Kane patiently waited in line while quietly observing around. He noticed that most of the people having their evaluation seemed to be young. He thought that maybe the region valued the experience so many youths would go to the hunter’s guild to gain experience in hunting in the lower-ranked dungeons.
“You seemed younger than me. High school students are not allowed to enter dungeons, even here.” The man who stood in front of him, who seemed to be in his early thirties, asked Kane.
“But I’m no longer a high school student,” Kane muttered as he tried to ignore the man who seemed to be looking down on him. He was tall for his age so why did that person mistake him for a high school student?
“Did you stop studying? The young ones should really stop acting recklessly. How could you people abandon your education and jump off to dungeons that could not even guarantee your safety?” The man shook his head in disappointment.
While Kane was waiting, he noticed that Clay had been typing on his phone with a serious expression. He looked at the man and patted his shoulder.“If you have work to do, you can go now. I will wait here for my ID then I’ll try to familiarize myself with the place.”“Are you sure you’ll be fine? I’ll come to pick you up later after I finish what I have to do,” Clay insisted but Kane shook his head.“There’s no need for that. I can go home on my own.” Kane smirked. “I just need to take the bus and get off on Maple St. After that, I can walk my way to the apartment.”“It seemed like you’ll be fine even without me.” Clay gave in. “But if you need me don’t hesitate to call me, okay?”“Sure thing.”Clay walked out of the building and Kane just covered his head with his hood. He did not want the attention that was on him so it w
Clay went to his apartment the next day and dragged him out. He informed him about the rookie training but the latter just became more eager when he heard about it.“Why do I need to come out of my apartment when I need to prepare for the rookie training?” Kane asked as he unwillingly followed Clay and entered his car.“It’s because you need to know about this before you leave for the rookie training. You still need to train to get used to your ability right?” Clay started the engine of the car and they took off.He started explaining to Kane about the place where they were going. “It was a place that your uncle prepared for the hunters contracted by the branch of AC here in the southwest region. Since there was no one using the place, that would be your secret training place. If you want to be prepared for the training, you should at least train your ability, right?”Kane kept his silence. Though he did not want
“Now try to control your speed by moving fast then slow,” Clay ordered Kane and the latter tried to do just what the man asked him to do.Kane used varying speeds as he walked closer to Clay. It was hard at first but because he had been practicing for two hours to use his mana to speed up and slow down, he was slowly getting the hang of it. He used full speed and then came to a full stop which almost made him tumble down. He let out a sigh of relief as soon as he got back his balance.“You did it!” Clay laughed as he patted Kane’s back. “Now you’ll survive the dungeon no matter what happens.”“What are you talking about?” Kane glared at him. “The rookie dungeon was supposed to be easy and I am an S-Class.”“Don’t let that Class get into your head, Kane. No matter how strong you are and no matter how harmless a dungeon could be, we can never tell what might happen. We just
Monday came and Kane was picked up by Clay that morning. Kane slept in the car since he had been exhausted from training in the secret place the day before. He had to be alert and ready inside the dungeon so he needed all the rest that he could take.“We’re here.” Clay slightly shook Kane’s shoulder to wake him up. He opened the car door and walked out of the car to help Kane bring out his things. “This is the inn that you asked for a reservation.”Kane nodded his head as he looked at the building. “Thanks.”Clay patter Kane’s shoulder and smiled at the young man. “You’re going to do well today and for the next 6 days. Call me as soon as you finished with the rookie training.”Kane nodded his head and bid Clay goodbye before he entered the inn. He showed his hunter ID to the receptionist and the young lady smiled as she confirmed.“You can go to room 201.”Ka
Kane went home dejected. Though he had a learning experience, he regretted that he made the wrong choice at such a crucial moment. Cyrus was right. If that was not for training, he would have died. Not just him, he would have dragged the others to their death as well. He should not be complacent that his skill training was going well. The dungeons were a lot more dangerous than he thought. He went directly to the bathroom to wash since his body was sticky from the sweat and the dust that came from the dungeon. Under the shower, he visualized the things he did and thought of the actions that he should have taken. Instead of splitting the hatchling into two, he should have shattered it to pieces. However, he was not sure if he was strong enough to do something to that extent. Once again, he gathered his mana and spread it throughout his body. He could feel his mana circulating but he really felt as if something was missing. He felt like a chick struggling to brea
Kane went to the dungeon earlier than the set time because he wanted to circulate his mana and try to make his core bigger. According to an article that he read on the internet, some mana users had the ability to make their core bigger—especially those who had abilities that required higher mana consumption.He sat behind a rock and sat in a lotus position. With his eyes closed, he tracked the mana circulating his body and guided its flow so that it would pass through all his mana channels. He could feel the contradictory coolness of the mana that made him feel warm within.He had a hard time trying to keep the flow going. But with persistence, Kane finally finished guiding his mana flow all throughout his body at least once. When he was about to try again, he heard Mila’s voice coming towards the entrance of the dungeon.“I’m a little late from the call time, but why is there no one here?”Kane opened his eyes and stood up.
