My companions and I charged towards the group of adventurers. Three of them, the ones who looked like they specialized in internal magic, rushed towards us in return, while the two spellcasters stayed in the back. The mana in the area moved as one of the spellcasters waved a hand and launched a barrage of Wind Blades at me, while the other summoned a swarm of wooden claws underneath our feet.
Most Second Circle wizards would’ve had a difficult time dealing with a double attack like that, with the Wind Blades coming from the front and the wooden claws coming from below. Even if they managed to dodge or endure both, they would have had to deal with the trio of internal magic specialists.
Not me and my companions.
[Mist Arts: Dancing Mist]
Like an illusive mist, I dodged the incoming Wind Blades with ease, moving in a bizarre and unpredictable pattern. My movements also prevented the wooden claws from getting hold of me. Thanks to the training I went through to hone my senses, it wasn’t difficult to predict my enemy’s attacks and respond accordingly, even without my divine sense.
Aurora just flew above it all and started throwing lightning from on high at the spellcasters, like some kind of avenging angel. Leroy swung Crimson Fang, which spat out a gout of fire, burning everything in its path.
And then the other three adventurers were upon us.
The lead adventurer swung his fists at me. I dodged his attacks with ease. Tsk. Even without my divine sense, his movements were slow and predictable. However, I saw that hitting me wasn’t his goal. He was trying to corral me so that his companion, the one with the net, could capture and disable me.
Okay, maybe he wasn’t as unskilled as I thought. They were also holding back, so they didn’t kill us. Smart. As an adventurer, killing a House scion was a losing prospect and just bad business overall. Today’s enemy could become tomorrow’s client.
I let the lead adventurer maneuver me to where he wanted me to go. When I was in the right position, his companion threw the metal net. It wriggled and writhed in the air like a living creature, trying to surround me on all sides.
[Lightning Arts: Lightning Flash]
In a flash, I evaded the metal net’s grasp before pivoting and rushing towards the adventurer who threw it. Her eyes widened as I appeared right in front of her. She stepped back to try and put some distance between us. At the same time, her hand went to a pouch at her side. However, she was too slow on both counts.
I hit her with a one-two combo.
[Lightning Lance]
The mana in the area surged as several Lightning Lances appeared in the air around me and flew towards the adventurer. They collided with her shield spell, damaging it but not destroying it.
[Fist Arts: Explosive Fist Barrage]
This technique was the Foundation Establishment version of the Explosive Fist technique. As the name suggested, I hit the adventurer with a barrage of Explosive Fists in the blink of an eye. Each explosion occurred close enough to the others, that it sounded like only one explosion went off.
The Explosive Fist Barrage shattered the adventurer’s shield spell, which had been weakened by my Lightning Lances. If I gave her a moment, she would be able to cast another one, though it would take her quite a bit of mana. However, I didn’t intend to give her that moment.
Despite losing her shield spell, the adventurer kept her cool. She pulled her hand out of her pouch and threw several objects into the air. They were metal ball bearings. She infused them with mana and launched them at me. Rather than dodge the ball bearings, and let her get away, I let them hit me. They hit me with enough force to punch through several inches of solid steel, but my shield spell held.
I took that time to touch the adventurer and cast Spark Touch. Lightning surged through her body and she screamed. Her body shook, before she collapsed onto the ground, unconscious.
All of this occurred within the span of a few moments.
“Lyla!” the lead adventurer cried out from behind me.
I turned around just as he threw a punch at me. Rather than try to dodge it, I crossed my arms and blocked the blow. The lead adventurer struck me with an impressive amount of force. So much so that I went flying backwards. I suspected that he was also a Metal wizard in addition to being an Earth wizard, given the armored gauntlets he wore. However, this just worked out for me in the end.
The momentum from the lead adventurer’s attack brought me closer to the spellcasters, which was what I had intended. Using Air magic to maneuver my body, I whirled around to kick the nearest one. This turned out to be the Wood wizard. His eyes widened as my kick connected and sent him stumbling backwards.
Tsk.
