Abel then strolled around his village. Despite barely a month having passed, he already missed his entire family. That day, he finally visited his grandmother, who could be seen sitting on the terrace. Ruri burst into happiness.
Abel hugged his grandmother. "What happened? Why are you back so early? Is everything alright, my sweet?" Ruri asked.
"It's alright, Grandma. I just finished my first mission, and you won't believe who my client was—File White himself," Abel said.
Of course, Ruri was shocked and amazed that her grandson had met such a legend at a young age. He spent that afternoon with his grandmother, who baked him his favorite cookies.
As time flew by, Abel had to part again with his grandmother and pay a visit to his cousin, showing him a picture of himself and File.
As the afternoon came, Nagiatsu and Kaede welcomed Abel. He then played with his three cousins, who were all amazed by the picture.
As evening came, Abel had to return back to Melody City. Unknown to him, a strange figure was watching him from a distance.
As he boarded his train and returned, he fell asleep. He had a strange, vivid dream where a beautiful angel hugged him. As his teenage hormones kicked in, Abel touched the angel's chest. Suddenly, he was woken up by the conductor who informed him they had reached Melody City.
Once again, Abel felt disappointed but couldn't do anything about it. He returned to his home, which somehow still looked clean and smelled so good.
"You know, I maybe should look for the source of that scent on the weekend," Abel mused.
As he lay down in bed and fell asleep, the next day Abel reached the Investigator Guild where he received his first pay: a sum of 50k Verak. He was happy, but it was still far from his target. His overall education costs were up to 2.5 million Verak, while his grandmother's savings only amounted to 800k Verak. With all he earned, totaling 70k, and after his daily expenses, he still had 40k from his earnings.
Abel looked sad as he realized that even if he tried hard, he would earn at best 120k a month. That figure, excluding his monthly spending, would leave around 80k a month. This meant it would take about two years for Abel to save up for his education.
"Wow... that's really, really long," Abel sighed.
Despite his frustration, Abel gave his best every month, taking on as many assignments as he could. However, he was still far from his goal, not to mention the occasional accidents that cost extra, like plumbing issues or his gadgets breaking.
After four months, he received heartbreaking news that his grandmother, Ruri, had passed away peacefully. Although she passed peacefully, it still broke his heart because he couldn't achieve his dreams and make his grandmother proud. As Abel took time off to attend his grandmother's funeral, he was accompanied by Huskar, his grandmother's old mentor.
The funeral was small, attended only by him, his uncle and family, Huskar, and some neighbors. Abel could be seen in tears in front of his grandmother's grave. Nagiatsu tried to cheer him up, assuring him that Ruri was at peace and proud of Abel.
A couple of days passed, and as Abel struggled to maintain his mental stability, he continued to do his best not to drown in sorrow. He still had work to do if he wanted to follow his dreams.
One day, he received a strange mission. The assignment specifically requested him, which was extremely suspicious. Some members warned Abel to be careful because, despite the company's suspicions, they couldn't deny this request since it came from an official of the Whiteford Kingdom, marked with an official seal. They dared not deny it.
Abel thought carefully about this, knowing the reward was quite large—300k Verak, essentially like walking into a lion's cage.
After some time, he decided to contact Huskar, who advised him to reach out to the Paladin's Order. After doing so, they told him that they would look out for it.
After considering it, Abel still took up the contract. He was afraid; the mission was a standard guide job. He had to guide two gentlemen to check a nearby cave on the western border between Fonta Aria and Whiteford.
Things went as usual until the two gentlemen began to question Abel.
"So, Mr. Investigator, can I ask? Have you met any famous figures during your work?" asked the first client.
"Yes, sir. I have met a lot of incredible people during my work," replied Abel.
"Okay, but is there someone who is extraordinarily special among them?" asked the second client.
Abel noticed they were hinting at File White, which made him suspicious. "Well, let's see... I don't think there's anyone like that. Sorry, but professionally, I don't discriminate among clients," Abel responded.
"I see… You know, for a 15-year-old, you surely act mature for your age," said the second client.
As Abel checked the area, he began to feel more and more tense. At some point, he realized the two clients were holding blades in their arms. Abel's sweat ran cold as he understood the danger of the situation. He tried to look around but, to make matters worse, he sensed that a couple of people had been stalking him for a while, whom he believed to be associates of the two clients.
Abel continued his job slowly, thinking carefully about his next move. As his nervousness became more and more visible, he realized at some point he couldn't evade these people. For a moment, tears streamed down his cheeks. Even though he hadn't turned around, the two clients began to understand what it meant.
For once, Abel felt truly scared. In his heart, he prayed to God to save him. He thought of all the promises he made to become an explorer, his wish to see his family again, his dreams of achieving his goals.
But as he began to lose hope, the first client spoke up. "You know, for a 15-year-old, you are surely brave. I'll give you that, kid. Let me make a proposition," said the first client.
Abel didn't turn his head. "What is it?" he asked, hiding his expression from the clients.
"Tell me where you met File White, and our boss will consider sparing your life," said the client.
Abel stood silent, unable to decide but trying to muster courage. Despite his attempts, Abel was just a 15-year-old with a dream. He finally surrendered; he turned around and nodded.
"Fine, but you will spare me?" asked Abel.
"It's up to my boss, but if you prove to be useful, I bet he will," said the first client.
But, of course, Abel's instincts kicked in. He became fully aware that the clients did not intend to let him live. He understood their lies well.
"What should I do?" raced through his mind. Abel was truly afraid, realizing that these people were highly trained knights.
"At least can I ask why?" said Abel.
"For a knight of Whiteford, using others is surprisingly low," Abel added.
"Haha, I understand your fears, but you are currently helping an enemy of Whiteford. We have thousands of reasons to punish you," said the second client.
"Let's be real, you don't intend to let me live, do you?" Abel asked with a straight face.
Without further notice, the two clients rushed towards Abel. He drew his sword and began to clash against them. But these knights were highly trained soldiers. Abel used all his might, throwing his equipment, using magic scrolls, and more, but the knights skillfully deflected all of Abel's attacks with ease.
Abel tried to launch a dual thrust attack with his swords, but one of the people stalking him shot an arrow, which shattered Abel's sword. Realizing he was out of weapons, he tried to run as fast as he could, leaving his clients behind. However, despite his cat-like agility and speed, the two knights easily caught up with him. One of them threw a spear at Abel, which thrust into his left abdomen. Although Abel managed to catch it, the knights ultimately stabbed Abel with his own shattered sword and pinned him to a tree.
Abel looked at his wound in disbelief. His dreams ended before he could even chase them. Tears began to pour down his face, fear visibly etching his features. One of the knights grabbed his hair.
"What a waste," said the first client.
Abel couldn't speak a word due to his shock, but suddenly the knight who had been stalking him was thrown lifelessly against a nearby tree, alerting his two clients. A man wearing black and purple full plate armor, with exposed face and purple horsetail hair, probably about 26 years old, and another—a mage in white and blue robes wearing glasses—appeared beside him.
The two men exchanged stares with the knights pursuing Abel. Without a single word, the two men rushed towards the knights and swiftly killed them all. Their strength was so powerful it even shocked Abel to his core.
As the mage finally burned all the knights to ashes, disgust was visible on his face.
"Is this what a White Knight does? Truly, how low you all have become," the mage said disdainfully.
Abel fell unconscious, but before he could hit the ground, Arieta caught him. They quickly rushed him to a nearby camp, where they immediately began an operation to save Abel.