Chapter 316 (Patreon)

Lenny forced herself to laugh lightly, though the sound came out thinner than she intended.

Of course Kana heard them.

Someone as strong as the guildmaster would not miss a whisper from only a few feet away. Lenny had heard stories about those who crossed the invisible wall set by the gods themselves. People who became something more than ordinary adventurers. Their senses sharpened. Their instincts transformed. Even the way they looked at the world changed.

And the girl sitting quietly in front of her carried that exact feeling.

Better be honest, Lenny thought.

Lying to someone dangerous only worked when they were fools.

Kana did not look like a fool.

Lenny swallowed once before forcing a smile despite her pale face. “I… have a skill that can appraise people’s strength,” she admitted carefully.

Kana stared at her silently.

That gaze again.

Lenny could not understand how someone so young possessed eyes like that. It felt less like talking to a student and more like standing before a powerful adventurer who had survived too many battlefields.

The night breeze passed through the wagon quietly. Somewhere nearby, the horses snorted while their hooves crushed small stones along the road.

For several seconds, Kana said nothing. Then she simply nodded once.

“I see,” she replied calmly. “Don’t tell anyone.”

No threats which somehow made it more frightening.

Kana lowered her head again and returned to writing on the parchment resting against her knee as though the conversation had never happened.

Beside her, Suri continued snoring loudly beneath her blanket. Every time the wagon wheels struck a rock, she cursed half-asleep before immediately continuing to snore again.

The contrast nearly made Lenny’s head hurt. Lenny slowly released the breath she had been holding.

Honestly, it did not matter anyway.

Even if she spread the story, nobody would believe her. Her skill still remained unverified by the kingdom because there were too few people capable of comparing such absurd levels of strength accurately. As far as she knew, she was the only current holder of a living [Gauge Meter] skill inside the kingdom.

And saying an academy student rivaled the guildmaster?

People would laugh at her straight out of the tavern. Lenny turned toward Eisen, intending to tell him quietly to forget everything.

Then she froze.

Eisen was grinning from ear to ear. The kind of grin that usually appeared right before he made a terrible decision. She immediately felt goosebumps rise along her arms.

Even Eisen’s forehead was covered in sweat from merely sitting near Kana, yet somehow his excitement had only grown stronger.

“Looks like I found our fifth member,” he whispered.

Lenny stared at him in disbelief.

“Are you nuts?” she hissed back. “Why would someone like her join us?”

Eisen folded his arms confidently.

“I’ll make a deal with her,” he said. “Something she won’t be able to refuse.”

Lenny rubbed her forehead tiredly.

“You do realize she can hear us, right?”

She glanced toward Kana again.

The black-haired girl remained focused on her writing beneath the moonlight, seemingly uninterested in the world around her. The scratching sound of her quill against parchment continued steadily while silver light illuminated the side of her face.

“Look at her,” Lenny muttered. “She doesn’t care about whatever scheme is forming in your head.”

Eisen simply smiled wider.

“We’ll see.”

….

The capital city welcomed them beneath a quiet sea of moonlight.

At that hour, the streets no longer carried the loud noise of merchants, students, or adventurers wandering around taverns. Only a few lanterns remained lit along the stone roads, their orange glow trembling softly whenever the cold wind passed through the narrow streets. Their wagon creaked tiredly as it rolled deeper into the academy district, the horses looking nearly as exhausted as Boris himself.

Nobody spoke much during the ride back.

Even Suri stayed unusually quiet. The events beneath the sea still lingered between them like a shadow none of them wanted to touch.

They stopped briefly in front of the adventurer guild to drop off Eisen and his party. Warm light spilled from the guild entrance along with the familiar sounds of drunken laughter and mugs crashing somewhere inside.

Kana glanced at Eisen once as he climbed down from the wagon. She had almost expected him to finally reveal the mysterious offer he had been so confident about earlier. Coins perhaps. A rare item. 

Instead, the man only grinned.

“We’ll meet again,” he said confidently.

Then he simply walked away. Lenny looked as though she wanted to apologize for her leader’s strange behavior before following after him together with the others.

Kana frowned faintly. The wagon moved again shortly afterward, finally arriving at their boarding house near the academy.

The moment the door opened, Suri practically threw herself toward her bed.

“My precious…” she muttered dramatically while hugging the blanket like someone reunited with a long-lost lover.

Kana removed her cloak slowly and shook her head.

“You should clean yourself first.”

“Right…” Suri groaned into the pillow. “It’s just… it’s been a while.”

She rolled over weakly.

Kana walked toward the small desk beside the window where several parchments had been stacked neatly earlier. Moonlight filtered through the glass, illuminating the room softly enough that she did not need to light a lamp.

“I already finished the transcription,” Kana said while picking up the papers. “Though I’m warning you now, most of this is guesswork. Some of these meanings might be completely wrong.”

Suri immediately pushed herself upright despite looking half-dead moments ago.

“Read it.”

Kana glanced at the parchment.

The strange class names written there still felt surreal somehow. Like glimpsing tiny pieces of destiny before they fully formed.

She cleared her throat.

“[Phantasm Magus],” Kana read slowly. “I think this one is close to your current abilities. Probably stronger illusions. Maybe you’ll eventually be able to create solid illusions larger than your fist.”

Suri’s eyes sparkled immediately.

Kana continued.

“[Nightmare Bender]. Honestly… this one sounds terrifying. You’ll probably gain abilities related to fear, dreams, or mental attacks. Maybe even forcing nightmares onto people.”

Suri blinked once.

“That sounds amazing.”

“It sounds illegal.”

“Even better.”

Kana ignored her.

“[Conjurer Magus]. Similar to the first one maybe? I’m not sure about the difference.” She paused briefly. “Though [Phantasm Magus] sounds cooler.”

