34 A Bodyguard

More than a month had passed since the incident that day. It seemed like Albert’s injuries were not very serious, and Arias had given him several Moon-Bathed Elixirs to treat them. Albert accepted them with confusion, but he still used them. Both of his parents were curious as to how he came into possession of so many high-level elixirs, but in the end, the answer they got from Arias was that he received them from his master. This, however, stunned Albert and Maria for a long moment. What kind of person would give high-level elixirs to others this easily? Lately, Arias had gotten used to answering the questions that others had by mentioning the name of his non-existent master. Whether it was Maria, Albert, or even Farhan who asked, he would always tell them that it was because of his master, Tanos. Although he was not very proud of doing this, Arias still thought it was quite convenient.

Arias’ power had already reached the third level of acolyte and soon he would be in the fourth level. It was a big leap of progress that even himself in the past could not do. However, the number of resources he had wasted to get there was a lot as well. All low-level quartzes had been used up, but they could not help increase his power at all. Eventually, he had to rely on the mid-level quartzes. The lightning inside of him was like a starving beast; it devoured these magical quartzes rabidly. The power stored inside one mid-level quartz was more than that which could be found in ten low-level quartzes combined. But even so, he had used no less than sixty mid-level quartzes already. That still did not count the low-level quartzes that he used before. It was not like he felt bad about wasting all these resources. He was more worried about the number of resources he would need in order to nurture his power in the future. Just thinking about it made his head hurt.

Now, there was only one month left before the Tournament began. Arias had been training and nurturing his power single-mindedly that he had not left the Scarcia Manor even once since the day of the incident. Albert and Maria had been worried that Merson would take revenge on their son one of these days. Surprisingly, that did not happen. It might even be more accurate to say that nothing happened. Merson carried on with his life as usual as if those locked inside the back room of the manor had nothing to do with him. As if the two of them were not his sons, Merson did not visit them even once.

At that moment, Arias was inspecting the beastcore in his hand. This was a mid-level beastcore that he had, and he was contemplating whether he should absorb its power or not. The pain that he had felt when he absorbed a beastcore was nothing minor at all. However, the result was quite rewarding. Although every time the beast aura was absorbed and completely turned into the power of Thunder, he still could not say with certainty that it did not leave any effect.

“It seems like I’ll have to rely on a beastcore’s power again.”

Arias’ power was close to reaching the fourth level of acolyte now. He softly exhaled through his mouth and finally began to absorb power from the mid-level beastcore. Its power entered him through his hand before spreading through his whole body. Black blood veins swelled up on the hand that was holding the core and spread all over his body. His senses were overwhelmed with pain similar to the last time that he did this. But this time, the Arias’ core of magic was quick to absorb the beastcore’s power. The pain vanished and was replaced by the refreshing feeling once again. The lightning inside Arias seemed to roar silently. Magical energy surrounding him trembled and moved away from his body as if it feared something that was inside him. Though this lasted for a few seconds, Arias could feel it very clearly.

“I’m finally a fourth-level acolyte.”

Though he was glad and excited, Arias still had a lingering question about the origin of the power of this lightning inside of him. He raised one of his hands to test his power. The furious lightning that came out now seemed a whole lot different from the tiny little lightning that had appeared before.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t gone out to the city for quite some time now. Maybe I should take a stroll around.”

Arias got up and did a little stretching. He was ready to leave the manor but when he reached the front area, he found that the path out of the manor was heavily guarded.

“Young Master, where are you heading to?”

One of the guards inquired curiously.

“I’m heading to the city.”

Arias replied with a small smile. For some reason, these guards now seemed to be a lot more respectful toward him than before.

“Master Farhan had left us an instruction that should Young Master Arias wish to enter the city, we were to follow as your escort.”

One of the guards said, finally making it clear to Arias. ‘So, it was the old man’s doing. He sure knows how to make life difficult for me,’ Arias complained to himself. Though he found this a bit of an annoyance, he also felt quite grateful for it.

“Just one of you would suffice.”

