Elix struggled to find his footing, the world around him blurring as he focused on Grishnaks menacing figure. Just as he steadied himself, ready to face the Grier once more, a sudden shift in the air caught his attention. The oppressive weight of Grishnak’s aura faded momentarily, replaced by a whirlwind of energy surging into the clearing. The dark green leaves of the trees danced violently.

  From the shadows emerged an Elf, her striking white hair cascading down her back like a silken waterfall. Her pale skin gave her an ethereal appearance, and by all accounts, Elix thought she was beautiful. She moved with an elegance that seemed almost otherworldly. Elix blinked, momentarily forgetting the pain all over his body as he watched her approach without hesitation, her swagger radiating confidence.

  “Great. Just what I need,” Grishnak sneered, turning toward the newcomer. “Another pest.”

  “I’m Elisa.” Her emerald eyes flicked over to Elix, mild disdain crossing her delicate features. “You’re still alive then?” she asked, her tone unconcerned, almost mocking, as she took in his battered and bruised body. “Ren sent me to get you. How tiresome.”

  Elix opened his mouth to respond, but the words got stuck in his throat. He was too worn out to muster a reply, and her annoyance was both unsettling and strangely comforting. Here he was, beaten half to death, while she stood calmly, treating them both—him and the monster—as though they were insects.

  “Stand aside, human,” Elisa ordered, dismissively stepping forward. “I won’t ask twice. Get out of my way while I deal with this weakling”.

  Grishnak’s eyes narrowed. “You think you can defeat me, little Elf girl?” he laughed, his tone dripping with menace. “You’re far beneath me. I’ll enjoy crushing you.”

  Without a word, Elisa reached behind her back to adjust the staff strapped there. Its polished silver surface glimmered as she moved it. She didn’t draw the weapon; her very presence was enough to fill the air with a powerful aura. Elix felt the shift, the crackling energy intensifying around them.

  “Move,” Elisa said coolly, her attention fixed entirely on Grishnak. “You’re in the way.”

  With a flick of her wrist, the air shimmered, and a flash of light erupted from her fingertips, materializing a card. Grishnak barely had time to react before she closed the distance between them in an instant. He swung his massive fist, but Elisa sidestepped effortlessly with a grace so swift that Elix couldn’t follow her movements.

  A white glove materialized on Elisa’s hand. In a single motion, she delivered a backhanded slap with her gloved hand. The sound was like a whip cracking through the air, and Grishnak’s head rolled to a stop at Elix’s feet.

  Elix stumbled backward in shock, falling to the ground. Grishnak’s facial expression was frozen with his last expression of hate, unable to even register the killing strike before it was delivered.

  “Shit! What the hell was that?” Elix exclaimed, staring at the gruesome scene. Grishnak’s headless body swayed for a moment before collapsing a few feet away.

  Elisa turned to him with a frown. “You truly are clueless. Not to mention weak. Why on earth did Ren bring you to our party?”

  Her piercing gaze made Elix feel small. During the commotion, Elix’s halberd had returned to card form, safely tucked away in his inventory. Yet, he felt different—a shift in himself.

  He opened his stats menu, and to his dismay, his stats had reverted back to Level 5. Only the basic numbers remained.

  “I mean, I expected weak—like Level 10 or slightly higher—but to bring a Level 5 human out here? What was he thinking? It’s sheer luck that you’re not dead.”

  “Wait, no—I was Level 20! I killed two Griers before this one!” Elix argued, doing his best to stay calm.

  “Impossible. Unveil never lies. Lie to me again, and I’ll slap you back to wherever you came from. I don’t have time for this. Ren told me to get you, so that’s what I’m doing. You don’t need to answer questions.”

  Elisa held up her hand, and Elix noticed that the white glove was impeccably clean. She closed her eyes, and the glove dissolved into a card between her fingers. Before Elix could prompt Unveil, the card vanished.

  Walking over to Elix, Elisa assessed him, her judgmental gaze weighing heavily on him. Suddenly, a ruffling came from his shirt pocket as Lef poked his head out.

  “What is that?” Elisa asked, and for the first time, her voice lacked its usual annoyance.

