Somewhere Else in a dimly lit dungeon two people were walking quietly.
The boy had snow white hairs and his violet eyes shone within the dimly lit area.
The girl had blonde hair like shining sun and crimson eyes similar to blood red rubies.
They weren't here for sightseeing.
Lucien and Seles were currently inside a dungeon trying to complete it.
They had taken up this mission to go out of the academy for the black market auction.
The mission was a simple dungeon clearing one.
They had to clear a F rank dungeon.
Unlike the one Alden cleared, this dungeon was one time rift, meaning it could only be cleared one time.
There was only one problem?
Despite the dungeon being low-rank, something about it felt off.
They were both clad in armours.
Seles was wearing an enchanted black- coloured robe whereas Lucien was wearing a lightweight armour.
Lucien was an ever-enthusiastic as always.
He was thinking of it as a thrilling adventure.
Seles, ever the schemer, thought of it as an easy way to achieve her goals.
They moved in silence until Seles suddenly raised her hand.
Lucien, despite his lack of brains, immediately understood.
He gripped his spear tightly and turned his head in the direction she was pointing at.
Then, from the shadows, they emerged.
The moment the creatures saw them, they let out ear-piercing and high-pitched screams that echoed through the whole dungeon.
"…Are you serious?" Seles looked blankly as a herd of glowing, mana-infused goats charged at them.
"Stand back, Seles." Lucien said confidently. "Let me handle them."
The goats screamed even louder.
One of them shot forward and then—BANG—fired a headbutt at Lucien like a cannonball.
Lucien barely dodged, flipping backward.
Lightning crackled around his spear as he spun it in his grip.
"Fine, if it's a fight you want—"
Before he could finish his sentence, the goats all opened their mouths at once.
Lucien was surprised as a barrage of glowing projectiles flew toward him.
Seles elegantly stepped back, letting the chaos unfold.
Lucien, meanwhile, was forced to spin his spear, deflecting the mysterious projectiles.
"What the hell is this?" he cried.
"It's a Mana-infused goat spit." Seles examined from the sidelines "It's corrosive."
Lucien's face paled. "Damn it, why the hell can't these monsters be normal."
One of the goats, seeing an opening, launched itself at Lucien's face.
Lucien, purely on instinct, swung his fist.
A crack of thunder followed his fist.
Lucien blinked at his hand. "…Wait, why are they so weak?"
"They're F-rank." Seles sighed. "This is literally one of the weakest dungeon possible."
Lucien suddenly looked way too confident. "Tch. I was just going easy on them."
Seles rolled her eyes.
Within half an hour, the entire herd was wiped out by him.
The goats were easy prey for Lucien with his lightning power as they were weak against that element..
Lucien planted his spear into the ground, standing proudly. "See? Easy."
And that was when the dungeon started shaking violently.
Lucien slowly turned to Seles.
Seles slowly turned to Lucien.
A hundred pairs of glowing eyes appeared in the darkness.
From the walls of the dungeon came the real enemies.
The first rabbit jumped forward.
It was wearing full plate armor.
"WHY DO THEY HAVE ARMOR?" Lucien screamed.
The armoured rabbit was a very rare monster which specialised in defence.
Its bone has solidifying properties, so after it reaches maturity a armour is formed around its body.
The rabbit's nose twitched.
Lucien barely had time to dodge as the rabbit headbutted the air where he had just been standing, sending stone debris flying.
Lucien looked at the crater.
Lightning surged around his body as he charged forward.
The armored rabbit dodged.
Lucien swung his spear.
The rabbit defended itself with its helmet.
Another rabbit jumped.
Lucien barely reacted in time, thrusting his spear.
Lucien stared in horror. "…They have a full battle formation."
More armored rabbits were assembling.
Seles sighed, finally lifting a hand. "Enough playing around."
The entire battlefield turned dark as shadows shot forward, binding the rabbits.
Within moments, the entire rabbit army was bound, struggling within the darkness.
