"Zephie?" Shyla mused as she made her way all over the hotel. After waking up, she didn't find him anywhere however recalling what happened last night, she immediately grabbed the beast mana disc cores laid out by Hedon and made her way to the adventurer's guild.
"Uh, hi. I'm here for my badge." Her cute and frail voice ringing below the counter. The clerk was perplexed to see her again and so soon. "Where's you brother?" She started off. "Oh, Zephie's not by brother, he's my teacher and he said that I can bring these for me to become an adventurer."
She placed the bag filled with beast cores onto the counter. After a few minutes of inspection, she was perplexed that it was a lycan beast core and plenty at that. 'These are way too many for them to have bought them. I guess they really cleared that pathway.'
"It seems that you two were successful but once again, you have to be at the very least a tier two expert." Shyla unlike last time was ready to prove her wrong. "I am a tier two expert, just take a look."
The clerk however was rather skeptical of this but given that it was her duty, she has to execute it regardless. Bringing a white plate tile, she took a small sample of her blood.
If the plate remained white then that would mean the person was still a regular human. Turn crystal clear then they were on the first tier and so forth. Much to her shock, it turned clear but then had a deep red taint to it proving that she was on the second tier.
"..." Left completely and utterly speechless, Shyla broke the silence. "So does that mean that I can have my badge and become an adventurer?" The clerk regained her composure.
'Isn't she like ten years old? Why would his mentor force her to do such a thing and forcefully rank her up so quickly? Such a thing will be problematic later on.' The problem that she had with this is that later on when Shyla would progress, her body would have negative effects to her mana.
Her body wasn't strong enough at her age already which surprised her with how she was able to move about so freely. 'If she makes another breakthrough, then I doubt that she'll make it to fifteen years.'
But that wasn't her business as she brought out a form to which she guided her to sign and in a matter of minutes, the process was over. Shyla admired the badge that she held in her hands which read 'Deep Iron Rank.'
The bottom of the barrel but with a few more missions, she would have to rank up. "So are there any other quests for me?" She asked eagerly.
"As of currently, the only ones present don't involve hunting. The only one remotely close to it is taking care of the bandits a few miles from here. In a mountain range, rumored to be in cahoots with demons. But for you to do that you'd have to be Aredrite Rank.'
Her face instead of showing interest was flat making her wonder whether she thought that it would be that easy. "If you want to do that then you'll have to do other quests first, gain some momentum and reputation before ranking up." Her tone as if glad with the problem she ran into.
"But we already did that." Her voice shot wiping the smile of the clerk's face. "What do you mean you already did that?" Shyla went on. "When we came here, we ran into then and killed them all. Even the demon that they had."
The clerk paused for a bit as she heard this. 'His mentor is a tier four expert while the bandits have two tier four and two tier three bastards. It would have taken them some effort to dispose of them and that's not mentioning the demon that they would encounter.'
"Do you have proof for this?" She posed wondering to determine whether she was pouting nonsense or they really had done it. "No, I don't but you have to believe me." Enough with her antics, she decided to bring it to an end.
"Okay, go back and bring some evidence then you just might rank up but remember that you can do other tasks." Shyla walked out defeated. Sure she became an adventurer but she lacked any hunting missions that she wanted to do.
Making her way back to the hotel, she was pleased to find Hedon back. He seemed refreshed and likewise pleased to see her. "Look Zephie! I'm now an adventurer but there weren't any hunting missions!"
Her tone varying from excitement to sadness. "Have you first focused on your skill?" She shook her head and for that, a light snap followed.
*Snap*
Their figures flashed from the hotel and appeared back at the cave whether the bandits classified as their nest. She made her way to their bodies, however a problem presented itself. She had completely burnt their bodies clean leaving now proof of who the bodies were.
"Just ignore that and focus more on your skills." He urged with his hands pocketed. Dropping the fact about the bandits, she shifted her attention to her palms which manifested a plasma blob which floated calmly in her hand.
Unlike before at the pathway, she could feel her control over it was more stable and easier to manifest.
*Whoosh*
She moved it around the cave which was able to cut through anything with relative ease. Be it the sturdy walls of the cave or the ground. "There's more to it than just that." He mused as he coated his entire body with plasma. He walked right through the walls and as if walking through air, his movement wasn't restrained at the slightest.
Amazed, she did the same and behind her a small hole similar to her figure was left on the cave wall. From there, he brushed on all kinds of tricks that he could use with the plasma.
