand as she ran ahead. Dark shadows coalesced behind them, as a roar shook the corridor. Jennifer weaved her glass eye spell, forming a floating eye as she closed her left eye, looking behind her.

A giant amalgamation of demons stood behind, fire burning within its maw as the beast swept through the adventurers, shaking the floor with each step. Irwys stood in front of the beast, his sword flashing in arcs of silver.

Jennifer let the spell dissolve, as she poured her mana in Agile wind, rushing ahead. A few moments later, she reached the library, its gates shimmering with the wards. She crashed into the gates, pulling Rumina in as demons chased behind her.

She shot a quickly weaved glass blade towards the gates, shutting them close as the demons arrived. In a rush, Jenn stumbled closer, setting her hand against the door. Pouring her mana, she activated the wards within the library, closing it from the inside.

Screeches and screams sounded out as the demons slammed against the door, but the lock had set, not budging an inch. Jennifer turned to stare at her friend, blood covering Rumina's face as her hands shook.

Many questions burned in her mind, yet she put them to the side and rushed to her friend's side, wrapping her in a hug.

“J-Jenn. I-” Rumina broke into a sob as she hugged her friend. The scent of blood pervaded Jenn's senses and she felt tears dampen her shoulder. Jennifer’s heart raced, her body shaking from nervousness as she pulled her friend in a tight hug.

“It’s fine. It’ll be fine. You’re alright Rumina,” Jennifer soothed, her own voice cracking as the tense knot of emotions melted in her stomach. She felt the blood pouring down Rumina’s back, staining her hands, the torn blood soaked cloth that broke apart from a touch.

Just how her friend gotten to the guild? How had she been so injured? Questions burned in her mind as Jennifer patted her friend’s back.

“I didn’t even talk to you Rumina,” Jenn said, feeling her voice quiver. “Ever since I joined the guild, you just vanished. I felt as if you weren’t ready to talk to me. I didn’t even see you in the shop, and I just. I’m so sorry. I wanted to tell you everything, and I wanted to tell you what I had seen. But I was busy trying to prevent it, to be better and to not let this happen again. I failed Rumina. I failed again.”

Tears flowed down Jennifer’s cheeks, as she hugged her friend tight. “I should’ve talked to you before this. Before all of this. I just- I’m sorry,” Jennifer spoke, as her friend hugged her silently. A few minutes passed as worry began to grow in Jenn’s heart.

“Rumina? What’s wrong?” Jennifer asked, pulling back to look at her friend’s face.

“I-I’m sorry Jenn,” Rumina said, her eyes staring into hers. The redhead leaned in closer to her ears and whispered in her ears.

“Goodbye.”

A sense of dread pulsed through her chest as a searing hot feeling embedded into her gut. Fire erupted in her nerves as Jennifer twitched, her eyes wide in shock. Jennifer looked down, pushing Rumina away with bloody hands, as she watched the knife embedded in her gut. Blood poured out of the wound as pain pulsed through each breath.

“W-what…why…” Jennifer rasped, as she coughed out blood. Each breath sent a pulse of searing hot pain through her body. The world spun around her, a dark liquid on the knife burning her skin. Yet the pain may as well have been a respite.

Something tugged within her soul, unseen silver strings that wrapped around her Mark. With a sudden pulse they gathered, burning with a bright silver as they blasted her friend away, forming a protective shield around her. Jennifer felt her bond, the [Fated Strings] that tied them together. The silver strings wove around her in a frenzy, touching at her wound to help with the damage.

She watched with muted disconnect as her friend rocked back. Rumina's face rippled, the flesh distorting and what stood in her place wore a twisted smile, its face peeling off from the corners of its mouth.

Jennifer tried to scream, but there was no voice in her. She watched silently as the monster walked closer, wearing its twisted smile with cold eyes. It was here again. The monsters in the dark, the nightmare she'd lived through. Her soul screamed at the presence of the Mark that stood in front of her. She watched the dark red Mark on its neck, glowing slightly now. It bore its imprint upon her, a vile twisted thing, as a name rose to Jennifer’s mind.

The Mark of Deceit.

“Fate as well. We should’ve killed you the moment we saw you,” the monster hiss, its face pulling back like a mask of skin that had been slashed through. “Wasted killing that girl and taking her form. Now she must reside in us,” the monster hissed, as a dozen voices sounded, a screeching tone to them all. The creature’s body warped as a dark being of shifting faces stood in front of her, the Mark on its neck shining with a threatening red glow.

Rumina is… I…

Another tendril rose from the ground, piercing Jennifer’s chest. She stared in surprise, as the tendril went through her body, as she realized the onset of her own death. She felt no pain, all sensations drowned by the shock. Blood poured freely from her wounds, her body losing strength as Jennifer tried to crawl back, to move away.

The monster walked calmly towards her.

“All that effort, all that preparation. Gone. A Mark with future foresight that appeared out of nowhere. Not Psyche but different. Should've eliminated sooner. But not anymore. The Mark shall be ours. One with our Deceit.”

Another tendril pierced her shoulder as Jennifer felt the beast claws reach her. Jennifer clenched her teeth, feeling her body losing strength. She was dead. There was no saving her. It had all been for nothing.

Yet it wasn’t despair that bloomed in her chest, but instead, fury.

She hadn’t even been there when her friend’s life had been taken by this monster, who wore her skin and spoke in her voice. Even down to the very mannerism with which she spoke, the monster copied her. She imagined Rumina at the demon’s mercy as it took her life, and something snapped within her.

Mana boiled in Jennifer’s core, rising like a torrential tide as she screamed. Her howl’s rang with mana, and her mana pathways ruptured, unable to hold the torrent of mana back. Blood turned to glass, rising from her chest in jutting shards of crystals that shot towards the demon, stabbing it through the chest.

Jennifer stared at the mangled body of her friend, the demon’s eyes wide as blood flowed from Rumina's chest, pierced by blood-red glass. The creature’s mouth opened and an inhuman wail of agony tore through.

The demon lashed out, tendrils jutting out towards Jennifer. The last thing she saw was Rumina’s face, bleeding, its features twisted in anger. The next moment, dark tendrils pierced through Jennifer’s skull and she knew no more.

[Class: Resourceful Enchanter] has reached level 17!

[Skill: Blood Shard] obtained!

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10 — Whispers of War

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Irwys SIlveran was in a bad mood. A frequent occurrence, ever since he’d met the new Mark. The [Royal Knight] walked through the guild pathways, keeping his frown in check as he passed by the dozens of adventurers that crowded every inch of the guild in recent days. He’d failed to anticipate just how many people would rush towards the city at the barest sniff of the new dungeon branch.

“You should know how adventurers are by now, Irwys. The chance of being the one to reach the depths of a new branch are enticing enough to shake the entire continent. And with what’s inside the dungeon, I can’t say I’m not tempted either.”

Irwys continued to walk without missing a step as the prince spoke to his mind. Fate magic had multiple applications, including long distance communication that would normally only be associated with mind mages, and prince Laiken was one of the strongest Fate practitioners he had ever seen.

“Your highness, perhaps it would be best to delay such talks till a more suitable chamber can be located? The guild lacks proficiency in divinations, but they aren’t incompetent and these are not topics to be discussed so freely,”  Irwys replied smoothly, taking a left through the corridors. He didn’t find the many twists and turns of the building appealing.

“Oh? You think they can breach through my defenses? I’m surprised you think so highly of them. And even if they overhear what I have to say, what are they going to do? Stand the crown prince of Zandria on trial for talking to his [Royal Knight]? Who dares! I’ll have their heads!”

Irwys stiffened for the barest of moments at the words. He resumed his gait soon after, ignoring the harpy donning mage robes that walked past him, giving him the side eye. He wasn’t used to seeing so many other species around within a single city. Zandria rarely had anyone besides humans, trolls, and griffins, and only one of the three could talk.

“Please don’t fool around Your Highness. The council is gathering,” Irwys sent back, adjusting the sword at his waist as he reached the door of the council room.

“Fates, you’re so stiff Irwys. Have I told you that? I think I’ve told you that. You really need to loosen up one of these days.”

Irwys pressed his hand against the door, entering inside as he ignored prince Laiken’s antics. Inside the chamber were the three guild heads nearby. Irwys recognised them from the few meetings they’d had discussing the Marks and the pact, yet this marked the first time he’d seen all three together. He briefly glanced at the woman seated nearby wearing a high cut dress from the eastern kingdoms outside the continent of Zweiril. A rare fabric called Poison-silk. Irwys noted her to be the Valencia, the crafting guild’s head.

The guild heads each turned to regard briefly, greeting him with a light nod, as they continued to pour over a map of the Allied territories, marking the movements of the tribes.

Irwys regarded each of the guild heads briefly, noting the nearby seated mark of Valor alongside the [Head Priest] of the church of Sera. He nodded his head briefly as his eyes met each, quietly noting the absence of the Mark of Life.

“I would be really surprised if the church let the Mark of Life appear for something as trivial as the invasion of a city. With her role and her class I still find it surprising that we got her to agree to our pact.”

“Knight Irwys? Please,” one of the guild heads said, gesturing for him to take a seat. Irwys followed the old and portly Mage’s instruction, taking a seat.

When he had first arrived at Lienmont, he’d expected more ferocity from the man dubbed the False Archmage. Instead, the [Mage] felt like the spitting image of a kind uncle with his unshaven beard and clean bald head that curled his eyes in soft wrinkles.

“Not great to judge a book by its cover. Unless you’re me. Then you can. And, regardless of how the Magus Peiross may appear to be, that man is still one of the top 10 strongest [Mages] on Zweiril. Well, at least among the ones we know are alive anyway.”

Irwys adjusted his opinion of the man.

“Has the Prince found anything of note on the demons?” Guild head Zaress asked, as a pair of bright blue eyes turned his way. Where Magus Peiross was a soft and kind figure, guild head Zaress was a Wyvern turned man.

“Yes! I’m so glad you asked! I’m pretty sure there’s at least a dozen near the outer ranges of the city itself, and a few more inside the dungeon, but hey, can’t tell you that. For all I know they might be listening to this-”

Irwys cut the communication thread off.

“There have been no notable movements amongst the demons so far on any of the Alliance borders. There have been reports of shadow and dark elemental spirits and wraiths, yet no direct relation to the invasion can be found. There have been several reports of potential demon sightings, but no one has managed to verify one,” Irwys sent back, causing Valencia to click her tongue.

“Frustrating opponents. Either the demons have the strongest obscurification spells and wards I’ve seen yet, or someone is interfering with the reports. I’m not sure which I find harder to believe,” Valencia said, crossing her legs. Irwys briefly caught a glimpse of the needles weaved within the hem of the women’s dress.

“She is the youngest guild head to take her position throughout all the guilds within the alliance in the last seven decades or so. From what I recall her class was [Minstrel of Threads]. Still under level 50, but not by much. Weaving steel threads of poison-silk sounds just about right for someone like her.”

Irwys’ eyebrows twitched, as the prince nonchalantly spoke to his mind once more establishing their connection single handedly.

“Oh don’t praise me too much. It wasn’t too tough to force a one way thread, our fates are just that intertwined my dear Knight.”

“I’ve sent scouts to track the Ostiri,” Guild head Zaress said, his eyes scanning the map. “There are caravans of traders moving towards Lienmont as usual. I don’t see any army that might be heading here. The amount of land they have to cover to even reach the city makes me wonder if the girl was lying.”

“Irwys. Relay my words. This is important.”

Irwys was surprised by the sudden change in prince Laiken’s tone, but smoothly stood up and followed his instructions.

“Price Laiken would like to speak something,” Irwys said as threads of fate snapped into place, and Prince Laiken spoke, now from the mouth of his knight.

“She isn’t. The Ostiri curse is mutating, reaching outside the Ostiri desert after centuries. I’ve gotten reports of unborn children having mutated limbs, and odd features at birth. The number of stillbirths in the last three to four months has been the highest since the Great Fell. And this isn’t limited just to the Ostiri. Even the lizardfolk to the south west have been affected,” Irwys paused as the Prince stopped speaking. The guild heads frowned.

“May Sera’s grace guide us, why would the curse target children?” the high priest spoke up, turning to look at Irwys.

“It’s death magic,” Laiken said, through Irwys. “Or something worse. Unborn lives are the most susceptible to these things, and they tend to form the first of the casualties. If it continues… it may be worse than the Great Fell.”

“That can’t be. Are you truly saying that this event is stronger than the Tier-11 curse of an Archmage?”

Guild head Zaress raised his hand, interjecting. “While I’m aware that it is highly unfortunate to have such a thing happening. This at best serves to give hints towards why the Ostiri may have moved at all, and not on how to prevent them, or prepare for a war against them.”

“There is more,” Irwys continued as the prince spoke up once more. “Not only has the curse spread outwards from the desert, the curse itself has worsened. Beasts are mutating at a far faster rate than ever near the desert. The Ostiri are facing a plague that is eating at them from the inside. Children are dying before birth, the inhuman mutations on the Ostiri themselves are spreading faster and faster, and turning monsters into abominations. Are you still failing to see what I wish to say, guild head?” Laiken spoke, from Irwy’s mouth, as the knight’s eyes shone a misty silver.

“The curse of the Ostiri has been confined to it’s desert cage for centuries now. But if it’s waking up, we have a lot more to worry about than just the displaced and dying tribe’s invasion. They might be rising from their graves,” prince Laiken spoke, as the threads of fate receded from Irwys, the glow within his eyes dying.

The chamber sat in silence at his words.

“Summon the war council and start the communication array,” Guild Head Zaress spoke at last, and Valencia’s head snapped towards the man.

“Are we really—”

“There is no time,” the guild head growled, cutting her off. “A war is coming. A war we have to fight one way or another. The council was happening today one way or another. All I've done is spare us the days of debate and arguments before they began to prepare for war. Days we cannot afford now,” Zaress said, lifting himself from his chair.

“Prepare the meeting chamber and get the girl, we'll need her to testify,” the guild head said, as Viel moved out to follow the orders.

Zaress stood silently, lightning crackling around his hair as a heavy aura set upon the room. The mana shivered, crackling like thunder clouds under the man’s weight and Irwys felt the weight the guild head’s name bore. The weight of the Storm Blight.

With a heavy sigh, the guild head folded the map as he turned to stare at Irwys with his bright blue eyes. “I know it is foolish. And yet, against all odds and proof, I hope that you and the girl are wrong,” Zaress said, walking out.

Irwys stood silently, watching the guild head’s back. A moment later, his prince whispered.

“Me too, Zaress. Me too.”

***

Jennifer stepped into the guild, walking through the entrance section filled with adventurers of all ranks surrounding her. Just two weeks ago, she’d felt extremely out of place, walking among so many adventures laden with a multitude of weapons. Now the thought barely came to her mind as she stepped past the reception desk and headed towards her training chambers.

She summoned a light ball around her palm, floating it without even the barest of thought. A little shard of glass accompanied it, flying in circles around her palm. Alongside practicing her glass spell, she’d continued to work on the light shaping exercise. It had been a painful and frustrating endeavor with constant failure so far, but for some reason Jennifer had found himself unable to quit. At least I can summon around half a dozen light balls now without even a thought. Interesting how that ability carries to my ability to summon glass shards too.

Today was supposed to be her rest day so that she could recover naturally without potions but she’d been called by Nathaniel all of a sudden. The past two weeks of training with Viel had left her battered both physically and mentally despite the many potions she’d been fed.

Gently, Jennifer rubbed her abdomen, feeling the tight muscles within that had started to show some definition. She’d never been too thin or skinny, but neither had she put on any kind of muscle before this point. It still felt a bit odd to see such a massive difference in just two weeks of training, but she couldn’t deny the results. She felt like a different person, even to herself.

I wonder what Rumina will think when she sees me using Tier 2 spells without much effort. Or when she sees me waving a sword around and actually knowing how to use it for once.

Her lips curved up as she imagined Rumina’s expression, but the thought didn’t last. It had been almost two weeks since she’d first joined the guild, and Jennifer hadn’t spotted Rumina anywhere in those two weeks. She wondered if her friend hadn’t taken everything with the same cheer she always used to.

Maybe I’m too nonchalant about everything. I’d just told everyone of an oncoming invasion and then hoped they would believe me without any further explanation. I didn’t even tell Rumina the whole truth.

Jennifer felt guilt creep into her heart. She knew she was avoiding the conversation with her parents. She didn’t want to tell them that she hadn’t been there when the invasion happened. That she didn’t even know if they had survived or not.

I should probably talk to them. Dad, Rumina, all of them.

The thought still intimidated her. She’d broken down in front of her master, and she was glad she had. Yet, a part of her still wished to simply keep things the way they were. To pretend as if the invasion she warned everyone about wasn’t real. To deny that she’d ever truly died. She'd been having nightmares, and while she could only vaguely remember them, but in almost all of them, she had been there in the burning city watching the sand swallow it whole. Watching, as everyone she loved, had been reduced to dust.

With grim thoughts filling her mind, Jennifer headed towards the chamber she’d been asked to be in by Nathaniel. She hoped there was some new magic theory waiting for her. It’d help keep her mind off the darker thoughts that plagued her silence. She walked up to the chamber and opened the door.

A woman sat inside the room, and Jennifer froze upon noticing who it was.

Anghul sat nearby, lounging with her legs up on the table and a bored look on her face. She held a half eaten apple in her hands as her pitch black eyes turned towards Jennifer.

Jennifer wondered if she was in the wrong place.

“Stop gawking like an idiot and sit already,” Anghul spat, munching on her apple as her eyes remained fixated on her. Jennifer could never tell where the woman was looking with her eyes like pits of darkness.

Closing the door behind her, she headed in as she took a seat nearby. She hadn’t interacted much with Anghul during her time in the guild, and she wished to keep it that way. At least the woman hadn’t gone out of her way to bother Jenn.

The seconds passed painfully slowly as Jennifer sat in awkward silence. Anghul continued to eat munch on her apples, and after the fifth one had come out, she was starting to think the archer had some problems.

Within a few minutes, Jenifer found her mind wandering and her patience began to thin. She would’ve been fine all by herself, but seated next to the archer with her aura nudging her every so often, Jennifer found it difficult to sit silently.

“When’s Nathaniel going to come?” she spoke up, turning towards Anghul.

“Don’t know. He’s managing the link arrays and some depth damned mage things, whatever they use to gather the council in a hurry. Now stop flapping your lips and leave me some silence,” Anghul replied, taking another bite from her apple.

“You could’ve said that more nicely,” she said, clenching her fist. She was starting to feel a bit annoyed at the constant antagonism shown by the archer.

The archer turned towards her. "Oh? Speaking up now are we?" Anghul said, uncrossing her legs.

“Yes, because I was content to just let you be, but now I have to sit here and listen to all your insults. I don't get what your deal is. Ever since the start you've been antagonizing me, and even my Master. Sera, I don’t get it. What’s your deal?”

The archer stared at Jennifer, as the apple in her hand vanished with a flicker of mana. Two pits of black eyes turned towards Jennifer and suddenly the room began to seem a lot smaller.

"You want to know what my deal is?” the woman asked, anger rising in her voice. “My deal is the fact that you are weak. We need allies not children to babysit within the depths. You brought the call of a war. Do you know what this means?" Anghul spoke as her aura flared. “I will head out and kill my own tribe. I will tear through my very own people, because of this war that has come upon our heads. Because of the war that you brought to us,” Anghul spat as Jennifer felt the room darken for a moment as wisps of black rose from the archer's eyes.

Jennifer stared at the archer, failing to gather her words. “The war… is not my fault. I did not ask anyone to do this. I… hate it too. But I’m sorry to hear-”

“Don’t say you are sorry,” Anghul growled. Jennifer felt her hair rise on her arms.

“Do you know what you are sorry for? Do you understand it? My parents had sold me, thrown me to the [Slavers], and even they had no use for a burden. I was blind, motherless, and a cursed child. If the caravan was attacked, I would be the first to be fed to the monsters. I was dead weight, and I lived each moment under that weight. Do you know what happens to the children whose curse leaves them disabled? Their parents slit their throats to spare them the suffering their lives would be. But mine lacked the spine to do so, and I paid the price.” Anghul scoffed.

“In a way, I’m thankful that they were such cowards. Because of them I got to prove my worth. Earn my class and gain eyes even harpies would envy. I fought, and fought and fought each step of the way to be free of that dreaded place. To never have to face them again. I fought for so long that I forgot what I fought for anymore. And it resulted in what? This? Seething sands," Anghul cursed.

Jennifer stared silently, feeling a lump rise to her throat. She’d heard stories of the nature of the Ostiri curse and how harsh the deserts were to the people within but she couldn't have imagined it was this harsh. She continued to look at Anghul, finally understanding why the archer had shown such antagonism towards her. She had been blaming Jennifer.

“I… you are right. I don’t understand. I could never understand,” Jennifer said, clenching her fist. She looked up, and met Anghul’s eyes. “But the war is not my fault.”

The archer towards Jennifer, her frown setting deeper on her face. The woman turned away with a click of her tongue as her aura receded. “I know,” Anghul said in a quiet voice. “I know this isn’t your fault. I know. But what in Elphion’s name do you want me to do? Put on a smile and pretend that this isn’t real?” the archer turned to face Jennifer, her brows set in a frown.

“There is a war coming. A war where I will fight those depth damned people tied to my cursed blood and kill them all. We need allies, more so than ever now,” Anghul said, her pitch black eyes meeting Jennifer’s. “But all we got for it is you,” Anghul said, as the room descended into heavy silence.

Jennifer remained seated, her chest rumbling in turmoil. I did not ask for this. I did not ask for any of this. The Mark, this war. I should be in the academy, learning Enchanting, trying to grow so that I could heal my dad. Why am I here?

She found no answer.

“Hey! Sorry it took so long! Oh hey Jenni, you’re here already. Great, let’s head out then, and Anghu-” Nathaniel paused, looking at the archer. His gaze returned to Jennifer who looked down at her hands, feeling an odd sense of guilt.

Anghul got up from her seat, brushing past Nathaniel as she headed out. “I’ll be there,” the archer said on her way out.

Nathaniel turned back to look at Jennifer, his face stuck between a wince and an awkward smile. “I’m so sorry about Anghul-”

“No,” Jennifer interrupted. “It’s alright. It was partially my fault. I got annoyed,” Jennifer replied, as she got up from her seat. “Are we beginning training now?”

“Ah, actually, no. Do you know about the council coming here?” Nathaniel asked.

“I heard Anghul mention it. Council of who?” Jenn asked.

Nathaniel winced. “Guess I forgot to mention. There’s been a change of plans. The council is… the council of the Alliance. The war council is gathering Jennifer, and you have to appear in front of them.”

A few moments passed in stunned silence, before Jennifer’s mind finally caught up to Nathaniel's words. If her heart could’ve leapt out of her chest, it probably would’ve. With a deep breath, and the calmest voice she could muster, she spoke up.

“I’m appearing in front of who?!”

***

It had taken a while for Jennifer to calm down, and a while more for her to accept what she’d heard as reality as she’d been escorted to the meeting chamber by Nathaniel. She recalled her father mentioning the time he’d begun working in the mage guild all those years ago, and had been greeted by one of the guild heads. He’d laughingly mentioned how the man was likely going to be the most important figure he’d ever meet in his life.

She eyed the same man standing within the chamber, accompanied by the other two guild heads on both sides. A [Priest] stood nearby as well, alongside Irwys, Viel and Anghul. Jenn wondered what her father would think, if he was here.

“I don’t think you need to be nervous,” Nathaniel said, his voice echoing in Jennifer’s head.

Jennifer turned around in surprise, her eyes wide. She glanced around the room once, before turning to Nathaniel. “Telepathy?” she whispered.

“Yup. It’s quite a nifty skill to have. I’ll teach you some day. It isn’t all that tough once you get the hang of it,” the mage said with a wink, as he patted her shoulder.

Jennifer realized Nat’s attempt at distracting her, and she had to admit it’s success. Her mind was now full of potential ideas and utilization of mind mage or how she would even learn such a complex and rare spell.

If that even was a spell. I didn’t sense any mana at all.

Jennifer had thought of herself as being quite good at magic. She was no comparison to noble bloodlines gifted with secrets and resources from childhood but she was still quite proud of her own abilities despite not having none of the resources. Yet, her worldview had flipped over entirely the more time she spent with Nathaniel. The ease and perfection with which he executed his magic left her baffled. It made sense, seeing how he was a Gold Plate and had years of experience over her, yet the thought did nothing to ease her burning desire to match up to him.

Ten years. I may not have that amount of talent, and I may not have his resources. But I have time. I can do this. Also prevent the invasion while I’m at it.

Jennifer had tried not to fixate on her abilities. She never knew which death would spell the end of her, but the thought had refused to leave her mind. Taking a breath, she let the idea go for the moment. It would do her no good to be so competitive, there were other things that demanded her attention right now.

Feeling a bit more calm after a couple of breaths, Jennifer took a look around the chamber she was present in. It was a simple chamber, carved in the same white stone as the rest of the guild, but Jennifer could sense the layers of mana that ran through the walls. She’d passed through some heavy wards on her way.

“Set up the communication array Nathaniel,” Zaress said to Nathaniel, before turning around. “If everyone is here then close the chambers. The alliance will be trying to establish a connection soon. Help him if you would, Peiross. I’d rather no delays happen.”

Nathaniel nodded, patting her shoulder one last time as he walked ahead. Jennifer spotted the Mage guild’s head, Peiross Varlos, looking in her direction for a moment. The mage gave her a light smile and a nod before turning away to prepare the spell.

Jennifer felt her nerves return, as she looked around. Her eyes eventually settled on Zaress, the central guild head and the renowned adventurer, Storm Blight. She vaguely recalled seeing him flying through the burning city on the night of the invasion.

“Mark of Time, it is a pleasure to meet you,” a voice interrupted her thoughts, almost making Jennifer jump. She turned to see a kind looking man standing next to her, wearing robes of white, with golden threads running along the hem. She recognised the man as the [High Priest] of Sera’s church.

“By Sera’s grace, the pleasure is all mine, [High Priest],” Jennifer replied, trying her best to imitate the courtesy her mother had taught her, telling her it’d be of use when she would one day work amidst nobles as a renowned Enchanter. Jennifer was almost certain she’d messed it up.

“May Sera guide you. Difficult times are arriving, and I thought I would see the face of the girl carrying the heavy burden of this news. I must admit, I hadn’t expected someone so young,” the priest said, turning towards her.

Jennifer stared silently at the man, unsure of what to say. She eyed the priest, nodding silently as a response.

“Is there something you wish to ask?” the priest asked. Jennifer realized she’d been staring. She almost shook her head as her default for any awkward situation but managed to stop herself. Shuffling her feet awkwardly she asked. “I just… wasn’t sure why you would be present in this council. I believed the church didn’t get involved with politics, especially wars.”

The priest looked at her with a calm smile, before turning away, and towards the other guild heads. “As you should know, this isn’t any ordinary war. The gods are involved and thus, so is the church,” The priest turned to look at Jennifer. “I come here as a representative of Selina, the Mark of Life.”

Jennifer’s eyes widened. The [Saint] is the Mark of Life?

The priest turned back towards Jennifer. “The church has stayed its hand from war and the workings of kingdoms, only so far as the threat didn’t threaten the existence of the Alliance itself.”

“The demons are that big of a threat?” Jennifer asked, feeling surprised. An invasion on Lienmont made sense, but to topple the Alliance was a notion that Jennifer couldn’t even begin to fathom. It would spell the end of civilization as they knew it.

“I fear that the demons are only a catalyst, and that there are far worse things that are starting to rise from their slumber,” the [High Priest] said, turning towards Jennifer. “There is another purpose that has brought me here. It was meeting you, Mark of Time.”

“Me?” Jenifer asked, and the priest nodded.

“I carry a message from the [Saint],” the [High Priest] said, and Jennifer’s eyes widened in surprise. “Mark of Time. When the time arrives for you to seek the truth, to seek into the past, then search for the dragon’s Mark,” the [High Priest] said, giving her a last smile as he turned and walked away.

Jennifer stared at the priest’s back in confusion. When… I seek the truth? What does that mean?

She didn’t get the time to mull over the man’s words, as a pulse of mana traveled through the chamber. The doors behind Jennifer shut themselves close. Runes of blue ran across the floor and up the walls, covering the chamber in magic.

[Enhanced Mana Sense] returned a mesh of mana threads and matrices layed around her in all directions. Jennifer found it impossible to track the spell as mana swirled as intricate threads and links of mana began to connect together.

Circles of light manifested on the floor, at the center of the chamber, as some of the members up ahead walked back, watching the magic work. Seven circles lit up on the floor, arranged in a circular array as runes swirled around them. Like pools of water rising from the ground, wispy figures flickered within the arena. She watched as the members of the council began to appear.

Zaress, the guild head, stood in front of the circles, his graying hair tinged blue from the light of the spell. The bright light of the spell soon faded, the mana settling down, leaving the wispy figures standing within their respective circles.

Jennifer took a quick glance around at the various members standing. There were members from the Nests, the Elven tribes, The Verhiz lizardfolk swaps, a representative from the Lehorian Empire. A dwarf woman, who Jennifer could only recognise the gender of, due to her familiarity with her Master. She took in a sharp breath, noting a dryad that stood silently next to the elf. She’d never seen a dryad before, their people rarely ever found outside of the Elder Woods.

Jennifer lingered for a moment upon the dryad before her eyes moved to the last person standing. The prince of Zandria.

The Prince stood straight, his light gold hair and crimson red eyes glancing across the room as the man wore a pleased smile on his face. Jennifer’s eyes shifted towards the silver Mark on his forehead, like a lotus with three petals.

A sudden shift had Jennifer see silver threads floating through the air, the presence of a Mark brushing against her. She looked down at the prince’s face, and received a wink for her trouble, as the sensation faded in an instant. She stared, looking around to see if no one else had noted the prince’s gesture, and found none who reacted in any way.

She returned her sight to Zaress, watching the prince, and Irwys standing nearby from the corner of her eye.

“I greet the council, and apologize for the short notice of this meeting,” Zaress said, his voice booming across the room, demanding attention.

“Small talk ain’t what we’re ‘ere for are we? Ye call upon the deep downers for War, human. I’m here to hear yer plea,” the dwarf woman snorted, her accent thick.

“My, boisterous as always, aren't we Merideth?'' The Harp woman trilled, covered her face with her feathered wing-hands.

“The empire, as always, is willing to take up arms for a just cause. Especially for a city like Lienmont,” another man spoke, the representative from the empire.

