There wasn’t a single storm cloud in the sky, yet massive columns of electricity streaked down, slamming into the spiders closing in on Galven and his men. One after another, the bolts struck, surging through the creatures' bodies and frying them from the inside out. They stopped moving, collapsing into heaps on the ground. Within moments, hundreds lay dead, the air thick with the smell of charred flesh and the acrid smoke from their singed hairs.
“Wh-what just happened?” one of the men behind Galven stammered, his voice shaky. The sheer speed of it left them all struggling to process what they’d just seen.
“Where did that lightning come from?” another muttered, glancing nervously at the clear, untouched sky above.
“Whatever it was, it scared them,” a soldier said, gesturing to the spiders. Despite the smoldering piles of their fallen comrades, the surviving arachnids—still numbering in the thousands—remained in place. Their crimson eyes gleamed from the shadowed edge of the forest, unblinking, calculating.
For creatures like them, losses were part of the natural order. A single brood could give rise to hundreds more, making individual casualties insignificant. But this time was different. Though the spiders had no concept of what electricity was or how it worked, their instincts screamed danger. The risk outweighed the reward—devouring a few humans wasn’t worth the sacrifice of so many of their own.
Slowly, the horde began to retreat. Some climbed trees, their legs skittering up bark; others vanished beneath dense foliage, disappearing into the dim recesses of the forest. Within minutes, the final glimmers of red light faded, leaving only silence. The once-ravenous swarm had melted away, leaving behind a field of scorched corpses just meters from Galven and his men.
The soldiers stood frozen, not celebrating, not even relaxing. The air around them buzzed with unease. They took their cues from Galven, whose sharp eyes never stopped scanning the surroundings.
These fluctuations... without a doubt, they're from the use of magic. Was it elementrix?
As the electricity dissipated into raw mana, it caused the natural mana in the world around them to ripple like a massive ice cube melting instantly in a still glass of water. The fluctuations were impossible to miss, even for an Apprentice-level knight. It prickled at Galven’s sixth sense as he shifted the focus of his aura from boosting his physical capabilities to his five senses, his frown deepening as he caught a faint noise from behind.
Whipping his head around, he scanned the rocky valley wall looming above them. That’s when he saw him—a light blonde-haired boy perched casually on the steep, almost vertical wall. The boy was watching the forest with an air of calm detachment. After a moment, his gaze dropped to Galven and his men, and he called out.
“Hey, are you all alright? Did the electricity hit any of you?” His voice drew the soldiers' attention upward. They spotted him perched dozens of meters up the wall and immediately shifted formation, weapons raised, shields at the ready as they backed away from the cliff. The boy—Magnus—tilted his head slightly at their reaction, then dropped down. He landed with barely a sound, the only noise coming from the flutter of his uniform.
Galven stepped forward, his expression guarded as he spoke first.
“Who are you?”
“Magnus. Magnus Wright.” As Magnus introduced himself he gestured to the emblem stitched into his uniform. Galven stared at it for a brief moment before recognition flickered in his eyes.
“Wait. Are you a student of Takerth Academy? What are you doing all the way out here?” Hearing the name, Takerth Academy, the soldiers exchanged glances and began lowering their weapons. Silent sighs of relief passed through the group. While the Ten Great Magic Academies and the Batis Military weren’t exactly on friendly terms, they were still allies when it counted. The real concern would’ve been if Magnus had turned out to be a rogue mage.
“Major General Arbarth sent me—or, rather, requested that I come here to help with whatever’s keeping you stuck in this valley.” Magnus watched Galven’s face carefully as he spoke. The skepticism in the lieutenant’s eyes was clear when he mentioned the Major General’s involvement. Magnus let out a quiet sigh and shook his head.
“I know what you’re thinking: Why would Arbarth send me, of all people, to help?” He paused, giving himself a moment to think. It wasn’t an unreasonable reaction. After all, even as a Major General, Arbarth had no authority over Takerth Academy or its students. If he did, the military’s longstanding issue of lacking mages would’ve been resolved long ago. There was also Magnus’s age—seventeen, with a face that didn’t exactly inspire immediate confidence.
“Believe it or not, though, I’m actually a Pseudo-” Magnus began, but his words were cut short as a distant sound reached them. The group turned their heads in unison, eyes narrowing at the movement on the horizon. A figure on horseback was approaching fast, flanked by a platoon of soldiers. Galven immediately recognized them as the reinforcements he had summoned with the smoke canister. In fact, it was that same canister that had drawn Magnus to this part of the valley in the first place.
