After spending hours in Evergarden, I had grown quite familiar with most of the game's areas. With Ion following closely behind me, we made our way through twisting alleyways. The further we went in, the more maze-like they became. These passages were known to harbor worse things than mere thugs. Only a madman would risk their life to learn their layout. When the sound of growling escaped beyond the darkness of our passages, Ion froze. But he followed anyway, realizing that I nonchalantly avoided all danger by a hair's breadth. True monsters slept here, spelling doom if woken.

"Mage," he called with a trembling voice that revealed uncertainty beneath its firmness, "where do we go from here?"

Ion comes from a family gifted in magic and being a noble, he lived a life of luxury, which explains his unease at being thrown in an environment of poverty. But despite all of that, one thing was clear: His hatred for mages. The Arcadia family was fundamentally heartless. You were either useful, or didn't exist in the eyes of the patriarch and his word was law. It is often said among the people, that an Arcadia carries ice in their veins, lending them their unique light blue eye and hair color. But Ion never fit in, even though he had the look of an Arcadia. The talent and coldness of a mage were missing.

In the game, when choosing to follow the path of a mage, meeting Ion Arcadia was certain death. Much different than the somewhat fearing one before me, meaning that his hatred grew along the way. Influencing the main story was inevitable for me. I'm now part of this demon plagued world, an extra, but I wasn't willing to live as one. I'll become the first mage to earn the trust of the only warm blooded Arcadia before me.

"We're almost..." I cut off my words, stopping mid-step. Ion looked at me puzzled. But soon, it became clear why I stopped.

Multiple gray rats the size of a hyena stared at us with beady black eyes. Their mouths watered as ragged breaths escaped through sharp black stained teeth. These weren't supposed to be here? It must have been another change from before the city's fall. As if all weaker monsters were wiped out during the game's timeline. But this offered an opportunity.

"It can take a while before we're there! Stay close and defend me!" I shouted with a toothy grin on my face. Realizing that there was no more need to risk going past the wall.

The sound of metal reverberated throughout the alley as Ion took out his blade. It shook in his hands at the sight before him. Eight giant rats slowly approached, like leopard stalking prey. Their black eyes sometimes shone dark-green within the dark alley. But soon, they broke into a sprint. A response to sudden scorching flames roaring out towards them. There seemed to be no space to dodge in these alleys, but the giant rats sneered in response to my spell, as if reading our naive mind. They knew better. With a nimble leap, they began running sideways on the walls. Fire barely scratched some rats' backs, charring only hairs.

Saliva dripped out of hungry mouths, mad with hunger, mocking the prey that dared to enter. The more the rats neared, the quicker their step. Every one of their claws dug deeply into old gray stones, taking out bits and pieces with each step. A disgusting smile formed on the visage of the frontmost rat leading the pack. It noticed tenseness and trembling in Ion's hands. Fear, human fear, a treat it enjoyed most above any other. But when it wanted to savor my fear, its face contorted in anger. A disgusting screech escaped its shaking body.

All because I smiled widely.

"Do you think you know these alleys better than me?" I spoke in a hushed voice, slowly raising my staff upwards. A magic circle formed as I began casting the same spell. Unimpressed, the oversized vermin landed on the ground once more, continuing their march. Now closer than ever, they prepared for another chance to dodge before finally cutting our throats. Their noses moved up and down as they savored even our smell.

But they froze.

[Veil of ether: Strong resistance to mental effects. When activated, induces fear and significantly increases concentration, raising magic by 15. (cooldown - 24h)]

Something was off and they sensed it. A dark-purple hue formed on my arms, revealing a hidden tattoo. Similar colored energy rippled around my body. My golden irises slowly turned dark-purple, freezing over from the outside in. In the rats' eyes, a purple ghost stood before them. Its sharp teeth revealing the shape of a white half-moon smile, hulking above alley walls.

They trembled, immovable. Some rats now stood in pools of yellow liquid. As the pack leader looked back with shaking beady eyes, the rats cautiously stepped back. Flee! The only thought on their minds. But their body wouldn't respond.

Once more, I released a fireball. But this time, it molded into the alley's shape, too large to be contained. A rapid cube-shaped blaze surged towards the rats. Some had prepared to dodge as before, but it was hopeless. Accepting their fate, they stood there. Only a moment's pain was felt and soon. But ashes remained.

***

[You have defeated: Giant rat.]

[You have leveled up!]

[You have defeated: Giant rat.]

[You have leveled up!]

[You have defeated: Giant rat.]

...

Multiple prompts captured my vision.