Due to my position, I hadn’t been able to hit him with as much force as I wanted. I landed, but before I could follow up on the kick, the Air spellcaster launched another barrage of Wind Blades at me. I launched one of my own, and the two attacks collided, canceling each other out.
The Wood wizard looked like he was about to cast a spell of his own, but Lightning magic struck him from above. While the two spellcasters had been focused on me, they had forgotten about Aurora.
She hit the Wood wizard again, and I fired off several Lightning Lances of my own. Our combined attacks overwhelmed his shield spell, and he fell to our attacks.
From the corner of my eye, I saw the lead adventurer try to help his companion, but Leroy intercepted him. A shock wave exploded out as they collided. It seemed like my disciple had taken care of the other internal magic specialist.
Aurora and I focused on the Air wizard, who summoned a wind barrier to protect herself. Her eyes darted about wildly, either searching for help or looking for a way out. However, when she saw that three of her companions were unconscious, her panic deepened.
My familiar and I attacked her with spells, but we couldn’t break through her wind barrier, no matter how hard we tried. Given enough time and mana, I knew we would, but that would take too long. Not only that, but the Air wizard had a shield spell in addition to the wind barrier. Dealing with both was a pain in the ass. Aurora must have had the same thought.
‘Distract her,’ she said, speaking to me through our bond.
A spike of pain pierced my head, but I nodded.
I started attacking the Air wizard with a series of offensive spells, using both Air and Lightning magic, to keep her attention on me while Aurora dove into the ground. The Air wizard threw out spells of her own, but doing so created openings in the wind barrier. I took full advantage of those openings, though my attacks did little more than scratch the shield spell protecting her body.
Neither of us could gain an advantage over the other. While I pressured her and kept her in place, I couldn’t break through her defenses like this.
Just as it looked like we would be caught in a perpetual stalemate, Aurora rose out of the ground beneath the Air wizard’s feet. Ah, so she had swam underneath the wind barrier. The Air wizard, who hadn’t expected this, was caught off guard. Aurora took advantage of this and wrapped her body around the Air wizard. She channeled Lightning magic throughout her entire being. In moments, Aurora broke through the Air wizard’s shield spell and rendered her unconscious.
The lead adventurer, who was locked in a duel with Leroy, was the only one left standing. I took a second to observe the two. They were evenly matched at the moment. While Leroy was also an Earth wizard who specialized in internal magic, as well as a cultivator, the lead adventurer wasn’t that much weaker than him. Even though Leroy had Crimson Fang, and was using it to full effect, the lead adventurer’s armored gauntlets and Metal magic managed to keep up.
Rather than intervene, I decided to step back and let Leroy have this. He deserved the chance to put his strength and his skills to the test. Not only that, but the experience would be good for him.
While my disciple dueled the lead adventurer, I looked for Kaylee, Roland, and the Blaze Cat. They stood a ways off, near the shop for Ingram’s Pets. Kaylee held the Blaze Cat and observed the battle with a solemn look on her face. Meanwhile, Roland jumped up and down with excitement, a starry-eyed expression on his face.
I turned my attention back to Leroy and the lead adventurer.
“Leroy is going to win this,” Aurora commented as she flew towards me and perched on my shoulder.
I nodded.
As time passed, the duel started to go in Leroy’s favor. The difference in strength and skill between him and the lead adventurer grew more pronounced the longer they fought. It was just a matter of time before Leroy won. From the look on his face, the lead adventurer knew this as well. He jumped back and held his arms up.
“I yield!” he yelled out, wearing an expression of bitter resignation. “You win. Take the blasted creature. This job is a wash. Just let me collect my people and leave.”
Leroy remained on guard for several more seconds, just in case it was a trick. When it became obvious to him that it wasn’t, he lowered Crimson Fang and nodded.
I walked over to Leroy. However, just as I opened my mouth to congratulate him, his head whirled around and he stared off into the distance. The lead adventurer let out a groan.
“Just my luck,” he muttered.
I followed Leroy’s gaze. A few moments later, Kaylee did the same and I saw her sigh. Given everyone's reactions, I had a guess of what was about to happen. My guess was proven right when several armored figures came into view. Each figure wore a badge emblazoned with a silver sun.
