I woke up in the morning to the cracking sound of a campfire. I didn’t remember falling asleep, much less starting a campfire. Suddenly, a hundred different aches and pains assaulted my body. Slowly, my brain cells began to work. A white dense fog filled with diminutive mana specks covered the forest.

A concealing spell, maybe?

I turned inside the warm blanket, trying to find a better angle for my bruised body. I didn’t expect Elincia’s emerald eyes staring intently at me, barely a palm from my face. My heart skipped a beat. Suddenly the memories from the combat against the Stone Giant flooded my mind, and my heart stopped for a moment.

“Am I dead?” I asked.

“Why? Because you are seeing an angel, you smooth talker?” Elincia gave me the biggest shit-eating grin to date.

“You lack half a dozen eyes, several golden rings, and a crown of fire to be an angel.” I replied with a smile that I hoped rivaled hers.

“It’s good to see your brain is working at the usual frequency.”

A heavy weight left my chest. Elincia was safe. Other than the bandage wrapped around her head, she looked perfectly fine.

“What happened?” I asked.

“A stone grazed my head, so I was out throughout the whole thing. Then Chief Alton and the Sentinels killed the Stone Giant and rescued us. When I found you, you were already out.” Elincia said as she tried to find a more comfortable position on the rocky forest bed.

“Are you alright?” I said in panic. Concussions could not be taken lightly.

“Oh, yeah. It was barely a scratch and Big-tusk is a high level Healer.” Elincia smiled. “Now, stop hogging the blanket, my ass is cold.”

I noticed Elincia was under my blanket. Or was I under her blanket? A metaphorical siren drowned out the rest of my thoughts. Two months weren’t nearly enough to get to really know someone. No matter how many stacks of Denial the System threw in my direction, two months weren’t enough to get to like someone.

Or maybe it was.

In the short period of time I had lived at the orphanage we had lived through a lifetime of troubles and victories. We had expanded the farm plot, fended off the Marquis’ henchmen, and won Captain Kiln’s support. We had listened to Nokti and Virdian’s first words, we had seen Shu turning into a brave little girl, and even made Zaon gain a bit of confidence. Even Firana had embraced her place at the orphanage.

Maybe I was being stubborn, needlessly sticking to my [Lonely Boy] title.

Effects of Denial are subsiding. You have obtained Denial Lv.4. Temporary.

I shook my head. There was one great obstacle I hadn’t accounted for. Elincia didn’t know the real me.

“The lovebirds are finally awake.”

I got up just to see the face of the old man who had interrogated me last night floating in front of us. I had to blink twice to catch the rest of his body against the foliage. The Sentinel cloaks had to be enchanted with some sort of camouflage spell. Every time I lost sight of them, they instantly blended with the background.

“Thank you for rescuing us, Chief Alton.” Elincia put her arm around my shoulders and used me as a crutch.

The old man, Chief Alton, examined us. Around the campfire another four figures turned around to look at us. Only then I realized there weren't just the three of us. The fact the Sentinels could appear and disappear seemingly at will was unnerving.

“Coincidence.” Chief Alton said. “How is your leg doing, brat?”

Elincia instantly let me go in a vain attempt to appear healthier.

“Great, my leg is doing great. Not a single trace of pain.” Elincia blurted out. Her act was as flawed as Ash’s when the kid was caught committing a prank.

Chief Alton’s skeptic glance was enough to make my throat dry. The Sentinel gave off the same energy as my old math teacher. If I had the [Classroom Fiend] title, Mr. Santelices must have [If Looks Could Kill] or something alike.

“You know each other?” I asked.

Elincia blushed.

“When I was a kid, Chief Alton used to drag me back to Farcrest every time I tried to enter the Farlands. Elincia explained with an embarrassed expression on her face. “He used to say he was protecting the monsters from me.”

I raised an eyebrow as I examined Chief Alton’s stern face. The old man had the appearance of a reclusive hermit, not a babysitter. The whole squad of Sentinels was made up of tough individuals used to life in the wilderness. I couldn’t help but picture Elincia belonging with the Sentinels.

