Titania's second quest began with Sin stealing her breakfast.
She had only looked away for three seconds.
Three.
When she turned back, the honey-covered toast on her plate was gone.
Sin sat across the table, chewing with the calm expression of a man completely innocent of all crimes, despite the evidence still hanging from the corner of his mouth.
Titania stared at him.
Sin stared back.
Venus continued reading a mission report beside them, apparently unwilling to involve herself in whatever tragedy was unfolding.
Titania slowly lowered her fork.
[Sin.]
[Hmm?]
[Where is my toast?]
Sin glanced toward her empty plate.
[Missing.]
[I know it's missing.]
[Then we agree.]
Titania's eyebrow twitched.
[You ate it.]
[That is an accusation.]
[There is honey on your face.]
Sin wiped his cheek with one finger, examined it, then licked it.
[Weak evidence.]
Titania formed a blue magic circle above the table.
Venus turned one page.
[Do not destroy the temporary base before we leave.]
Titania's eyes never left Sin.
[Then tell him to give it back.]
Sin swallowed.
[That would be difficult.]
[Why?]
[It has moved on.]
The water circle grew larger.
Venus sighed, closed the report, and slid her untouched plate toward Titania.
[Take mine.]
Titania looked at it.
Then at Venus.
[What about you?]
[I ate earlier.]
Sin leaned toward the second plate.
Venus placed one finger against his forehead.
Ice immediately formed across his bangs.
He froze in place.
[That one is not yours,] Venus said.
Sin's fox ears lowered.
[Oppression.]
[Consequences.]
Titania pulled the plate closer and took a bite while maintaining direct eye contact with him.
Sin looked wounded.
Titania smiled.
The morning had begun beautifully.
The temporary Outcast Base had become slightly more livable over the past two days.
Slightly.
Titania now had a proper bed, several complete outfits, and a room that did not contain an enchanted construct programmed to attack her at sunrise.
The training dummy had been moved into the hallway.
This was apparently considered a compromise.
Her new adventuring clothes were folded neatly inside a wooden wardrobe. Her Gemini Staff rested beside the door, its blue gemstone polished and ready. Several beginner spellbooks sat on her desk beside notes written in Venus's precise handwriting.
Sin had also left her a note.
It read:
DON'T DIE.
Titania had asked whether it was advice or a threat.
Sin claimed it was both.
Now she sat at the breakfast table dressed in the white, brown, and pale-green traveling outfit Venus had chosen with her. The soft mantle rested over her shoulders, while small pouches lined her belts, filled with potions, crystals, herbs, and other supplies.
She looked like an adventurer now.
Not a runaway.
Not a slave.
Not a discarded noble.
An Outcast.
Venus placed the mission report between them.
[Today's objective is simple.]
Sin finally broke the ice covering his hair and leaned toward the paper.
[Kill something?]
[No.]
[Rob someone?]
[No.]
[Rob something we kill?]
Venus looked at him.
Sin leaned back.
[Just exploring possibilities.]
Titania took the report.
The document bore the Adventurers' Guild seal.
E-Rank Promotion Assessment
Assignment: Escort and investigation
Destination: Moonveil Ruins, northeast of Rize
Objective: Escort an archaeological survey team, investigate recent monster activity, and recover any missing personnel
Confirmed Threat Level: D-Rank
Recommended Party: Three to six adventurers
Potential Promotion: E-Rank to D-Rank upon successful completion and evaluation
Titania read it twice.
Then looked up.
[Promotion assessment?]
Venus nodded.
[You performed well during your first mission, despite the incorrect threat report.]
Titania glanced at Sin.
[Despite my teacher using me as bait.]
[Educational bait,] Sin corrected.
Venus ignored him.
[Your guild record shows that you defeated multiple E-Rank monsters, adapted to an unexpected C-Rank threat, and awakened another magical affinity during combat.]
[I didn't defeat the C-Rank monster.]
[You survived it.]
Titania looked back at the paper.
[And that's enough for a promotion?]
[Not by itself,] Venus said. [This quest will determine whether you can operate at D-Rank.]
Sin reached for the report.
Titania moved it away from him.
[What exactly changes at D-Rank?]
