Touch of Fate

Chapter 151: An Old Enemy

After an awkward silence, Mike finally moved over to the group and proceeded to treat their wounds. A part of him worried that he might be standing out too much, but he figured that a group of low-ranking adventurers was unlikely to have much influence or contact with other parts of the Guild. Besides, with the coming war, he figured that people would have more to worry about than a strangely talented mage taking part in a goblin extermination request.

The dark haired spear woman was his first patient, since as she was on her last legs. With a yank, he pulled the rusty dagger from her side, eliciting a gurgling gasp as her lung began to collapse in earnest. A quick application of Healing Magic treated her injuries, and a little Air Magic helped re-establish the appropriate level of pressure in her chest cavity.

[I'm getting pretty good with this life-support magic. Maybe, I should try to turn it into a magic item at some point in the future.]

Momentarily distracted by thoughts of revolutionizing Ea's medical industry, he didn't notice the look of absolute awe the healed woman gave him as he finished.

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The movement of air into her lungs was clearly artificial, the product of unusually precise elemental magic. Ophelia had known her injuries were fatal, especially when considering the sucking chest wound. She'd heard stories about adventurers who survived severe injuries to the torso, and even with the help of healing magic ended up suffocating anyway. The only hope was to find an expert healer who knew the secrets of how the body worked.

Yet, this man fixed the issue with ease.

According to the common sense of Ea, this kind of healing belonged in the realm of Tier 4 healers. Although she didn't know it, the people in this world who were capable of fixing her injuries so quickly and completely could be counted on one hand. That this mysterious mage did so easily, without any sign of strain, was far more impressive than the previous display of Earth Magic.

She could help but wonder why such a mage was killing goblins in the first place. Nevertheless, this was a chance she couldn't pass up.

She rounded on him while he was in the midst of treating a particularly nasty cut on Ethan's leg, "Sir Mage! Please help us. We had to retreat from a terrible enemy and leave our mentor behind. I don't know if he's still alive" Ophelia had to choke back a sob at the thought of Morgan being dead, "But please help us find him. I'm begging you!"

"Um, maybe we should evacuate the cave first. I feel like we would just get in the way" Lonnie commented absentmindedly while his own superficial injuries disappeared under the white glow of the mage's healing magic.

Shooting the cowardly archer a scathing glance, Ophelia concentrated on hooded man. "Every second counts. I know it's too much to ask for, especially after saving all of our lives, but please, help us."

The mage looked at her, and Ophelia felt her mouth go dry as a pair of golden orbs fixed upon her. There was a weight to that gaze that left her feeling weak in the knees. However, this mysterious aura seemed to disperse once he smiled.

"Well, I was planning on moving deeper into the cave anyway. There are still goblins to hunt down, after all. You all are welcome to follow along, of course, and if you can point me the direction of the enemies, it would speed the process up."

Holding back tears of gratitude, Ophelia bowed low, "Thank you, Sir Mage! I will make sure to repay you, even at the cost of my life."

The mage waved it off, as if such vows were commonplace to him, before walking in the direction of their retreat. "Judging from the trail of corpses, you came from this direction, right?" He asked while pointing.

She stood quickly and moved to follow after him, "Ah! Yes, that is correct."

The others moved to follow as well. Ethan looked fairly calm, all things considered, but Lonnie was clearly terrified. There was one last person in the chamber, but Ophelia didn't want to think about her. The sting of betrayal was still too severe.

The mage seemed to have a different opinion, however. "Hey Ruby, you coming? I wouldn't recommend hanging out in this cave by yourself."

Ethan and Lonnie turned malicious gazes on red-headed beastman still standing uncertainly by the entrance to the chamber. Ruby visibly flinched at the sudden attention. A pained, guilt ridden expression crossed her face as she slowly moved to take a place at the very rear of the group. It was clear that she regretted her earlier actions deeply.

[Good.] Ophelia found herself thinking with a degree of venom that was surprising to her. She knew the personality of her childhood friend. In many ways, she behaved exactly as she always had, yet this time it had been different.

Ruby had always been timid and shy. Ever since they were kids, it had been Ophelia who had protected her from the bullies that teased her about her scales and lack of parents. Even when it had been discovered that she had the talent for Water Magic, and the village had pooled their limited resources to get her a tutor, it had been Ophelia that had helped her through her difficult lessons.

