Vol. 3 Prologue

"What in Lucile’s name happened here!"

On one foggy night in Lagupa, groups of black robed beings had scattered around the forest. As they walked, monsters growled in hostility, baring their fangs, yet none attacked, seemingly afraid of their presence.

"The dungeon is no longer an option." Said one of the hooded men whose build was big and muscular, his yellow eyes shined brightly on his grinning face.

From behind him, a lady screamed once more as her yellow mana erupted violently. She glared at the ground while grasping her hair, yelling and cursing loudly.

"I’ll kill all of them!"

Monsters and some who seemed to be their subordinates felt suffocated from the pressure she exuded. Only then did she stop upon feeling a man’s aura as he spoke.

"Calm down."

Unlike the lady and the burly man, he exuded the presence of a normal person, yet all of them knew how powerful he could be.

The backlash of the lady’s actions made some vomit and faint from fear. Her orange eyes were shining, still mad at what she saw.

Different stones that looked to be from the carcasses of the golems were spread beneath them. The cores that they thought could be salvaged were even crushed and diminished thoroughly.

"What can you gather?" Said the man towards the group of mages that were using their detection magic, kneeling in full concentration.

It was hard to concentrate under the lady's mana, but after it ceased, they were able to sense what they were attempting to do. After some minutes of investigation, one of them stood up and spoke,

"My liege, it's them. The kids with the Witch hunter."

Upon hearing the news, the lady’s face contorted once more. Hatred had been written across her face, yet it was apparent that she was holding back.

Seeing that, their subordinates sighed in relief. They knew without the man’s presence, they quite possibly would have died from another tantrum.

"I guess we need to kill those brats." Said the largely built man grinning from the excitement. His bloodlust was enough to scare some monsters away.

"Leave Sarah Star to me. Finally... they’ll pay for what they did to Gered." Replied the lady whose eyes were filled with contempt.

Yet the other man was deep in thought, silently eyeing a shattered core. The bronze golem that they thought upon awakening could potentially damage the Kingdom of Taglagas, was destroyed completely.

"How intriguing." The man said, his smirk being concealed underneath his hooded robe. He could not help but anticipate the day they would meet.

As they exited the dungeon empty-handed, two of their men ran to them with reports of the stolen golden apples. The lady began screaming once more as she was the one who discovered those fruits.

"That can't be! I even went on and used warding spells around that place."

She knew that even Sarah Star would have a hard time finding that place, especially after the fogging.

'It's like they knew where to look.' The man thought while hearing the report.

When the lady discovered the golden apples upon walking after visiting the dungeon, she immediately put several spells including thick fog around its area.

Upon later being told that the whole forest was fogged, she thought it was either a coincidence or her magic had evolved due to the vast number of magical monsters in Lagupa.

Still out of caution, she commanded her subordinates to investigate. Only when they reported that no one interfered with her magic, did that put her mind at ease.

That was why they even went as far as advancing the progress of the dungeon with the help of the Prophets of Lucile.

"We should have placed guards not just mindless monsters." Said the man contemplating their actions.

Now, both of their resources were lost. One that could fund the ingredients for their bombs, and the other, a viable army that they could have controlled.

"That brat Andrew and his friends are getting on my nerves." Said the large man who was now in a bad mood. He really wanted to try some of those golden apples.

Their contempt towards Andrew’s party only grew by the second, yet the other man thought otherwise,

‘Why erase your presence with the golden apples but not in the dungeon?’

His smile was wicked, he knew there was more from that report alone.

"How intriguing. We should visit them soon." As he said that, all of them disappeared from the forest, and only the serene sound of wind and coldness that seeped from the season of Autumn could be heard and felt.

*******

"Bless you." Said Viola after Andrew, out of nowhere sneezed.

Currently, all of them were waiting for Note and Rizaul inside the canteen. School at that time was lax, as the cultural festival was to be held tomorrow.

"Thanks." Replied Andrew while drinking hot coffee in the middle of the day.

"So even Andrew can get cold." Teasingly said Rinca, giving Viola and Namiku ample time to nod and tease him as well.

Knowing him, the three of them knew his body was so strong, that he could resist both heat and cold. Not to mention, his aura and magic were keeping his body in balance.

"I am human afterall." Replied Andrew wryly. He was truly enjoying the days of rest they earned.

After finishing the Lagupa mission, all of them had been on break as they studied for the past week, and were now preparing for the festival.

Sarah Star after completing the dungeon went and gave them half the portion of the earnings, and even the pioneering rights of it, making them more famous.

At first, they declined as they weren't the ones who actually finished the dungeon.

''Hmm… perhaps it wouldn’t have been easy for you, but I know you could have finished the dungeon.''

Yet with her smile and cunning words they were silent. It was not that they were hiding their power, but it was true, that if they wanted to, they could have finished the dungeon themselves.

"Hey, guys!" Said Note waving his hand towards them.

When Note and Rizaul entered the canteen, their surroundings became much noisier and more enjoyable as the discussions further delved into laughter.

"It's kinda sad that we’ll be doing different tasks in the festival." Mumbled Viola as she unintentionally voices out her thoughts.

It wasn't a surprise that it made all of them chuckle earning a blush from Viola's face.

"Well, we have breaks so we could prolly hang out til then." Replied Note grinning with Andrew and Rizaul nodding in response.

Teasingly, Rinca, and Namiku were pinching Viola's cheeks who also laughed softly from being embarrassed.

"By the way, have you heard the news?" Said Note eyeing all of them. He smiled seeing they knew what he was talking about.

'The golden apples.' They all thought upon recalling their meeting with Naell in Lagupa.

Not to mention, Owly had spent gold here and then, treating them at the off chance they were hanging out.

Yet what made all of their suspicions align was the fact that after Naell's report to the guild, the discovery of the golden apple was then announced.

"Well, it’s not like we can ask Owly." Said Note as they exited after finishing the meal they had.

Yet before they could take a step once more, they heard HOOTs telepathically as a bird landed onto the knight's head.

• Ask me what, HOOT? •

"..."

They then decided to go somewhere quiet so they could talk to Owly privately. There they got surprised at how the bird was declaring openly how he, and Naell got the golden apples.

"..."

All of them were flabbergasted at Owly until the end. Rizaul was the only one who was able to speak as he asked,

"Are you sure it is ok for you to tell us these things Owly?"

"Why not, HOOT?"

They all smiled wryly as they thought Naell would be mad at the bird for leaking their discovery. Yet Owly's reply dumbfounded all of them until the end.

"Naell’s too lazy to care about those things. Besides, he knew I would leak it somehow, HOOT!"

"..."