Back in his Rayton flat Elias slept peacefully, his head resting among soft pillows. His closed grimoire lying on his chest, rising and falling with every breath.

The morning sun filtered through the curtains.

Outside, the city had begun waking up, the distant rumble of traffic mingled with the occasional shout from the street below. The noise roused Elias from his slumber. He squirmed, rubbing his eyes he sat up groggy. The grimoire slid and fell beside his bed opening a random page.

Still trying to catch his bearings, Elias’ eyes were drawn towards the open page.

The page illustrated an ashen land with an ebony titan at the center of it.

Elias stared at it for a full minute, his brain grappling to make sense of the dreary painting, when the whispers began. He looked around him and saw no one; however, the whispers closed in, sounding like gibberish at first but slowly growing clear.

“Wh- n… kill the boy?”

The whispers were all over the place, in different voices.

“Davi… Thor…”

Elias shot to his feet at the mention of his father. He held his breath, waiting for the next words. Nonetheless the whispers ceased dashing his hopes for any sort of intel.

Right when Elias was about to chalk the whole thing up as a psychotic episode, he heard it again. The raspy words tore in from a forgotten realm, each word weighing down on him.

“Peddl… twisted fate… Elias… You are seen.”

Eyes widening Elias’s gaze fell back to the picture of the ebony giant in the grimoire. Without waiting to observe the changing painting he slammed the book shut. Backing away from the grimoire he kept a wary gaze on it.

“Whisper again and I’ll torch you along the bloody house, yeah. Don't think I won’t.” Elias threatened the magical grimoire and to his relief, the whispers stopped.

Sighing, he finally had the time to glance at himself. Caked in dirt he was in a sorry state and so was his clothes. He needed a bath and a coffee.

---

 

An empty mug sat on the table, Elias leaned on the armrest fiddling with the remote. Going through several angles, when one finally clicked and the TV lit up. He switched to the news channel.

As Elias picked up the grimoire with shaky hands. The TV’s chatter filled the background helping him relax yet he flipped through the pages with caution, until he got lost in the knowledge the grimoire held.

“Harvesting ectoplasm.” Put simply, torturing a spirit enough to make it bleed. The prerequisites being that Elias was already able to command mana effortlessly.

There’s not much I can do at my level. Elias shook his head while skimming through the grimoire pages.

“A lost language which is used specifically for curses?” The title caught Elias’s interest, he glossed over the section titled 'Curse of Mauth'

Related to the ebony giant, Mauth, even the foreign scripts filled him with unease. The words were complicated similar to the Haina country's language but he doubted that it actually belonged there. Of course right as he thought that, like wriggling snakes, ink moved to fill the empty spaces beside foreign scripts with letters he knew how to read.

Any doubts Elias had about the grimoire itself being semi-sentient were now laid to rest. It had magic, so much so he had to be careful what page he laid eyes upon. He decided to speak nicely to Grimoire for the foreseen future, just in case.

Letting out a long sigh, Elias went over everything he understood. According to the grimoire, after awakening his senses with saturated miasma he would move on to accumulate mana guiding it to form a circuit capable of absorbing, refining and producing mana on its own. Almost like having another set of blood vessels in your body.

By that point he wouldn’t be considered a mundane man anymore. Which would bring its own fair share of trouble.

"Wait." Elias dropped the grimoire to his side. "I will have to get registered then."

Unregistereds the authorities called them. Rogues who found ways to awaken, they commanded mana but did not bow down to the current set of rules and authorities.

“After a whole night of brutal battle the rune knights have finally apprehended one of the leaders of blooming needles clan. The result of a noble officer going undercover to lure out one of the clan leaders, Yuna.

This high profile criminal had been logged at the valore rank but she had risen to the rank of a magister. The surprise unfortunately resulted in many losses. She slayed thirteen rune knights with the use of her sinister poison. However, justice prevailed tonight and she was brought to her knees by the magister ranked Leylin, the leader of rune knights himself.

A tragic result for a covert operation yet an undeniable win for the law.

This is Wendell Grayson.

Reporting live from Silverpool.”

Elias watched the whole news segment in silence. Registered or unregistered, throwing his hands in the air, he left those problems for the future him. Right now he had to find a way to practice gaining control over mana.

A tough order, for someone who awakened his senses just a day ago with no resources or backing. There was the unaffordable option of mana elixirs which happened to be the fastest then there was the option of slowly harvesting the miasma from the graveyard.

“Gods, I don’t wanna go back to that place.” Remembering the several ghosts, the only thing keeping them apart being that circular rune that he managed after great pains.

That was the thing too, reading about it the second time made it clear, that rune circle's mechanics were to absorb miasma, not repel ghosts. Elias couldn't believe his luck, he survived that whole ordeal on pure chance.

---

 

Near the city gates, Lily waited dressed in her usual gear. A hooded khaki top with short pants, she wore a belt that came attached to a satchel that covered her butt. Literally, in some cases as it was where she kept several tools.

She kept pacing back and forth. He won't bail out on me, would he? But I couldn't blame him if he did.

Doubts began to nag at Lily but Elias appeared just in time.

White shirt with missing upper buttons, Elias carried the get ready last minute fashion as usual. Despite the unkempt attire, his hair had been swept upwards and the cleaned up face was a noticeable improvement from dirt covered disheveled mess Lily had witnessed before - almost handsome.

Elias had a faint smile as he approached Lily, "Where to, shorty."

Ignoring the sly comment Lily studied the man, top to bottom, she suddenly became conscious about how she looked. After a momentary pause, she avoided his eyes and blurted, "Ah r-right, there's a tavern."

