"You should meet my friend," Darkfire said, speaking to the two pretty girls standing in front of him. "He's a master swordsman from the east."
Arran groaned in discomfort. He was sitting in a chair in the tavern, trying very hard not to be noticed as he drank his ale.
The entire night had been like this. They had already visited a handful of taverns, each filled with young people who were hoping to join the Shadowflame Society, and in each tavern, the story was much the same.
The moment they entered, the girls' eyes would turn toward Darkfire's handsome face. To Arran, it was like watching moths being drawn to a lantern — girls would constantly approach Darkfire, adoring smiles on their faces, giggling as they spoke to him.
Darkfire, seemingly intent on being a good friend, kept trying to steer girls Arran's way, talking up his martial prowess and exotic origins.
Although
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Forbidden Sphere Chapter 72
When they returned to Darkfire's mansion, Arran finally got a look at how vast the place was. With over two dozen bedrooms, a library, several studies, and not one but two great dining halls, the mansion was clearly designed for to house dozens of people.And yet, Darkfire lived there by himself, without even servants to look after it.Moreover, from the state of the place, it was clear that Darkfire wasn't much of a decorator. If the mansion hadn't been clean and mostly free of dust, Arran could easily have believed it to be abandoned."You can take any room you want," Darkfire said. "Other than my bedroom, I don't really use the place much.""Then why get something so big?" Arran asked."The field outside is great for training," Darkfire replied with a grin.Arran picked out a large bedroom on the second floor, with a good view of the city and a massive bed
Forbidden Sphere Chapter 73
When Arran looked, he saw that one of the black-robed Shadowblood novices had jumped into the arena, sword already drawn.It was a brown-haired young man, tall and with an athletic build. He had an eager look on his face, bordering on manic, his eyes shining with lust for battle."You're trying to build a name fighting only weaklings? Pathetic! Try fighting me, instead! Or are you afraid?"It was clear that the Shadowblood novice was trying to goad Arran into attacking him, but Arran wouldn't fall for it just yet — if he was going to have a real fight, he wanted something to show for his troubles."What's in it for me?" Arran responded, keeping his voice calm despite the situation. "If I defeat you, what do I get?""You think you have a chance of defeating me?" The Shadowflame novice sneered at the suggestion. "Fine. If you win, you can have my sword."
Forbidden Sphere Chapter 74
The group of Shadowblood novices looked at the woman with some hesitation. Even if she was dressed simply, her calm confidence even when faced with mages suggested that she wasn't just a random person."Who are you?" one of them finally asked, a young woman with large eyes and a pouting face."Who are you to ask?" the woman replied."I'm a member of the Shadowflame So—" the novice began."You're a novice," the woman interrupted her. "A novice who mistakenly believes he has enough status to impress others. "The young novice looked at her angrily, but still, she held her tongue, wary of the woman's identity and status."Well?" the woman said, with a cold look at the group of novices."Well what?" the novice said, some uncertainty in her voice."Why are your insipid little faces still staring at me?" The woman's v
Forbidden Sphere Chapter 75
"Stupid?" Arran gave the woman an annoyed look. "What the hell was I supposed to do? Let that bastard kill me?"Lady Ellara shook her head. "Of course you had to defend yourself. But did you really have to cripple him?""If I hadn't, he would have been back in the fight a moment later," Arran said."But you were stronger than him," she replied. "Even if he got up again, wouldn't the result have been the same?""Stronger? Me?" Arran let out a mirthless laugh. "The moment he began to use magic, I was only a single mistake away from death. You're a mage, how could you not see that?""I'm not a mage," Lady Ellara said. "I'm just the Governor's sister. There's not a thing I could have done if they had decided to attack, although I'm sure my brother would have sent them a strongly worded letter had they killed me."At this, Arran frowned, finally understanding the
Forbidden Sphere Chapter 76
After Arran and Darkfire left the Governor's office, a servant escorted them to the guest quarters, which turned out to be an otherwise empty building with a handful of bedrooms, a dining room, a sitting room, and several bathrooms.Once they arrived, several other servants brought them food and drinks, then departed, leaving the two of them alone in the dining room.For some time, Arran and Darkfire sat in silence, eating their meals while drinking the Governor's fine wines.Finally, Darkfire spoke."You can use magic," he said, a complicated expression on his face."I can," Arran replied."You didn't tell me."Even if Darkfire didn't sound angry, Arran could hear some disappointment in his voice, and he knew Darkfire's trust had been hurt by Arran's failure to tell him earlier."I would have told you," Arran said, "
Forbidden Sphere Chapter 77
"You can help?" Darkfire gave Arran a doubtful look. "With my Realm?""I can," Arran said confidently. "Just wait a moment…"It didn't take him long to find one of the Realm Opening Pills he had left in his void bags, and after taking it out, he held it up between his fingers."Know what this is?"At once, Darkfire's eyes went wide. "Is that… a Realm Opening Pill?!""You're familiar with them?""I know they're used to open Realms," Darkfire said, his eyes focused on the pill as if it was a precious gem. "I've never seen one with my own eyes, though.""It's yours if you want it," Arran told him. "With that, you should be able to open your Realm tonight."An astonished look came over Darkfire's face, and for several moments, he said nothing "I can't accept it," he finally said, his expression pained. "It's
Forbidden Sphere Chapter 78
"You did what?!" Darkfire's stared at Arran in disbelief."I took ten of the pills," Arran said again. "At the same time."They sat on the top of a hill about a mile from the estate, taking a short break from training. Ever since Darkfire had opened his Realms two weeks earlier, he had trained relentlessly, with Arran helping as best he could."What the hell made you think that was a good idea?!" Darkfire looked like he had just seen a goat sprout wings and fly up into the sky."It was either that, or get killed by an Archmage," Arran said, shrugging. "At least the pills gave me a chance.""And you survived.""Clearly."His shocked expression finally easing, Darkfire burst into laughter. "That Archmage must've had quite the look on his face, being defeated by a novice.""Initiate," Arran corrected him. "I only learned
Forbidden Sphere Chapter 79
As Arran waited for the group to reach them, his only comfort was that there was no immediate attack.But then, he realized that there was no reason for them to attack straight away. Even if the woman was completely powerless — something he strongly doubted — the novices were strong enough to not need surprise attacks against Darkfire and himself.With some luck, he would be able to take one of them in a fair fight. If Darkfire managed to keep another busy long enough for Arran to finish the first, perhaps they could barely defeat two of the novices — and even that would require a great deal of luck.But now, there were five Shadowblood novices before them, not counting the crippled one. There simply was no amount of luck that would allow them to overcome those odds.They waited in silence, neither Darkfire nor Arran feeling the need to speak. Whatever was going to happen, they woul