Jennifer turned to stare at the guild head, and for a moment, she felt as if she saw the man sigh. “It is not our war that I have called you here for. I’m assuming at least some of you are already aware of the invasion headed by the Ostiri upon Lienmont,” Zaress said.

“Have the Rezis lost control of their tribes? I’d always stood against allowing vile things such as [Slave Lords] to be allowed to trade with the Alliance for just this very reason,” the human from the Empire spoke, his face twisted in disgust.

“If I may guild head,” prince Laiken spoke, and the guild head nodded. “The Ostiri are headed by a Mark. A man, holding one of the eight Marks given by the trial that has begun beneath the city of Lienmont. The great dungeon under the city is shifting, changing, and we fear, not for the better. I, and the guild, have gathered some of these Marks, each with unique abilities. And one of them comes bearing a grim news of the future,” prince Laiken says, turning towards Jennifer.

Jennifer gulped, as the eyes of the dozens of figures rested upon her.

“The demons are colluding with the Ostiri. Our [Seers] see a great calamity that would strike the continent near the end of this month, one capable of toppling the Alliance itself,” Prince Laiken continued, as Jennifer saw the Mark on his forehead beginning to glow.

Murmurs spread across the council members.

“Something is there, within the dungeon, something the demons are targeting. And we need the Alliance’s support to stop them,” Prince Laiken said.

“Do you mean to take a girl’s wordsss? On matters such as thisss?” the Lizardfolk spoke, a long tongue flickering out with a trailing hiss.

“I am aware of the gravity of the situation,” Prince Laiken spoke. “And thus, the Mark of Time will be testifying in front of the council, on a greater truth spell, upon the veracity of her words,” Laiken spoke and Jennifer’s heart began to thunder.

She looked around in surprise, bowing her head lightly and stepping ahead. Jennifer felt the intensity of some of the gazes directly her away, combined with the mixed curiosity. She was thankful that these people weren’t present physically in front of her or she may just have collapsed from the weight of their combined presence.

Jennifer felt a brief link of mana tough her mind, and she looked up to the source. Nathaniel stood at the back, still intently focused on the spell, but the mage gave her a reassuring nod, and Jennifer nodded back. She needed to gather herself. With a light breath in, Jennifer straightened her back as she stood in front of the council.

“A young lass eh? If it weren’t for the decades I’ve known ye Zariss, I’d have thought ye were making a fool of me today,” the dwarf woman snorted, turning her eyes towards Jennifer.

“Jennifer Lain,” Prince Laiken spoke, and she turned to meet the prince’s eyes. “Are you willing to swear upon your words, in front of a truth spell?” the prince asked.

Jennifer took in a breath, and then nodded. “I am.”

“Then swear, Jennifer. That each word you have spoken is the truth,” Prince Laiken spoke, as the runes below her feet lit up, swirling with mana. [Lesser Arcane Analysis] presented the spell in front of her eyes.

Spell of Greater Truth
Divination
Tier - 6
A spell of Greater truth. To lie before this spell is the task of the fool, or of the brightest of Mage.

“I swear upon my words, and upon the future I witnessed. The Ostiri would be led by a Mark, tearing into Lienmont alongside demons, as the people would be slaughtered in droves. I have seen that future with my own two eyes, heard their screams, and watched the city burn in front of my eyes. To this, I swear on my Mark,” Jennifer said, magic rippling at each spoken word.

Runes swirled around her in a frenzy as the spell clamped itself upon her soul. A burning light flashed, the runes beneath her feet lighting up with a golden color, and Jennifer felt the spell loosen its clutch from her. She almost breathed out a sigh of relief.

With a resounding crack, thunder flashed near Zaress, as the guild head turned to stand next to Jennifer, facing the council.

“The truth lies there for us to see. And as such, I, Zaress Keinor, proclaim the guild of Leinmont at war with the demons. Will the Alliance stand by us?” The guild head asked, his words vibrating with power.

A few moments passed, as mana swirled in the room, auras flaring. With a snort, Merideth spoke up. “The deep downers will stand,” she said.

“The Empire will stand,” a voice followed.

“The white blossom will stand,” the dryad said.

“The nests will support the cause,” the harpy followed.

“The swamps agreesss,” the lizardfolk said, hissing.

“The tribes will provide you with support as well,” the elf spoke at last.

“You know I’m already in,” Prince Laiken said with a smile.

Zaress looked around the chamber in silence, nodding to himself. With heavy words, he spoke at last. "And thus, the Alliance stands as one. After decades, we begin anew a centuries old war against the demons. May Sera grace us all.”

And so the war began.

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9 — Learning Magic

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Jennifer flipped through a thick leatherbound, studying the chronomancy spell matrices that she saw within the book. It had been almost a couple of days since she’d started her training with Viel, and Jennifer had started to frequent the guild library during the period. It was still odd, how she had gotten used to associating with Ranked and Gold plate members.

The time after her training had been spent studying glass magic, and more importantly, her Mark. Jennifer had prodded and poked at her ability, and description, anything that she could find that may give her more information about her Mark, but so far, she’d found little. The search had eventually turned outwards, for time magic and related fields and while there were hypotheses and postulates but so far, she’d found no chronomancy spells that she could use. After a few minutes of silent reading. Jennifer sighed, putting the book to the side amongst the pile of the dozen books that came before it.

“Why’s there no records on chronomancy?” Jennifer muttered out loud as she looked at the stack of books next to her in disappointment. Today had been the day when she’d finally get to train her magic with Nathaniel and she’d decided to use the time before her training with Nathaniel today, to look into glass affinity.

The study of glass magic, or Hyalomancy, as she’d come to know the magic was called, had shown her some extremely interesting facts and tidbits that she’d never known about. For example, the existence of soul glass, and how glass was one of the best methods to capture and store a soul in, being used prominently in some forms of hybrid golems of the extremely forbidden kind. It was also a rare type of affinity that came with many variations between each manifestation of it.

Some of which come from sand magic. Perhaps the Mark of Drought had something to do with the awakening of my affinity.

The idea that the man who’d killed her, and attacked her city may have left a permanent mark on her magic and soul left Jennifer conflicted.

Jennifer moved on from the thought, as she began to recall what she’d read up on glass magic. So far, the details seemed to mention two critical branches of [Glass Mages]. Creation mages, and alteration mages.

Creation mages were capable of creating glass and controlling them but they were restricted to the glass they formed. Alteration mages relied on existing glass around them but had a lot more versatility in what they could control and could rely on their environments. She had assumed she had been a creation mage, as she’d freely been able to form glass shards, but a few tests had shown she possessed the abilities of both, with her creation abilities dominating.

She sorted the books next to her and began to return them to their shelves. The library on this upper section usually tended to be empty, with magical wards and such protecting the books inside.

There was likely someone in charge of the library as well, or perhaps it was purely spells and wards that kept the books safe. Jennifer didn’t know, but she wasn’t going to complain. She’d started to find this to be the place she frequented the most within the guild. A mostly empty place to herself, surrounded by hundreds of books on magic to read? She couldn’t have dreamt of a better place to be in all the time.

With the last of the books sorted and placed into their respective shelves, Jennifer quickly headed out of the library, the doors opening on  their own before her, and closing shut as she walked out. The library was adjacent to where the [Mages] remained in the guild, and as such, Jennifer idly glanced at the people wearing the typical mage robes.

What surprised her the most, were the number of non-human mages walking around. A plenty of harpies, lizardfolks, some dwarfs and more than a few of elven blood walked around. Lienmont saw its fair share of non-humans within the city itself, but even so the city itself was primarily human. To see the diversity among the mages was something that took Jenn by surprise.

She glanced around the guild, having mostly gotten used to being in the premise as she made her way back to the training facility. It was about time for her training with Nathaniel to begin. Jennifer walked into the training hall, past the wards present in its chamber doors as she entered. The sight within made her freeze in her steps.

“Welcome! Don’t mind the constructs, they’re harmless,” Nathaniel said, his hands gesturing slightly as humanoid golems of earth rose from the ground, forming a little platoon. One of them even wore a little mud crown.

Nathaniel caught her look, smiling. “Ah, that one. That’s Jack. He sits around and watches everyone else train. Say hello Jack,” Nathaniel said, as the golem- Jack - waved at her.

Jennifer stared at Nathaniel’s grinning face before she stepped in and headed towards one of the golems. “What are these?”

“Mud golems. Or earth golems, more accurately, but not quite. They’re a simplified earth construct that I’ve made to run autonomously based on a pre-inscribed spell matrix worked upon them. In essence, these will be your training partners and how I’ll be testing your capabilities,” Nathaniel said, turning towards her with a wide smile.

Jennifer eyed the five golems standing around her, they held no ears or facial features but eyes had been carved into the earth giving them an odd creepy look. Little crystals of blue were set in their chests, likely the mana core used to power them as they kept on staring at her silently. She turned towards Nathaniel, a lot more hesitant about this whole thing than before.

“Let’s start then. I doubt you need to be told of the basic principles, but just for formality’s sake, do you mind showing me your manifestation and spell shaping exercises?”

Nodding, Jennifer extended her hand as a ball of light appeared over her hand. She changed the color of the light, swiftly going through them one at a time. Then without any prompt from Nathaniel Jennifer changed the spherical light source into a floating leaf of light. She held the light leaf afloat, struggling to hold onto the much more complicated interaction with her spell matrix.

“Not bad, better than average actually,” Nathaniel replied, and Jennifer felt a slight hint of disappointment. She wasn’t arrogant enough to think she was amazing at her spell shaping and manipulation but it was a field she took pride in, hearing her being called merely better than average stung her.

“Alright, let’s move on to something-”

“Actually,” Jennifer interrupted. “I have one more thing to show.” She extended her hand once more, forming a simple light ball, but instead of simply converting the spell, she let it split apart. A single light turned to two, and then four, and soon, a swarm of floating light dust particles shimmered above her hand. Jennifer held onto the spell matrix, focusing on the chained spell before she began to turn each singular mote of light into a glowing leaf.

Golden sparkling leaves swirled around Jennifer’s hand as she tried to spell together, and began to swirl it around her body in a beautiful display of light magic. She turned towards Nathaniel expectantly.

A frown covered Nathaniel’s face, his smile nowhere to be seen. “Make it change colors. Each leaf should be a different one.”

Jennifer stared in confusion for a moment, before obeying. She frowned, now pushing her limits of mental capacity as she focused on each individual leaf, changing the color of the light as she floated them all atop her hand.

“Make the leaves flutter as if they were real,” Nathaniel asked, his voice even.

Jennifer felt her frustration mounting. She tried to manipulate the leaves but the spell matrix fell apart, fading into motes of mana as she failed to hold it all together. She turned up to stare at Nathaniel, and found his expression contemplative.

“You’re good, better than most first years. In fact, I’d put you closer to a second year in terms of pure shaping and manifestation skills,” Nathaniel said, his smile returning but Jennifer couldn’t help but feel as if it was forced, as if he’d been expecting something more.

“Can you show me? The leaves?” she asked, looking at the mage.

Nathaniel looked at her silently for a moment. The mage turned, extending his hand, as a light ball appeared in his hand. With an unseen wind, the ball of light scattered into fluttering leaves that floated all around the mage. The leaves flew towards Jennifer, changing colors seemingly through red and yellow and blue and so many others as they twirled and fluttered as if being carried on a swirling wind.

She stared in awe, extending her hand to touch the leaf and it scattered apart into motes of light from her touch. For a moment, she’d forgotten they were not real. With a sudden snap, the spell blinked out of existence.

“Let’s move on to the training now, shall we?” Nathaniel said.

Jennifer looked up at the mage and returned a nod, yet her mind kept returning to the display. It had been executed perfectly, with no flaw or disarray, without even a gesture to help with casting. How many years would it take her to get that good? How long would she have to practice to be able to execute something like that so flawlessly?

She found her mind drifting towards her Mark, the number of integrity coming to her mind. She couldn’t be sure, but if the Mark worked like she thought it did? In the impossible scenario that her thoughts had been right? Then, she had ten years to catch up to the man in front of her.

“I think I have a basic grasp of your abilities,” Nathaniel said, and Jennifer brought her attention back to the mage. “You seem to have a preference for wind based abilities from what I can see. Interesting, and not a bad combination with glass affinity all things considered.”

Jennifer stared at him in surprise. Appraisal spell of some sort, has to be.

“Very well. I have a question for you Jennifer, do you know what your biggest weakness is right now?”

Jennifer gave the question some thought, before responding. “I don’t have nearly enough attack spells. I don’t have a [Mage] class, so I lack combat skills, and I can only use spells up to Tier 2.”

Nathaniel nodded. “Partially correct. The [Mage] class would certainly lend itself to combat, I agree, and if you wish, we can work towards getting you a [Mage] base class evolution, seeing how you’re close to level 20, but. The problem isn’t just your lack of spells, it’s your mana pool, or the lack thereof.”

Jennifer frowned at the man. Her mana sensitivity was quite high, due to her enchanting work, but the size of her mana pool wasn’t something she could control.

“I can tell what you’re thinking. Yes, normally, there’s no real way to increase these issues outside of plain old practice, and leveling till you either get a skill for it or naturally increase your mana pool,” Nathaniel smirked. “Thankfully for you, we’re opting to choose a faster option.”

With a flicker of mana, a diamond shaped and carved glass vial filled with a deep purple liquid appeared in Nathaniel’s hand. “This is a potion of Greater Mana Recovery. It cannot increase your mana pool, but it will greatly help with the process. Take a seat.”

Jennifer stared at the vial. She had no estimation how expensive that vial was, and she was afraid of what she'd hear if she asked. She looked around her, before shrugging as she sat down on the floor.

“What I’m going to be teaching you is a technique I developed on my own. It’s a mana circulation method, and a spell matrix chain. Normally, each incantation invoked needs to be done separately, one at a time. But with this, you’ll be able to stack multiple spells together. Or, if you have enough proficiency, then use more than one spell together like this.”

Mana weaved in mesmerizing patterns as fire blazed around Nathaniels’ hand, expanding till a transparent blade of mana hovered around his palm, waiting to be released. The crystalline blade soon shattered into shimmering particles that swirled all around him as they vanished.

[Enhanced Mana Sense] worked at overdrive, in tandem with her [Lesser Arcane Analysis] and Jennifer felt her head spinning as she tried to grasp the multiple complexly layered spells being used all at once. She gulped, looking up at Nathaniel with wide eyes.

“You have glass mana as well?” Jennifer asked. The blade had definitely been glass, she had felt her mana reacting to it.

Nathaniel smiled as he looked at her. “I do have multiple affinities, but glass is not one of them. But you forget that affinities are just a guiding hand, your mana’s preferred form if you will. My glass spells may not be as strong as yours but that doesn’t mean I can’t perform them.”

Jennifer stared at the man, before a few things began to sort themselves out in her mind. This man, probably still in his twenties, was part of a Ranked adventurer team. His appearance and demeanor had let her treat him casually, making her forget just how absurdly skill he’d need to be, to get to his position. This was possibly even greater than the education she may have received in the academy, and she had no intention to let it go to waste.

“If I may ask, what is your affinity- or umm, affinities?”

“I have Fire, Earth, and Metal affinity. It’s a weird combination, I know,” Nathaniel replied offhandedly and Jennifer felt her breath get stuck in her chest.

Dual affinities were rare as it was. Three? Almost unheard of.

“Now, let’s get to it alright? We’ll channel your mana internally and then strain your pathways just enough that the recovery would reinforce them further and increase their capacity. Ideally this is something we’d do over two or three months for best effects but I’m afraid we won’t have the time. Anyway, focus on the way I channel my mana, and try to emulate the same pattern.”

Jennifer closed her eyes, focusing her senses as she started to mimic Nathaniel’s spell formation. Mana rolled in his core in an odd pulsating rhythm. Her mana channels strained as she tried to emulate the same pattern and each movement of mana felt like she was walking uphill with her hands tied behind her back. Jennifer inadvertently felt her control slip.

“It’s alright. Keep going,” Nathaniel said, continuing to channel his mana.

Jennifer nodded, she engaged her [Enhanced Mana Sense] and began to channel. Mana roiled in her core, mixing around on it’s own. She felt the change in her mana as her glass affinity had blossomed. It felt slower, denser, with her spell matrixes straining to properly allow the flow of her mana.

She let the mana flow into her channels, each pathway connecting to the next as it all flowed towards her hand. Waiting to be applied into the appropriate spell matrix, and released.

“Good, let it stay. That is one spell ready. Now put another on top of it.”

Jennifer continued to pull on her mana, as her channels strained under the dual load of mana flowing through them. She pushed against the discomfort, as her mana channeled once more, beads of sweat dripped down her forehead, as her chest tensed. Each motion of her mana felt like carrying a mountain side with a boulder on her back, but she pushed, letting the mana flow as it formed another spell slot in her hands. That was spell number two.

“Good, you’re catching this faster than I’d expected. Alright, now drink the potion, and layer it once more.”

Jennifer almost had lost control of both her spells, as she struggled to believe what she’d heard. Her mana channels buckled under the strain of the flow of her mana, and her core tensed within her body.

“It may seem harsh Jennifer, but if you truly wish to survive what’s to come, you need to be a lot stronger than this, and fast. And I trust that you can do it,” Nathaniel said, in a calm and measured voice, almost as if reciting the words to himself.

Jennifer nodded lightly, afraid to open her eyes, lest she lose control of her mana. She felt the potion Nathaniel put in her hand as she lifted the vial up to her lips and began to drink.

Mana exploded in her channels, brimming with power. Her core filled itself within seconds, overflowing as the mana continued to pour through her. Her channels felt like they had been set on fire, as they stretched under the mana pouring through them, and Jennifer felt as if a sun had opened up at her core.

“Don’t let it go rampant. Focus, and stay calm. You are in control. Circulate the mana in your core, and channel it into the spell. You are in control Jennifer. Make the mana obey your will.”

Nathaniel’s voice played through Jennifer’s head, as she struggled to gain rein of the roaring tide of mana that poured through her.

I can do this. I’m in control.

Mana pulsed within her core. Flowing through her channels as Jennifer felt her mind stretching. Her hands began to shake, as sweat poured down her back. Jennifer felt her muscles tighten, as she strained her will, to follow the mana.

[Lesser Arcane Analysis] pulsed within her mind, as the trick that she’d picked up in the sewers came to her. She latched on to the idea, looping the mana in a single section. Her mana rotated, each loop representing one spell, and Jennifer guided the flow. Like a river meeting the ocean, her mana snapped into place, melding together as her spells chained into one another.

She had done it.

“Now. This is the critical step. Form your Wind Blade, but form it with glass. Your mana’s nature is glass, and it wants to take the form of its nature. Let the mana take the form it wishes to, and follow the path it shows.”

Jennifer nodded, exhaling as she focused on the spell. Slowly she poured her glass mana into the matrix. Her glass mana stirred, denser than her normal untinged mana and she coaxed it into forming the wind blade, filling the spell with the far denser glass mana. The spell started to distort, twisting under the different density of mana and she frowned, struggling to hold it’s shape.

Mana swirled in her core, more and more pouring forth as her pathways seemed to set themselves on fire. Power pulsed, restrained, and waiting to burst out, and each passing moment had Jennifer clenching her teeth under the increased stress of keeping all the mana under her control.

Jennifer pushed her core, pushed against the mana, strained and she felt her Mark pulse in response. Like a gear being slid into its place, something shifted within her spell. The mana rushed through her spell matrix, pouring forth as it burst from her hands. She struggled not to scream as all of it poured out in a rush, a storm of mana brewing around her, before exploding outwards all at once.

She felt arms grab her as she tumbled, her mind drifting from exhaustion. A strange liquid filled, as she felt the touch of glass on her mouth. Her consciousness began to snap back in place and Jennifer opened her eyes to see Nathaniel smiling at her.

“You did it Jennifer. Look,” Nathaniel said, as Jennifer turned her head.

A large gash carried itself across the ground, soaking with glass affinity mana. Jennifer stared at the cut through the tiled ground, the damage already being repaired by the wards and her eyes widened in surprise.

“I- my spell did that?”

“Definitely wasn’t me,” Nathaniel replied, grinning.

Jennifer continued to stare blankly, still not sure she could believe her eyes.

“Use your [Arcane Analysis] to inspect your spell. It’s pretty nifty. You can get system prompts from the skill if you focus,” Nathaniel said, and Jennifer activated her skill, focusing on her just formed spell.

Glass Blade
Attack/Glass
Tier - 2
Launch a sharp and devastating glass blade to cut through multiple distant foes.

Jennifer stared at the system prompt blankly, which only served to confirm her suspicions.

“Your mana pool was under stress, causing it to expand as well. Keep on using my mana circulation method, and it should grow naturally. Congrats, you’re firmly a Tier-2 mage now. You’re not ready for tier 3 spells yet, but it shouldn’t take too long to get there. For now, we’ll continue practicing with glass affinity versions of your spells. I’ll try and find some suitable glass ones for you as well,” Nathaniel said, grasping her hand as he pulled her up.

“Now, are you ready for another round? We’ll try to stack multiple mana bolts together this time,” Nathaniel asked with a smile, and Jennifer found her heart pumping in excitement, her lips curving up in a smile, matching his.

“Sera take me, yes!” Jennifer replied, as her heart thundered with excitement. For just a moment, she let herself forget the nightmares she’d seen, as she was consumed by the joy of learning new magic.

***

Wind burst in a frenzy around Jennifer as a fist of earth and dirt threatened to smash into her face. She whipped around, dodging the mud golem chasing her as shots of earth launched towards her from the spells engraved on its arms.

“Elphion damn you, just die already!” Jennifer shouted, as her mana poured through her mana pathways, she weaved two mana bolts together, launching the spell at the golem. The bolts shot towards the golem, hitting the mana stone engraved at its chest. The spell matrix of the golem flickered for a moment, but it soon refocused at her and shot towards her with alarming speed.

Jennifer’s heart thundered, as she panted, frustration mounting at the sturdy golem eating through all her spells with barely a shrug. She clenched her teeth as she began to weave another spell together.

Wind rushed around her in a frenzy, sharp air currents mixing with glass that threatened to rip her clothes if she lost control. Jennifer stood still as the golem rushed towards her and the mana continued to build. A shimmering blade formed around her hand, shooting off with a howling screech as it launched at the golem.

The Glass Blade crashed into the golem, cracking its surface as it ate into its body, shattering the mana stone powering it. The golem halted in its moments, the mana keeping the earth together dissipating as it crumbled. Jennifer turned to the side to look at Jack standing silently as he watched the fight. She had a feeling that the golem was analyzing her. The last fight, her spells had been predicted and countered by the golems and she’d been forced to improvise on the spot.

“Seven minutes, and fifty four seconds. Not bad honestly,” Nathaniel said with a smile, as a towel appeared in his hand out of thin air.

Jennifer stared at him silently, before she nodded, accepting the towel as she wiped her sweat away. She used her [Lesser Arcane Analysis] to bring up the system prompt for the spells she’d been taught.

Glass Eye
Glass/Divination

Tier-1

Form an eye of glass which can share it’s senses with the caster and serve as a scouting option.

Jennifer hadn’t been extremely sure at the utility of this spell, but she suspected it wouldn’t hurt to learn it. She could think of its uses, especially in avoiding ambushes.

Reflection

Glass

Tier-2

Reflect an oncoming spell back at the opponent from a suitable glass surface. Spells of a higher tier require exponentially more mana to reflect.

The spell had been an interesting choice as it’d allow her a lot of versatility in combat with any other [Mages].

Glass Storm
Area/Glass

Tier - 2
Create and launch a storm of slashing glass shards that can cut and slash through creatures, launching them away from the caster.

The spell was a wide area attack that summoned a storm of swirling glass shards around her. It may surpass her Glass Blade spell in sheer strength, if she managed to learn it. But the part that truly excited her was being able to multi-cast the spell with Glass Blade.

Nathaniel’s spell casting, as he’d demonstrated to Jennifer, allowed him to combine and use multiple spells together in complex compound spell matrix chains. Jennifer felt her heart leaping at the thought of casting a swirling storm of glass shards all deflecting any spells flung her way. She was already hoping to combine her Mana bolt, and its glass version, Glass bolt, with the Glass storm spell to allow a more complex glass storm spell that exploded upon impact.

Jennifer felt surprised how quickly she’d adjusted to regularly casting Tier-2 spells now. She’d been told to expect some variant of a [Mage] class to unlock itself for her soon, but so far, she hadn’t gotten any. A part of her was still unsure if she wanted to pick a [Mage] class, even if she got one.

“I think you’ll manage to qualify for an Iron plate in a week or two. Though we may have to step it up a bit. I’d prefer if you could pass off as low bronze by the end of the month,” Nathaniel said, scratching his chin.

The gate slammed open as Jennifer turned around in alarm, her spells ready to be fired. She breathed a sigh of relief as she saw Anghul looking in. Her mind caught up to the thought a moment later, as her worry intensified. The sudden demon attack she’d been scared of might’ve been easier to deal with.

“Nat, the guild head is calling you,” Anghul said, eyeing Jennifer briefly before she walked back out.

“We’ll have to leave today’s training there, feel free to set up the golems for training if you ever want to. I’ve registered your mana signature in there,” Nathaniel said, smiling.

Jennifer bowed her head respectfully. “Thank you for teaching me so much,” she said, and Nathaniel smiled.

“Don’t worry about it, and if anything I should be thanking you. I’ve always hated the idea of teaching but this turned out to be surprisingly fun. Remember to use my mana channeling technique for your mana pool whenever you can, and practice the spell matrices. We’ll work on their application in a few days,” the mage said.

Jennifer nodded in reply. She’d already made plans to work the technique as much as she could. Mana pool was one of the things that she suspected would also travel back in time with her, if the time reset ability worked in the way she suspected it did.

“I’ll head out then. See you around Jennifer,” Nathaniel said with a wink, walking out.

Jennifer watched the mage headout, before soon packing up herself and making her way back towards her home. The dark sky up ahead gave her a pause as she realized just how long she’d been casting and practicing spells for.

I must’ve used my mana pool almost ten times over. Maybe more. This has to be the most spellcasting I’ve ever had the chance to do in my life.

A smile crept upon her face at the thought. There was always going to be an advantage for children whose families could afford facilities like this. It was part of what made getting into the Academy so difficult for someone without that kind of money or connection. Simply being able to cast twice as much as the other person due to a mana potion was bound to give results no matter what.

The lack of resources Jennifer had had was part of what had gained her the [Resourceful Enchanter] class when she’d reached level 10. Her mind went to her Mark, and she pulled up the ability portion once more.

Abilities: Time Reset

Resets: 1

Returns the chosen to the soul anchor set in the stream of time at the cost of Integrity.

Jennifer read the description once more, for what must’ve been the tenth time. There’s no mention that I can only do this when I die. Maybe if I can find some way to go back in time when I want… if I can train with Nathaniel over and over, I wonder just how much I’ll be able to learn.

She put the thought away for now. There was no good way to test the hypothesis and she’d already spent hours trying to trigger another reset, even shouting out the words reset a couple of times when nothing else had worked. Which only left the one way she’d been sent back in time for the first time around, and she wasn’t ready to take her own life for an experiment.

Walking back home, Jennifer quietly slipped through the doors and made her way upstairs. It wasn’t too unusual for her to be late from her Master’s workshop, but she usually told her parents when she would be and Jennifer didn’t feel like explaining why she forgot to do that today.

She made her way to her room, and then slunk down onto her bed, breathing a sigh of relief as she felt her body melting away. She stared at the ceiling, feeling her thoughts fade when her mind drifted back to the beautiful leaves of light that Nathaniel had shown to her.

Jennifer extended her hand, trying to summon and form some but found her control slipping once more. She got up from the bed, sitting upright as she focused, trying once more. A single leaf floated atop her hand, glowing, yet it didn’t move in the wind in seemingly random ways. There was no sense of reality to its motion.

Frustrated, she gave up the exercise as she slunk back onto her bed. This is pointless. Moving that many leaves erratically and changing colors on top while swirling them around. It’s far too complicated. There would be no real usage for this and it seems like a major hassle, probably why Nathaniel didn’t try to teach it to me.

Jennifer continued to stare at the ceiling of her room silently, as time slipped by.

This is stupid. I’ll probably be better off just practicing my glass spells. No one needs their shaping and manifestation skills to be that good.

Another minute of silence had a groan of frustration escaping her mouth as she pulled herself up. Walking over to her desk she took a seat.

With silent concentration, she summoned another light ball and began to practice.

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8 — Combat Training

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Guild head Zaress Keinor paced around his office. Lightning licked his graying hair, filling the air with the scent of ozone as the powerfully built man stood beside his desk with a frown.

Reports regarding the dungeon shift filled his table, as message spells after message spells chimed in his office from the various [Merchants], [Ladies] and [Lords] looking to get a piece of the newly found dungeon pie. He hadn’t expected to keep the news of the new branch under control for too long, but to not even manage it for an entire day? Shameful.

Lightning crackled in response to his emotions, as one of the papers on the table was singed and began to smolder. Zaress sighed, snuffing the sparks out. He took a long deep breath, and began to flip through the reports at incredible speeds.

Decades of working as the guild head had taught him how to filter out the meaningless talk and polite notices for the real matter of the letter. He’d almost gained a skill for it, having refused it to keep his class from going on undesirable paths. It was unlikely that he’d ever gain another class evolution, yet the level 62 [Storm Slayer] refused to let bureaucratic responsibilities taint the class he’d earned his title from.

Zaress took a seat at his chair, sending a pulse of lightning mana to his gate as it swiveled open. “Come in,” he muttered afterwards.

“Uncle- Guild head. We’ve found another Mark and she—”

“Don’t waste my time Nathaniel,” Zaress growled as the boy froze. The guild head had to restrain a sigh. “The girl has been here for a few hours now, you think I don’t already know? Get to the point.”

“Right, apologies. She has agreed to join the Pact and work with the guild. But, more importantly, she— Actually, it’s best you see it yourself,” the boy said, as he formed a crystalline memory shard in his hand.

The casual display of mind magic told Zaress about the boy’s potential, as he’d always seen in him. If only he wasn’t… Zaress let the thought go as the memory shard flickered, displaying an image above it of a brown haired girl.

“The city is going to be invaded by the Ostiri, led by a Mark. And I was there to see that future.”

Zaress frowned as he continued to listen, with each spoken word further sinking his heart. Thunder rolled around him, crackling like a storm as his eyes took on a deep blue hue. This exceeded his worst nightmare.

A moment later, the image flickered, cutting off, and silence descended onto his office.

