After returning to town the group decided to log off and reunite the next day due to how late it had become, though that night none of them slept well, either because of the lingering feelings of adrenaline or fear caused by their earlier adventure.
The next morning the 7 logged back in, the lack of sleep nowhere to be seen in their faces due to the huge smile they held. The raid had helped them reach and surpassed level 10, the minimal requirement to travel to the first City/Capital of the Moon Kingdom, which meant a whole new world of hunting grounds, dungeons, quests, and other things for them.
Unfortunately, the System had stopped all the members of the group with exception of Mack from upping beyond level 10 since they all had Standard Classes. To break through they were needed to complete their Class-specific Test given by the instructors at the Adventurer's Guild, and that would take a lot of time.
With such a hindrance in front of them, the team decided to split up so that they could complete their Tests at the same time. Since Mack was exempt from such boring work he was chosen to take the items they recovered from the Goblins for inspection, the others giving part of their money to help pay for the service.
They chatted a little more but eventually went their separate ways and Mack soon found himself in front of the, thankfully less crowded and easier to enter, smithy.
It took him 10 minutes of waiting in line, though, but once he met the owner things went smoothly. Ur, the Blacksmith that both Roark and Lina had appointed as the best in Town, was a mountain of a man with tanned skin and muscles that could easily crush a boulder, but his white beard and serene eyes gave him an air of wisdom that made Mack think he was in front of a Master Martial Artists, or something of the kind.
The old blacksmith, or so Mack assumed, received the items and gave the boy a questioning look, to which he immediately explained that they had attacked a goblin's nest, omitting the part related to the Shaman. The man only nodded his head and informed that it could take a while, so Mack decided to stay outside which, in retrospect, sounded like a very good idea.
The wait was killing him, both because of boredom and because he didn't know what to do anymore. He had just gone through his Inventory, Status, and Items for the twentieth, or maybe it was the thirtieth time when he heard something coming from a nearby alley.
At first, it sounded like some dogs or cats were fighting, but as the groans became louder the sound of someone punching something became more clear.
Mack didn't even think, before he realized he had already moved from the front of the shop to the entrance of the alley, his eyes fixing on the scene before him. A group of three or four tugs was beating up who he guessed to be a beggar, the reason being unknown to him because, but the 'why' didn't matter at the moment.
"Hey!" he took a step forward, catching the group by surprise.
"Huh? This' none of your business brat!" their leader, a gruffy looking man, shouted, not fully acknowledging Mack but still moving away from the beggar who slumped against one of the walls.
"Get out of here and leave him be. That will be your only warning." He answered back, fingers flickering as the red card appeared between them.
The tugs looked at each other before laughing, mocking, and taunting him without even noticing the card.
'Big mistake there,' Mack thought as he opened his mouth again, his eyes cold like stone.
"I warned you"
The card shot and hit right between the tugs and the beggar making the pillar of flames burst to life, but something was different. The storm of fire that once had a diameter of 9 meters had nearly doubled in size, its rotation becoming faster and more aggressive.
"What the heck is this?!"
"I don't know! ARGHH, Run!"
The screams from the tugs echoed through the alley, some of them being caught in the strengthened spell, but Mack was a little too surprised to think about that. The moment the spell had activated a series of notifications had sounded on his ears and he had lost all focus in the outside world.
< Congratulations! Due to continuous use of the [Fire Storm] Spell, its Level has increased! >
< The range, damage, and period of effect have been enhanced! >
Fire Storm [Growth/Level 2]
Grade: Rare
Cost: 70 Mana
• Creates a storm of fire in a 4×4 area, dealing a fixed amount of 20 points of Fire Damage every second for 15 seconds.
He was awoken from his daze when by the beggar who slapped the back of his head.
"Control your Spell boy!"
Mack immediately caught sight of the fire ravaging its surroundings and panicked slightly. He snapped his fingers and the fire reversed, compressing itself until the form of the card appeared and returned to his hand.
"Didn't your Master ever teach you that using a Spell in such places is dangerous!" the man yelled once the remaining fire dispersed itself. "Heavens above, this new generation is truly incompetent."
"Excuse me?"
"What is your Master even teaching you? How to burn a city by accident!?" he yelled again, arms shaking angrily around him for emphasis.