It was also Ophelia's idea to become adventurers. Together with Ethan and Lonnie, two boys from a nearby village, they formed a party and began completing requests. Before long, they were Rank 2 and had run out of missions that they could easily finish without traveling, something they lacked the resources to do.

Morgan changed all that. He'd been a martial arts instructor for the local militia for as long as they could remember. Indeed, all four of them had learned the basics of fighting from the weathered soldier. More than that, he was a soft spoken and kindhearted man who always had a helpful word of advice or a shoulder to cry on when needed. All the children in the area adored him.

Right when it seemed that they would have to make some sacrifices in order to travel to the capital in hopes of finding some decent requests, Morgan had pulled them aside. He explained that he was actually a retired Rank 4 adventurer, and offered to guide them through a higher ranking request, allowing them to take some of the reward money. It had seemed like the solution to all of their problems.

How foolish they had been.

"Um....Ophy....I-" Ruby started plaintively. The old familiar look of uncertainty and dependence firmly in place. Only this time, Ophelia had no stomach for it. In fact, simply looking at her old friend made her feel infuriated.

"Enough! I don't want to hear it. You abandoned us, left us for dead. From here on we are strangers." She growled before whirling and facing forward.

The mage had stopped to watch the proceedings, and she detected the hint of a frown on his face, but it disappeared quickly. "Keep up now." Was all he said as he started casually walking, as if he feared nothing.

It wasn't long before they ran into more of the cavern's inhabitants.

A quartet of Goblin Warriors, muscular brutes a little shorter than an adult human, rounded the corner and issued the hooting noise they used when they spotted prey. Ophelia readied her spear, and started to give orders to the other two, but she needn't have bothered.

With a sweep of his hand, the mage unleashed an invisible blade made of compressed wind that cut through the leading two and injured the others. As pieces of viscera rained on them, the wounded Goblin Warriors started crawling away, screeching in fear and agony.

She could hardly believe her eyes. The man had not even bothered to use a chant, and seemed to be suffering from none of the ill effects of mana deprivation. With a sudden start, she realized that he had done the same when curing their injuries.

[A nonverbal chant? No, it was too fast. Chant Omission? Could he just be using free casting? What kind of monster could throw mana around like that?]

Although not a mage herself, Ophelia had helped Ruby through most of her lessons. As such, she had more knowledge about magic than the average adventurer. Everything she knew, told her that this hooded man was a phenomenally powerful mage.

[Why would anyone like this bother to take part in a Rank 4 request?]

To the shock of everyone present, the mage stepped forward while summoning a spear of hardened stone. With two quick strokes, he killed the wounded Goblin Warriors before resting the spear on his shoulder. "Hm, these ones look a little different, but still nothing of value. I'm surprised anyone bothers hunting these things." He muttered to himself quietly.

The mage turned to face them, causing Ophelia to momentarily take a step back. There was something imposing about his eyes at the moment.

"There are two passages," He announced. "Which one did you come from? Do you recognize anything?"

The three of them squinted in the gloom trying to see what he was talking about. The feeble, flickering light from Ruby's staff was barely enough to see the mage's outline, let alone the room behind him. Noticing their confusion, the mage spoke again, as if suddenly realizing the problem. "Ah. You can't see what I'm talking about. Hold on a sec."

A warm illumination filled the chamber, causing the adventurers to momentarily squint against the sudden glare. Hanging above the mage's head was a ball of light. Already growing numb to further shocks, Ophelia looked around and pointed at the entrance to one passage. "We came out of that one. I remember the marks on the walls."

The tunnel had a crudely manufactured appearance, as if the goblins had somehow carved a hole in the wall of the cave using their bare hands and claws. That should have been beyond the capabilities of any goblin, no matter how evolved, but considering the abomination they'd encountered in the depths of this lair, she suddenly felt certain that it had been responsible.

"Wait." She called, stopping the mage before he entered the tunnel. "Before we go, there is something you should know. Further down this passage, we might run into the monster which forced us to flee in the first place, a powerful and dangerous creature that has somehow managed to bind the goblins into its service."

"Oh?" The mage asked, sounding more curious than anything. "And what kind of creature is that?"

She licked her lips, feeling suddenly pensive. "Morgan believed it was a type of depraved vampire, commonly referred to as a Vargul, only evolved somehow."

The man looked startled for a second, golden eyes going wide. Surely even this powerful man would have second thoughts about going up against such a beast.

Rich laughter filled the air, erasing the tension that had formed.

"Don't worry, I'm quite familiar with them." He replied before turning and confidently walking down the tunnel.