Kaiden froze and looked up at her. How does she know about that? he wondered, gulping nervously as he met her gaze. He hadn’t tried to keep this ability a secret, but he’d only just met her. So how does she know?

Zinnia chuckled, clearly amused by his reaction. “Let’s walk and talk—we shouldn’t waste time,” she said, gesturing down the path. “So, it seems like you don’t even know.”

With that, the pair continued down the path, Kaiden falling into step beside her.

“Know what, exactly?”

“That whenever you use your magical sight, your eyes glow.”

Kaiden’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “I—I didn’t know that.”

He had already suspected that Zinnia knew about his Arcane Vision. The fact that she knew his name before he even introduced himself and had stood up for him before they entered the dungeon all pointed to her having some prior knowledge. The real questions were why and how long had she been keeping tabs on him. Her tone wasn’t surprising like she’d seen him use the ability before, even if she didn’t seem to know much about it.

“So, are you going to keep me in suspense or tell me already?” Zinnia teased, leaning in slightly with a playful smirk.

“Oh, right, uh...” Kaiden hesitated, unsure of the best course of action. Can I trust her? he wondered. After a moment’s thought, he decided to go with the truth. “It’s called Arcane Vision.”

He figured there was no point in lying. After the dungeon, if Zinnia wanted to find out more, even a little digging would reveal his ability. He’d never gone out of his way to hide it, so it wasn’t exactly a secret.

Besides, whether or not he trusted her, one thing was clear—he didn’t want to make Zinnia an enemy.

“You mean Arcane Visions, right?” Zinnia asked, her tone light but with an edge of something sharper beneath it.

Kaiden narrowed his eyes. “No, like I said—it’s Arcane Vision. There’s no ‘s’ at the end.”

He tried to gauge her reaction. He looked into her hazel eyes that were flecked with hints of orange. And for a split second, Zinnia’s aloof and playful demeanor faltered. It was a subtle stutter in her composure, just long enough for him to catch it. If he’d looked away for even a moment, he would have missed it entirely.

“Show me,” Zinnia said, her smile strained.

Kaiden felt a growing unease but complied. He opened his status screen, hiding all other information except the single ability, and made it visible for Zinnia. The glowing text floated before her: Arcane Vision Level 2.

Zinnia stared at the screen for several seconds, her expression unreadable. Then she mumbled something under her breath. Kaiden caught fragments—“of course, that’s how he saw me”—but the words didn’t make much sense to him in the moment.

She handed the screen back, and Kaiden dismissed it. When he looked up, Zinnia’s face had shifted into a serious expression, her earlier playfulness nowhere to be found.

“Do you know what this ability means?” she asked, her tone heavy with implication.

Kaiden shook his head. “Obviously, I understand what the ability does, but I get the feeling you mean something bigger.”

Zinnia nodded, her eyes sharp. “There are some abilities that are often mistaken for others because of similar-sounding names. This is one of them.”

Kaiden nodded slowly, following along.

“Arcane Visions,” Zinnia began, “is an ability that lets you see magic in different colors or shades. At a glance, you can tell water magic from fire magic, or earth magic from air magic. Not a very powerful ability.”

Kaiden frowned slightly. “But Arcane Vision—”

“Arcane Vision,” Zinnia interrupted, “shows the complete makeup of magic, broken down in its Runic language. There is probably some overlap”

Kaiden’s brow furrowed as he processed her words. “That’s what I’d already figured out,” he said, “but what’s the big deal?” The overlap part was interesting though. Like a Venn diagram, huh?

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

“The big deal,” Zinnia said, leaning in slightly, “is that Arcane Vision is a very rare ability. It can see through any magic or ability, no matter how complex or hidden. The implications are huge.”

Kaiden blinked, her words sinking in. He didn’t fully grasp the weight of her statement, but it was clear from her tone that she did. His mind raced. Was that ability that rare? I knew Oros hadn’t given me a shitty ability!

“I understand,” he finally said.

Zinnia shook her head, her expression a mix of frustration and disbelief. “No, you don’t. You really don’t. There’s no way a private, fresh out of his first dungeon, could have any idea what—” She abruptly stopped as if a new train of thought had entered her mind.

Kaiden frowned at her hesitation but said nothing as Zinnia spoke again. “How many people have you told about this ability?”

Kaiden furrowed his brow. “I haven’t exactly kept it a secret, so most people in my basic training and Dungeoneer training platoons know, not to mention the sergeants and recruiters…” His voice trailed off as he realized just how many people had been exposed to the knowledge.

Zinnia clicked her tongue and crossed her arms. “Well, most likely, they either don’t understand what the ability actually is or they’ve mistaken it for Arcane Visions. In any case,” she said, her voice firm, “I’d strongly recommend you keep your mouth shut about this from now on.”

