"Uh, Betham, I've got the equipment. Where's Razeluxe?" Abel asked, curious.
"He already left. Busy guy," Betham replied, brushing off the question. Then, with a curious look, he asked, "So, Abel, what do you think about joining the Knights?"
Abel hesitated, glancing at the ground. "Uh… I don't know, sir. I don't think I'm good enough to be a Knight. Besides, I've always wanted to be an explorer one day."
Betham chuckled softly. "Fair enough. Anyway, are you ready? We'll be leaving soon."
"I'm ready, sir. I mean… Betham," Abel said, correcting himself with a grin.
The two began their journey, first boarding a train heading toward Noir Mountain at the eastern edge of Fonta Aria. After reaching a small city nestled near the mountain base, they switched to public transportation to travel to the farthest edge of a dense forest. Their journey continued on foot until they arrived at a serene stream of crystal-clear water, the sound of flowing currents filling the air.
The journey took nearly ten hours in total, and while Abel's youthful energy kept him eager and alert, Betham insisted on taking a break for lunch by the riverside.
As the two ate, Abel broke the silence. "Sorry, I just realized I never asked—what exactly is our mission?"
Betham leaned back on a rock, taking a swig from his flask. "It's just investigating an anomaly. Nothing much."
"You make it sound harmless," Abel replied, narrowing his eyes skeptically.
Betham laughed. "Of course, it's not harmless! But don't worry. If that blockhead Razeluxe thinks you've got what it takes to be a Knight, then you'll be fine."
After finishing their meal and cleaning up, Betham led the way deeper into the forest, eventually stopping at the entrance of a small, dark cave. He pulled out a strange device resembling a portable computer and some flag-like equipment. After planting the flags around the area, he started analyzing the air quality and mana levels.
As the device beeped, Betham's expression turned serious. "Okay… that's not good."
"What's not good?" Abel asked, his voice steady but curious.
"There's something strong inside this cave," Betham explained, pointing to the blinking display on the device. "It's radiating a massive mana surge. If left unchecked, it could pollute the surrounding area."
"Wow… that's not good," Abel said plainly, earning a chuckle from Betham despite the situation.
Betham packed up the equipment, and they ventured cautiously into the cave. "Strange," Betham muttered as they walked. "I don't sense any movement. Whatever this is, it seems stationary. Based on the mana output, it could just be some sort of enchanted rock."
As they pressed forward, the ground suddenly trembled. Out of nowhere, an earth golem emerged from the ground with a roar, towering over them with rocky limbs ready to strike.
Abel's instincts kicked in just in time, and he leaped back, narrowly avoiding the golem's powerful swipe.
Betham wasted no time. Without hesitation, he pulled out a heavy mace, its metallic surface gleaming faintly. With a low growl, he conjured a thunderous cloak of lightning that surrounded his body. Moving with incredible speed and precision, Betham dodged the golem's attacks one by one, his movements like a flash of light.
In a decisive moment, Betham struck the golem's core with a thunderous blow. The sound of shattering stone echoed through the cave as the golem crumbled into lifeless rubble.
The noise reverberated through the cave, leaving an ominous silence in its wake. Both Abel and Betham exchanged a quick glance.
"That was loud," Abel said, stating the obvious.
Betham nodded grimly. "It'll attract more monsters. We need to move—fast."
Without further hesitation, the two hurried deeper into the cave, alert for whatever might come next.
As they ventured deeper into the cave, Betham carefully examined their surroundings while Abel followed closely behind, taking notes and analyzing the area with equal diligence. Occasionally, Abel would pause to study particular rocks or the stream of water trickling along the cave floor.
"I feel… strange," Abel muttered, furrowing his brow as he crouched near a peculiar rock formation.
Betham stopped in his tracks, turning to his young companion. "What's wrong?"
"There's a sound… like something inside the rocks," Abel said, his voice uncertain but tinged with curiosity.
Betham looked puzzled. "Sounds? What kind of sounds?"
"I don't know… it's probably just my imagination," Abel replied, shaking his head as if trying to clear the thought.
"Don't ignore your instincts," Betham advised. "They might save your life one day."
As they ventured further into the cave, the atmosphere grew heavier, the air laden with faint traces of mana. The walls of the cave shimmered faintly, revealing strange glowing rocks entwined with dark, sinewy roots that stretched up to the ceiling like veins. Surrounding the rocks was a swarm of Scathing Beasts, their grotesque forms prowling around the anomaly.
Betham knelt at the edge of the cavern, carefully observing the scene without drawing the monsters' attention. "Ah, I see now… no wonder it felt familiar," he murmured.
"What is it?" Abel asked, his eyes fixed on the glowing stones.
Betham gestured toward the anomaly. "This is a mutation-type anomaly."
Abel's curiosity grew. "Is that… bad?"