As the group approached, the rider on horseback arrived ahead of the others, and Magnus immediately recognized the dark cloak draped over the figure. It concealed a full set of layered leather armor reinforced with straps and thick fabrics. The design wasn’t something you’d expect from a soldier or knight. It prioritized flexibility while offering just enough protection to deflect grazing blows, rather than absorbing impacts entirely.
“Marcos?” Magnus said, his voice tinged with surprise. The rider’s sharp, dark eyes flicked toward him, matching Magnus’s reaction with a brief look of surprise.
“Magnus? What are you… what’s going on here? We came because someone launched a smoke signal.” Hearing the question, Galven stepped forward to respond.
“That was us. We ran into the same man-eating spiders Gerald encountered while combing through G-6.”
As he spoke, Galven glanced toward Magnus and added, “We would’ve suffered a lot more casualties if not for him. Apparently, the Major General sent him.”
Marcos’s gaze shifted back to Magnus, lingering for a moment. Magnus couldn’t help but shift uncomfortably under the scrutiny. He considered himself on decent terms with Gerald and Mia, but out of their trio, Marcos was unquestionably the most distrustful. Ever since the three had rescued him from that Kryle-overrun village, Marcos had been suspicious. Magnus was pretty sure that if it had been up to Marcos, Mia would’ve left him behind the moment he unconsciously activated the Command Console and killed those bandits.
To his surprise, though, Marcos’s response didn’t carry the usual air of detached skepticism.
“I see. In that case, we should head back to the outpost. If this area has the same spiders Gerald dealt with, we’ll need to recheck certain blocks.” Galven nodded in agreement. Without further comment, Marcos turned to address the platoon of soldiers who had caught up to him.
“This area of the forest is infested with man-eating spiders. We’ll be taking the long way around to the outpost after a short break,” Marcos instructed.
His tone was sharp but steady, and the soldiers responded in unison: “Yes, sir.”
The announcement was met with visible relief. Galven’s men, still tense from their ordeal, clearly needed the rest after being relentlessly chased and prepared to make a last stand. Marcos’s troops, having rushed at full speed upon spotting the smoke signal, were no better off. Only Magnus looked entirely unaffected, for obvious reasons. Meanwhile, Galven and Marcos, though slightly better off than their men, still bore signs of weariness from the prolonged tension.
As the soldiers settled in for the break, Marcos dismounted from his horse, his eyes scanned the group. Finally, he turned his full attention back to Magnus.
“So, what exactly is going on? Are you alone?” Marcos asked.
Magnus nodded, explaining, “Yeah, it’s just me. A lot has been happening back in Arlcliff City since you guys left. To sum it up though, there was a massive raid on a human trafficking cell. That raid kicked off a full-blown crackdown on every trafficking operation the Major General had been tracking across the city. With all of that going on…”
“He can’t afford to send any more men this way. He’s probably already stretching his forces thin,” Marcos muttered, finishing Magnus’s sentence.
Galven, who had been listening closely, didn’t seem bothered by the news. Instead, he surprised Magnus by agreeing.
“Well, it’s for the best that the Major General isn’t sending more platoons into this death trap of a valley. We don’t have enough supplies to feed any more mouths anyway.” With that being said, Galven turned to Magnus and couldn’t help but revisit an earlier question.
“Still, I’m confused about why he sent you here. No offense—I appreciate the help—but this isn’t a place for a student. And I doubt a single Apprentice-level mage can make much of a difference.”
“Luckily for you, I’m not at the Apprentice-level,” Magnus said, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
“I’m actually a Pseudo-Master.” The statement hit Galven like a thunderclap. His eyes widened in sheer disbelief.
“A Pseudo-Master!? Are you serious?” For a man who had spent decades honing his skills to reach the Adept-level, Galven found the claim hard to swallow. Natural talent wasn’t something he had been gifted with, which was why he hadn't reached the Master-level after so many years, and he had relied on experience to compensate. That's why he could tell that Magnus’s words which carried no hesitation, also didn't carry a hint of deceit. Marcos, meanwhile, kept his reaction subdued, though the frown on his face betrayed his shock.
From what Mia told me, he had only just begun controlling his abilities before we set off. And that was before he even enrolled in Takerth Academy. There’s no way he went from unranked to Pseudo-Master this quickly. Right? But if he’s telling the truth…
“Are you serious?” Marcos finally asked, his voice probing.
“Have you really reached the Pseudo-Master level already?”
Magnus met his gaze, answering honestly, “Technically, I’m at the Adept-level, since the academy doesn’t officially recognize Pseudo-level ranks. But everyone there says I’m the youngest Pseudo-Master in its history.”
Marcos considered his words carefully as Galven exhaled, shaking his head in disbelief.
