CelestialShadow
patreon
Chapter 35 - Corruptor of youth
🕑 Added 2023-11-27 15:10:53 +0000 UTC“It’s almost as big as Billford,” Adion said as he looked toward the city in the distance.
“It is,” Lomin nodded, “The Silver Wall is one of the most populated areas in the Empire. Hermot is one of the four main cities, and there are countless towns and villages to the east. And some of the outposts in the Endless Forest are almost as big as Hermot.”
Adion was sitting next to Lomin as they were in charge of keeping the carriage moving in the right direction. It had been a few days since the fight against the Silver beasts, and Benji and Sahra were almost all healed up. But it was decided that they should rest until they got to Hermot.
“Did you stay in Hermot before coming down to Billford?” Adion asked.
“Only for a few days,” Lomin said, “Most of the time was spent in the Outskirts, mainly outpost Belden.”
“Will we be going there this time too?” Adion asked. He was getting excited thinking about fighting with his new teammates. The fight they had on the way over was a lot more exciting than Adion’s usual fights. He was used to one-on-one battles with beasts he could easily handle. He felt that he could improve a lot by fighting next to more experienced mages.
“I don’t know,” Lomin said with a smile, “It’s up to Benji, but we will probably ask around where middle Silver beasts have been seen lately. It changes with time, and we don’t want to go to an area with a lot of high and peak Silver beasts.”
“Have you ever fought a peak Silver beast?” Adion asked.
“A few times, but we all worked together,” Lomin answered as the carriage stopped in the line of wagons leading into the city.
“We at the gate?” Benji yelled out from inside the carriage.
“Yeah!” Adion yelled back.
Benji exited the carriage and walked up to where Adion and Lomin sat. He looked around at the surrounding buildings and nodded.
“Feels nice to get here,” Benji said, “But we’ll probably move on tomorrow or the day after at the latest. I’ll bring the carriage to Mint Carriages. Do you two mind going to the Guild and look for an escort mission heading north?”
“Sure,” Lomin said, “If you take over the reins, we’ll head there now.”
“Good,” Benji said and took his seat when Lomin and Adion got up, “We’ll stay at The Silver Circle like last time, so go there once you finish.”
“Alright,” Lomin said as he and Adion made their way to the city gate. The queue was shorter and faster than the one for carriages, so they got into the city after a few minutes.
“You know the way?” Adion asked.
“Yes, it’s not far,” Lomin answered.
It only took them 15 minutes before they were standing in front of a building that looked much like the one in the Outskirts Guild had in Billford.
“Have you ever taken an escort mission before?” Adion asked Lomin as they made their way inside.
“Of course. It’s common for Outskirters to try to do so when moving between cities. Some mages even focus all their time doing these kinds of jobs. It’s not as lucrative as hunting beasts in the Outskirts, but it’s a lot safer.”
“Then let’s hope that some rich princess is looking for a safe trip to Wender,” Adion said with a small smile, looking up at the tall faelin beside him.
“I doubt it,” Lomin smiled back, “Anyone from a family clan would have their own mages as guards, stronger than us. A princess might even have a Soul mage to keep her safe.”
“Well, someone else rich then,” Adion said. He didn’t use to think about money much. There wasn’t much need for it in his clan or the Endless Forest. But since joining the Outskirts Guild, he had begun enjoying the feeling of earning money for his hard work.
“Let’s hope so,” Lomin said calmly as they approached the mission board to look for something appropriate.
Adion saw that most missions were actually escort missions. The Guild constantly had missions to hunt beasts of all strengths, so those didn’t take up a lot of space. And the area called the Silver Wall was a lot more dangerous than other parts of the Empire, so everyone who needed to travel between two cities or towns was looking for mages to protect them from beasts or bandits.
“This one seems good, no?” Lomin said as he pointed to a poster. “It’s well-paid, and it’s for a single team, so we won’t have to split the reward.”
“It says that team should have at least low Silver strength, though,” Adion said as he read the description, “Will I be able to join?”
Adion was only high Bronze, and he wasn’t even showing that strength. He appeared to be a talented, young, low Bronze mage to the people around him.
“It won’t be a problem,” Lomin assured Adion, “Just four people are needed to be considered a team, and we fit the bill as we have four people at Silver. The payment is for the entire team and not per person, so even if we brought along a non-mage, it wouldn’t make a difference.”