The Sky Guard had arrived.
“How powerful?” I muttered to Leroy as they rushed towards us.
“Second Circle,” he muttered back. “Their leader is in the Third Circle.”
If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.
Fuck.
I sighed.
There was no fighting our way out of this. Not only did they outnumber us by a significant margin, but there was no way we could defeat a Third Circle wizard in our current state.
Leroy had a few injuries, though none of them were life threatening, and I could tell he was tired. I hadn’t come out of this fight unscathed either. My head throbbed with pain. Using so many spells and techniques in short succession had strained my mind. Of the three of us, Aurora was in the best condition.
Even if we could, getting into a fight with the Sky Guard wouldn’t end well for us. I suppose I could’ve tried to escape with Sky’s Dream, but that meant leaving everyone else behind. Not only that, but it would strain my mind even further.
Surrender was the best, and only, option for us here.
Most of the Sky Guard surrounded the adventurers, Leroy, and myself. The rest secured Kaylee and Roland.
After they surrounded us, one of the Sky Guard stepped forward. He was a man who looked to be in his late thirties. His armor was a little more ornate compared to the others. I assumed he was the officer in charge.
“My lord,” he said, addressing me. “We’re going to have to detain you and everyone else here for disturbing the peace. I ask that you comply. Otherwise, we’re going to have to resort to force.”
I let out a sigh.
Great. Just great. It wasn’t illegal for the Houses to come into conflict with one another, as long as things stayed within certain limits. However, it was illegal to let things spill over and drag innocent bystanders into the mix. Doing so in Sunheart, the seat of imperial authority, just made things worse.
I looked around the once pristine lawn owned by Ingram’s Pets. It was little more than a battleground of burnt grass and overturned earth.
“Very well,” I said, holding out my hands. “Do we need to wear Nullicite handcuffs?”
The Sky Guard officer shook his head.
“No,” he said. “That won’t be necessary, since you’re coming with us voluntarily. As long as you don’t cause us any trouble, that will remain the case.” He gestured towards us. “However, everyone involved must surrender their weapons and any other enchanted items they have on their person.”
The Sky Guard confiscated our weapons, including Crimson Fang. Afterwards, the officer in charge gestured for us to follow him, remaining polite the entire time.
The clouds opened up at that moment and it finally started to rain. I glared at the heavens for their poor timing, before following the Sky Guard officer towards the nearest guard station.
----------------------------------------
The guard stations located throughout Sunheart worked a lot like the police stations back on Earth. They acted as hubs and outposts for law enforcement, containing all of the facilities they needed to do their jobs. This included interrogation rooms, a first aid clinic, and holding cells for criminals, among other things.
For the Sky Guard, since most of the criminals they dealt with were wizards, their holding cells included magic circles made from Nullicite. This made it more difficult for wizards to try and escape, since these magic circles suppressed their ability to use magic.
Most of the holding cells were simple stone rooms, with little more than a bench for furniture. These were for everyone else. The holding cell reserved for House scions was more like a lounge.
The furniture consisted of a couch, several chairs, and a small table. A plate of refreshments sat on the table. There was also a bookshelf, which contained a wide selection of reading material. A plush rug covered the stone floor, though the stone walls remained bare for the most part. Brass magelamps provided light. A small window gave an outside view, though Nullicite bars prevented any ill conceived attempts at escape.
All in all, it wasn’t that bad.
There wasn’t a door, however. The reason was simple. The Sky Guard consisted entirely of wizards, including Earth wizards. Why have a potential weakness, when they could just use magic to open up and close the room? This reduced the chances of anyone escaping, since any House scions detained here wouldn’t be able to use magic to break out.
I walked around the holding cell, taking a look around, while Kaylee and Roland sat on the couch. Leroy parked himself near the window and looked outside. Aurora hovered in the air in front of Roland. The Blaze Cat was napping in Kaylee’s arms. Today’s events had tuckered her out, and she fell asleep soon after we arrived.
