Reivan had a lot of expectations about how the day would end but he definitely didn't expect how it started. Watching a senior battlemage get shot in the forehead with a special bullet designed to take out mages was definitely not anywhere on his list of possibilities. But here it was, happening anyway.
"Clover!"
Just as he was about to summon his shield, Reivan heard Mira call his name. And when he looked over to her, a flash of light was followed by a pulse of force that launched him flying backward. His body broke through a wooden door and he was sent sprawling into the dusty interior of whatever building he'd ended up in.
He immediately understood who did that and why, so after forcing himself through the dizziness, he crouched near the doorway and took a peek outside. It seemed Mira had also taken cover inside a building — except she'd created her own entrance by somehow melting a hole through the concrete. That was new. He wished they had time to do that for him since cannonballing through a door wasn't one of his preferred ways of entering any structure. Beggars couldn't be choosers, however.
"Sorry if you were surprised!" she called back from the other side of the alley. "It was kind of a sudden situation, y'know?"
Reivan nodded to show he understood and kept his ears peeled for anything that might help. "What do we do now?"
Mira's eyes suddenly glowed with light for but a moment before she answered. "There's a guy with what I think is Sorciron Cloak. Y'know, that thing that blocks off sorcery below a certain level? Spellbane bullets too, by the look of how Senior Crag got shot so easily."
"...That's not good for us, huh?" Reivan momentarily paused, surprised she got all that information in just a few seconds. "You think help is coming? Someone's scrying us, right?"
"Definitely," Mira answered soberly, looking like the opposite of her usual slovenly self. Her eyes resumed glowing with the magical light of scrying as she recounted what she could see. "I don't think offense is a choice here, Clover. We don't have any firepower that can go through those cloaks. There's also more coming. Same equipment, by the look of things."
"We escape, then."
"Yep. It's the only thing we can do! We literally have no way to stop them!"
"They can probably hear us talking right now."
"Uh-huh. Doesn't really change the hopelessness of our situation. Guess we gotta hold out and hope for the best!" Mira shouted theatrically, a mischievous grin on her lovely face despite their dire circumstances. She then placed a finger on her lips, gesturing for him to be quiet.
After he gave her a confused nod, she suddenly bolted out of her building. She clutched her long skirt and hiked it up to run easier, dashing toward him as fast as she could. Just as she barely got inside, a bullet streaked through the air where she once was, barely missing her.
"I made it!" Mira whispered a cheer, wiping some sweat off her forehead. Strands of hair clung to her skin as beads of cold sweat ran down her cheek. "A little too close for comfort though. My heart's going dumdumdumdum."
"That was way too reckless. You could've gotten shot."
"Eh. We're on the back foot here, so we had to take risks. Playing safe is for people who have the advantage! That's what my dad says about this card game called—"
Reivan pressed a hand to her mouth and listened carefully. It was faint, but he could hear a series of taps coming from where they assumed the first gunman was. For a moment, he thought it was Morse code but the message didn’t make sense in that case. Whatever it was, it must have been some other code he didn't know. Since he knew all the codes Aizen used, it was obvious these people weren't Aizen's agents.
And anyway, by the king’s command, none of their agents were to kill battlemages unprovoked—and these attackers definitely knew they were battlemages given how they prepared sorciron cloaks and spellbane bullets.
This was planned.
‘Killing battlemages…’
That was when he had a sudden realization.
'I'm probably not being watched by anyone right now, huh?'
There was a very dead battlemage on the street right now, so it would be strange if he did have an Ascendant watching him. There would be no reason for them not to help. Crag was, as Reivan understood it, an experienced battlemage. Yes, he was just a puny little mortal and when Reivan checked, Crag hadn't been all that strong. But experience always meant something in an organization that handled combat. You could not underestimate anyone who grew old in such a profession.
Reivan would have loved to confirm his theory with Valter, but the route Reivan's squad used didn't go anywhere near where Valter was stationed, so his guardian knight didn’t even know he was here in Lageton. Probably.
