Warm sunlight, soft bed, the smell of freshly brewed tea… and the smell of a woman!?
"Where am I!?" Shyam jolted awake as his eyes jumped open.
Heartbeat raised to maximum, to the fear of death from before he fainted.
"Awake, I see, adventurer," a man sitting beside him on a chair with a book titled true happiness
With a pinkish cover and blue text.
A steaming hot cup of tea lay there, brown with a smell of milk and some herbs to make it smell good.
"Who are you?" Shyam asked, still shocked.
Though more importantly, his habit of fainting after each major battle had become a problem at this point. If this kept going, how would he fight even stronger monsters?
Though he did not need to fight them, as his only wish was to explore this world.
But still, fighting monsters was thrilling.
"Fear not, I intend no harm to you,"
the man said as he put down the book on the table beside him.
Around sixty-seven years old, white moustache and an extra finger. Black hair reaching to his neck, dark brown eyes that dot endlessly, white uniform, and a small storage ring on his right hand.
This man clearly seemed like the literate person type.
"I saw your potential, and so I have a request, adventurer," he started. "This request may seem selfish, but we will provide you with our best resources to surpass tier two. So it's a win from both sides," the man said. His eyes, though dark and deep, spoke of true honesty.
"Woah, wait! Could you tell me the request first at least?" he asked.
Shyam had just woken up, so he had no idea who this man was, and so he couldn't even predict what madness he could ask for.
Which is totally okay as long as it is not a request such as marry my daughter
"Yes, of course! Sorry for my behaviour. The request is that you fight for us," the man said. So calmly, as if he wasn't asking him to fight, but to play with children. But if I had to choose from both, I'd pick the first option!
"Fight, for you?" Shyam asked in confusion. Yes, he knew what fighting meant. But why did he want Shyam to fight for him?
"Yes. Though you can, of course, decline if you feel so. The thing is, without you this city might not live to see the next morning, after the fight of course!"
The man requested, his voice carrying both hope and care. It was clear that whatever he said was not a lie, nor was it a joke.
"But what would I have to fight?"
Shyam asked.
"Sagar, the hydra path fighter. The one who can destroy even cities if he uses his full potential." An unknown voice spoke from the distance, hidden in shadows, wearing a noble outfit.
I didn't notice him at all!
Shyam murmured as he stared at the man who just spoke of the name Sagar. Even his name carried oceans. Maybe that's why he chose hydra as his path?
"Sagar?"
"Yes, a former adventurer just as you. Faced by the cruelty of this world, now turned his frustration into anger and so set his mind to re-order the world as he feels so. And the first step is, to destroy Vyomsetu."
The man in the shadows whispered, though even his quietest words could be heard loud and clear.
Shyam recognised this technique.
"Mana control?!" he mumbled.
There were only a few people whom he had seen using mana control—his teacher Golakar, Ashima, and Ravina.
"How powerful is Sagar anyway?" Shyam asked.
It was surprisingly surprising that someone who could use mana control even better than he could wanted help fighting someone.
If they were unable to fight him, how would he do so?
"The last time our fighter fought him, he was at tier three, sub-tier two. That was a week ago," the man on the chair said.
"Tier three! You do realise I am not even at tier two's peak yet!" Shyam yelled, shocked.
He himself had seen the difference between tier one and two. It can't even be imagined just how strong tier three could be. And sub-tier two at that. He already felt the need to faint one more time.
"We know. But, if we have even the slightest chance to survive this, we want to take it…
And don't worry so much about your level. We may not have manuals on tier three, but we can provide you with the best resources available in Vyomsetu for you to level up! We will do anything if that will help us beat Sagar."
The man seemed desperate, almost as if he was a leader.
Though the deal wasn't bad either. If he found himself losing, he could always use his ultimate technique, can he not? Flee!
"Though I do not know you, I will still try," Shyam nodded.
The moment he accepted the request, the face of the man sitting on the chair turned happy, like a kid who got their most favourite toy.