“Have you verified this with a truth spell?” Zaress asked, keeping his voice perfectly still. He wouldn’t be showing his own turmoil to the boy.

“The Prince’s [Knight] has confirmed the validity of it via the prince himself,” the boy replied. Zaress almost cursed out loud.

“I was hoping we would have more time. The delve isn’t ready, the girl would die if we take her, and the [Lords] are already starting to sniff out the new branch. Soon the entire world will be on our head, and now demons?” Zaress muttered, as he sat on his chair. He noticed the conflicted expression on Nathaniel’s face, and frowned. “Do Valencia and Peiross know of this?”

“I’ve sent Anghul to Valencia, and a message to Grand Magus Peiross, who’s currently in Verhiz swamps. The two should be meeting with you soon.”

Zaress nodded in reply. “Run a background check on the girl, a thorough sweep. Make sure she is who she claims to be.” Zaress paused for a moment. “Ask the Thieves Guild if you have to.”

Nathaniel’s eyes widened in surprise for a brief moment, before he dipped his head in acknowledgement. Zaress couldn’t blame the boy, working with the thieves guild had been an unthinkable prospect so far, but right now, he would take the help of even the demons themselves.

“You are free to use the training chambers to train the girl. We need her capable of surviving the delve. Ask Viel if her future sight can be controlled, it might be our only hope of seeing what’s to come,” Zaress said.

“She’s barely qualified to be an Iron plate. An [Enchanter] from what my analysis got. Level 16. A Tier 2 capable one, but barely. She won’t survive a step beyond the second layer on her own, and there’s very little time. Taking her to Tier 3 alone will take at least a few months,” Nathaniel said with a frown.

“We’ll protect her. The Pact demands it, but there is no time. For her sake, I hope she’s willing to put in the effort.”

Nathaniel frowned, opening his mouth for a moment as if to retort. Zaress waited for the boy to speak up, but the boy simply stared at him for a moment before bowling silently as he walked out.

Zaress stared at the door for a long moment. The boy thought him callous, capable of dismissing the life of a young girl. He didn’t understand the weight of his choices. If he had to pick between the life of one girl and his city, he would be willing to take the burden of her life upon his shoulders. But for now, all he could do was hope it never truly came to that.

The Guild Head closed his eyes, recalling the vision the prince had shown him, when he had approached him alongside his knight. He’d seen the threads of fate of millions all over Zweiril vanish. Their lives cut short, as darkness consumed his sight, covered beneath a massive figure bound in chains.

None of them could see what the creature was, the vision flickering wildly the closer they got. Yet they all knew what the vision symbolized. There was something slumbering within the dungeon, something that sent the long forgotten sensation of terror coursing through the Guild Head’s spine.

Zaress opened his eyes, and he felt the weight of the guild pressing on him. There would be war once more, a war larger than any they’d seen before, and he wasn’t sure he was prepared to face it.

***

A couple of days had passed since she’d agreed to join the guild. The lack of any change to her life had surprised her, she’d expected more after she’d just announced an oncoming invasion. It was strange to think of any reason the guild would rely on her for an invasion of all things, but for some reason she’d still expected to be a bit more involved in things.

Jennifer had debated talking to her parents about her Mark last night, but the comforting bed and her exhaustion had her knocked out before she could even give the thought proper consideration. She knew she couldn’t avoid the topic forever, but a part of her dreaded the conversation to come.

But a day had turned to two, and then three and she’d managed to bring the topic up. And right when she’d started to settle into a familiar routine of visiting her master and studying spells, a message had come for her from the guild.

It was time to begin her training.

Jennifer walked through the guild, asking a couple times for the training hall she’d been asked to visit before making her way through the long corridors. The size of the guild's interior surprised her. The building had an entire floor dedicated to training halls for various adventurer ranks and another serving as a trading area for artifacts, monster parts or anything else related to the dungeon.

Which made sense seeing how Lienmont was a dungeon city, heavily dependent on adventurers and the trade brought from the dungeon to the city, and with the adventurer guild controlling almost all of it, it put them right next to the high council in terms of control and strength.

Her line of thoughts broke off as she stumbled upon the training halls that she’d been called to. Checking once more that she’d arrived at the right place, Jennifer walked inside.

A familiar presence brushed against her mind and Jenn found Viel standing within the hall, swinging his sword as sweat covered his bare chest.

“What’re you doing?” Jennifer asked, as the Mark of Valor continued to swing his sword, shifting his weight through various motions as if fighting multiple unseen enemies all at once. Jennifer found her eyes jumping around the area, almost as if she could see the illusion of each phantom enemy that stood around Viel.

“Waiting for you,” Viel replied, continuing through the motions as he slashed at the last remaining enemies. Jeninfer watched the creatures fall, one after the other. One was short, she could tell with the way Viel’s blade moved down, the other was bigger and bulkier than Viel as his blade curved upwards, and the last some kind of small creature flying around.

Jennifer found herself staring in awe, as she watched an unseen battle taking place. Each step of Viel’s guided her eyes and she could almost see the beast he slew topple over in a spray of blood. “Well, that should be enough to warm up.”

Jennifer found herself blushing as she walked closer to the man. Her gaze traveled down onto his body. His tall frame carried a hefty amount of muscles, as various scars hugged his skin from all over. She pried her eyes away, feeling self conscious.

Viel wiped sweat off, and with a flicker of mana, a shirt appeared in his hand that he quickly draped over himself. “We’ll start with training your Mark’s presence. Have you gained a better feel for it yet?” he asked.

“I can feel it, somewhat. It’s a lot denser than it had been before.”

“Good. That’s the first step with learning how to control your presence. Now try and let the presence spread out once more, back to the way it was before.”

Jennifer had been hesitant to do anything with it without someone around to seal her presence back in if she messed up, but now, she could finally try things out. Closing her eyes she focused on the thin presence surrounding her body, originating from her Mark. It was like a secondary aura that originated from her Mark, or at least what she imagined an aura was like. With a tug, she loosened the compressed presence around her and with surprising ease, it began to spread out.

“Poor control, but you can guide it slightly. We’ll have to work on making controlling your Mark’s presence second nature. It’s a powerful weapon, when used correctly.”

Jennifer nodded at the words, feeling excitement build up. Arriving here, she’d expected a lot more fighting and pain, not fun magical discoveries but she wasn’t going to complain about it.

“I’ll be using my presence on you again. This won’t hurt, but it won’t be pleasant either. I’m going to slowly focus my presence onto you. I won’t overdo it like last time, but it will still strain your spirit. You need to focus on my presence, and gather yours together. Create a layer of sorts, a blanket if you will, condensing your presence around your body.”

Jennifer closed her eyes at his words. She still remembers the way the Sand-Mage—The Mark of Drought— had toyed with her. With just his presence, he had immobilized her, and made her helpless to fight back. She wouldn’t let herself be that helpless again. Never again.

“I’m ready,” Jennifer replied.

“Good. Prepare yourself,” Viel spoke, and a moment later, the familiar crushing pressure descended on her shoulder.

Jennifer’s breath escaped her lungs as she almost bowed down from the weight, but she remained firm. Taking slow measured breaths, she slowly straightened her back. It wasn’t like before, she didn’t feel like she was dying. Viel was clearly holding back for her sake. Even so, each breath felt like fire, like she was pushing a rock uphill, and each step wore out her mind, making her will buckle.

“Gather your presence. Feel it. It’s all around you. Condense it together,” Viel spoke, as the weight on her shoulders increased and Jennifer bent further struggling to keep herself straight up.

She heard Viel’s words, but they didn’t register in her mind. She was struggling to think of anything. She felt helpless. Defeated.

Jennifer clenched her teeth in defiance. No I’m not. I’m not so weak as to shatter from just this. I refuse.

Her Mark pulsed in response to her thoughts, shuddering, as an intangible mass began to swirl towards her. Jennifer latched onto the sensation, pulling it from all around her and towards her Mark. Her spirit trembled under the strain, but she continued nonetheless.

“Good, continue like that. You are the core, and it is a part of you. Reign it in. Make it Obey,” the words struck her like a whip as her will steeled itself. She pulled, harder than ever as the intangible presence swirled. She was the one in control here, and her Mark would obey her will.

A pulse of mana spread from her Mark, as a shimmering thick presence enveloped her body. Jennifer sucked in a breath, her lungs free from the strain at last as sweat covered her forehead. She had done it.

“Good. You’ve controlled your presence. We’ll train it to allow you to use it as an attack, but this is the first important step. Marks, and other beings won’t detect you until they are close by, and you can protect yourself from their presence, if they choose to use it to fight,” Viel said, and Jennifer panted, nodding.

“Try to let go once more, and then gather your presence on your own this time.”

Jennifer grimaced, focusing as she let her presence spread outwards. The intangible sensation obeyed her will, as it clumsily spread outwards.

“Now pull.”

Jennifer followed along, pulling inwards. It was a struggle, yet she found her control over the presence increasing. The Mark's presence gathered itself around her, slowly but surely and Jennifer looked up, smiling at her success.

“That’s the first exercise. Repeat between that to increase your control. After that we’ll move on to focusing your presence and using it to attack, and oftentimes, incapacitate if there is a large difference in strength.”

“Is that what you’d used on me?” Jennifer asked.

“Yes,” Viel replied with a nod. “There’s also spreading your presence and aura really thin which can allow some people to see even if they are blind but that’s not something I can do. I prefer a much more direct approach and to strike in a single powerful blow from my aura to stun the enemy and go for the strike.” Viel extended his hand as a blade appeared in his hand. “I’ll teach you how to use a blade to defend yourself. There’s not nearly enough time to properly teach you everything, but knowing how to defend yourself is vital.”

Jennifer stared at the blade with an unsure expression. “I’m not really a [Warrior]. I can use a dagger somewhat, but not too well,” Jennifer said.

“You don’t need to be a [Warrior] by class to know how to fight. The worst offense any [Mage] commits is not having an alternate weapon in case their spells don’t work. Most mages don’t get taken out by spells, they die to the unseen ambush, or to the sword through their bellies instead,” Viel said, as extending the weapon towards her. “The blade has been dulled,” he added as Jennifer picked the weapon.

She wasn’t surprised by the lack of weight of the weapon. She's handled a fair number of weapons with her Master.

“Before we go any further, I’ll need to teach you a few things about Marks,” Viel said, waiting a moment for Jennifer to catch her breath.

“Each Mark has three abilities, based around a certain aspect. The first ability is the one you gain soon after you gain the Mark, sometimes instantly afterwards. It is the defining ability of the Mark. Your’s is your future sight. Mine is control. I can impose my will on, not just people, but on the world. It’s an ability normally associated with the [Lord] and [Prince] and other ruling classes and their auras, but as far as I know, none can extend it to the world itself,” Veil said and Jenn stared at him in confusion.

“Shoot a spell at me,” Viel said,which only served to add to her confusion. Jenn looked at the man for a moment, and found his expression serious. She prepared a mana bolt, weaving the spell together. The bolt glimmered as the spell formed, glowing brightly with her mana before it shot off like an arrow toward Veil.

“Stop.”

The world rippled as the spell froze in space right before Viel’s face, losing cohesion as it disintegrated into motes of mana.

Jennifer stared with her eyes shot wide open in surprise. “Sera, did you just- how? Is that really-” Jenn stopped speaking, trying to gather her words. She couldn’t find any.

“Yes. I stopped the spell midway. The stronger the spell is, and the spellcaster is, the more difficult it is. But with a spell like that, I can stop or simply destroy it as often as I’d like.”

“And that’s just your first ability?” Jennifer asked. What kind of monster have I walked up to?

“It’s the defining ability. Not necessarily the weakest. But definitely not the strongest. The first ability defines the path of your Mark. The second is the mid step, the aspect of growth. It comes from desire. The first Mark represents your needs. The second? It represents your wants. What you wish of your Mark. That is what you will gain.” Viel said, staring at her intently, making Jenn gulp.

“And lastly, the final ability. That one is… complicated. There are no fixed rules for the third ability as far as I’m aware. But all of them require you form a connection to your Mark and inherit its strengths. Often meeting the previous holders of the Mark, alongside the creator in the process. There is more depth to it than just a trial but it is not something that I can explain. You will see it for yourself when the time arrives,”

Jennifer nodded along. “Have you… met the creator? Of your Mark?” Jenn asked.

“Not yet. Take up your sword, and mimic the stance I take.”

Jennifer raised her sword, following his instructions.

“Hold it in your left hand. Or right, if that’s your non-dominant one. You’re a spellcaster, and your weapons are spells, so you’ll be fighting like one as well. Keep the blade steady, and lower your body weight, and keep your spell casting hand prepared,” Viel said, demonstrating the actions in a smooth motion.

Jennifer followed suit, shifting her body appropriately, as she held the short blade in her left hand, with mana flowing through her channels, ready to be cast.

“Good, now shift your weight and swing,” Viel instructed and Jennifer followed along. The two continued going through the forms and stances one at a time, as Jennifer followed the motions in her best attempt at mimicking.

Time flew by as Jennifer continued to copy the stances. She panted, feeling her legs shake at what felt like the hundredth repetition of the stances, as sweat covered her entire body.

Viel looked at her quietly, folding his arms, without a single drop of sweat on him. “Stamina issues. Here, drink this,” he said, as a vial appeared in his hand, filled with a light orange liquid.

Jennifer grabbed the vial, feeling her muscles burning as she lifted the container and drank the contents. Energy surged within her body as she felt her muscles being rejuvenated as her exhaustion started to fade.

“It’s a Potion of Recovery,” Viel said with a grin. “You won’t have to worry about getting exhausted until I’m done with you. Now, the best way to learn the stances is by practice. I won’t use my Skills, Mark, or any other abilities. You can use your spells and skills. If you hit me once, you are free to go.”

Jennifer stared at the man unsure. Without skills, he was just a tall bulky guy, even for a Ranked Plate, just getting hit once…

Is he underestimating me?

Jennifer stared at Viel, finding no arrogance on his face, just a focused calm. She held up her sword, taking her stance. Mana roiled in her body, flooding her channels as Jennifer began to weave her spells. Agile Wind whirled as wind swirled around her body, focused near her feet. Jenn used three mana bolts together, feeling the spells layered on top of each other.

With a burst of wind, she shot to the side, as three glowing shards of mana bolts shot towards Viel all at once.

Viel raised his sword, shifting his weight as he took a stance. With a slash, her blots shattered upon meeting his sword, all three all at once in a burst of flickering motes of mana.

Jennifer chained another pair of mana bolts, shooting them towards Viel from different directions as she continued to weave her wind blades. With a surge of her Agile Wind, Jenn shot a bolt of mana at Viel, rushing straight in his direction.

Quickly afterwards, a storm of wind blades swirled around her in a frenzy, looking to tear anything in its way. Jennifer summoned a few glass shards as well, mixing them in the swirling wind around her.

[Enchanted Glass Creation]. Sharpen. Harden. [Twofold Enchanting].

Jennifer murmured her skill under her breath, layering her glass with dual enchantments. She let the spell loose, as she weaved a wind blade together, launching the Tier-2 spell together with the glass as they shot at viel in a tornado of shards.

With a single step, Viel moved forward and his sword vanished. Jennifer stopped about to call him out for breaking his rules when she froze, realizing what was happening as shards upon shards began to shatter.

His blade… it's moving fast enough that I can’t even see it.

Jennifer’s heart leapt as she jumped back, wind rushing around her, as she moved at high speeds. She churned her mana, pulling all she had, as she layered two of her spells together.

Mana bolts shot out in sync with a wind blade, forming a frenzy of magic as Jennifer felt her mana dipping dangerously low. She launched herself towards Viel, shooting a mana bolt that he quickly swatted, yet the brief moment was enough.

Mana flooded her pathwards as the two Tier-2 spells shot out at the same time. An explosion of mana filled the chamber as the little shards of glass bud from her affinity, mixing in with her spells. With a single sweep, Viel cut through her blade of wind, dodging backwards as he lunged.

Jennifer barely had a moment to react as she dodged backwards from the descending blade, she swung her blade, parrying one blow that had her knees buckle from the impact as her wrists ached. A kick to her ankle soon had her tumbling to the ground. She turned, a mana bolt poised with a blade of wind ready in her other hand when she found a blade set against her neck and Viel grinning at her.

W-what a monster…

Jenn shook her head, letting her spell dissolve into mana as she grabbed his offered hand, picking herself up. She found her feet wobbly from the amount of mana she had used, her mana pool could still need some help. Her gaze turned towards Viel.

“How did you- I don’t understand. You didn’t even use any Skills and, you even cut through my spell. I don’t sense any enchantments either then how?”

Viel smirked, as he swung his blade in front of her. “Each spell has a matrix. And if you can find the anchors of the matrix in the spell, then you can cut them even without an enchantment,” he replied, his orange gold eyes turning towards her as he demonstrated with a quick swing of his sword.

“But that…”

That sounds impossible. To cut a mana strand so thin you can barely see it mid combat?

Yet she couldn’t deny that it was precisely what had happened. Jennifer stared dumbfounded as Viel turned towards her.

“Not all [Warriors] rely on their Skills. Some chose to rely on their skills as well. You’ll be learning to better work on your affinity with Nathaniel, but for now, we’ll work on your basics on fighting and understanding your opponent,” Viel said, as he turned to face her, extending another vial. This time a mana potion.

“Whenever you’re ready, we can have round two,” Viel said, grinning menacingly as Jennifer grimaced. With a groan, she drank the potion and continued her training with renewed vigor.

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7 — A Meeting of Marks

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An image flickered within a dark chamber, carried upon wispy mist. It showed the picture of a young girl, standing in a chamber full of adventurers and fumbling with her words. The sight had a smile tug at the prince’s face as he watched the scene through his knight’s eyes.

The threads of fate shifted under the eternal throne of Zadria upon which the prince lounged. The intangible strings shone silver, spreading across generations and spanning kingdoms. They tied  the fate of all within Zandria under the weight of the throne, and now, perhaps the fate of Zweiril as a whole.

The girl took a seat, finally settling down after her statement as the talks continued. The prince heard his knight ask for his command.

“Not yet Irwys. She’s the ninth one. Proceed as we’d planned before for now.”

Irwys nodded, as the talks continued and the prince watched, lounging on his throne. Idly, he tugged at the strands of fate. The girl intrigued him, and rightly so. Even his powers failed to touch her, her Mark keeping the threads of fate blinded.

“She knew Irwys didn’t she? The ninth has already appeared, and so soon after the eighth. Have the sisters interfered? No, they would’ve let me know. But if not, then there is more hidden to the girl than what I can see,” the prince mused, watching the strands of fate continue to shift. Something was happening beyond his sight, and after a very long time, the prince found himself blind to the changes around him.

“It seems like we have a change of plans,” the prince said, a smile tugging on his face. A silver bracelet hung upon the Prince’s wrists, ringing with a resonant tone that sent waves of mana across the chamber, as the strings of fate trembled.

A Mark shone on his forehead from beneath the sparse ornaments the prince wore on him. The threads of fate shifted around the girl, tangling themselves over and over with each passing moment.

With renewed interest, the young prince of Zandria continued to watch.

***

Jennifer felt an odd shiver crawl up her spine. The sensation of unseen eyes resting on her filled her, yet no matter how often she looked around, she saw and sensed nothing.

I need to settle down and not let my nerves run wild. No one’s watching me.

Jennifer took a calming breath, returning her attention to the talk as she listened intently. She was the highlight of the conversation after all.

“A new Mark, and just as the dungeon shifts. Coincidence? I have trouble believing that,” Viel said, his eyes drifting towards her for a moment and Jennifer straightened her back under his gaze.

Irwys turned towards Jennifer, who stiffened under his gaze. “You claimed it was your Mark’s ability, that you knew my name?”

Jennifer nodded at a question, but didn’t elaborate any further.

“Has there been any mentions by the [Seers]? Our diviners haven’t been able to pierce the turbulence,” Viel asked. Irwys shook his head in reply.

“Maggots, too much divining nonsense. It’s not like there’s anything above Silver rank in the first three layers. You could send a couple of Golds and they’d clear it all on their own,” Anghul said, munching on an apple that she’d pulled out of thin air.

“Those were Silver ranked beasts in an Iron ranked layer. Half of anyone who went in would’ve been Iron plate, and dead within moments. The sections have been sealed off for good reason,” Viel replied, steel in his voice.

Anghul clicked her tongue in reply. “Let them, I say. The good ones will survive and level. I suggest tossing this runt in there as well. If she lives, then she’d learn how to fight. If she dies, then we take her Mark and be rid of a liability.”

Jennifer looked nervously at the woman, trying to see if she was joking by any chance. The impassive look of disinterest on her face didn’t do much to reassure her.

“We won’t be throwing anyone in to die, and you know that already. Don’t take your frustration out on her just because you thought you would get a good fight with a stray Mark,” Viel retorted. Anghul let out a snort, but didn’t argue back.

Jennifer frowned. It ticked her off that her life was being so casually discussed right in front of her, as if she weren’t here. Like her words didn’t matter.

Which it probably doesn’t. What can I say to anyone if a Ranked Plate throws me off to die? The High Council will probably strip them of their rank and they’ll be sent to prison for a while at best. Ranked Plates are far too important for the city to be lost over the death of one girl anyway.

It didn’t make her feel any better to be aware of that.

“Can someone tell me what’s happening?” Jennifer asked, speaking up. She’d been knocked out, dragged to the guild, brought to a meeting, and now people were discussing her life as if she wasn’t even there. If she had to be here, then she’d at least pry some answers out of them.

“What do you know about the Marks?” Irwys asked.

“Almost nothing,” Jennifer replied, glaring daggers at him. It’d been him who’d dragged her into all of this, even if he didn’t remember it. Why would she know anything when she had never even intended to get the Mark?

“From the beginning then. There is an old trial, resurfacing once again, as it does, every few centuries, to find the next [Seeker]. The trial grants eight Marks to eight chosen individuals. All who have proven themselves worthy, although the choosing criterias vary, and the abilities of each Mark vary too, but the Mark themselves are known to be the derivatives of the eight gods.”

“Eight gods? Aren’t there only five? Sera, Ziral, Elphion, Anvyrin and Mhrit?” Jennifer said, looking at Irwys curiously.

“There’s more, the goddess of the storm and seas Temares, the dread-god of the Ostiri Jarhif and a few more ones whose names have been lost to time. Although, we’re not sure if all of them are still around or not, but that is irrelevant. You hold one such Mark, capable of granting powers outside of our understanding. These Marks, all eight form the eight keys needed to enter the Library of Truth, to be chosen as the [Seeker]. A location… that is pretty much a myth, or was, until the trial began.”

Jennifer stared blankly, unsure of what to say. “Why… are the gods choosing these Marks now? They’ve been silent ever since the Founding war. Why now?”

“You’d think if we knew that then we’d be sitting around here talking like idiots?” Anghul said, scoffing.

“We don’t know,” Irwys said, interjecting. “But the trial started surfacing from four months ago. There’s precious little information on it’s location, and existence. All we know is that, one of the three great dungeons always contains a path to the library, and this time, it’s Lienmont which has surfaced with the trial.”

Jennifer chewed on his words. The involvement of the gods would explain what she’d read in the appraisal spell. “How come I’m alive then? From the sounds of it you need my Mark to reach this Library of Truth, and only one of us can enter. As grim as it is to say, but I don’t see why you want me alive,” she asked, glancing at Viel.

“Because we’re not barbarians, but if you’d like a more practical reason then it is quite simple. The blessings of a Mark do not carry over to a new holder, portions of it do, but most of it is lost with the Mark’s death. It is far more beneficial for us to work together to find the Library, and select one of us to enter and bring out whatever the library holds,” Viel said.

“You’ll be fine with trusting someone that much? This seems to be a Library of Gods themselves, what if they don’t hold on to their word?” Jennifer asked, staring at Viel.

“There’s a soul pact that all of us will agree upon. Trust will be built eventually, but the foundations for it will lie within the pact. The Guild is working together with the Marks, and gathering them, without conflict if possible. Each Mark presents a significant threat if left alone, and in the wrong hands, it is another key to the library lost from our hands,” Irwys said, making Jennifer grimace at the implication.

“Who all do you have?” Jennifer asked curiously.

“I already shared mine, I’d assume it's courtesy to share yours as well,” Viel replied, leaning back as the gaze of everyone in the room rested upon Jennifer.

Jennifer took a deep breath in, before speaking up. “I have the Mark of Time.”

Viel frowned at her words, staring at her for a moment before turning towards Irwys. “Is she…” the man trailed off as Irwys shook his head. “Huh. An unknown new Mark. I certainly hadn’t been prepared for that.”

Jennifer stared at the man, confused. “What’s so surprising?”

Viel turned to look at Jennifer, his gaze sharpening. “I assume you would be surprised too if one day you realized that a new god has been born after an eternity. There is no god of time Jennifer, or there wasn’t, until now that is.”

Jennifer stared at the man, a memory returning to her mind. They’d called me an intruder. No, not me, but the woman who gave me my Mark.

“Can a God change their domains? Perhaps one of them got fed up with their shit and wanted to mess around with time instead,” Anghul said, snorting.

“No, the domain of a god doesn’t change this easily. But… if a new god had been born, there would’ve been signs. This is big, bigger than I’d ever imagined things to be,” Viel said, turning towards Jennifer. “Anyway, you asked who all we have right? Well, I’m afraid I can’t share that just yet, but, including me there’s three Marks that we have. Four if I count you.”

So about half of all the Marks already. That’s reassuring.

Irwys turned towards her, his silver eyes gleaming. “Before we proceed any further, I’d like it if you'd answer some questions for us. Who are you? And how did you gain your Mark?”

Jennifer stared blankly at him for a moment, as she clenched her hands. Lying would likely just get her caught. But what should I tell him? That he pretty much held my hand and took me to it?

Taking a moment, she sorted her thoughts. She knew she couldn’t lie, but that didn’t mean she had to tell the whole truth. She intended to only extend as much trust as the other party was going to. A large part of it, solely based on her trust on Irwys. She had a small measure of trust for Viel, for not abandoning her or killing her and he’d treated her fairly well after their initial encounter. But she had nothing like trust for Anghul. Only subdued wariness.

“I’m Jennifer Laine, an [Enchanter]. And, I…I saw something. It felt like a dream, but it was also real. Too real. And I was there, in the future. The dream had me come to you, and then, you took me to this strange trial, and I got my Mark. When it ended, I was at my desk, and had the Mark on my hand. If anything, I'm the one with the questions here.”

Sudden laughter from Anghul interrupted her. “Of course you got it from a dream. If you’d said you fought in a trial for it, I would’ve eaten my bow.”

Well I did fight in a trial, even if most of it was handled by Irwys. Maybe I should tell her that, would be interesting to see a human eat a bow.

Jennifer let the thought go, turning to look at Irwys. She still had many, many questions for him, and the number of them only grew in size the more she knew.

Iryws frowned, considering her words silently as he stared at her. She felt as if something was staring into her soul from beyond his silver eyes.

“A vision of the future, or perhaps,” Irwys muttered something and Jennifer felt her gut churning.

Should I tell them about the invasion? About the dungeon break and everything that happened? This is my best chance to actually reach out to people who might be able to do something, and prevent the worst from happening.

“I actually think my dream-” a knock at the door interrupted her and a click sounded out as the gate slid open.

“My bad, I forgot I had the key, sorry for disturbing,” a young man said, entering the room. His chestnut brown hair mucked about in a disorderly fashion. His mana was veiled, and she couldn’t get a grasp of him from her skills. She found herself surprised at how young he was, not any more than his mid twenties if she had to guess.

And he’s with them? These Ranked plates?

“Took you a while to be here, Nathaniel,” Anghul snorted. “Sorted things with your uncle I assume?”

“Yeah, he’s not tearing my ears out anymore at least. Having an Earth affinity can be such a pain sometimes. And he’d already been in a bad mood because some [Lords] from the Empire had reached out to the High Council when they got news of the Dungeon,” Nathaniel said, receiving a grim nod from Viel.

“Anyway, I also happened to have two guests, who were very insistent that they had to come to this exact place. So- hey hey, hold on!”

“Jenn!” a voice shouted and Jennifer jumped. She turned around, her eyes widening in surprise upon noticing the familiar red-head standing outside alongside her Master.

“Rumina?” Jennifer said, her eyes wide as the red-head rushed inside the room, tackling her with a hug. She groaned, exhaling as Rumina pressed herself against her.

“What are you doing here? How did you find me?” Jennifer asked, surprised at her friend’s sudden arrival.

“I didn’t,” Rumina replied, breaking out of her hug.

“I did it,” her Master said, entering the chamber. “Ye got plenty of crap I could’ve used to find ye. Like that appraisal ring charged with your mana. Stop getting into so much trouble ye dumb little brick, yer friend was worried for you,” he said, before his eyes towards the others sitting in the room.

“So, which of ye bastards pulled my girl's hair after chasing her through the city? Ye lot don’t seem like no thugs to me. Never thought I’d see Ranked plates chasing around little girls,” her Master said, glaring at Viel and the others.

Nathaniel turned, closing the door once more. “I think we can talk, there seems to be some misunderstanding-”

“Let me be straight with ye,” Haireth interrupted. “I really don’t care what it was like, and why ye did it. Matter of fact is, that I don’t think Jennifer knows any of ye, because I’d damn well know if she was hanging out with Ranked plates,” her Master said, glancing around at the room full of adventurers. “So, what ye have done is take a girl from the city, and then drag her here to the guild where then ye all sit across her all intimidating like in a private warded off room. Sera save me but I don’t see a reason why I shouldn’t be shouting to the depths about Ranked plates kidnapping a girl?”

Jennifer noted Anghul cracking her fingers, as her aura began to flare. She was about to jump in when she felt her Master’s aura spread out in response. Magic thrummed in the air, as a low resonant hum spread through the chamber from the clash of the auras.

“Ye don’t want to fight me lass,” her master warned, his eyes fixated upon Anghul.

“We’ll see about that dwarf. Seething sands, I was disappointed when the girl turned up so weak, but it looks like I’ll get a good fight today after all,” Anghul said, as her bow manifested in a sparkle of light.

Auras clashed for a moment as the air vibrated with power. Jennifer had to strain her mind to not fall to her knees within a moment, even though none of it was aimed at her. She turned towards Rumina, the red-head looking back at her as she grabbed her hand. Jennifer squeezed back silently.

“Anghul. Sit Down,” Viel said, and the world rippled once more.

The dark skinned Archer stiffened under the weight of the words, a frown covering her face as she fought against the words imposed upon her. With a click of her tongue, Anghul sat back on her chair as the bow in her hand vanished. “Fine.”