"Your bodily state isn't just solid but plasma as well which should give you a great advantage over your opponents." As a demonstration, he changed his hand into plasma forming a blade with it before making a clean cut at a boulder splitting it in half.
He lifted a half of the boulder onto his figure with his entire body being fully plasma however he emerged unscathed out of it. "It should help with more precarious situations and with a bit of time, you should be able to do the things I'm doing with ease."
His body reverted back to flesh before a plasma pool formed at his feet and to her shock, he was raised into the air, using the plasma as a cloud to traverse before making his landing. "I want to do all of them!" Her eagerness unbridled and uncontained.
"Good because it won't be easy." He mused as the training began.
*A week later*
"Look Zephie! I can do it!" She mused as her body was in a plasmic state on a cloud that hovered all over the place. Able to burn through the walls of the cave before making her descent. Various weapons formed at her finger tips before reverting back to flesh.
"That's impressive Shyla, we'll have a feast to celebrate your success." Hedon mused as the two flashed out of the cave and back to their hotel room. She darted off to take a shower while he prepared himself with a snap.
'It's been four months condensed into a week. But she doesn't know that nor does she need to.' At the end of each day, they would come back and rest before going back to the cave but that was where he did his magic.
Condensing the flow of time in the cave for more than just mere hours into weeks, it took them four months but to the outside world, it took them a week to get it over with.
Shyla made her appearance, dressed in a beautiful blue dress that showcased her cuteness, a bright and perky smile on her face as Hedon was donned in a sharp and elegant dark robes, similar to that of a noble.
"Let's go." He mused as the two took their exit. For the rest of the day, he enacted any of hew wildest wishes. Be it to fancy meals, all sorts of games or a bit of exploration about the district, he did it all till the day finally came to a close.
"That was a beautiful day! Thanks Zephie!" She mused as the two made their way back to their hotel. Neither exhausted from their adventures. Hedon, a multidimensional horror and Shyla, gifted with plasma coursing through her body which proved to be a reliable source of energy, maybe too much for her but thanks to the pendant, it was all under control.
"Yes it was but we have to make out way to Galespire tomorrow. It's not that far and should take us a couple of hours." He mused as Shyla rested on her back in a piggy ride. Her excuse was that she was tired but seeing how lively she was, it was self sabotage on her part but he didn't mind.
"Oi! Where do you think you two are going?" The sound of a man, burly and deep could be heard not that far ahead of them and his figure came to be however his face was masked.
'A tier three bastard! Really?' He couldn't be bothered as he drew closer to him and was about to walk right past him however holding his hand, it was clear that he wanted the two to stay.
"I don't think you know how matters run around here but didn't worry, my friends and I will show you. Just hand over any valuables and the girl and you just might walk out with one eye out if my mates are generous."
More shadowy figures could be seen approach the scene and in a matter of seconds, the two were surrounded. 'Most of these fuckers are on the second tier, four of them on the third and one on the fourth! What a bother.'
To him, all of this was an inconvenience and he decided to have someone else take care of it. "Good, now come here you little bitch!" The man who had stopped the two tried to rope in Shyla off his back gave an ungodly shriek.
"Aaarghh!! What do you have on you, you little shit!" He shouted as he withdrew his hand and a glance at it, he could see from his wrist to his fingers were completely gone. Hedon glanced at the ten men surrounding them.
Shyla formed a small and cute smile which came off as eerie still on his back as he let out a small ball of plasma, the size of a cup before reshaping it into an arrow. "Leave that one at the far back alive." Hedon whispered to her.
It's violet blue glow was strangely entrancing to look at however before any of the goons could comprehend what they were looking at...
*Whoosh*
*Thud*
The arrow pierced right through their heads leaving gaping holes and before they could react, they met their end. "Argh!" Another shrill cry from the last left alive,. Both his knees had been lazered clean off making him immobile as he pathetically crawled on the ground.
The plasma arrow for her was easy to control as it fell like an extension of her own body, easy to control like clenching and releasing her hand. It came to a pause as it floated right in front of his face, making it clear that if he decided to make a move then his life would meet a tragic end.
The pair made their way to him, Hedon lifting him up into the air with his will and stretching his limbs as if ready to dissect him like a frog in a laboratory. His legs however reached to his knees which made it comical to some extent.
Shyla withdrew her plasma arrow back into her palm as she glanced at the figure still on Hedon's back. "Come out clean." His voice annoyed with the fact of dealing with scum like him as his eyes gave an ominous red glow to them.