“Well, if that’s true, then I suppose it explains why the Major General risked sending you. With two Adept-level knights, three Master-level knights, and a Pseudo-Master mage, we might actually have a shot at finding and killing this thing before the situation gets any worse.” There was still skepticism lingering in the air, but neither Galven nor Marcos pressed further. There was no reason for Magnus to lie, and if his claim was true, having him there was nothing short of a boon.
I guess Mia was right about him after all. If he’s already at the Pseudo-Master level after just a few months, it’s only a matter of time before he officially breaks into the Master-level. From there… who knows? As long as he’s protected and nurtured, even if he doesn’t join the military, we might gain an Archmage as an ally in the future. Or even… a Grand Arcanist.
That final thought settled in his mind, and Marcos gave a subtle nod to himself.
"Alright, we should get moving. Staying in one place too long might tempt those spiders to try their luck again."
Marcos turned back to his horse, climbing on in one smooth motion before calling out, "We’re heading back to the outpost! Get ready to move!"
The soldiers, who had been resting against the rocky valley walls or sitting on the ground, quickly roused themselves. Magnus watched as they moved with discipline, forming a marching formation behind Marcos, Galven, and himself without needing to be told. Even Galven’s men seamlessly merged into the group, falling into step as if they’d trained together for years. With a light press of his leg, Marcos urged his horse forward, leading the column with everyone moving in perfect stride.
As they traveled, all eyes—including Magnus’s—remained fixed on the forest's edge. Cutting straight through the woods would have been faster, but no one was willing to risk it. With the spiders potentially numbering in the thousands, saving an hour or two of marching wasn’t worth the gamble.
Fortunately, the journey around the forest passed without incident. The spiders showed no sign of returning and along the way, Magnus took the opportunity to ask Galven and Marcos a few questions, hoping to better understand the situation. Much of what they told him matched what Alwen and Kolten had already shared or what he had deduced. The valley had three main entrances: two located at its far east and west ends, and the third near the outpost they were using as their base of operations.
When they finally made their way out from between the forest and the valley wall, Magnus felt the tension in his chest ease. The view opened up to a wide, hilly meadow that he had seen earlier from above. It stretched across most of the valley. They followed a dirt path that appeared well-used, likely belonging to the people of Larter Village.
“This place really is gorgeous,” Magnus murmured, almost to himself. The sunlight, unbroken by clouds, spilled across the rolling sea of grass, while a gentle breeze swept through, making the meadow look as though it were alive and dancing. The serene beauty was such a stark contrast to the nightmarish swarm of spiders they’d just escaped.
“We thought the same thing when we arrived,” Galven said, his voice tinged with a faint wistfulness.
“From what the villagers told us, this valley is an easy enough place to live in—or at least it was. There are monsters, sure, but without any major food source, most of the bigger ones didn’t bother coming down here. They stick to the woods.” He gestured toward the Verdant Woods that crowned the other side of the hills enclosing the valley.
“And the ones that do live here—like those spiders—they usually stay in their territories. They don’t come pouring out of the forest like that.” Magnus glanced at Galven as they continued down the dirt path that cut through the knee-high grass.
“You said it was easy to live here. What changed?” Galven shook his head, his expression darkening.
“Exactly what’s happened everywhere else,” Galven replied.
“Since it’s so isolated, the Batis Military agreed to the village’s request to build an outpost nearby. A couple of dozen soldiers were enough to handle anything big that wandered into the valley and to keep the forest’s monster population in check. But with the war worsening, even major garrisons and fortresses across the regions are barely functioning with the skeleton crews left to man them. So what do you think happened to places like this?” Magnus frowned, listening intently.
Essentially, since the village had been deemed relatively safe, the Batis Military had reassigned most of the soldiers stationed here, leaving the outpost severely undermanned. At first, this didn’t cause any problems. But with only a handful of soldiers left, they could no longer manage the monster population in the forest. Over time, the area became more dangerous than ever. But, the real trouble began just a couple of months ago. Hunting parties sent out by the village started disappearing. At first, it seemed like bad luck—accidents were an accepted risk in a rural place like this. But as the disappearances grew more frequent, it became clear that something far more troubling was happening.
Galven let out a heavy sigh as he continued.
“Normally, the village would rely on the soldiers to investigate something like that, but…”
“If entire hunting parties were being wiped out, a few soldiers wouldn’t stand a chance,” Magnus finished to which Galven nodded grimly.
“Exactly. They tried other routes out of the valley, but the same thing kept happening. No traces of what caused it aside from the obvious signs that there had been an attack. So, the villagers did the only thing they could: they stopped leaving the valley to hunt and relied solely on their farms. It was rough, but they managed by expanding their fields. As for what happened after that… I’m assuming you already know.” Magnus didn’t respond, but his contemplative expression made his answer clear.