“[Rune Weaver]. This one definitely has something to do with the rune studies you’ve been obsessing over lately.”

At that, Suri’s expression softened slightly. Kana noticed it immediately.

“[Mystic Illusionist],” Kana continued. “Probably the safest choice. It sounds like an evolved version of your current class, meaning your existing illusion abilities would likely improve naturally.”

Suri nodded thoughtfully this time instead of joking.

“[Storm Wizard]. Lightning-related most likely.” Kana frowned faintly. “Though I’m worried your illusion abilities might go away if you choose this.”

Suri immediately made a face.

“Not that one.”

Kana fought back a smile before continuing.

“[Mana Magus]. Better mana skill tricks and manipulation perhaps.”

“That sounds boring.”

“You literally float around because of mana manipulation.”

“…Slightly less boring then.”

Kana shook her head.

“[Arcane Mage]. No clue. Probably powerful unique mage-type skills.”

“[Force Mage]. Manipulating force itself. Pushing, pulling, crushing things.”

Suri tilted her head thoughtfully.

“That one actually sounds useful. I’d like to try it with Thorne.”

Kana shook her head again before continuing.

“[Shadow Shaman]. Probably curse-related abilities. Shadow manipulation too maybe.”

Kana finally reached the last name written near the bottom of the parchment.

Even she hesitated for a moment while reading it.

“[Archaic Manipulator].”

The room became quieter.

Outside, the wind brushed softly against the window while distant academy bells echoed faintly somewhere across the sleeping capital.

Kana stared at the class name for a few seconds longer.

“I honestly have no idea what this one means,” she admitted quietly. “But… it sounds ancient.”

Ancient. Like forgotten ruins beneath the earth. Like the underwater king they had nearly died against.

Suri slowly fell backward onto her bed again and covered her face with the parchment dramatically.

“You somehow made my decision harder,” she groaned. “Now I want all of them.”

Kana sat beside the window, moonlight reflecting faintly in her crimson eyes.

“They all look powerful,” she said softly. “I don’t think there’s a wrong choice.”

She paused briefly before adding,

“These are evolved classes after all.”

…..

Suri stared blankly at the translucent text floating before her.

The pale blue glow illuminated the dark boarding room just enough to paint faint shadows along the walls. Outside the window, the capital city slept beneath a bright moon, quiet except for the occasional rustling of leaves carried by the cold night breeze. The silence inside the room felt heavier somehow. Like the world itself was waiting for her answer.

Evolved classes.

Even now, it still felt unreal.

Suri hugged her knees lightly while studying the hovering words again and again, imagining countless possibilities from the explanations Kana had given her earlier. Strange powers. New abilities. Paths branching into futures she could not yet see.

But no matter how much she thought about it, one thing remained certain in her mind.

She needed to keep her illusions.

She had already realized their value long ago. Damage skills could always be learned later through skill books. Fire, lightning, barriers, enhancement magic, there were countless ways to obtain those eventually.

But illusions?

Flexible illusions like hers?

Those were rare. Terrifyingly rare.

Not the cheap tricks traveling performers used to entertain children. Not simple visual distortions. Her illusions could scout, deceive, hide, confuse, and manipulate the battlefield itself. Half the reason their group survived dangerous situations was because enemies never truly knew where they were looking and she could tell where they were in advance.

And recently… Suri had started realizing something else.

Illusions suited her. She understood deception naturally. Understood confusion. Understood how people reacted when fear entered their minds.

The thought should have disturbed her more than it did.

Suri sighed dramatically before letting herself fall backward onto the bed.

“[Phantasm Magus], [Conjurer Magus], [Mystic Illusionist]…” she muttered while staring at the floating text above her. “Why do the important choices always sound confusing?”

Kana sat near the window, one leg folded beneath her while several parchments rested on her lap. Moonlight reflected faintly against her crimson eyes as she quietly observed Suri’s dilemma without interrupting.

After a few moments, Suri suddenly spoke again.

“You know, Kana…”

“Hm?”

“In the academy rankings, they always place the strongest student at the top.”

Kana nodded slowly.

“We still don’t know why they placed it on the top? Why not at the bottom?”

Suri pointed lazily toward the hovering class list.

“What if this works the same way? What if the strongest class is always the first one shown?”

Kana frowned slightly. For a moment, she actually considered it then she shook her head.

“I disagree.”

Suri blinked in surprise,“You rejected that way too quickly.”

Kana leaned back slightly against the wooden chair,“The last one sounds strongest to me.”

“[Archaic Manipulator]?” Suri asked skeptically.

Kana nodded once.

“It sounds ancient.”

“That’s your reasoning?”

Suri immediately grimaced. Ever since then, anything ancient suddenly sounded horrifying.

Still, she crossed her arms stubbornly.

“But we don’t even know if it can create illusions.”

Kana exhaled quietly,“Indeed. You have a point.”

The room fell silent once more.

Suri stared at her final choices.

[Phantasm Magus]

[Conjurer Magus]

[Mystic Illusionist]

[Mystic Illusionist] sounded safe. Reliable. Probably the direct evolution of what she already possessed.

[Conjurer Magus] sounded mysterious but vague enough that it could mean almost anything.

And then there was [Phantasm Magus].

Just the name itself felt right somehow. Like standing inside fog while everyone else lost their way.

Suri grinned faintly at her small victory before her expression slowly became serious again.

Her will selected one of the floating texts.

[Phantasm Magus]

The words pulsed softly the moment her will selected it.

[Confirm]

[Yes]

[No]

Suri inhaled slowly then she selected [Yes]

Post note:[Phantasm Magus] It is!

Sixth chap of the week.

Hope you enjoy the chap! 🙂

Next Chapter