Maybe it was wishful thinking, but Reivan felt that his logic was without a flaw here. Someone might be scrying him right now, but he didn’t have an almighty silver cloak looming behind him.
'Okay. That gives me a little more room to work with… But let’s keep it as a last resort. Just in case I’m wrong.'
Reivan decided to see how things played out first.
Mira pushed him away and freed her mouth, pointing at the ceiling. She didn’t talk, simply mouthed her words very deliberately. “Gun. Man. Up.”
"Fuck." he cursed under his breath, annoyed at not even having the chance to come up with a plan. Reivan listened carefully and he did hear a soft creaking noise coming from the wooden ceiling. There weren’t any stairs leading upstairs since this place seemed more like a storehouse, so he scanned the ceiling and found what was probably a hatch.
He pointed at it with the intention of ambushing the man as he opened it. Mira nodded before pointing outside and miming a gun.
‘Does she mean that the guy outside is closing in?’
Reivan summoned both shields and gripped them both very tightly. Given how limited his repertoire was, he would be much more useful as a meat shield while Mira did all the spell-slinging. Hopefully, spellbane bullets didn't fuck up the enchantments on his shield. That was the last thing he wanted. He'd be wasting the Saintess' artifact on a mere bullet.
As for his surprisingly dependable captain, she had stopped scrying earlier so he wondered how she knew so much. But then he realized she had probably let her spirit beasts skulk around in spirit form — and he couldn’t see them since they technically weren’t in this world until they manifested.
Suddenly, Mira put up five fingers before promptly putting one down. Then another one. And another one.
‘Eh? What? Why are you counting down? What are we doing...!? Stop!’
Confused, Reivan was just about to stop her to ask what she meant when a resounding explosion from the ceiling shook his brain. Smoke filled the room in an instant and the ceiling started to come down on them.
But a second later, a bubble surrounded both of them as Mira smiled sheepishly, scratching her cheek. “Oops. Sorry about that. I kinda mistimed the explosion. I was going to time my shield with it but… uh, y'know. These things happen!”
Reivan licked his lips and watched more of the ceiling collapse on them, huddling up with her as they crouched. Though the hastily created ward served as protection, he still felt the need to hold his shields up above them just in case. “What the hell was that?”
“An explosion spell.”
“There’s an explosion spell?”
“Of course, there is, silly.” she giggled, her hot breath touching his neck as she hid under his shield. “There’s lots of them. They even come in different colors.”
Reivan frowned. “And? Why’d you use it when we’re also inside the house?”
“About that…” Mira laughed sheepishly as she explained. ”See, they have those cloaks, so we can’t attack them with our cruddy magic, right? But I’ll bet they didn’t expect a house collapsing on them! And I told you, I was going to time my shield with it… I just made a miscalculation. We’re okay, aren’t we? It worked! I’m great! Can’t you just praise me?”
They both flinched as a particularly large piece of the ceiling slammed into the ground right next to them. Bits and pieces of stone and dust and wood were launched in all directions, some of them bouncing off the barrier Mira had erected.
Reivan gave the woman a look and she averted her gaze.
Mira cleared her throat and pointed outside with a shaky finger. “A-Anyway, I was going to get Fawks to fight the gunman outside, but she won’t listen because the guy outside is apparently too weak. So yeah. We’re not out of the woods yet… Let’s get out of here. Just follow me, Clover.”
“Follow you where?” Reivan looked around and suddenly realized what she intended. “Are you going to use the spell to melt walls? The one you used earlier?”
“Ding ding. Correct. But see, it doesn’t just melt walls.” Mira smiled and pointed her wand at a part of the floor instead. With a flick of her wand, the wooden floor and the ground beneath it started melting to form a tunnel of some kind. “Nice, huh? I invented it!”
‘...Invented?’
Reivan felt incredibly curious but focused on the matter at hand. “You can tell me more about it later.”
