Aric’s mind stirred and once again, he found himself lying under the shade of a familiar tree. Under the branches of this tree, he felt safe. He wasn’t sure if anything here was real or not.

  No, that wasn’t it either. He knew it was real… but not in the sense that he could ever travel there. Perhaps Guardians were made of something else and could exist on pnes humans couldn’t. Humans were meant to exist within the Continent of Valeria on a physical pne governed by tyrannical ws that bound them to it.

  After his st conversation with his guardian regarding this pce, he saw it in a different light. It was even more bizarre to think his mind was able to project him into this world while his body rested.

  A chuckle filled the air, rousing him from his idle thoughts. He sat up and stared at a beautiful girl wearing a yellow sundress. She was his guardian… and not even the innocent visage she took on right now would make him think otherwise.

  Surprisingly, it wasn’t odd for him to think of the innocent girl as his battle-hardy guardian. Perhaps it was her voice. Identical to Alia’s, yet younger, and the fact that he’d been on the receiving end of being scolded by that voice far too many times to ever see her as anything but the stalwart knight.

  “You forced me to sleep.”

  “You wouldn’t have slept otherwise,” the girl responded.

  “Can I at least continue using Thomper’s power to watch over my friends?” the boy asked the girl.

  She thought about it for a bit before sighing, “It’s not the kind of sleep I would have wanted…” she sighed, “…but it’s better than you constantly fighting me.”

  She sat beside him and got close. The air in front of them shifted and took on various scenes, all floating in small rectangur boxes. Surprisingly, instead of paying attention to one of them at a time, Aric found himself capable of witnessing them all at once.

  One particur image caught his attention. It showed a rather peculiar pair walking in the more affluent parts of Melbourne. Here, not only did buildings grow tall, but the walls around them also did.

  Gates were not a common concept especially when anyone above the Fifth Level of the Gss Temper Rank could leap over one easily. What made these houses stand apart even more were the protective magical barriers that shimmered around them.

  Here, fewer people walked the streets and even those who did so went about their business in a hurry.

  The only people that could be seen taking their time in this part of Melbourne were rich people with more money than they knew what to use it for, as well as bickering couples like the pair Aric was currently watching with a small smile on his sleeping face.

  “Why do I have to help you?” Scarlett yelled out, clearly exasperated.

  “I’ve told you this ten times already. Alistair wants to do this so I’m helping him. You’re the only one that can help me… so let’s get moving. I don’t like what I heard from the guild regarding this… Lucy fellow though but that boy is more stubborn than that of a Two-Headed Boar,” the man argued.

  “Yes, Alistair is stubborn,” the girl hissed, “But if you haven’t noticed, I don’t like you. So why should I help you?”

  Leon furrowed his eyebrows and inched in closer to the girl, “Hate me all you want. I like it better that way considering assassins rank third on the list of types of humans I hate,” Leon growled.

  “You have a list? Someone has issues.” the girl giggled. When Leon didn’t humour her, she sighed, “Look! I’d like to help you out but just like you, those creepy women at the Sisters of Fragrance hate my guts. You’re wasting your time.”

  “Not even to help Alistair,” the man tried again.

  Scarlett froze in her steps and went quiet. She seemed to re-evaluate the situation now that Alistair’s name had been mentioned. After a few moments, she muttered some curses under her breath, “They kick us out and this whole—whatever this is, ends.”

  Leon smiled, “There we go.”

  Scarlett shook her head and turned in the direction of the rge building. The chills she’d got from the st time she came here were returning to her. Not to mention the fact that she didn’t even have Alistair with her this time.

  Lucy seemed to have a soft spot for the boy, which meant this visit could either go well… or very badly.

  They allowed themselves into the establishment where the girl started taking out her weapons. A woman dressed in a neat maid outfit greeted them at the door, “What would you like to buy? Flowers or Ingredients?”

  “We’re here to see a girl named Lucy. Tell her we’re friends of Alistair,” Scarlett spoke without sparing the woman a gnce.

  “I’m afraid she’s not here. Go to Purification Tower. You’ll find her there. I wouldn’t go if I were you though. The Matriarch personally oversees that event… and she’s not very kind to strangers,” the woman expined with a dark expression, having lost all manner of customer care in her demeanour.

  “What more can you tell us about this… Matriarch?” Leon suddenly spoke.

  “Only that you should never have gotten yourselves involved with Lucy in the first pce,” the woman said in a cold tone, “You may pack your weapons… and leave.”

  Scarlett pced her weapons back to where they had been and turned for the door when she heard Leon add, “Oh, you’ve got to be joking! That wasn’t even my question. Listen, we don’t want any trouble. We just need to know if there is anything we can do to get into the Matriarch’s good graces.”

  The helper let out a deep sigh, “This is a Merchant city. The only thing that means anything here is...”

  “Profit.”

  “Yes. And your friend, Aric, already dangled it in front of her,” the woman responded before she turned and left.

