David S.R

Chapter 123

The next morning dawned. Ludger was already up, pack slung over his shoulder, weights strapped to his arms and legs. He stepped into the kitchen where his parents were finishing breakfast.

“I’m heading out,” he said simply. “I’ll stop by Aronia’s to sort the potions first.”

Elaine gave a curt nod, arms folded. Arslan gr...

Chapter 122 (Thank you for your support, Hespiosin!)

Torvares listened to the whole pitch without interrupting, the lines on his face deepening as he weighed each word. Then he let out a long, tired sigh and leaned back in his chair.

“You’re thinking big,” he said, voice low. “And I admire it. But listen to me, boy—” His eyes softened but stayed sharp. “I don’t have the influ...

Chapter 121 (Thank you for your support, Hayden Futch!)

The Torvares estate was ahead just as Ludger remembered it: high stone walls trimmed with ivy, iron gates flanked by armored guards, banners hanging still in the morning air. He’d only been here twice before, and both times Viola had been in the yard, practicing or waiting. This time the yard was empty—no clash of steel, no grunts of effort�...

Chapter 120 (Thank you for your support, Matthew Martz)

Ludger stayed silent, eyes narrowing slightly as his father’s words settled. Lord Torvares. The name sat heavy in his head like a stone dropped into a pond.

He turned away, staring at the mist curling over the yard while his mind began to pull the idea apart.

If he went to Lord Torvares first, he’d have instant legitimac...

Chapter 119

The next few weeks rolled by without a hitch. The initial shock wore off, replaced by a steady stream of visitors dropping by the tavern or the house to congratulate Elaine and Arslan. Neighbors brought bread, little gifts, and soft smiles. Even a few of Arslan’s old acquaintances stopped in, clasping his shoulder with knowing grins.

Ars...

Chapter 118 (Thank you for your support, Timotheus!)

A few months slid by like stones rolling downhill. Morning runs with weights, hours spent healing at the tavern, evenings mapping and grinding in the goblin labyrinth—day after day until the routine felt like a second skin.

Then one crisp morning Ludger blinked and realized he’d turned nine. Nine already. Half a year had passed without...

Chapter 117 (Thank you for your support, Kress!)

Ludger slowed his punches, letting the weights drag his arms back to his sides. His chest rose and fell, sweat dripping off his chin into the dust of the yard. The idea of a signature technique still pulsed at the back of his mind, bright and insistent—but another thought pushed in alongside it.

Money.

He flexed his hands,...

Chapter 116 (Thank you for your support, Jamie Trinder!)

For a long moment no one moved. Dust settled in a slow curtain, revealing Arslan standing in the center of the yard, sword lowered but still humming faintly, and Ludger crouched by the wall fifty meters away. The ring of impact still echoed in everyone’s ears.

Harold was the first to breathe again. “Gods above…”

Cor snapped h...

Chapter 115

Morning sunlight spilled through the kitchen window, catching on the steam from Elaine’s tea as she packed up her apron. She kissed Ludger on the head, ruffled his hair, and headed out the door toward the tavern, the scent of herbs and soap trailing behind her.

When the latch clicked shut, Ludger turned from the table to where Arslan was...

Chapter 114 (Thank you for your support, KDR!)

Ludger left Aronia’s shop with the last of the tea’s warmth still in his chest. The streets were brighter now, filled with the smell of bread and the clatter of carts. By the time he reached his own home, the noise had thinned again, replaced by the steady rhythm of birds in the eaves.

He pushed open the gate and stepped into the yard....

Chapter 113 (Thank you for your support, GenticBull!)

An hour after they’d gone, the house felt hollow.

Ludger sat at the kitchen table with a cooling mug of tea, staring at the faint rings their cups had left in the wood. Sunlight slanted through the window, catching the floating motes of dust. No clatter of boots in the hallway, no quiet rustle of Luna moving about, no sudden questions or...

Chapter 112 (Thank you for your support, f_apollo!)

Arslan leaned back in his chair, rubbing a hand over his eyes. Then he glanced toward the doorway where Luna stood quietly, her pack still slung over one shoulder.

“Luna,” he said, voice steady but softer than usual, “could you please go bring Elaine from the tavern? It should be about time for her to finish up there.”

Luna i...

Chapter 111

Dawn illuminated Meira City’s rooftops, turning the slate tiles gold. The guild hall was quieter than usual Ludger, Viola, and Luna stood by the main doors with their packs strapped tight, travel cloaks pulled over their shoulders.

Gaius was already there, leaning against a support pillar with arms crossed. No bottle in sight this time�...

Chapter 110 (Thank you for your support, Burklund97!)

The storm roared for half a minute, a grinding howl of grit and iron splinters swirling through the stairwell. Then, with a slow exhale, Ludger released his hold. The vortex unraveled like smoke, dust settling to the ground in a heavy, muffled rain. Visibility crept back in.

Shapes peeled themselves out of the walls.

Cloaked figures,...

Chapter 109 (Thank you for your support, Zach!)

Ludger shifted his weight, eyes narrowing as he scanned the tunnel ahead. “What could it be?” he muttered. His grip tightened on his bracer as his mind ran through the possibilities. “If it’s people following us again…”

Luna shook her head slightly, her posture still coiled but her voice even. “I’d say something if it were ...