[You'll gain access to more dangerous missions, higher payments, broader travel permissions, and intermediate guild resources,] Venus explained. [The guild will also begin expecting you to make decisions without direct supervision.]
Titania's confidence wavered slightly.
[Without supervision?]
Sin raised his hand.
[You survived my supervision.]
[That was the dangerous part.]
[Exactly. You're overqualified.]
Venus folded her arms.
[Sin and I will accompany you, but we won't complete the assignment for you.]
Titania looked between them.
[Then what will you be doing?]
[Evaluating,] Venus said.
[Watching,] Sin added.
[Eating,] Titania guessed.
Sin pointed at her.
[She learns quickly.]
Venus reached over and removed the last piece of toast before Sin could take it.
[You will behave.]
[Define behave.]
[Do not abandon her inside a monster nest.]
[That happened once.]
[Yesterday.]
[Still once.]
Titania stared down at the quest report.
Her second assignment.
Her first chance to rise in rank.
Her heart beat a little faster.
She had only recently become an E-Rank adventurer, but waiting had never saved her before.
[I'll do it.]
Sin nodded.
[Good.]
Venus stood.
[Then gather your equipment. We're going to the central guild hall.]
Titania blinked.
[The central hall?]
[Promotion assessments must be registered at the main branch.]
Sin groaned and dropped his forehead onto the table.
[Too many people.]
Venus looked down at him.
[You're the one who created a registered guild.]
[I was younger.]
[It was four years ago.]
[I've grown.]
Titania looked at the frozen hair still clinging to the side of his head.
[Have you?]
Sin raised his head.
[Betrayal is becoming common in this guild.]
The central Adventurers' Guild stood beneath the shadow of Rize's radiant crown.
Titania had entered the building only once before, but the sight remained overwhelming.
The structure rose across several levels of white stone, dark polished wood, and shimmering blue crystal. Enormous golden banners hung above the entrance, each embroidered with the emblems of famous adventurer parties and historic guilds.
Hundreds of people crossed the front plaza.
Beginner adventurers nervously checked their equipment.
Veterans compared maps and monster materials.
Merchants negotiated transport contracts.
Healers moved between injured parties returning from distant regions.
Representatives from noble houses walked beside armored escorts, searching for swords willing to solve problems money alone could not erase.
The guild hall was not merely a workplace.
It was a beating heart.
Every quest accepted here sent people into Xadia's wilderness.
Every completed mission returned with a story.
Every name carved into the memorial corridor belonged to someone who had entered believing they would come back.
Titania slowed as they approached.
Sin continued walking with both hands inside his pockets.
He was dressed exactly as he usually was.
Dark cloak.
Worn clothing.
Faded mask.
White hair in complete rebellion against grooming.
He looked less like an A-Rank adventurer and more like someone who had wandered out of a forest after losing an argument with sleep.
Venus, meanwhile, looked composed enough to represent a kingdom.
Titania glanced between them.
[How did you two ever become partners?]
Venus answered without hesitation.
[Poor judgment.]
Sin nodded.
[Her judgment.]
Venus's hand moved toward the Helios Fusion Blade.
Sin immediately entered the guild hall.
Titania followed him inside.
The familiar storm of sound rolled over them.
Weapons clattered.
Tankards struck tables.
Job notices fluttered along the walls.
Adventurers called to receptionists from every direction.
Yet as Sin passed through the entrance, something shifted.
A few voices lowered.
Several heads turned.
Whispers moved through the crowd.
Titania noticed immediately.
[They're staring at you.]
Sin glanced around.
[Maybe they like the cloak.]
[It has a hole in the back.]
[Ventilation.]
Venus walked beside them.
[They recognize him.]
Titania looked at Sin again.
It was still difficult to understand.
She had witnessed his strength.
She knew he could defeat a C-Rank monster with his bare hands.
She knew he was an A-Rank adventurer and leader of the Outcasts.
But when he was not fighting, he carried none of the dignity people expected from someone powerful.
At that moment, he was trying to balance a copper coin across one fox ear.
He failed.
The coin rolled beneath a table.
Sin crouched to retrieve it.
Titania stared.
