Arthur ran into Gray on his way to the main hall of the dorm. She looked beautiful in a green sleeveless top and pants. Her hair was untied and it flowed over her shoulders.
"Hey Gray, you look good.", he said. Gray smiled kindly, "You too.", she said looking at him. Arthur was wearing a black t-shirt and his usual black jacket and brown pants.
Gray pointed at his sword sheathed to his belt, "Are you bringing your sword too?", she asked.
Arthur patted his sword affectionately, "I feel much better knowing that Ghost is on my side."
"Your sword has a scary and interesting name.", Gray noted. "What is the name of your polearm?", Arthur asked.
"Frostbite.", Gray replied.
"That is equally scary. So a polearm with the ice attribute. I wonder why you have it in your storage ring?", Arthur pointed at her ring.
"Oh!", Gray put a hand on over her ring, "How did you find out?", she asked nervously.
"Well, the only reason why you're bringing the storage ring with you on this trip is to store your polearm because strolling in a city with a polearm strapped on your back in broad daylight will catch some attention unless you're an adventurer.", Arthur explained.
"I've heard that the Arias carry their weapons everywhere. Looks like it's true.", he smiled.
Gray blushed. She looked cute when embarrassed and Arthur felt his heart flutter.
"You should also put Ghost inside your storage ring.", Gray said pointing at his sword. "I will before entering Elvenglade city.", Arthur assured.
They went downstairs and saw Robin sitting nervously on a couch. He was dressed in a white shirt and black pants. Arthur saw the glint of two daggers on Robin's hand.
"Why do you need to be armed to meet your dad?", he asked.
"I always lose my stuff. So dad told me that I will be in trouble if he doesn't see the dagger he gifted me the next time I come home.", Robin replied.
"You're really different from your sister, aren't you?", Gray asked.
Robin rolled his eyes, "Don't tell me about it. We're basically opposites. She takes good care of her stuff and gets excited really quickly. Dad says she's more responsible and makes her in charge of many stuff we do."
"Well, she is more responsible than you.", Arthur piped in. "Shut up Night.", Robin said in an annoyed voice.
"Anyway. I'm looking forward to visiting Elvenglade.", Gray said with excitement. "You've never been to Elveria?", Arthur asked.
Gray nodded, "I've been to the other nations with my sister but never to Elveria because I used to be scared of the giants there.", she sounded embarrassed.
"Giants?", Arthur was confused. "She means the Vahari.", Robin said.
"Oh", Arthur read about the ancient race of giants. They were one of the original inhabitants of Arken before the founder, Arkenstein Lock discovered it.
There were a few conflicts initially, but slowly everyone learned to co-exist with the Vahari. Nowadays, only a few remain, and most are found in Elveria where natural magia is very high.
The Vahari mostly mind their own business and some are even friendly despite their scary appearances and height, the tallest one recorded at a staggering 300 meters.
"I've never met one. But my sister says they're amazing.", Arthur said.
"Mine too.", Gray said.
"Your sister?", Robin asked. Gray nodded, "Yeah, her name is Jade Aria."
"Jade Aria? You mean the Sword Princess?", Robin exclaimed in disbelief. Gray nodded.
"She's the second youngest Family head and the first one to be both a Squad captain and Family head. My sister looks up to her.", Arthur recalled Alice talking about Jade Aria for hours.
He smiled at Gray, "Looks like we both have amazing sisters."
Gray blushed and nodded.
"Looks like you guys are ready.", Seventeen said as he came down the stairs with Ruth coming behind him. He was dressed in a black shirt and grey pants and his usual black gloves.
Ruth wore a summer dress with snowflake designs and her blue coat. She raised an eyebrow when she saw Ghost and Robin's daggers.
"Guys, we are visiting Elvenglade, not attacking it.", she said. Seventeen chuckled, "Perhaps we can do some exploring on the way back.", he suggested.
"You sure about it?", Ruth frowned at him. "It will be an amazing experience. Where is your sense of adventure?", Seventeen asked her.
Ruth sighed, "Alright. But after we meet lord Sylran."
"Sure. The others stayed late in the night since today is a day off so I don't think they will be waking up now. So let's go grab breakfast.", Seventeen said.
Arthur, Gray, and Robin nodded. They followed the instructors out of the dorm. Despite being the weekend, many students were milling about the central plaza.
Arthur heard the clangs and rumble from the workshop which was starting to feel familiar. The captivating aroma of freshly baked bread and other delicacies wafted from the shopping plaza of Cardinal Town.
"How will we reach Elvenglade?", Arthur asked as they ate breakfast in a cafe. Curiously though, Seventeen only ordered a cup of coffee which sat on the table, untouched.
"We will be using one of the warp gates in Crystalis city. Once we reach the gates of Elvenglade, a carriage from the Sylran family will be waiting for us.", Seventeen answered.
He continued, "How about you and Gray explore the city while Robin guides us to his home? Gray did say that she had never been to Elveria."
Arthur and Gray nodded. They finished eating and walked to the city. They passed the main academy building and the Cardinal Knight headquarters.
Seventeen nodded to the guards as they passed the academy gates. Arthur realized that it had been about a month since he had seen the world outside the academy.