After the Sky Guard escorted us to the guard station and registered us in their records, they brought us here. Thankfully, they let us use magic to keep the rain off, so we remained dry. After we all settled in, they interrogated us one by one about what happened. They even questioned Roland, though they allowed me to accompany him. When it was my turn, I decided to just tell the truth about what happened.
Even though a fight occurred, it was a conflict between two Houses. The only crimes we committed were disturbing the peace and destroying someone else’s property. At worst, the Sky Guard would issue us a warning before hitting us with a fine. We would also have to pay for the damage we caused to Ingram’s Pets.
It would be the same for the group of adventurers, since they were working on behalf of House Shelton.
After we paid the fine, we would be free to go. Hell, the Sky Guard didn’t even make us give the Blaze Cat to the group of adventurers. That was House business, which had nothing to do with them.
Unfortunately, we didn’t have the money to pay the fine. We only brought enough to pay for the pet we were supposed to get for Roland. This meant that we had to wait for the Sky Guard to contact our parents, so that they could come here and pay on our behalf. I was not looking forward to seeing the expression on our parents’ faces. Somehow, an outing to buy a pet for Roland ended with all of us being arrested.
I glanced at Roland. Despite that, my little brother was in high spirits. He was recounting the fight to Aurora, waving his arms around and making explosion noises.
“That was amazing!” he said, his expression filled with excitement. “He moved like this and his fists went ‘Boom!’ when he knocked that woman out. He looked so cool!”
“Hey,” Aurora said. “I was cool too! Didn’t you see me flying around and throwing lightning at people?”
“Yeah, but you’re a Storm Dragon. That’s normal for you.”
I resisted the urge to chuckle at Aurora’s crestfallen expression. The urge died after I glanced at Kaylee’s expression. My younger sister stared down at the Blaze Cat, looking forlorn.
While the legal consequences for the incident were negligible, the social consequences were far more serious. Getting arrested carried a stigma in House society. It indicated that one was wild, unruly, and uncouth, something most House scions wanted to avoid.
This was a positive for me, since I was trying to build a certain kind of reputation. Kaylee’s reputation, on the other hand, would suffer from this. Doubly so, since she was set to attend the Solarian Imperial Academy in just a few days. At a minimum, her classmates would whisper about this behind her back and use it to make fun of her for the next several weeks. At worst, she would become known as a ruffian and a thug.
I felt a pang of guilt. Despite my best attempts, it looked like I was still causing all sorts of trouble for my family.
I walked over to Kaylee and knelt on one knee in front of her. Her eyes focused on me.
“Hey,” I said in a gentle voice. “I’m sorry for dragging you into this mess. I know this isn’t what you had in mind when you accompanied us today.”
Kaylee blinked at me surprise and her forlorn expression cleared away.
“Why are you apologizing?” she asked. “I knew what I was getting into when I offered you my support earlier.”
It was my turn to blink at her in surprise.
“Aren’t you sad about how getting arrested will affect your reputation?”
“Gods no,” Kaylee said with a snort. “I gave up trying to preserve my reputation a long time ago.” She gave me a smile. “After what happened with Lady Annabelle last year, and you joining the Adventurers Guild, any chances of society viewing us as a respectable House are long gone. Besides, even before that, Mother was a known spitfire. Getting arrested is tame in comparison to some of the things she’s done.”
Huh.
Kaylee had a point.
“Father and I discussed this matter a few months ago,” Kaylee continued. “When you and Mother were still up north. Even if we develop a reputation as a rough and wild House, one that openly flaunts society’s rules, it doesn’t matter. That’s not what’s important. What’s important is protecting our family and doing what we believe is right. Everything else is secondary.” She stroked the Blaze Cat’s fur. “Brawling with some adventurers and getting arrested is a small price to pay for protecting this little one.”
I gave Kaylee a soft smile.
“Well now,” I said. “My little sister is all grown up.” I stood up and ruffled her hair. “Don’t grow up too fast. You’re making your older brother all weepy.”
“Well, one of us needs to be the mature one,” Kaylee said, waving off my hand. “Gods know it isn’t going to be you.”
“Hey! I’m plenty mature.”
Kaylee gave me a flat look.
“When I feel like it.”
