“Yahla… Yahla...”

“Yahla… Yahla… Are you awake?”

“Yahla… Who’s that?”

“Yahla… Marshal Zayman is calling for you!”

“Marshal Zayman?”

“Yeah! He’s right outside! You have an appointment with him, remember?”

“Appointment?”

“Wow, you really do sleep too much. I was wondering why he gave you such a luxurious room! Anyway, you shouldn’t keep him waiting! He’s brought his sons over!”

Yahla stretched and rubbed the corners of his eyes, clearing the goo from his eyes. Light returned to his drowsy world, and he was greeted with the sight of a nagging maidservant staring him down. Even with creamy pale-blue complexion and emerald-coloured eyes, the maidservant looked rather homely. She donned simple cloth, nothing too shabby and nothing to fancy either. Perfect for someone who has to clean up for the man who was evidently sleeping on the job.

“His sons?”

“This sleepy bastard… How could he-...”

“Don’t trouble Scholar Yahla too much, Miss Zina.”

Before the maidservant could curse her heart out, a booming voice echoed from outside the room. The man outside wasn’t patient enough to wait any longer and helped himself in. Two-metres tall, broad-chested and wide shoulders. Those were the three distinct features that Yahla perceived of the man. Like Zina, the man had a beautiful blue complexion that made the azure sky above pale in comparison. Unlike Zina, however, the man wasn’t as fair.

Darkened by the sun with numerous scars crisscrossing his well-built body, Yahla could tell that the man who casually walked into his room was a battle-hardened warrior. Though he wasn’t in full armour and his weapon was nowhere to be seen, that body itself was good enough to win a hundred bouts all on its own.

“Scholar Yahla, I see that you still haven’t recovered from yesterday’s celebration! HAHA!!! It’s my fault for forcing my finest ale on you!”

“Ale?”

“Oya? Have you forgotten everything that happened last night?”

“...”

“HAHA, I didn’t know that you’re such a lightweight! I’ll take that to heart! Anyway, I have yet to introduce you! Here are my works of art that you’ll be tutoring from now on!”

The man named Marshal Zayman moved his massive body to the side, revealing three smaller shadows in the background. Three young boys, with ages no more than ten, took one step forward and each revealed their budding faces.

The first and tallest one stood forward with his chest stuck out like his father. Confidence filled his small frame, and a fiery light could be seen burning within his milky-emerald eyes. With spiky brown hair that matched his rather fair blue skin, Zayman’s eldest son was the one that looked most like him.

The second son was much more reserved, though never to the extent of hiding behind his father. Unlike his father and eldest brother, the boy didn’t have the same spiky hair. Straight and clean, it seemed that the second son was more of a scholar than a warrior. Furthermore, unlike his brother, the boy looked at Yahla with more curiosity than anything.

And finally… the third and youngest son came into Yahla’s view. He was hard to find because unlike his two brothers, the boy had been hiding behind his father’s tall frame with wariness. Short and timid, the soft-haired boy was reminiscent of that of a cat that was afraid of everything that it came into view with.

Yahla observed the three carefully while the towering man beamed in delight.

“Zadmu, Rangha, Imfu… This is Scholar Yahla, the best teacher in all of Lunaria! He’ll be your mentor on all subjects going forward. Martial arts, magic, language… He’s knowledgeable in everything! Come, pay your respects!”

“Pleased to meet you, Scholar Yahla!”

“I’m honoured to meet you, Scholar Yahla.”

“... Nice to meet you, Scholar Yahla...”

Yahla looked at the trio with intrigue. Everything was coming back to him now. Why he was subordinate to the Marshal and why he had agreed to teach his children. And after a solid four seconds, he was able to reply with a heralding smile.

“Please take care of me!”

❖❖❖

Drip… Drip… Drip...

“...”

The world was silent. There weren’t any chirping of birds, and neither were there the resonance of waves. Everything seemed to have come to a standstill at this very moment. Aria laid down on the floor, her knees glued together and her legs spread out. Her mind had ceased all comprehension, and her body was refusing to move.

How was she supposed to move?

