Shun POV:

Pure blue eyes contained a clarity that the stream beside us struggled to reflect. Waves crashed against its surface; the sound dampening as it travelled toward a location far from the city.

“If you follow this stream, you will reach settlements on the outskirts of Chunhae Village. The pork belly there is made to such an outstanding standard it is no surprise that its popularity has only continued to grow in recent years.”

“...”

I was already aware of the few similarities in cuisine between the two worlds since I needed to eat to survive.

Katherine’s elegant dress reached down to her ankles, hiding the upper parts of her black boots that were lined with gold. The heels offered little elevation, but she didn’t seem to be the type of person who worried about her height, which was far above the average in Chunhae at least.

I glanced back at Phoebe, arriving with her party further up the stream.

“I am fine with having spectators.”

“Good.”

Katherine extended her open palm toward me before parting her lips again.

“Let us begin.”

She flexed her fingers, and thousands of lifelike water spears appeared behind her, towering over both sides of the wide stream.

“....”

The others stared at her in shock while a slight concern seeped into Katherine’s expression.

“Is it too much?”

I peered down at her and opened my mouth.

“Rise.”

Monsters emerged out of the shadow behind me. White energy wrapped around them like darkness consuming the light. Their unified roar shook the nearby area and forced the trees to bend back and forth.

“I can tell those are mere imitations.”

Katherine’s water spears shot forward. They obliterated the Shadow Monsters with ease, but that was what I wanted. The remaining shadows rushed to the front, creating a wall that blocked Katherine’s view. I used that brief window to set the co-ordinates for Whizzer before teleporting behind her.

“!”

A large water hand grabbed me by the waist, flinging me back before I could capitalise on the opening I had made.

‘Her reaction time...’

I slid across the ground and watched Katherine rise into the air. The water from the stream rose with her, forming 12 enormous serpents that reared their heads. Their mouths opened. Elemental Ki condensed to such a degree, it looked like water beams rained down on the area.

“Codex: Original.”

I dashed side to side, avoiding their trajectories while my Ki flared out.

“Original: Wizard.”

The beams converged. They smashed into me with enough power to reshape the surrounding landscape. The dust clouds accompanied the sound of cascading water that announced the formation of a new waterfall.

My gaze fell toward my bloodied arm before shifting to the cloak I now wore, paired with a wizard hat.

“You are... an Elementalist too?”

“Maybe.”

Her surprise was replaced with confusion. I levitated into the air, manipulating the water to a similar level. Thousands of serpents snarled from behind me, itching to pounce on Katherine.

“Let’s try this again, shall we?”

I peered down at Katherine and smirked. My provocation caused her eyebrows to furrow, and the same number of water serpents to appear again.

The two sides clashed, trading blows at a rapid speed through the air. Blasts of water swept over the area, glistening with the fractured sunlight. It didn’t take long before my water army was annihilated.

“Keuk...”

I wiped the blood away from my mouth. Hundreds of significant wounds left me gasping for air.

‘This woman...’

Not only was Katherine controlling the damage to the environment, but she was also overpowering me with zero effort at the same time. I wasn’t a threat to her at all.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

A lifelike serpent bent down. It lowered its head further in front of Katherine, and she responded by stroking the creation. A soft hiss curved its eyes upwards before dispersing into water currents that soon evaporated.

“Your ability is lacking. Imitations will not get you very far, but there is a lot of room for growth.”

She turned her attention toward the slight cuts on her dress sleeve as we stood beside the stream. I knew what she meant by imitations, but I didn’t care.

‘Yeah? Hurry up and join the damn party.’

I cancelled my ability and let myself collapse to the ground. The corners of my mouth rose at what was about to happen next.

“But still, I am impressed.”

I pretended to struggle to one knee when Katherine extended her hand toward me. I looked right into her pure blue eyes and grabbed it.

“I will be in your care, Shun.”

[You have cleared the mission: ‘Recruit Katherine Brightfield.’]

***

“I’m Phoebe Kurzman. This is Gerard Alfray and Aiden Steelstone. You seem familiar with Shun already.”

Katherine gave Phoebe a gentle nod before bowing her head.

“I am Katherine Brightfield. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintances.”

Gerard and Aiden glanced at one another, taken aback by Katherine’s noble etiquette. We sat around a table in Yeongyeol since Phoebe insisted on the party getting to know some more about Katherine first.

“Miss Katherine... Are you an Elementalist?”

Gerard scratched the back of his head, somewhat cautious of his words toward Katherine.

“I am not a true Elementalist yet, since my Ki Stage is still at Enryo. That is why the strength of my attacks are lacking.”

‘Lacking?’

The sheer innocence on her face only served to add extra confirmation that she wasn’t gloating. Katherine had held back yesterday. I knew that. What I didn’t know was how much she had held herself back by, since I couldn’t sense her.

