Guild head Zaress Keinor paced around his office. Lightning licked his graying hair, filling the air with the scent of ozone as the powerfully built man stood beside his desk with a frown.

Reports regarding the dungeon shift filled his table, as message spells after message spells chimed in his office from the various [Merchants], [Ladies] and [Lords] looking to get a piece of the newly found dungeon pie. He hadn’t expected to keep the news of the new branch under control for too long, but to not even manage it for an entire day? Shameful.

Lightning crackled in response to his emotions, as one of the papers on the table was singed and began to smolder. Zaress sighed, snuffing the sparks out. He took a long deep breath, and began to flip through the reports at incredible speeds.

Decades of working as the guild head had taught him how to filter out the meaningless talk and polite notices for the real matter of the letter. He’d almost gained a skill for it, having refused it to keep his class from going on undesirable paths. It was unlikely that he’d ever gain another class evolution, yet the level 62 [Storm Slayer] refused to let bureaucratic responsibilities taint the class he’d earned his title from.

Zaress took a seat at his chair, sending a pulse of lightning mana to his gate as it swiveled open. “Come in,” he muttered afterwards.

“Uncle- Guild head. We’ve found another Mark and she—”

“Don’t waste my time Nathaniel,” Zaress growled as the boy froze. The guild head had to restrain a sigh. “The girl has been here for a few hours now, you think I don’t already know? Get to the point.”

“Right, apologies. She has agreed to join the Pact and work with the guild. But, more importantly, she— Actually, it’s best you see it yourself,” the boy said, as he formed a crystalline memory shard in his hand.

The casual display of mind magic told Zaress about the boy’s potential, as he’d always seen in him. If only he wasn’t… Zaress let the thought go as the memory shard flickered, displaying an image above it of a brown haired girl.

“The city is going to be invaded by the Ostiri, led by a Mark. And I was there to see that future.”

Zaress frowned as he continued to listen, with each spoken word further sinking his heart. Thunder rolled around him, crackling like a storm as his eyes took on a deep blue hue. This exceeded his worst nightmare.

A moment later, the image flickered, cutting off, and silence descended onto his office.

“Have you verified this with a truth spell?” Zaress asked, keeping his voice perfectly still. He wouldn’t be showing his own turmoil to the boy.

“The Prince’s [Knight] has confirmed the validity of it via the prince himself,” the boy replied. Zaress almost cursed out loud.

“I was hoping we would have more time. The delve isn’t ready, the girl would die if we take her, and the [Lords] are already starting to sniff out the new branch. Soon the entire world will be on our head, and now demons?” Zaress muttered, as he sat on his chair. He noticed the conflicted expression on Nathaniel’s face, and frowned. “Do Valencia and Peiross know of this?”

“I’ve sent Anghul to Valencia, and a message to Grand Magus Peiross, who’s currently in the Verhiz swamps. The two should be meeting with you soon.”

Zaress nodded in reply. “Run a background check on the girl, a thorough sweep. Make sure she is who she claims to be.” Zaress paused for a moment. “Ask the Thieves Guild if you have to.”

Nathaniel’s eyes widened in surprise for a brief moment, before he dipped his head in acknowledgement. Zaress couldn’t blame the boy, working with the thieves guild had been an unthinkable prospect so far, but right now, he would take the help of even the demons themselves.

“You are free to use the training chambers to train the girl. We need her capable of surviving the delve. Ask Viel if her future sight can be controlled, it might be our only hope of seeing what’s to come,” Zaress said.

“She’s barely qualified to be an Iron plate. An [Enchanter] from what my analysis got. Level 16. A Tier 2 capable one, but barely. She won’t survive a step beyond the second layer on her own, and there’s very little time. Taking her to Tier 3 alone will take at least a few months,” Nathaniel said with a frown.

“We’ll protect her. The Pact demands it, but there is no time. For her sake, I hope she’s willing to put in the effort.”

Nathaniel frowned, opening his mouth for a moment as if to retort. Zaress waited for the boy to speak up, but the boy simply stared at him for a moment before bowling silently as he walked out.