She nodded.
“That’s what I thought.” Kaylee shrugged. “To continue our conversation, one benefit of having a certain kind of reputation is that we can get away with things that other Houses can’t, since that sort of behavior would be expected of us.”
Again, Kaylee had a point. That was one of the reasons why I wanted to develop a reputation as a ruffian with little regard for House society’s rules. It seemed like Father and Kaylee had the same thought, or rather, they didn’t care if that’s what happened to our House as a whole.
“Gabriel,” Roland called out. “Can you teach me to fight like that?”
He gave me a puppy dog look that put Annabelle’s to shame.
“When you grow older, little bro,” I said, giving him a smile. “You’ll need to be able to form Circles first, before you can get to my level.”
Not to mention, he needed to reach the Foundation Establishment stage and the Second Rank of body cultivation. And that was just one the physical and magical side of things. It would take even longer for his skills to match mine.
“That’s not fair,” Roland said with a pout. “I want to be like you now.”
I snorted and ruffled his hair.
“Patience is a virtue.” I took a moment to think about it. “That said, perhaps we can start training you in martial arts sooner than later. While you won’t be able to form Circles, we can still condition your body and develop your skills.”
I even knew of several exercises and training methods that could help Roland build up his physique without hindering his development. He was still a growing child, after all. We needed to take that into account.
“Really?” Roland asked, stars in his eyes.
“Yes, really.”
“Is that a good idea?” Kaylee asked, a dubious expression on her face. “He’s still just a child.”
“I’m not!” Roland protested. “I’m four now. Mother said I’m a big boy now.”
“Yes you are, little brother,” I said, before looking at Kaylee. “The earlier we start his training, the better. It’ll give him a head start. The only reason why I advanced as quickly as I have is because of my…unique circumstances.”
Kaylee frowned.
“We don’t even know how involved he’ll want to be with that side of the family,” she said. “If at all.”
I shrugged.
“Even if he focuses more on the House side of things, it would still be good for Roland to go through physical training. A healthy body houses a healthy mind.” I gestured to Kaylee. “I mean, look how much it benefited you.”
While she was nowhere near my level, or Mother’s for that matter, Kaylee was in excellent physical condition.
“Fair enough,” my sister said, conceding the point. “We’ll ask Mother and see what she thinks.”
“Yay!” Roland said.
He stood up and gave us both a quick hug each.
“Are you sure about this, Roland?” I asked him. “The training you’ll go through will be difficult, especially in the beginning. It’s not all fun and games.”
Roland looked up at me, a serious expression on his face.
“Yes,” he said. “I want to be strong like you, so I can protect my friends and family.”
I felt both pride and sorrow at my little brother’s words. Pride because of his determination, and sorrow because he was a child who shouldn’t have to worry about things like this.
“Very well,” I said. “I’ll talk with Mother and see about setting up a training schedule for you.” I looked at my disciple. “I’d appreciate your help in this matter, Leroy.”
There was only so much Mother and I could do on our own, especially with how busy we could get. Since I had disciples, why not have them help us in this matter?
“Of course,” Leroy said, giving me a nod. “It would be an honor to help train young master Roland.”
“Yes!” Roland said, holding his fist in the air. “Now I just need a dragon familiar and I can be just like big brother Gabriel!”
Aurora chuckled at that.
“Unfortunately for you, child,” she said, poking his nose. “I’m unique. You won’t find any other spirit like me in the entire world.”
Roland pouted at that.
“Well, that’s not fair,” he said, crossing his arms.
Kaylee and I laughed at this, while Leroy smiled.
A grinding sound interrupted us at that moment, and we all turned just as the wall to the holding cell opened up. The Sky Guard officer from earlier stood at the opening, flanked by two of his subordinates.
“Lord Gabriel,” he said. “Lady Sturm is here. She already paid for your fees, so you are all free to go. I thank you for your patience and cooperation in this matter.”
From his tone, it sounded like this wasn’t always the case when it came to House scions.
“Considering the trouble I caused,” I said. “It was the least I could do.”
I looked at the others and sighed.
It was time for us to face the consequences of my actions.