“No time for chit-chat. Prepare your bags, I’m taking you two back to Farcrest before this fog gets worse.” Chief Alton ordered.

The rest of the Sentinels started to break camp with incredible haste.

“We are not going anywhere.” Elincia said. Despite her initial embarrassment, she was in full defiance mode now. Any authority the Chief Sentinel had over Farcrest inhabitants didn’t seem enough to drag us back. However, I couldn’t help but feel worried. The Sentinels were still the Marquis’ men.

Chief Alton sighed as if he had enough socialization for a lifetime.

“This is no natural fog, brat. There is a monster out there doing this, and there is a whole lot of mana involved. The whole valley is covered and who knows how far it goes.” The old man said. “You have the spirit of a Hunter, Elincia, but you are just an Alchemist at the end of the day. And you need to start showing some respect for the Farlands.”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

There was no malice in the man’s words, just facts.

I must’ve misjudged Chief Alton. The man seemed more worried about Elincia’s well-being than following whatever orders he had.

“I’m sorry, Chief. We have business in the Farlands, fog-spitting monsters or not.” Elincia said with a tone that did not allow space for discussion.

I could see, however, the reason why Chief Alton wanted us out of the Farlands. Elincia’s leg was wounded, and my mana pool drained. And there was the fact my body was as bruised as a ripe plum. In my current state it would be hard to even grab a sword, and Chief Alton must have known.

“Knife-ears, to me!” Chief Alton yelled.

A half-elf woman with short platinum hair and amber eyes appeared out of nowhere. I recoiled. The damned cloaks had to be infused with a concealment spell, there was no other explanation for the Sentinel’s inhuman ability to blend with the scenery.

“Say, Mama-Bear?” The woman replied with a wide smile on her face.

I refused to accept that ‘Mama-Bear’ was Chief Alton’s codename.

“Let’s say you are a Black Wolf–” Chief Alton was interrupted by the woman’s howl. Her imitation, although weaker than the real thing, was surprisingly believable. “You are hungry–”

“I’m always hungry.” The woman pointed out.

Chief Alton was unfazed by the interruptions.

“You are a hungry Black Wolf, and you find a tasty Scholar–”

“He looks tasty though.” She pointed out, examining me from head to toe.

Elincia put an arm in front of me as Knife-ears stepped forward.

“If you are able to fend off Knife-ears, I’ll allow you to continue with your little trip.” Chief Alton concluded. “Otherwise I’ll drag you back to Farcrest. I’m sure it will be no problem for a group of six combatants to subdue two soft-hands.”

Chief Alton glanced at me, and I understood what he really wanted to say. ‘We are stronger than you even with your mana tricks.’ I didn’t doubt he was right. We were fighting in their domain after all.

Elincia hobbled forward before I could react.

“Finally I had a reason to smack your stupid smile off of your face.” She grinned, prompting the Sentinel to raise her fists in a comical manner.

“You are already out of combat, brat. The Scholar is the one doing the fighting.” Chief Alton cut out the girls’ brawl before it could even start. “The rules are simple. Don’t let Knife-ears touch you. Use any trick up your sleeve. Three minutes.”

I needed to think of a plan right now. Even with the half-orc’s potion and the night of sleep, my mana pool felt depleted. A quick glance at my character sheet revealed that my [Mana Depletion] was still at an advanced level.

Chief Alton must’ve misinterpreted my grimace because he quickly added. “She’s a high-level Ranger, don’t worry about hurting her.”

“It’s in bad taste to reveal a lady’s class.” Knife-ears pouted.

“Luckily the only lady here is Elincia.” Chief Alton pointed out.

A moment later, with the help of Big-tusk’s powerful voice, the group of Sentinels had cleared a wide circle. About twenty paces from me, there was the half-elf Sentinel stretching her legs. At least she had the courtesy of removing her chameleonic cloak. Elincia wasn’t particularly happy when Knife-ears revealed an adjusted ninja-like outfit.

“Don’t worry soft-boy, I’ll be gentle!” Knife-ears proclaimed with a mischievous smile.

“I am the epitome of masculinity!” I replied from my corner in an attempt to burn a couple more seconds before starting our bout.

