Chương 57: First Steps

"Your life is a convoluted mess," remarked Ohta, waiting until after Sylvia had departed to express his opinion.

"What do you mean...?" asked Will, preparing himself some tea using the wooden coffee table in front of the sofa.

"You're always scheming and making deals with people," claimed Ohta. "Doesn't it get tiring?"

"Unimaginably..." conceded Will, closing his eyes, exhaling a faint sigh through his nose, and smiling before he added, "But things like this are necessary to ensure I have time to plan and prepare countermeasures. If I were too obstinant or unreasonable, the powers backing Sylvia might try to force my hand by targeting those around me. That's the bane of being a good person...you're always on the back foot against those willing to do anything to achieve their goals..."

"Would you give in if they tried something like that...?" asked Ohta, fairly certain he knew how Will would respond.

Confirming Ohta's suspicions, Will didn't hesitate to shake his head, his expression becoming serious as he replied, "Not a chance. The moment you compromise with people on such terms, there is nothing they can't do to you. I would rather see my family and loved ones have their throats slit than subject them to a life of being controlled and manipulated because I was too weak to prevent it..."

"Okay, drama queen..." muttered Ohta, rolling his eyes and pulling at the collar of his hoodie. In truth, he agreed with the sentiment Will was trying to convey, but it felt remarkably cringeworthy hearing someone say it with such 'convictions.'

"When do you want to head out...?" questioned Will, taking a sip from the tea he had just finished preparing.

"Don't you need to stick around until the end of the party...?" asked Ohta.

"I'm not talking about returning to the dorm..." said Will, lowering his cup and meeting Ohta's gaze as he explained, "If we delay our departure too long, rumors will begin to circulate. Leaving now will ensure the greatest amount of chaos and confusion..."

"And that's a good thing?" asked Ohta, his mouth slightly ajar as he stared at Will with incredulity.

"Not even remotely," replied Will, grinning cheekily as he explained, "But the longer we wait, the more variables will appear. If we leave now, even our allies will be surprised."

Feeling slightly dizzy, Ohta closed his eyes and reached up to massage his forehead using his right hand.

"So, what, you planning to kidnap the twins...?" asked Ohta, referring to Aisha and Azir.

"The opposite," replied Will, shaking his head. "Those two are much too weak to get involved in a conflict like this. Our disappearance will warrant a detailed investigation, stonewalling their departure until my family has a chance to conduct their own. I'll undoubtedly be held accountable once I return, but I've left enough evidence to key my mother in on my intentions and ensure she doesn't use my Gryphon to track me down..."

"You are genuinely out of your mind..." grumbled Ohta, closing his eyes and exhaling a loud, exasperated sigh. He knew escorting Aisha and Azir was just an excuse Will had crafted to justify his trip to the South, but now that the latter had discarded the pretense entirely, Ohta was beginning to feel like he was getting entangled in a conspiracy...

'Well, at least I won't have to attend these boring ass classes anymore...' thought Ohta, slipping his hands into the front pouch of his hoodie. Then, as Will set down his cup, still half-filled with piping hot tea, he allowed his shadow to expand from his feet. In response, Will made his way over, his expression softening as he offered a sincere 'thanks,' compelling Ohta to roll his eyes before drawing them both into his shadow...

...

"Where is this?" asked Will, looking around at the forest clearing Ohta had transported them to. It was nighttime, but thanks to his enhanced senses and extrasensory perception, his vision was even better in darkness than in sunlight. Even the surrounding rocks appeared to glow, and if he looked down, he could peer several centimeters into the soil, packed with insects and their larvae.

"The forest where I was abandoned..." responded Ohta, causing Will to blink in surprise. The forest Ohta was referring to was nearly 2,000km from the Capital, yet they had only spent a few minutes in the shadowy dimension that facilitated their movement.

"You're surprisingly calm," remarked Ohta, giving Will a once-over as he revealed, "When I did this with Tim and Dorothy, they became sickly and needed multiple days to recover."

"That's because Darkness saps energy and siphons warmth from those who lack an affinity for it," explained Will. "In my case, I lack an affinity but am good at regulating my energy internally."

"Okay, but you were still submerged in pitch-black darkness for nearly ten minutes," Ohta supplanted. "You should be at least a little rattled. I mean, what if I decided you were too much trouble and left you there?"

"Then I would try to break out..." Will contended, shrugging as he added, "If that didn't work, I would meditate for a couple of days before blowing myself up. Not much else I could do."

"..."

"I think I'm starting to understand why I don't like you..." grumbled Ohta, averting his eyes to scan their surroundings as he accused. "You may not seek death, but you don't seem to care that you're alive..."

'Been a while since I heard that...' thought Will, his expression softening as he reminisced about his previous life as Eskhaar. His somewhat over-affectionate younger sister constantly harped on him to take better care of himself and stop putting others before him, but since he was trying to make the world a better place for her and all those who had come to rely on him, he stood his ground and remained firm even as the majority of his surviving allies abandoned the battlefield and fled...

