The vision recedes, the temple turning back to the guards-surrounded boulevard. Thea stares at Ethan, stopping herself from saying what she planned to before the vision.

One of her guards extends his hand to grab her arm.

Ethan pulls her in, scoops her up, and jumps on the closest house's roof. He unhands her, and she stumbles on the slightly inclined roof, the acceleration messing with her stomach.

The guards stare up at them, the archers behind the shield lines tensing their bows.

Ethan looks back at Thea. He requests, "Could you tell them this isn't a kidnapping? I'd like my encounters with the guard to remain cordial."

She edges the roof to look down at them. "Don't worry. We are going to look around for the prince. But I'm afraid your heavy armor will slow us down. I won't need your protection with a C-ranked adventurer by my side anyway."

'She knows this identity,' Ethan notes. His suspicion that she recognized him from before grows stronger.

The guards, except for her captors, relax as she smiles at them.

The two frowning bodyguards glare at Ethan. The first of them whispers, "We should warn the regent."

"No, they could follow us. Let's get the others; that man is dangerous," the other whispers back.

Thea motions for Ethan to follow her, and they move from one roof to another. She, much like when she fought in the arena, jumps Olympic distances across wide streets. Ethan follows with similar ease, mindful of his steps on the slated roofs. A few bystanders notice them and, for most, wave hello to Thea.

They reach the edge of the palace's gardens and jump down to the main street. The guards let them through without interrupting, welcoming Thea with a smile. They give Ethan a longer look, but seeing who he's with, most likely decide they shouldn't bother questioning.

'She's held against her wishes by her own guards, but the others seem unaware of that,' Ethan notes. He spots garden workers waving at her, genuine smiles on their faces. 'Making it official that the regent's daughter is a prisoner in her own palace might not fly with the public.'

Thea slows down as she approaches a crypt's entrance at the edge of a walled cemetery. It is slightly hidden at the palace's side and decorated with many plants and flowers. From the streets, it would be hard to tell it is a cemetery.

"Is the vault in a family's crypt?" Ethan asks as she unlocks the gate with a crude key.

"No," Thea answers. She moves inside, descending the stairs that await them. "The real undergrounds' entrance is in the palace. But I expect it to be watched or even guarded. I have another way in."

Ethan descends to see a large room with a dozen coffins whose lid represents whoever is inside. Triggering predator's sight, he sees cold air seeping from under a wall before Thea opens the hidden door by turning a torch holder.

She guides him into a narrow and dusty corridor. The walls here are made of cut, black stones. Thea twists an identical torch holder that mirrors the first one's position to close the passage. Thea pulls out a lantern from a haversack disguised as a pouch and lights it with a twist of its base.

The walls let no sound through, leaving only the echoes of their steps and Thea's racing heart. She doesn't seem worried by Ethan, as she doesn't even glance back. Instead, she seems to dread what awaits them, her pace unconsciously slowing down.

Ethan tries to scan the surroundings with predator's sight, but these walls dampen his perception. He cannot sense anything through them, and only a small hundred meters ahead. The stone they are made of seems to negate sounds as well as the best of Earth's sound-absorbing matters.

"After Blackwood's illegal auctions, I investigated the man who helped while disguised as a guard," Thea begins. Talking might reveal them to an awaiting enemy. She no doubt wants to find a way to distract herself. "I knew it was you the moment I saw you at Edgar's, but I had no proof."

Ethan stays silent. If he denies now, she might surprise him with actual proof. It is best to wait for her arguments.

"You joined the adventurer guild the day a survivor of an orc raid on Elmswood reached Opal. The village wouldn't have survived if not for a nameless noble. And, besides your hair color, the priests described you quite well," Thea says. "Then, you destroyed the Huskstalkers' nest that overtook the hideout of the smugglers who brought them. That's why their queen was scared of you in the arena. You must have missed her; those things like digging themselves into the ground."

'I messed up,' Ethan thinks. But how could she have linked him to the Huskstalkers' nest? The question lingers in his mind. He made sure no one followed him. The only person who could have talked was the adventurer he threatened. He lies, "As I said, I went hunting at that time. I won't deny I joined the guild after landing in Opal, nor Elmswood incident, but I have no idea what a Huskstalker is."

Thea smirks; there must be something he didn't think of – undeniable proof she has on him. She restrains that smile, looking down as if ashamed of the spark of mischief. After all, they are on their way to rescue her half-brother and prince from her father. She explains, "Your dog gave you up. She's quite the unique breed; it made her memorable for the harbor's homeless."