Half-elves were fast, and I assumed Rangers were even faster. Running was out of the question, if Knife-ears was half as fast as Elincia, I was done. My brain buzzed as I tried to think about a solution for my predicament. [Stun Gaze] and [Intimidation] probably wouldn’t work against someone with a much higher level, and my holograms weren't going to deceive her. Even without sensory skills to tell apart the real deal from the illusions, my holograms were always blue.

I wonder if I could summon lenses with my new skills. That way I could reflect light and make myself invisible. I shook my head. Optics were too complex to just improvise as the fight happened. Body enhancement? Messing around with my own muscles to improve my speed was out of the question. Too dangerous without proper experimentation.

I wished I had some sort of flash powder to blind my challenger.

“Oh.” I muttered.

Big-tusk announced the start of the bout and Knife-ears lunged forward at dizzying speeds. Closing my eyes, I focused on my mana pool. [Mana Manipulation] wasn’t about moving mana, it was about forcing mana to adopt the shape I wanted with willpower alone.

I opened my arms wide and clogged my ears with mana plugs. I just hoped Big-tusk was a good healer because I didn’t know how loud this was going to be.

Knife-hears grinned only a few meters from me.

I violently brought my hands together.

My clap boomed through the clearing in the forest with the strength of thunder. Suddenly, Knife-ears’ smile turned into a pained wince before she stumbled and fell, face first, to the muddy ground.

[Awareness]: It’s super effective.

“My ears!” Knife-ears yelled as she tried to stand up with little success.

“Big-tusk, attend Knife-ears. The damned Scholar wins.” Chief Alton said as he massaged his ears. The only one of the group who didn’t seem to suffer the effects of my thunderclap was Elincia.

I felt bad for giving everyone temporary tinnitus, but a win was a win.

Chief Alton must’ve fulfilled his quota for sociability because, after ensuring Knife-ears was in shape, he quickly prepared his group to depart. I wasn’t surprised he was upholding his word. Just like Captain Kiln, Chief Alton seemed more loyal to the inhabitants of Farcrest than to the Marquis.

The Chief handed us our backpacks and a thick and coarse woolen blanket that had seen too many moons in the Farlands. I received the gift, and I realized it was warm.

“It’s enchanted, you wouldn’t need to start a fire to remain warm.” Chief Alton explained as he turned to face Elincia. “And you, brat, take good care of your Battle Scholar.”

“Thanks, Chief. Will do.” Elincia bowed her head.

Without saying a word, the old man walked north. The Sentinels followed him and disappeared like specters in the mist.

“If you want to make more loud sounds, come visit me from time to time. You know where to find me.” Knife-ears blew a kiss goodbye.

Elincia showed her the finger before she disappeared in the thick fog.

“To be completely candid, I don’t know where to find her.” I pointed out once we were left alone.

“You better not try.” Elincia grinned.

Luck might not be a System recognized stat, but I was sure I had spent all my luck reserves for the foreseeable future. We sat on the ground against one of the felled trees. The battle’s uproar should’ve driven away every neighboring monster and my body could use another couple hours of rest. Elincia seemed to think the same because she covered us with the enchanted blanket.

After all the fighting, I felt empty. However, it felt nice to have Elincia by my side.

“I feel like the Stone Giant sat on me last night.” Elincia grunted.

“Same. Want to see the bruise on my shoulder?”

“I would love to.”

I pulled my shoulder out of my shirt revealing the most unholy abomination of clotted blood I have ever seen. The bruise was a purple, green, and black mess, with the vague shape of a hand gripping around my shoulder.

Elincia couldn’t help but press on it with two fingers.

“It’s disgusting.” She pointed out, absorbed by the spectacle of such a monstrosity of a bruise. I didn’t fail to notice that Elincia might be into battle scars.

“I’m sorry I don’t have cool injuries to show you.” I jokingly said.

“Don’t worry, we can work things out.” She gave me a wicked smile as she drew her ankle knife.

I sighed. She was totally into scars.

“Better cut me a piece of bread, I’m starving.” I bumped her shoulder.

My feelings could wait, I was happy we were alive. I just hoped whatever monster was producing this fog, it was several valleys away from us.