Chapter 29:
"How is Drufas the Messenger's team doing?" the King of Soulburn asked as he walked through the castle's grand chamber beside a man in noble attire.
The man wore a simple purple shirt with a lion's head emblem over the left chest, black-and-purple pants, and a red cape traced with sharp purple lines. His black hair partly covered his shining silver eyes, and a mischievous smile played on his lips as he followed the king.
"He seems to have gathered a team of C-Rankers," the man replied. "Though that's how it looks on the surface… he has an eye for talent."
They stopped by a tall window that overlooked the training grounds. Below, Drufas stood before twenty men, each standing straight and watching him closely.
"Twenty men?" the king muttered. "And all of them C-Ranked? Are you joking?" He turned away, frustration twisting his features. "This is hopeless. How close is my Golden Cross to arriving?"
"In eight months' time, my lord," the noble answered with a grin.
The king bared his teeth. "Then his team had better succeed… or my kingdom is finished."
The Training Grounds
"Alright, everyone," Drufas said, pacing back and forth across the dirt. "I know all of you are C-Rank adventurers. This is simple... we have two months to train before the mission begins."
A man wearing an archer's outfit. A light leather vest, flexible boots, and a green-lined cloak raised his bow lazily. "Look, I could be out there leveling up instead of listening to you. So, make this quick and tell us why we're here."
"Right," Drufas said, unbothered. "The king wants a new army… and I intend to give him one."
Another adventurer stepped forward, an executioner-type warrior dressed in heavy black garments with torn sleeves, iron bracers, and a hood that hid half his face. He hefted his axe and scoffed. "We don't work for the king."
Several others nodded and started to turn away.
Drufas only smiled. "Then you all dream small."
The group froze.
"What did you just say?" the archer snapped, anger rising in his tone.
"I said, you dream small," Drufas repeated, walking toward them. He then pulled a small bag of gold from his pocket and tossed it into the air before catching it again. "Here's a mission for you. I'm hiring every one of you to land a single scratch on me."
The archer smirked. "Gladly." He drew an arrow and fired without hesitation.
Drufas caught it mid-flight between his fingers. "Nice try." He smirked and looked around. "Well? You coming or what?"
The group rushed him at once.
Twenty minutes later, the field was silent except for groans and heavy breathing. The adventurers lay scattered across the dirt, bruised and defeated.
Drufas brushed the dust from his coat and slipped the gold bag back into his pocket. "Looks like your mission failed," he said. "If any of you truly have big dreams, I expect to see you here tomorrow morning."
As he turned to leave, the archer pulled one last arrow and fired. The shot flew straight for Drufas's head but he tilted slightly, letting it whistle past.
"Still won't work, buddy," Drufas said with a grin as he vanished through the great doors.
The Next Morning
When Drufas returned, the same adventurers stood waiting for him.
"Is the mission still on?" the archer asked.
Drufas smiled. "Always."
Two months passed, and the group had changed. They had forged themselves into organized teams of five: one knight, one archer, one spear fighter, one shield-bearer, one strategist, and one dark-magic user. One team replaced the strategist with a healer; another swapped theirs for an executioner-class warrior.
When the first team stepped onto the training stage, Drufas yawned. "Alright, show me something worth my time."
The archer moved first, loosing three arrows in rapid succession. Drufas weaved between them with ease and charged.
"Shield! Now!" shouted the strategist who also doubled as the team's healer.
The shield-bearer rushed forward, raising his guard just as Drufas closed the distance.
"Nice trick," Drufas said, grinning. "But that won't work every time."
He lunged and the shield-bearer suddenly grabbed the archer by the cloak, yanking him back and thrusting his shield at Drufas in the same motion.
Clever, Drufas thought, but not enough.
He tried to stop, but momentum carried him forward. Planting both feet on the shield, he vaulted upward and flipped backward, landing several meters away to create distance.
"Knight! Spear!" the healer shouted.
"Right!" the two answered, rushing in together.
The knight's blade came down in a vertical slash. Drufas twisted sideways, the sword missing him by inches, and countered with a brutal kick to the knight's gut. The armored fighter staggered backward, air knocked from her lungs.
The spear fighter followed up instantly, thrusting toward Drufas's chest. Drufas caught the shaft mid-strike, spun with the motion, and swung the weapon in a full arc that slammed its owner to the ground.
Within seconds, nearly the entire team lay sprawled across the arena, gasping for breath. Only the archer, shield-bearer, and strategist still stood.
Drufas looked at them calmly. "Well? Do I need to see more?"
The archer lowered his weapon, jaw clenched. "We... give up."
"Wise decision." Drufas walked toward them, hands behind his back. "When I sent those invitations, they were meant for the twenty of you and no one else. I didn't recruit high-rankers for a reason."
The executioner asked"And what reason's that?"
"Adaptability," Drufas said. "For two months, none of you have used your Atherion against me. None of you relied on your rank, or power levels. You fought with instinct with will. That's what a true knight needs. And one more thing…"
He stepped aside just as the knight – thought to be unconscious lunged again. Drufas evaded easily and smiled. "Trickery. You'll need that, too."
He looked around at the weary faces. "Now, I'll extend the offer again. Are you willing to dream big? To build legacies? To craft stories that will echo for centuries? Then join me. Let's make it real... for us, and for the legacy."
He held out his hand.
High above, from a castle balcony, the noble man who had walked beside the king watched silently. His silver eyes gleamed like molten steel as he then extended his grin.
To be continued...