But then he remembered—he didn't tell him his name. Nor his title, or anything!
"My bad. I am Arohanik, the mayor of this city. And that person is Tithira, the guild master of Vyomsetu."
Had he been talking to the mayor and the guild master of Vyomsetu all this time!?
No way!
Though come to think of it, hasn't he been doing this all this time? The moment he stepped into a city or village his meeting with the guild master or mayor or both of them was set! It's like a special power is forcing him to do so.
Suddenly the door opened gently as a woman in a white dress walked in, a walking stick in her hand.
"Ravina! You are alive!" Shyam said as he looked at her. The last time he saw her, she was still bleeding heavily as if she would die any moment.
But she still kept herself up, despite facing more casualties than he did.
"What do you mean alive, you idiot! That little scratch will heal before you can blink!" she yelled, such a cute tsundere, eh?
"Well… I blinked three times as you said it," Shyam said.
"Stop blinking!" she said as she sat down on the chair near the door.
"Well then, I will be going now. If you need anything, there is always a maid outside. Ask her anything," Arohanik said as he stood up and left the room along with Tithira.
"So, how are you now?" Ravina asked, her cheeks slightly red.
"Rare coming from you. But I am good. You though, how are you?"
"The doctor said my backbone is broken. And I might not be able to fight again," Ravina mumbled.
Her eyes wet themselves as small droplets of water streamed from her cheeks to her very mouth. It was salty. She wiped it over and over again, but the tears just couldn't stop!
The only reason she left her home was to adventure and explore. Does it have to end here?
After all she has been through, after all that has happened, will she have to stop right here?
And, if she ever walked back to her father… will he accept her again?
Shyam watched her drop the tears silently.
why do i always have to see them end their journey?! He knew just how painful it is to one day stop thinking about exploring the world. To adventure, to make friends along the way.
After all, he too dreamed to do so before he came here in Niścaya.
He wanted to say something, but he couldn't. He didn't know what to say to her.
Pushing his throat to spit out whatever lived in his mind. "Ravina!" he started, startling her.
"Listen, it doesn't matter what the doctor said. At the very end, it is you who gets to decide whether you adventure again.
Some words should not demotivate you!
And always remember, self-doubt makes you weak. Have faith in yourself. You will heal! Find your true self and always keep pushing!"
That was the second time he tried encouraging a woman. It worked the first time, no guarantee if it would work the second time. But it's worth a try, right?
Ravina, who stared at Shyam after he said such a speech, had finally stopped crying. The tears were still stuck on her lips reflecting the sunlight that found its way through the window.
Suddenly, particles of mana gathered around Ravina. In the blink of an eye, it fully covered her like a storm!
"Wait, is sh—"
Before he could finish his sentence, the mana suddenly disappeared with a fuzz sound as Ravina stood up staring at her hand.
"I… leveled up?" she whispered as she released a small particle of mana through the palm of her hand.
She really did level up. Not just one tier, but two at once. Now at the peak of tier two!
"But how?" Ravina murmured and looked at Shyam, who was busy reading a paper.
After she leveled up so suddenly, a paper appeared in his hands almost instantly. It was the document Golakar gave him when he became his student and an assistant pathforger.
[ Requirement to become a 1-star pathforger
Req. 1 - be of tier two - complete
Req. 2 - be an assistant pathforger - complete
Req. 3 - help any tier two fighter level up from tier two sub-stage one to tier two sub-stage four - Complete
Req. 4 - take the one-star pathforger exam - incomplete ]
wait so, is this what pathforgers do?
He thought. Judging by what just happened, it seems like… Pathforgers are MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKERS!
That's the conclusion he fell into at least.
"I smell bad for some reason," Ravina whispered.
After leveling up, she became just a little taller and her old skin wore off as if a snake was performing ecdysis.
i didn't know one could do such thing, shyam truly. My husband worthy!
She thought as she left the room to go take another path.
Surprisingly, her backside didn't hurt at all now.
If anything, she felt even better than she did before.
---
To be continued —
Ch-45