Time: 4 a.m.
He slowly opened his eyes. The room was shrouded in darkness, with only the faintest outline of the furniture visible. Outside, the world was equally still, as if time itself had frozen in the early morning cold.
Théodore lay there for a moment, staring up at the ceiling, his mind drifting. "I need to get stronger… especially after losing my magical powers," he thought, the memory of that loss still fresh in his mind.
Determined, he pushed the blankets aside and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. The wooden floor felt cold against his feet, but he ignored it. He dropped down onto the floor, planting his hands firmly, and began doing push-ups.
"One..." he muttered under his breath, the muscles in his arms waking up. "Fifty..." His breath grew heavier. "One hundred..." Sweat began to form on his brow. "One hundred and fifty..." He sighed, feeling the burn intensify in his arms and chest. "Two hundred..." He exhaled sharply, finally allowing himself a moment of rest.
He collapsed onto his back, lying flat on the floor as he caught his breath. Reaching for the water bottle beside him, he took several large gulps, savoring the coolness as it refreshed him.
"Next up… sit-ups," he said to himself, his voice barely a whisper in the stillness of the room. He positioned himself and began.
"Thirty..." His stomach muscles tensed with each repetition. "Sixty..." He pushed through the growing strain. "Ninety..." His breath came in short bursts. "One hundred..." He felt his body protesting, but he wasn't done yet. "Two hundred..." Finally, he lay back down, panting but satisfied. "The family's training wasn't for nothing," he mused, a brief smirk crossing his face.
After finishing his water, Theodore got up, stretching his sore muscles as he made his way to the door. His footsteps were light as he descended the stairs. The first floor was completely deserted, just as he'd expected.
"Good, no one's around," he muttered under his breath, a slight grin forming. The emptiness suited him.
Once outside, he was greeted by the biting cold of the early morning air. Snowflakes drifted lazily from the sky, landing softly on the cobblestone streets. Theodore took a deep breath, savoring the crispness of the air as it hit his lungs. Without wasting another moment, he began to run, his feet crunching in the freshly fallen snow.
His legs moved swiftly, carrying him in wide circles around the mercenary building. The streets were mostly empty, the town still asleep at this hour. The cold wind bit at his face, but it didn't bother him. He'd been through worse during his years of training under the Novalia family.
By the time he finished his run, it was half-past five, and the sun was beginning to hint at its arrival on the horizon. His breath formed little clouds in the air as he slowed his pace, returning to the mercenary building. It was six o'clock by the time the doors opened. Theodore entered quietly and headed straight for the task board.
The receptionist behind the counter greeted him with a smile. "Good morning, sir! You're in luck, we've just received new quests today."
"Great," Theodore replied simply, standing back as she began posting the new tasks. He scanned the board quickly, his eyes narrowing as they landed on one quest in particular—a bounty offering 60 gold pieces.
"What's this one about?" he asked, pointing at the listing.
The receptionist glanced at where he was pointing. "Ah, that one requires a team to complete. It's quite dangerous."
"A team?" Theodore frowned. "I can handle it alone."
"I'm sorry, sir, but those are the rules," she replied with a small shrug. "I don't make them."
He sighed in frustration, his gaze lingering on the bounty. "Why is this the only quest offering such a high reward?"
"It's a sign of how serious and difficult the task is," she explained. "Only experienced groups are recommended for it."
"Ah, I see," he muttered. "I'll wait until I find a team then." He wasn't thrilled about the idea, but he couldn't pass up a reward that large.
As the morning wore on, more mercenaries began to filter into the building. It was around seven when the first group descended from the upper floors, heading towards the quest board. Theodore had already finished his breakfast in the mercenary restaurant by then, keeping an eye on the new arrivals.
Spotting a group of four gathered in front of the quest board, he approached them with determination.
"Hi, I'm Theodore," he introduced himself, standing tall despite his youth.
The group turned to look at him, sizing him up. One of them, a woman who appeared to be in her thirties, crossed her arms and smirked. "What do you want, kid?"
Theodore pointed to the 60 gold quest. "I was wondering if I could join your group to take on this quest."
The woman's smirk softened into a look of pity. "You want to join us for that quest?" She chuckled lightly, as if she thought he was being naïve. "Alright, kid, you can come along."
As they talked, Theodore's eyes fell on a girl in the group, around his age. She looked at him with a strange mix of shyness and resentment, her arms folded tightly over her chest. Her posture was closed off, and she didn't say a word.
The woman noticed the tension. "Alright, let me introduce you to everyone," she said, breaking the silence. "This is Max."
Max, a tall man with a calm expression, extended his hand. "Hey there, Theodore. I'm the healer and magician of the group."
Theodore shook his hand firmly. "Nice to meet you, Max."
"And this here is Mia. She's our sword fighter," the woman continued, gesturing towards the girl Theodore had noticed earlier.
Mia didn't bother with pleasantries. She simply glanced away, arms still crossed, clearly uninterested in conversation.
"Mia, be polite," the woman scolded gently. "Say hello to the new guy."
Before Mia could respond, the woman laughed. "Sorry about her attitude. She's really just a bit… difficult. But don't mind her."
