In the middle of the night - the one I spent in my room - someone knocked at my door.

“Who is it?” I asked through the closed door, as I couldn’t risk it - I didn’t have my regular gear and every other clothing revealed that I was a skeleton, thus, opening the door wide was out of the question.

Yet, I got no answer. I repeated myself, louder, yet once again to no avail. And so, I decided to extinguish the lights in my room and open the door carefully. Noone was there. Only a chest left right in front of my doorstep. Without waiting any longer, I pulled it in, locked my room once again, and looked inside.

It was new gear, the one which I was promised by Godric as he saw the state of my previous one. The armor was white, just as the one before, but the materials were clearly cheaper, it also lacked some of the ornaments.

Well, apparently I did drain their resources quite a lot and they couldn’t afford to keep on damaging another armor of that level for me. I knew I was unworthy of it. The costs of fixing damages I suffered were clearly more than the money I earned with clearing a single nest of goblins.

Hopefully, I won't need my previous gear during my next mission. I was meant to be but a scavenger - the backline of a marching attack force, standing far from the actual danger most of the time…

… thinking about this right now like that, it does leave a bad aftertaste in my mouth. To hide behind the people risking their lives, just feeding on the essence they left behind. That was… not the thing I would do. That was against my own rules and code. Still. I had to grit my teeth, keep my opinions and thoughts to myself and follow orders. In the end, I don’t want to cause more problems for Natasha. She already did vouch for me, and so, I need to return a favor and act like the most obedient pup in the pack. No matter how much I’d dislike it.

And so, I dressed up, pulling on breastplates, shin guards, boots, gauntlets, and everything else, putting on my helmet at the very end. I looked at myself in the mirror - one couldn’t tell a difference from my previous set without closer inspection. Then, one more time I looked into the chest and brought up a bastard sword and a large, heater shield, inspecting them closer.

The blade was simple, yet perfectly made. The handle seemed to be made perfectly for my grip, each and every finger found their way into their very own place, securing a strong, reliable grip. It was also balanced in a proper way. No matter if I swung or thrust, the blade never “dragged” me nor shook my balance.

The same went for the shield. It was a bit “too big” for my taste, slightly reducing the freedom of my moves, but provided unmatched protection - that I was sure.

But, good gear is the one you can fully trust - the one that has been tested in dozens of situations, and so, I decided to leave my room and enter the House’s training ground. In the dark of night only a huge moon was shining, just barely illuminating the area. The training ground was obviously empty, and so I didn’t need to limit myself. I went all out, dancing and prancing in my new gear battling imaginary enemies.

Losing my sense of time, I battled horde after horde, till the night became dawn and other recruits and knights started leaving their barracks. One of the more experienced knights looking at me only nodded and, while groaning, complained at other cadets and younger knights. I heard something about people getting lazy and that the best routine that keeps people alive is training and more training.

It was the day off, and so morning training and drills were not obligatory, still, as I saw the small group of bit more dedicated adventurers lining up, I decided to join them, skipping my “breakfast” with most of the fellow lions.

Again and again, people kept on mistaking that for dedication and self-discipline, while in fact… there was nothing else I could do. The whole morning I spent polishing my skill both as an individual and as a member of the squad, ending only an hour before noon, when I allowed myself to disappear in my room for an hour (pretending to take a rest and a meal), just to once again look for further assignments around the House. I didn’t need to search for long. Mages were always lacking hands to do manual work.

For three to four hours I was basically an errand boy for Friedrich and his assistants. Bring this, bring that. Call for someone to come over. Lift this. Hold this. Write down notes from our experiment. Seeing how “energetically” they worked and how much help they needed I was no longer surprised why other squads were rather unwilling to participate in mage’s activities.

“Thanks a lot, Alabaster, your help was priceless!” commander of the mages said, as he and his assistants dropped exhausted on their chairs as I was cleaning up the room and setting notes in order. “That's one way to say that I am a free labor force…” I allowed myself for an innocent joke, hoping that it would rather ease up the mood rather than offend my higher-ups. Guessing by their reactions, I wasn’t misunderstood here. “Oh, but we are paying you plenty! Isn’t the possibility to learn from, I will say immodestly, the best, a most precious reward one could hope for?” the captain said as I handed him over the notes. Right away he started re-reading them and adding comments on the side “... Also, if you could hurry up here, you should still make it on time to your classes with Maria, so chop-chop, little one.” “What do you mean by that, I should still have plenty of…” I look outside the window, noticing the sun slowly setting down “... time. Crap.” I sped up the clearing.