“Oh, right, right. Sorry. Wait a while, thicker stuff takes time to melt. And nothing's thicker than the ground.”
Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.
Once the tunnel was formed, Reivan peered down and surmised that it had penetrated into the sewers. He insisted on being the first to slide down, slowing his descent with a whisperfall spell just before he became a crimson splotch of blood on the stone. There had been quite a drop and with no water to break his drop, he was definitely glad that the convenient spell wasn’t restricted by the Tower.
In any case, Arkhan’s sewers had gone unused for decades because of sorcerous innovations in waste disposal, so there thankfully wasn’t any shit to speak of. It was completely dry too. He’d expected rats, but there weren’t any either. Good things all around, if it weren't for the mysterious men trying to kill them. It was notably dark too, which he'd noticed late because his eyes were the best things in the universe.
Well, maybe not. But they were still pretty great.
“Hey!” Reivan produced some wisps of light as he shouted toward the tunnel. “It’s clear! You can jump down now! Just get a featherfall spell ready!”
A moment later, Mira fell through the hole with an amused squeal, and Reivan had to frantically look away when her skirt flipped up in the process.
“Whoops,” Mira landed gently on the dry and dusty ground, her blush was far too noticeable with a source of light so close to them. She smoothed out her long skirt and giggled awkwardly. “You got an unexpected treat, vice-captain. Aren't you gonna say thanks?”
“I didn't get a good look..." he lied. "But thank you very much.”
“I was joking!” Mira punched him on the arm, growing even more mortified. “Why are you being so sincere!?”
After Reivan raised the white flag, she calmed down and pointed upward, at the hole. “I want to close the tunnel but it’s too far. Any ideas?”
He looked up in contemplation and shook his head. “I think we're okay for now. The building collapsed and will cover the tunnel after all, especially after the bubble protecting us disperses. And anyway, whoever’s attacking us are ordinary people with unordinary equipment. They’re not mages so they can’t clear the rubble and reveal the tunnel easily. And they can't jump down easily either. This is quite a drop, after all. Plus, the tunnel will help reinforcements figure out that we're fine.”
“Alright. Then I guess we just have to find an exit…” Mira looked around the expansive dark sewers. “Y’know, I heard there used to be giant rat monsters in Vel Ayala's sewers. You think they have some here in Lageton too?”
‘Fuck… She just raised a flag! There’s definitely gonna be some now!’
Reivan sighed. “Let’s hope not. I hate rats.”
“Same, same. They're the worst things to see in a restaurant kitchen, right up there with roaches and laggermites. But don’t worry, vice-captain.” Mira elbowed him as she led the way down the dark sewers, conjuring her own wisps of light and sending them forward to illuminate the way forward. “I’ll protect you if it ever comes to it.”
“Thanks, captain. I'm counting on you."
"Of course! I gotta protect the damsel in distress."
"I'm swooning right now," Reivan said with a roll of his eyes. "And I feel so emasculated too.”
Mira laughed, her beautiful voice echoing throughout the darkness. Reivan, in turn, stared at her back for a few heartbeats before falling into step behind her.
"Captain."
"Hm?"
“Thanks.”
Mira threw a glance at him and raised a brow. "You're saying it again?
"Yeah. Because it's important."
"Hmm... For what?”
“Everything? I dunno.” He shrugged. “And sorry I can’t be of much help.”
Mira grinned, a quiet giggle escaping her lips. “This isn’t exactly a situation first years usually get into. Heck, I don’t even think I’m supposed to experience something like this. Gosh, this is the worst mission ever. I wanna go home…”
“...Me too. I miss my bed.”
“Right~? Home is the best, isn’t it~? Oh, but I wouldn't refuse a vacation in Aizen though. But it’s so difficult to get a visa.”
Reivan cocked a brow. “You've tried?”
“Yup. I wanted to study there when I was fifteen. Even packed too. And I also got someone to teach me a bit of English. I was aiming for the grand library that's apparently in the capital."
"Huh."