Mack became speechless at the sight, and he finally took a good look at the man in front of him. He seemed to be in his late forties, streaks of gray hair mixed with his original brown ones, his clothes were ragged from the earlier beating but the weird aura around them made him realize that they were Magic Items.
Immediately one thought passed through his mind, 'did I just trigger some Class related event or something?'
"Hey, are you listening?" the man asked snapping his fingers.
"Ah, y-yes sir!"
"Good. Now what is your name and which school are you related to?" he asked with an appraising eye sending shivers down Mack's spine, something in them put him on edge.
"Hum, I am called Mesphist, sir, and I don't have ties with any school."
"Then that explains a few things," he said resting his chin on his hand before something clicked in his mind making him look at Mack with curiosity.
"Is your name related to the Demon Lord Mephisto by any chance?"
Mack knew that question was coming ever since he learned of the story behind Archeon. "Yes sir, it's a mix between Mephisto, Mischief, and Misfit."
The man became silent for a moment and then proceeded with his questions. "You are a Card Mage, correct? Didn't you have a less 'flashy' Spell to use?"
The boy smiled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck as he answered, "no, sir, I only have that Spell and a summon."
"Only th-! And you call yourself a Mage?!" He looked at Mack with incredulity. "Listen here boy, this is advice coming from a senior so memorize it well. Get yourself more cards, and not only expendable ones. They might be good and help give flexibility to your style and all, but they deplete very quickly and aren't worthy of the trouble. There are ways to turn expendable cards into permanent ones and even ways to increase your deck, but I will let you discover how on your own, after all, that's part of the fun."
He moved his hand inside his coat and pulled out a black card with white runes adorning the edges. He extended his hand, giving it to Mack.
"Here, since you are lacking so much and also as a symbol of gratitude for helping me. This should help you in the future, but you need to find your own cards, got it?"
"Yes, thank you!" the boy bowed in a sign of respect, earning a chuckle from the other mage.
"At least you have some manners. Now, if you will excuse me, I have some other matters to attend to so I will have to go. Goodbye Mesphist, and, if I can be frank, I have the feeling that we will meet again."
With that, the man gave a short nod and turned on his heel before snapping his fingers. His entire body became shrouded in a black mist as he walked away until eventually the mist cleared and he vanished.
Mack stood there, his eyes blinking before he turned his attention to the card resting in his hands. He started to inspect it only to widen his eyes and open his mouth ready to scream.
*****
The sound of clash echoed through the forest, the moonlight shining through its thick foliage offering as much light as it could, but not enough to alert the small group of players from the predator that was stalking them.
Two mages shot fireballs around, lighting the grass and branches in flames, but even those only illuminated part of the dark area.
A loud howl pierced the night followed by heavy steps, a pair of piercing green eyes soon emerged from the shadows before a large figure pounced on a disoriented archer.
[Crescent Slash]!
A silver crescent appeared on the creature's side making it fall out of course and crash against the forest floor.
An angry snarl escaped the beast's muzzle as a man clad in a metal chest piece and bracers positioned himself between the archer and the monster, sword and shield ready to attack or defend when necessary.
"Thanks for the save Heaven!"
"You should be more careful Snipe! We had a lot of luck finding this guy, so if want to go down then at least land a hit on him!"
The archer chuckled, he wasn't intending on going down without at least taking one of the beast's eyes out. "Sure thing Boss!"
"You lot," the man gazed at the rest of the group, "attack his flanks! Mages, aim for the face, don't let him see us! Hunters, prepare the traps!"
The creature stood up, lips curled in a snarl showing its yellowed fangs.
"It's gonna howl! Tanks! With me!"
Three people flocked closer to the man, all holding their shields in front of them as the rest moved behind. A guttural howl came from the creature creating a shock wave that nearly pushed the 4 tankers back.
A soft glow surrounded the earlier man's shield which then spread to the others, seemingly easing the brunt of the impact on them.
"The Night Wolf isn't a joke," he said with a laugh, a smile appearing on his face. "He will be the perfect stepping stone for our Eden's Dawn Guild!"
++++++++
Name: Mesphist
Level: 11
Class: Card Mage
HP: 360 (330+30)
MP: 640 (270+300+50+20)
Attack: 22 – 24
Defense: 28
World Reputation: 320
Titles: 1
Spell Cards: 1
Summon Cards: 2
Special Blank Card: 1
Normal Blank Cards: 37