The six royal knights exited the dungeon in a celebratory mood after Lazuli passed her test.
"I say we should celebrate! Drinks are on me!" Aron exclaimed, turning around somewhat unsteadily to face his squad mates.
Nataly sighed. "Now? You haven't even fully recovered, you need to rest."
"What? Nonsense! I'm fit as a fiddl—OW!" Aron yelped as Rex lightly tapped him on the shoulder. "Why'd ya do that?!"
Even the lightest touch felt excruciating to Aron. His nerves, though not damaged, were hypersensitive, sending intense signals to his brain. The clothes he wore made him feel itchy and uncomfortable. He had been doing his best to hide it, but it was clear to Rex and the rest of the squad that something was wrong.
"Yeah, sure, fit as a fiddle…" Rex chuckled.
The squad laughed, even the usually stoic Lapis smirked at Aron's antics.
"It's okay, Aron. We can celebrate tomorrow. Just rest for today," Lazuli said, concerned about the side effects of her spell. Even after Nataly healed him, his body remained exhausted and worn down. It wasn't something a healing spell could fix, only time could.
Lazuli's concerned expression finally convinced Aron, who begrudgingly agreed. He wanted to ride the wave of happiness as long as possible, but his condition would only cause his teammates to worry, and he didn't want to distress them.
The squad left the dungeon's plaza and made their way to the palace, which towered in the distance.
When they arrived at the squad quarters, someone was already waiting for them, Sol. He smiled as they entered and extended his hand to Lazuli.
"Congratulations, Lazuli. Welcome to the team."
She smiled back and shook his hand. "Thank you, Sol, or should I now say Captain? But how did you already know I passed?"
"Either is fine, but stick to 'Captain' in official settings. As for knowing, Duncan had already sent word of your achievements before you even challenged the boss. I knew you were going to pass."
Duncan nodded, confirming Sol's words.
With a communication crystal, Duncan had sent short reports to Sol, detailing their progress. He praised Lazuli for first modifying a spell to fight the undead, and then going a step further by creating a completely new spell, in under a week.
Lazuli smiled at the praise but shook her head. "I honestly couldn't have done it alone. It was only because Nataly and Aron were here that I succeeded."
If she had been alone, she doubted she could have defeated more than one or two undead at a time. Not to mention, the [Berserker Tonic] was something she couldn't use on herself. Her body wouldn't survive it like Aron's did, it would result in a quick but painful death.
Sol nodded and turned to the rest of the squad. "She's right. Good job, everyone—not just Nataly and Aron, but you three as well, for watching over them."
Though Lapis, Duncan, and Rex didn't do much, their role was still important. No one could predict what might happen in a dungeon. Even though Sol knew the dungeon's rules and hazards, he would have sent the three of them to protect the group regardless.
"By the way, did all three of you unlock your third talents?" Sol asked. Now that they had gained a few levels, it was possible some of them had unlocked their third talents, which typically emerged between levels 50 and 60.
"We did!" Nataly said excitedly. "Mine is a rare talent that enhances my summons, Lazuli's is also a rare one that helps her control mana better, and Aron's is unique! It drastically enhances his body!"
"A unique talent? What is it?" Sol hadn't expected Aron to be so lucky. Gaining a unique talent was a one in ten thousand chance, and even though all the knights recruited were experts with good talents, less than fifty of them had unique talents with none having a legendary one.
Aron grinned at the mention of his talent and eagerly explained.
"It's called [True Monk Physique]. It didn't give me a talent skill, but I got something even better! I got [All Up]! It increases all my stats evenly, and it took my current two attribute skills into it immediately, leveling up to level 5!"
'[All Up]? That sounds like the predecessor of [Perfect Balance]…' Sol thought. It seemed too similar to be a coincidence, likely its pre-evolution form.
"That's great to hear! Congrats!" Sol said, moving his hand to pat Aron's shoulder.
"Wai—Argh!" Aron tried to warn him, but it was too late by then. The light contact from the pat sent him to his knees in pain.
"Hey! Are you okay?!" Sol panicked, thinking Aron was seriously injured. He reached out to help him up but stopped, remembering it was his touch that had caused the pain.
Lazuli apologized and explained, "Sorry, that's because of me. He's feeling the side effects of the spell I used on him. I still need to figure out how to mitigate the aftereffects..."
"I see… Sorry about that. Get some rest. That goes for all of you, we're setting out tomorrow, so make sure to get proper rest." He paused and added, "Except for you, Lazuli. I want to have a quick chat with you."
Lazuli nodded as the rest of the group said their farewells for the night. They each went to their rooms, or outside to either train or check the merit shop for any good items in stock.
Lazuli and Sol moved to the lounge, as Sol didn't have a private office, he took care of most of the paperwork at the desk in his room, which didn't seem like the appropriate place for their discussion.
He sat on the couch and motioned for Lazuli to take a seat. Once she did, he said, "I've heard the gist from Duncan, but I'd like to hear it from you. Can you explain your reasoning behind how you went about completing the test?"