“That’s good,” Adion said, “Let’s go get this mission registered then.”
“Let’s,” Lomin agreed and grabbed the poster. They walked up to a clerk working for the Guild who didn’t have a line.
“We would like to accept this mission, please,” Lomin said as he handed the paper over along with his Guild card.
“Okay,” The clerk nodded, “Do you have a team that fits the requirement?” He asked as he glanced at Adion.”
“Yes,” Lomin nodded, “My three teammates are all middle Silver. We are ready to leave whenever. The sooner, the better.”
“Alright,” The clerk said and handed over a piece of paper, “Note down the specifics of your team here and write down where you’ll be staying. I’ll make sure the employer gets the information.”
Lomin got the work down quickly, and he and Adion said their goodbyes before leaving.
“Guarding a single carriage doesn’t seem too difficult,” Adion said as they left the Outskirts Guild, “But I’m guessing we’ll have to walk the entire journey this time?”
“Probably,” Lomin nodded, “But I’m glad to be able to stretch my legs a little. Too many trips shouldn’t take place on carriages. Sometimes, you have to move on foot to really experience a journey.”
“Maybe,” Adion shrugged, “But I agree that it will be nice not to sit still all day.”
It didn’t take them long to arrive at The Silver Circle. When they got inside, they noticed Rufus sitting alone at a table, drinking.
“I can’t believe you left me,” He said grumpily as he noticed Lomin and Adion.
“We left you with Benji and Sahra,” Lomin said as he walked up toward Rufus and took a seat alongside Adion.
“That’s even worse,” Rufus complained, “They only have eyes for each other.”
“I didn’t realize leaving you for an hour would hurt you this much,” Lomin said with a serious expression, causing Adion to struggle to maintain a straight face.
“We’ll keep you company for the night, won’t we, Lomin?” Adion said.
“Mm, it might atone for our sins somewhat,” Lomin agreed.
“Ha.Ha.” Rufus said sarcastically, “Who would want to hang out with you guys anyway? I’ve been stuck in the carriage with Benji and Sahra the entire day. Tonight, we will get some girls to keep us company.” Rufus' previously downcast expression was replaced with a grin.
“How many times do I have to tell you,” Lomin sighed, “You cannot force the path you-”
Lomin didn’t get to finish as Rufus interrupted him in an imitating voice, “‘You’re walking to find your love, you must trust in the path the world presents and travel it to eventually find blah blah blah’ Something like that, right?”
Lomin looked at Rufus, a little annoyed, “I’ve never said that.”
“You say something like that every hour,” Rufus said.
“Okay, guys,” Adion tried to meddle, “Let’s just help Rufus talk to a girl, Lomin. And we can just drink, the two of us. I would love to hear more about Pelli’s journey.”
Lomin had told a little more of the Primordial Story in the past couple of days, and Adion was utterly hooked.
“That seems good,” Lomin said and nodded.
“Absolutely not!” Rufus looked at Adion aghast, “Don’t tell me you’re some weird ‘travel the path and the journey will give you love ’-believer like Lomin?”
“Er,” Adion wasn’t sure how to respond.
“Wait,” Rufus then seemed to have realized something as he stared at the ceiling in contemplation, “I forgot how young you are. You must still be a virgin, right?”
“Well-” Adion was cut off as Rufus rambled on.
“How far have you gone with a girl? Ah, doesn’t matter, does it? I’ll get you a nice-looking girl to share a bed with tonight, don’t worry.”
“I’m-” Adion tried to respond but was cut off once again as Rufus got up and put an arm around Adion’s shoulders.
“You’re a good-looking guy, Adion.” He said, his breath smelling of alcohol, “And a genius mage at that. I’ll make sure you get to go home with the prettiest girl here. You just have to listen to me, and everything will work like a charm.”
“Do charms actually work?” Adion asked.
“It’s just a saying. Don’t be weird like that with the ladies. Show your cool and mysterious side.” Rufus pushed.
“Don’t listen to him, Adion.” Lomin said, “If you want to chase skirts with Rufus, that’s up to you, but you should be yourself.”
“What do you know?” Rufus retorted, “It’s a good thing you got me here, Adion. Lomin is going to brainwash your young mind with stories of love and that nonsense.”
“Love is nonsense?” Adion questioned.