Elias followed her, walking through the lonely streets of the outskirts. A stark contrast from the scene he saw in the afternoon.

The faint smile on his face disappeared. He had some questions he was hoping to clear out before they got to drinking.

"Why did you do all that?"

Right to the point, huh. Lily answered, "An easy gig I stumbled upon. That guy Reynard put a hefty bounty on your head."

One shake down and the whore son is out for my life. Elias sneered.

"My turn, what did you do to get the rich son of a bitch so mad? He was throwing around big bills like no one's business." Lily turned to face him walking backwards.

"You remember that crescent nose of his?" Lily nodded and Elias grinned in response.

Realising what he had done Lily laughed. "Hahaha, by the gods talk about shocking, here I was thinking you stole something valuable."

"Nah, he was the one who started it in the first place. Anyway my turn, why would he hire you?"

"Why wouldn't he, my mercenary resume is pretty strong." Lily gloated, puffing out her chest.

"You a merc?" Elias asked, taking a good look at the mouse woman in front of him.

Offended by the doubtful gaze, Lily shot back, "Don't believe me, huh."

Elias shook his head.

"This ass-" She took out a parchment from her back satchel and pointed it towards him. "Here check this and wipe that look off your face."

Doubt still obvious on his face Elias took the parchment and opened it.

Name: Lily Terrance

Race: Beast Blood (Crimson Mouse)
Profession: Ranger

 

This is to certify that Guild member Lily has served with distinction as a Tracker Specialist within the esteemed ranks of The Iron Order for a total term of 2 years. Throughout her tenure, Lily has demonstrated exceptional skill, unwavering determination, and an unparalleled commitment to the order's mission.

Lily's expertise in tracking down criminals, rogue magicians, and monstrous creatures has been invaluable to the safety and security of Rayton. Her keen instincts, resourcefulness, and dedication to duty have earned her the respect and admiration of her fellow guild members.

In recognition of her exemplary service and steadfast loyalty, we hereby present this Certificate of Merit to Lily, with our sincerest appreciation and highest commendation.

Signed,
Guild Master Ragnar

Elias read in disbelief, then he saw The Iron Order's stamp at the bottom.

"Hah, impressed yet?" Lily felt ecstatic seeing Elias go through a range of expressions.

Elias handed the parchment back before uttering, "Thanks for - uh saving me after kidnapping me?"

"Uh huh, you're welcome and sorry. By the way we are here," she pointed to her right.

All wood, the building looked like a relic from the past. Smoke rose from the chimney attached to the thatched wooden roof. From the big windows you could see the people having a good time, a busy place. A sign hung over the door, Lou's Tavern.

Lily grabbed Elias's wrist, "It's even better inside."

Dragged along by the short woman, Elias entered the establishment. They found a seat on the empty table before Lily hollered at the waitress, "Two honeyed meads and a meat stew."

Lily settled in her chair while Elias feeling a little out of place, kept looking around.

Lily asked, "So Mr. Elias Thorn from central city. What's your story?"

“What do you want to know?”

“A lot of things really. You have your own apartment in Rayton but you walk and talk like a local from the outskirts. Then there’s the whole mess with those noble beast bloods.” Lily recited everything she learned after running a background check on his name.

Elias looked surprised, a little unnerved hearing the precise details of his past. “Well, my father used to work for those rotten beast bloods, no offence, that's how we were able to go from outskirts to Rayton proper. Then I guess he pissed off someone in the family because he just suddenly disappeared. I went to them for answers, the police too but they sent some people. Long story short I got beat black and blue then got dumped in a garbage bin.”

The drinks arrived and Elias took a big chug of sweet alcohol before continuing, “As it stands I couldn’t force an answer out of the noble dogs and the police wouldn’t help either. It’s funny, I was supposed to attend college but then with my father gone I have been trying to make ends meet.”

Lily listened, taking a few swigs of her own drink then sighed, “Must have been hard.”

Elias nodded, “It was - is. But why are you so curious? I don’t think digging up those details was part of the bounty, right?”

Lily chuckled, “Oh, but it was, that Reynard guy would have paid me double if I had offered you up with that information. Which I didn't, don't worry. But I would be careful if I were you.”

Elias covered his forehead feeling a slight headache, “What a wanker.”

They had a few small talks in between the drinks.

When Elias thought Lily had warmed up to him enough, he asked, "I'm curious how you guild folks progress through ranks. Do beast bloods innately grow in mana or did you get some elixirs from the guild?"

Lily almost choked on the stew when she heard elixirs. After clearing her throat she replied, "Elixirs, I wish! It's just endless meditation and training. To answer your other question though, my bloodline grants me some innate mana but I also had the chance to feast on some high-grade monster cuisine."

Another bust, is there really no other way for me to safely raise my mana or at least afford it. Elias scratched his head. By then they were all done with the mild night of drinking.

Exiting the tavern they both said their goodbyes. Elias watched her go, letting out a sigh. He still felt iffy about the whole kidnapping so he was happy that Lily did not mention anything about staying in touch. And with that he too walked away.

A few steps in, however. He heard a distant voice calling out to him, "Ne…crom...er."

Elias felt his body go stiff as he turned to face the dark corner beside the tavern.

Emerging from the veil of darkness, the man presented himself – a sorry attempt to masquerade as a refined noble. It was all too obvious with the dusty suit and comically slicked back strands of hair on an otherwise bald head.

Elias couldn't guess why such a weird man would call him out.

"My word, we meet again young man." The dusty noble spoke.

Now that manner of speaking sounds awfully familiar. Elias thought and soon his eyes went wide.