  Scarlett stared at Leon with a grin, “Not bad! You’re almost as good at negotiations as Alistair is.”

  “Alistair is good at negotiations?”

  “You just heard what he did, didn’t you?” the girl mused, “Negotiations are hardest with people you’ve never met so I can say he’s fairly good.”

  Leon nodded with a mixture of pride and surprise in his face as the two exited the Sisters of Fragrance, “So, where is this Purification Tower??

  “You’re not being serious?” the girl groaned.

  “Oh, I’m dead serious.”

  With a loud groan, the girl turned and started leading the way to the Purification Tower. In hindsight, she wanted to remain within the company of this man even though his presence turned her guts.

  He was annoying and getting rid of him was as easy as telling him to look for the highest structure in all of Melbourne and that would be the Purification Tower. Mounted on a high outcropping of rock that formed the edge of the foot of the Barren Mountain, the tower overlooked everything in Melbourne.

  But Scarlett didn’t say all this. Instead, she stared at the man through her periphery, “Can I ask you something?”

  “No.”

  “Why were there so many demons out there? I’ve honestly never seen so many demons. I didn’t even know there could be that many demons in one pce,” the girl asked regardless of what the man had to say.

  Leon sighed deeply and gave it some thought. He’d experienced something simir, unlike the girl. That time, it had also been a swarm of demons going after Aric. He couldn’t gauge how many they’d been because of how conveniently SwiftWind dealt with most of them but they had certainly been more demons than the occasional twos and threes adventurers were used to.

  Of course, the man couldn’t just say the demons were there because of Aric and his S-css guardian. Even he didn’t know if that was the truth. Since when did demons care about powerful guardians? He didn’t even know if all these anomalies had something to do with Aric. S-css guardians weren’t some new phenomenon.

  “It’s rare for demons to do that and it could happen for any number of reasons. They could have been attracted by the scent of a powerful soul or many unprotected souls. They could have been chased from their previous hunting grounds by something much more powerful… or they could have found themselves there as a result of hunting. I’m sure there are other reasons for demons to gang up like that. I’m not a Seeker, so I don’t know the details,” the man responded with a sigh.

  It wasn’t long before the pair made it to the most elevated structure in the whole of Melbourne, the Purification Tower.

  ………………………

  The Purification Tower was an odd structure, to say the least. Crystals pulsing with aether were fitted into its very walls while portraits of a beautiful woman holding a pair of scales—the Consteltion of Bance. These portraits covered every possible space in such a frantic manner that it looked almost desperate.

  A few sculptures could be seen here and there, covering the pce in a sacred religious aura that sent chills down sleeping Aric’s spine. The strange combination of aether crystals in the walls were enough to make the pce hum with aether while giving its visitors chills at the same time.

  Furthermore, the women that used this tower were fully dressed in white gowns that came with silk veils that covered their heads completely and left only a slit for the eyes.

  It was almost time for the Purification Ritual, so the wandering pair only managed to catch a glimpse of one of these women rushing to the top of the tower, not even bothering to stop and greet them.

  LionHeart only caught a glimpse of the woman but it was enough to make him conclude a few things. From what LionHeart saw of the woman, he could tell she didn’t know the definition of work. Exceedingly soft hands, a gait free of the rules of battle and a carefree air about her. Such was the quality of life a Holy Mage was availed in some pces.

  On the other hand, the man was more inclined to think it all came with the territory demanded by their rarity. A bnket of awkwardness covered the sacred tower. It was easy to get chills in that building.

  Then again, this level of weirdness was expected of a pce where Holy Magic was practised. After all, it was the one type of magic that mages found most elusive. It was even said that the Consteltion of Bance was the one in charge of deciding who was allowed to use Holy Magic… and to what extent.

  It was the only kind of magic that didn’t follow the same rules as every other. Training was not guaranteed to make one stronger and no one individual controlled how strong they could get when it came to Holy Magic.

  It was why Holy Mages were so valued. So much so that it was the only ability that allowed an adventurer to easily advance to the Silver Rank.

  LionHeart didn’t know much about Lucy… but hearing that she was capable of using Holy Magic changed the situation. With this many demons on the loose, they needed Lucy for their adventuring party.

  “Security at the door was light, don’t you think?” Scarlett observed as they climbed the tower unattended.

  “This is not a part of the Sisters of Fragrance. Of course, security is…” LionHeart’s voice went still at the door to the top level. Standing before them was a pair of women dressed in the same outfits as the women who worked in the Sisters of Fragrance, “…I stand corrected.”

  …………………………

  The Top floor of the Purification Tower was built with no walls but pilrs that held up an opulently-designed roof. Powerful gems were embedded into the walls to provide the casters with the aether they needed to complete the ritual.

  Apart from Lucy, two other women in Melbourne were capable of performing Holy Magic. They were a duo whose lives were completely sponsored by the city. This pair stood off to the side, bickering with themselves as they waited for the sun to go down.