Chapter 108 (Thank you for your support, Andrew!)

The larger elemental reared back for another crushing blow, jagged arm raised high. Viola’s eyes narrowed, her breath locking into the rhythm she’d drilled for weeks. This was the moment.

She shifted her grip, one hand sliding down the hilt until the sword felt like an extension of her arm. The brown shimmer along the blade deepened to...

Chapter 107

That evening, after another round of thanks from a passing neighbor, Gaius sat on the steps of the guild hall with his bottle, watching the last light slide off the rooftops. He could see Ludger across the street, palms flat on the cobblestones, smoothing a gap between stones with patient, deliberate motions. Viola stood nearby, swinging her bla...

Chapter 106 (Thank you for your support, VariableConfetti!)

The next five days blurred into a grind of dust, sweat and mana. Dawn after dawn the three of them took their places in the courtyard, the rhythm becoming almost ritual. Gaius barked corrections, gave the occasional demonstration, then leaned back against the wall with his arms folded, letting the kids work.

Ludger threw himself at the mag...

Chapter 105 (Thank you for your support, Nualla!)

Viola wiped her palms on her trousers and drew her short sword, still amazed from Gaius’s demonstration. She crouched, took a slow breath, and tried to do exactly what he’d told her: pull the affinity of the ground into her mana, then sink that into the blade.

A faint brown shimmer flickered along the steel for an instant—then sputte...

Chapter 104 (Thank you for your support, Christopher Leland!)

For the rest of the day the courtyard turned into a slow, dusty rhythm of kneeling, breathing, and coaxing the ground. The sun crept overhead, throwing long shadows off the broken small constructions.

Viola worked furiously at first, copying every cue Ludger had given her. She managed small mounds now, sometimes a ripple, but her mana ran ...

Chapter 103

Two hours bled away under the rising sun. The courtyard heated, dew dried, and Gaius’s shadow shrank as he loomed over them like a grumpy statue.

Nothing had changed.

Ludger kept his palms in the soil until his fingers were gritty, his spiritual core thrumming like a caged animal. He could feel the mana running through the...

Chapter 102 (Thank you for your support, Grizzly Goon!)

Inside the dim hall, Gaius set his jug on the counter with a hollow clunk. He didn’t sit. Instead he turned and planted himself squarely in front of Ludger, arms crossed over his chest.

“You’ve been playing around with dust long enough,” he said, voice rough but steady. “Show me what you can actually do. Earth magic. Not...

Chapter 101 (Thank you for your support, Terror Spirit!)

The monster’s fists rose like twin hammers. Ludger exhaled sharply and let the power roll up from his [Spiritual Core]. Blue light surged down his arms as [Overdrive] flared to life, muscles tightening like coiled springs.

At the same time, a second glow flared—[Weapon Enhancing]—but...

Chapter 100 (Thank you for your support, Bob!)

Viola landed in a low crouch beyond it, her blade still humming faintly, breath fast but controlled. She straightened, turning back to Ludger with a fierce grin. “Got it.”

Dust drifted down around her like ash, the only sound the hiss of her blade’s fading glow.

Ludger lowered his hands, the last flicker of his own mana dispers...

Chapter 99

Gaius stood there for a long moment, the dust settling back to the floor around Ludger’s boots. The boy had just demonstrated something rare, something Gaius hadn’t seen in years outside of old bloodlines. And still the old guildmaster didn’t move to teach.

He grunted, reaching down to pick up his bottle again. “Don’t think this ...

Chapter 98 (Thank you for your support, Felipe Diaz!)

They walked back through the twisting corridor, boots crunching over scattered shards of dull iron. The sounds of the battered adventurers faded behind them. Viola jogged a step to catch up with Ludger, her brows furrowed.

“Okay,” she hissed under her breath once they were out of earshot. “What was that back there? Calling u...

Chapter 97 (Thank you for your support, The Masked Ferret!)

The corridor widened suddenly into a broad chamber scarred with battle. The torchlight here flickered over a scene that looked more like a slaughter yard than a fight.

Bodies of shattered iron elementals lay strewn across the floor—dull plates, broken limbs, cores still faintly glowing among the rubble. The stench of scorched metal and b...

Chapter 96 (Thank you for your support, kusakami!)

A few hours later the three of them emerged from the labyrinth’s dark mouth back into daylight. The sun was still high in the sky, its heat washing over them like a second world after the damp chill below.

Viola squinted against the brightness, wiping a streak of grime from her cheek. “That’s it? We’re done already?” she muttered...

Chapter 95

Luna’s warning still hung in the air when a faint sound drifted down one of the side corridors—a slow, metallic scrape… scrape… like chains being dragged over stone. Another came from the opposite passage, softer but unmistakable.

Viola’s grin faltered. She shifted her grip on her sword. “More?”

Ludger straight...

Chapter 94 (Thank you for your support, Michael W Hall!)

Morning light spilled through the cracked windows of the guildhall, painting the dusty floor in stripes of gold. The three of them moved through the hall in a practiced rhythm—packing bread and dried meat into pouches, checking straps and boots, refilling waterskins.

Viola hummed a jaunty tune under her breath as she tightened the sheath...