Tick, tock, the sigil operated clock sprung it's valves as the gears began to twist and turn before suddenly releasing a small amount of steam into a smaller pipe that made a whistling noise as the steam exited, signaling the arrival of the mid day.

A figure stirred within the slightly dim room.

Almost hidden behind a pile of papers on the desk.

Lavish crimson red hair flowed behind the stack of papers, as a small gust of wind came in through a  crack in the window.

As the figure was feverishly scribbling away, the quill broke. Ink slowly covered the hand in the dark colored liquid, as it ruined the document figure had spent an unknown amount of time on.

This was Kyr the greatest scholar of the kingdom of Valros, beast tamer, alchemist and Grandmaster of sigil mana contraptions.

Kyr had worked on an important document requiring a disgusting amount of time.

It was to prove the existence of a new type of energy. It had the same power as mana but the color was vastly different.

Mana could be normally seen as a blue type of energy. As all the elemental planes Mages drew their powers from all used this type of blue energy.

However what Kyr was researching was the existence of a purple type of energy.

She had spent over a decade on this research. Her hobbies seemed to attract the nobles of Valros, her clock contraption using a mana sigil to generate heat and water creating steam within the device to twist gears silently and releasing the hot steam as a whistle during key points of the day. This and her taming of the so called 'Kyr Lizards..' had earned her the title of a marquis within the kingdom.

Time and time again this mysterious energy had eluded her, however this did not damper her hopes. She knew it existed, and she would be the one to discover it.

....

Silence.

Dreadful silence assaulted the group as they carefully made their ways towards the village, though the short cut would take them through the area of the western hunting grounds that D grade monsters where more often to roam was worth the risk.

This unnatural silence carried the scent of foreboding in it.

Suddenly a hand gesture stopped the silhouette's advancement.

One of the bigger silhouette's moved forward carefully he watched the movement of the sand, looking for any indication. Even noticing the lightest shuffling of the sand could determine the difference of life in death.

Most of the monsters within the desert are Ambush types, however a few do roam it's great expanses openly.

What is there to fear when you are the greatest danger in the desert?

A hand gesture signaled the silhouette's to move forward. This was the one area they needed to pass through quickly. Even though they could deal with D ranked monsters, the Ivory Sand Locus was known to swarm together with it's kind.

Sometimes the swarms would even form to ungodly proportions and ravage the kingdoms on the borders of the desert of the forgotten.

As they hurried through this dangerous area, something noticed their movement.

"We must pick up the pace we will be able to reach the village before the skyfire sleeps beneath the earth." Kal said as he glanced towards the western sky, soon they would be in the darkness of night.

As if to fulfill their fears. A shadow passed through the wind as speeds impossible for humans to consider plausible.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Targeting Refrei who was currently in charge of keeping Kou out of trouble during this tense time.

As the shadow darted towards the group, suddenly Kal, Ruka noticed the approaching danger however the speed was simply too fast, unable to react in time, the shadow tore it's way through Refrei's chest. Blood began to spill from her mouth as the crimson droplets rained down on Kou who had just glanced upwards to see why she stopped moving.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

The taste of iron filled Kou's mouth as he stood there blanky unable to register the transpiring events.

The shadow then darted towards the other silhouette, known as Rekia just before it reached her, the tip of her spear began to radiate in light as a elemental light spell known as [ Blind ] quickly assaulted the shadow's vision.

The blur of her spear could only be seen by herself as the light had blinded everyone in the vicinity.

The tip would suddenly turn into 7, then merge back into a single tip.

The shadow had been stabbed a total of 7 times. As it's black blood oozed out from it's wounds, dispelling the darkness spell [ Shadow ] as it revealed a Bone Eater Rat a A ranked monster.

Known for it's speed and it's ability to bite through flesh and bones as if it was soft mud.

Kou stood there in a chanted like state, A adventure was the thing he dreamed about, standing before an unknown land or lost city as he fought to the riches within.

Refrei's corpse had fallen onto Kou, blood slowly trickled from her mouth as the lifeless eyes stared in his.

The sounds of Ruka, Kal and Rekia resounded through the air as their words turned into a white noise before the ears of Kou.

As the events transpired Kou just laid their blankly as the blood dripped onto his face.

"Ruka! check to see if Kou's ok." Kal shouted, he had known that Refrei was dead the moment she had been struck.

She had been his training partner in his 2nd hunt, and the two had grown close to each other. However Kal had no time for mourning yet. The danger would only increase as the light dwindles from the sky.

"Kou! hey kou!" Ruka called out to the boy, nothing seemed to wake him though he hadn't been wounded physically, mentally he had been unprepared to face the cruelty of life. Death.

As the group of children stared in bewilderment as to the scene transpiring before their very eyes. The voice of Kal resounded the area.

"Ruka carry Kou, I and Rekia will drag Refrei's body with us. We are almost to the village we cannot leave her to become food for these damn monsters."

As the group made it's way to the village, the mercenaries of the Raju Express had a more lively time within their encampment finally free from the confines of their plate mail.

"Captain. What should we buy with all the coin once we get back?" A burly man with silver hair said as the flames of the fire gleamed off the greataxe bound to his back. Though they had removed their armor for the sake of not baking to death, weapons were another story.

"Heh, I know what I will buy when we get back. The best prostitute within the capital." The man in his late 30's said, blue, fierce eyes could be seen within his black hair.

Strapped to his side was a sword which handle had a golden inscribing that read. 'Red Gorge Mercenaries.'