As soon as I was done, I bolted from the Friedrich private office and stormed through almost the entire House’s main building (which was huge) trying to get to the magic training room which was located on the completely opposite side of the House’s territory - the previous generation decided that it would be wisest to keep mage’s training as far from rest of the House’s facilities as possible, so there would be no side damages in building, people or research materials. And just because I agreed with this logic didn’t stop me from cursing loudly at whoever made that room design.

I jumped inside, slamming the door open as the sand in the small hourglass on the table was just finishing to fall. I pointed at it and with triumph in voice I yelled loudly.

“I made it!”

Maria chuckled hearing it.

“Good job, good job. Now, are you ready for another training session?” “NO!” “That’s what I wanted to hear!”

And then, she started tormenting me again, bombarding my mind with suggestions, orders, and visions of every kind and sort.

As I left the room in the late evening, feeling mentally violated, I hoped for some time to myself. I really wanted to just take a stroll under the moonlight, not wearing that heavy armor letting my bones bask in the cold breeze of the night…

Just then Ghost emerged from the shadows.

“Go to your room, leave your armor there and meet me here.”

That reminded me of the story my mother was telling me as I was a kid. The moral of the story was: be careful with what you wish for, or it may come true at the wrong time of the day in the form you didn’t want it to.

Right now, I wanted to ram my skull into the wall, cursing my luck.

My torment ended just before the dawn. I once again put my armor on, packed my things, and some food ration in my bag, just to pretend that I was just another normal, regular fellow human. As ready as every human being could be, I left my room heading towards the main gate of the House, waiting for an attack group to form.

In less than an hour, every assigned adventurer appeared, ready to move out.

“Ok, lads!...” Captain Godric yelled from a small platform looking upon all of us “... I know that you were supposed to have one more day off, but unfortunately, the forces of evil do not respect any holy vacation. No matter if it’s the day of the summer solstice, day of remembering the dead, your holiday pass, or the birthday of your favorite auntie Dolly! Those pesky bastards just do as they please laughing at our sacred mores! As some of you might know - to the south a B-rank dungeon became recently active, spitting monsters like sailor offenses. It is our job to once again put it down to sleep. We will do it before the swarm becomes too big and puts the nearest villages in danger! We go there, armored with faith! With love, friendship, violence, unity, deadly tools of various shapes and sizes, and trust! IS THAT CLEAR!?” “Sir, yes sir!” “I CAAAN’T HEAAAR YOOOU!” “SIR, YES SIR!” “And that’s what I like to hear. March out, lads! We have means of transport waiting in front of the city. Walk through the streets proudly, like this city’s bloody elite that we are. Let the people once again put trust in us. SOLDIERS! MARCH OUT!”

And so, just like that, over forty knights turned in place, changing their formation facing the huge iron gate of the House which had just started opening. With a steady, measured step we started walking out, our feet hitting the ground in unison like drums playing the song of war were drawing the attention of every passerby and bystander. The crows once again started cheering and rejoicing seeing us moving out to protect them from evil beasts that lurk in this world.

Another day. Another quest. Another chance to become stronger and make another step towards my goal - finding the people on my list and sending them on a date with the Mistwalker.

As we left the House we made one parade round over the main plaza, walking around the city hall, adventurer's guild office and a huge cathedral. As I was walking past it, a message popped out, covering part of my vision:

You are entering a Holy ground of a hostile deity. Attributes reduced by 33,3%.

Dark arts effects reduced by 75%

Dark arts cost increased by 75%

Holt arts effect increased by 75%

Holy arts cost reduced by 75% Sidequest begins: [Conflict of the Gods]

Reduce the influence of [Church of the Three] while increasing the one of [The Beast]. You can achieve that by:

- Defiling Sacred ground of the [Church of the Three]

- Make their believer abandon them

Or:

- Claim land for[The Beast]

- Find new believers for [The Beast]

Reward: ???

… It was Zariel that gave me that, wasn’t he? That’s one way to play dirty, I won’t lie.