Kaiden nodded, her tone leaving no room for argument. “Okay, I will.”

After a few moments of silence, Zinnia’s eyes lit up suddenly, as if a revelation had just struck her. “Aha! That’s it. It makes sense now!”

Her wide smile returned, and with it, the predatory glint in her eyes that made Kaiden feel as though he were a mouse under the watchful gaze of a hawk.

Kaiden scrunched up his face in confusion, feeling his unease grow. “I’m sorry, what’s going on now?” he asked cautiously.

Before Zinnia could answer Kaiden’s question, a familiar screech pierced the air. More wyverns were descending from the misty dome above—five of them this time.

“Use your Arcane Vision on them,” Zinnia said, her tone calm yet insistent.

Kaiden frowned. “I already did earlier on the first one, but I didn’t see anything. Seems like they’re non-magical.”

Zinnia tilted her head, considering his words. “Just try it again this time and tell me what you see.”

Kaiden shrugged but complied, activating his Arcane Vision once more. He looked up at the sky, focusing on the wyverns as they closed in. He could feel Zinnia’s eyes practically boring into him, her gaze fixed on him from just inches away, but he ignored it, concentrating on the winged beasts.

Just like before, the first few wyverns showed nothing out of the ordinary—no runes, no traces of magic. Then, as he studied the last one, something caught his attention.

In the far-right wyvern, he saw an orb, glowing with a deep blue aura nestled in its chest. He recognized it instantly, though it only looked like an orb from that far away.

Kaiden raised his hand, pointing toward the creature. “That wyvern has a mana core,” he said.

Zinnia giggled and clapped her hands in delight. “Oh, how excellent! This is just like what I imagined!”

The wyverns were getting dangerously close now, and Kaiden could feel the tension rising in his chest. A bead of sweat rolled down his temple. “Uh, they’re getting kind of close now,” he said nervously.

“Relax,” Zinnia replied, her voice as calm as ever. She raised her staff, still clearly in no rush. “I’ll take care of these small fry in no time.”

Small fry?! Kaiden exclaimed internally. He sighed in resignation. Well, yeah, to her they probably are small fry.

Zinnia’s staff began to crackle with energy, and before Kaiden could even process the buildup, lightning arced out in a brilliant flash. The bolts struck all five wyverns, dropping them instantly. Their bodies began to dissolve into pink mist before they could even hit the ground.

Practically skipping, Zinnia made her way to the dissolving remains of the far-right wyvern. She crouched, scooped up the mana core, and admired it with a satisfied smile. The core shimmered faintly in her hand for a few seconds before disappearing into her inventory.

Zinnia turned and walked back to Kaiden, her grin as wide as ever. “See? Easy as pie,” she said cheerfully.

Kaiden wanted to complain about missing out on another mana core but thought better of it. Again, he’d contributed nothing. Even if he hadn’t pointed it out, Zinnia would’ve found it anyway.

“Now,” Zinnia began, brushing her hands together, “I have a proposition for you—but there’s a condition: you work for me, not my sister.” She paused for emphasis, then added, “Or any of my sisters. Okay?”

Kaiden blinked, confused. “I don’t even know your sisters, so why would that even be a consideration? Actually, sorry, but I can’t work for you. I’m a Dungeoneer now, and I don’t even know what kind of work you’d want me to do.”

Zinnia’s smile widened, unfazed by his response. “We can worry about those details later. The important thing is, when the time comes, you work for me—not my sisters. Deal?”

Kaiden paused, her words turning over in his mind. Questions flooded in, but one rose to the top. “What kind of work do you want me to do?”

Zinnia’s grin grew sharper, and she leaned in slightly, her eyes glinting with excitement. “Only two things,” she said. “First, I want you to dive dungeons.”

Kaiden tilted his head, nodding along. “Because of Arcane Vision, right? I can spot traps and see which monsters have mana cores.”

“Yes,” Zinnia said, her tone suddenly serious. “But it’s much more than that. You can find hidden doors, treasures, opportunities—things other Dungeoneers completely miss. The wealth you can uncover in a dungeon is staggering, especially if you’re thorough. Sure, some people have abilities or artifacts that let them detect certain hidden items, but you can find all of them. Unless, of course, they aren’t magical—there are plenty of those too—but anyone can spot those.”

Kaiden listened, and as Zinnia spoke, he found himself getting excited. He hadn’t even considered the possibility of hidden elements in dungeons, let alone the idea that he might have a unique advantage in discovering them.

Zinnia nodded approvingly. “I can see you understand where I’m coming from.”

Kaiden nodded back. “Okay, but what’s the second thing you want me to do?”

Zinnia’s smile grew impossibly wide, her enthusiasm practically glowing. “I want to make you a Spell Scribe!”