As they go deeper into the forest, the stronger the pack that they encountered. They all had the chance to test how effective their abilities were when it came to teamwork and individual strength. Kane realized that maybe he was just a big fish in a small pond, or maybe he was afraid of the monster within him and he was unconsciously restraining himself. No matter what his reason could be, it would not erase the fact that his performance was unsatisfactory by his own standards. He was able to defeat the wolves, but he had to exert more effort compared to when he killed the assassins sent for him. “Is this the last pack?” One of the rookies asked when he saw another pack surrounding them. In front of the pack was a wolf bigger than the others and it had a moon sign on its forehead. Kane concluded that the bigger wolf must be the alpha and the others along with it were all stronger than those wolves that they hunted before. “Be careful of the alpha wolf
“The next dungeon would be a graveyard,” Cyrus announced as soon as all of them arrived at the dungeon entrance.The rookies looked at each other with wide eyes. They were about to enter a graveyard dungeon but they seemed to be excited instead of being afraid. They were about to face the undead instead of the normal monsters, how could they be excited?Mila signaled that they would enter the dungeon so the rookies followed as soon as she entered. They were all silent when it was suddenly dark as soon as they were inside. The moon shone bright and its light reflected on the granite gravestones.“This is creepy…” One of the rookies mumbled as they all looked around.As if on cue, the ground started shaking and the gravestones cracked. The shaking ground caused the pavement to crack open and the undead started coming out of their graves.Kane thought that the undead would look like normal human beings or maybe zombies b
Dio decided to spend his last day in Arnea City in a very productive way-- to stay inside his room and sleep for a day. He was set to do it though Blur had been whining to go around the city before they leave.He had no choice but to go with Blur or else, he would keep chanting on his head. His hands were inside his pocket while blur was on to of his head as they strode along the market streets.‘Are you having fun?’ He asked his bond through telepathy.‘I think it would be more fun if I could eat some meat.’Dio could imagine his bond grinning from ear to ear when he entered a tavern. “Please give me 4 sets of meat dishes. Just pick the best selling ones.”‘Dio, are you rich?’ Blur’s voice sounded excited as he looked around.‘Maybe? My grandfather left me a lot of money.’He rested his head on the table and closed his eyes. He just wanted a peaceful sleep but he was being push around by a pet. Since when did he become a pushover?‘I’m not your pet.’“Yeah. Whatever,” he mumbled agai
“Dio. . .”The voice that he knew so much called out to him. He smiled as he held his mother’s hand and gently tugged her dress. “Mother, I saw a very beautiful flower over there!”His mother let out a soft laugh before following his lead. They stopped at the corner of the garden then the he pointed at the budding flower.“Look at how small it is, mother!” He was delighted to show it to her and he was happier when her mother tousled his hair.“It’s a beautiful budding flower, just like Dio.” His mother gave him a gentle smile.His brows furrowed in curiosity. “Like me?”His mother nodded. “Just like Dio, this flower will grow to be amazing.”“Will I be someone amazing when I grow up, Mother?”“Of course. Dio was born to be someone strong and amazing, after all.” His mother gently touched his cheek. “Will you promise me that you’ll be someone whom the weak can depend on?”He smiled cheerfully. “Of course, Mother. I’ll grow strong to be someone who will take the side of the weak and not
“Uhmm.” The lady fidgeted before she took the courage to hold the hem of Dio’s shirt. “Can I at least know your name? I am Cassandra, the youngest daughter of Duke Riva.”The sun was already up and they were nearing the entrance where the gates were located. Cassandra wanted to know the name of her savior before they depart. She wanted to make sure that she would be able to repay him if ever they would meet again.“My name is Dio, my lady.” Dio looked towards the direction of the western gates where knights were coming back and forth. “Perhaps, did you run away from your knights?”Cassandra blushed as she looked down in embarrassment. “Will you keep it a secret?”Dio nodded. “I guess this is where we depart.” He turned towards the gate to Arnea and started walking but he stopped when Cassandra tugged on his shirt.“T-thank you for saving and protecting me.”Dio looked back and stared at her for a while. “You are quite timid for a noble.”“Do you need a reward? I could arrange for it.”