“Allow me to apologize,” Viel said, turning towards her Master. “For both Anghul and what happened to Jennifer. There are circumstances beyond our control here, and she is tied deeply within them. I hadn’t expected a child to be the one I’d face and my presence had knocked her out, so I decided to bring her here instead of leaving her.”

Her Master’s aura retreated. “It’s that depth cursed Mark of hers, isn’t it?”

“So you are aware. Yes, it is her Mark. She is unable to control its presence as of yet, and the Mark is projecting its presence out, calling other Marks towards her. It’s how I found her. And it’s how someone not this willing to talk may find her as well.”

“What’re ye suggesting?” her Master asked.

“We’ll take her in. Teach her how to use her Mark, train her to be able to protect herself. The guild would be able to protect her if a Mark decides to make her a target.”

Her master stared at the man for a quiet moment. Jennifer tensed wondering if there would be another clash of auras.

“I’d left the Crafting Guild, quite a few years ago now,” her Master continued, as his sight drifted across the room they sat in. “The petty bickering, the selfish words, the rotten choices. They’d all lost their craft. The whole lot of 'em,” Haireth said, his gaze brimming with cold anger as he turned to face Viel. Jennifer felt her gut tighten. Her Master never talked about the guild. Never.

“Ye lot don't exactly have my trust. I’d left this past behind me or so I’d thought, but I ain’t arrogant enough to think I could ask her to suffer my choices. Rotten murks, it’s up to ye lass,” her master said. Jennifer spotted a smile covering Nathaniel’s face.

“But,” her Master continued, “I ain’t the one who yer asking. It’s the lass. If she joins, then it’ll be of her own will. And I’ll make sure that will is respected."

Her Master looked at her, and Jennifer stared at him dumbfounded.

"But before the lass says anything. I swear on my rotten ancestor’s names that if you were to ever bring her to harm, to use any treachery or tricks the higher guild members love to play, then Sera save you from my wrath because I would turn the very Murks overhead, for that you have my word,” Haireth announced with a ripple of mana.

Jennifer felt something shift within her Master’s aura at his words. An oath, a dwarven one, bound by his ancestors and blood. Primitive magic, but undeniably powerful. Jennifer felt her heart tremble, as she stared at her Master.

“Aye, don’t give me that look lass. I’ve done all I can here, and it’s them who should be worried about it, not me. Now go, hear what the man has to say.”

“Let me be the one,” Irwys said, rising from his seat, as he walked towards Jennifer. “Your Master is an honorable man. One ready to swear himself to his ward. Allow me the same honor,” Irwys said with a nod towards her Master, as he turned to face her.

“Fate seems to tie us together, Jennifer. In your dreams, you came to me. And now, you have found me again. Let me extend to you, the offer that my prince grants us all.

“I, Irwys Silveran, under the will of His highness Laiken Re’an Zandria, swear on my soul to grant protection to Jennifer Lain, under the rule and authority of the Pact of Marks. We will harbor you as one of our own, if you swear to do the same. May the Fates stand witness.”

Jennifer felt her mana tremble, waiting for her to speak. She stood silently for a moment, glancing around at her Master, before her gaze turned to Rumina’s.

Soul bound Oath
Divination
Tier-5
An Oath of the Soul, sacred and protected by Elphion's domain. To break the Oath, is to enact a price from the Gods upon one’s soul.

This is my best chance. To learn from Ranked plates. To grow. And to prevent that invasion. Mom and dad, Keith. Everyone I knew. It would all be gone if I do nothing.

Jennifer looked up, into the two shining pools of silver eyes and she found her own blue eyes reflected in his.

“I, Jennifer Lain, with Sera as my witness, swear to accept.”

Her soul trembled, as a pulse of mana spread from her, and the link was formed. It was unceremonious, as far as soul bound oaths went, yet she could feel the tug of the oath at her. There would be a cost for breaking it, one she wasn’t willing to pay.

“Welcome!” Nathaniel cheered, and Jennifer gave him an awkward smile. The glare from Anghul did nothing to curb his excitement, and Jennifer felt grateful as it eased her nerves.

“I have a lot of things to say,” Jennifer said.

“I bet you do. I do too, like how did you get glass-”

“Nathaniel,” Viel said, stopping Nathaniel mid sentence.

Jennifer looked at Rumina, who stood next to her silently. The red head gave her a light smile upon noticing her gaze. Jennifer returned a quiet smile of her own, grateful for her comforting presence.

She gathered her courage, picking her words, as she began. “The city is going to be invaded by the Ostiri, led by a Mark. And I was there to see that future.”

Silence descended upon the room, thick enough that Jennifer felt like she could cut it with a knife.

“In the dream, I saw this month happen, and at the end of it I saw Lienmont burning, invaded by the demons and the sand tribes as they razed the city. A Mark, using storms of sand flew among them. A strong mage, leading the charge as they tore through the walls."

“The Mark of Drought,” Nathaniel whispered. Jennifer felt Anghul’s aura flaring.

“I saw a massacre happen at his hands, saw the city fall as people fought and died. I saw the Mark tear through Lienmont, right before he took my life,” Jennifer said, her voice quivering at the end. She felt Rumina’s stare burrowing into her, but she resisted from turning around.

Viel frowned at her words, turning towards Nathaniel for a moment. They all stared at her in silence.

Irwys’s cold silver eyes regarded her, as his words broke the tense silence. “I’m listening.”

***

Jennifer sat quietly, listening to the adventurers discuss amongst themselves. Even Anghul had stopped lounging comfortably, and had begun paying attention to the conversation.

“The Ostiri haven’t moved so far from the desert in decades, much less this far north. They clash frequently with the seafolks further south and the Lizardfolk. But the tribes fight amongst themselves too often to put up a combined front. And that's discounting when they're scattered by the vicious monsters who wander the sands,” Viel said, rubbing his chin in thought.

Nathaniel tapped his fingers on the table while watching Jennifer. “If the Mark of Drought has appeared among the Ostiri, then I could see it unifying the tribes together. The Ostiri have been fractured for decades since the death of the last Chief of Sands. No fitting leader had arrived amongst the tribes, who could unify them all.”

“Until now,” Irwys added.

Nathaniel returned a grim nod. Mana strands spread out from his hand, forming a blue tinged intangible map that floated in front of them.

Jennifer stared bewildered at the absurd display of skill with such casual ease. It was the light spell, the very same one she’d shown Keith yet the spell was far more complicated in its structure, manifestation and shaping. If she wanted to replicate the same she’d have to spend hours refining the matrix, and even then she’d likely fail.

“The Ostiri have five tribes, as I’m sure all of us know already,” Nathaniel continued. “The northern tribes being the only ones allowed to enter and have trade agreements with Linemont despite their exclusion from the Alliance.” The map expanded, showing humans with beastial features, wearing draped white clothes and covered in scales and with teeth like fangs.

“The Rezis are loyal to the [Slave Lords]. If they move, they move as one,” Anghul said, her eyes set upon the image displayed by Nathaniel.

Jennifer shivered. There was a cold fury in her voice, as each word darkened her eyes.

“The Ostiri do not touch the Rezis and the Rezis provide [Slaves] to entirety of southern Zweiril. Their warriors form an entire contingent of soldiers for some of the southern territories. The [Slave Lords]—may they rot in the depths—have a strong grip upon the south. They are only considered a part of the Ostiri by virtue of the land they inhabit, the [Slavers] are anything but of the tribe. And if they move, they only do so when the prize is worth the cost.”

“And if what I’m gathering from Jennifer is that large scaled beasts were used to knock down the walls?” Nathaniel said, turning towards Jennifer. She gave a light nod.

“That’s the Rezis’ war beasts, Vreliths. Those bastards are the only ones mad enough to tame the monsters. If they are bringing out Vreliths, then this is not just an attack on Linemont but an all out war,” Anghul said, before her eyes shifted onto Jennifer for a moment.

“Can we trust the runt’s words? The Rezis moving means all five tribe chiefs have come to an agreement for the first time in decades. Centuries perhaps. I- even a Mark shouldn’t be capable of bringing those bastards together. I know half the chiefs would delight in bathing in their enemy tribe’s blood and guts everyday if they could.”

“We don’t have another choice. If she hadn’t been a Mark we wouldn’t even be having this discussion, and my skills all say she’s speaking the truth. Unless you think she is capable of spinning this tale on her own, and deceiving my skills we’ll have to assume she’s being honest, at least to herself,” Nathaniel replied.

“She hasn’t lied. His Highness has confirmed it himself,” Irwys added.

“Sand maggots,” Anghul cursed, slamming her fist onto the table as the wooden furniture splintered into tiny wooden shards. An entire section of the table torn and broken as if obliterated out of existence. Jennifer shifted away on her chair.

Her mind returned to Irwys’ words. His highness? The Prince was listening to this talk? Suddenly the scale of everything began to dawn on her.

This is an invasion against Lienmont, maybe the Alliance itself. An army working together with demons, on a scale, perhaps never seen before in the city. And here I am, sitting amongst Ranked plates, and being overheard by princes, discussing the fate of thousands.

Her head spun at the image, and she struggled to believe any of what she saw was real. A part of her still felt like she was dying amidst the burning city, and all of this was a beautiful lie the gods were showing her as a sign of mercy, or perhaps as some form of twisted joke.

“Zweir’s drat- forgive me,” Nathaniel said, stopping mid sentence as he let out a breath. “The guild heads will have to be informed. The HIgh Council as well, and the Alliance. This is far larger than anything we’d expected.”

“If the Mark of Drought can bring together the Ostiri, he may already have conquered and gained another Mark under his control. Perhaps more than one. Not to mention… We haven't even begun talking about the demons. How in Sera’s mercy did we attract the demons?”

Jennifer shifted her eyes towards Viel, the only one who’d been quiet all this time. She saw the man looking back at her. There was a strange glint in his eyes.

“A Mark. It has to be. The timing is too coincidental. We have to move under the assumption that the trial is drawing them in towards Lienmont,” Nathaniel muttered.

“Ye’re not thinking at the correct scale,” her Master interrupted, folding his arms. “The demon's biggest enemy would be the Church, and they can’t strike at the Alliance as they are. Then, what do they have to gain with this assault that could help them get a victory over the gods?”

Nathaniel muttered quietly to himself for a moment. It was Irwys who spoke up.

“The Mark of Life,” his silver eyes gleamed as his gaze turned towards Jennifer. “The Mark of Life appeared in Sera’s church a few months back. With the movements of the Alliance and the dungeon, she was set to arrive within Lienmont at the end of this month to accompany all the Marks to a delve within the dungeon.”

“Do we have the time to be discussing this here?” Viel spoke up, folding his arms.

“Yes, no- no we don’t. I need to inform my uncle. Anghul, please apologize to Valencia. We need the guild heads on the same page,” Nathaniel said, getting up as the image of the Ostiri dessert vanished.

“Alright,” Anhul said, taking Jennifer by surprise at the lack of retort, as the two began to head out.

“Viel, conceal Jennifer’s presence. We can’t keep her here all day,,” Nathaniel said, opening the door with a show of his Gold plate, before he strode out.

Jennifer turned to look back at Viel, who had a contemplative look on his face.

“This is something you’ll need to learn on your own. We’ll get to that soon enough with your training, but for now, extend your hand,” Viel said.

Jennifer put her hand forward as he grabbed it on his own. A sudden presence flooded her from all sides, pushing on an invisible extension going beyond her body that she hadn’t realized existed. The pressure enclosed her, squeezing her inwards. She felt as if something was trying to squeeze her head through a pinhead. Something soon gave in, as her Mark's presence collapsed upon itself, settling down just around her body and forming a layer above her skin.

Jennifer felt a wave of dizziness as she stared at her Mark. She was able to sense the now much denser presence surrounding her. “Thank you,” she muttered, dipping her head.

“Don’t thank me yet, our training hasn’t even begun,” Viel said with a grin.

Jennifer felt his Mark pulse, its presence filling her mind, but she didn’t buckle this time, her Mark’s presence countering his. Straightening her back, she looked the man in the eye.

“I won’t disappoint.”

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6 — Sudden Encounter

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The summer sun hung brightly in the sky as Jennifer walked towards her friend’s shop. It had been five days since she’d told her master about everything, and with each passing day she found her magic changing.

Jennifer moved her mana, forming a glass shard on her palm. With little effort, she managed to propel the glass and have it hover above her hand as she walked. It was a distraction from the creeping thoughts in her mind. Feeling at her new skill, she used [Enchanted Glass Creation] on her glass shard. A spell matrix took shape as she applied the basic enchantment Sharpen on it. The edges turned more streamlined, enough to cut through her skin with ease if she let it.

She frowned in concentration, trying to float the shard around her palm but found herself stopping to focus.

Rotating it around is difficult. Not quite at that level of control, but this is still far more precise than my other spells. A creation affinity really makes a world of difference.

Jennifer had experimented with both her new skills over the past few days. There’d been little else to do even if she knew the events about to occur this month, so she’d spent her time in the best way she knew of, by studying magic.

She’d gained [Lesser Arcane Analysis] and [Enchanted Glass Creation] in quick succession, having not had much time or peace of mind to test her new skills properly when she’d gained them, and she’d taken her time going through each.

[Enchanting Glass Creation] was simple in usage, allowing Jennifer to not only enchant simple enchantments onto her glass without needing to carve it directly, but also allowed her other skills like [Twofold Enchanting] to work on the enchantments she applied. She could already think of the many applications of the skill.

[Lesser Arcane Analysis] was a bit more strange. The skill allowed her to pull up system prompts for her spells, and sometimes gain insight at the composition and application of those skills but the skill seemed random outside of that, and didn’t always work.

It still surprised her how quickly she’d gained not one but two new skills, the last one she’d gained had been [Lunestone: Guard] that she’d gained when she’d crafted her first lunestone, and gained her 15th level.

Barely two months ago. Or a month before now I suppose.

She crushed the glass in her hand, cracking it into pieces that faded into motes of light. A few people turned to look at her, but most paid no attention. Her eyes turned towards a passing stranger and she couldn’t help but wonder if she had stepped past their corpses, or heard their last screams before it had been silenced.

Jennifer let her gaze take in the shops and homes lining the streets as she walked. Her home was fairly close to Rumina’s, on a relatively decent side of the city. She turned towards the shop her friend worked in. Green Flower Bell was written in beautiful letters on its front with a bell and a flower insignia drawn next to it. A notable establishment, as was clear by the smooth and enchanted glass at the front.

Jennifer felt a strange awareness in her mind of the glass in the shop, as if she could reach out and shatter it if she wanted to, or twist the enchantment present on it without ever being next to it. It was an odd sensation, and one she didn’t linger on.

A red head girl sat behind the counter, surrounded by vases full of flowers kept fresh with Preserving enchantments. The scene felt as if it was out of some cheap romantic fairy tale. Not a place you’d think to be in ties with the Thieves’ guild.

Jennifer stood silently for a moment, before she smiled and called out. “Rumina!”

She watched as her friend’s eyes widened in surprise. A smile covered Rumina’s face as the red-haired girl rushed out.

“Jenn! I heard! Congrats! You got accepted!!” Rumina said, rushing out and jumping onto Jennifer, as she hugged her tight. The act earned her a pained exhale from Jennifer but the red-head continued undaunted, lifting Jennifer up and spinning her slightly taller friend around.

“By Sera, let me down! You’re making a scene Rumina!” Jennifer exclaimed, lightly punching Rumina. The other girl giggled in reply, as she let Jennifer down.

Jennifer stared at her friend, her expression somewhere between exasperated and amused as she watched the smile covering Rumina’s face, set behind her freckled face. “What were you doing Rumina? Jumping at me as if I'm your long-lost lover or something.”

The freckled redhead pouted, as she often did when Jennifer didn’t reply with the same excitement as her. A sly grin soon covered Rumina’s face as she stepped in close, putting her arms around Jennifer.  She leaned in, touching Jennifer’s nose with her finger and running it down her lips. “Are you not?”

“Oh, stop it!” Jennifer said, rolling her eyes as she smacked Rumina’s hand away. The redhead jumped back cackling madly.

“Let’s head inside at least,” Jennifer said to the lightly out of breath Rumina. The read-head nodded, wiping a tear from her eyes from laughing too much as the two headed inside the shop.

Jennifer opened the gate, entering the establishment. She felt the wards placed on the place gently tingle her senses, the temperature dropping lightly on the inside. Ah, temperature control spells. That must’ve cost a fortune.

The shop itself was a pleasant place, with magical trinkets and decorations present on the shelves, with plenty of  flowers around. Nothing in the shop was of any real magical application, with only the occasional magi-tech from gnomes that was mostly just meant as decoration or trinkets for the wealthy merchants. A charming little shop with a young girl attending to it. From the outside at least.

“You know, I’m a bit mad that you didn’t tell me about getting accepted yourself. Imagine having to find out from others that your best friend's dreams had come true, and she didn’t even tell you about it,” Rumina said, as she walked around the wooden counter to take her seat once more.

“I’m sorry Rumina. There’s just been a lot that’s been happening, and I just…” Jennifer paused as she stared at her friend, who was looking back at her with an expectant look on her face.

I did tell you Rumina. A month ago, I told you and we both celebrated it, and it was one of the happiest days of my life. But you don’t remember any of it. How do I even tell you that?

“It’s been an insane few days, Rumina. Elphion damn me. I don’t know where to begin.”

Rumina curled an eyebrow at Jennifer, leaning onto the counter. “Now you’re making me curious, Jenn. Spit it out! What was so important that you couldn’t tell me about the academy?”

Jennifer extended her hand, letting mana gather in her palm. The energy flowed through her pathways forming a shining shard of glass the side of her thumb that floated above her hand. “I awakened glass magic?” she smiled awkwardly.

She couldn’t deny being amused at the blank stare her friend directed at her, staring at the floating shard of glass.

“Sera, is that. Is that real?” Rumina breathed, pausing right after. “I really just asked you that, I’m going silly. How? When? Why didn’t you tell me?! Now I’m even more mad!”

Jennifer just stared at her friend, who huffed making Jennifer burst out laughing. “I’m sorry, it was very very recent. I haven’t even told my parents yet, I was still just dealing with everything.”

“Fine, I’ll let you have this one. Gaining an affinity is just about those impossible things that I can forgive you over,” Rumina said with a huff. “But tell me how? I’ve never even seen glass affinity before.”

“I really don’t know what to tell you Rumina. I had a dream, a really bad one. And I saw many horrible things in it. And the next day I go to Master and he tells me I have awakened to glass affinity,” Jennifer said.

“Really? A dream of all things? I don’t know whether to feel happy about you or be disgusted by your absurd luck.”

“Both?” Jennifer said. Rumina laughed in reply.

“Hah! Definitely! But this is… great news Jenn. I’m messing with you but I’m so happy for you! You’re gonna be the best [Enchanter] anyone knows! Wait, are [Glass Enchanters] a thing? They have to be right? Not to mention glass is rare, and glass affinity even more. The mages in the academy are gonna be after you! I'll boast that I knew the [Archmage of Glass] when she was just an [Enchanter]!”

Jennifer rolled her eyes, but a smile tugged at her lips nonetheless. She felt some guilt about hiding things from Rumina, but the shop was not somewhere she was going to be talking about her Mark or the invasion. She remembered the little side chamber Rumina had shown her once, where all the letters sent through the thieves guild were kept.

“What’s wrong?” Rumina asked.

Jennifer let her gaze drift back to her friend as she shook her head. “Not much, and I do have something for you.” she said, digging into her pouch for the note her master had given her.

“Master wants to find out who’s currently in charge of the inspection of mithril ingots and the [Blacksmiths].” Jennifer said, handing Rumina the note, “and some guild business,” she added in a quieter voice.

Her friend’s expression turned serious for a moment, as she took the note. Jennifer heard her mutter a skill as the note vanished. Rumina’s jovial expression soon returned.

“Well, now that that’s done. Let’s celebrate! I know of this new lizardfolk that has opened a dessert’s shop. He’s a [Sweet Chef] I hear, and has some really good sweets. A bit pricey but I’ve been wanting to have a look, it’s called Scampi Tails. Wanna go? My treat!” Rumina said, clapping her hands once in excitement.

Jennifer shook her head, amusement at how little some things changed, even when doing them for a second time. “Alright, let’s go there, although if it’s too pricey then I’m gonna be splitting it half and half,” Jennifer replied.

Rumina cheered, calling out to inform about her early leave from the shop as the two walked out.

I think we went to a different place last time, or maybe my memory is playing tricks on me. Jennifer walked with Rumina, idly playing with her glass magic as her friend continued to inquire about the new affinity and prod her for details.

The two made their way towards the central plaza, on their way and Jennifer found her eyes drifting to the dungeon entrance nearby, feeling emotions she couldn’t quite understand. She felt her Mark pulsate once in her mind. A reminder that it had all been real.

“Hurry up!” Rumina exclaimed, walking ahead. Jennifer let her eyes move away from the dungeon as she followed behind.

There aren’t as many adventurers here for the new branch. Wait. Has the new branch been discovered yet-

A sudden tremor shook the ground, making Jennifer stumble from the intensity. She heard a loud rumble and a cracking sound as panic descended upon her within an instead. [Enhanced Mana Sense] told her of the large wave of mana that had spread through the area.

Jennifer almost leapt at her friend, about to drag her away from the site of the dungeon break when her mind caught up. The dungeon break was almost an entire month away, there’s no way things would’ve changed that much so quickly.

She looked around, noting people shouting in surprise as the ground beneath them shook with powerful tremors. The rumbling intensified, spreading in pulses, the ground seeming to breathe as it came alive. A plume of dust rose in the distance. A building had collapsed.

“Jenn, you okay?” Rumina asked, grabbing her hand, as the two girls waited for the tremors to pass.

“The dungeon shift, it was today,” Jennifer said, looking around in surprise. People moved about in confusion, out of their homes and onto the streets, as tremors still shook the ground.

“Advance party coming out! Make Way! Spear of the Sun reporting!” Jennifer heard a scream from up ahead. And then the guild will share the news of a new dungeon branch being found in the depths, causing a massive call of adventurers to the city.

“Jenn...are you alright? You don’t look great,” Rumina asked, gripping her hand tighter.

“I’m alright, but let’s celebrate some other day. I don’t think now’s a great time.”

“Hold on! It’s a bad earthquake, we shouldn't rush around randomly,” Rumina replied but Jennifer continued walking, ignoring her friend’s words as she kept a tight grip on her hand.

“I just have a bad feeling Rumina-” Jennifer’s words died in her mouth, a strange but familiar sensation interrupting her. Her Mark pulsed once, telling her about the familiar presence of another. The foreign Mark brushed against hers inquisitively.

Jennifer turned, almost against her wishes as panic coursed up her spine. Her eyes followed the source of the presence back to its origin.

Near the entrance, surrounded by high ranked adventurers and guards stood a tall, burly man decked in magical armor. Blonde hair and bright orange stared into hers from across the plaza as his presence burned itself in her mind, shining like a beacon of magic and strength.

A voice whispered in her head, the presence similar to the Mark she had seen and felt the night she had died, but yet not the same. Jennifer didn't know how she knew, but she was certain.

That man had another Mark.

A familiar terror filled Jennifer, as she felt a wave of power reach out towards her. “Rumina run!”

Thankfully, her friend did not tary beyond a moment’s hesitation before she began to run alongside her.

Jennifer tackled her way out of the crowds as she ran through the main streets, trying to think of a good place to go to. She was not going to risk another encounter with a Mark, especially with Rumina by her side.

“[Hidden Steps]” Rumina muttered as Jennifer felt the world around them blur for a moment. Sound seemed to fade from the world, their footsteps dimmed.

Jennifer eyed her friend. She hadn’t seen the skill from Rumina before.

“Turn here,” Rumina said, as Jennifer took a sharp left into an alley running through the streets. The two kept running for a while until they had gained sufficient distance.

Jennifer tried to sense Mark's presence but failed to find anything. Whoever that Mark had been, she couldn’t sense him.

“Who was that guy?” Rumina asked, her gaze sharp as she stared at her.

Turning towards her friend, Jennifer tried to reply between her labored breathing but found herself failing to come up with a reasonable explanation.

“I don’t know. I can’t explain everything right now Rumina, I just know that we need to avoid that man. Call for the [Guards] if you can, and go to the Master and tell him I found another Mark. He’ll understand,” Jennifer said.

“I’ll be getting the end of this from you,” Rumina said, running off. Jennifer sighed in relief, as she watched her friend dash away.

That should be enough to keep her safe, I hope that man doesn’t chase after her or is bold enough to go against the city guards.

Jennifer took a deep breath. Trying to think of what she needed to do now. There was no indication that this Mark had been hostile like the other one, but with how her encounter with another Mark had gone she didn’t feel confident enough to risk another. She also wasn’t confident enough to let herself die to test if her Mark really would send her back in time again. Dying just once was enough.

Her mind made up, she began to rush through the side lanes, slowly but surely heading towards the guild halls. With the number of adventurers and guards present in the area, she doubted anyone would try and attack her out in the open.

With a plan set in mind, Jennifer gathered the wind, weaving Agile Wind as she shot off with a strong blast of air.

The wind swirled around her as she ran through the streets. Her eyes scanned the city around her, watching the panicked atmosphere from the tremor recently. Lienmont was used to tremors from the dungeon, but as the city would soon come to know, this one had been anything but a normal one.

A strange nervousness crept into Jennifer’s mind as she felt her anxiety rising. She’d felt no trace of the other Mark beyond her first encounter. I need to go faster.

Jennifer pulsed more mana through the Agile Wind spell, the swirling world intensifying. Yet the spell was a weak Tier-1 spell, the added effects barely noticeable. An idea came to her as she ran, and she used one of her new skills.

“[Lesser Arcane Analysis]” she muttered under her breath as the skill activated. The spell matrix unraveled in her mind, until she found a suitable modification to the matrix’s structure for her purposes.

No time to experiment, just gotta run with it.

Jennifer prepared herself for being shot out and flung around by her own spell, ready to dissolve the matrix if it broke. Let’s try this then.

Mana pulsed through her spell, wind swirling around her feet as she kicked the ground once more. The sharp gust of wind sent her flying as her feet lifted off the ground by a few inches. Jennifer swiveled, dropping back down as she reduced her mana output. Taking a few more test leaps, she grew comfortable with the burst of winds launching her ahead, leaving dust clouds as she flew past people.

Her mana dipped at a much faster rate with her new spell as she shot faster than some [Runners] she knew. A strange exhilaration filled her mind as she ran, the rush of the wind in her ears making her heart thunder loudly.

Her gaze shifted to a crowd of people gathered ahead and she cut off her spell, spotting a large pile of rubble that had collapsed on the street blocking the way ahead.

Elphion damn me, I need to find another way out.

She turned to look behind her nervously and noticed no one trailing her. Am I overreacting? The man was chasing me, I'm sure of it. But did I really lose him? No, no point. I need to get somewhere safe.

Walking ahead, she inspected the streets. A large chunk of the area was filled with debris, blocking the relatively narrow path completely. The building that collapsed seemed to have taken a few other buildings down with it, sealing the road on all sides. She’d have to climb through the mess if she wanted to reach the other side this way.

I had forgotten just how much chaos the discovery of the new dungeon branch caused.

Her shoulder throbbed in phantom pain as she closed her eyes. Images of falling buildings and fire flashing as sand spread everywhere. She frowned, turning away. Stepping through the crowd she spotted a narrow alley nearby heading in the direction and began to make her way through.

The sunlight dimmed in the dark alley, as Jennifer jogged ahead quickly when a presence flared in her mind, stopping her in her tracks. The weight of a mountain descended on her shoulder as an overbearing presence pushed down on her. Her mind went blank, a bright light shining in her mind if she were staring right at the sun.

“[Restrict Movement]” Jennifer heard the voice speak as her body clamped up completely. She felt her will being crushed, her body refusing to move despite her wishes. A sword rested on her neck, pressing against her as her legs gave out under the crushing presence.

She tried to scream for help, but her lips refused to move. The heavy presence crushed her, as her heart trembled in fear. Once again, she was powerless to do anything about it. Her breath started to turn labored, before ceasing completely. Pain spread through her chest as the Mark’s presence in her mind started to consume everything.

She closed her eyes and saw the sand. It covered her feet, slithering over her body as it choked each ounce of life from her breath. She was dying. She knew she was dying. It was over. Again. Death would take her again.

“A kid?” the man said, as his presence receded.

Jennifer gasped, air filling her chest again. Her eyes blurred with tears, and she coughed. The tension in her body snapped and she collapsed onto the ground, like a doll with its strings cut loose. She could hear the man speaking but his voice was a blur amidst the static of her ears as the world spun around her.

The man’s golden eyes looked at her, his hands arresting her fall as the world turned dark.

***

A cool liquid tinged with mana washed down Jennifer’s throat as her eyes shot open in alarm. She flared her arms out, mana rushing through her veins as she tried to pull herself up.

“Calm down,” a voice said with a pulse of power put behind the words and Jennifer found her body freeze. Her heartbeat settled against her wishes, her breath coming in equal intervals. Slowly, her mind began to piece together information.

A blonde man stood in front of her, his Mark’s presence touching against her own. The man held a vial filled with a deep red liquid sloshing inside, looking at her with an introspective glance. Her throat was wet, and she could feel the familiar sensation of mana vapors from a healing potion filling her nose.

“The potion should be taking effect, although there’s no real harm done to you,” the man spoke, the vial in his hand vanishing with a flicker.

Jennifer found her hands gripping the sheets beneath her. A glance around showed her to be in a clean white room, layered with powerful wards and tastefully decorated with vases and paintings. Far too luxurious of a place for her to be in.

Her gaze returned to the man. She felt like she should’ve been shaking at the man’s intense presence but his words were like an iron clamp upon her mind, refusing to let it embrace the primal terror and forcing her to be calm.

She was almost grateful for it. Almost.

Jennifer looked at the man furtively, filled with a myriad of questions. She’d been certain that she had died right then and there, crushed underneath his heavy aura like a bug that couldn’t even resist. Yet she was here, being fed a potion and without a scratch on her body.

The man continued to look at Jennifer, almost as if waiting for her to speak first. Jennifer stared at him for a while, trying to see if he’d speak up. A few minutes passed by in silence as the two stared at each other.

“Where am I?” she said, giving in first. It wasn’t as if she could’ve resisted if the man had wanted her to talk, but the small defeat still stung nonetheless.

“The Adventuring guild chambers. You’d lost consciousness so I decided to bring you with me. The city is in turmoil from the earthquake, and I couldn’t have left you alone in either case.”