  Assets that they were, the women were obligated to become adventurers and awarded high ranks to help adventuring parties going on high-profile quests. Of course, they were also given so much protection against Aether Beasts that they never got to fight. When demons attacked, they simply flicked their wrists and were done with the only real threat adventurers were afraid of.

  Lucy wasn’t interested in getting to know them. Dressed in white robes as well, she looked off into the distance, paying more attention to the voice beside her.

  A woman dressed in bck stood beside her, obscured from the world by the white-haired girl’s Inborn Ability. Because it would seem as though she was talking to herself, she kept her face looking away from the two girls as she spoke to what would appear to be nothing to the girls.

  “Did you have to come with me? I’m not a child anymore,” the girl asked the woman to her side. Silence followed for a bit before the girl bit her lip and lowered her head, “Forgive me, Matriarch. I spoke out of turn.”

  There was a gentle sigh beside her, “You’ve grown so much bolder in the past few days. One day without supervision is all it took. You’re making me regret letting you become an adventurer at all.”

  “It won’t happen again,” the girl squirmed. Her fingers met and began fiddling nervously. All this, the Matriarch watched with a fair amount of curiosity.

  “Don’t get too attached to that boy. He’s only a pawn you’re using to get your pretty paws on that Storm Orb,” the woman replied.

  The girl nodded in response to the orders she was receiving. Her fingers stopped fiddling and the pained expression on her face lessened, if not just by a little.

  “You…! little girl. I haven’t seen you before. The name’s Naomi,” a voice suddenly interrupted the pair, drawing Lucy’s attention away from the Matriarch.

  Holding the sides of her white gown, Lucy bowed her head with respect, “My name is Lucy. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Naomi.”

  Naomi tilted her head. The three Holy Mages were covered from head to toe but her piercing green eyes were more than enough to send chills down the girl’s spine. They held so contempt that Lucy could imagine the contorted expression that no doubt marred the beautiful woman’s face, “You’re the Matriarch’s little bird, aren’t you?”

  The Matriarch, who was standing next to the girl looked at the one speaking to Lucy and scoffed, “Simpletons. They do this every year! Keeping a talented girl like you was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.”

  Naomi didn’t hear her… but she did notice Lucy’s reluctance to speak, “Answer me, bird!”

  Lucy shook her head, “I work for the Matriarch, yes… but I wouldn’t call myself a bird.”

  Naomi nodded. Her voice gained a mischievous tone, “You’re right. You’re more like a caged little bird... Her little wings clipped off. Never allowed to fly.”

  The girl who’d been talking to Naomi approached with giggles, “Oh, stop it, Naomi. You don’t want to get on the Matriarch’s bad side.”

  Naomi ughed at this, “And what would the Matriarch do—send me her a warning letter in a bouquet of flowers?”

  At that point, the door opened to reveal a rge man and a girl whose presence made Lucy’s stomach turn. ‘What’s she doing here?’ she cursed mentally.

  “Isn’t that the assassin you spoke of?” the unseen woman standing beside Lucy spoke up with a hint of curiosity in her voice. Lucy nodded subtly in response to her words.

  “Who are you? Who let you in here?” Naomi turned to the new arrivals.

  “Oh, we have permission from the Guild Master. We’re looking for a girl called Lucy,” the big man spoke up to Naomi.

  Scarlett was less interested in Naomi as her eyes looked about. It wasn’t long before they nded on Lucy’s form. The girl was covered from head-to-toe… but somehow, Scarlett identified her.

  ‘Quiet. Silently watching? That’s got to be her,’ the girl thought to herself.

  “You know her?” Naomi sounded shocked.

  “Yes, we do. She’s an adventurer. Didn’t you know?” Scarlett smirked as she walked coolly past her.

  “You’re wrong. Only two Holy Mages are working with the Adventurer’s Guild and she’s… not one of them,” Naomi spat.

  “She’s new. It’s okay if you don’t know her though. It’s not information that’s given to everyone,” Scarlett added with a shrug as she finally reached the girl, “Leon?”

  Leon shook his head at her antics and walked past Naomi and on to Lucy. Standing to the girl’s side, the man bowed his head in respect to the space beside her and spoke gently, “And you must be the Matriarch. It’s an honour to meet you.”

  The tower grew quiet. Lucy’s eyes went wide with shock and she opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out. Instead, her eyes darted between the Matriarch and Leon in panic.

  Scarlett looked at Leon with an odd expression. Before she could say anything though, an alien sigh filled the air, “You’ve grown sloppy, girl.”

  “Forgive me…” Lucy started.

  Before she could continue apologizing, the woman raised her hand, silencing her, “You can let them see me. No use hiding my presence now.”

  In the next moment, dread filled the girls who’d been berating Lucy as they witnessed the most powerful woman in Melbourne materialize right before their eyes.