So he was surprised to find himself in a forest between the academy gate and the city gate.
"What the heck?", he asked, puzzled.
"Oh this is your first time seeing this.", Seventeen said, "This forest is one of the many defenses of the academy."
"If anyone not affiliated to the academy enters the forest, they will get hopelessly lost and wander the forest until they either die or are apprehended by the Cardinal Knights.", he explained.
"So it is called the Lost Woods. It contains different beasts ranging from CAT 5 to high-level CAT 2. It is also the home of many spirits.", Ruth added.
"The academy doesn't want new students to get lost in the woods so an illusion enchantment was placed over this part of the woods leading to the gate. Did you wonder why you didn't deviate from the path to the gates on the first day?", Seventeen asked.
"Ah. So only students and people connected to the academy can traverse the Lost Woods?", Arthur asked. Seventeen nodded.
"And before we proceed.", Seventeen narrowed his eyes and released a strong pulse of magia. It was so strong that the trees shook and everyone stumbled.
"What was that for?", Ruth asked irritably.
Suddenly they heard a crash a few feet from them. They went to the spot and got a huge surprise.
Lying and groaning among fallen leaves and branches was a girl about Arthur's age. She had pale skin, medium-length ginger hair, and a petite frame.
She wore a black sleeveless top, black shorts, and black boots. Two jagged daggers were strapped to her belt and she wore a red scarf around her neck.
She also had an earring with a green stone embedded in it and two rings on her left hand.
A tattoo on her right arm showed a dragon and a black Pheonix on either side of two crossed swords. The insignia of the Night family.
Artur recognized the girl, "Vesta?"
The girl's eyes snapped open, they were like amber. She shot on her feet, dusted off the leaves, and bowed, "Greetings, Arthur."
"You know this girl?", Seventeen asked Arthur.
He nodded, "Yes sir. She is Vesta Freydis, my Shadow."
"Oh.", both Gray and Robin said in unison but Seventeen was confused, "Your shadow?"
"I've heard of them.", Ruth said, "The Shadows are the hidden bodyguards of an Arken Family. They watch over their charges in hiding and only intervene when their charge is in really grave danger. They are also great spies."
"So they exist to prevent Family members from getting killed?", Seventeen asked.
Ruth nodded, "The Shadows are assigned to the Family head, non-combatant and younger members of the Family. They are so well hidden that even the ones they are protecting don't even know they're around.
"Does that mean the other two presences watching us are Shadows too?", Seventeen asked.
Everyone was shocked, "You can sense us?", Vesta asked in disbelief. Seventeen nodded.
"Unbelievable.", Ruth said, "Shadows use enchanted items to remain hidden and to make them practically undetectable. Yet, you were able to sense them. Even squad captains can only sense them very faintly."
"Thank you for the compliments. I didn't know you were so nice", Seventeen smiled. "Shut up.", Ruth snapped, her face a bit red.
He looked at Vesta, "Are Shadows this young?"
Gray shook his head, "No sir. My Shadow is in her mid-twenties."
"Mine too.", Robin said and looked at Vesta, "I've heard of you. The youngest recruit in the Shadow Sect."
"Shadow Sect?", Seventeen asked. Robin nodded, "A secret organization which trains Shadows, much like Cardinal Academy."
"But the training is very harsh. Out of a hundred recruits, only one will become a Shadow. And Vesta is one of the best the Sect ever trained."
"A one in a million prodigy, gifted with two attributes and magia vision. She completed her training at the age of ten and pledged loyalty to the Night Family. Over the years she became famous among the Shadows."
Robin continued, "One of her attributes is fire which she elegantly wields in battle, earning her the name the Firedancer. But her second attribute is much more powerful and unique."
"Seems like you know a lot about me. Well, the Sylrans are known for their intelligence gathering.", Vesta interrupted him with a dry smile.
"We don't know much about the Shadows. The things I said came from my Shadow who holds you in high regard.", Robin said. He then frowned, "How do you know I'm a Sylran?"
"I watched over Arthur for the past two weeks and know everyone he interacted with. Especially you, instructor Seventeen.", she looked at Seventeen.
"It is a pleasure to meet you.", she nodded, "You too, instructor Ruth.", she looked at Ruth and nodded.
"You're a polite one.", Ruth said.
"That is just her professional attitude, her casual attitude is completely different.", Arthur said drily.
Vesta frowned, "Arthur, is it wise to speak about me so casually? You of all people should know that we Shadows like to keep ourselves a secret."
"It is alright Vesta. I trust them. And you know that my choices are mostly correct.", Arthur assured her.
Vesta's face softened, "Well that is true. Almost all the choices you make end up being the correct ones. It is almost as if you could see the future."
"Hehe.", Arthur chuckled.
"Very well. You can speak about how we met.", Vesta said.
"Ooooh. That intrigued me.", Robin raised looked at him slyly. Arthur rolled his eyes.
Seventeen chuckled, "Well, how about you tell us as we walk to the city gates. Miss Freydis, will you walk with us?"
Vesta nodded, "I will accompany you to the city gate. After that, I have to stick to the shadows. And please call me Vesta."
"Okay. So let's go.", Seventeen started walking. The others followed him.
Arthur started as they walked, "So I met Vesta when I was five years old."