A knot of tension loosened from her shoulders. She was in the guild. Far better than the hundreds of possible answers that she thought of in the few minutes of silence. Jennifer possessed no special love for adventurers but dying in the middle of the guild surrounded by so many people was going to be unlikely.

“I’m curious,” the man continued. “How are you still alive?”

Jennifer paused, the tension returning to her. Had he expected her to die? Had her Mark saved her life once again?

“A girl like you, barely qualifiable for Iron from what I can tell of you mana, who keeps projecting her presence freely. How has no stray Mark killed you yet? Or more importantly, how did you even find your Mark?”

Jennifer stared at the man. Oh that, well I just fell into the dungeon and had a mysterious [Royal Knight] take me to a trial and help me, before an invasion destroyed the city and a guy slinging sand spikes killed me and I got sent back in time, that’s how.

She opted to stay silent.

The man shuffled his arms, and Jennifer saw hints of gold coming from his neck. She felt a strange sensation of trust towards the man, as she looked at the Mark. Something within her soul told her that the man could be trusted.

She opened her mouth, trying to find a place to begin when a loud crack stopped her, as the door swung open.

“Good, the runt is up. Was about to slap her awake if she’d taken too long,” the woman who entered said.

Jennifer found her words stop in her throat as she looked at the woman’s eyes. Pits of black looked at her for a brief moment, as if trying to suck her into them. The dark skinned woman had eyes of pure black that reflected nothing. Her bronze tinged skin was similar to the Ostiri and she carried a massive bow on her shoulders that didn’t fit through the door frame.

“Nathaniel is sorting things with his uncle. He’ll be there soon. Get the girl and come, Valencia’s hounding my ass to do some dumb clearance work instead of sending Silver or Gold plates. A few monsters broke out from the dungeon in the city or something. Stupid work. I’d rather stick here and let her clean up by herself.”

The man nodded. “Noted, Anghul. I’ll sort this out and be there in a moment.”

The archer—Anghul—clicked her tongue in response before slamming the door once more, hard enough to make Jennifer jump, as she walked away.

“We’ll need to have a talk, to explain the importance of that thing on your hand. I understand you don’t trust me and I won’t ask you to. But I suggest not lying. For your own sake.”

Jennifer looked at the man, and then nodded. She was aware of truth spells, but even without them, she’d rather not risk it. The guild was more likely to protect her if she was honest.

“Now if you can walk, then let’s head on. We have a few people to meet,” the man said, turning around.

Jennifer followed behind, slinking out of the bed when she noticed he’d stopped. “I never introduced myself, did I?” the man said, turning towards her, and she saw a glint in his eyes.

“I’m Viel Skywrath. Ranked plate adventurer, and the leader of the Spear of Sun,” he said, his Mark glowing a bright gold at his next words. “The Mark of Valor.”

Jennifer sucked in a sharp breath at the man’s words. A Ranked plate with a Mark. She wasn’t sure if she was more concerned or less after the revelation. Ranked plate was a special rank for those recognised by the guild for their exceptional strength and abilities.

For many, Gold plate was considered the highest rank that could be reasonably achieved, and if Jennifer could become one, she’d earn enough to fund her father’s mana pathways repairs and still have enough change to last an entire year for their family.

Ranked plates were one rank above them.

No one who’d earned the plate was anything less than a monster in their own right, capable of shaping battles single handedly. Even in a dungeon city like Lienmont, there weren’t many Ranked plates around, and each often had a title associated with them. She was glad she hadn’t been antagonistic to him.

“Follow along,” the man said, turning his gaze away and Jennifer began to follow.

The room led out to a corridor, covered in protective wards and mage lights that hung up above, dim and almost invisible during the day time. Just the cost of fitting the entire guild with mage lights boggled Jennifer’s mind.

Glancing around, she noted the swarm of adventurers running around the guild, alongside other guild staff and healers. Her [Enhanced Mana Sense] ran wild as the clash of auras and mana assailed her senses. Mana pools so deep, that they felt like an ocean she could get lost in. Her eyes shifted to Viel, who walked in front of her, and she noted his aura enveloping her, protecting her from the magical saturation caused by so many auras.

She pulled her [Enhanced Mana Sense] back, saving herself a future headache. She’d already lost consciousness thrice in just under a week. Four times, if dying counted as losing consciousness.

Jennifer watched a few adventurers stumble in, carrying wounded people, others rushed out to deal with monster breakouts or calls for rescue. She saw more than one [Geomancer] running around, cursing as they waited to be sent to some location of the collapse both inside the dungeon and outside. Being a [Geomancer] in a city like Lienmont was a lucrative job, and she finally understood why. She’d expect some extra pay as well if her job involved repeatedly going to cave-ins, and dangerous locations inside the dungeon.

I guess there's enough benefits for whoever finds the route to an entirely new section of the dungeon. Only a matter of days before Lienmont will begin to be swarmed by adventurers looking for rare artifacts.

The dungeon was mapped, with almost the entirety of the first layer completely explored, and a large portion of the second layer. Even if the structure changed often, the areas themselves merely shuffled around instead of changing completely. An entire new section appearing overnight was practically unheard of.

Jennifer felt slightly odd at having a view of a completely different side of the dungeon shift. She had been at her master’s workshop the previous time, and the two of them had remained in his smithy as the earthquake happened. It had been a minor thing, just a larger than normal earthquake, until the news of the new branch had slowly but surely began to spread.Now she was in the guild, watching the chaos unfold for herself and she gained a new appreciation for the role the guild played in keeping the city together.

She followed Viel beyond the crowded central chamber of the guild, following him further into the guild and up a few stairs to what looked like a corridor full of meeting rooms of some kind. Strong protective wards prevented her from getting a layout of the insides of the rooms and the corridor itself was set up with suppression fields that made mana manifestation impossible. Not that she was going to try.

Jennifer spotted the dark skinned archer from before leaning against one of the door frames, with her eyes closed in a frown. Her massive bow wasn’t present on her anymore, likely put into a storage ring.

“I almost withered away from age, waiting for you to drag your feet,” Anghul said, opening her pitch black eyes, as she stared at Viel.

“Nathaniel’s not here yet?” Viel asked, ignoring the woman’s remark.

“He sent a message. It’ll take a while. Some complications have arrived with the dungeon. We found more than we’d expected to,” Anghul said, her eyes briefly resting on Jennifer.

“Let’s head in. I’ll fill Nat in when he arrives,” Viel said, taking out a dark black plate, made of an odd metal she didn’t recognise.

Likely the Ranked plate. I could probably sell that plate for ten times its weight in gold. Jennifer gulped lightly, her eyes briefly shifting to Anghul. The woman gave her no attention, but she could feel her aura at this distance, and the threat of violence present within it, even when subdued. Almost as if she thrives in the violence. Jennifer decided to avoid the woman as much as she could.

Her attention returned to the door as it mana pulsed through the wards present on it. The door clicked open, as Viel strode in, followed by Anghul, and then Jennifer at last.

“Apologies for the delay. We found something, or rather someone who’d be of interest to both you and the Prince,” Viel spoke, nodding his head and Jennifer walked to the side, trying to see past his bulky frame at who he was talking to.

Silver hair gleamed in the light as a strongly built man sat inside, wearing light armor, with an ornate sword by his side and her eyes widened in surprise at the familiar face looking at her.

“Irwys,” Jennifer muttered, realizing a moment too late about what she’d said.

Silver eyes turned towards her.

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5 — Glass Truths

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Sunlight poured through the window in Jennifer’s room. With a jerk, she opened her eyes, wiping drool off of her face. She looked around with blurry eyes, confused about where she was when she realized that she’d nodded off somewhere along the way. The last memory she had was going through another one of her books, as the sun had started to peek over the horizon.

Jennifer looked around wide-eyed, shuffling and sorting the scattered books lying on her table. The best she’d found about her Mark and time magic had been hypothetical possibilities about the existence of such a thing, which could do what she’d seen at a limited scope. None that matched the description of her Mark.

She’d moved on to reading up on the Ostiri tribes and Demons but her father’s book collection and her own included precious little information on those topics. But her search hadn’t been completely useless as she’d found hints about the existence of records in Lienmont’s library on old Giant runes pertaining to time magic.

“Jenn, are you up?” her mother’s voice came from outside.

“Yeah, I’m up!” she responded, putting her things together as she ran to the mirror and lightly brushed her hair. She checked the bandages on her hand, tightening them once more. Her cut had almost healed already, and she’d regretted injuring herself so hastily. She hadn’t been in the right headspace last night.

People don’t make the best choices when they are killed and sent back in time.

Rushing out, she opened the door and saw her mother standing outside with a concerned frown dotting her face.

“Are you feeling better? How about your hand?”

Jenn looked up at her mother, and gave her a light smile, nodding. “Yeah, I am.” And this time, that’s not a lie.

“Get some food in you then, and if you’d like, we’ve got some leftovers too,” her mother said, turning around.

Jennifer shook her head, as she clutched her enchanting crystal and put it in the pouch on her waist. “I’m sorry mom but I need to rush out. Can’t eat today, I’m sorry, love you, bye!”

She heard her mother calling for her as she rushed out but she was already speeding away. With everything that had happened, food was the least of her concerns, and she was running late for her Master’s workshop.

A quick run through the lanes had Jennfer standing in front of her Master’s shop. She dug out the key she’d been giving to the backdoor, entering her chamber as she nudged the door ajar and peeked into the workshop.

The sound of her master’s hammer strikes rang through the smithy as Jennifer’s eyes wandered around.

“Here are ye lass?” her Master called out.

She let the door close behind her. “Sorry for being late,” Jenn said, walking inside. Her Master grunted in reply, continuing to work on the weapon he was crafting.

Jennifer took a seat, waiting for her Master to instruct her as she watched him work. In just a few minutes, the rhythmic clang of hammer striking metal soon began to lull her towards sleep, as the exhaustion she’d been shrugging off started to catch up to her.

Jennifer bit her lips, the sensation keeping her awake and helping with her anxiety. So far, she’d found no plausible way to explain her situation to anybody. She almost felt afraid of doing so, of being told that she’d gone mad, that the Mark was nothing but her imagination, and so was the moth she’d lived through.

Yet, every memory I re-live feels accurate. I remember things from this month, the quake, the boom of adventurers arriving, the little celebration with Rumina. So many details. Can there really be a dream so real?

"Come here lass, I need yer help."

Jennifer set aside her thoughts and walked up to her master. A wave of heat pricked her skin from the flame burning in his forge.

“Get that mithril dust for me and make a fortifying inscription on this slab here,” The burly bearded man said, his bronze muscular skin glistening with sweat.

Jennifer nodded. She went outside the smithy, and into the shop, grabbing the mithril dust and taking out her enchanting crystal.

Wait, wasn’t this the time when he got a fault in the metal and had been pissed off about it for a whole week? He even sent me multiple times to Rumina to have threat filled letters sent anonymously to the guild.

Jennifer walked back in and noticed that he was inspecting the ingot. She heard him mutter a few skills under his breath.

“You really shouldn’t use that ingot,” Jennifer said, setting the mythril dust on the floor.

Her master grunted as he looked up at her. “Why?”

“Well, because it…” How do I explain that it probably has a small defect on the inside, if he can't detect it?

“It...doesn’t look that good to me. Just a gut feeling,” she said, pushing down a cringe at the lame reason. Lying would’ve been a better alternative than that.

“Hmm, yer right. It doesn’t ring right to my ears either. The mana waveforms feel disrupted, but I was hesitating because the sound was so small,” her master said, setting the ingot on the anvil before he lifted his hammer and gave it a strong strike.

The metal rang with a deep ring as the mana vibrated all around the room.

“Yeah, I hear it. There’s a fault in this. The Elphion damned merchants are selling faulty mithril now,” her Master let out a string of crafty dwarven curses, some that she’d grown familiar enough to learn the meaning of over the years, before turning towards Jennifer. “How’d ye find the fault? There’s no saying gut for this lass, if ye had such a strong gut then I’d have apprenticed yer as a [Smith] instead of an [Enchanter].”

Jennifer stared at her master, and he stared back at her. She knew he wanted her answer, but she hesitated about lying to him. Her gaze went to the mithril ingot on the anvil, shining a silver blue and she felt a tiny dissonance in the mana coming from the metal, one she hadn’t noticed before.

“I just felt the mana. It doesn’t go through the metal uniformly in one area,” she replied, as her master scratched his thick beard in thought.

“The mana ye says,” he paused, rubbing his beard as he picked up the metal to inspect it once more. “I suppose one can find faults that way if they’re sensitive enough. Hmm. Curious. Have ye leveled up recently?”

“Err, yeah. I did. I got a new skill as well. [Lesser Arcane Analysis].”

“Arcane Analysis huh. A mage skill, that one. It fits yer way of enchanting for sure. All neat and meticulous, far too much like yer father,” he said with a grin, setting the fault mithril aside. “I’d need to have a damn word with the idiot who checks these ingots. If I’d have tried to craft an Artifact with this, I would’ve sunk tens of gold coins into the darned thing.”

Jennifer sighed in relief as she began to draw the inscriptions. She touched the enchanting crystal with the mystril dust, shaking off the excess before crouching down as she began to draw the lines around the anvil. She traced the inscription with the dust drawing the runes carefully around the anvil.

Her master walked back with a different mithril ingot, blazing up the heat in the furnace once more. Jennifer wiped a bead of sweat about to drip down on her hands and mess up the inscription lines. Drawing the last rune, she checked her inscription for any mistakes.

“[Twofold Enchanting]” Jennifer muttered, as the enchantment layered upon itself with her skill, giving a faint blue shimmer to the Anvil.

“Start pouring yer mana lass, and then quickly walk away, this one will be hot,” her master said and Jennifer set to work.

She formed a link to her enchantment, pouring her mana as lines of blue ran across the floor lighting up the encryption. Jennifer hurriedly took a step back as a wave of heat poured through the smithy, with the fire burning hotter than ever.

“[Greater Heat Preservation],” her master said. Then with a powerful slam, he hit the metal and Jennifer felt the wave from that blow travel through the ground and shake her feet.

Taking a few steps to maintain her distance, she kept supplying the enchantment from a distance. Normally she wouldn’t need to, but with the strength of her master’s blows she feared the enchantment would run out of mana even with her skill bolstering its effects.

“Put more mana into it lass!” he shouted, not pausing for a breath, as he continued hammering. Furrowing her brows as heat stung her face, she poured mana through the enchantment.

“[Arcane Touch]” he bellowed another skill.

Runes floated in front of her master, as mana poured from him, and she saw them etch themselves onto the metal. The lines of mithril ran through them, carrying magic through the metal as it was forged. His hammer now moved faster than before, and she had trouble following his arm.

“[Song of Mithril],” he said at last, and Jennifer felt something change within the smithy. An aura permeated the area, carrying magic within it, Jennifer felt her master’s vast aura as a deep ring spread through the smithy. The mithril was singing.

With a sudden sharp crack, she saw the mithril shatter as Jennifer jumped in surprise. Her master’s aura receded, as the runes faded and Jennifer felt her heart beating in surprise.

“Come here Jennifer,” he called out, his voice grave. Confused, she got up and walked up to him.

“Hold our yer hand and pour some mana through them for me.”

She paused for a moment before putting both hands in front of him, not bothering to hide the bandages as she poured her mana through her hands. Small pieces of something sat in her palm, glistening in the light.

“What is that?” Jennifer asked, staring at the little transparents crystals.

“Glass, it’s glass,” he paused, turning towards her. “Ye never told me ye had awakened to glass affinity. Nay, you didn’t. I’d have noticed otherwise. When did this happen?”

Jennifer stared back dumbfounded. “I-I have?”

“Ye lass, it’s a rare affinity, but I’ve seen it once before. For yer sake, let’s confirm it,” her master said. “Come ere,” he added, walking further into his chamber.

Jennifer stared at her own hand, surprised at the tiny glass particles sitting there. She shook the shards off and they dissolved into motes of mana, before she followed her master out.

A quaint chamber greeted her, and she noted precious little within the room. Jennifer often came to her master’s workshop, but his chamber was one place she rarely visited.

The burly man walked towards a metallic chest, opening the box as he sifted through its contents. “It should be here somewhere, I think I've put it back in here, ah, there it is,” her master said, pulling out a shimmering blue crystal from the chest.

Closing the chest he walked towards closer and held the crystal out in front of her. “Channel yer mana through this, and concentrate on yer core. Don’t pour too much through the crystal though, it may shatter.”

Jennifer nodded and closed her eyes. Channeling her mana, she took a deep breath and started to focus on her mana. It coursed through her body. Moving lazily, it traveled all the way around from her limbs and back, before it faded into an incoherent mess near her abdomen and chest.

“Good, now focus on yer core.”

She guided her mind to where her mana gathered in her body, the mana pool, or the core. It was the connection of her mind to the spirit that contained her mana, rather than a physical location.

Slowly but surely, Jennifer found her mind drifting. The world around her faded into the background as her mind was consumed by the flow of her mana. Little lines and channels ran across her body, carrying her mana around in a rhythmic cycle.

Little shards of glass floated in her vision, as her mind drifted through a daze. Fire burned in the distance as Jennifer heard a scream come from somewhere. Blood tinged her nose as she found herself back during the invasion.

A pair of green eyes stared at her. Hands grasping her neck. There was sand all around her, consuming her from within.

Jennifer tried to run, but a sand spike tore through her legs. Another spike pierced her shoulder and lifted her up. Images of monsters tearing through people flashed in front of her eyes as the fire spread through the city. Two dark green eyes stared into her own, toying with her as she desperately tried to escape.

She stared at her imminent death, feeling her chest tighten. No. Please. Stop. I need to-

“It’s alright lass. You’re alright. You can stop now,” her master said.

She opened her eyes and noticed tears covering her cheeks, her face flushed red with exertion. Jennifer sniffed, feeling her emotions unsettled as she wiped her eyes, yet the tears kept flowing regardless of her wishes.

“A misty white color. It’s glass for sure, quite a rare affinity,” her master said, looking at the crystal in her hand. Glass covered it now, forming tiny crystals that glinted in the light.

“Affinities don’t pop up on their own, lass. They take deep scars for those of us not blessed to arrive,” her master said, his deep brown eyes staring into her. She felt a reassuring hand pat her back.

“What happened to yer girl? I’ll be here to listen, so tell me what happened.”

Jennifer tried to come up with an excuse, but her voice didn’t come out. A slow sob broke out at first, followed by another, and soon the dam broke as tears flooded out.

She nodded, and began to recount the events.

***

“And then I was back all of a sudden, yesterday night, sitting in my room with no injuries or anything, just the Mark on my hand.”

Jennifer paused to look at her Master’s face.

“I know how ridiculous all of this sounds. And I thought it was all a dream but...” she took away the patch covering her mark, revealing the glowing symbols. “This thing stayed with me. The Mark of Time. The system screen told me it had the ability to bring me back in time and— ouch.”

She rubbed her head, where her master had hit her, wincing as the burly half-dwarf snorted.

“Ye dumb little fool. Why did ye have to run headlong into death’s maw like that? Don’t ye have any sense in you!”

“But the man had run in and I was pulled by some monster and the entrance collapsed!” Jennifer exclaimed, protesting, ready to defend her actions when she realized something. “Master, you believe me?”

“Elphion damn me, lass. I don’t know. I ain’t saying yer lying,” he huffed muttering something to himself. “I’ve seen awakenings before, girl, it doesn’t just happen on its own. There was always an event that led to it, usually traumatic. I’ve seen people almost die, or lose brothers in arms and wake up with new magic before. The deep downs aren’t a kind place, especially not for a half like me.” he rumbled, getting up from his seat.

Haireth walked over to a closet in the corner of the room, picking out a bottle and a glass from within. Alcohol of some kind, from what Jennifer could tell.

“An invasion is not something you’d be joking about. The Ostiri have always been discontent, and shunned from the Alliance for their slavery and, well, the church. It is the demons that bother me lass, the demons haven’t moved in decades,” he sat down with a thud, pouring the drink into his glass. With a long swing, he drank the whole thing in one go.

“Gah, been a while. Where was I? Right, the Ostiri tribes tend to be fractured, someone would need to bring them together,” he muttered something in dwarven and she recognised some familiar dwarven curses.

"If the demons have reached this far to the central plains then Lienmont would fall long before the Alliance moves, Murken rot," Haireth said, turning towards Jennifer. “Show me that Mark of yer’s lass.”

She nodded and put her hand forward.

“Not magic ink, or anything like that. This is Arcane, yes. It runs deep too. Where in Elphion's damned depths did you find this thing? The dungeon? The first floor? This is some old magic right here,” he said, eyeing the Mark a moment longer before letting go of her hand to fill up his glass once more.

“Try focusing on the Mark, ye should be able to feel it, then see if ye can make it invisible.”

Frowning, she did as he said, and tried to nudge the mark into fading away. A small wall pushed against her in her mind, but it soon broke down. She opened her eyes to find the Mark had disappeared from her hand.

“Thought so. This Mark of yer and that trial, both sound like old magic to me. The old timers in the murk would know more, or the guild itself. I could try and get through to the guild, it’s been a while since I left, but I have a couple people in there I've kept in touch with." Haireth took another drink from his glass before he grabbed the bottle and got up from his seat to put it back in the closet.

Kneeling, he opened a locked closet nearby and pulled a scroll from inside. A dusty old piece of paper with a wax seal on it. She could see gold and silver engraved on the seal.

“This is a truth spell. It’d help with convincing others that at least ye think what ye say is true. An invasion isn’t a light matter.”

Jennifer stared at the truth spell, gulping. She'd only seen a truth spell used for judging thieves and criminals before. They weren't cheap.

“Try to summon more glass in the meanwhile, we’ll need to train yer affinity up. I don’t have a good feeling about the man yer told me about. If this is some kind of strange magical tracker, then we need to find a way to get it off.”

Jenn sat dumbfounded, surprised by how quickly her Master was acting. She tried to focus on getting some glass, but her mind kept jumping around at what might happen to the city and her.

How do I approach Irwys? How involved is he in all of this? The guild knows, at least Master can try to get talks started. Is it enough? Have I done enough? Where do I go now?

“Done, come here lass,” Haireth called from a table set nearby, the scroll spread across it, glowing with magic.

Jenn got up from her seat, and walked next to her Master, looking at the runes flashing on the scroll.

“Pour your mana through the scroll,” Haireth grunted, tapping the paper as he turned to look at her.

“O-Okay," Jennifer muttered as she leaned over and had a look at the scroll. The initial parts just had the inscriptions of the truth spell and a long description of its effects. She took a deep breath, and set her hand against it. Mana poured through the scroll as a magical chain bound itself in her mind, similar to the one she had felt with Irwys' Oath skill.

The scroll flashed with a silver and gold light and as words appeared in front of her eyes.

Tier 3: Truth Spell

Divination
Target: Jennifer Laine/Haireth Chainbreaker

This is to verify that the aforementioned statement is true and has been verified by [Mithril Runesmith] Haireth Chainbreaker.

Do you agree to the spell?

‘Yes,’ She thought, projecting the words towards the scroll with her mana. The words dissolved into motes of light, as a link formed binding her to the scroll.

“Do ye feel the spell? Like a bond stretching invisibly from this scroll?”

“Yes, I feel it,” she replied, looking at the scroll. It had stopped glowing as her name had appeared alongside her master’s.

“That’s one thing done. Now for that Mark of yers, I’ve got a thing for it,” her said, rolling up the scroll. “I think I believe ye lass. The scroll also says ye believe what ye says. I think you’ve earned enough trust from me by now.”

He opened the trunk again, going through the contents before he took out a small bracelet of metal. The bracelet shone with a silvery clue hue, and Jennifer spotted little runes carved all over it.

“Found the dratted thing. Here, put this on. It’s an appraisal bracelet. I don’t know about ye, but I don’t trust no Mark from depths forsaken dungeons.”

She looked wide eyed at the bracelet. “Aren’t these really expensive?”

“That’s why ye better not break it,” her master said, smirking.

“O-okay, got it,” she nodded and blushed slightly when the man started laughing.

“Ah, it’s good to see yer still fine, can still blush like the lass that ye are. What ye’ve described would be enough to break down many people. Yer a strong girl lass, always remember that.”

Jennifer stared at her master, caught off guard by the sudden change in tone. She nodded lightly, unable to fully answer. It had been easier to push all her fears down, instead of facing them. She wasn’t ready yet, and she knew she wasn’t, but she was glad she had her master.

“Good, let’s start then. Pour some mana through the thing, think of the result ye want, envision it, and then start the bracelet.”

She did as he asked, pouring her mana through the bracelet. Her [Lesser Arcane Analysis] skill gave her a rudimentary breakdown of the spell, as the bracelet began to glow.

Jennifer felt the appraisal spell latch onto her Mark, as she felt a pulse of magic go through her chest. She probed into the magical Mark within her through the spell, yet found something resisting. She frowned, pushing harder against the Mark as she poured more mana into the braze. The bracelet began to glow, and a system prompt appeared in front of her eyes.

Mark of Time
The Mark given to the Chosen of Time in the trial of the Seeker

Tier: Undefined
Chronomancy/Arcane

One key among the eight needed to reach the Magia Arcena Bibliotheca , otherwise known as the Library of Truth. The Mark contains the soul of Albion.

Jennifer stared at the message as the mana continued to flow through her bracelet. She felt heat rising around the ring as more bright light began to come from it. With a shout of pain, she

pulled the burning hot bracelet out. Her wrist burnt with a stinging pain, and she found a red circle of tender flesh where the bracelet had been. Her eyes shifted to the bracelets, and she found smoke coming out of it.

“Sera’s grace. I’ve appraised Relics with this thing and I’ve never seen it behave like this,” her master casually held the hot ring picking the burning hot bracelet up. “The circuit is still fine, but I’ll need to replace the frame.” he turned to look at her, surprise still covering his face. “What did it say?”

“I don’t know. It said something about a Library of Truth? And eight keys to restore it? There was also something about Chronomancy and the soul of something.”

Jennifer tried to recall the message with a system prompt but found nothing. It seemed she couldn’t check without the appraisal ring on her.

“Sounds like a legacy thing,” her master said. “Some old artifacts leave things like these at times. Library of truth, I think it’s an old folklore in the murk by a different name,” he paused to mutter something in dwarven.

“I might need to look into a true appraisal spell to go deeper into it. But for later, we still haven’t done an important thing,” her master said before turning towards her.

“Let me teach ye about affinities. Are ye aware that most people who awaken an affinity, either have bloodline abilities and or skills, secret tomes, and methods for special classes left for them that give them an affinity? Some work really damn hard to attune their bodies towards an affinity, or are naturally born with them.”

Jennifer nodded.

“Good, ye are none of those. I cannot discount the Mark playing some part in this, but yer case simply looks like a triggered awakening. It doesn’t happen often, but sometimes, ye can awaken a really dormant mana affinity in ye when yer close to death, or have had a really distressing experience.”

He paused, letting the words sink in. “It is another reason why I think ye aren’t lying. These things aren’t so easy to lie about. I know that damn well. Perhaps far too well,” her master took another drink. “Alright, we need to see how much ye can use yer glass and what for. Try to conjure some glass for me.”

“Okay, I’ll try.” She took a deep breath in and closed her eyes. Driving her attention to her mana, she slowly tried to move it a bit above her hands.

She focused on the world, feeling the mana that radiated from her master, it felt hot, like fire. Small currents of mana flowed around as well, but it was mostly still. She created a small clump of mana near her hands and let it expand gradually.

Small glittering shards and pieces covered her hand, and a large chunk of glass sat cradled within. It slowly started to erode away, back into mana from which it had been formed.

“Unstable, but ye’ve got talent. That is far more than I’d expected from someone who just awakened. A creation ability as well. I’m not sure how to teach you. Glass is a rare talent, and I’ve never heard of many glass mages.”

Jennifer looked at him, a complicated expression on her face.

“This does remind me of my adventuring days. I don’t really talk about my old days anymore, but there was a time when I traveled across the land, looking for jobs and wandering aimlessly through the lands. I’d seen my fair share of magic and monsters, ” her master tailed off, lost in thought.

A muffled knock on the door sounded out as she heard someone speak. “Is the shop open?”

“Aye, I’ll be there!” her master shouted before he turned back to her. “Ye don’t look like ye've slept much. Go home for today lass. I have much work now, no thanks to you,” her master said, grunting.

Jennifer gave him a tired smile of her own, nodding. She made her way to the door when halfway through she turned back. “Thank you.” she said, and closed the door behind her.

Jennifer made her way quickly through the streets, trying to form glass in her hand as she made her way back. The city moved lazily around her, she had forgotten the calm drowsy feel Lienmont could take in the afternoons near the outer districts, away from the dungeon and the movements of adventurers.

“Back already?” her mother called out.

“Yeah, I came home early today,” she replied, and stood there, thinking over what she wanted to tell her. Tell any of them.

“I’m gonna go to sleep. Love you, mom.” Her mother hummed something about food but she was already climbing the stairs. Walking through her room, she looked at her paper, where she had tried to make sense of her thoughts. It was a messy jumble with names cut out and plans and ideas and half-written sentences.

She turned towards her bed, feeling exhausted. The adrenaline mixed in with the terror of death had kept her awake through the night, but Jennifer found her strength quickly sapping in front of a comfortable bed.

Just for a while…

She crawled into her bed, laying there as the afternoon sun gently poured through the windows, and after a long day and two nights, she slept.

[Skill: Enchanted Glass Creation] obtained!

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4 — Back in Time

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Mark of Time:
The Mark of the Chosen of Time.

Abilities: Time Reset
Resets: 1

Integrity: 99.16%
Tier: Undefined

[Mark of Time: Time Reset] obtained!

The system message floated in front of Jennifer’s eyes, prompting a blink from her. She stared at the words, unsure of what she was seeing.

Where am I? I thought I had…

Jennifer glanced around as the world began to register in her mind, one object at a time. She was in her room, sitting at her desk with a quill in her hand. The quill her father had made for her a long time ago, the very same one that’d broken a while back when she’d been writing down some enchanting runes.

Something was wrong.

What had I been doing? There was the… the…

A sharp pain assaulted her head, like a burning needle being pressed through her skull. Jennifer doubled over, clutching her head as an agonizing throb went through it. She pressed her hand against her forehead, trying to push the pain away when her eyes caught on to a glowing light coming from her hand.

The Mark.