"He is a male," Ethan specifies. Back on Earth a Malinois would never have attracted much attention. 'How far did she investigate? Surely, I wouldn't be here if she found out about the intelligence and resource network I snatched from Viktor.'

"You would have been rewarded if you had come forth; Blackwood had been a parasite in our country for long enough," Thea says. "Too bad he had contingencies for his home to be burned down if he was arrested. I think he was at the head of many criminal activities we still know nothing about."

'That's a relief they came to such a false conclusion. But that's what I would say if I were to suspect the person who accompanies me; to lower their defenses,' Ethan thinks.

"Did he have anything to do with Cindralis?" Thea asks. She motions for him to follow to the right as they reach a four-way crossing.

"I doubt it," Ethan answers. "To tell you the truth, I only followed the trail of the parasites that were plaguing your city. I didn't expect him to be involved."

"Probably why you disguised yourself at the end; mingling with nobles' business can be a thorn," Thea laments.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

'Her tendency to make excuses for me is quite agreeable,' Ethan thinks. 'Is it a trap? Or does she stop as soon as she finds a reasonable explanation?'

"But if what I saw of your strength in the arena is the extent of it, I doubt you are that much stronger than me," Thea comments. She appears worried.

'Am I going too fast?' Ethan ponders. He stops, his eyes moving down as he forces himself to calm down. While she doesn't know how much he grew since, he still doubts his strength. 'If Caelum is on Aranthor's level, and I mean the strength he had against Seraphel, I am no match. Seeing him clouded my mind; I shouldn't rush to fight him. But hindering his plans, even if it means retreating after stealing what he wants, will give me more time to grow.'

Thea stops and turns around as she notices his halt.

"I am way stronger than what you saw back then," Ethan begins. He resumes his steps, and she does the same, guiding him through the narrow corridors. "But I experienced firsthand how strong he could be when I fought another high human. I've let my anger cloud my judgment."

"But you are still following me," Thea says, halfway between a question and incomprehension. She stops as they reach a barred gate blocking their path.

"My best option is to delay what he's planning," Ethan says. "I know too little of his plans, but if whatever is in that vault is necessary, taking it will give me more time."

"Time for what?" Thea asks.

"To grow," Ethan answers. Remembering Tombstone's report, he realizes that his leveling speed might be unbelievable for Thea.

Thea's eyes move to the side as she dives into her thoughts. "Even if you hinder him for years, he won't remain inactive. And if, as you said, he has thousands of years to live, time is our enemy, not his."

"Anyway, it is better to hinder him when we have the possibility," Ethan deflects.

"You said you saw him betraying the king of Aldoria; what's the ability that grants you visions of the past?" Thea asks. She pulls out a bronze key from her haversack and unlocks the gate. It seems recent, much more than the gate. Thea must have had it made, either from the original or from knowing how to lockpick the gate.

"Pastseer," Ethan answers. Lying will get him nowhere now, especially to someone who knows more about abilities and talents than him. According to Aranthor's rant, Ishai fruits may not give everybody the same benefits; she shouldn't suspect it. "It's a talent, not an ability."

She freezes, turning her head towards Ethan. "How are you not bound to some king's dungeon? Do you have any idea how rare and precious that is?"

"I do, I think," Ethan answers. His apprehension of how coveted his talent was by some was right. How would she react if he told her he also has the Oracle talent? He crosses the gate, closing it silently without locking it. "You said yours was an ability; how does it work?"

"The first ability of an Oracle is called Premonition," Thea begins. She guides him through dusty corridors, lowering her voice to a whisper. "It requires meditating with the Ether for hours. But what we see is often disappointingly mundane."

Perhaps her experience with Premonition could translate to his talents. His visions have been linked to triggers such as a memory or a book. Finding out how to better control them would help him tremendously. He asks, "Can you affect what the visions center around? Like a person, an object, or an event?"

"They say inner peace and clarity of mind affect the result; that's why most Oracles live in seclusion. Some of them spend their lives focusing on a specific target to get one useful vision about it. As for me, I can't say I have been at peace for some time," Thea explains.

'Then if I'm still on the hunt by tomorrow, finding one of these monasteries could be useful,' Ethan thinks.

"If I had known how useless that class was, I wouldn't have chosen it," Thea says. "The only thing it did was give my father delusions of grandeur and show me nightmares once in a while."

