Alaric kept his face neutral, not wanting to say or do something he might regret. What was with this man? One moment he was uninterested in him and the next, he was all up in his business.

  “Oh?! Is this friendly advice or is it somehow against the rules for me to go after Gold-ranked quests?” Alaric replied.

  While he wasn’t able to go after Gold-ranked quests himself, tagging along was still in the realm of possibility. Besides, the ranks were not a perfect representation of one’s power, only a measure of credibility.

  Something like: A strong person can be ranked low but a weak person can’t be ranked high.

  Guild Master Schiller furrowed his eyebrows, dropping his look of concern, “It’s a friendly warning. I talked to Sariah about you.

  From what she’s told me, you’re some kind of prodigy. Makes me wonder if I should have been your examiner. She also said you’ll not listen to anything that doesn’t help you get stronger… so I’ll say it one more time. Stay away from the Gold Ranked quests.”

  Alaric watched him walk away before he too, turned to leave. On his way out, he found Scarlett standing at the exit of the Guild Hall, “You’re going after the Storm Orbs, aren’t you?”

  Alaric responded with a nod, “…and I’d like you to join me.”

  “You don’t want that,” the girl replied.

  There it was again. That predatory gaze of a creature that had seen death one too many times. Alaric knew that face… not because it sent shivers down his spine or that it forced him to count how many times he’d used the toilet that day just to make sure he didn’t soil himself, but simply because he’d stared death in the eye before.

  Had Alia not advised him to give her a second chance, however, he wouldn’t have had this conversation with her. He knew she was dangerous, but his gut remained silent on whether it was wrong for him to dismiss her entirely, almost as if she were a wild card on his board.

  So he’d made up his mind to try again, “What are your terms?”

  “I want half of what you’ll get out of this,” she said.

  “Of all the things you could have asked me for, you went for money?” Alaric wondered.

  “Yes… Is there something wrong with that?” she turned a light shade of pink as she asked this.

  It was then that Alaric burst out laughing. ‘This girl is something. I can’t get a read on her no matter what I try.’

  “Is something funny?” her icy tone hit his ears.

  This time though, it had no effect on him. He laughed just a bit more, “No… You’ve got yourself a deal. Have you seen Lucy or Sariah?”

  “The gold-ranked Sariah, secretly the former member of the Hurricane Oaks? Nope! I haven’t seen her. Who’s Lucy?” she asked.

  “Normally I’d ask how you know so much about Sariah but I think not knowing Lucy is a lot weirder,” Alaric responded casually.

  “That name doesn’t ring a bell,” the girl responded again.

  [ Alaric, she’s not joking. ] Alia whispered into his mind.

  The boy blinked, “The girl with Holy Magic from yesterday. Remember her, the one whose guardian was this large floating ghost.”

  Scarlett furrowed her brows in concern, “Who are you talking about? Are you sure you’re okay? There were only four people who took the test yesterday. You, me, that old geezer, William—still can’t believe the Guild Master is personally training him now— and the bratty kid, Jace.

  Alaric felt his blood go cold. This didn’t make any sense.

  He went running back into the Guild Hall and straight to the receptionist. Scarlett followed without skipping a heartbeat.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  At the reception, the familiar red-haired receptionist was filing away a few documents when she noticed Alaric’s shaken state, “Something wrong, Alistair?”

  “Yesterday, there was a girl we took the test with?”

  “Scarlett’s right behind you. You know it’s rude to act like you can’t see a girl especially one as pretty as…”

  “No, not Scarlett. Lucy,” he cut her off.

  The woman went still at the girl’s name. She looked like she’d seen a ghost, “If you know that name, then why are you asking around like she’s missing?”

  Alaric breathed out in relief, “Oh, you scared me. Scarlett said she didn’t know who Lucy was so I thought I was losing my mind. Turns out it’s Scarlett losing her mind.”

  “I have met few with a memory as good as mine, Alaric. There was no girl by the name…” the woman went still, “Concealment.”

  Helga’s face was turning paler by the second. She stood up and looked around before pulling the two of them closer, “Neither of you is supposed to know about that girl. She revealed herself to the instructors and we assumed they were the only ones that could see her… until Alaric was seen interacting with her.