Zaress stared at the door for a long moment. The boy thought him callous, capable of dismissing the life of a young girl. He didn’t understand the weight of his choices. If he had to pick between the life of one girl and his city, he would be willing to take the burden of her life upon his shoulders. But for now, all he could do was hope it never truly came to that.

The Guild Head closed his eyes, recalling the vision the prince had shown him, when he had approached him alongside his knight. He’d seen the threads of fate of millions all over Zweiril vanish. Their lives cut short, as darkness consumed his sight, covered beneath a massive figure bound in chains.

None of them could see what the creature was, the vision flickering wildly the closer they got. Yet they all knew what the vision symbolized. There was something slumbering within the dungeon, something that sent the long forgotten sensation of terror coursing through the Guild Head’s spine.

Zaress opened his eyes, and he felt the weight of the guild pressing on him. There would be war once more, a war larger than any they’d seen before, and he wasn’t sure he was prepared to face it.

***

A couple of days had passed since she’d agreed to join the guild. The lack of any change to her life had surprised her, she’d expected more after she’d just announced an oncoming invasion. It was strange to think of any reason the guild would rely on her for an invasion of all things, but for some reason she’d still expected to be a bit more involved in things.

Jennifer had debated talking to her parents about her Mark, but the comforting bed and her exhaustion had her knocked out before she could even give the thought proper consideration. She knew she couldn’t avoid the topic forever, but a part of her dreaded the conversation to come.

But a day had turned to two, and then three and she’d failed to bring the topic up. Eventually, she found herself slipping into a familiar routine of visiting her master and studying spells, until a message finally came for her from the guild.

It was time to begin her training.

Jennifer walked through the guild, asking directions a couple times for the training hall she’d been asked to visit before making her way through the long corridors. The size of the guild's interior surprised her. The building had an entire floor dedicated to training halls for various adventurer ranks and another serving as a trading area for artifacts, monster parts or anything else related to the dungeon.

Which made sense seeing how Lienmont was a dungeon city, heavily dependent on adventurers and the trade brought from the dungeon to the city, and with the adventurer guild controlling almost all of it, it put them right next to the high council in terms of control and strength.

Her line of thoughts broke off as she stumbled upon the training hall that she’d been called to. Checking once more that she’d arrived at the right place, Jennifer walked inside.

A familiar presence brushed against her mind and Jennifer found Viel standing within the hall, swinging his sword as sweat covered his bare chest.

“What’re you doing?” Jennifer asked, as the Mark of Valor continued to swing his sword, shifting his weight through various motions as if fighting multiple unseen enemies all at once. Jennifer found her eyes jumping around the area, almost as if she could see the illusion of each phantom enemy that stood around Viel.

“Waiting for you,” Viel replied, continuing through the motions as he slashed at the last remaining enemies. Jennifer watched the creatures fall, one after the other. One was short, she could tell with the way Viel’s blade moved down, the other was bigger and bulkier than Viel as his blade curved upwards, and the last some kind of small creature flying around.

Jennifer found herself staring in awe, as she watched an unseen battle taking place. Each step of Viel’s guided her eyes and she could almost see the beast he slew topple over in a spray of blood. “Well, that should be enough to warm up.”

Jennifer found herself blushing as she walked closer to the man. Her gaze traveled down onto his body. His tall frame carried a hefty amount of muscles, as various scars hugged his skin from all over. She pried her eyes away, feeling self conscious.

Viel wiped sweat off, and with a flicker of mana, a shirt appeared in his hand that he quickly draped over himself. “We’ll start with training your Mark’s presence. Have you gained a better feel for it yet?” he asked.

“I can feel it, somewhat. It’s a lot denser than it had been before.”

“Good. That’s the first step with learning how to control your presence. Now try and let the presence spread out once more, back to the way it was before.”

Jennifer had been hesitant to do anything with it without someone around to seal her presence back in if she messed up, but now, she could finally try things out. Closing her eyes she focused on the thin presence surrounding her body, originating from her Mark. It was like a secondary aura that originated from her Mark, or at least what she imagined an aura was like. With a tug, she loosened the compressed presence around her and with surprising ease, it began to spread out.