Memories rushed in like a roaring tide, crashing through the barriers of her mind. Jennifer saw cold green eyes staring into her own as life had slipped away from her grasp. Sand covered her body, piercing her over and over as her city burnt on fire, tinged with the smell of blood.

The Mark lit up on her hand, as memory after memory started to play through. Of the dungeon, of the trial, of Irwys. Each little piece returned to her one at a time, reminding her of the nightmare she had lived through. She clutched her tightening chest, feeling each beat of her thundering heart sending a pulse of pain through her body.

Jennifer's hand drifted up to her throat, and she touched her neck gently, afraid to disturb the wound that her mind insisted was there, even if she couldn't feel it.

The contents of her stomach began to rise up to her throat as the sensation of air leaving her body, as life was choked out of her replayed itself in her mind. She gagged, holding the nausea back, and forcing the bile down. Thankfully her stomach seemed to be mostly empty. She didn’t want to make a mess in her room.

Jennifer stood up, kicking the chair as an unknown sense of terror overwhelmed her. She felt like she was dying. Closing her eyes shut, she fought against the images playing in her mind. The green eyes haunted her, chasing after her as she ran.

It’s alright. I’m alright. Breathe Jennifer, breathe. Calm down.

Her limbs shook as she stumbled to her bed, and curled up upon the mattress, tucking her head closer to her chest as she fought hard to regulate her breathing.

I’m okay. I’m okay. I’m okay.

The words repeated in her mind like a chant, and she desperately clung on to them, pushing back the terror that grabbed her heart. It took a few minutes before the emotions loosened their grip and Jennifer found her body was sweaty, her hands were shaking.

After she could tell the worst of it had passed, Jennifer raised her head, trying to understand what just happened. She looked at her arm and saw the Mark, glowing very lightly with a dark blue sheen.

That trial, and the sand tribes and Elphion damned demons themselves. Just what is happening? Am I dead?

Jennifer had never been that pious, having scant beliefs or concerns for what’d happen to her soul after she passed away. She believed like all magical sources of energy the energies, her soul would simply dissolve and fade away forever. Contrary to that, the church proclaimed the afterlife to be a paradise created by Sera as she took in her believers from Elphion’s hands, leaving those who had sinned in eternal damnation.

The idea had always reeked to her as talks of the fanatic, not grounded in any sort of reality. The gods rarely interfered with the affairs of mortals, and none of the dead had ever mentioned seeing an afterlife, even those who’d felt Elphion’s touch directly upon their souls. The belief of an afterlife also didn’t address necromancy whatsoever, or other applications of magic that pertained to the dead.

Perhaps that is why Sera never took me in with her own. Either that or I am still alive and have just woken up from the most realistic nightmare of my life.

Jennifer found her mind returning to the sights of a burning city, her hand still repeatedly rising up to her throat to check on her wound. It was a struggle to think calmly as a mess of emotions tussled in her chest. For just a moment, she wanted to curl up on her bed and just stop existing.

In need of a distraction, she called the system message she’d gotten and had it appear in front of her once more at a thought. It’d keep her mind off the existential dread plaguing her, or her tenuous grasp of reality.

Mark of Time:
The Mark of the Chosen of Time.

Abilities: Time Reset
Resets: 1

Integrity: 99.16%
Tier: Undefined

Jennifer stared at the message. The Mark of Time. Is this what brought me back? Why is the tier undefined? I’ve never heard of something with an undefined tier before. I guess I’ve never died before either.

She tugged on the mark, trying to expand the section with the name displayed on it. Nothing changed. She tried one more, this time expanding the abilities section. A new message opened up alongside the current one.

Abilities: Time Reset
Resets: 1

Returns the chosen to the soul anchor set in the stream of time at the cost of Integrity.

Jennifer stared at the message in wonder. The answer was obvious yet it took her a moment to parse it. Jennifer gulped as she closed the message.

I’m back in time? That shouldn’t be possible.

Jennifer pulled herself up from her bed, and made her way to her desk. She walked up to the small calendar she kept, the seventh of the next month marked onto it with a little circle denoting the day of her first class in the academy.

What’s the date today?

Jennifer flipped the calendar, and found a little cross marking today as the third day of the third month. Exactly one month before the day of the invasion.

Jennifer stumbled back, as she stared at her room. Her eyes drifted outside her window, finding the sky dark. The time of the day roughly corresponded to what it had been during the day of the invasion.

This can’t be real. Time magic? On this scale? Impossible. No spell matrix could handle, much less source enough mana for it. This makes no sense.

Time magic was an obscure field of study, mostly lost with the disappearance of the giants from Zweiril a millennia ago, who had been the creators of all space and time magic in the first place.

The magic was old, with only rare remnants and artifacts present today capable of mimic it, and even then, the amount of mana required to turn back time upon itself would be so ridiculous that it would require the death of every living creature, the consumption of all mana and energy sources, and perhaps the interference of the very gods themselves to revert time by an entire month.

Jennifer stood in silence for a moment, unable to think of a course of action. The possibility of going back in time hadn’t been one she hadn’t been prepared for, the idea itself too ridiculous to be taken seriously.

Sera, I’ve totally gone mad haven’t I? Is this what death is like? I’d prefer Elphion’s eternal prison over this.

Jennifer let out a breath, as she walked to her desk and took a seat. One of her books was open and she saw notes written onto a sheet of parchment about some spell matrix and its components.

Jennifer flipped over the book, reading its cover. Intermediate Magic Theory II, the book read, the letters printed neatly on top of it. She remembered finishing this book a few weeks ago, as preparation for her enrolment in the academy. She’d wanted to be ready, and not do worse than any stuck up kid of some noble.

Setting the book aside, she prodded through her system message once more. This time, she looked at the section denoting Integrity.

Integrity: 99.16%

The integrity of the bond between the Chosen’s soul and the Mark of Time.

She read through the description and frowned. There was clearly a limit to the Mark. Does this mean I can come back again? Almost a hundred times?

Her eyes drifted to the number displayed on the integrity. 99.16% was an odd number that she couldn’t think of a correspondence to. Neither could she think of a reason why she’d be sent back in time exactly a month prior to the day of the invasion. Would the Mark send her back another month in time if she killed herself?

Jennifer’s eyes drifted onto the sharp crystal she used to etch her runes. She pulled her eyes away forcefully, pushing the thought away. She wasn’t willing to test that hypothesis.

Taking out her quill, Jennifer noted down the integrity number on the paper, alongside some questions she had about the Mark. She was aware that all she was doing was trying to distract herself from her prior death, but it was working and she wasn’t willing to descend back into a panic attack.

Hold on just a moment. What if I equate the displayed integrity to the number of days it sent me back?

Jennifer poked at the integrity again, trying to see if it would expand. She got another display for her curiosity.

Integrity: 99.166666667%

She wrote down the number, putting 0.833334% as the equivalent of 30 days. Beyond that, it was a simple matter of finding out the total amount equating to a hundred percent and she soon had the result.

3,599.997 days, which is almost exactly 10 years.

Jennifer stared at the number, unsure if it was just a coincidence or if she’d truly stumbled upon something. She went through the system messages once more, trying to find more information.

“But if I’m back in time, does this mean… [Lesser Arcane Analysis]” Jennifer intoned, as her eyes widened. She could feel her skill, present alongside all her other ones, waiting to be used.

I still have my skills, even the new one. This is strange. There is no way my skill should’ve been sent back in time unless the Mark had something to do with how I earn a skill, but then how does Irwys factor into all of this? Not to mention the—

A knock at the door interrupted her.

“Jenn, it’s dinner time, come down,” her mother called from outside.

“I-I’m coming,” Jennifer replied. She waited for a while to see if her mother would enter the room, calming down when she heard the sound of her footsteps walking down the stairs.

She sat quietly for a moment at her desk. What had happened to mom and dad? Did they… did they survive the invasion?

Jennifer didn’t know, and a part of her didn’t want to know either. She stood up from her desk, leaving her notes on the table as she walked towards the dresser on the other side of the room, staring into the mirror. A small luxury, as glass wasn’t cheap, even in a city like Lienmont.

She inspected her face, feeling surprised at the lack of any injuries. Even now, she could touch her shoulder and neck, and feel a dim burning pain present there.

Yet in the image reflected from the mirror, there were no injuries, no blood marks or brutal wounds that she’d gained just a few moments ago. Her light brown hair was combed and let loose, free of all the muck of the sewers and her eyes shone with a dim blue glow as she circulated her mana. There was no trace of anything that had happened, besides the Mark on her hand.

She needed to find a way to hide it from her parents. Having them ask how she got a clearly magical marking would make things a lot more difficult than she’d like, and she’d prefer to have some time to see things for herself before she told them anything.

Jennifer pulled open a drawer, taking out some bandages. She always kept some around due to the frequency with which she slashed her hand when working on enchantments. She wrapped her wrist in the bandage, before glancing at the crystal. A deep breath later, she grabbed the crystal shard, and lightly cut her hand, enough to give the injury a red tinge.

Jennifer checked once again to make sure the injury looked real before she walked out of the room.

She picked her way down the stairs, making her way to the dining hall. Despite feeling relatively more calm, things hadn’t suddenly started to make sense. Her mind still jumped at thoughts and her chest still tightened with inexplicable fear from moment to moment. A part of her mind was still screaming at her to run.

A shadow floated near the corner of her eye, and she turned in a panic, preparing a mana bolt on instinct as she became prepared to fight her way through.

“Demo-” Jennifer hissed, pausing as she took another look. An empty window.

Jennifer felt her heart thundering like the roaring beat of a drum. The sound felt even louder in the still silence of her home. She let the spell fade away, letting a breath out as she closed her eyes for a moment. Taking a hold of her light brown hair, she arranged it together neatly as she often would when home. It wasn’t much, but the gesture helped to reassure her.

After making sure no hidden monsters lurked around the staircase, or it wasn’t a prank Keith had set up, Jennifer began to make her way down.

The stairs led to the dining room, where she spotted her father — Ailvin Laine — reading a book, and Keith, her ten year old brother, sitting nearby with a bored look on his face.

“Come on in, take a seat Jenn. I was about to call for you again,” her mother — Amantha Laine — said, walking in with a large tray filled with food. Her mother’s eyes widened upon seeing the bandaid on her hand and she set the food aside rushing over.

“What happened Jenn? How’d you hurt yourself?” her mother asked, grabbing her hand to inspect the injury.

"Oh, just cut myself with my enchanting crystal. It’s nothing, I just wrapped it up because it kept stinging. Anyway, Is there something today?" Jennifer asked, eyeing the food on the table. It was a lot more food than she had been expecting to see. She tried to remember if there was something they celebrated around this point, perhaps her brother’s birthday. No, that's still months from now.

Her mother looked at her hand for a lingering moment before letting go. “If you say so. Get some salve though, or a potion if it’s a deeper cut. And no need to pretend you don’t know what today is, you’re fooling no one here,” her mother said with an amused smirk.

“Uhh, Happy anniversary? No?" Jennifer asked, confused as she walked to the dinner table.

“You really don’t know?” her mother asked, looking at her with surprise, before glancing over towards her Father.

Jennifer shook her head, confused.

“It’s the magic school thing, Jenn. You got in right? Mom said she’d make lots of food because of that,” Keith said, happily eyeing the food on the table.

Jennifer’s eyes widened in surprise as she remembered the celebration. It’d just been around this time that she’d gotten her acceptance letter to the Mage Academy, and her family had decided to go all out and celebrate for her.

This was still before the dungeon branch had been found out as well. The first tremor should be soon as well. There had been talks of a meeting with the Church and the Alliance in Lienmont. Was the invasion targeting that? What about the-

"You're spacing out dear," her mother called out. "Nervous? Things will be alright. I know how hard you've worked for this.”

“It’s her big day, of course she’ll be a little nervous,” her father added, turning towards her. “You have nothing to worry about Jenn. We’re all proud of you.”

Jennifer nodded, as she looked down at the plate of food covered in all her favorite dishes. Memories of the dead corpses covering the streets and of the screams that echoed through the sky played in her mind. Her eyes drifted towards her hand, at the mark hidden there. She felt sick looking at it.

She set aside the thoughts, and began to eat. The food didn't taste like anything to her, her mind occupied with the sound of explosions and screams. She ate silently, as her parents talked with each other, and Keith happily devoured his own share. She felt out of place.

An elbow poked into her side and she almost snapped back, when her eyes met Keith’s, looking back at her with barely held back excitement.

"You’d promised that you’d teach me how to do magic when you got accepted. Can you show me now?" Her nine year old brother, Keith, whispered to her, loud enough for everyone nearby to hear his words.

"Keith, let her eat, not causing trouble during dinner okay? And finish your food first," her mother chided, as the boy deflated.

"It's fine," Jennifer said and turned towards Keith. “I can’t teach you much. It takes weeks to sense your mana and then form a working spell matrix, but the first spell you’ll learn is this,” she said, summoning a simple light orb around him.

“This is the simplest spell matrix for any spell. It has your mana turn to light when applied. The difficult part is making it float and stay in a spherical shape, instead of having it flicker for a second before fading,” Jennifer said, as Keither stared at her with shining eyes.

Jennifer was about to dispel the light orb when she felt [Lesser Spell Analysis] activate. She felt the spell matrix of the light spell in her mind, as the skill nudged her towards a different method of using the spell.

Jennifer followed the feeling, dividing the spell matrix into two, then four, then eight and so on. She chained the spells together, applying mana into the new spell.

The light orb turned to little shining dust particles that swirled around Jennifer’s hand. She felt surprised when she didn’t have a headache at simultaneously casting what would be dozens of spells, even just a light spell when she realized that the chain of spell matrices worked as a single spell in function. She decided to have the light dust form a small whirlpool as she ended the spell in a flashy shower of lights

"Whoa! That’s so amazing!” Keith exclaimed, his mouth open in wonder. “Show me one more? Please, please, please?"

"Yes, but not now, finish your food first and I’ll show you some other time okay?" Jennifer said, smiling.

“If you focus on your studies then I’ll start teaching you as well,” her father said.

Jennifer’s smile widened as she saw Keith’s excitement swiftly being replaced by the horror of having to study.

"You've improved," her father added, turning towards her with a light smile.

"I’ve been practicing," Jennifer replied. Her eyes drifted to her father's hands. He had overdrawn during a difficult spell and ruptured his mana circuits on both his hands, losing his job as an enchanter in the guild. He could cast some spells but the act would leave him in pain for a couple of days, effectively killing off any possibilities of him using any form of magic.

A large part of why Jennifer wanted to join the academy was to follow in her father’s footsteps. He’d been the one who’d taught her enchanting, and she wanted to pay him back by earning enough to get his mana pathways healed.

Jennifer continued to eat her dinner, the brief moment of comfort fading as an odd mix of dread and anxiety took over. She found herself scanning the room for unseen shadows. "I think I'm done."

"What’s wrong? Didn't like the food?" her mother asked, looking at her in surprise.

"The food was great, mom. I just feel a bit tired and my hand stings too. I think I’m going to rest a bit now."

“Are you sure you don’t want me to use a potion? It’ll heal the cut instantly,” her mother asked.

“It’s fine, no need,” Jennifer replied. She felt bad about lying to her mother, and wasting the food her mother had put so much effort in, but she couldn’t convince herself that she’d be able to continue eating without puking it all out anymore.

Grabbing the dishes and putting them away before she walked back up to her room. She hurried up the stairs to her room, closing the door behind her as she held back the food rising in her throat. Taking a deep breath, she began to think over what she needed to do. The meal had convinced her about the reality of her situation, at the very least.

"I need a plan, a way to avoid the oncoming attack and warn someone about it. I also need to ask about why Irwys had dragged me in there, and what a royal knight like him was doing here,” she paused at the lack of strain in her mind at saying those words. Jennifer inspected her mind for any oaths she’d sworn.

“The oath, it's gone. Is it because I’m back in time? Another thing to ask him about, along with this Mark. No, even before that. I need to get my family somewhere safe. But how do I take them out of the city?"

Jennifer unraveled the bandages on her hand, the Mark visible once more. She took a seat at her desk and took out a piece of parchment, taking all her books out that were even tangentially related to time magic.

Grabbing her quill, she began to prepare.

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3 — The End of a Mark

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A sharp spike of pain through Jennifer’s shoulder as her eyes shot open.

“No! Stop- Argh” Jennifer tumbled, clutching her arm. Her mana pathways burned as if on fire, and the worst headache of her life assailed her. She’d almost overdrawn.

No, it was worse than overdrawing. Way, way worse. My body had broken into pieces, cracked into pieces, until that woman put me back together.

Clutching her eyes shut, she worked on bearing through the pain, her mind still confused by everything she’d seen. After a few moments of trying to gather herself, Jennifer blindly grabbed onto the wall, pulling herself up and leaning against the wall. Her throat felt dry, as her entire body throbbed from having what felt like a storm of mana pass through her.

Slowly, she opened her eyes, taking a look around. She was back in the familiar dungeon caverns, with a section of debris blocking the way back. Whatever had happened after she fell unconscious hadn’t left the hall intact.

Jennifer turned towards Irwys, watching him sitting nearby. His armor was still caked in dark blood from the ogre that mixed in with his own. The blood on his body made her worry he may be in a worse condition than her.

“Are you okay?” Jennifer asked.

“Healing. I’ll need a few more minutes. Don’t drink the potion, it’ll kill you,” he replied, not looking up at her.

“I know. I’m not dumb enough to drink a healing potion after almost overdrawing my mana,” Jennifer replied, feeling her throat burn as strength continued to sap from her body. She leaned against the wall for support.

“My head hurts,” Jennifer groaned, feeling petulant after having her second near death experience. She wished it’d come with fewer headaches involved.

“It’d be a miracle if it didn’t hurt after all that,” Irwys replied, turning to look at her.

Jennifer was about to retort back at how he’d been the one to drag her in, but the strength to do so seemed to be fading from her body with each passing moment. “Why did you bring us there? Would’ve been easier to fight through monsters,” Jennifer muttered, glancing sideways at Irwys.

Irwys sat silently next to her, looking down at his blade without replying.

Jennifer left the swordsman alone. She didn’t possess the needed energy to pry answers out of him. Her eyes went towards her injured leg. The limb had swollen a fair bit and was now a nasty red.

Jennifer tried to move her leg, instantly regretting the decision. Now that she wasn't in imminent danger of dying, her poor physical status and the dozens of cuts, scratches, and aches began to become all the more noticeable, accompanied by the familiar exhaustion that came after a stressful event.

I guess this is how I die? Injured and stuck in the dungeon, waiting to be eaten by some monster.

Jennifer felt her eyes drooping, her eyelids turning heavy. Hadn’t she done enough by now? Got stuck in the dungeon with some swordsman, fought a giant monster, did some stupid trial as well. She could rest, just close her eyes and be free of the pain.

A hand tapped her cheeks, causing the cuts within her mouth to sting.

“Hey, keep your eyes open. Stay there with me,” she heard Irwys speak, his hands grabbing her shoulder.

But she was tired. So very tired.

“Fates. Listen, I wasn’t lying when I told you I would get you out. You just need to hang on for a while,” Irwys spoke, yet Jennifer found his voice distant. She’d lost a fair amount of blood, and it was a struggle to keep her drooping eyes open.

Why wouldn't he just let me sleep?

“Girl. Listen carefully. You have a Mark now. I don’t know how, or which, and I don’t know why you got stuck with me here. But I need you to focus on that, Mark. Focus on the magic in your soul, and open your eyes,” Irwys said, grabbing her shoulders.

Jennifer frowned. A Mark? What Mark? There was no—

Fire blazed in her soul, dense magic pulsating at her thought and coursing through her body. She felt something rise from deep within her soul, responding to her thoughts.

She felt the Mark. Her Mark.

Mark of Time
The Mark for the chosen of Time in the trial of the Seeker

Jennifer opened her eyes, feeling the magic shake her awake. Her sight was blurry as she saw Irwys’ silver eyes looking at her.

“I need you to swear something, okay?”

Jennifer stared into Irwys’ deep silver eyes, her mind drifting. She wanted to push him away, to return to her comforting darkness. Yet, the pulsing magic in her chest kept her awake. She nodded.

“[Oath of Trust]” Irwys spoke as Jennifer felt the skill latch on to her.

“Do you swear, not to mention whatever this skill shows to you?” Irwys spoke, his voice resonating with an odd thrum reminiscent of mana enhanced voice carrying spells. Jennifer stared at him for a moment.

“I swear,” she spoke, as words blossomed in front of her eyes.

[Boon: Royal Knight’s Oath of Trust] obtained!

“By the Fates, I call upon the three sisters. Please, Prince, lend me their strength,” Irwys spoke, his armored hands resting against her forehead.

[Boon: Touch of Anvyrin] obtained!

Strength coursed through her body, life flowing through her limbs once more. Her mana replenished itself faster than ever before, and Jennifer saw her wounds healing in front of her eyes. She looked up to stare wide-eyed at the man.

“You’re a-” she choked on her words as a chain tightened in her mind, preventing her from saying the words out loud, warning her.

A [Royal Knight].

Jennifer had heard of royals handing out the Royal designation to trusted generals and knights, loyal to them. It was a mark of trust, and a matter of great honor to receive one. Not something she’d ever expected to see in her lifetime.

Jennifer stared at Irwys, her eyes burning with questions.

“Who are you?” Jennifer asked, as the Boon slowly but surely returned strength to her body. “A knight of your stature… visiting my Master’s shop, getting in a fight with an orc and then running into the dungeon. None of this makes any sense!”

“There are a lot of things that I can’t explain right now. A new Mark was the last thing I’d expected to find here today and there’s no time to explain. The dungeon break is still underway, and I need to get you to safety. Just- remember this. Things are going to be very different for you after tonight.” Irwys said and then mumbled something in a quieter tone. ‘If we survive.’

Jennifer suspected she wasn’t meant to hear the words. She stared at the knight and gave him a light nod.

With a nod of his own, the knight stood up, extending a hand forward.

Jennifer looked up blankly at the man before grabbing the offered hand as she pulled herself up. Standing with support from Irwys, she put some weight on her leg. There was still some pain, but it was far more manageable now.

What a ridiculous skill.

“Clean,” Irwys said, and light flashed across Irwy’s armor, clearing the thick coat of blood.

She looked down at her own torn and bloody clothes, feeling a strange sense of envy and disappointed that the spell somehow didn’t extend beyond the armor and onto her.

“If you can move, then let’s head out,” Irwys said, walking ahead.

Jennifer stared at the man, unsure of what she wanted to do. Questions filled her mind, mixed with confusion. Her eyes turned towards the symbol on her hand. A dark blue diamond with three crescent moons around it, all intersecting at the diamond’s end. The Mark of time, the system prompt had mentioned. Just what was happening to her?

A tremor shaking the dungeon broke her out of her thoughts.

Even with her qualms with the things Irwys kept hidden from her, a [Royal Knight] would still be her best, and perhaps only way of ever getting back out. She could get her answers when she was back and not bleeding and injured inside the dungeon.

Making her way ahead, she eyed the knight. There hadn’t been any hints that he’d gotten a Mark like hers, and if he had, then she couldn't see it on him.

Jennifer put the thoughts away. She had to get back home first.

What will I tell mom and dad? How will I explain my injuries or this Mark? With a dungeon break going on... I hope they weren’t too worried. I swear to Sera, today has been a day.

Jennifer shuffled ahead, her gait turning more comfortable as the pain slowly but surely continued to fade from her leg. Soon, she was walking at a normal speed, with only a small limp to show for her injury.

The walls narrowed further ahead; the roof coming down low enough that she could touch them if she jumped. The structure of the walls and ceilings around them soon changed from the brick laid ruins into the familiar cavern walls of the dungeon.

The first sign of their escape was the disgusting stench of filthy water and muck. Jennifer grimaced, taking a second to prepare herself before she walked ahead.

The cavern walls melded into smoother stone walls, clearly molded by a [Geomancer], and then further worked on by craftsmen. She made her way through the narrow gap in the walls and splashed into the filthy water ahead of her. The disgusting area and the stench almost made her gag, but she fought the impulse.

Out from the jaws of death and into a river of filth. She called the dungeon location prompt once more.

The Greater-Dungeon of Lienmont.

Location: The Sewers

As expected, the system recognised the sewers as part of the dungeon even when the dungeon walls didn’t enclose the section. She’d read up on the Mana Sublimation theory for the location prompt people could call inside dungeons, but it still pleased her to confirm it for herself.

Jennifer waded through the filthy waters, each step stirring the green slushy liquid that had an almost mud like consistency. She desperately tried to find some sort of distraction to keep her mind off the stench lest she end up huddled in the corner emptying the contents of her stomach.

If only I could use one of my wind based spells.

Jennifer paused as an idea struck her. The mana links in that trial had been chained together, forming a cyclic flow through the spell matrix. What if she applied that to her spell?

Standing still for a moment, Jennifer formed the spell matrix for Agile Wind. “Agile Wind,” she muttered under her breath, mimicking the spell gesture just for better shaping control rather than any real need.

The spell matrix formed in her head, ready to be used. Jennifer paused and held the matrix in place. Normally, trying to modify a spell was a fool’s errand for any Mage that wasn’t at least at Tier-5 or higher, but since the spell matrix itself would remain identical in this scenario, Jennifer thought her chances of success fairly high.

Taking the spell matrix for Agile Wind, she tied the initial and final ends of the formation nodes together, making the spell loop upon itself endlessly without ever causing the spell burst it was originally intended to cause.

Seeing the spell matrix not dissolve into a mess of mana, she started to increase the speed of her loops, going faster and faster, being careful not to strain her recovering mana pathways too much. At last, she manifested the spell around her hand, prepared to cut it off instantly if anything went wrong.

She felt the wind stir around her hand, forming a sphere. She dissolved the spell, trying once more, and this time, extended the effect all over her body instead of just her palm. The wind stirred around her, sending the abhorrent smell further away from her face. Jennifer smiled, surprised at the sudden inspiration. Feeling marginally better at having picked up on a new trick, she renewed her trek through the filthy water of the sewer.

The area within the sewers quickly became pitch dark without the natural ambient light the dungeon let out to illuminate the area.

Something slimy under her feet had Jennifer slip. She barely prevented a disgusting bath in the mucky water, balancing herself against the wall. She pulled her feet up to see what had caused her sudden tussle.

A slime covered in filthy sewer water clung to her leg, wrapping itself around her feet. She kicked the creature away, disgusted, and rushed ahead swiftly to prevent more from jumping on her. Slimes that small weren’t a threat, but if they swarmed her, then there was a chance that they might drown her. She’d heard of new adventurers dying that way sometimes if they got really unlucky.

One of the worst ways to die.

Using a small amount of mana, she manifested a ball of light. A simple trick of mana manifestation instead of a real spell with a matrix. Or perhaps the simplest of all spell matrixes, just a ball of mana turning to light.

With some light to guide her path, she ran ahead, hearing the squelching sound of the slimes clinging to the various surfaces and doing whatever slimes did.

Irwys paused suddenly, turning to look at her. He pointed at the light, raising two fingers before gesturing for her to… drop the light?

It took Jennifer a moment to understand what he meant and she nodded, dimming the light ball’s intensity before splitting them in two and sending one up to Irwys.

Jennifer walked ahead in silence, as the noise of the clicks and taps started to fade away the further ahead they walked. Her little ball of light illuminated the dark caverns. The only noise that remained was the splashing water from her footsteps.

A strange desire to try and experiment with her new mana application method rose in her. She changed the flow of the mana, making the wind twirl in different directions.

I can manipulate the spell's internal workings. I thought you needed a Skill to do that?

A sudden tremor almost made her slip on the slimy ground as the sewers shook, dust falling down from the roof and mixing in the muddy water.

“What? Is it the dungeon again?” Jennifer asked, feeling the water at her feet trembling on the ground.

“No, this came from above,” Irwys replied, his eyes scanning the sewers. “We need to get out. Quickly.”

Jennifer didn’t raise any questions as she ran after him. Her leg hurt every time she stepped on it a bit too hard, but she ignored the pain. The [Boon] numbed the sensation enough to be tolerable. She just hoped the [Boon] lasted long enough to see her to safety.

The sound of Irwy’s feet splashing in the water began to come faster and faster as the knight practically began to sprint ahead, making Jennifer struggle to keep up.

Why is he so unsettled? Because of that tremor?

Jennifer saw light shining up front ahead as she let her balls of light fade away. A small crack in the roof of the sewer was letting light in. Jennifer looked around in confusion, wondering how they would climb out without a ladder. The crack was high enough that she wouldn’t be able to climb out even with a good leg, much less an injured one.

Taking a step back, Irwys leapt up and grabbed onto the top of the opening. She stared as the swordsman pulled himself out, while still carrying a sword and donning his heavy looking armor. A moment later, Irwys turned around. “Grab my hand, tightly,” he said, leaning down through the gap.

Jennifer stared in surprise at the casual display of agility before she ran ahead and jumped to grab his hand.

“[Knight’s Strength]” Irwys said, using a skill, and Jennifer felt herself being pulled up like a child. She kicked at the walls to push herself out, climbing up through the hole with effort.

Pushing herself up, she grabbed the ledge for additional support as she seated herself on the crack’s edge. The sky had turned dark outside, as night time had descended onto the city, yet Jennifer found the streets oddly bright.

Another tremor went through the ground shaking the area once more and she heard screams in the distance.

What's going on?

A strange smell assaulted her nose as Jennifer pulled herself to her feet. The distant screams began to come closer, as another loud explosion sent a shock wave throughout the city. Jennifer stumbled back, as her ears rang at the loud explosion. Her heart thundered as she pulled herself up again. Walking a bit further ahead, she moved to the open streets.

Fire burned like an inferno around her, and Jennifer stared at the streets feeling like a hole had torn itself in her gut. The walls of Lienmont lay crumbled and broken.

Her city was under attack.

Dark figures rushed through the smoke filled haze that covered the city. The screams of hundreds formed a grim song that covered the night, painting a nightmarish hellscape.

This can’t be real… this…

A powerful shock wave blasted Jennifer, flinging her onto the alley wall as a pillar of fire bloomed above the city. Her ears rang with a deafening intensity as the world spun around Jennifer, in a dizzying array of splashing colors. With a sudden tug, she felt herself being pulled to the side.

Irwys’ blurred out face came into her sight, his hands holding her tight. She noted his sword flashing, cutting through a dark figure that had leapt towards them. His lips moved in her vision, yet the sound didn’t reach her over the ringing of her ears.

Jennifer lifted her hands to her face in a daze, finding her fingers coated in blood. She stumbled back, pulling her arm free from Irwys’ hands. She felt like throwing up, yet for some reason her body refused to.