Aurum’s warm crimson blood continued to drip down onto her face, and his body was turning weaker by the second. The considerable sword was stuck within his body like Excalibur to its rock. It seemed that there was no separating the two. And the culprit for this whole ordeal…

“Shit, shit, shit!” Yvette screamed from a distance. “HELP!!! HELP!!! SOMEONE HELP!!!” Just like Aria, the blonde elf could tell that the Black Knight wasn’t something that she could handle. Either way, a Healing Saint like her was unable to deal with any physical or magical damage to a being that could overwhelm Aurum.

Fortunately for the elf, her cries didn’t go unheard. Aria was living in a district where S and A-Rankers were the norm, and the sudden surge of mana, plus the cries of the elven damsel brought massive attention to the quiet bay. Furthermore, the guards that were meant to protect Aurum and Aria were nearby observing the whole situation. From the moment the Black Knight arose from the ocean, the guards had begun their race towards the bay.

“GET AWAY FROM HIM!!!” One of the black-suits hollered. Enhancing his body with magic, the man moved at supersonic speeds and had his dominant leg extended.

At the same time, a female guard teleported towards Aria and promptly secured her. Without even thinking about saving Aurum, the guard blinked away with the Archmagus in her hands, escaping to about thirty metres away. With Aria secured, the other guards were free to do whatever they pleased. Magically enhanced warriors bolted straight at the Black Knight while Magicians attempted to snipe them from the back.

All of that… happened within two seconds.

“Aria! Are you alright?!” Yvette met Aria on the ground, instantly casting a healing spell on her body.

“T...That…”

Aria was trembling… shaking like a leaf in the Autumn wind. Yvette could tell that there were no injuries on the woman other than a few minor abrasions. Mentally, on the other hand…

“Aria! ARIA!!! Snap out of it!”

“Y-Yvette?”

“Yes, Yvette! Don’t worry, you’re safe now!” The blonde elf reassured Aria while stroking her back. “We’re safe here!”

It took a while for Aria to break free from her trance-like state. The moment that Aurum’s blood touched her… There was a dream. A dream that seemed all too real. However, she was still wide awake, and her mind was as lucid as can be. What was reality? Aria asked herself subconsciously.

‘Reality is… My name is Aria Saciustrum. I’m an Archmagus from Yudonia. My best friend is Yvette and… I was in the middle of talking to Aurum when… when… when… THAT’S RIGHT!!!’

Aria’s mind spun rapidly, and she recalled the Black Knight who had disturbed their gentle chat. Aurum was supposed to have an invincible body, one that could take any damage and could never be cut or destroyed through conventional methods. Yet, the Black Knight that appeared out of nowhere… was able to pierce through that overwhelming body. Her eyes wandered around, and with shortness of breath, she exclaimed.

“That… That… WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!”

“I don’t know,” Yvette replied grimly. “The others are trying to subdue it now.”

“Subdue it? No! They aren’t a match for it!!!” Aria’s eyes wandered and immediately found the Black Knight and Aurum.

A-Ranked Martial Artists kicked every single part of its body. At the same time, equally strong Magicians attempted to bind it with long-ranged attacks. Their purpose was to remove the blade that was stuck in Aurum’s chest and to potentially destroy the unidentified being that came out from the ocean. Alas, none of their attacks were enough.

Clean, full-powered hits weren’t enough to move the Black Knight an inch and every single magic spell that was cast had been repelled. One A-Ranked Swordsman attempted to slice through the metallic plates of the Black Knight’s armour, but nothing happened to the Black Knight. On the contrary, it was the A-Ranker’s sword who got chipped by the impact.

“That thing is as strong as the Angel and Demon Guardians, if not stronger! We have to retreat right now!” Aria screamed.

“As strong as those monsters?! But… what about Aurum?!”

That was Aria’s next train of thought. Hearing Yvette’s concern, her eyes moved towards the brown-skinned man. Unlike Aria or Yvette, the man’s face didn’t show any signs of fear. Even with a giant greatsword sticking out of his chest, his golden eyes still showed as much life as he possibly could. Gritted teeth and a blushing face, Aurum was doing his best to pull the sword out from his body, ignoring the pain that the Black Knight was inflicting onto him.