So Mia, Gerald, and Marcos got injured during their mission and took refuge here. The villagers and the few soldiers left at the outpost probably told them about this thing keeping them trapped in the valley. Then Mia and the others requested reinforcements. But that backfired—an entire platoon was wiped out, leaving the remaining three stuck here along with the villagers.
He got the basic gist of the timeline, but still, one question lingered in Magnus’s mind, and he decided to voice it.
“But I don’t get it. From what I’ve heard, this thing has been avoiding you, Mia, and Gerald. It must know that Master-level knights are a threat, right? So why don’t the three of you act as a vanguard, protect the villagers, and lead them out of the valley?”
“It’s too risky,” Marcos replied firmly.
“You’re right; this thing has been avoiding any Master-level knights. But that doesn’t change the fact that it wiped out a platoon led by an Adept-level knight lieutenant before any of us could get there. That alone should tell you how strong it is. And there’s a big difference between it not attacking us yet and it not being able to attack us. If Mia, Gerald, and I tried to lead the villagers out of the valley, there’s no guarantee it wouldn’t ambush us. Even if we managed to kill it, the casualties would make the whole operation pointless.” He paused, letting the weight of his words settle before continuing.
“Simply put, unless we’re willing to sacrifice lives—villagers or soldiers—to lure this thing out and kill it before it escapes, our best option is to find its lair and eliminate it there.”
I see. I guess that makes sense, this thing has already shown it's smarter than some random monster. If it figures out that Mia and the others are trying to bait it by leading a group of soldiers or villagers out of the valley, there’d be nothing stopping it from attacking whatever’s left undefended. Shit... Now I get why they’ve been stuck for so long. They’re trying to find this thing while also dealing with an uncurated population of monsters.
Magnus’s thoughts trailed off as he noticed the incline of their path. Looking around, he realized they were ascending a hill within the valley. The grassy meadow was gradually giving way to packed dirt and rock. The hill wasn’t part of the valley wall but one of the inner hills that rose a quarter of the way up before merging into the sheer cliffs surrounding the valley. As they continued, Magnus also noticed the path they were following merging with another one that veered downhill to the east, which Magnus guessed was the path that led down to the village.
Not long after, the outpost came into view. It was a massive, triangular structure built primarily of stone, with its front gate facing toward them. Soldiers on the lookout along the walls spotted their approach and signaled them, prompting Galven to wave back in acknowledgment. As the group reached the gate, Marcos dismounted, handing his horse’s reins to a waiting stablehand. Turning back to the platoon, he addressed them.
“There won’t be any more expeditions for a couple of days. Get some rest in the meantime.”
“Yes, sir,” the soldiers answered in unison. Their exhaustion was clear as they trudged inside, the strain of the long march and the tension of their situation weighing heavily on them. They made their way toward the barracks, leaving Magnus to follow Marcos and Galven. The two were heading towards an open tent in the outpost’s otherwise empty courtyard.
Even from the front gate, Magnus could spot two familiar figures inside. One was speaking, his tone sharp, while the other stood silently, her eyes fixed on a map spread across a large table in the center of the tent. As they drew closer, Magnus began catching snippets of the conversation.
“Mia, you can’t keep pushing yourself like this. At this rate, you’re going to collapse, and then we’ll be without a captain.”
“We’ve had this conversation already,” Mia replied, her tone sharp but weary.
“Unless you’ve come up with a way to solve our supply shortage, just drop it.” The first voice was unmistakably Gerald’s, and the second belonged to Mia—though it sounded different from how Magnus remembered. Her usual resolute conviction, the energy that defined her leadership, seemed drained. Her voice was colder, flatter as if she were running on fumes.
Gerald sighed audibly, turning away from her to face Marcos and Galven as they approached.
“Well, you two look like you’re in good shape. I’m guessing that means things went as usual-” His words cut off as his eyes landed on Magnus, who had been walking behind them. Confusion and disbelief spread across Gerald’s face as his mouth opened and closed a few times before he finally managed to speak.
“Am I hallucinating, or is that who I think it is?” He asked, looking to Marcos for confirmation.
“Yeah. Imagine how I felt finding him near the edge of the valley by G-6,” Marcos replied dryly. Their exchange drew Mia’s attention. She frowned as she looked up from the map.
“Who are you two talking about...” Her words trailed off as she saw Magnus standing between Marcos and Galven.
“Wow, I thought it was just Marcos, but you two look terrible,” Magnus joked, giving them a casual wave. Gerald and Mia simply stared at him, their expressions frozen in disbelief as they processed his sudden appearance.
Eventually, Mia stumbled over her words, her voice faltering as she spoke his name.
“I- I… wait, Magnus?”