  “This is Lef. He’s a Leyef. He kind of… follows me around.” Answered Elix.

  “That was a rhetorical question, idiot. I know what a Leyef is. I do read you know. Listen, kid, I didn’t come here to save you. I came to speed up the party getting to where we need to go.”

  Turning her back on Elix, Elisa’s hair swirled dramatically, almost hitting him in the face. She pointed her finger in the direction they were to walk. Elix gingerly got to his feet and began to follow her.

  As they walked, Elix found it increasingly difficult to keep pace with Elisa. She disappeared from sight, and despite his best efforts, his aching limbs and dwindling stamina slowed him down. Half an hour later, he collapsed in a heap on the ground, his body refusing to move.

  What is that? Elix thought, noticing a glint between the leaves.

  Suddenly—Smash!—a glass bottle collided with his face. The brief pain of shattering glass subsided, replaced by a warm sensation washing over him. His stamina and health replenished instantly, and an M.i box appeared before him:

  Minor Potion of Invigori consumed. Health and stamina replenished. Potion consumption cooldown in effect: +1 hour.

  Elix jumped to his feet, feeling well-rested and rejuvenated, as though he’d woken from a good night’s sleep. With his ailments gone, he quickly caught up to Elisa, who hadn’t slowed her pace at all.

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  “Thank you for the potion. I really don’t want to hinder you. I think we may have gotten off on the wrong foot, I’m Elix Greenacre, from Heath Village. Who might you be?” he asked tentatively, his voice polite.

  “I am Elisa,” she exclaimed proudly. “If you haven’t already, use Unveil to assess the disparity in our levels. I’m a member of Ren Bastin’s party and part of the same guild. We grew tired of waiting for you to arrive, so I was sent to speed things up.”

  Without breaking stride or looking at him, Elisa kept walking.

  Elix prompted Unveil, and an M.i box appeared, displaying her details:

  Name: Elisa Rank: G Level: 28

  “Oh wow level 28! That’s amazing,” Elix remarked.

  “I know it is,” replied Elisa with the faintest hint of a smile.

  “It’s not easy, you know,” Elisa stated.

  “What’s not easy?” Elix asked, sensing that getting her to talk about herself would make the conversation flow more smoothly.

  “Becoming a Cardmancer. I know that’s why you decided to follow Ren. Look, I know I seem like I don’t want you to come with us. But my reasoning is a lot more complicated than just not wanting to be slowed down by a low-level hanger-on.”

  Elisa slowed her pace, and Elix matched her.

  “I didn’t have much choice about coming with Ren. He was... quite adamant,” Elix replied.

  "A few years ago, we had a squire allocated to us by the guild. He was about your age but at a higher level. At the time, we didn’t think much of it and weren’t affected by it. One day, he died while we were out on a mission, it was truly gruesome. We hadn’t considered that the squire was an extension of our party. To the rest of the guild, it looked like a failure on our part, and since then, I’ve been against the idea of taking low levels into the party," Elisa spoke in a soft, sincere voice.

  "So let me get this straight," said Elix. "Your only regret about letting someone die who was part of your party was that it made you look bad to other adventurers?" He was beginning to develop a real dislike for her and her rationale.

  "In short, yes," she answered. "I have worked very hard to achieve my level and have risked my life more times than I care to remember. Progression within the guild is my goal, and I will not have it hindered by the actions of some low-level squire who can’t survive in even the most basic of situations."

  "What kind of adventurer are you? Someone who disregards life so easily and cares more for status? Are all guild adventurers like you? If they are, I don’t want to be in a guild, and I will not follow the same ideals as you—ever." Replied Elix.

  Elix was angry. He had always imagined adventurers to be noble and heroic, not self-absorbed like the one walking ahead of him. He frowned and continued to follow her.

  "How dare you talk to me like that," Elisa retorted, her rage building. She began focusing her aura, which she had been careful to suppress even when annoyed, to avoid affecting Elix. She stopped a few paces ahead of him and turned on the spot to face him.

  A low level will crumble under the pressure of my aura. How dare he question me—I’ll teach him some manners! She thought.

