Chapter 103: Returning to Shadowleaf Village
"Leader, will I also get potions after I advance to the next rank?" David asked with a hopeful look.
"I will give you the same reward if you can break through to 2-star in less than four months." Aria agreed right away.
"I will do my best!" David said with determination in his eyes.
"Alright. I will return to my office now. Inform Cassandra if you need something." After saying that, Aria left.
"So, do you guys want to continue absorbing beast cores or train with me?" Cassandra gave them a choice.
"We will train with you, instructor." Lily and Virelia answered in unison.
"I will continue to absorb the beast cores." David was eyeing Aria’s reward, so he chose to skip training.
"Me too." Elara wanted to break through to 2-star as quickly as possible.
Cassandra shifted her gaze to Ren. "What about you, Ren?"
"I want to master the Lightning Cloak spell book." Ren replied.
Cassandra returned her attention to Lily and Virelia. "Let’s go over there."
"Instructor, what will we learn today?" Lily moved closer to Cassandra.
"We will be sparring." Cassandra answered. "This time, your opponent is me. If you manage to hit me, I will give you a reward."
"I will hit you for sure!" Lily’s enthusiasm suddenly increased.
"It won’t be easy." Cassandra grinned.
While Elara and David were absorbing their beast cores, Ren sat on the stone chair and read the Lightning Cloak spell book.
The moment he focused on it, everything around him seemed to fade away. He couldn’t even hear the sounds of their sparring, as if they were in a completely different place.
’It’s similar to the formation I used to cover my body with lightning.’
He flipped the page.
After he studied the magic circle, he finally understood why his own magic had attacked him.
’I see.’
He nodded slightly.
"Let me try it." He rose from his seat and activated the formation.
Unfortunately, it didn’t work as he expected.
’Where did it go wrong?’
He sat back in his seat and studied the magic circle again.
At 12:10 pm, they had lunch together.
After eating, David and Elara continued absorbing beast cores while Lily and Virelia went out to buy snacks.
Cassandra didn’t train them anymore, since she had work that needed to be done.
At 05:00 pm, they went home.
----
Time went by quickly and without realizing it, it had been a week since Ren’s Beast Transformation class had broken through to 2-star.
During these past seven days, many things happened.
First, they completed one quest. Second, they held a small party for Lily’s birthday. Third, Ren mastered the Lightning Cloak magic.
Fourth, Ren and Veronica began working on the Lightning Roar skill, but they had to pause since she needed to leave the city for business.
And lastly, Elara kept feeling uneasy.
She didn’t know what was going on, but she could not shake that feeling as if something was telling her to return to her hometown immediately.
"Are you feeling uneasy again?" Ren asked.
Ren and Elara were eating ice cream at the convenience store’s outdoor seating area. He wanted to improve her mood by taking her on a night walk, but it didn’t seem to work.
"Yes." Elara nodded.
"Then, let’s meet Instructor Cassandra tomorrow morning. Let’s ask her to send us to your village using a bird mount." He suggested it because it would help them reach her hometown faster.
"Re-really?" A spark of happiness appeared in her heart.
"Yes." He replied as he smiled. "Let’s hope nothing bad happens to your mother and the village."
"I hope so." Elara replied.
Shortly after that, they went home.
That night, he stayed with her because he knew she needed someone by her side.
----
Aether Organization, Ren’s Private Training Ground.
"Elara, what’s wrong?" Lily’s expression became worried the moment she saw Elara.
"Did someone hurt you?" David approached her. "Who is it? I will beat him and make him apologize to you."
Elara shook her head quickly.
"Then, what is it?" Lily asked. "Did you eat something that upset your stomach?"
Elara shook her head once more.
David and Lily instantly turned to Ren.
The corner of Ren’s lips twitched.
"It-it’s not Ren." Elara explained to avoid misunderstanding. "I...I’m feeling uneasy, like something bad will happen to my family or village."
"I see." Lily finally understood the reason.
When David was about to say something, Cassandra stepped into the private training ground.
"What are you guys doing?" Cassandra came with two bags full of snacks.
"Instructor, Elara is feeling uneasy." Lily explained.
Cassandra put the snacks on the stone table and sat down. "Feeling uneasy?"