She swiped her hand slightly as the shadows pierced all the rabbits at once ending their lives.
The rabbits were also weak inherently. They relied on their numbers to overwhelm the opponents
Finally, they reached the dungeon's last chamber.
The boss awaited them.
A massive, hulking figure stood in the darkness.
Lucien and Seles braced themselves.
It stepped into the light.
The Feathered Menace.
A gigantic, majestic-looking chicken.
Lucien and Seles stood in silence.
The chicken flapped its wings.
Lucien didn't hesitate. "NOPE."
He immediately threw his spear.
Lucien's jaw dropped. "It dodged?"
Seles summoned a barrage of shadow spears.
The chicken flapped its wings, creating a gust that dispersed the shadows.
Lucien moved to intercept, lightning crackling.
The chicken punched him in the face.
Seles, for the first time, actually looked concerned.
Lucien groaned, lifting himself up from the ground he had landed in. "…I am going to deep fry this bastard."
After what felt like an eternity, the Feathered Menace let out a final, dramatic sound before collapsing.
Lucien, victorious but exhausted, fell onto his back.
The dungeon was cleared.
The mission was a success.
And Lucien would never look at farm animals the same way again.
At the same time back in the academy.
After storing the books in his storage ring, Alden got up from his desk.
Stretching his stiff body, he let out a tired sigh.
His whole body felt numb from sitting still for so long.
Well, at least it wasn't a waste of time.
I learned plenty of fairy tales.
Alden muttered sarcastically before deciding to train for a bit.
He left his room, making his way toward the training room.
Alden entered the training room, and without wasting any time, he began practicing the Dance of Chaos.
His movements were still rough and his control was imperfect.
At his current level, using this in battle wouldn't have any use except for embarrassing himself.
But progress was progress.
By the time Alden stopped, his body was drenched in sweat.
He exhaled, wiping his forehead.
It was already too late.
Shaking his head, he left the training hall.
A quick shower later, he had a peaceful dinner in the dorm's cafeteria.
He was feeling too tired to cook something so he just decided to eat at the cafeteria today.
Afterward, he wasted some time scrolling through his social media.
Cipher had messaged him, updating him about his order.
The product he ordered had arrived.
Alden wasn't stupid enough to give her his address, so he asked her to keep it for now.
He was going to pick it up later when he went for the information on Nyx.
After successfully wasting time, Alden finally decided to sleep.
But by then, it was already midnight.
With a sigh, he collapsed onto his bed.
His body was exhausted, but his mind remained restless.
Spirits. Trials. The spar with Amyra.
Too many things were happening at once.
Still, there was no point in overthinking.
And sleep finally took him.
Morning came too soon.
Alden woke up groggily, rubbing his eyes.
The light of dawn peeked through the window curtains.
He forced himself to sit up, stretching his arms.
The academy was already awake.
Without further delay, he got out of bed.
Alden got dressed quickly, slipping into his academy uniform.
His body still ached from training, but he ignored it.
After a simple breakfast, he left the dorms.
The academy grounds were already lively.
Students moved in groups, chatting, laughing.
Aziel had taken a mission together with Cecilia, so he wasn't going to be present today.
He reached the classroom and entered.
Most students were already seated.
He quietly made his way to his usual seat.
As he sat down, he felt a gaze on him.
Nyx being present early.
She was staring at him, her blue eyes filled in annoyance.
The moment their eyes met, she quickly averted her gaze, acting as if nothing had happened.
What was her problem now?
She must still be mad about yesterday.
Not like I did it deliberately.
He just decided to ignore it.
He leaned back in his chair, waiting for class to start.
The class started soon and even Sorin was surprised with the early arrival of Nyx today.
Another day. Another challenge.
And today… he would face Amyra.
This chapter is a bit of a side adventure since I didn't have time to write a full progression chapter. I might refine or adjust it later, but for now, enjoy Lucien getting bullied by dungeon monsters.