The days started to blend together for Ajax following that meeting. He was very busy all day every day from there forward as he attended the Academy. After most school days ended he would be spirited away by the headmaster as he started his experimenting with Magnetic mana.

Oddly enough for him Ajax found that the king had put almost no pressure on the headmaster in terms of how quickly he was to make headway, the only thing the king was adamant on was the secrecy of the project.

On the days that he did have off Ajax found himself split between his Alchemy or his curse training. He was pushing himself so hard that the most relaxed days Ajax had were the ones where he joined the class for a delve and was stuck on a low level floor of the dungeon.

His second delve with the prince went much better than the first. Despite the dungeon floor biome not being as good for him as the forest had been, all of the preparations and equipment that he had been given prior to entering had allowed him to slowly but surely clear out the floor without having a close call.

Before Ajax knew it the day of departure had snuck up on him. He had been so focused in getting together everything he could that he only realized he was leaving the next day when he walked in on a farewell party set up by his family at dinner.

That night Ajax had gotten very little sleep, he had spent a good portion of the evening and night reassuring each of his family members as well as a few close friends that he would be careful, only to have to do it all again the next morning.

As Ajax and Theron got to their departure spot they quickly found out that what they had thought to be a small caravan had turned into a rather sizable convoy. Beside the already numerous fifty people that were set to travel it seemed that the crown prince had decided to take this chance as one of the last few trips he would be able to take before he would be crowned as king.

“He didn’t have to go that far, I think I’m relatively safe.” Ajax mumbled, unlike his last long term trip he now had a storage ring meaning all of his belongings were already packed and placed on his finger.

“This isn’t for your protection.” Archduke Goldmancer said as he heard Ajax’s mumble. “The crown prince is going to ensure the safety of his own son.”

“How does him going with a few non-too high level guards ensure anyone's safety?” Theron asked the question Ajax was thinking.

“Because everyone knows that the crown prince won’t leave the empire without his son.” the archduke said. “Your classmate is only good as a hostage if his father stays here and ascends the throne so him going with you means there is no value in capturing him.”

“Couldn’t they just capture the crown prince?” Ajax asked.

“They could, but that would start a war they would quickly lose.” the Archduke explained. “If I could have a word in private Ajax.”

“Yes, sir?” Ajax asked as he and the archduke moved to a more reclusive spot and the archduke placed a privacy screen.

“I am here to make a request of you.” Archduke Goldmancer started.

“What kind of request?” Ajax asked, unsure of what he could achieve that the man couldn’t easily get for himself.

“I'd like to ask you to take care of Anna.” the archduke said.

“I’m sorry to say that if anyone can get past your guards there is nothing I could do to stop them.” Ajax said as he looked towards the three guards that were in the high nineties and were coming along to act as the boost crew for the final floor of the Empire’s secondary dungeon.

“It’s not there that I am worried about.” the archduke said. “It’s inside the dungeon.”

“I can assure you that Anna is more than capable of handling anything that the first or second floor of the dungeon can throw at her.” Ajax said. “With a good biome she might even be able to clear the third.”

“I’m also worried about Oliver.” The archduke said.

Ajax now realized what the old man was getting at. Oliver was the fifth and final person taking a slot in their delve and he was a level forty mage, not only that but Oliver was also Anna’s nephew and Ajax could understand the trepidation of his father asking Oliver to kill Anna inside the dungeon for a better chance at taking over the family once the Archduke dies.

“Please always make sure they are not on the same floor without you there.” the Archduke requested.

“I’ll take care of it.” Ajax reassured him.

“What was that about?” Tom asked after Ajax came to rejoin his family before the convoy started to move.

“He wanted to make sure of a few last details on the delve.” Ajax was careful to watch his words so he wouldn’t give anything away to anyone eavesdropping.

“Be careful, alright darling.” Ajax’s mother said for what had to be the tenth time that morning as she gave him a hug.

“I will be.” Ajax reassured her.

“Don’t be overconfident, there is no shame in retreating from a bad position.” Hatched said the advice meant so much more coming from him since Ajax knew just how long it had taken him to take that same advice following the near complete wipe-out of his team.

“HHHHHHRRRRRR.” Fluffy, not one to be left out was quick to cuddle up to Ajax.

“Yes, yes.” Ajax said as he stroked the massive feline. “I’ll make sure to bring you back something good.”

With that Ajax and Theron climbed in one of the carriages and shortly after that the convoy started to move. Unlike a usual caravan the convoy not only wasn’t transporting heavy merchandise via carts but consisted only of carriages and riders meaning their pace was much quicker than Ajax’s last journey.

“We’re moving quickly.” Ajax noticed. “Will the trip really take a whole month?”

“We’ll be making a few stops on the way, the crown prince and his son won’t be able to simply pass through some of the Dukes and Viscount territories without spending a day or two.” Lexi said.

Ajax had ended up sharing a carriage with Lexi, Anna, Theron, Oliver and one of the three Goldmancer guards. Out of all of them Oliver seemed to be the most displeased with the arrangement because while none of them were squeezed in too tightly he ended up sharing a side of the carriage with Ajax and Theron.

“I still don’t see why we had to share a carriage.” Oliver complained. “Even as a newly promoted Baron surely you could afford one.”

“I’d be nicer to Ajax if I were you.” Lexi was quick to cut in.

“And why is that?” Oliver asked. “Sure his status as a Baron might place him higher than me as an individual but I doubt he would mess with someone from the Goldmancer family.”

“Because it will be up to Ajax if he will help you fight to clear the fifth floor.” Lexi said.

“I have heard that he won the sixth year tournament but I assure you I am stronger than the previous sixth year class, even if they do approach me in level.” Oliver said.

It was here that talent seemed to weaken people compared to their peers in terms of level. For most people who were talented and gained their level quickly it usually meant they had done so through multiple skills meaning they are more spread out compared to someone older who focused on a smaller number. This spread of skills required for quick leveling was why the Academy only took people in if they qualified as first years.

As a mage Oliver was definitely stronger than the sixth years but he was also older than them by at least a decade. Not only that but in another decade those same sixth years would outlevel Olvier.

“Ajax would at least be aiming for the fifth floor.” Lexi stated confidently, she in fact knew that the plan was for Ajax to fully clear out the sixth floor.

“Ajax hardly broke a sweat as he swept through the tournament.” Anna joined the discussion. “I’d be more careful about insulting him if I were you, after all what was it you said to me ‘anything can happen inside the dungeon’.”

Both Oliver and the guard went still at those words. Oliver was now trying to steal a glimpse at Ajax who was hidden behind Theron’s size, the guard had quickly moved his hand towards the sword and was now trying to burn a hole in Oliver’s head with his stare.

‘Why does everything have to be so complicated.’ Ajax silently lamented as he tried to catch up on some sleep.