[That is the man everyone is whispering about?]
Venus sighed.
[Unfortunately.]
A receptionist waved them toward the promotion desk.
Before they could reach it, the atmosphere in the guild hall changed again.
This time, the reaction was immediate.
Conversations stopped.
Chairs scraped against the floor.
Several adventurers stood straight without realizing they had done so.
A group near the mission board stepped aside.
Someone important had entered.
Titania turned.
A tall man walked through the guild's main doors.
Long black hair flowed behind him, threaded with strange pale streaks that caught the light like silver. His clothing was elegant but unusual, consisting of a white coat worn over black layers and narrow leather straps.
He carried no obvious weapon.
That made him more intimidating.
One side of his face was partially hidden behind his hand as he rubbed his forehead, his visible eye glowing with an eerie pale-green light.
The mana around him was difficult to understand.
It did not surge.
It did not press against the room.
It simply existed everywhere at once.
Titania felt it in the walls.
The floor.
The air moving through her lungs.
Her fingers tightened around the Gemini Staff.
A golden emblem hung from the man's collar.
Three stars surrounded by a broken circle.
Venus's expression sharpened.
Titania lowered her voice.
[Who is that?]
Venus answered quietly.
[Lucien Veyr.]
The name meant nothing to Titania.
Venus continued.
[Guild Master of the Pale Archive.]
Titania's eyes widened.
The Pale Archive.
Even someone raised behind the walls of a noble estate knew that name.
It was one of the Five Major Guilds, the five adventurer organizations recognized as international powers across Xadia.
Their leaders were not simply adventurers.
They were all SSS-Rank.
Living legends whose decisions could change borders, end wars, or begin them.
Lucien Veyr was known as the All-Seeing Scholar, a mage rumored to have explored more forbidden ruins than any living human.
Some stories claimed he could examine a spell once and understand its origin.
Others claimed he had entered the remains of a dead god and returned carrying its memories.
Titania had believed most of those stories were exaggerated.
Looking at him now, she was no longer certain.
Lucien moved through the guild hall while everyone gave him space.
Then his pale eye settled on Sin.
He stopped.
Sin was still crouched beneath a table, reaching for the coin.
Titania waited.
The entire hall waited.
Sin finally found it.
[Got you.]
He stood, flipped the coin once, and froze when he noticed Lucien.
The two men stared at each other.
Sin raised one hand.
[Yo.]
Titania nearly dropped her staff.
That was how he greeted one of the five most powerful guild leaders in the world.
Lucien lowered his hand from his face.
His expression was exhausted.
[You.]
Sin looked behind himself.
Lucien's eye narrowed.
[Do not pretend there is someone else.]
Sin turned back.
[Worth trying.]
Lucien crossed the hall.
Adventurers moved away from his path.
Venus remained where she was, entirely composed.
Titania stood beside her and attempted to look as though her heart had not started beating inside her throat.
Lucien stopped in front of Sin.
Up close, his presence was even stranger.
He appeared young, perhaps in his twenties, but his eye carried the weight of someone who had stared into places where time no longer behaved properly.
[Forty-eight,] Lucien said.
Sin tilted his head.
[That's a number.]
Lucien's eyelid twitched.
[Forty-eight recommendations.]
Sin slowly looked toward Venus.
She smiled.
It was not a helpful smile.
Lucien continued.
[The Adventurers' Council has received forty-eight separate recommendations to promote you from A-Rank.]
Titania's thoughts stopped.
The guild hall became painfully quiet.
Sin scratched his cheek.
[That seems excessive.]
[It is excessive because you keep refusing.]
Titania looked at him.
Then at Lucien.
Then back at Sin.
[Promote him to what rank?]
Lucien's eye shifted toward her.
Titania immediately remembered that she was speaking to an SSS-Rank guild leader.
She straightened.
Lucien studied her for a moment before answering.
[SS-Rank.]
The words struck the room like a dropped blade.
Titania stared at Sin.
Sin looked mildly uncomfortable.
Not shocked.
Not confused.
Uncomfortable.
As though someone had announced an embarrassing childhood story.
[You were recommended for SS-Rank?] Titania asked.