"You know how Aizen is the oldest nation in the continent, right? Before the empire ate up most of Sentorale, before the democratic confederation became Arkhan... Aizen was already what it was. And they apparently take really good care of their books so they have stuff dating back thousands of years ago, y'know? A thousand years. Think of all the stuff you could read in there."
Reivan pushed up his glasses a little. "Why didn't you then?"
"I couldn't get a slot! Or even a normal visa! There’s so much stuff that needs to be checked! Why can't they just give it out for free?”
‘Because there wouldn’t be a point if everyone could just come in.’
Reivan grinned unknowingly when she reverted back to her usual slovenly and drawn-out way of talking. And yet, her tiny back seemed just a bit bigger than when she was the captain who woke up late and lazed around in the common room.
‘What the heck, she's actually pretty cool, huh?’
He supposed the Tower wasn't entirely wrong to place her in a leadership role after all.
----------------------------------------
At some point, they simply had to admit that they were hopelessly lost.
“Why can’t we find an exit!?” Mira exclaimed in frustration, her angry voice somehow still managing to sound like a siren call in the massive echo chamber they were trapped in. “I’m glad it doesn’t stink and there aren’t any giant rats, but we’ve been here for hours and still haven’t found a way up! Where are all the damned ladders!”
In her anger, she kicked a stray rock as hard as she could. It must not have flown as far as she expected because her mood grew even worse. She turned to him with a frown on her pretty little face.
“Vice-captain."
"What is it now..."
"Tell me a joke. Chop chop.”
Reivan frowned. “People can’t just tell jokes on command like that.”
“What? Aren’t guys supposed to have at least one joke for when a pretty girl says she likes funny guys?”
“I don’t know where you heard that, but I’m pretty sure—”
Reivan stopped. Now that he thought about it, Hector told jokes from time to time. And even Aldimir looked like the type of person who’d have one. He didn’t know if any of the other men in his family were the same, but he couldn’t be sure if he was the odd one out there.
‘...Am I the weird one?’
“Clover Salwyn, minus one hundred points for not having a joke."
Reivan clicked his tongue and ignored her for a while, but that didn't deter her from whining.
"I’m bored…” Mira complained quietly as they continued walking. “And tired.”
“Then stay here forever. Raise rats or something.”
“There aren't even rats... And I’m thirsty too… And it’s cold down here. I wanna go home...”
Reivan conjured some orbs of heat that followed them around. In hindsight, they should have done that earlier. “Happy now?”
“I’m still bored, hungry, thirsty, and tired. Carry me?”
“What? No.” Reivan looked at her like she was crazy. The second year continued to whine though, so he proceeded to ignore her. Honestly, if he hadn’t known about her dependable side, he would have already flipped the lid earlier on.
She was rapidly consuming the gratitude and admiration she'd built up though.
‘Ouroboros used the sewers to hide things in the past…’
That was not the case now, however. But he’d been to the sewers of Lageton before — just not this part of the sewers. Honestly, he was debating just asking Zouros for help navigating.
‘Should I give it a shot?’
They weren’t in the Tower so he didn’t have to be wary of a Transcendent potentially seeing his serpentine friend through some mysterious yet-to-be-known method.
Just as he was about to call his companion out of his soul after such a long time, Reivan suddenly froze on the spot as he saw someone through the darkness.
It was Filth.
And he didn’t mean something dirty on the ground or a shit smear on the wall from a decade ago. He meant Filth, the person who had the special ability to turn imperceptible while in the dark.
Filth seemed to be surprised to see two people who shouldn’t be in the sewers.
“Something wrong, Clover?” Mira noticed his reaction and stopped to tilt her head at him. “If you got mad, then I’m sorry. I complain a lot in stressful situations.”
“No, it’s not that. I mean, you are annoying. And really, I'd rather just run off without you. But that’s not why I stopped.”
“It’s kind of refreshing that you can say that to my face so easily. Do you think it means we’ve gotten closer as a squad? Isn't that great? It's great, isn't it?”