After the topic of his light-colored hair, an awkward silence ensued between the two of them as they walked towards the entrance not knowing that a disaster was waiting to fall upon them. Unfortunately, even though the lady basilisk let them go; another one was waiting right around corner. Without making a noise, the smaller basilisk which happened to be the younger brother of the lady basilisk that guarded the mountain bit Dio on his shoulder.“Argh!” Dio groaned in pain when he failed to dodge the surprise attack. He immediately pulled her to the other side to evade the serpent-like beast.Dio held his bleeding shoulder and the lady’s hand trembled in fear as she panicked not knowing what to do. Dio gritted his teeth, the pain coming from the clash between the basilisk’s venom and his healing abilities made him feel wobbly.“W-what should I do?” The lady exclaimed as she tried to wipe Dio’s blood as they ran.“Calm down,” Dio said in a hushed voice as he pulled her to hide behind a
After jumping off the tree, Dio followed the direction of the voice until she saw a lady who seemed to be the same age as him. She was slowly dragging herself backwards as the basilisk in front of her slowly moved forward.“Help me… Help me… Help me…” The girl continued to mumble.Dio stared at the girl who was no more less than a noble. Her ripped dress looked like something that was used to be on display at the capital’s boutiques, her fair white skin which was touched with shallow cuts probably caused by the branches when she ran, and her red hair with a gray hue signified that she was indeed a noble lady.He shook his head when she saw how the lady’s body trembled in fear but still managed to contain it in front of an S-class beast before he stepped out to show himself.“Excuse me,” he said to catch the attention of the lady as well as the basilisk.The lady probably noticed him since his voice was loud enough to resonate in the area. Her eyes grew wide as she lifted her hands to
It took Dio a few more days to collect himself. Knowing fully well that he wouldn’t die easily unless he commit suicide, he decided to just continue what he had been doing-- walking without moving forward. Besides, it wasn’t that bad to comply with his grandfather’s last request: live on.Dio found himself staring at his grandfather’s grave once again. This time, he was neat-looking and well prepped. Unlike the past days when his body hasn’t been washed and covered with sweat, dirt and tears.“Should I go on an adventure?” He stood up and put his hands on his pocket. It was more of a question for himself than to Archie. Dio lost motivation to continue living but he remembered his grandfather’s words.“I need to get moving, Gramps. Please rest in peace.” He bowed in a ninety-degree posture before leaving. As he turned his back on his grave, he felt a pang in his chest. Just the mere thought of leaving the place where he spent his days with his grandfather tore his heart into pieces.He
Dio opened his eyes and he saw the dark sky above him. He looked around and realized that he was still at the alley where the boys left him. He touched his side and felt disappointed when he felt the dried blood but the stab wound was completely healed.His restoration ability was something that he inherited from his mother. It would be hard to kill him unless his heart or brain was crushed or he suffered from too much blood loss that his restoration wouldn’t be able to keep up. Though they can heal and regenerate, they could still feel the pain.“What a lousy bunch. They couldn’t even do a good job of killing me,” he mumbled as he stood up. His stomach grumbled when he smelled the aroma of grilled meat just right outside the alley. He sighed before moving his feet and walked towards the store.“2 chicken skewers, please.” He took out 4 copper coins from his space ring and gave it to the vendor. The vendor gave him his order and he went on his way. Once again, he let his feet walk aim
Dio threw the shovel to the side after he finished burying his grandfather’s remains. He sat on the ground with his legs crossed as he stared at his grandfather’s tomb. He played with the ring on his finger, the last thing that his grandfather gave him, as he sighed repeatedly.“Heir apparent.” He sighed after reading the letters carved into the ring. If it was the reason why his grandfather wanted him to live on, then it would be useless. He threw everything away that day and nothing was left for him to live for.He poured mana onto the ring and a magic circle appeared in front of him. He already expected that it would be a space ring, yet his lips curved upwards when he realized that he was right. He peeked at the contents of the dimension storage and he shook his head in disbelief. In the end, his grandfather prepared everything for him to live a good life. It was obvious with the stack of gold and jewelries that he found inside as well as the amount of high-quality potions that he
While Dio was on an adventure with Matt, Archie was preparing something. He was putting the gold bars he collected for more than eight years to a spatial bag. Then he moved to the medicine cabinet and moved the highest quality magic and health potions as well. After putting a couple more items necessary for survival he then entered his room and opened a hidden door under his bed. He opened a chest full of magic crystals and lastly, he took a twin dagger hidden in the chest and moved them all to the bag. He opened his space ring and put the bag in there with a sigh.“This should be enough,” he mumbled as he put the ring on his pinky finger.He went back to the store when he heard a sudden knock.“I hope you’re ready.”“I’ve been waiting for you.” Archie let out a dark smile.“Dio!” Matt called out to the kid who was suddenly attack by a canis. They were just a few meters away from the heart of the forest when a pack of canis attacked them.Matt kicked a small canis who stood on his way