Sin rubbed the back of his neck.
[Apparently.]
[Forty-eight times?]
[Numbers are aggressive today.]
Venus folded her arms.
[Some of those recommendations came from active S-Rank adventurers, military commanders, regional guild masters, and royal officials.]
Titania turned toward her.
[You knew?]
[Of course.]
[Why didn't anyone tell me?]
Sin pointed toward himself.
[New recruit.]
Titania stared at him.
[You explained angry chickens before this.]
[They're dangerous.]
Lucien pinched the bridge of his nose.
[This is exactly the problem.]
Sin looked at him.
[I haven't done anything.]
[You refused the council's summons.]
[I was busy.]
[You sent back a drawing of a sleeping fox.]
Titania slowly turned toward Sin.
He looked away.
Lucien continued.
[You ignored three written notices, two magical communications, and a formal request signed by the Guild Chancellor.]
[The handwriting was unpleasant.]
[It was written by a royal scribe.]
[Exactly.]
Lucien's pale eye glowed brighter.
[Do you understand how many qualifications you have already exceeded?]
Sin sighed.
[Here we go.]
[You completed seven A-Rank exterminations alone.]
Titania's eyebrows rose.
[You killed the Tyrant of Blackmere Marsh.]
Whispers moved through the room.
Titania had heard of that creature.
A colossal hydra that had destroyed three villages and poisoned an entire lake.
[You prevented the collapse of the Western Rift.]
Titania looked toward Venus.
Venus gave a small nod.
[You captured the Scarlet Butcher alive after twelve B-Rank parties failed.]
Sin shrugged.
[He was tired.]
[Because you chased him across two countries.]
[Exercise is healthy.]
Lucien stepped closer.
[You entered the Ruins of Moros without authorization.]
[I got lost.]
[The ruins are beneath the ocean.]
[Very lost.]
Several people in the guild covered their mouths.
Titania could not tell whether they were suppressing laughter or terror.
Lucien's voice grew colder.
[And you returned carrying an artifact classified as a national threat.]
Sin's ears twitched.
[It was shiny.]
Titania stared.
[What did you do with it?]
Sin thought.
[Sold it.]
Lucien closed his eye.
Venus answered.
[He sold it back to the nation that lost it.]
[They wanted it.]
[You charged them.]
[Business.]
Lucien opened his eye again.
[Your verified combat ability, mission record, survival rate, and threat neutralization history all qualify you for promotion.]
Sin looked bored.
[I know.]
Titania froze.
There it was.
Not denial.
Not confusion.
He knew.
Lucien studied him.
[Then explain why you refuse.]
The question stripped the humor from the conversation.
The guild hall remained silent.
Titania looked at Sin more carefully.
His posture had not changed.
His hands remained inside his pockets.
His cloak still looked worn.
But something behind his eyes became distant.
The carelessness withdrew, revealing a quiet place beneath it.
[Rank doesn't matter,] Sin said.
Lucien's expression hardened.
[That is not an answer.]
[It's mine.]
[SS-Rank would grant you greater authority, access to restricted missions, international travel privileges, council representation, and expanded guild resources.]
[I already travel.]
[Illegally.]
[Efficiently.]
[You could command joint operations.]
[I don't like commanding people.]
Titania glanced at him.
He was the leader of the Outcasts.
Yet strangely, she understood what he meant.
Sin did not command through titles.
He simply moved.
The others chose whether to follow.
Lucien lowered his voice.
[This is not about prestige.]
Sin met his gaze.
[It always becomes prestige.]
The hall seemed colder.
Not from Venus.
From the words.
[Once they put another letter beside my name, kingdoms start calling. Nobles start smiling. Councils start deciding where I belong and who I should kill.]
His eyes sharpened.
[I don't work for them.]
Lucien said nothing.
Sin looked around the massive guild hall.
At the banners.
The rank boards.
The adventurers watching him.
[If an A-Rank plate lets me take the work I want, then A-Rank is enough.]
Lucien's expression softened by a fraction.
[And when the threat requires SS-Rank authority?]
Sin shrugged.
[I'll handle it without permission.]
The absurdity returned so quickly Titania almost stumbled.