"Are none of the other four abilities useful?" Ethan asks. He never unlocked that class despite having the talent of the same name and doesn't know its content.

She tenses her jaws, annoyed by the question. "I wouldn't know. The second one is a talent – Destined echoes. It sometimes highlights people who will impact my life in the future. …It marked you the three times I saw you."

"When you say in the future, does –"

"Don't trust it," Thea cuts. "It has marked people who were going to try to assassinate me, people who ended up courting me, but also people who died without ever mattering again."

"And the other three?" Ethan asks.

"I'm only level nine; I don't have them yet," Thea answers. "The rest I learned with tomes."

"You seemed strong for a level nine," Ethan comments, smelling a lie. "I've met people much weaker than you at that level. That's surprising for someone with a non-combat-focused class."

"Thank you," Thea says, surprising Ethan. "For all his flaws, my father made sure I trained my entire life. I have been fighting tutors every day, even before receiving the system. And he made sure I had both daily physical and scholarly training."

'So weightlifting, cardio, schooling, and more are still viable options to raise your stats,' Ethan notes. Gamification of education seems like a great way to incite adolescents to better themselves. It makes him ponder as to why the masses aren't stronger and better educated than Earth's Middle Ages' peasants. 'Maybe the effort seems too much compared to leveling up. But if most of them take ages to gain a level, why not focus on training?'

Russ' eyes open on Ethan's shadow, scanning the corridor they are in. He sniffs the air, attracting Thea's attention.

Ethan sniffs, making it seem like it always was him. A stench attacks his senses, that of rotting flesh. By experience he can tell it's both distant and nothing recent – whatever died has been rotting for a long time. Ethan distracts, "I've always wondered why people level up at different paces."

Thea doesn't respond immediately, her attention diverted by Ethan's shadow. She glances at him with a questioning look. "People's leveling speed is deeply tied to their mindset. The system doesn't reward just effort; it rewards intent, clarity, and a desire for growth. Those who truly yearn to grow stronger, who face monsters with hunger for more, level up faster. Unless, like your Blacksmith friend, the system gives you an unfair talent."

"How unfair is it?" Ethan asks.

"It doesn't matter if he's depressed, or even if he gave up on himself; he would always grow at the maximum rate humanly possible," Thea answers. "To reach his growth speed, one would need to be single-minded on growing stronger. An obsession so perverse it would make trampling others for it an acceptable idea."

"So, the system indirectly rewards the most inhumane people – those who would sell their mother for power?" Ethan muses.

"In a way, yes," Thea answers. "But it also rewards the pure of heart who would give everything to protect others. Power for the sake of power isn't a long-lasting motivation, especially when one's training may last years."

'My growth speed has been remarkable. My thirst for strength must have been subconscious. After so many years of almost daily training, always yearning to get stronger became natural. Even though I've long since hit my body's soft limits,' Ethan thinks. His eyes fall on Russ' as he surfaces once again to sniff the air. To cover the noise, Ethan asks, "What of bonds? I can't see an animal thirsting for power."

"I couldn't tell you," Thea answers. "The people who can talk with them aren't the ones who bother to write their knowledge in books."

"People who can talk with animals?" Ethan asks, his tone doubtful.

"Druids, or some rare Tamers," Thea explains. "Not the most common of classes, true. It takes a certain type of childhood to make one."

'They would have to learn to tame animals before they are thirteen. I haven't seen many dogs in the city; it leaves the children who grow up in stables.'

She closes her hand to motion for Ethan to stop. Crouching, Thea glances through a crack in a wall.

Ethan already sensed the only lifeforms present: eight men a hundred meters away. Their hearts are powerful and slow, echoing to him through the ancient corridors. He senses the cold metal that encases them – thick armors too heavy for the average man.

"I think the way is clear," Thea says. She unsheathes a dagger and slides it between two stones. She pulls one of them from the wall before laying it down on the floor. "We should stop talking from this point onward."

Ethan agrees with his silence.

Thea removes a last stone, creating a hole in the wall. She motions for him to follow and crosses the newly created doorway. They enter a wider, taller corridor, as if their way in was a maintenance shaft.

Close enough for his perception to seem human, Ethan signals Thea the presence of eight enemies. Then he cringes, realizing how weird U.S. military hand signals must have been to her. He leans back to whisper, "Eight men on the right, heavily armored."

"This is the only way in," Thea whispers back. She stands straighter and dusts off her coat. "But if they are who I think, there is a chance they will let us in."