My lips curved upward. Even after all the improvements I made, my Ki-sensing capability showed little growth.

“I’m surprised you have the Water Ki Nature, Katherine. Besides Vidrians, it’s pretty rare to come across.”

Gerard and Aiden nodded their heads in unison at Phoebe’s point. A Vidrian was someone who came from the continent of Vidris. The people of Chunhae could be referred to as Xerians since Sharir is located in the continent of Xera. This categorisation was sometimes narrowed down to country, nation or even city.

For example, when I questioned Minji about Chunhae Village, she called herself a Chunhae Saram. Her answer increased the likelihood that what I thought was English may in fact be a different language altogether, but it didn’t matter to me anyway.

“Indeed. My master is also a Vidrian.”

“Your master?”

I shifted my gaze to Katherine, waiting for an answer to my question.

“Yes. His name is Zane ‘The Shadow King’ Pantheon. I suppose he is more famous in Xera for being known as one of the Magi.”

Once she mentioned that man’s name, her countenance brightened. The warmth of her smile multiplied while I cross-referenced ‘Magi’ with all the information I had accumulated and backlogged in my mind.

I arrived at the two most likely hypotheses from the scarce information available. Magi were either a very wise person or someone that was blessed by the world’s power system in some way. Both of which didn’t seem to apply here.

I turned my attention toward the ‘Shadow King’ moniker. Almost no one called each other by the Dungeon Titles they obtained from what I had observed. It also didn’t fit the dungeon system’s naming sense, which was related to monsters or the dungeon itself in some way.

‘Then is it because of his power that he gained this... epithet?’

“Z-Zane Pantheon?”

“M-Magi? I thought he only had one disciple, Phoebe?”

“...”

Aiden’s dark blue eyes widened. A few beads of sweat formed on his forehead despite his silence.

“Oh, my older brother? Well, he is my master’s main disciple. I wasn’t bequeathed the Mark of a Pantheon. Though I suppose my master would take me through the process if I really desired it. He’s quite fond of me. I mean, I am his only other disciple.”

“....”

“W-why are you all staring at me like that?”

Phoebe let out a sigh of relief before opening her mouth.

“She really likes her master, huh.”

“Seems like it.”

“...I don’t know if I should root for you or not.”

That was the first time I heard Aiden speak. His voice was firm but well-balanced. It matched his character: an observant individual who doesn’t like to rush, preferring to take enough time to make adequate preparation before committing to anything. He was a man that valued his friends—his party members dearly.

That was how I perceived Aiden.

My eyes swivelled back to Katherine. Aside from the light shade of red on her cheeks, her speech had become more casual and relaxed. It was evident by the contraction of her words and the subtle changes in her sentence structures.

“It’s not like that! I merely meant that we hold a very special bond like no other. I-I endeared to learn from him once I stumbled across my master training over a decade ago.

The way the elements willingly responded to his command, coalescing around him in harmony, could only be described as something magical.”

“...”

I remained silent.

“Why are your cheeks so red?”

“She definitely likes him, right?”

“...Seems like it.”

Katherine’s hand slammed the table in a graceful way. She exerted just enough force to draw our attention toward her without disturbing the other guests.

“I said, it’s not like that! There is absolutely nothing wrong with appreciating such a beautiful moment! And that moment will always be incredibly precious to me!”

“...”

I observed the others.

“Alright, alright.”

“Miss Katherine is quite flustered...”

I decided to take this opportunity to learn more about Katherine Brightfield’s backstory. I missed the chance to get Juri, but I wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.

“You have an older brother. Who is he?”

Katherine regained her composure, and a warm smile spread across her face.

“We aren’t related by blood, but by tutelage. I believe many here refer to him as ‘The Earth Shaker.’”

My suspicions proved to be correct. Katherine wasn’t the average Elementalist or person.

“You’ve got to be kidding me... Are we... actually sitting in the presence of someone who has a personal relationship with not one but two living legends?...”

Aiden handed Gerard a tissue. He used it to wipe the sweat from his face.

“Crazy...”

That was all Aiden had to add to this revelation. Unlike her two party members, Phoebe’s genuine surprise contained a deep curiosity within her eyes.

“...This is insane.”

My gaze fell to the table. I was beginning to understand that this world... was far bigger than I gave it credit for. Gerard called those two individuals living legends, but that was an over-exaggeration.

I didn’t trust the system at all. However, that X Ranked mission seemed legitimate. Katherine didn’t trigger any further missions, so her connections most likely weren’t on the same level as Juri... yet.

This was my current hypothesis.

“It’s been almost a year since I’ve seen my brother. I need to pay him a visit soon.”

But it didn’t matter anyway.