Lucien stared at him.
Then laughed.
It was quiet.
Tired.
But genuine.
[You are the most irritating adventurer alive.]
Sin pointed toward a group near the tavern tables.
[Statistically unlikely.]
[The statistics were reviewed.]
[Unfair.]
Lucien's gaze moved toward Titania again.
She stiffened.
[Your new recruit?]
Sin nodded.
[Titania Astro.]
Recognition passed through Lucien's pale eye.
[The missing daughter of Duke Alford Astro.]
Titania's fingers tightened around her staff.
The words still cut.
Missing daughter.
As though she were an object misplaced by her family rather than someone they had thrown away.
Sin's voice became colder.
[Former daughter.]
Lucien looked at him.
Sin did not smile.
Titania felt something tighten in her chest.
Lucien returned his attention to her.
[You possess unusual mana.]
Titania resisted the urge to step back.
[So I've been told.]
[Multiple affinities.]
Venus shifted slightly beside her.
Not enough to appear threatening.
Enough for Lucien to notice.
His eye moved toward Venus.
She smiled politely.
[She's still learning.]
Lucien understood the warning.
Titania understood it too.
He did not press.
[Then learn carefully, Titania Astro.]
His gaze moved toward the Gemini Staff.
[Power that grows faster than discipline tends to consume its owner.]
Titania raised her chin.
[I'll remember.]
Lucien looked at Sin.
[And you intend to train her?]
Sin nodded.
Lucien's expression became deeply concerned.
Titania felt offended on Sin's behalf.
Then remembered the morning dummy.
She understood.
[Venus is helping,] Titania said.
Lucien visibly relaxed.
Sin looked betrayed.
[Why does everyone react like that?]
Lucien ignored him.
[The council will send another promotion request.]
Sin groaned.
[Use smaller paper.]
[You will answer it.]
[I might.]
[You will.]
Sin glanced at Titania.
Then toward the promotion desk.
[Can't. Busy.]
Lucien's eye narrowed.
Sin placed one hand on Titania's head.
She immediately slapped it away.
[New recruit to train.]
Titania fixed her hair.
[Do not use me as an excuse.]
[Too late.]
Lucien watched them.
Something almost amused passed through his expression.
[You are refusing an SS-Rank promotion because you are training an E-Rank adventurer?]
Sin shook his head.
[D-Rank soon.]
Titania blinked.
The confidence in his voice struck harder than she expected.
He had said it without hesitation.
As though her promotion were already decided.
As though failure had never entered the equation.
Lucien looked from Sin to Titania.
Then toward Venus.
[You've created another unusual group.]
Venus's smile was faint.
[That's what Outcasts are.]
Lucien stepped aside.
[Go, then.]
Sin immediately began walking toward the promotion desk.
Lucien spoke again.
[Sin.]
He stopped.
[The offer will remain.]
Sin glanced back.
His expression was unreadable beneath the faded mask.
[I know.]
Then he continued walking.
Titania remained still for a moment.
Lucien Veyr, one of the five SSS-Rank guild leaders, moved toward the upper floors. The crowd parted around him, and conversation slowly returned to the guild hall.
But the whispers had changed.
They were no longer merely recognizing Sin.
They were counting.
Forty-eight recommendations.
SS-Rank.
Titania hurried after him.
Venus followed at a calmer pace.
[Sin.]
He did not stop.
[Hmm?]
[You're strong enough to become SS-Rank.]
[Apparently.]
[Stop saying apparently!]
Several adventurers glanced over.
Titania lowered her voice.
[Why didn't you tell me?]
[You didn't ask.]
She stared at the back of his head.
[How would I know to ask whether my teacher secretly qualifies as one of the strongest adventurers in the world?]
Sin considered the question.
[Good point.]
[That is not an apology.]
[I wasn't apologizing.]
Titania moved in front of him, forcing him to stop.
[You act lazy.]
[I am lazy.]
[You steal food.]
[Allegedly.]
[You lose fights against chairs.]
[That chair was experienced.]
[You live in a damaged temporary base and forget that your guild owns a fortress.]
[Buildings are complicated.]
Titania pointed at him.