“Poor control, but you can guide it slightly. We’ll have to work on making controlling your Mark’s presence second nature. It’s a powerful weapon, when used correctly.”

Jennifer nodded at the words, feeling excitement build up. Arriving here, she’d expected a lot more fighting and pain, not fun magical discoveries but she wasn’t going to complain about it.

“I’ll be using my presence on you again. This won’t hurt, but it won’t be pleasant either. I’m going to slowly focus my presence onto you. I won’t overdo it like last time, but it will still strain your spirit. You need to focus on my presence, and gather yours together. Create a layer of sorts, a blanket if you will, condensing your presence around your body.”

Jennifer closed her eyes at his words. She still remembered the way the Sand-Mage—The Mark of Drought— had toyed with her. With just his presence, he had immobilized her, and made her helpless to fight back. She wouldn’t let herself be that helpless again. Never again.

“I’m ready,” Jennifer replied.

“Good. Prepare yourself,” Viel spoke, and a moment later, the familiar crushing pressure descended on her shoulder.

Jennifer’s breath escaped her lungs as she almost bowed down from the weight, but she remained firm. Taking slow measured breaths, she slowly straightened her back. It wasn’t like before, she didn’t feel like she was dying. Viel was clearly holding back for her sake. Even so, each breath felt like fire, like she was pushing a rock uphill, and each step wore out her mind, making her will buckle.

“Gather your presence. Feel it. It’s all around you. Condense it together,” Viel spoke, as the weight on her shoulders increased and Jennifer bent further struggling to keep herself straight up.

She heard Viel’s words, but they didn’t register in her mind. She was struggling to think of anything. She felt helpless. Defeated.

Jennifer clenched her teeth in defiance. No I’m not. I’m not so weak as to shatter from just this. I refuse.

Her Mark pulsed in response to her thoughts, shuddering, as an intangible mass began to swirl towards her. Jennifer latched onto the sensation, pulling it from all around her and towards her Mark. Her spirit trembled under the strain, but she continued nonetheless.

“Good, continue like that. You are the core, and it is a part of you. Reign it in. Make it Obey,” the words struck her like a whip as her will steeled itself. She pulled, harder than ever as the intangible presence swirled. She was the one in control here, and her Mark would obey her will.

A pulse of mana spread from her Mark, as a shimmering thick presence enveloped her body. Jennifer sucked in a breath, her lungs free from the strain at last as sweat covered her forehead. She had done it.

“Good. You’ve controlled your presence. We’ll train it to allow you to use it as an attack, but this is the first important step. Marks and other beings won’t detect you until they are close by, and you can protect yourself from their presence if they choose to use it to fight,” Viel said, and Jennifer panted, nodding.

“Try to let go once more, and then gather your presence on your own this time.”

Jennifer grimaced, focusing as she let her presence spread outwards. The intangible sensation obeyed her will, as it clumsily spread outwards.

“Now pull.”

Jennifer followed along, pulling inwards. It was a struggle, yet she found her control over the presence increasing. The Mark's presence gathered itself around her, slowly but surely and Jennifer looked up, smiling at her success.

“That’s the first exercise. Repeat between that to increase your control. After that we’ll move on to focusing your presence and using it to attack, and oftentimes, incapacitate if there is a large difference in strength.”

“Is that what you’d used on me?” Jennifer asked.

“Yes,” Viel replied with a nod. “There’s also spreading your presence and aura really thin which can allow some people to see even if they are blind but that’s not something I can do. I prefer a much more direct approach and to strike in a single powerful blow from my aura to stun the enemy and go for the strike.” Viel extended his hand as a blade appeared in his hand. “I’ll teach you how to use a blade to defend yourself. There’s not nearly enough time to properly teach you everything, but knowing how to defend yourself is vital.”

Jennifer stared at the blade with an unsure expression. “I’m not really a [Warrior]. I can use a dagger somewhat, but not too well,” Jennifer said.