"It's not that I don't care that I'm alive..." said Will, adopting a faint smile that caused Ohta to cringe and shudder as he looked to the star-filled sky above and stated, "But this world and what lies beyond is so much bigger than any singular person. I will do what I can to improve things in the time I've been given, but when the end comes, I will not turn away or try to run from it..."

Lowering his gaze to meet Ohta's, the corners of Will's smile curled into a grin as he raised his right fist, clenching it as he appended, "Instead, I will fight to the end and give my enemies one last reason to seethe when they find my corpse grinning from ear to ear..."

"There's something wrong with your head..." Ohta retorted, turning away and departing with his hands in the front pocket of his hoodie. Will tried to follow, but the moment he took a step forward, Ohta abruptly disappeared into his shadow, leaving behind the echoey words, 'There's a small village a few kilometers west of here. This trip was your idea, so don't expect me to walk or chauffeur you everywhere...'

"Of course," responded Will, unbothered by Ohta's decision. Before he departed for the village, however, he took a moment to change out of his Academy uniform, replacing it with worn yet well-made black, grey, and gold clothing that matched the aesthetic of his gauntlet. Even the average Dwaf might not be able to recognize the material used in its construction, but Will decided to play it safe by donning a fur-lined, tan-grey cloak that concealed everything above his knees. Then, as it would have garnered a considerable amount of suspicion if he emerged from the forest without a weapon, he deliberated before fixing a longsword, a parrying blade, and a custom-made Runecaster to his hip, the latter two concealed by his cloak while the hilt of the sword protruded from its left side, allowing him to rest his hand atop its pommel.

'My mother is going to kill me...' thought Will. But, as he was excited by the prospect of traveling and living free of the burdens his standing had forced upon him, he couldn't help smiling as he took his first broad step forward. Fortunately, he had just the thing to ensure the first leg of his journey went without a hitch.

"Forestwalk..." muttered Will, brightening the already illuminated ground before him, indicating the most stable path. His Gryphon Featherfeet also had the [Featherfoot(B)] and [Stabilization(C)] enchantments, so not only were his steps silent, but his sense of balance was ensured on all but the roughest terrains...

...

After a short, leisurely journey through a monster-infested forest, Will found himself on the edge of a spacious clearing encircling a small but well-fortified city. Several compacted dirt roads led to and from the city, but since night had already fallen, there was no notable traffic.

'What to do...' Will mused to himself, wearing a confident smile but unsure of the best course of action. His badge and ID were directly linked to him, so while he could use them to gain entrance into the city, it would quickly become known he was there. One option was to register at the local Guild Hall, but since they used to have substantial issues with criminals, spies, and other ne'er-do-wells entering their ranks and staining their reputation, aspiring Adventurers needed a sponsor from a local business or a veteran Adventurer to vouch for them.

Ding!

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[Sword of the Stranger]

Rank: D~S [Guided Quest]

Objective(s): A renowned scholar once said there are a thousand times as many problems as people in the world. Keep your eyes peeled and ear to the ground, and you're bound to find more than a few people in need of a strong arm or a sharp mind.

Optional Objective(s): Successfully become an Adventurer(0/1), Locate and then either eliminate or aid the heads of the local Crime Guilds(0/3), Patronize the local Church, and pass your knowledge and wisdom onto at least three orphans(0/3), ????

Reward(s): 1,000 Karma, [Art of Forgery]x1, [Alms for the Poor]x1, ????

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'A Guided Quest...' observed Will, his brows creasing as the information in the Quest, while useful, hinted that his decision would have a significant impact on the fates of those he interacted with. If he decided to instruct the orphans, for example, they could go on to become heroes of the local militia or become powerful enforcers for the criminal syndicates that had cemented themselves in the Kingdom like a second set of veins...

'We'll just see what fate has in store...' concluded Will, deciding not to go out of his way to investigate the local Crime Guilds or Church unless their paths crossed organically. Instead, he bent down and placed his left hand against the ground, closing his eyes and focusing his Mana for nearly two full minutes before the soil beneath him began to stir, lifting him as it took the form of a nearly five-meter-tall Soil Golem.

'Since when can you use Third-Circle Earth Magic...?' questioned Ohta, his echoey voice full of suspicion as it emanated from Will's shadow.

"I can't," responded Will, taking a seat atop the golem's head and willing it to lumber forward at a steady pace as he explained, "This might look like Third-Circle Earth Magic, but it's ultimately just an upscaled version of the First-Circle Spell, Mould Earth. A true Soil Golem can move independently. This one will crumble apart the moment I separate from it."

'So you're controlling it...?' asked Ohta, a hint of disbelief underpinning the question. He imagined Will spreading his Mana through the golem as if it were an extension of his body, but while that wasn't far from the truth, the reality was simpler and infinitely more terrifying. After all, instead of using a spell formula like a traditional Mage, he simply willed the dirt to take the shape he wanted, bending it to his will via the power of Dominate...

...