[Nothing about you looks like SS-Rank.]
Sin nodded.
[Good.]
Her anger paused.
[Good?]
He leaned down slightly.
[Looking strong makes weak people challenge you and strong people prepare for you.]
A small grin appeared beneath his mask.
[Looking harmless saves time.]
Titania stared.
There it was again.
The intelligence hidden beneath the foolishness.
A careful person disguised as a careless one.
A predator hiding inside someone who complained about paperwork and stole breakfast.
Then Sin straightened.
[Also, nice armor is expensive.]
The moment shattered.
Titania closed her eyes.
[Of course.]
Venus reached them.
[The mission clerk is waiting.]
Sin walked toward the desk.
Titania followed more slowly.
She looked at him differently now.
Not because of the rank.
Not entirely.
It was the refusal.
Most people chased power because power created status.
Nobles collected titles.
Adventurers collected ranks.
Kingdoms collected strong people and called it protection.
Sin had been offered more authority forty-eight times.
And forty-eight times, he had walked away.
Not because he was afraid.
Because he refused to belong to anyone who thought strength could be purchased with another letter.
Titania's eyes moved toward the Outcast emblem on his cloak.
Perhaps that was why people followed him.
He did not promise them greatness.
He promised them freedom.
The promotion clerk registered their quest with shaking hands.
She looked at Sin repeatedly while pretending not to.
Titania placed her E-Rank plate on the counter.
The clerk pressed it against an enchanted blue crystal.
Light spread across the emblem.
[Your promotion assessment has been activated,] the clerk said. [The designated evaluator will review your performance after completion.]
Titania looked toward Venus.
[Who is evaluating me?]
Venus displayed a small silver badge.
[I am.]
Titania frowned.
[Isn't that biased?]
[Very.]
The clerk coughed.
Venus continued.
[Which is why all combat data, mission decisions, injuries, and recovered evidence will be recorded through the assessment crystal.]
She handed Titania a small transparent stone attached to a chain.
[Wear it against your chest.]
Titania placed it around her neck beside the guild plate.
The crystal flashed once.
A pale display appeared in front of her.
Promotion Assessment Active
Candidate: Titania Astro
Current Rank: E
Target Rank: D
Evaluator: Venus
Support Adventurer: Sin
Mission: Moonveil Ruins Survey Escort
Titania looked at the final line.
[Support adventurer?]
Sin leaned across the counter.
[That's me.]
[You don't support anything.]
[I supported your breakfast.]
[You ate it.]
[Carried it internally.]
Venus grabbed the back of his cloak and pulled him away from the counter.
[We leave through the northern gate in one hour.]
The clerk handed Titania a sealed mission packet.
[Your survey team will meet you there. Their leader is Professor Tolan Meris of the Rize Historical Institute.]
Titania accepted it.
[Thank you.]
As they turned away, the clerk spoke again.
[Adventurer Sin?]
Sin looked back.
The woman hesitated.
[Is it true?]
[Probably not.]
[You don't know what I was going to ask.]
[Still probably not.]
She gathered her courage.
[Did you truly refuse promotion forty-eight times?]
Sin thought carefully.
[Maybe forty-seven.]
Titania blinked.
Lucien's voice drifted down from the upper balcony.
[Forty-eight.]
Everyone looked up.
Lucien stood above them, holding a stack of papers.
Sin pointed toward him.
[He's obsessed.]
Lucien lifted the stack.
[Forty-nine, once I sign this.]
Sin's face fell.
[That feels targeted.]
Lucien smiled faintly.
[It is.]
The guild hall erupted into laughter.
Sin pulled his hood lower over his head.
[We're leaving.]
Titania followed him toward the exit, trying not to laugh.
[Does this happen often?]
Venus walked beside her.
[More than it should.]
Behind them, Lucien's voice carried across the hall.
[The council summons is next week.]
Sin raised one hand without turning around.
[Busy.]
[You have no missions scheduled.]
Sin placed his hand on Titania's shoulder.
[Training.]
Titania removed it.
[Stop volunteering me for things!]
[Teamwork.]
[You are using me to escape responsibility!]
[Advanced teamwork.]
They passed through the great doors and stepped into the light of Rize.
