Call of the Abyss [Book 2 Complete]

"You're sure you aren't interested?" Wilfred asked with exasperation—this was not his first attempt.

"Indeed—my allegiance is already claimed," Ithshar said with a smile.

Wilfred nodded and shifted his gaze to the Thornalûn, expectation in his eyes.

"Non-allegiance is kinda our family's thing, so I'm afraid we'll have to decline," Talnîr said with an awkward chuckle.

"Ah, mercenaries?" Wilfred asked with recognition.

"Something like that," Talnîr confirmed.

"Very well. The offer is open should you ever change your mind. Assuming Miss Julia here passes all her exams and becomes Adamantine, her recommendation could start you at Steel, completely bypassing Bronze and Iron—though we don't advertise this little skip, so I would appreciate it if you kept it between us," Wilfred said with a wink.

The group nodded, Ithshar chuckling, and attention turned to Julia, who was tapping her foot impatiently.

She sat on a small couch at the front of Wilfred's office, a more comfortable and informal area than the desk. It also had seating for all of them—Julia wouldn't have liked it if any of the elves had to stand.

"So, what exactly is next?" she asked.

"Right. We've tested your combat prowess, and you've passed with the highest of praise from your proctor. However, being a competent combatant is only the requirement for Mithril. Adamantine-ranked individuals are the pillars of the Guild. They don't just work with the Guild, they support it.

"As such, they must be capable leaders as well. Normally, the advancement to Adamantine would be a long process involving multiple branches. There would be elaborate plans made to test the hopeful's leadership abilities.

"Since this is a rather unique situation, we'll have to improvise. First, let me ask you, Julia: do you have any prior leadership experience?" Wilfred asked.

Before she could answer, Nadhem interjected.

"Dahm'Zahra saved our home from the Nashiin invasion. She led our 50,000 soldiers to victory in the Battle of Life against an overwhelming foe that knew neither pain nor fear. Some estimates put the total enemy forces in the 250 to 350,000 range for the entire battle.

"Not only did she lead us to victory against an army at least seven times our size, she defeated their leader in single combat, exposed a traitor in the leadership of our people, and personally commanded the section of the wall where the fighting was most intense," he finished with passion before settling back into his chair, crossing his arms, and closing his eyes—as if his job was done.

Julia did her best to keep the flush from her cheeks.

"Ahem, right—well, I'd love to take your word for it, but unconfirmed testimony from non-adventurers by itself isn't enough. However, with that glowing recommendation, I think I can arrange a test as a formality. Assuming you pass, you will be a fully-fledged Adamantine," Wilfred said, extending his arms out to the side in a grand gesture.

"Sounds good," Julia said lamely. It was ironic—such a thing was a monumental achievement for most. It even would have been for her in different circumstances. Right now, it was simply a means to an end—she had work to do.

Elaine finished her concoction—evident by the sickening puff of green smoke—and immediately divided it between several small clay pots. She jammed the stoppers in and gave them a tentative shake, only exhaling once she confirmed the contents were sealed.

She'd grown up in a small village in a bog many journeys from the city. The community there was rather insular, and people didn't come and go. Thus, when she decided she was going to be an adventurer, she'd had to sneak out and set off for Vazreth on her own.

A harsh trip—especially for a 14-year-old only a few Levels into her first Class. Growing up in the swamp, however, had prepared her for long treks over rough terrain. The even ground and short grasses of the plain were almost easy in comparison—almost.

She'd made it to Vazreth with just enough funds to enroll in the Adventurer school. Well, it wasn't a 'school' per se. It was more a formalized apprentice program run by the Vazreth branch of the Guild.

Apprenticeships were traditionally done with one apprentice to one master, but this branch had started a formalized program to rear the next generation of adventurers, and she scraped and saved all the money she could gather to enter it.

She had done favors and chores for anyone in the village that would throw a coin or two her way. Every single one was a secret from her parents—she even buried the coins beside a tree outside town, just to be safe.

Eventually, when she was a successful adventurer, she'd return to the village triumphantly. She'd show her parents! There was so much to see and experience outside of their tiny part of the world!

Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators!

Although she was just a Novice, she had aspirations of becoming a Witch—hopefully as her Level 25 Class. It would be a Rare Class if it was offered at 25! She already had the Alchemy Skill, as well as a few others that she thought might be prerequisites.

The exact details of Classes and their requirements weren't well-known, and anyone that figured any specifics out held them close, sharing only with their friends and family—or possibly offering them up for profit.

Buying secrets was firmly outside her reach.

What she did know was that the Witch Class was similar to the Wizard Class, but it focused more on the natural magics—those derived from the world.

Wizard was about creating things that didn't exist yet, like tools and artifacts, while Witches brewed concoctions and sought power that existed already in nature. It was so cool! And it fit her background of growing up in the bog—everyone had to squeeze as much use out of any resources they had access to as possible.

Elaine wrapped her spare pots in cloth and stuffed them in her pack. She shouldered it, frowning at its weight. There was no helping it—this was her first job! She needed to bring everything she could manage.