  Surprisingly, she asked us to let you be. If you’re looking for her, check Melbourne’s Sisters of Fragrance. It’s a flower shop up on the main street. Big building. You can’t miss it. A piece of advice! Don’t go asking about more than you should know. Stick your nose where it does not belong and you might just end up dead… or worse, you’ll vanish like you were never there.”

  Alaric swallowed before nodding, “Thank you.”

  And like that, he was off to find Lucy with Scarlett tagging along. Before Alaric could think up a way to ask her why she was tagging along, she came up with an excuse saying she wanted to see the girl with the power to conceal herself better than an assassin.

  ……………………………

  The Sisters of Fragrance… the name echoed through Alaric’s mind up until the moment they reached the building. Towering at least two storeys was a large building made of stone. It was one of the largest buildings in Melbourne and already larger than any building Alaric had ever seen in a town back in the Five Hills.

  The doors were made of rich wood and panels of shimmering glass that allowed them to peer inside the building.

  At the entrance, they were slammed by the enchanting fragrance of nature. Only this fragrance was so sweet it didn’t smell real. More times than he would have liked, Alaric found himself taking in deep breaths to fully inhale the scent of the marvelous establishment.

  The interior was covered in a smooth layer of grass that had been compressed and kept down so flat. When Alaric stepped on the grass, his foot barely sank. If anything, it felt as though the ground was made of solid stone as well.

  He soon realised that this grass was not the same kind he was used to—perhaps a variant that thrived in rocky environments.

  His awe didn’t stop there. He quickly found that every detail of this fine establishment had been placed there and designed intentionally. From the floral-coloured pillars to the walls on which murals of forest had been drawn with staggering detail that was enough to make someone think the forest was real.

  After only two steps, a woman stepped in front of them, barring their way. Her features were flawless, and her cute floral dress had no crease in sight.

  Her skin was like that of a porcelain doll and every second Alaric stared at her, he felt as though she could break from the tiniest movement. What stopped him from believing any of this though was the concealed aura she was hiding.

  Without even needing to check her Temper Rank, Alaric was already aware of how strong she was. The wind didn’t blow unnecessarily… as though the world itself was afraid of her.

  She curtsied gracefully and greeted them, “Welcome to the Sisters of Fragrance. Would you like Flowers or Ingredients?”

  “Ingredients?” Alaric asked.

  “For alchemists,” she responded.

  It was only then that it struck Alaric why this place made so much money to uphold such an appearance. On this floor, rows and rows of potted plants on shelves ran from the entrance all the way to the back, showering the room in colour… but they were ordinary plants.

  Alaric could easily guess that the floors above were a lot less flowery and more mystical.

  “Neither actually. We’re here to see Lucy,” Alaric responded.

  The woman’s eyes went wide for a split second before completely returning to normal, her plastic smile even less real now, “There is no one here by that name.”

  Alaric raised his eyebrows, “But the guild told me I would find her… here.”

  The woman looked him up and down, making him feel as though he had a piece of lettuce stuck in his teeth, before she asked, “Would you happen to be called Alistair, by any chance?”

  “Yes, that’s me…”

  At this, she sighed and her shoulders dropped, “Leave all your weapons at the door. Especially your friend.”

  Alaric turned to Scarlett as he pulled his sword out of his Storage Bracelet and placed it in a ceramic bowl shown to them by the ‘nice’ woman, “See, there is a Lucy here.”

  Scarlett gave him a tight-lipped smile as she reached down for the weapons kept neatly in sheathes at her thighs, unbuckling them and putting them in a ceramic container at the side of the entrance.

  “All your weapons, please,” the pretty woman in a dress responded in a floral tone.

  Alaric’s expression paled just a bit… but continued to pale further and further with each blade Scarlett managed to retrieve from a seemingly innocent part of her body.

  Kunais at her ankles, knives in the soles of her stylish boots, a sharp pin in her hair, a blade resting under her shirt at her back and many others, some of which had been embedded into her skin.

  When she was finally done, she looked like an ordinary girl again. Looking at her again now, Alaric could guess she was at least three years older than him. Having grown during his Tempering Ritual though, this difference wasn’t that visible.

  Since she didn’t even know his age, there was a possibility she thought he was the same age as she was.