Her gaze shifted towards the burning walls, lying collapsed in a pile of rubble. She saw giant beasts walk out of the dust cloud, two massive tusks adorning its shimmering scaled body that reflected the burning city. Vrelith, a beast from the Ostiri desert and a gold ranked threat.

The beast stood with leather covering its two large tusks, thrashing the area around it. A single kick from its massive legs brought down another dust cloud, as houses crumbled beneath it. Men rode its back, slinging powerful artillery spells at the walls and beyond, causing the flame pillars to rise up in the sky every so often.

Jennifer’s eyes swung around, facing the direction her home was in. She needed to find her family. She weaved an Agile Wind spell, mana burning in her throbbing circuits as she prepared to shoot off when a muscular arm grabbed her, pulling her back. She flailed her limbs trying to free herself, but Irwys held her in place. When her effort didn’t budge him, she looked up to glare at the man, kicking his legs as tears built up in her eyes. She needed to go to her family.

Irwys snapped his fingers in front of her eyes and Jennifer turned to look at his face. Her eyebrows rose in surprise when she saw his lips moving, as if he were speaking something and a sudden realization dawned on her.

She couldn’t hear him. She couldn’t hear anything.

Irwys’ eyes went to her ears, and Jennifer saw him mutter something as she felt another wave of strength course through her body. Her ears popped, as sound returned with a tide of cold air. She felt hot blood dripping out from the inside of her ears and she shook the droplets out.

“You need to stop running away and focu—”

“My family. Mom and dad,” Jennifer interrupted Irwys. “Keith, Rumina… I need to go find them. Master? What happened to him? I need to go to—”

Irwys’s hands squeezed her face harder, facing her with a deathly cold expression.

Jennifer’s lips trembled as she stared at the swordsman, her heart sinking to her gut. No. They’re okay. They have to be.

“We need to go to the guild. You need to get to the guild. Calm down,” he said, a finality to his voice.

Jennifer took a shuddering breath, forcing her heart to settle down.

“The Ostiri tribes have invaded. I don't have time to explain. The city is under siege and other Marks are around. We need to get you to the guild before one of them finds you. Your family may have escaped as well and the only way to meet them is if you survive. Focus on surviving,” Irwys said, his voice steeled and cold.

Jennifer nodded, her chest heavy with emotions that she could barely process.

The swordsman let go of her shoulders and drew his weapon. The enchanted blade pulsed with magic as the knight walked ahead. “Follow behind, and be alert.”

Jennifer nodded, taking a couple more deep breaths to calm herself. She couldn’t let herself fall apart in a situation like this, she needed to stay calm.

They’re alright… Dad probably took everyone to a safe location as soon as he could, and Keith is old enough now. He can run. They’re okay Jenn, they’re okay.

Jennifer wiped tears from her eyes, as she followed behind Irwys.

Adventurers ran in droves, their weapons and blades out as the shouts of skills and spells filled the city. Jennifer took out her dagger, clutching it tight in her hand.

A group of adventurers stood ahead, fighting screeching abhorrent monsters that leapt at them with no regards for their lives. “[Summon: Flamewarden], [Power Shot], [Increased Volley],” the shouts filled the streets as attacks were flung around.

“Elphion damn me, is the guild sending support yet?! Take the civilians to the northern end now!” the adventurer screamed, holding back the tide of monsters.

She heard another explosion sound in the distance as flashes of red covered the sky. Her eyes turned towards the walls and she noted the barrage of attacks aiming for the Southern gate of the city, where the monsters seemed to be flooding in from.

Irwys grabbed her shoulders and pulled her back in as a dark blur passed in front of her face. “[Swift Strike]” he said, and his sword flashed, piercing a strange twisted monster that had leapt at Jennifer.

The bloated, dark skinned monster twitched as the blade impaled its chest. The creature raised its arms, which ended in blood-coated scythe blades of bone jutting outwards. It shivered, as if desperately trying to reach out for Jennifer. With a final shudder, it fell limp on the point of Irwys’ blade.

“W-what is that?”

“Demon. Slither Blades. We need to move,” Irwys said, pulling his sword free of the demon’s corpse.

Jennifer ran ahead in a daze, pulled along by Irwys as he carved through the tide of monsters. The outer section of the city was devoid of people by this point. All those who survived had run away, and those that didn’t littered  the streets. If they were lucky, then their deaths had been swift.

The destruction around her felt like a bad nightmare as corpses lay all around the city of both people and monsters. Screams and groans of pain filled the streets as she watched the slaughter echo throughout. Wars were fought with soldiers, with armies on battlefields. This? This was a massacre.

Jennifer froze mid-step, spotting a lanky beast crouching further ahead. She felt the hair on her arms rise as a human face looked back at her, but its features were all wrong.

Three misshapen eyes, two that joined together at the base, eyelids connected into one. Red patches covering its face as a bulbous growth in its jaw created a bump in its cheek. The thing scraped its talons against the floor, crawling on all fours like a strange human spider. Bony rips peeked through the chitinous armor that covered its body.

The beast looked at them curiously, tilting its head, before it opened its maw to reveal tens of sharp fangs lining its jaw.

The monster shrieked, jumping at them. Irwys turned around, parrying its claws. She heard the clicking sound of claws coming from behind her. Jennifer turned around to see two similar abominations closing in on her.

“[Hidden Edge]!” Irwys shouted, his blade blurring as the monster was severed into two. “Run!” he shouted and dashed ahead.

Jennifer ran after him as the monsters gave chase.

Mist poured through the alley as silver swords cut through the demons behind them but for each one that fell, five more joined in the fray. There were few people around in this section, the adventurers retreating closer and closer to the city’s center, likely to form a perimeter that they could defend.

“Run towards the guild. If I’m not around, ask anyone to take you to prince Laiken and show him your Mark. His highness will keep you safe,” Irwys muttered as explosions continued to travel through the city.

Jennifer would’ve inquired on the His Highness remark but her mind couldn’t process more than the bare minimum right now.

Crashing thunder had Jennifer looking above and she noted a storm forming above the city. She was about to curse, thinking the monsters had been using weather spells when a figure blazing through the sky caught her eye.

A man flew high above the city, thunder covering his hand as bolts of lightning shot at the Vrelith, and the mages that shot artillery spells at the city from atop their backs.

Is that… guild head Zaress? The Storm Blight?

Jennifer could feel mana gathering in a massive torrent around Lienmont. She saw mana threads weaving all across the city as hope began to bud in her heart. The Adventurers guild was fighting back. She pulled her attention back to her surroundings and continued to run after Irwys, heading towards the guild halls. Tremors still shook the ground every few moments, mixed in with the sounds of battle cries.

Abruptly, Irwys froze in front of her. Swirling around, the knight raised his sword. “[Shield of Fate]!”

A burning bright shield of silver and gold appeared in front of the two, covering the area ahead.

“What are you-” Jennifer’s words cut off as she felt a faint presence in her mind. A moment later, a tidal wave of sand burst through the buildings, exploding onto the streets as it poured towards them.

Mana burned with fervor as Jennifer felt the sand pushing Irwys back, and a searing presence began to burn into her mind. An unfamiliar sensation coursed through Jennifer as she felt the Mark on her soul pulsate in response. It told her of the presence of another.

Spikes formed out of the sand, striking at the shield. Jennifer stumbled back as she felt Irwys’ aura flare, like a glowing silver sword, the aura cut through the haze, cleaving through the sand.

“Get to the guild!” Irwys shouted, mist flooding around him.

A massive arm of sand formed, swatting the knight aside and drowning him under sand. Another aura rose through the fire and sand, like a slithering viper, it coiled around her, tying her in place.

Jennifer fell, her mind screaming at her to run, but her legs refused to move.

A tidal wave of sand flowed around her as the presence came closer. A dark figure approached her, standing atop a wave of sand that swirled around his body. His skin was tanned, his hair tied into a tight knot behind his head.

The man turned towards to face her, as two dark green eyes peeked from within the hood he wore.

“Agile Wind!” Jennifer screamed, mana pouring through her sore mana pathways. The pain loosened the grip of the aura around her and she pulsed her spell harder, blasting the sand away. With a burst of wind, she shot off in the opposite direction.

Jennifer kicked at the harsh ground, dodging adventurers and monsters alike as she ran. The sand mage continued to pursue, his presence like a looming axe that chased her.

She rolled aside as spears of sand shot at where she ran, with the wind around her body barely deflecting the attacks. The sand flooded the city, taking out any, and all that came in the man’s way, be it monster or human.

Jennifer leapt to the right, as sand burst from underneath her. Rolling into a side alley, she hurried stumbled ahead, ignoring the throbbing pain in her leg. Sensing the presence close in she turned around and shot a mana bolt behind her in hopes of slowing down her pursuer.

Sand spikes burst through the ground near her feet, piercing her leg.

“Aargh!” she screamed, as her flesh pulled itself against the hardened sand, gushing with fresh blood. Spikes burst through the walls, lifting her up from the ground as they pierced her left shoulder. She felt the sand push, tearing through her body like spears as they impaled her and pinned her in place.

Flesh parted against the sand, bones cracking, as the brown spikes began to turn red from her blood.

Jennifer bit her tongue, killing the scream that threatened to rise out of her. She began to weave another mana bolt, drawing from her mana reserves but her pathways throbbed in protest as she drew empty. She was out of mana.

Her eyes widened in panic, as she saw the man fly through the streets, a hellscape of sand following him as he entered the side alley.

I-I need to-

The spike twisted, and another scream tore itself out of her throat. She grabbed the spike, the sand now red from her blood, and pushed. Like a hot knife being plunged into her nerves, pain spread through her body, and her hands turned limp.

Jennifer started helplessly as the man walked closer. His aura pushed down on her, like a mountain crushing her underneath itself. She felt her chest tighten, her lungs straining as the aura wrapped around her, suffocating her under its enormous pressure. She couldn’t breathe.

Tears pooled in her eyes as her gaze drifted towards the man, a dark Mark on his shoulder glowing brightly. She felt her Mark responding to the presence of his.

The man spoke something, but the words escaped her as his cold eyes stared at her with an icy gaze. She felt a chill crawl up her spine.

Jennifer’s heart thundered, her mind screaming at her to struggle, to fight against this monster, but her body refused to move. She was caught, a helpless prey at the mercy of her assailant.

She tried to lift her hand, but it was of no use. Her body felt like it was made of lead. I need to... I need to… run away.

Jennifer fought against her heavy limbs, grabbing Irwys’ dagger from her pouch with her one free hand. She lifted the blade, screaming as she swung it towards the man. Another spike shot through the ground, piercing her hand as it was impaled into the wall.

She screamed, louder than she believed she ever could, as the spikes pushed further in, her blade dropping from her hand with a metallic clank.

The man grabbed her by the throat, the sand spike pulling itself out from her shoulder, as he did.

Jennifer looked at the man, his eyes coldly regarding her, almost as if waiting for something. Her vision began to turn dark as air left her lungs. Jennifer grabbed the man’s hand, pushing and straining as her lungs strained to pull some air into them. She gasped, yet only dry, coarse sand entered her mouth.

Her skin shriveled as tears flowed down her cheek and were swallowed by the sand. Her lungs burned as her heart strained her chest. Pain blossomed through her body and she started to gasp for air once more, but found none pass through the man’s grasp upon her neck.

Jennifer called for her mana, as she strained her core to its limit. Her mana pool strained under her will before a shuddering crack spread through it. The pulse of agony tore a choked scream out of her mouth and her world turned dark for a moment.

[Class: Resourceful Enchanter] has reached level 16!

[Skill: Lesser Arcane Analysis] received!

Her mind snapped, consciousness rushing back in. She felt at her new skill, at the level she had gained.

It wasn’t enough. It wasn’t nearly enough.

Sand crawled over her body, rising from her feet as she felt the man’s Mark burning in her mind. The sand rose to her torso, and she felt something draining from her body. Strength left her, as the mark on the man’s shoulder blazed, drinking in her life.

She kicked weakly, trying to free herself. A futile gesture.

“W-Why?” she croaked with the last breath that remained in her chest, her voice hoarse and broken.

Cold green eyes stared into hers. There was no reply.

The sand crawled up her neck as Jennifer’s skin withered. It cracked and crumbled apart turning to dust as if drained of every ounce of life. She stared with a dimming gaze into the unwavering green eyes as her last remaining strength faded.

Her Mark pulsed for one last time, burning with an intense flare as she found herself in the embrace of death. It pulled her in, beckoning her soul to an eternal afterlife, yet something held her in place.

A hand rose through the darkness and grabbed her soul. It dragged her through the void and called out to her. It had a single command.

Again.

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2 — A Mark and A Trial

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“[Lune Stone: Guard]!” Jennifer shouted, using one of her newest skills. Her mana dipped rapidly, fueling the skill as a shimmering blue layer covered her body.

The ogre slammed its four arms to the ground, sending a shockwave through the chamber that had Jennifer stumbling.

She quickly cut off her skill to conserve mana.

Irwys ran ahead, charging at the beast. His sword glowed, runes shimmering on its surface as he faced off against the Ogre.

“[Sword Art: Mistblade]” Irwys shouted, mist billowing around him as a shimmering blade rose extended from his sword. “[Piercing Lunge]” he shouted once more, using another skill as his form blurred.

The ogre roared as the mist blade cut through its flesh, trying to swat at Irwys with one of its four arms.

Jennifer found her mind blanking as she watched the fight. Her heart thundered and her mind washed itself white with terror. She hadn’t ever had to fight a monster before. Lienmont was a well-guarded city, all the more so because it was on top of a massive dungeon, and there were always guild members who took up scouting quests to prevent monsters from slipping out.

Another blow shook the hall, and she fell on her behind, watching Irwys cut out a chunk of flesh from one of the ogre’s arms. She felt surprised at his agility and skill. The monster was easily twice the size of the orc he'd fought mere hours earlier.

Jennifer slowly shifted back away from the hall. She would just be a hindrance even if she tried to interrupt. Her spell base consisted primarily of Tier-1 spells, and otherwise mostly Tierl-0 cantrips used for convenience’s sake. Interfering would do more harm than good.

Sera, this is how he wanted to get out?

Her backwards crawl eventually had her back bump against a metallic surface and she turned to face the entrance of the hall. The gates leading outside were closed, still glowing with shimmering blue light as runes flashed across them, the silhouette of the dragon glowing brightly.

Of course, they're closed. It’s some kind of stupid trial. What am I going to do? Make my way through the dungeon alone?

Jennifer felt the tremors from the dungeon mix in with the rumbles of the massive ogre stomping around a single swordsman. She wasn’t needed here. All she had to do was to stay put and survive.

Irwys moved swiftly, showing surprising agility compared to the fight with the mercenary. He dodged another blow from the ogre, his sword embedding into the massive arm, drawing blood. The ogre stumbled, and Irwys took the chance to get in close.

His enchanted sword cut through the ogre’s thick skin and reached bone. The blade grew in size, burning with a flash of light as a raw howl of agony from the ogre shook the hall.

Jennifer saw one of the four arms sever itself from the monster’s body, falling with a loud crash. Blood flowed freely from the stump and the Ogre roared in rage. The beast grabbed its arm, using it as a makeshift club as it lunged after Irwys. She saw mist swords slash through the massive beast, drawing dark blood.

Jennifer pushed herself closer against the door, crouching and hugging her knees to not catch the enraged monster’s eye. Her heart threatened to leap out of her throat as she watched the fight continue.

With a sudden shake, the hall lit up with runes around them. Mana shifted around the chamber, flooding the runes that covered everything. Jennifer’s gaze drifted towards the horned woman sitting on her throne. The magic continued to build around the statue until she once more heard stone grinding against stone.

A second set of statues rose through the chamber. This time, armored knights that carried a single long sword. Jennifer felt the swirling magic rise to a peak as the knights rose, the halls shaking around them. In a single motion, all eight knights raised their swords as one, the blades pointing downwards at the ground.

Then, with a long swing, they struck the ground together.

Clang.

Magic exploded through the chamber, carried by the note. Jennifer felt the mana vibrate something within her body. Something at her very core. The noise sent her reeling as her mana sense cut off, nausea overwhelming her. She tried reactivating her [Enhanced Mana Sense] but the skill refused to work. Frowning, Jennifer tried once more, before switching to any of her other skills.

All of them refused to work, even the most basic ones.

Eyes wide, Jennifer turned toward Irwys. The swordsman clutched his head, reeling from the sound. He also seemed to have lost the use of his skills, his inhuman agility nowhere to be seen.

How the hell is he supposed to survive against that thing without Skills?!

Jennifer’s heart thundered, her mind finally snapping out of the terrorized freeze it'd been locked in. What am I doing? I could die here and I just sat on that ground like an idiot?

She felt her chest tighten, each breath coming in with a burning pain. She forced herself to calm down.

Keep it together. I need to think. There has to be a way to escape this place. There's no way Irwys can defeat the ogre without his skills. And I don’t even know why our skills aren’t working.

Pushing herself to her feet, Jennifer tried to think as the ogre roared, causing her to stumble again. Without his skills, Irwys struggled against the beast, his mist fading. Yet he still managed to run circles around the monster, dodging blows.

Don’t dwell on the problems. Think. What can I do?

She turned towards the knights standing across the chamber. They stood, eyes glowing dark blue inside their hollow helmets of stone. She inspected the rows of women next to the knights, searching for clues. There were symbols engraved on the bottom of the statues, and they were all in pairs.

Women and knights. There was a chain of mana around them, links of mana forming before my Skills cut out. Spell threads have to be supported by a spell matrix. That means there’s a way to unravel it.

Jennifer heard the ogre roar with a strike that sent Irwys stumbling. Her heart dropped in her chest as Irwys was sent hurtling across the arena, but the swordsman recovered, turning around with a slash of his sword.

Irwys was struggling to hold the monster back. She needed to be quick.

Jennifer shifted her legs, getting up from where she’d fallen. Moving carefully to avoid drawing attention, she made her way to the closest statue.

The tall statue of the woman was carved in smooth white stone, with runes etched at the bottom. Jennifer tried to recall what runic language it may be using, but all obvious options came out blank.

Not Dwarven. Isholdic? Not Zweirilian either. Old Drakan maybe? I can’t say. This is outdated beyond belief.

Jennifer brushed her hand against the stone.

My mana sense, I can’t even use my mana sense. How am I supposed to dissolve the spell matrix without my mana sense?

She took a deep breath.

I can try. [Enhanced Mana Sense] was an extension. As long as I maintain skin contact, I can still feel the mana. There has to be a spell controlling this. I just need to focus.

She closed her eyes, trying to emulate the feeling from her childhood, from when she had been taught how to touch her mana for the first time.

It had been years since she had to use this method, as her skill passively provided a feel for the mana around her, even without needing direct contact. She tried to steady her mind, letting the fear fade away as she sank deeper into her consciousness.

She put her hand on the statue, feeling the smooth rock against her skin. It thrummed with mana rising from within the surface. She could feel the magic pulsing against her skin in a steady rhythm.

Deeper.

She let her mind sink into the layers of mana lines running within. The deep and complex array of spell matrices were spread around in a mesmerizing pattern, powering the spell, but the key wasn’t there. Something was missing.

Deeper.

She went past the outer framework, reaching the core of the matrix, her mind moving into each spell node within the massive web of magic. It was like trying to look at three things simultaneously and her mind struggled to keep the shape together. The lattice of spell matrices was layered on top of each other, and complex enough that just analyzing them was giving her a headache.

Jennifer couldn’t take a guess at what Tier the spell was. She knew that anything above Tier 5 was a complex spell lattice, much more diverse in application and mana threads than her spells, yet the layers present within just this single piece outdid even the wildest comparisons that she’d read about.

Concentrate. This is still just formation and shaping practice. Just slowly piece it together. Tier 6 or Tier 8, it doesn’t matter. I can still manipulate it.

Sorting through the complex shapes, Jennifer stringed the correct threads through the beacon as the spell slowly started to reveal itself.

A central link node appeared in the network of mana, connecting the entire spell together. Jennifer decided to use the simplest method she knew of to dispel any spell. Blasting it with mana.

She focused on the central node, holding the anchor in place. With a pulse, she poured her mana in, breaking the spell lattice.

A wave of mana rushed forth from the statue.

Jennifer stumbled back, opening her eyes. She looked up to see the statue’s eyes glowing with a bright blue light. She watched in surprise as it opened its mouth and began to sing.

Sharp harmonic notes rang out, powerful enough to shake her down to her bones. Magic pulsed in her chest, as she felt mana pour into her hand. A system prompt rose in front of her.

Trial Key (1/8)
Obtain all to form the Mark.

She heard a shout and turned around to see the ogre clutching at its ears. It roared, thrashing its arms and one bleeding stump in agony as if it was trying to push the resonant voice of the woman away. The song slowly ebbed, and the ogre soon recovered. It roared in fury, its deep red eyes searching around and eventually settling on her.

Rotten rats.

“Run!” Irwys screamed as the ogre roared and leapt towards her.

Jennifer swallowed, dashing for the next statue. The ogre crashed into the statue she’d been standing in front of, causing a cloud of dust to blow up. The beast roared, lifting itself up, and gave chase.

Irwys charged the beast, mist flowing around him. A cloud of white billowed out and covered the entire place in a thick haze. She watched as shadows flickered from the mist, rising into phantoms that attacked the ogre from all directions.

A misdirection and obfuscation spell. That should buy me some time.

Taking her chance, Jennifer sprinted to the next statue. She put her hand on it, closing her eyes as she once again tried to sense its internal workings. Within a minute, she located the spell’s core and activated it.

Trial Key (2/8)

Another bright light flashed into her mind as the woman let out a sharp, resonant note. The two beacons now hummed powerfully, their spells linking up and resonating with one another as a beautiful harmony shook the hall.

Jennifer paused for just a second, to marvel at the mystical magic that seemed to be forming beyond anything she’d ever had the chance to see. Another roar from the ogre reminded her of the danger she was in, and she dashed her way across the hall.

Still six more to go. No, only six more. I can do this. I won’t die here.

A vague red blur from the corner of her eye made her jump. A loud blast rang, and Jennifer was thrown away by the shock wave. She rolled, eventually coming to a halt, and picked herself up. Looking back, she saw the ogre standing where she'd been moments ago.

Jennifer clutched her thundering heart as Irwys leapt after the ogre, pulling the monster away from her. Jennifer stumbled to the third statute as she hurried and pulsed her mana through it.

Another note of magic rang.

The ogre clutched its ears once more, roaring in frustration as the magic in the chamber turned into a swirling storm.

Trial Key (3/8)

She ran ahead, onto the next statue, and turned the beacon on. The sound traveled through the arena, now generating powerful currents, and she felt the mana around her start to vibrate with it.

Five more to go. Four… Three more… Two.

Irwys jumped out of the mist as the spell began to fade at last. His arm was bleeding and his armor was chipped in places. The ogre bled much more heavily, tracking blood all over the otherwise pristine hall from its missing stump and the massive gouge from the wound in his leg.

The beast rushed towards Jennifer once more, now free of the mist. Irwys leapt back into the fray, his sword singing out as he held the monster back.

Jennifer rushed towards the next statue and touched its surface. She closed her eyes as she focused on the spell lattice. The sensation felt practiced and familiar as the spell lattice came with ease. She turned on the beacon, hearing the sharp melody of magic that the women sang.

Trial Key (7/8)

Just one more. Just one more to go.

The Ogre howled as Irwys took a step back. The monster slammed its chest, its eyes turning red as a bestial roar charged with aura echoed through the chamber, causing Jennifer to wince.

The monster was going berserk.

The ogre grabbed its torn arm, now battered and with bone jutting through its flesh, and threw the stump at Irwys. The beat then turned towards one of the statues and walked towards them.

The massive muscles on its arms bulged as the monster bent down and grabbed the statue of the knight with all three of its arms. With a creaking noise, the hall shook, cracking in places as the massive statue began to lift up.

Jennifer stared dumbfounded as the ogre picked up the huge statue, sending cracks running down the hall. The beast then turned around, facing towards her and threw it.

“G-Guard! [Lune Stone: Guard]!” she screamed and froze in terror when a horrifying realisation dawned on her. She couldn’t use her skills.

Magic flared, mana pulsing and reaching out to her. A silver barrier flashed, covering both her and Irwys a moment later.

An explosion of rock and soil blasted over them. The world spun as she was flung across the hall like a broken toy. The barrier protected her from a quick and instant death, yet that was perhaps the only saving grace.

Chunks of rocks and debris pierced through her skin, stabbing her all over her body. Pain erupted across Jennifer’s body as blood ran down her forehead, dripping into her eyes. She tried to get up, but found her limbs strangely unresponsive.

For a terrifying second, she thought that her spine had been taken out, leaving her paralyzed and as good as dead. But the feeling faded as sensation returned to her limbs and soon she could move again.

Fighting against the pain, she pulled herself up.

“Agh!” Jennifer screamed as a sharp throb went through her leg. She looked down to see her ankle twisted in the wrong direction. Oh no no no, not now. Please.

Biting her lips, she took in a breath and slowly set her foot against the floor. Jennifer braced herself, closing her eyes as she grabbed her foot and then—

With a sickening crack, the feet set back into place.

“Mffgghh!” she bit her dress, screaming into it as she slowly moved her feet back, bit by bit. Tears streamed through her eyes as she blindly searched her belt, taking out the half-filled vial of healing potion. Removing the cover, she tipped the container at her leg, but stopped after pouring a few drops.

A cool sensation ran through the area, numbing the pain. She dared not use any more of the potion. If the bone healed the wrong way, it’d be much more difficult to fix it.

She stuffed the vial back in its pouch, climbing to her feet. Blood thundered in her ears, the pain from her foot slowly fading away. She knew it was just the hot blood that took the pain away and it would come back to haunt her later.

Only If I survive.

A scream echoed across the chamber, and Jennifer turned to see Irwys clutched in the ogre’s arm. She whipped around in panic, stumbling forwards as she screamed. "No! You can’t! I need him!”

Mana poured through her body, her blood seeping away from her as Jennifer pushed her pathways to their limits. She had one spell that could work. Delay it for the time she needed. And only enough mana to try it once. Just one. It would have to be enough.

Spell lines weaved themselves around Jennifer, as she shaked the spell matrix. Wind rustled her clothing, as Jennifer felt her mana pool drain itself completely. Her mind strained, feeling like it would snap in two as the symptoms of mana depletion began to set in.

With difficulty, Jennifer controlled her spell, which threatened to break apart from the amount of mana forcefully poured into it. She held the spell at bay and took aim. She only had one shot.

“Wind Blades!” Jennifer screamed with all that she could as all her magic poured out in a storm.

A howling blade of wind gathered in front of her palm, shooting forward like a shrieking arrow as it struck the beast. Dark red skin parted, her spell almost reaching the bone as thick blood poured from the ogre’s arm.

The monster roared, as another one of its arms went limp, slashed halfway across and hanging on from strands of muscles keeping it in place.

She saw Irwys free himself, jumping on the beast’s arm as he ran up towards its face. A flash of bright light flared around Irwys, a massive sword of silver light forming from the enchanted blade he carried.

Even without her skills, she felt the magic in the blade as clearly as anything else. Ancient magic of untold power coursed through it. The power of one of the gods.

Irwys climbed up to the ogre’s face, lifting his blade of light up and pointing it at the beast.

Then, with a slam, he stabbed it into the ogre’s eye.

A scream, louder than any before, tore itself from the ogre’s throat as the massive blade of magic cut through its flesh, tearing into its eye. The ground shook as the monster fell down, shuddering and twitching as the magic tore at it from the inside.

Irwys fell alongside the ogre, his sword slipping from his grasp and flinging across the arena. Dark blood covered him as he lay soaked in monster blood. He wouldn’t last much longer.

I have to hurry.

She turned and shuffled to the last statue, dragging her bloody feet behind. Jennifer fought to complete the magic, the process excruciatingly slow as the pain and her thundering heart made her mess the spell lattice up. Her mind kept returning to the thrashing ogre behind her. Jennifer fumbled, forcing her mind to still as she traced the spell lattice.

Then it was done. She waited as the spell activated and the last note was sung.

Trial Key (8/8)
Move to the pedestal, chosen one.

A song of magic ran through the halls, as the winged women sang as one. Magic poured forth a flood, unlike any she'd felt before and Jennifer felt herself drowning in it. Her nose burned, tingling as dense mana saturated her very being.

The knight-statues kneeled in place and the women spread their arms, their wings glowing brightly as the beacons of magic lit up.

A glowing pedestal rose in front of the central statue.

Jennifer turned towards the pedestal, staring at the glowing characters imprinted on it that shifted and moved around like a vague, flickering mass of text. Her body burned like fire as she limped forward, a throb of pain going through her feet with each step. She dragged herself closer, feeling the words on the pedestal resonating with power.

Putting her hand on the area, she pieced together all the eight pieces into one. The spell lattices began to link up, attracting each other as the spell began to take shape.

A symbol formed on the pedestal.

Moving on impulse, Jennifer slammed her hand down, pushing the last dregs of her mana through the mark on the pedestal. The runes lit up with a flash as the runes rose from the pedestal and crawled up onto her hand.

The magic broke free of its chains.

Pain worse than anything she'd experienced before surged through her. Veins of fire crawled up her arms, burning her skin and spreading up to her neck and through her mind, tearing her apart from the inside. Mana flowed into her like a storm. Blood seeped through her pores as her body broke apart from the inside, struggling to keep it all contained.

The beacons turned, swirling in a storm as eight pieces merged into one.

The Trial of Time

There is no truth greater than time

Jennifer screamed, yet only a broken whimper came out of her burnt and torn throat. Her body broke apart and mended itself over and over, as the mana continued to ravage her insides.

Vague images she didn’t recognize flashed in her mind. A tower stood above all, with eight dark figures standing around her. Dragons soared across the sky as the earth beneath was shattered under the steps of giants.

The eight figures moved, turning towards Jennifer as one.

INTRUDER.

YOU DO NOT BELONG HERE.

Her heart stilled, her breath stopping in her chest. They ordered her dead, and she knew she could not refuse.

Hands grasped Jennifer’s soul, restraining her. Cracks spread through the vision as the world around her began to split into hundreds of thousands of fragments. Her soul was breaking apart.

A soaring dragon shifted, taking the form of a woman as the world stilled around her. Time turned upon itself as the cracks in her soul began to mend. The hands went towards the woman and she swept them aside with one sweeping motion, scoffing.

The horned woman turned to stare at Jennifer as her presence spread through the chamber, gripping her in place. Time itself froze under the weight, and the world ground to a halt.