  Elix felt the immediate shift in her aura as its weight pressed down on him. He felt cold, almost unable to move. It was as if the gravity around him had intensified. Sweat trickled down his back, and his teeth were clenched. Elisa stared down at him, her expression of superiority cutting into him.

  "What... Wha... ehrghh..." Elix groaned as he buckled to one knee under the immense pressure of her aura. His thoughts became muddled, and his breathing labored as his knee dug painfully into the hard ground.

  Interesting. This should be more than enough to knock out a Level 5 pipsqueak like him. How frustrating!

  Elix closed his eyes, his senses overwhelmed by the crushing aura. He focused on the cards stored in his inventory, willing his hand to move. He could feel the ground beneath his knee cracking.

  "Give up. I don’t know how you’re still awake! Don’t push me, you fool!" Elisa clenched her fists and closed her eyes, intensifying her aura further.

  "Is this... all... you... h-have?" Elix muttered through clenched teeth, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. A feeling began to stir inside him. It was the resolve to fight.

  Elix willed his hand to move ready to summon a card. Elisa stood over him, her intense gaze locked on the boy who had fallen to one knee under her immense power. She felt no pity. How dare a weak, unimportant Level 5 human show such disrespect toward her?

  Yet, something stirred in Elix’s aura, a resistance she couldn’t explain.

  "What the hell are you?" she yelled, though Elix could only hear muffled noise. His senses had all but shut down, his body frozen. Despite this, he resisted with every ounce of his will, his finger twitching in anticipation of the card he was about to summon.

  Elisa’s Elven senses caught the minute movement instantly. For a brief moment, her anger gave way to panic.

  With speed beyond comprehension, she moved. Her eyes widened, a card materializing in her hand, which disappeared in a flash, leaving a white glove on the raised hand that wielded it. She brought her arm back in a motion reminiscent of swatting a fly.

  Suddenly, the glove vanished, her aura subsided, and the killing blow did not come.

  A hand grabbed her arm from behind.

  "That’s enough, Elisa," Ren’s stern voice echoed. His aura dwarfed hers, snapping her out of her rage completely. His gaze was intense, not angry, but warning, stern and focused.

  A few paces behind Ren stood Latrus, his calming smile contrasting with his beastly appearance and stature. Dorgo stood next to Latrus, playing with his beard, half-smiling at the situation.

  "Elisa, do you really want to get so worked up over this kid?" Dorgo laughed, his eyes glinting with playful amusement. He didn’t approach, knowing Ren was firmly in control.

  "Let’s head back to camp. We can discuss what happened. Latrus, carry Elix ahead; Dorgo, go with him. Elisa and I need to chat." Ren pointed back towards the way they came.

  Elix lay unconscious on the ground, blood pooling in the left knee of his trousers and drooling from his mouth. Latrus strode over, scooped Elix over his shoulder, and headed off, muttering something about forgetting the way back.

  "Latrus, wait up! I’ve got shorter legs than you….no, not that way, this way," Dorgo called after him, their voices fading as they disappeared into the trees.

  Only Ren and Elisa remained. She hadn’t turned to look at him, and he still held her arm in the position it had been before intervening. He let her arm fall softly to her side, and she hung her head low. Taking a deep breath, she slowly turned to face him. Her glistening eyes betrayed her frustration, and her pale features appeared soft yet conflicted.

  "I gave you clear instructions, Elisa. You were to bring him back to camp alive. Your reckless actions could have ruined what I have planned. I do not appreciate you putting the party in danger." Ren spoke with the tone of a disappointed father.

  "He pushed me. He disrespected my authority and insulted my morals. Why have you brought him, Ren? He’s a freak. I don’t know what his deal is, but I’ve never seen someone overcome such a disparity in aura power before. He should have passed out, but instead…. Instead, he moved. I saw it. I felt it. Something isn’t right with him. I advise you to leave him behind. Whatever it is, it will be troublesome." Elisa’s voice trembled with both fear and anger.

  “He certainly is different that’s for sure” Replied Ren as he stood staring at Elisa.