The manhole cover slid off and tumbled to the side with a heavy thud. Elysium and Lily peered down the entrance of the sewer, holding their noses at the unholy stench coming from below.
“This is stupid,” Lily coughed repeatedly and almost retched.
“You are stupid,” Elysium shot back, a hint of determination in his eyes. “This is how we gain levels! You're already ahead of me, and I need to catch up.”
Lily sighed. She had agreed to this plan and rehearsed it multiple times, conducting battle simulations with her dear friend along the alleys of the Citadel.
If this had been Earth, she would have been horrified at the prospect of two young kids going into the sewers to hunt for huge rats—but this wasn’t Earth. Thinking of Earth, it had been a long time since Earth had been anything but a distant memory for Lily.
Things had changed in many ways since her mother had left for the battlefield. Gentiliana barely gave her any trouble for skipping practice—and Lily found her passion for healing rekindled by the complete freedom she had acquired. Instead of going into the Sanatorium every day, she would go every time she believed she had thought of something new—repetitive, mindless practice didn’t bear great fruit. The definitive proof was that her skills had been leveling up faster than usual.
She had been keeping her father updated with weekly letters where she detailed what she’d gone through. Lucianus, in turn, had sent her updates on their end, even forcing Adriana to write small, clearly heavily edited letters of her own.
“So?” Elysium prodded.
“We are going,” Lily exhaled, “but we are going back up the instant things get too dangerous!”
“Yeah, yeah,” Elysium shrugged.
Sometimes, in the quiet moments, Elysium would confide in Lily about his wish to be as gifted as her. ‘You make it look so easy,’ he would say with a mix of admiration and frustration.
Elysium’s parents, Alexander and Ligea, let the young boy completely to his device, day and night. He was so obsessed with training that they didn’t even need to remind him to practice—every day, he was more terrified of falling behind, especially when compared to Lily. If anything, his parents had to pull him away from the battered mannequins before he could start biting them once his sword’s blade became completely dull.
Lily suspected that if it wasn’t for her, the young boy would have probably been up to much worse ventures than the one they currently faced. She felt doubly responsible: not only was she an adult – even though she inhabited a child’s body – but Elysium’s eagerness came in part from the difference in their talents. This angst he had about his capabilities was one of the main reasons Lily had accepted to partake in this unfortunate venture.
She watched Elysium slowly descend into the manhole that led to the sewer. As he did, she guided a gentle stream of Light-Attuned Magic around him to illuminate whatever was lying below.
“GEE,” Lily coughed as she lowered herself down the hole as well, the steel sword she had borrowed from Elysium tapping against her thigh. “We could have waited a bit longer before crawling inside this filthy—"
“You already made me wait a week because of your stupid [Cleanse]! You’ve got it now! We can get cleaned up later!” Elysium scoffed from down below.
Lily sighed, slowly descending thanks to the metal rungs attached to the wall.
“Lights up,” Elysium said, raising his steel sword and double-checking his leather armor. He had been obsessed about coming down here and killing rats ever since he had heard that that was how many Adventurers got started on their journey.
Lily, being the only adult between the two – in terms of mental age, at least – had insisted that they simulate the scenario and train for it beforehand instead of just jumping into the sewer and getting killed. Surprisingly enough, Elysium, who was now sporting a thick mane of red hair on his head, had agreed.
[Light Orb] x3
She cast three lights, one above them, one at the front, and one at the back.
“Rats get big down here,” Elysium said warily, “they never send people to clear them out. We should have enough to level up for weeks.”
“Rats carry diseases, too,” Lily said with a tinge of worry, “and you know I can’t heal diseases, right?”
The boy just waved his hand in her direction, slowly walking forward. Even though Lily was taller than him, Elysium was a future [Templar] with a great talent. Not as great as hers – as her mother had previously loved to remind her – but good enough to be undefeated while dueling with other kids without classes.
Looking at the slimy walls and the foul river to their left, the blonde [Healer] was starting to have regrets.
“Did we really have to do this? If my mother—”
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“Stop complaining,” Elysium grumbled without turning back, his eyes glued to the front.
“Whatever,” Lily felt awkward for being reprimanded by a boy who could barely read, but she admitted that he had a point. Even after Adriana had departed, her shadow still loomed long on Lily’s mind.
They proceeded slowly, Lily keeping her Mana regeneration in check. Not having unlocked The System yet, she couldn’t see the exact numbers, but she had developed an uncanny instinct for it. She was almost full tank on Mana again, and over the last three years, she had developed an instinct for her reserves.
“There’s one,” Elysium said, voice brimming with excitement. Before Lily could say anything, the boy sprinted forward, and she pushed the [Light Orb] farther down the sewer.
It went past a massive rat the size of a German Shepard and stopped a few meters behind it.
The gigantic rat hissed at Elysium, but the boy didn’t even flinch as his first swing took off one of the monster’s front paws. The rat screeched in pain, but before it could do anything, Elysium had already moved on to his next attack.
“[Templar’s Hammercut]!” He shouted the skill and swung from below, ripping the monster’s throat open.
As the rat fell dead on its back, Elysium panted, trembling because of all the adrenaline in his body.
“Let’s move,” he ordered, kicking the monster’s corpse into the filthy water. “That gave me two new levels in the skill. We should have come down here a long time ago.”