The statue she’d seen lounging upon the throne moved towards her, extending its hand. She felt the limb go inside her body and touch something within her. The runes on her hand coalesced into one, forming a single mark.

Carry it well, my child.

The Mark seared itself onto her soul.

The statues stopped singing all at once as the flow of time resumed. The hall shook, its magic fading and the old ruin began to fall apart. Jennifer’s legs gave out as comforting darkness covered her eyes.

The last voice she heard, a fading whisper of the world ringing in her ears.

[Mark of Time] received!

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1 — Silver Meetings

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Magic flowed through Jennifer’s hands in a steady, pulsating rhythm. She ran her crystal across the shimmering shield, tracing the etchings carved within it with lines of mana. It was a delicate process, with even the slightest of mistakes resulting in a wasted enchantment. She held her breath tight, carefully inscribing the last rune—

“Come ‘ere lass!” her Master roared from outside the chamber. “yer late already!”

With a snap, the enchantment crumbled, the glowing lines of mana fading as the spell matrix fell apart.

“Jennifer!” her Master called out once more.

“Coming!” she shouted back, taking one last look of disappointment upon her failed work before she set her crystal aside and ran out.

Jennifer stumbled into the front chamber of the shop, watching her master pick out a few packages on the desk. One package looked like a wrapped up blade. She felt the mana emanating from the weapon brush against her skin.

“Ye need to run these, lass. This one’s for yer friend, the other one has its address written. Be quick, it’s an express delivery for the sword,” her master grunted.

Jennifer grumbled under her breath. She grabbed the package, picking the sword from her master’s hands and rushed out, sending the door swinging against the wall with a dull thud.

“Be careful with the sword, ye dumb brick! And make sure he pays!” her master shouted.

“I know!” Jennifer wove through the bustling crowd, trying to avoid bumping into strangers and hurting them — or worse, dropping the sword.

“Sorry! Excuse me! Make way!” Jennifer shouted as travelers barred her way.

A bustling crowd greeted her — far denser than usual, even for the merchant lanes of Lienmont. Jennifer slipped through the spaces in the crowd and saw a toppled cart blocking the path. An injured Narel beast - a kind of scaled lizard-horses from the Ostiri desert - sat licking its wounds next to a distressed merchant. Likely part of the caravan from the south. She’d heard of their arrival briefly from her Master.

Sera, just when I have a delivery to make. Time for magic.

Mana wove itself around Jennifer, drawing the attention of more than a few adventurers nearby. Digging her crystal out, Jennifer awkwardly inscribed the 'Float' enchantment onto her clothes and package. She stretched the spell matrix over to her body and tied the enchantment to her spell.

With a pulse of mana, the wind whirled around Jenn as she jumped. The spell carried her above the crowd, blowing dust into the face of anyone nearby.

With a shout of exhilaration at the big jump, Jennifer landed beyond the crowded section with a light thud and broke into a run as fast as she could. She heard a few angry shouts, as her wind scattered the fallen goods, but no one seemed to be mad enough to give chase.

She ran through the streets, rushing ahead with her spell humming behind her in a trailing gust of wind. A few streets later, she was walking to a shop decorated with neat trinkets and flowers. A familiar redhead girl sat inside.

“Rumina!” Jennifer shouted, trying to wave when she remembered the sword she carried in her hand.

“Jenn!” her friend responded with a cheerful smile, as she walked outside the shop to greet her.

“Sorry, no time to talk today. I’ve got an express delivery. Here’s the things that Master sent for you, and a letter for the you-know-what business,” Jennifer said in a single breath, handing off all the items to her friend.

Rumina quickly dug into her pouch and threw her a couple of copper coins. “Dropped in a few extra because of the amazing [Runner] who came to deliver,” the redhead said with a wink.

Jennifer rolled her eyes, nodding as she pocketed the coins and stormed off.

“I’ll see you this evening! You won’t escape the last celebration party for the Academy!”

“Again?! Fine!” Jennifer said, looking at her grinning friend as she ran off. This had to be the third or fourth time Rumina had insisted on celebrating her acceptance into the Academy. Even her family had tired of the news by now, having had an entire month to celebrate over it.

Jennifer shook her head as she took out the note her master had written for her. Irwys Silveran. Delivery to the dungeon entrance. Silver hair. Tall, Zandrian guy.

“Zandrian? A northerner, huh? I think I remember something about a new prince there. Why by the dungeon, of all places?” Jennifer muttered as she pocketed the note. Zandria was not a country she was awfully familiar with, outside of being aware of its propensity for producing [Oracles] and [Seers] with no rival in all of Zweiril, at least if she were to believe the textbooks.

Jennifer wished she was in her shop, working on her enchantments. The Academy would open for the first-years soon, and she wanted to make as good of an impression on the [Mages] as she could.

But here I am stuck, doing dumb deliveries.

Jennifer navigated through the twisting lanes, finally arriving at the central plaza. With news of the new dungeon branch spreading like wildfire and its promise of lost artifacts and treasures, she wasn’t too surprised to see a larger than normal crowd gathered here. The city had been gaining an influx of adventurers for the entire month.

The dungeon walls soon caught her eyes, towering over the crowded plaza. Jennifer had always found it odd how the dungeon entrance in Lienmont was close to the very center of the city. That’s what happens when you build a city on top of a dungeon, I suppose.

Soldiers guarded the entrance to the dungeon gates. They weren’t necessarily there to prevent people from going in, but those running out, such as a runner hazard—when some idiot had gotten himself killed too close to the entrance, drawing monsters into the city.

“Get the orc, silver man! I’ve got my silver riding on you!” a man shouted, as laughter echoed from a crowd of people gathered up ahead.

A brawl, ugh, perfect timing.

Jennifer grimaced as she circled around the area. It wasn't uncommon to get injured as a bystander to these fights, a fate she wished to avoid. Her eyes scanned the area as she searched for a man resembling the one she was supposed to deliver to when her eyes drifted towards the fight once more. No way right?

She looked around the area once more but saw no one who would fit the description. Cursing the gods under her breath, Jennifer stomped towards the fight. She hugged the sword tight to her chest so that she didn’t accidentally hit someone or get robbed by a [Thief]. The weapon was enchanted.

“Get the brute, silver hair!” a man screamed, waving a bundle of coins in his hands.

Jennifer squeezed through the crowd, using her thin frame to make her way in. Her remaining hopes of the man being just an onlooking passerby were dashed, as she noted the two participants of the brawl.

There was a large orc staring down a tall human man with silver hair and pale skin. The human fighter wore metal armor that hugged his body. Jennifer’s [Enhanced Mana Sense] revealed the magic hidden beneath the armor. Enchanted, expensive, and layered with Tier 3 spells, or stronger.

The silver-haired man—Irwys, she assumed—took a stance, taking out a dagger as the people erupted in a roar of cheers.

“You’ll regret this,” the orc grunted in a thick eastern accent of someone from the Highlands. “[Strength of Ghalir]” he bellowed and his muscles tensed as the already-huge guy bulked up even more.

The orc's muscles bulged, his armor stretched to accommodate his growing body, leather straps sliding apart, a resizable piece crafted by Master leatherworkers and not the magic of enchantments. The ingenuity of the design had Jennifer nodding in approval. She noted the symbol of a pair of crossed swords on his armor, marking him as a visiting mercenary.

The orc lunged at the swordsman with a roar that made the passers-by flinch away as the brawl began once again.

The swordsman leapt, dodging the assault as the orc's fists hit the pavement instead, cracking it.

“[Sword Art: Mistblade],” Irwys spoke, as mist flowed around his dagger, forming a blade that extended into a short sword.

A sword art, that’s a rare skill type — and mist too. Specialized [Swordsman] class, perhaps?

Jennifer blinked, losing track of Irwys as the silver swordsman vanished from her sight. She heard a roar from the orc as the blade of mist cut through his armor, the silver-haired man reappearing behind the orc.

The orc roared and charged forward in a mad dash.

The swordsman didn't disappoint, his shallow slashes and cuts slowing the orc enough for him to land a deep blow to the orc's thigh. The crowd cheered madly. Few residents of Lienmont liked orcs, even fewer appreciated their increased presence in the city.

The swordsman stood unharmed while the orc bled profusely. It was a one sided brawl, but Jennifer felt herself tensing as the fight continued. She didn’t like the red glow in the orc’s eyes.

“Five coppers that the orc lasts fifty more seconds!” a call came, drawing cheers.

The orc let out a roar of fury, eyes glowing a deep red. “[Ghalir’s Rage]!”

Bringing both hands forward, he smashed the ground. The swordsman danced away as cracks formed where he once stood.

Jennifer felt her heart leap as the orc’s massive form blurred. The lunge struck the swordsman, sending him crashing into the crowds of onlookers. The orc rushed into the toppled crowd and towards the swordsman as the people nearby hurriedly ran away.

With a stomp of his foot, the bulky orc pinned the man down with a slam that sent cracks through the ground, roaring in the rush of victory.

Jennifer looked around in concern, searching for the [Guards] to come and interfere. She saw them standing at a distance, spears poised, but doing nothing to stop the fight. The realization came soon after.

They’re waiting for the swordsman to die so that they can arrest the orc for a much more serious crime. It’d make for the perfect excuse for the High Council to kick the orcs out of the city.

A bitter taste rose to her mouth as Jennifer turned back towards the fight. Not willing to watch the bloodbath about to occur, she closed her eyes and turned away, ready to walk back to the store, when a sudden thought stopped her. Jennifer looked down at the sword in her arms.

This is his sword, isn’t it?

Moving on impulse, Jennifer took the sword out of its cover and screamed. “Hey! Silver hair! Catch this!”

The blade arced across the field, vibrating with power as the swordsman’s eyes turned wide. With a burst of magic rising from the sword, she watched the blade fly into the swordsman’s hands.

“[Hidden Edge]” the swordsman intoned. The blade multiplied, tearing through the orc’s armor as the swordsman freed himself. With a charge, the orc dashed, taking the human with him as he slammed to the ground.

Rolling to the side, the man tried to dodge, but the orc grabbed his coat. Dragging the swordsman over, the orc's massive hand wrapped around the silver-haired swordsman's neck and lifted him into the air, muscles bulging as he glared at his captive.

“Don't kill him!” Jennifer shouted as she ran through the crowd, into the encirclement of the fight.

The orc’s red eyes glared down at her, blood dripping from the shallow cuts; flowing down the still-tense muscles in his arms as his chest heaved from exhaustion.

Suddenly, she wasn't feeling as brave.

“Get the green skin bastard, girly! You’ll probably have more of a chance than that pansy-ass over there!” a shout came from the crowd.

Jennifer gulped. I’m gonna die. I’m so gonna die. He's just going to swat me like a bug. Sera take me, I’ll haunt whoever said that.

"Why should I?" the orc demanded. His nose flared as he glared her down, all the while holding up the swordsman as if he weighed nothing.

"Because he owes me money!" Jennifer said, her eyes pressed shut.

She felt the orc’s gaze on her for a moment that stretched on forever. The silence was broken by laughter nearly as loud as his roar.

Hesitantly, and upon confirming that she was not a blood smear on the ground yet, Jennifer opened one eye.

“That's a good answer, girl. No one knows the worth of debt more than a mercenary. And you're brave enough to stand up to me, unlike half these idiots,” the orc grunted, glaring at the crowd.

Jennifer watched the people hurriedly scatter off.

The massive orc growled, licking his tusks as he turned towards her. He bent down, putting his face right up in front of her, and she felt his warm breath on her face.

She almost closed her eyes in fear once more.

“But next time, look at the strength of your opponents before you run ahead to die,” the orc rumbled, staring into her eyes.

Jennifer nodded eagerly in response.

“You won't have a little girl to save you next time, Zandrian,” the orc spat in a heavy accent, unceremoniously dropping the man. Then he chuckled once more and threw one last glance toward Jennifer as he walked away, his massive frame shrinking with each step.

Jennifer felt her legs go weak, but she kept herself upright as the [Guards] finally arrived to disperse the crowd. She almost ran to scream at them for not interrupting the orc earlier.

Her eyes drifted towards Irwys, who sat on the ground, clutching his head. Jennifer felt her annoyance rising. She had almost died because of some stupid fight.

“Do you have the money?” Jennifer asked, glaring at the disoriented swordsman.

“I do - or did, up until meeting that orc,” the man replied with a frown, looking up at her as he pulled himself up to his feet.

Jennifer noted the lack of serious injuries present on him, despite the orc being riddled with shallow cuts by the time he’d left. Perhaps the fight had been much less one-sided than she’d assumed.

“Oh, I just assumed you were an idiot who loved fighting. Being a dungeon city, Lienmont gets a lot of those types.”

The man glared at her for a moment. “I apologize for the inconvenience. Wait here, or go back to your shop. I’ll have the money sent there. I have something important to do,” Irwys said, turning away.

“Wait, where are you going? Hold up!” Jennifer screamed as the swordsman pushed to his feet, rushing towards the dungeon. “Stop! Guards! He’s running away—” Jennifer cut off mid-sentence. She cursed the day, the gods, and every fancy fighter who just didn’t pay their bill and chased after the man.

The swordsman sped away towards the dungeon entrance, and Jennifer’s eyes widened in surprise. Sera, he wouldn’t. No one would be that insane.

A tremor shook the ground as Jennifer gave chase. She looked ahead in surprise and saw cracks spreading from beneath the dungeon entrance. A deep, unsettling rumble echoed from the ground.

Something was wrong.

A crash sent her tumbling as a resounding roar echoed from the dungeon. The world shook beneath her feet, shouts and curses rising to the skies from the surrounding people.

Fighting the disorientation, Jennifer pulled herself to her feet at the sudden earthquake. She saw several people - adventurers - rushing out of the dungeon with some of them dragging injured team members.

“Dungeon Break!” one adventurer shouted, a tremor in his voice. There was a moment of silence as the city registered the words. For just a moment, Jennifer’s heart stilled.

The moment broke as panic descended upon the city. Jennifer’s heart thundered, her legs turning stiff from shock. She felt the wards around the dungeon go up as alarms and calls sounded out. Jennifer looked around wide-eyed, trying not to fall as tremors once again shook the ground.

A Dungeon Break… now? It’s been decades… just how?

Mercenaries gathered around her as a high-ranked adventurer team stumbled out, joining with the collection of assembled adventurers, burning through healing spells and potions. They formed a perimeter around the entrance, evacuating civilians as they prepared for the hordes of monsters about to flood the city.

She bit back a curse as [Enhanced Mana Sense] told her of the flood of mana rising from the depths and she soon recognised the source of the mana.

The monsters were rushing out.

With a burst of exploding rocks, dark figures erupted from the dungeon as the ground beneath her gave way. Jennifer stumbled back from the shock wave, squeezing her eyes shut on instinct.

A loud crash resounded as hands pulled her aside. She opened her eyes, watching a silver barrier shimmering in front of her, originating from a familiar silver haired swordsman.

The swordsman's blade cut through the beasts as the surrounding barrier faded. The man turned, grabbing her hand. His silver eyes met her own.

Another rumble shook the ground, the cracks from the entrance extending outwards as the floor collapsed underneath her. Jennifer screamed, her voice distant to her ears, as something grabbed her ankle from below.

A dark claw reached out from the dungeon underneath and dragged Jennifer in.

***

Jennifer's eyes shot open, arms flailing out as she screamed. “Get away!”

Silence greeted her words and Jennifer looked around in confusion at the dark and empty cavern around her, glowing with a soft blue sheen from the mana present in it.

Blood soaked her neck, the cool sensation accompanied by a strong throbbing pain as awareness returned to Jennifer’s mind. She winced as memories flooded in. Of something dragging her down and— “How long was I…?” Jennifer mumbled, clutching her head in pain.

“A few hours,” Irwys replied.

Jennifer’s gaze shifted to find the silver-haired swordsman sitting next to the corpse of a huge scaled beast, and multiple smaller monsters. She recognised the giant beast as the monster that had dragged her in. Looking around the area, she tried to pull up a system prompt. A message popped up in front of her eyes, confirming her fears.

The Great Dungeon of Lienmont.

Location: The First Layer

Jennifer turned to glare at the swordsman. “What were you doing running in here?! You can’t just—” Her words cut off at the assault of a fresh wave of agony. Her head felt like it would split in two.

She leaned against the wall, breathing slowly as she tried to subdue the pain. I’m going to die. Because of this stupid delivery and a madman. A dungeon break, and of all the places to be in, I’m in the Elphion damned dungeon.

Jennifer bit her lips as tears pooled in her eyes. She tried to lean her head back, but the stabbing pain in her neck wouldn’t allow it.

“Show me,” the swordsman said as he walked closer.

Jennifer looked at the man, her anger draining away as he knelt next to her.

The swordsman’s rough hands swept her hair to the side as Jennifer held back a wince. The swordsman’s rough hands swept her hair to the side as Jennifer held back a wince.

“Minor concussion, and a cut across the neck.”

Jennifer felt like slugging the man in the face. She didn’t wish to be told she was as good as dead. The dungeon monsters would come chasing at the smell of her blood. SheJennifer felt like slugging the man in the face. She didn’t wish to be told she was as good as dead. The dungeon monsters would come chasing at the smell of her blood.

tried to push the man away, not feeling any strength in her limbs. This wasn’t supposed to happen. She should’ve been at her master’s shop, preparing for her entrance into the academy. Why was she stuck in the dungeon with a strange man during a dungeon break?

“You need to calm down. I have a healing potion. It’ll take care of your wounds,” the swordsman said, waving his hand as a vial full of red liquid appeared in it.

“I have a head injury,” Jennifer said, feeling more exhausted with each passing moment. “You can’t use healing potions with head injuries. May as well kill me.”

“This one won’t,” the man said, unscrewing the vial as Jennifer sensed mana pour out in a wave. Jennifer stared at the potion, before looking up at the swordsman, his silver-gray eyes silently meeting her own as he handed her the potion.

Jennifer took the bottle, hesitating to drink something given by a man who’d just tried to run away without paying.

I’m dead if I do, I’m dead if I don’t. Might as well give this a shot.

Putting the vial to her lips, Jennifer drank the liquid. She felt mana dissolve in her mouth, coursing through her throat with a metallic flavor. She sipped half of the vial’s content before she was forced to stop, unable to lift her neck any further.

Within moments, the base of her neck started to itch. Then her shoulder until every cut and scrape was on fire. A cool sensation spread from inside, rising like a tide as the mana from the potion mixed within her core, reaching for every part of her body.

A few moments later, her headache was gone.

Jennifer breathed a sigh of relief as her chest grew heavy for a second before returning to normal. She wiped the tears away from her eyes, feeling a light flush rising to her cheeks at her outburst. But if the swordsman noticed, then he didn’t make any comments.

Her eyes drifted to the corpse of the scale hound nearby, its body already being absorbed back by the dungeon.

“Are you better now?” the swordsman asked.

Jennifer nodded as she pushed to her feet.

"Good, then take this," Irwys said as he held out a dagger. “We need to head deeper into the dungeon.”

“What?” Jennifer said, staring at the swordsman, dumbfounded. “Are you mad? Do you want to die?”

“We don't have a choice, girl. The dungeon break has started, you should feel the rising mana levels yourself. A horde of monsters is making their way into the city as we speak, and the entrance has collapsed." He paused, waving at the mountain of rubble blocking off the end of the tunnel. "The only way out is from deeper inside."

“I don’t- I just- Why? Why did you have to run in here?”

“That isn’t something that concerns you.”

“It does concern me,” Jennifer retorted, heat rising in her voice. “It’s because I had to chase you that I’m stuck here with an Elphion damned dungeon break doing on. You were the one who ran away without paying without saying a word and I—” Jennifer's voice cut off as Irwys pressed his hand against her mouth.

She almost bit his hand in anger when a low growl from nearby stopped her. Jennifer’s eyes widened as she sensed the monster walking nearby, reminding her of the hordes of monsters running through the dungeon in a frenzy, ready to tear her apart at any moment.

Jennifer clenched her fists, grinding her teeth as she glared at the silver-haired swordsman who removed his hand a moment later. Deep breaths Jennifer. He’s the only one who can get you out.

She held her hand out, grabbing the dagger he’d offered, and received a nod from the man.

“Stick behind me, and we’ll both make it out alive," Irwys said, turning ahead.

With her mouth squeezed shut, Jennifer put the vial of potion in the belt on her waist. Gripping her borrowed dagger, she pulled herself up and followed the waving silver hair down into the dark depths.

***

“Mana Bolt!” Jennifer shouted as she wove one of the first spells she'd ever learned.

A glowing bolt of mana launched from her outstretched hand and struck the large vermin. Her bolt only staggered the beast, providing enough time for Irwys to sever its head, killing the monster instantly.

She prepared another mana bolt, shaping her spell matrix in her mind before launching the bolt off, this time silently. She’d long past grown the need to rely on vocalization for this spell to cast it, but some habits died hard.

Jennifer panted, waiting silently for another clear shot at the dire rats. With poisonous teeth and claws, the dire rats could tear out chunks of flesh with each bite. She shuddered to think what would happen to someone who got bit by these enough times. She watched Irwys kill the largest rat with a swift strike that left it headless.

The other Dire Rats paused in their tracks, screeching and hissing as if reassessing the threat before they turned around to scuttle off.

“Hopefully that’s the last of them,” Jennifer said, looking around the dungeon while squeezing the dagger tight in her hand. The mana had reached levels she'd never felt before, making her head buzz.

“I doubt it,” Irwys replied, wiping the blood off of his sword, striding deeper into the dungeon.

Jennifer followed, leaving the monster corpses behind. They'd either be eaten by other monsters or absorbed by the dungeon itself.

A waste of good monster parts.

She turned towards Irwys. “How much further?”

“Depends. Shouldn’t be much farther. I’ve been avoiding any larger pathways to keep away from the frenzied monster horde as they push up from the deeper regions.” Then he muttered under his breath, and his sword lit up the tunnel. Runes floated around the weapon, and she saw silver threads extend from the blade for a moment before they vanished. Resuming his pace, he muttered again, though this time she caught his words. "It's close."

She nodded, following behind as she wondered what they were close to. She was certain they weren't close to the exit yet, since they hadn't moved upward. But most of those routes had been blocked, anyway.

The last hour had made it clear to Jennifer that Irwys was anything but an adventurer. The way he fought was methodical. His traversal of the dungeon would've been smoother if he didn't need to defend her, so he had enough skill with his sword, but…

No adventurer brings a long sword like that into narrow dungeon caverns. Or shiny armor. Not unless they're a Ranked Plate who can just blast through everything.

Irwys paused, his sword flashing once more. “A Mark,” she heard him whisper as a foreboding sensation built in her gut.

Mist flooded around Irwys, causing Jennifer to take a step back. His sword flashed, as Jennifer felt a skill being invoked.

The wall in front of them collapsed, its hollow structure crumbling with that single strike, revealing a dark passage behind it. Her eyes widened in surprise at the hidden room laid with dark brown bricks, murals running up and down equally dark pillars.

Some kind of ruin? A part of the newly discovered section? Has the dungeon already moved around that much?

“Follow me,” Irwys said.

Jennifer could only nod as she followed him in. The realization that she was on a delve, even if through circumstances out of her control, finally settled on her. Part of her was excited at the prospect, yet another part dreaded what was to come. Unexpected delves rarely had a happy end.

The path ahead was cracked from age, with walls covered in depictions of creatures and pictures that had faded away with time. Those same walls expanded further ahead, tall pillars of stone rising to support the ceiling. There, the murals were replaced with runes, depicting words she didn't recognize.

Jennifer tried to pull up the dungeon notification when a different screen popped up.

Alphion's Lair

Location: Unknown

Unknown? If that isn't foreboding, then I don't know what is.

“Where are we?” Jennifer asked, her hand reaching toward one of the carved pillars.

“A hidden section of the dungeon,” Irwys replied.

Jennifer stopped, staring at the man as a frown overtook her face. “How will this help us get out?”

“It will, now stay quiet,” Irwys said, walking ahead.

Jennifer glared at the swordsman’s back silently, wondering if she should just try to escape on her own, but a look back the way they came had such thoughts fading. It was a long way to the surface, and she didn’t know the way out. Jennifer turned around, breaking into a light run as she hurried towards the swordsman.

The runes on the walls caught her interest, and Her eyes wandered around, trying to pick out familiar patterns. Old runes, older than the Zweirilian convention.

The path extended for a long while, and Jennifer found herself running out of new runes and symbols to keep track of on the walls. There was a suspicious lack of monstrous activities in the area, the only movement being cracked walls falling apart with a single touch.

Jennifer breathed a sigh, wondering what was so exciting about walking through the dungeon. There must have been something, considering how many hot-blooded teenagers rushed to join the guild. She’d much rather be reading her books on enchantments and magic instead.

A chill ran up Jennifer’s spine as she felt a presence shift with her [Enhanced Mana Sense]. Moving swiftly, Jennifer turned as she grabbed her borrowed dagger, throwing it. The knife missed, hitting the walls with a metallic clang as a hissing sound greeted her. A black lizard with shimmering oily scales hissed at her, as two dark blue eyes shone with an inner light.

Even as she started gathering mana, Irwys moved, his sword swinging toward the lizard. Before his strike could land, the lizard jumped back, melding into the darkness once more.

“Shade Lizards. A third layer monster all the way up here?” Irwys muttered.

Jennifer felt her heart pound. She’d never heard of creatures from the bottom layers coming this far above. Carefully, she walked closer, trying to check for the lizard as she picked up her dagger once more.

Lesson learned. Never turn off my mana sense and never let my guard down.

“Let’s hurry,” Irwys said, waving her onward.

She nodded and continued to follow, keeping the dagger in her hand and her guard up. She didn’t want to be monster food.

After another minute the path opened up to reveal a wide gate in the distance. Yet, that was where the path ended. Irwys didn’t slow down, making his way ahead.

Jennifer pushed to her feet to join Irwys who was staring at a door that had been hidden by the broken pillar. It looked to be made of stone with metal engravings with two beams of metal running on either side. The smaller pieces were laid out in a pattern forming different runes.

“What now?” she asked.

Irwys simply stared at the door, his hand gripping the hilt of his sheathed sword.

Jennifer turned to inspect the door. There were semi-circular lines of metal arranged to form letters. She felt her skills point her towards a few of them. There was some kind of spell embedded within.

Curiously, she decided to touch one and was surprised when she could slide it across the surface.

“There’s a spell on it. I think you have to arrange the metal portions in a specific way,” she said, turning back to look at the swordsman.

“Can you open it?” he asked, his eyes locking onto her.

“No, of course not. I can’t even read this.”

Irwys shook his head before stepping next to her. He started moving the symbols around. At first, she thought he might have a clue she'd missed. But then she realized. He was just fiddling.

“Isn’t there any other way out of here?” she asked, crossing her arms as she watched him continue to shuffle the symbols.

“Not without going through a large horde of monsters, no,” the swordsman replied, causing their conversation to die down once again.

Jennifer stood in silence, her anxiety increasing as light tremors continued to shake the walls every so often, causing dust to fall from their decrepit surroundings. Her eyes drifted upward, searching for the source, and they fell upon one of the patterns on the ceiling. It almost looked like...

Getting up, Jennifer walked closer to the gate. Irwys paused upon her arrival but didn't comment as she pointed at the pattern she'd been inspecting.

“We need to derive the runes from that image on the wall with the symbols. Basic universal runic language principles. At least, I’m pretty sure that’s what this is,” Jennifer told Irwys as she pushed her [Enhanced Mana Sense] to its limits.

Tiny, fragile threads of mana ran through the gate, barely present to her senses. Something she likely would’ve missed if she hadn’t been used to using delicate mana runes in her job as an [Enchanter].

Dragging the piece to its location was a slow but steady process, requiring her to carefully channel her mana, much like when creating an enchantment. When felt a change in the mana when she got it into the correct position, as one of the metal grooves set in its hinge.

The grooves form a mana circuit.

One at a time, Jennifer moved the pieces around as she pushed her senses to the limits. Piece after piece ran with mana as a mana circuit began to form.

Jennifer felt the excitement building up in her chest, the activity oddly reminiscent of magical puzzle training for mana sensitivity, something she enjoyed quite a bit. It was enough to let her forget the bundle of nerves she'd been before they'd found the door.

There was a loud click as she placed the last groove, and something shifted within the gate. The magic began to flow with increasing intensity, and she took a step back. She watched with nervous excitement as the magic flowed through the gate.

Her eyes were drawn towards the shifting metal blocks as runes and characters lit up. An image formed on the gate, of armies standing beneath giants taller than trees, of Leviathans of incredible size that rose from the sea, and of winged creatures that blotted out the sun.

Blue glowing lines of mana streaked across the gate, gathering at the center as the last piece clicked in place, forming a silhouette Jennifer found vaguely familiar. With wings sprouting from its back, flew one of the sovereigns of the sky long lost to time.

A Dragon.

The gates opened with a groaning noise, kicking up dust as light streamed out from inside.

Jennifer covered her eyes, momentarily blinded. She stumbled in, followed by Irwys as they stared in awe at the pristine room paved in flowing white stone. Each slab, brimming with magic that shone like the sun to her senses.

There was something about the way this place was constructed that made it seem cut off from the rest of the world. It was a great hall hidden beneath the earth, larger than any she'd been in before. She tried to call for a system prompt for the dungeon.

Location: Unknown

“Is this still inside the dungeon? Where are we?” Jennifer turned to look at Irwys.

“A trial?” she heard Irwys muttered. His eyes turned towards Jennifer as he gripped the hilt of his blade. “Perhaps the Fates wanted not the sword but-”

A powerful tremor shook the ground, the noise of stone grinding against stone cutting him off. Eight statues of women rose from the ground all around the room, their backs adorned by soft white wings.

At the center of the chamber rose the statue of a woman sitting on a throne, her eyes deep red slits, with two curving horns peeking through her thick hair as a scaled tail hung behind. The statue lounged on a throne of stone; her legs crossed as she watched over the entire hall. Jennifer stared mesmerized at the woman, feeling as if she could come alive at any moment.

With a slam, the door closed behind them.

Mana flooded the chamber, and Jennifer heard a cracking noise as a hulking ogre coalesced from the swirling mana. Its red skin glistened in the white light as it towered over the two of them, four powerful arms stretching out from its sides.

Jennifer felt her heart stop in her chest as the beast stared at the two of them. Its eyes were a shade of blood-red as the beast opened its fanged maw and roared.

The Trial of Time

Survive the encounter and prove yourself worthy to carry the Mark.

Sera take me, I'm so dead.

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