Reivan chose to ignore her nonsense again and gesture at Filth’s general direction, deciding not to blow his cover yet. “I just thought I heard something over there.”
Filth, obviously having heard that, cursed loudly and looked around his feet, probably wondering if he nudged something before activating his ability.
‘The hell is he doing in here…?’
As far as he knew, Filth should be in Arkhana, the republic’s capital. Gwen must have already arrived at the embassy and handled his matters in his stead, including Filth's assignments.
‘Did she send him here for something?’
That was probably the case, now that he thought about it. It was the only real explanation.
‘Hm... Maybe we can follow him out of here?’
Filth seemed like he didn’t want to stick around for too long, so he turned around and started walking away, obviously taking care not to step on anything — which wasn’t something he needed to do, given how his ability also muffled the sound of anything he moved while imperceptible, accidental or otherwise.
Reivan suppressed a smile as he led the way, herding a complaining Mira in the correct direction.
----------------------------------------
Eventually, Reivan couldn’t handle Mira’s incessant whining, so he agreed to carry her on his back. To her credit, she was incredibly light so it wasn’t very difficult for him. In a way, she was like a chatty backpack full of useless things.
When he had suddenly offered to do so, Mira had been surprised at first, refusing with a hint of embarrassment. But it seemed the hours of walking were hard on a girl who lazed around every chance she could get. With a tired word of thanks, she hopped on him like some steed and rested her weight against him.
At first, Reivan was annoyed at being irritated into carrying her. But that unexpectedly changed when she actually got on him. The arrangement of a decently endowed young woman pressing herself onto his back wasn't bad. He also had to hold her very smooth and soft legs to keep her from sliding off. Plus, for some reason, she smelled better than anyone as sweaty as she had any right to be.
He hadn't been aiming for it, but he also wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. It wasn't ungentlemanly to enjoy the unexpected perks of helping her out.
The whining never stopped being unwelcome though. Reivan wished he had a spare sock he could stuff inside her mouth. Sadly, he only had a handkerchief and it wasn't thick enough to fully stop her from talking, though he could probably tie it over her mouth instead. Over time, the urge to do so grew within him.
As for Filth, he had unintentionally led them out of the sewers simply by trying to get away from them. It was quite amusing to watch him frantically thinking of a way to lose them at first, only to get used to their presence, even chuckling along at their banter.
“Finally!” Mira pointed at a column of metal bars that served as a ladder leading upward. She pushed her soft hands against Reivan’s back and got off. “We can finally get back!”
Reivan didn’t like how disappointed he was but he supposed putting an end to their little escapade was a lot better.
They never did get to see any giant rats in the sewers, but Reivan wouldn’t mourn the lost opportunity. For nobody in the entire world hated rats more than he did. He loathed them with the burning passion of a thousand suns. If he ever became a Transcendent, he would probably roam the world and eradicate their kind from existence, ecosystems be damned. Stories about him would sprout, probably, and he would be known as the "Ratslayer" or something. Maybe "Verminslayer" if he exterminated a few other types of pests.
Of course, the rats of this world were sinless. But he couldn’t help how he felt. Then again, perhaps by the time he became a Transcendent, he’d be more mature and forgiving. Who knows?
Right now, he was just a young man who was slightly disappointed.
“I’m going up first, okay?” Mira said so and didn’t wait for him to reply, climbing up the ladder.
In a skirt.
A long skirt, but still a skirt.
Reivan sighed and turned around. Maybe he was a little perverted here and there but he liked to think he was a gentleman — a perverted gentleman.
‘That sounds so wrong.’
In any case, once the careless captain finished climbing, he followed after her and was surprised at the massive storm clouds on the horizon. He'd seen storms before, and this was most definitely different from that. They swirled like a hurricane and struck the sea with bolts of lightning as thick as buildings, sending smoke and seawater flying everywhere as shockwaves shifted the water's tides.
It was like the end of the world was coming and they'd made it out of the sewer just in time to see it coming.