But… I don’t want to do that. I was never a “real” believer of the Three, yet, in the darkest time I could always find comfort in the chapel. The priest was always there to listen to my problems and help in every way I could. If other temples provide similar services - helping people out - then I don’t want to destroy them.

I am sorry, Zariel.

At the very same time, someone knocked on the door leading to Nicolai's office.

“Open.” the leading-commander said in a calm, yet powerful voice, as he kept on signing documents.

After a moment of hesitation, the mentioned door opened slightly and a single person walked inside.

“You wanted to see me, general-commander.” Luka said, crossing the doorstep. “Indeed. I believe that you know the reason behind it.” handsome, no - the simply beautiful man said without even lifting his gaze from the pile of documents. “Possibly to congratulate my good instincts with keeping the rest of the team alive during the difficult situation and unsuspected change of events during the quest.” a polite tone perished from the voice of one of the most experienced cadets of the order. “That’s actually correct…” House head said, finally looking at Luka - still standing behind the table, not being allowed to sit down “... I want to give you this.” He handed a short document to the scout, who quickly took it and started reading aloud. “I, hereby signed, Nikolai the Lion, from the Noble House Silver, vouch for the skill of notice-owning adventurer Luka. Cadet Luka finished his training scoring passing marks on every major field. His talent, skills, and ability to quickly react to sudden changes in the tide of battle would make him a perfect scout, skirmisher, or duelist. To whomever this document would be presented I wish to pass my recommendation of mentioned cadet…” “You would make a good Lion… IF not one fatal mistake you made. You lied. You lied to your subordinate with other people hearing it. Good commanders need to know when and HOW to sacrifice people. But, he needs to take responsibility for that as well. Safety measures you took were unnecessary, AND the vow you made to Alabaster down in the nest was broken. Rumors of you quickly giving up on your comrade’s life have already spread through the House, and so, your renown is ruined. Noone can ever trust you again. If you would order a command, people will hesitate. You have lost your respect among the Lions, and respect and trust are far more precious than skills alone. Luka. I wish you the best fate, but somewhere else.”

Luka remained quiet for three or four minutes, re-reading the letter over and over again.

“Thank you…” he finally said, in a surprisingly soft tone “... that’s more than I expected.” “You are not a bad person, Luka. You are not a bad adventurer either. But, you are a coward, not taking risks no matter how small it would be. Godspeed to you, and, if I may suggest something - try your luck with House of Obsidian Blades - tell them what happened and be honest about that. They recently lost a few good scouts, and could use someone overly cautious.” “Thank you… May I ask you something though?” “You just did… but carry on.” “That wouldn’t happen if that ‘sacrificed person’ wasn’t Alabaster, right? Who is he?” “I can’t speak about this matter. I promised him to protect his identity. I can only tell you that despite certain circumstances that made him hide his face, he is a genuinely good person.” “Yeah… I guessed. Probably some inquisitors tried to drag his ass on the stake, huh? Well, such are the consequences of using dark magic. But, fear not, I will keep to myself that Alabaster can use necromancy. We did freak out a little once we saw him reanimating those goblins though. Yet, in the end, it was because of this magic that those three prisoners are now alive… The church made us believe that everyone who uses dark arts is a monster or villain… You really can’t judge the book by its cover.”

Luka bowed his head, nicely folded his recommendation letter, and left the room, leaving Nicolai silent, contemplating certain matters.

“...A necromancer, huh?” he said to himself quietly, looking over the window. Skill proficiency increased Skills:

[Sword Usage - Journeyman level 3 ➝ 4 ]

[Shield Usage - Journeyman level 1 ➝ 2]

[Bow Usage - Apprentice level 1]

[Nature Magic - Novice level 1]

[Mana Sense - Low - Passive]

[Life Sense - Low - Passive]

[Combat Maneuver/Team tactic - Novice level 4 ➝ 6]

[Heavy Armor Usage - Novice level 9 ➝ 10]

[Hand-to-hand Combat - Novice level 4]

[Stealth - Novice level 9 ➝ 10]

[Mind Magic Resistance - Low level 8 ➝ 9]

[Dark Arts - Curse Words - Novice Level 4]

[Dark Arts - Necromancy - Novice Level 3]

[Tracking - Novice Level 2]