Since the instruction had come from Farhan, the guards could not disobey it. Some of the guards were hired from the Mercenaries’ Guild and some were mages who served the clan directly. All of them mainly worked under Farhan’s order, and each one had a different duty.

“But Master Farhan said…”

“It’s alright. If something happens, I’ll take the responsibility.”

Arias did not want people following him left and right. He liked to do things on his own. It was a habit that he had had for a long time. Though the guards looked reluctant to follow his order, they eventually gave in.

“Then, I will be the one to escort you, Young Master. My name is Kyon.”

One of the guards stepped forward and volunteered to escort Arias. Kyon was a man about the age of twenty-seven. He had a barely-there beard and mustache, and a scar that seemed to come from a slash wound, making him look quite formidable. The man wore brown light-duty armor under a dark blue cloak, as were the majority of the Scarcia’s guards. The armor was also engraved with the Scarcia’s insignia. A long sword hung from his waist, and on one side of his belt was a dagger for emergencies.

Arias nodded slightly in response. Once he had inspected the guard for a bit, he began to make his way toward the city with Kyon. Though it felt a bit uncomfortable, he soon got used to it. The guard did not say much, only making small talk with him once in a while so it would not be too quiet.

“Where are you heading to, Young Master?”

Kyon started a conversation, trying to not stay too silent as the forest surrounding them already was.

“The auction house.”

Arias’ answer made Kyon a little surprised.

“Do you mean the Haze Auction House? What business do you have there, Young Master?”

Kyon asked curiously. Since Arias was not a mage, what could he purchase from there? He had actually been curious for quite some time now about how people without magical powers went about their lives. The guards themselves did not have a lot of respect for Arias. If the young man in front of Kyon was not an heir to one of the great clans, then surely no one would care about him.

“Just business.”

Arias did not want to go into any detail, so he immediately cut the conversation short. Kyon was a little displeased but did not say anything about it. The young man’s status was higher than him after all.

The two sides of the path were quiet without any sign of passerby. The sound of birds singing the song of the forest was quite pleasant. Big and small trees spread their branches, blocking the entire path from sunlight. Though it was midday now, Arias could not feel any heat from the sun at all.

But suddenly, Arias sensed a cold murderous intent coming from behind him.

SCHUNK!

Even with the use of the Cloud Stride technique, he was still too slow. The long sword in Kyon’s hand left a large cut on Arias’ back. His blood dribbled down to the ground, leaving traces that led to the direction where he’d fled.

Kyon looked at the sight in front of him with surprise. He had intended to kill the young man with a single blow of his sword, but unexpectedly, his target had been able to dodge the attack. But what shocked him more than that was the fact that this person could use magic. The power of a fourth-level acolyte he sensed surely was not some kind of trick. He could see the small bolts of lightning at the young man’s feet as well, though he had no idea what kind of element it was.

“Who sent you!?”

Arias gritted his teeth in pain as he asked. Questions began to flood his mind. Who sent this man to kill him? The Shadow Demon Sword was called into his hand and was ready to attack, though he knew he did not stand a chance against him. Kyon was a third-level adept, he was not an opponent that Arias could win against. Not to mention that Arias had already been seriously wounded.

“How unexpected that the Young Master can use magic. I don’t know why you’re keeping this a secret but for me, that is such a foolish thing to do. As for your question...you can ask it later when you’re in hell!”

Kyon’s power quickly burst out of his body. The fact that Arias could use magic was not an obstacle for him at all. An acolyte, even the highest-level one, was no match for him. Kyon did not even attack Arias directly. He cast a spell, making a magic circle appear in front of him. A furious wind was created from the magic circle. Arias raised his Shadow Demon Sword in defense, but the force still pushed him back several steps. His wound started to hurt even more. The Air Magic continued to attack Arias several more times, and though Arias was able to shield himself from some of it, the wind still did considerable damage.

Arias gritted his teeth with anger and resentment. He actually had some idea who would do this. There were only three people in the family who wanted him dead. Two of those were still locked up in the back room of the manor, meaning they could not have done this. That only left him with one answer—it was Merson.