“You don’t need to be a [Warrior] by class to know how to fight. The worst offense any [Mage] commits is not having an alternate weapon in case their spells don’t work. Most mages don’t get taken out by spells, they die to the unseen ambush, or to the sword through their bellies instead,” Viel said, as extending the weapon towards her. “The blade has been dulled,” he added as Jennifer picked the weapon.

She wasn’t surprised by the lack of weight of the weapon. She'd handled a fair number of weapons with her Master.

“Before we go any further, I’ll need to teach you a few things about Marks,” Viel said, waiting a moment for Jennifer to catch her breath.

“Each Mark has three abilities, based around a certain aspect. The first ability is the one you gain soon after you gain the Mark, sometimes instantly afterwards. It is the defining ability of the Mark. Yours is your future sight. Mine is control. I can impose my will on, not just people, but on the world. It’s an ability normally associated with the [Lord] and [Prince] and other ruling classes and their auras, but as far as I know, none can extend it to the world itself,” Veil said and Jennifer stared at him in confusion.

“Shoot a spell at me,” Viel said,which only served to add to her confusion. Jennifer looked at the man for a moment, and found his expression serious. She prepared a mana bolt, weaving the spell together. The bolt glimmered as the spell formed, glowing brightly with her mana before it shot off like an arrow toward Veil.

“Stop.”

The world rippled as the spell froze in space right before Viel’s face, losing cohesion as it disintegrated into motes of mana.

Jennifer stared with her eyes shot wide open in surprise. “Sera, did you just- how? Is that really-” Jennifer stopped speaking, trying to gather her words. She couldn’t find any.

“Yes. I stopped the spell midway. The stronger the spell is, and the spellcaster is, the more difficult it is. But with a spell like that, I can stop or simply destroy it as often as I’d like.”

“And that’s just your first ability?” Jennifer asked. What kind of monster have I walked up to?

“It’s the defining ability. Not necessarily the weakest. But definitely not the strongest. The first ability defines the path of your Mark. The second is the mid step, the aspect of growth. It comes from desire. The first ability represents your needs. The second? It represents your wants. What you wish of your Mark. That is what you will gain.” Viel said, staring at her intently, making Jennifer gulp.

“And lastly, the final ability. That one is… complicated. There are no fixed rules for the third ability as far as I’m aware. But all of them require you form a connection to your Mark and inherit its strengths. Often meeting the previous holders of the Mark, alongside the creator in the process. There is more depth to it than just a trial but it is not something that I can explain. You will see it for yourself when the time arrives,”

Jennifer nodded along. “Have you… met the creator? Of your Mark?” Jennifer asked.

“Not yet. Take up your sword, and mimic the stance I take.”

Jennifer raised her sword, following his instructions.

“Hold it in your left hand. Or right, if that’s your non-dominant one. You’re a spellcaster, and your weapons are spells, so you’ll be fighting like one as well. Keep the blade steady, and lower your body center, and keep your spell casting hand prepared,” Viel said, demonstrating the actions in a smooth motion.

Jennifer followed suit, shifting her body appropriately, as she held the short blade in her left hand, with mana flowing through her channels, ready to be cast.

“Good, now shift your weight and swing,” Viel instructed and Jennifer followed along. The two continued going through the forms and stances one at a time, as Jennifer followed the motions in her best attempt at mimicking.

Time flew by as Jennifer continued to copy the stances. She panted, feeling her legs shake at what felt like the hundredth repetition of the stances, as sweat covered her entire body.

Viel looked at her quietly, folding his arms, without a single drop of sweat on him. “Stamina issues. Here, drink this,” he said, as a vial appeared in his hand, filled with a light orange liquid.

Jennifer grabbed the vial, feeling her muscles burning as she lifted the container and drank the contents. Energy surged within her body as she felt her muscles being rejuvenated as her exhaustion started to fade.