“Ganta, it’s already begun,” Rufus said with a serious expression, “But it’s not too late. There’s still time to mitigate some of the damage Lomin has done.”
“If anyone is brainwashing Adion here, it’s you,” Lomin said, “Do you hear what you’re saying? You should be locked up as a corruptor of youth.”
“That’s not even a crime,” Rufus said and then asked Adion in a low voice, “Is it?”
“I don’t know,” Adion shook his head.
“Well,” Rufus straightened his back, “Even if it is, it’s a compliment to be called that by you. You think running is a corruption of youth.”
“It is,” Lomin stressed as he nodded his head.
“There you have it, Adion,” Rufus said as he once again looked at Adion, “Listen to big brother Rufus, and I’ll make sure that you're a man by the end of the night.”
“Well,” Adion said hesitantly, looking to see if Rufus would interrupt him again, “My mom and dad only had each other, much like Lomin always pushes for, and they seemed happy.”
“Look here now, Adion,” Rufus said, “I’m not saying love is bad. I’m sure both you and me will find someone one day and be very happy. But until then, why not have some fun? And you’ll need the experience in the future. Do you really think your dad could have gotten someone like your mom without working on his lady skills? If you don’t want to be laughed in the face once you find that special girl, you’ll need to practice first. Just like you have to train your mana control and everything else in life to be good at it.”
“That makes sense,” Adion said as he nodded. He wasn’t uninterested in girls, after all. He was 15, and seeing pretty girls stirred certain thoughts.
I want to have a family one day and bring the Remori clan to new heights. But what if I’m not able to find a wife? I’ve never worked on my charms, but like Rufus said, that’s something I can practice.
“What do I do?” Adion asked after convincing himself that he was going to flirt with girls all for the future of the Remori clan.
“Ha! I knew you would see the light,” Rufus said with a grin, “It would probably work best if you had that mask and revealed your strength, but you are plenty mysterious without all that. You’re a Bronze mage at such an age, after all. Most people will assume you have an impressive background. Women dig that. Do you see anyone you’re interested in?”
Adion looked around the inn tavern and saw a few girls he thought looked pretty good. But the one that really caught Adion’s attention was a blonde girl sitting a few tables away. She was a Silver mage and seemed to be enjoying drinks with her teammates.
When Adion pointed her out, Rufus had a conflicted expression. “Well, I guess it might be tough to find someone in a place like this. She is a Silver mage, Adion. And if you don’t plan on showing your Gift, I doubt you’ll catch her eye.”
“So what?” Adion asked with a determined expression.
“Ah, screw it. It’s a numbers game in the end. Give it a try.” Rufus said with a grin.
Adion got up and turned to leave before stopping himself after taking his first step. “What do I say?”
“Just compliment her and ask if you can buy her a drink,” Rufus said with a confident smile.
Adion nodded and walked off.
“That’s your great strategy?” Lomin asked Rufus, “I could have told him that.”
“Well,” Rufus said as he scratched his beard, “I don’t really have any strict rules to follow. I just start talking and go with the flow.”
“Poor Adion,” Lomin sighed.
“Hey!” Rufus said, “It takes practice, okay? I’m just pointing out the direction. It’s up to Adion to actually do the walking. I’m sure Adion will understand.”
However, it didn’t take long for Adion to return. Walking behind was Sahra, holding her stomach, laughing, and wiping tears from her eyes. Behind her was Benji, his loud laughter spreading through the bar.
Adion took his seat once again with a grumpy expression on his face.
“Hahaha, Adion,” Sahra said as she sat down at their table, “What the hell was that?”
“What happened?” Rufus asked.
“Haha, so get this,” Benji said with a wide grin, “We get back from returning the carriage, and as we open the door, we see Adion talking to a pretty girl.”
“Right,” Rufus nodded.
“Was this your doing, Rufus?” Sahra asked, between her fits of laughter, “Hilarious! I can’t believe you guys did this without me, hahaha!”
“Now hold on,” Rufus put out his hands to explain.
“Next time we’re pranking Adion, make sure to give me a heads up!” Benji said.
“This is stupid,” Adion muttered. “I’m going up to my room to train.”
“Adion,” Rufus held out his hand to explain and to understand what had happened. But Adion just continued walking without looking back.
“Haah,” Sahra breathed out with a smile, “What a great day. I’m going to call Adion ‘peak Baby mage’ from now on. It’ll keep him humble.”