One hour later, they waited near the northern gate.
Rize's outer walls towered above them, their white surfaces threaded with enormous blue magical circuits. Each symbol glowed softly, forming part of the barrier that protected the Radiant City from armies, monsters, and magical disasters.
The northern road stretched toward distant hills covered in silver-green forests.
Beyond them waited the Moonveil Ruins.
Titania checked her equipment for the third time.
Gemini Staff.
Potions.
Mana crystals.
Bandages.
Food.
Spare cloak.
Mission documents.
Assessment crystal.
Sin watched her.
[You packed too much.]
Titania tightened one pouch.
[You packed nothing.]
Sin held up a small bag.
[Food.]
[That is not quest equipment.]
[Everything becomes quest equipment when you're hungry.]
Venus stood beside them, inspecting the Helios Fusion Blade.
[Ignore him.]
[I usually do.]
Sin looked offended.
[This guild has become hostile.]
A group of people approached from the main road.
Six scholars wearing brown-and-white expedition uniforms walked beside two pack animals carrying excavation tools. Several wore glasses. One carried enough scrolls to create a small library if he tripped.
At the head of the group walked an elderly man with a short gray beard and a wide-brimmed hat.
He stopped before them.
[Outcast Guild?]
Venus nodded.
[Professor Tolan Meris?]
[Yes.]
His eyes moved across the group.
Venus.
Titania.
Sin.
Then back toward Venus.
[There are only three of you?]
[Three are enough.]
The professor studied Titania's E-Rank plate.
[This is a D-Rank threat region.]
Titania felt the evaluation crystal warm against her chest.
Before she could answer, Sin stepped forward.
[She's the candidate.]
Professor Tolan looked him over.
The worn cloak.
Lazy posture.
Faded mask.
No visible armor.
[And you are?]
Sin raised one hand.
[Support.]
The professor's concern deepened.
Titania understood.
Sin did not look like someone who had been recommended for SS-Rank forty-eight times.
He looked like someone the guild had found sleeping near the gate and added to the mission out of pity.
Venus spoke smoothly.
[You have nothing to worry about.]
Professor Tolan looked at her guild plate.
A-Rank.
Then at Sin's.
Also A-Rank.
His shoulders relaxed slightly.
[Very well. The ruins are six hours from Rize if the weather remains clear. We should arrive before sunset.]
Titania looked toward the road.
Her second quest.
Her promotion assessment.
The first mission with both Sin and Venus beside her.
Excitement moved through her, tangled with fear.
Sin stepped beside her.
[Ready?]
Titania tightened her grip around the Gemini Staff.
[Yes.]
[Good.]
He started walking.
Professor Tolan blinked.
[The horses are this way.]
Sin stopped.
He looked toward the pack animals.
Then at the road.
[Right.]
Titania stared at him.
[You were about to walk six hours in the wrong direction.]
[Testing awareness.]
[You were lost.]
[Impossible. The gate is behind us.]
[That does not help!]
Venus climbed onto one of the prepared carriages.
[Both of you, get in.]
Sin looked at Titania.
[She's bossy.]
Venus's hand moved toward her sword.
Sin entered the carriage immediately.
Titania followed.
The expedition passed beneath the northern gate.
Behind them, Rize shone like a white-blue sea beneath the midday sky. Its central crown pierced the clouds, glorious enough to make the city appear eternal.
Ahead, the road entered the wilderness.
The towers vanished slowly behind the hills.
Titania sat between Sin and Venus while Professor Tolan explained the history of the Moonveil Ruins.
She listened carefully.
Sin fell asleep within four minutes.
His head landed on Titania's shoulder.
She looked down at him.
Then at Venus.
Venus calmly opened a book.
[Can I push him out?] Titania whispered.
[Wait until the carriage is moving faster.]
Titania nodded.
Sin's fox ear twitched.
[I can hear you.]
[Good,] they answered together.
The carriage rolled deeper into the northern wilds.
None of them saw the dark shape moving beneath the trees beside the road.
It followed without sound.
Watching.
Waiting.
And somewhere within the forgotten depths of the Moonveil Ruins, something ancient opened its eyes.