Her instructor at the Guild had arranged a job shadow for each group, and hers was finally here! She wondered who she'd be partnered with, but she also didn't care that much.

Her first job!

She carefully inspected the vials hanging from her waist, making sure the leather holsters attached to her belt held them just-so. She sometimes felt it foolish to carry dangerous substances on her belt, but she thought it at least less foolish than having all her substances clanging together in her pack. Maybe once she became a really good adventurer she could buy a dimensional bag!

She shook such fantasy from her mind and left the dorm, heading straight for the main hall. It was just past mid-morning, so the crowd was dying down. The early-risers that wanted to find the most lucrative jobs on the board were long gone, and even the later-comers mostly had their jobs and were preparing to leave by this point. This made the corridors easy to navigate, so Elaine got lost once again in delusions of grandeur and becoming a famous adventurer.

She entered the hall and spotted her instructor immediately. Mr. Pitwyck was easily-spotted from pretty much any distance. He was extremely tall and thin—jarringly so. He looked like he'd blow over in a gentle breeze, but he was an experienced Mithril that everyone respected. Some whispered he'd even mastered Lightning Magic! That was notoriously difficult and dangerous!

"Ah, welcome, Elaine. Your classmates just arrived as well," Mr. Pitwyck said with a small smile.

He stood in a group of ten people—towering over them, actually—including himself. Two of them Elaine recognized as classmates that she didn't know well. The other seven must be real adventurers! How exciting!

"Alright, class. Gather around," Mr. Pitwyck said, quietly ushering them to the side.

"Elaine, Rowena, and Gareth," he declared, pointing to each of them in turn.

Rowena was a girl with straight black hair that was slicked down the back of her head. She had deep brown eyes that were so dark, they almost matched her hair. She was slightly above average in height, making her about half a head taller than Elaine, and she wore a tight leather tunic that looked flexible.

Gareth was a stout man of about the same height as Rowena, with curly red hair and a freckled face that would be quite cute were it not for his stern frown. He had wide shoulders and a slim waist, which she only knew from seeing him in class, as today he was covered in some kind of padded doublet that made him look almost thrice his normal size.

"Nice to meet you!" Elaine said with excitement.

"Pleasure," Gareth said, rather subdued, in Elaine's opinion.

Rowena simply nodded to the other two.

"Now that you are all introduced, let us do our standard party meet-and-greet. What exactly does that entail?" Mr. Pitwyck asked the group.

"New parties go over their strengths and abilities, and—depending on how much time they have to prepare—discuss formations for various likely scenarios that might be encountered on the job!" Elaine said with a fist to her chest—the Guild didn't have a salute, but she felt it necessary regardless.

"Yes, excellent, Elaine. Thank you. We do not have a great deal of time today, and you will simply be observing the adventurers, so we will just quickly go over the party formations. Gareth, would you start us off?" Mr. Pitwyck requested.

"Sure. My role will be tank. I use a sword and a shield—" he gestured at the shield strapped to his back and the arming sword at his waist, "—and while I can and will deal damage, my primary purpose will be to attract and hold enemy attention."

Mr. Pitwyck nodded and looked toward Rowena.

"Knives," she said tersely, spinning two daggers in her hand that she summoned from…somewhere. "Deal damage—sneak attacks."

Mr. Pitwyck chuckled and nodded, looking over at Elaine.

"I do magic! I know a little Fire Magic to deal damage, but I also brew poisons and noxious concoctions! I'm mostly a backline combatant," she said, motioning to the bottles on her belt.

"Excellent, let's meet the adventurers you will be shadowing—" Mr. Pitwyck started, but he was interrupted by murmurs from the group of gathered adventurers.

There was a man approaching, leading a small group of other…adventurers? There was a woman in dazzling armor directly behind the man, but the rest appeared to be elves…curious.

"Mr. Pitwyck, good to see you. Apologies for interrupting, but there's been a minor change to this operation and shadowing," the man said, waving an arm in a formal-but-friendly greeting.

"Vice Master, a pleasure as always. What exactly is the change?" Mr. Pitwyck asked politely.

Vice Master?! This is the second-in-command?!

It was only her first job and Elaine was already meeting the Vice Master! How exciting!

"Allow me to introduce Miss Julia," the Vice Master said, motioning to the armored woman behind him. Her armor was incredible! Elaine didn't know much about those things—she'd worn the same tattered tunic for several months now—but even she could tell it was expensive. It was some kind of dark red metal trimmed in gold that swirled in patterns that she couldn't understand the purpose of.

The woman herself seemed young, a fresh new adventurer, maybe? She had blonde hair that was braided down her back, with fierce eyes that…well, they seemed to change? They oscillated between blue and red, or maybe they were red on the outside and blue on the inside? And…was she glowing a little?

"Miss Julia will be leading this expedition," the Vice Master declared, and the adventurers—who only seemed mildly interested before—were suddenly paying close attention.

This was unexpected—how exciting!