“Fucking… GET OFF ME!!!” Agitated, Aurum roared.

“...”

The Black Knight stood still, ignoring everything that was happening around it. The onslaught by Yudonia’s guards continued, and Aurum was frantically trying to push the formidable foe off. However, no matter what, the Black Knight stood still. Its massive blade seemingly glued into Aurum’s body.

“EVERYONE MOVE!!!”

While the guards were still at a loss, a booming voice resonated from a distance. A towering man, one that was almost two metres in height, charged out from the residential area and brandished his overwhelming shield. Unlike the Black Knight, the man wasn’t in armour and was wearing simple civilian garb. However, just like the Black Knight, the man held himself in a regal form, just like a knight of old.

“Arius?!”

Even in her dazed state, Aria was able to recognise the most famous paladin that Yudonia had. During the raid of the S-Class Dungeon, Guardian Paladin Arius was one of the four foremost leaders and the overall commander of the raid. Although Arius was lacking his infamous steel-plate armour, the man still commanded a massive frame and his weapons were as shiny as they could be.

The arrival of one of Yudonia’s top S-Rankers eased the burden for the guards. Magicians moved out of the way while martial artists did their best not to disrupt Arius’ charge. Only Aurum was unable to care about the man since there was a sword stuck within his chest.

Though Arius didn’t mind. His aim was never to harm Aurum in the first place. As long as he remained the way he was, Arius was confident of avoiding the ancient man. The two and a half metre shield on his left arm began to gloss with a holy light all while mana flowed out from his inner self.

Aria, Yvette, Finn and Luke weren’t the only ones to have drastic changes to their status plates. Virtually every S-Ranker in the world had their stats increased, and Arius was no exception. With strength that could match the Giants, the man swung his massive shield, and a ray of light burst forth from it. The yellow energy that was separated from his weapon continued to move like a serpent that was locked onto its prey and before long, it was manifesting itself as a yellow shield.

It was Guardian Paladin Arius’ signature ability, the Sacrificial Shield.

Exchanging his mana into a surge of energy, Arius was able to create a physical form that could protect anything that he willed. Either from pushing the target away or by holding the fort, Arius was able to sacrifice his mana to defend his allies. Since it was a surge of energy, it was able to pass through any physical form, Aurum included. However, the moment that the surge of energy passed through Aurum, it turned corporeal and aimed to attack the Black Knight with everything that it had.

CLANK!!!

Thrown off its feet for the first time, the Black Knight pulled the blade out of Aurum’s chest and did one somersault, landing right before the ocean’s railings. With an opening created, Arius leapt in front of Aurum with blinding speeds, not giving a slimmer chance for the Black Knight to continue attacking.

“GET HIM AWAY!!!” Arius barked at the guards.

As if on cue, the very same female magician that teleported Aria to safety blinked right in front of Aurum. With the same momentum as she did before, the guard teleported Aurum to Aria’s coordinates.

“Aurum!!!” Aria screamed. Although the blade had been pulled out, the wound still clearly remained. At that moment, Aria couldn’t even think about investigating Aurum’s flesh to check whether he was human or not. All she cared for was the safe recovery of the man. “Yvette, please look at his wounds!”

“On it!!!”

There was no need for Aria to cry for help. Being the Healing Saint that she was, there was no way that Yvette would leave Aurum, no, a gravely injured patient alone. Kneeling right by his side, the Healing Saint attempted to close the wound with her own magical powers. But fortunately for her…

“Eh?”

When Yvette’s hands were about to touch the wound, miraculously enough, Aurum’s body had already begun a state of self-repair. The residue dark energy that came out from its blade was expelled at an ungodly rate. At the same time, the blood loss seemingly caused no impairment to his bodily functions. In time, the wound closed by itself. It was as if… the injury never happened at all.

“Self-recovery at this level...” Yvette’s hands were shaking, and her eyes failed to register what she was witnessing.

Self-recovery was a general ability, so much so that almost all combatants had some degree of it. Heck, all humans have their own self-recovery mechanisms even without magic. However, for an injury to instantly heal itself without any support from Healing Magic… This was a first for Yvette.

“Aurum… What are you?”