Maybe he’s right… Lily thought.
…
In the dimly lit sewer, Elysium suddenly froze, his ears picking up faint scuttling sounds echoing off the tunnel walls.
"Quiet," he whispered, turning to Lily and raising his hand, both of them stopping immediately. His eyes gleamed with anticipation and a sprinkle of fear. Lily quickly summoned two more [Light Orbs] and let them float toward the intersection they were facing, illuminating the area with a harsh, white glow.
Suddenly, from the murk, two monstrous-looking rats, each the size of a rather small dog, lunged forward. Their eyes glowed eerily in the spectral light, teeth bared and glistening wetly. One was a sickly mottled brown, the other a glossy, pitch black. They skittered forward with their gnarled paws, tails thrashing and hissing through the disgusting sludge in the sewer.
Elysium reacted in an instant, leaping back and away from the first rat's snapping jaws. His sword danced in his hand, cutting the air as he readied himself for the oncoming assault. "These ones are fast!" he warned, his voice echoing through the tunnel.
“We’ve got it!” Lily shouted back, reading her spells. They had practiced for this scenario as well.
The first rat – the brown one – dove at the boy, yellow teeth gnashing. Elysium countered, his sword slicing across the creature’s flank. The rat squealed in pain but didn’t let up, lunging again with renewed vigor. Its claws scrabbled on the brickwork as it rebounded off the wall, zigzagging across the floor with an unnatural agility.
Driven by his need to prove himself and match Lily’s prowess, Elysium was quicker, though. He lunged forward, his sword striking the rat squarely. The creature let out a high-pitched shriek, but its assault was halted as the blade struck home. It fell heavily onto the sewer floor, its blood staining the muck a darker hue.
A sense of triumph rushed through Elysium, but it was short-lived. The second rat – the black one – was on him. With its gleaming eyes full of rage, it launched itself at the boy. Elysium barely had time to bring his sword up to defend himself, the rat's gnashing teeth clashing against the blade.
Elysium staggered back under the impact, his boots slipping in the muck. Lily, her face pale, was yelling at him, but the words were lost in the cacophony—thankfully, her training took over, and she launched one of the [Light Orbs] straight into the rat’s eyes, blinding it.
[*Ding!* Skill – Light Orb level 84!]
Elysium pounced on the monster, his arms shaking with the strain as he parried the rat's attacks, each one stronger and more vicious than the last. Lily helped by casting [Light Shield], a spell her father had taught her, and blocking the more dangerous charges.
The boy soon noticed a pattern in the rat’s attacks. The creature lunged, fell back, swiped, and lunged again. He took a deep breath, steeling himself. As the rat lunged again, he sidestepped, letting the creature's momentum carry it past him. As the rat tried to turn, Elysium shouted, "[Templar’s Hammercut]!" His sword arced down, slicing through the air and the rat's flesh.
[*Ding!* Skill – Light Shield level 44!]
A shrill cry echoed through the tunnel, the rat convulsing in pain before it slumped to the floor. Panting heavily, Elysium lowered his sword, its blade dripping with the ichor of his vanquished foes. His heart pounded, the thrill of victory a tangible force in the dank, filthy tunnel. "Two rats," he gasped, looking at Lily, "three level-ups for [Templar’s Uppercut] and two for [Swordplay]. Not bad for a day's work."
He breathed heavily after killing the two rats that had attacked them together. Lily examined a scratch on the front of his leather armor and made sure that it hadn’t gotten to his skin. Luckily, the kid’s gear was nothing to scoff at. These rats were probably no higher than level 10 – even though they were an odd variant – and not something beyond their current capabilities. Still, the girl hesitated.
“I’m not sure we should continue,” she told him.
“Why?” Elysium looked confused. “Isn’t your [Light Orb] leveling up? And the [Light Shield]?”
“Yes, but… it’s dangerous. What if we get hurt?”
“If we get hurt, we get hurt. As long as we don’t die. I have some potions with me. What, are we going to die fighting rats?”
“Well, no… but...”
“Come on! You said that if we found something too dangerous, we’d run back. This wasn’t too dangerous. We handled it!”
Elysium growled, frustrated.
“What if we get overwhelmed?” Lily asked. “What if next time, there are eight rats instead of two?”
"I need this! Everyone is amazed by you! But what do I have?!” The boy shouted, frustrated. “If anything happens, just make a [Light Shield], blind them, and we run.”
“Elysium, it’s not that simple! We could die! Stop being a child!”
“You are a child!” Elysium spoke, outraged. “You worry too much! You can’t even box without your momma threatening you! If it were my mother, I would have told her to—!”
“Because you are selfish!” Lily suddenly erupted. “I am not a little selfish brat like you!”
But as she grew angrier, Elysium just smiled.
“I like it when you get angry. You look less like a loser—you get prettier,” he smiled without any hints of malice.
Lily suddenly felt a pang of guilt for her outburst and looked down.
“Don’t let your mom decide everything,” Elysium added before turning to the front again, “you will be much stronger than her.”
Lily laughed at the statement while a few tears escaped her eyes.
He’s childish, but… he can also be so sweet.
Suddenly, Lily felt the [Light Orb] in the back vanish, so she immediately spun around and summoned a [Light Shield]. Elysium, caught by surprise, took a second to react and jumped in front of her.
An ominous feeling had spread through the sewer.