"I'm not difficult!" Mia shot back defensively, glaring at the woman.
"It's fine," Theodore said with a shrug. "It doesn't bother me."
The woman chuckled again and moved on. "And this is Oliver, our leader."
Oliver, a sturdy man with a confident smile, reached out to shake Theodore's hand. "Nice to meet you, Theodore. Welcome to the team."
"Thank you, sir," Theodore replied, shaking Oliver's hand firmly.
And the last one is me, Elara. Nice to meet you, kid.
Mia and I are close-range warriors, while the others in our team specialize in magic from a distance.
"You got a third warrior, haha!" Theodore said with a smirk.
"I was curious to know more about your skills, but first, we needed to focus on the quest at hand." Elara said.
"We want to take this mission," she said, glancing at the woman behind the desk who was giving out the details.
"Okay, what's the name of your team?" she asked.
"Snow Wolves."
"Alright, your quest is to go to the White Mountain, north of the city. There are two miners in one of the caves who believe there are valuable resources, but they also think the place is crawling with magical monsters. The coordinates are at the bottom of this paper."
"Thank you, ma'am," Elara replied as the woman handed over the details.
"Now, let's pack our bags and go," the leader announced, his voice full of excitement.
Theodore hurried to his room to grab his sword, which he secured on his back, and he tucked his daggers into their proper places. He quickly gathered his supplies and headed down to join the team.
"When the leader saw Theodore, he said, 'We are ready now; let's start our adventure.'"
"Yes!" the rest of the team shouted enthusiastically.
The team began their journey toward the mountain. As they walked, Elara noticed Theodore lagging behind, appearing somewhat isolated.she decided to break the silence. "So, Theodore, tell me about your skills."
Theodore looked up at me and began to speak, "I'm a fighter, and I can use almost any weapon, but I'm particularly skilled with swords and assassination daggers."
"That sounds great! And what about your magic?" I asked, my curiosity piqued.
Theodore's expression shifted as memories of that night flooded back to him. "Well, I lost it."
Everyone in the team turned to look at him in surprise. "What? How did you lose it?"
"It's a long story, and honestly, I don't want to talk about it," he replied, clearly reluctant to discuss the magic stone and the mysterious man from his past.
"Okay, that's fine. We don't want to force you," the leader reassured him.
We continued walking until we arrived at the location: a dark cave where two men were waiting outside.
"Hi there! We are the mercenaries who took the mission," the leader introduced us.
The two men stood up, their faces reflecting relief. "Finally, you arrived! We've been waiting for a long time. I'm Jack, and this is John. We discovered this cave and want to know what's inside. We believe there are lots of diamonds and other valuable minerals."
"Okay, we will help you with that," the leader said confidently.
"Um, but it looks like you brought two kids with you," John remarked, looking at Theodore and Mia.
"I'm not a kid!" Mia exclaimed, her face scrunching up in annoyance.
"Whatever, let's just get into the cave and see who the real kid is," Theodore retorted, determination evident in his tone.
Mia stifled a laugh, trying to hold back her amusement.
"Shut up, kid!" John seemed ready to argue, but the leader intervened, pushing them apart. "We are here to work, not to fight each other."
"Let's just get into this cave and finish the job," Theodore insisted, stepping forward into the darkness.
"Hey, wait! We're a team here!" the leader called out as he followed.
The team ignited flames in their hands using their Master-level magic, while Theodore remained without a light.
"I think this cave is quite long," John observed.
"Well, that's good for us," Jack replied, his optimism shining through.
They continued deeper into the cave until they reached a hollow space leading to a large crack in the ground.
"I guess we can find something valuable here," Jack said with excitement.
"Yeah, you're right! Look at these silver beetles!" John exclaimed, laughing with enthusiasm.
"They're just beetles," Mia remarked, unimpressed.
"Nah, kid! Silver beetles are attracted to caves rich in gold and silver. They feed on the magical energy from these metals, absorbing their properties, which gives them their shimmering appearance. They incorporate small pieces of precious metals into their nests for camouflage and protection. Their presence often indicates that valuable resources are nearby, as they thrive where magic and minerals coexist."
"But they're really annoying! Even if we can kill them easily," Theodore said as he dispatched one with a swift movement.
"We should eliminate them all when we leave; their outer shells contain precious minerals," John suggested, his enthusiasm returning.
The team continued walking until they reached a chamber in the cave filled with glittering diamonds.
John and Jack stood in shock, their eyes wide. "What is that, bro? It's a dream, right? Pinch me!"
"Hey, that hurt, stupid!" John protested.
"You told me to do it!" Jack replied, still mesmerized by the sight of the diamonds.
The team began to touch the diamonds, captivated by their brilliance.
"They're so bright!" Mia said to her sister, her eyes sparkling with wonder.
*Thumps* *Thumps* *Thumps*
"Do you hear that?" the leader asked, a serious tone creeping into his voice.
"What is that?" the team wondered, exchanging worried glances.
Suddenly, a huge, towering rock creature appeared from the shadows. It looked like a humanoid figure made entirely of stone.
"Don't touch my precious diamonds!" He shouted, his voice echoing ominously through the cave.
______________
(A.N: The events will continue in the next chapter.)