"Instructor, can you send Elara and me to her hometown using a bird mount?" Ren told her that her village was deep in the forest, so cars could not reach it.
"Let me call our leader." Cassandra had no authority to decide that, so she needed to ask Aria first.
A moment later, she hung up the phone.
"Leader said all the bird mounts are already in use today," Cassandra said. "They will be available tomorrow, so I can only send you then. How is it?"
Ren didn’t answer immediately and turned to Elara.
Even though he said nothing, Elara knew what he had in mind. "Alright."
"Then, we will depart tomorrow morning." Cassandra rose to her feet. "Alright, let’s start our training now."
Ren and the others nodded.
After practicing for about four hours, they stopped and had lunch together.
At 02:40 pm, Ren and Elara left to buy an offensive Light spell book for her mother.
Since they didn’t have much money, and the Light element had fewer offensive spells than other elements, they only managed to buy one.
Once they arrived home, they took a shower and had dinner outside.
They returned home around 10:00 pm.
Like yesterday, Ren slept in her room.
Even though a feeling of unease still lingered in her heart, she was able to sleep soundly because he was with her, and they slept while holding hands.
That night, the duo shared a beautiful dream, as if they were connected through their hands.
----
Aether Organization, Courtyard.
"Elara, please come back soon." Lily was already used to them being together every day, so she was suddenly filled with sadness.
"Un." Elara nodded. "I will return once I’m sure they are safe."
"Little brother, make sure you protect her and help her family if they are in danger." Virelia wanted Elara to return safely without any harm.
"I will." They were important to him, so Ren would never let anyone hurt them.
"Elara, don’t forget to bring some of your local snacks." David desired to try her hometown food.
"Alright." Elara agreed.
Shortly after that, a huge bird descended from the sky.
Once it landed on the ground, Cassandra said, "Ren, Elara, get on. We are leaving now."
The duo immediately jumped onto the bird.
"Be careful on the way!" Lily and the others shouted as they waved their hands.
"We will be back soon!" Ren and Elara waved back at them.
Then, Cassandra ordered the bird to fly toward Elara’s village.
Since the bird was so fast, they got close to their destination in just a few hours.
"Your hometown is located in a deep, dense forest?" Cassandra was startled.
She had thought her village was just in a remote rural area that could not be reached by a vehicle.
It turned out to be deep in a dense forest.
"Yes." Elara was not surprised by her reaction.
"Why didn’t your people move to the city? Isn’t it dangerous to live here?" Cassandra could tell that there were many magical beasts in the forest.
"We like living there." Elara replied.
Cassandra suddenly recalled Elara’s performance during the exam.
’No wonder she was not nervous or afraid. She must have been used to fighting magical creatures.’
She shifted her gaze to Ren.
’Then, what about him?’
Based on the information, he grew up in an orphanage, so his fighting experience shouldn’t be as much as Elara’s.
But in reality, he was much better than her in everything, as if he were a powerful human who had been reborn.
’Was he born destined to stand at the top?’
A question flashed through her mind.
When Ren noticed her gaze, he smiled softly. "What’s wrong, Instructor? Is there something on my face?"
Cassandra tapped his shoulder and grinned happily. "Just don’t forget that I’m your instructor."
"Huh?" He tilted his head in confusion.
’What is she thinking about?’
He added in mind.
At the same time, Daniel and Sean were guarding the entrance gate. They didn’t know that Elara was coming home because they could not contact each other.
"Daniel, should we have a drink together at my house tonight?" Sean asked.
"Oh! Did you brew beer again?" Daniel didn’t answer immediately.
"Yeah!" Sean replied. "So, how is it?"
"Sure!" Daniel agreed. "I will come to your pla-"
He stopped his words halfway when he spotted a massive bird flying toward them.
"A magical beast?" The distance was still far, so Daniel could not see Ren and the others.
"I will ring the bell now." The size was so big, so Sean believed it was a dangerous beast.
Before Sean left, Daniel noticed something on top of it. "Wait! It seems like there are people on that bird."
"People?" Sean squinted his eyes to get a better look. "Who are they?"
A moment later, Daniel could see them clearly.
"It’s Ren and Elara!" Daniel pointed at them happily.
"It’s them! They are back!" Sean was also delighted.