“It’s a Potion of Recovery,” Viel said with a grin. “You won’t have to worry about getting exhausted until I’m done with you. Now, the best way to learn the stances is by practice. I won’t use my Skills, Mark, or any other abilities. You can use your spells and skills. If you hit me once, you are free to go.”

Jennifer stared at the man unsure. Without skills, he was just a tall bulky guy, even for a Ranked Plate, just getting hit once…

Is he underestimating me?

Jennifer stared at Viel, finding no arrogance on his face, just a focused calm. She held up her sword, taking her stance. Mana roiled in her body, flooding her channels as Jennifer began to weave her spells. Agile Wind whirled as wind swirled around her body, focused near her feet. Jennifer used three mana bolts together, feeling the spells layered on top of each other.

With a burst of wind, she shot to the side, as three glowing shards of mana bolts shot towards Viel all at once.

Viel raised his sword, shifting his weight as he took a stance. With a slash, her bolts shattered upon meeting his sword, all three all at once in a burst of flickering motes of mana.

Jennifer chained another pair of mana bolts, shooting them towards Viel from different directions as she continued to weave her wind blades. With a surge of her Agile Wind, Jennifer shot a bolt of mana at Viel, rushing straight in his direction.

Quickly afterwards, a storm of wind blades swirled around her in a frenzy, looking to tear anything in its way. Jennifer summoned a few glass shards as well, mixing them in the swirling wind around her.

[Enchanted Glass Creation]. Sharpen. Harden. [Twofold Enchanting].

Jennifer murmured her skill under her breath, layering her glass with dual enchantments. She let the spell loose, as she weaved a wind blade together, launching the Tier-2 spell together with the glass as they shot at Viel in a tornado of shards.

With a single step, Viel moved forward and his sword vanished. Jennifer stopped about to call him out for breaking his rules when she froze, realizing what was happening as shards upon shards began to shatter.

His blade… it's moving fast enough that I can’t even see it.

Jennifer’s heart leapt as she jumped back, wind rushing around her, as she moved at high speeds. She churned her mana, pulling all she had, as she layered two of her spells together.

Mana bolts shot out in sync with a wind blade, forming a frenzy of magic as Jennifer felt her mana dipping dangerously low. She launched herself towards Viel, shooting a mana bolt that he quickly swatted, yet the brief moment was enough.

Mana flooded her pathways as the two Tier-2 spells shot out at the same time. An explosion of mana filled the chamber as the little shards of glass bud from her affinity, mixing in with her spells. With a single sweep, Viel cut through her blade of wind, dodging backwards before he lunged.

Jennifer barely had a moment to react as she dodged backwards from the descending blade, she swung her blade, parrying one blow that had her knees buckle from the impact as her wrists ached. A kick to her ankle soon had her tumbling to the ground. She turned, a mana bolt poised with a blade of wind ready in her other hand when she found a blade set against her neck and Viel grinning at her.

W-what a monster…

Jennifer shook her head, letting her spell dissolve into mana as she grabbed his offered hand, picking herself up. She found her feet wobbly from the amount of mana she had used, her mana pool could still need some help. Her gaze turned towards Viel.

“How did you- I don’t understand. You didn’t even use any Skills and, you even cut through my spell. I don’t sense any enchantments either then how?”

Viel smirked, as he swung his blade in front of her. “Each spell has a matrix. And if you can find the anchors of the matrix in the spell, then you can cut them even without an enchantment,” he replied, his orange gold eyes turning towards her as he demonstrated with a quick swing of his sword.

“But that…”

That sounds impossible. To cut a mana strand so thin you can barely see it mid combat?

Yet she couldn’t deny that it was precisely what had happened. Jennifer stared dumbfounded as Viel turned towards her.

“Not all [Warriors] rely on their Skills. Some chose to rely on their skills as well. You’ll be learning to better work on your affinity with Nathaniel, but for now, we’ll work on your basics on fighting and understanding your opponent,” Viel said, as he turned to face her, extending another vial. This time a mana potion.

“Whenever you’re ready, we can have round two,” Viel said, grinning menacingly as Jennifer grimaced. With a groan, she drank the potion and continued her training with renewed vigor.