[Current status of "Sylas"]

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

[Lvl. 3] => [Lvl. 15]

[35% Till next level]

[Free points: 12]

Strength 2.1 => 3.3 Dexterity 2.25 => 3.45

Vitality 2.1 => 3.3 Magic 6.25 => 7.45

Intuition 2.5 => 3.7 Magic Resist 2 => 3.2

Resilience 1.25 => 2.45 Charisma 2.25 => 3.45

Luck 3.25 => 4.45

Giant rats had a level of around 10. Defeating this many would normally be impossible, but [Veil of ether] was a cheat-like skill. It increases magic by 15. Considering that every level raises stats by 0.1 and earns 1 stat point, this meant that a total of 15 levels worth of stats points were increased. As your level rises, so does the difficulty it takes to increase. Without hesitation, I threw all points into magic. As I did so, I could momentarily feel my brain throbbing. My hands instinctively shot towards my temples. But when the pain subsided, I felt more energetic. As if some unknown substance coursed through my veins.

"Your mana has increased, mage."

Ion stared at me wide-eyed, even though he tried hard to hide his surprise, looking away as our gazes met. A straight-forward person trying to hide their feelings would only end up like this. His trust for me had increased slightly, knowing that I could've attacked him for all he owned. But the fact that I was a mage never changed.

"Stop calling me 'mage', noble bastard." I answered back, releasing surging winds that blasted hot ashes away from the burnt walls and path in front of me. But the way I called Ion 'noble bastard' held a mocking tone, similar to how I was called 'mage'.

Noticing this, an annoyed prideful voice came back, "Noble bastard? Have some respect mage, you don't know who's walking behind you yet." But I ignored it. Disappearing into the risen cooled-off ashes.

***

Me and Ion continued our walk through damp, dark pathways. We had encountered more groups of rats along the way, but not many. It seemed as if their numbers increased by how deep one ventured into the alleyways. I had delayed our return, but it was about time to find civilization again.

Overall, we couldn't stay long. A blanket of darkness slowly inked the purple sky blue. Sleeping beasts were about to awaken.

"Like this?"

Ion broke my train of thought as he initiated an amateurish downward slash. Even though I have never held a sword, I knew every in-game sword-style, so that's what I went by. Having no true clue, I maintained a know-it-all attitude regardless. But what bullsh#t is this? As a small blue bolt of mana flew out into the alley, my gaze hardened.

[Mana bolt: Shoot a small amount of mana. (cooldown - 1s)]

Electric-like mana in the form of a small streamlined shape raced through the air. It was not a real magic spell. Having an extremely low cooldown, it could be spammed. Perfect to be fired between spells, but only effective at low levels, due to weak power. But I used it to light up the eyes of hiding rats, possibly blowing their cover. Ion taught me in exchange for some pointers on the sword.

"T-thats better," I stuttered while worriedly looking at Ion "remember to draw out 'mana' from inside."

It was true that Ion had no talent for magic. His class had nothing to do with magic after all, he simply wasn't made for it. But as if he was a natural, energy rippled around his body, strengthening every slash. Not mana, but aura, the energy used by combat classes. A seed of fear grew seeing how effortlessly he learned. The Arcadia family would have my head if they knew what I had 'taught' him here.

As the blue bolt traveled deeper, eyes lit up. Ion looked at me with a puzzled expression, but froze at my call.

"Don't move Ion!"

Those weren't eyes I wanted to see. They were crimson. Anyone from here would run upon seeing those.

But it was too late. The nape of my neck suddenly felt cold. And Ion felt the same thing, having two daggers pressed against us. With each passing second, the alleys grew eerily quiet - until a sweet icier voice than even the dagger at my neck, cut through the silence.

"How did two amateurs traverse these paths?"

Her concealed hair was as white as freshly fallen snow. The steel armor she wore shimmered in the light like sunlit water. Form-fitting steel plates protected vital areas while leaving some exposed for ease of movement. From her waist hung a pure white cloth that fluttered behind her. A matching thin cape draped down her back, rippling as she moved gracefully. A hood made from the same snowy fabric concealed most of her face, leaving only piercing crimson eyes visible.

Beautiful was not enough to describe her, even when held to the standard of vampires. And whenever she spoke, two sharp teeth glistened in the light, serving as an eerie reminder of what laid beneath that enchanting exterior.

She looked to be eighteen, but her true age could easily be three times that. It wasn't normal to meet a young vampire, the nobles of this place, all on her own. But as I examined her, I could see blood around her abdomen. She was wounded, gritting her teeth as pain surged through her.

With a "clang!" sound, the daggers she held dropped to the floor. As she lost energy, she too loosened and fell like a lifeless doll, but I caught her.

Yellow eyes, unwavering like two lakes, gazed into hers.

"Did you meet those giant undead guardians?"

Her crimson eyes widened, shaking from fear.

Below this city lurks an underground dungeon. This maze hides only its entrances, not even these vampires could survive there for a day.

And soon, I saw my life flashing by, as a giant spectral cat as tall as four adult men creeped around the corner. It looked like walking lightning, shining blue. While slowly chewing one of the rats we battled, its eyes met ours. Ion readied his sword for an attack, but then, it sizzled into the ground, dematerializing from the bottom up. Leaving only an oversized chewed-up meal behind.