"It can be," Betham said, keeping his voice low. "First, let's document it. Take this." He handed Abel a device called a Silent Night Camera.
Abel accepted the camera, his hands steady as he snapped several photos of the glowing rocks and surrounding area.
"Good. Next, measure the depth of the anomaly and its mana concentration. Then, we'll pinpoint its coordinates. These details will help future investigators—or Paladins—if this area becomes problematic again."
As Abel worked, he glanced back at the glowing rocks. "So… what exactly is this? Is it a mana anomaly or something caused by nature?"
Betham leaned closer to the edge and pointed. "At first glance, it might look like either. But this is definitely a mutation anomaly. That glowing stone? It's not the source. The real culprit is likely an insect or plant embedded inside it."
Abel nodded as understanding dawned. "That makes sense."
Betham continued, his tone serious. "Here's the tricky part. You can't just cut the roots to destroy it. If you do, the roots will die abruptly, and that could trigger earthquakes, landslides, or even cause the cave to collapse. The safest approach is to trace the roots back to the surface and use an electric charge—or electricity-based magic—to overload the anomaly and neutralize it.
"But," he added with a smirk, "we'll have to keep our distance. A collapse isn't the only danger. Those Scathing Beasts won't be happy if we mess with their precious anomaly."
Abel nodded again, following Betham's lead as they began tracing the roots deeper into the cave.
"So, after we destroy this anomaly, we're done, right?" Abel asked, hoping for a straightforward mission.
Betham chuckled, shaking his head. "Not even close. The real work begins after we deal with this. We'll need to trace the possible source of the mutation."
Abel frowned in confusion. "And that's fun… how?"
Betham grinned, hefting his mace. "That's when we get to beat the crap out of some monsters."
Abel couldn't help but smile at Betham's enthusiasm as the two pressed on, ready to face whatever challenges lay ahead.
Abel wasn't concerned; instead, he was excited and drew his dual swords. They reached the lands above the cave and noticed the roots. Since Betham wasn't very good at lightning magic, he pulled out a light surge scroll, wrapped it around the roots, and invoked it. Soon, a loud rumbling could be heard. Betham and Abel had already run to a safe distance when suddenly, the land above the cave broke, leaving massive holes in it. Scathing beasts began to pour out all over the place.
"So here we are, you ready?" Betham asked as he pulled out his mace.
"Yeah, let's do this," replied Abel.
They then began to charge at the pack of beasts, defeating them slowly, one by one. Betham could be seen using both earth and stone magic, while Abel used wind magic to enchant his blades. After some time, the two managed to take care of over 10 beasts on their own. They then proceeded to descend into the hole to take a look at the stone, which was still glowing but no longer emitted the same light as before.
Betham pulled out a big bag and put the stones inside it.
"Alright, Abel, do the same test again to see if there's still any anomaly left. I'll seal this stone," said Betham.
Abel then proceeded to redo the procedure all over again but found no trace of the anomaly.
"Guess that's it," said Abel.
"Yeah, for now. I'll make a report, and we head back to the Guild," said Betham.
"Wow, this has been quite an interesting journey, to be fair," said Abel.
"Don't get reckless. We were lucky it was only scathing beasts and just wild monsters in general. Can't imagine if there were the likes of a Shadow Fiend and so forth," said Betham.
The two then took the same route back home, using the same transportation as before. Another day passed, and Betham parted ways with Abel the moment they reached Melody City, but not before Betham threw a pack of cash to Abel.
"Here, take this, consider it your tip," said Betham.
"Wow, this is a lot. Are you sure?" asked Abel.
"Yeah, don't worry. Our fee usually ranges between 30k to 100k Verak per investigator, but as I said, this is a request by the Fonta Aria Military Defense itself, so they literally put over 200k for this mission," said Betham.
"Wow, they're rich, aren't they?" Abel was surprised.
"Yeah and no. Well, ever since the guy that you saw back then took over maintaining knights' ranks and quality, he has kicked over 70,000 knights from the ranks, which he deemed unworthy of becoming a knight," said Betham.
"Sir Razeluxe? Wow, he is surely strict," said Abel.
"Yeah, but for all the good reasons. Both those who were kicked and the government respect him for it."
"His skills and ability to train are exceptional. Ever since he took over that part, the quality of our knights has been absurdly high. Our knights are deemed the best when it comes to quality, but yeah, not without the brutal training and trials he puts them through," says Betham.
The two then part ways, and Abel returns to his home. He contacts his family to share news about, technically, his first salary. The family bursts into happiness, proud of Abel. Even though Abel only makes about 20k Verak, he is still happy and asks whether he should send the money to his family. However, both his uncle and auntie, alongside his grandmother, reject it, insisting that Abel needs it for his education. Abel promises he will take all of them on vacation one day.