Astraea: The Journey of Magic

Kuroki panted, laying down on the training grounds. He, Riku, and Kaede formed a sort of circle or triangle, all of them exhausted.

"I never knew...magic practice could be so difficult".

"That was some absurd simulations. To think its finally over..."

"My whole body is tired".

Amyris, who watched them with a smile, came over with three glasses of juice. They were currently in his basement, and they had just completed a training course.

"Looks like you all passed. So how was it? Didn't lose your minds right?"

"I know you said this could simulate enemies, but I didn't realize it could simulate entire locations and regions" Kuroki muttered. "So how much time did we take?"

"Well, out here it was about six hours...which means, you were in there for six weeks. The maximum time one can be in there safely. Just remember, you cant use this again for another six weeks, and you should avoid using any spells or magic that involves accelerating your brain. It needs time to rest and should not go into an accelerated state again any time in the near future".

"Got it. Whew. That was...intense".

Amyris just smiled. "The more intense the training, the better the results. Now then, take a best to rest up. Its really just mental fatigue anyways. But after that, Ozlo sent word to here and to every inn. It seems that they are organizing a large scale hunt, so all adventurers between G and E are being asked to come".

"If its just between G through E, it can't be an emergency, can it?"

H and G were seen as recruits or in training, F and E were seen as those just starting out, D and C were seen as the bread-and-butter adventurers, B were the elites, and A were the super elites. Anyone above that was just straight up special or a monster.

"Will you be going as well?"

"No, as an SS-Rank adventurer, I would disqualify any rewards you might get just by showing up, and it might even get us in trouble. That said, my other two apprentices, the two you have not met yet, will be helping as organizers it seems. Anyways, you had best rest up quick so you can get moving".

The three nodded, and made sure to rest properly. It seemed there was something going on.

By the time the trio entered the Adventurer's Guild, it was bustling with young faces. Countless adventurers had been gathered, and it seemed that they were all anxious, unsure of what was going on. The room was bustling with unease and excitement, and some seemed worried the floor would open up underneath them and gobble them up whole. The usual smell of ale was gone, replaced by a lovely lavander scent that helped to calm the mind.

There were quite a large number of children there too. Of course, Riku and Kaede at least had no room to talk, they were ten. But Kuroki saw some who appeared as young as eight. There was no minimum age to register as an adventurer sure, but to keep up the card and its perks, you did have to complete a request or two every month, excluding the winter months. Requests were not required when it was so cold. You could also get an exception if you got injured while doing a request. If it was a request that was more or less forced upon you by the guild, you could even get compensation.

It was possible they did requests inside of town, but there were not many, and he doubted they did that. After all, everyone here had weapon. Some even had more than one.

As the crowds were massive and large, the three of them decided to sit at a free table in the back. Everyone was crowding the counters, so this seemed fine.

It was then that Ozlo came out from the back door. Everyone cheered and ooed and ahhed.

"Its Ozlo!'

"He made B-Rank when he was just ten, and A-rank when he was twelve right?"

"Oh my gosh, he is both handsome and cute!"

"I hear he unleashes dragons upon the enemy and can incinerate everything to a crisp".

"When do you think he will become S-Rank? Any day now?"

"He certainly is good at any job he does it seems".

Apparently Ozlo was well known here, as the adventurers were all excited to meet him. Many voices of admiration and praise. Perhaps because he is accomplished despite his youth. Kuroki had heard that he actually does look his age, unlike Riza. And also that Riza's son, Vartra, was not Ozlo's father but his uncle. Kuroki remembered that Riza mentioned one of his sons not yet giving him cute grandchildren, which meant Riza had at least three children, maybe more. Kuroki had yet to hear why Riza had stopped aging at thirteen years old though.

It seemed his family connections were a topic here as well, as some groups had less then nice things to say about Ozlo.

"Everything thinks he is so great...its obvious he just used his family's connections to rank up and get his position".

"A brat like that, younger than me...no way he earned it legitimately".

"I bet his father helped him out in secret".

"I heard he is entirely weak and has to rely on summons to get things done. His family probably purchased those familiars for him".

I suppose there are idiots like that anywhere.

Kuroki sighed, happy that a certain grandpa was not here to hear that, when his gaze turned to someone else that was nearby...and he paled, quickly. A certain thirteen year old boy with two bracelets on each wrist, and one around each ankle, wearing some reinforced shorts and a shirt that appeared sturdy and padded, as well as boots, was standing right there, just a bit away. He didn't appear to have his weapon on him, but Kuroki wouldn't be fooled.

Wait, why is Riza there?!?!

Riza's hair right now was brown, not blonde, and his clothes were average and normal for a thirteen year old adventurer. Plenty of others, boys and girls, were dressed similarly. However, simply changing one's hair color wasn't always enough, and it certainly wasn't in Riza's case. Amyris said the high ranks were disqualified, so wasn't it a huge problem that he was here?

Ozlo, when he stepped onto a box that was prepared as a stage, glared at him briefly when spotted, but just for a second or two, and then focused on the crowd. Kuroki was pretty sure Riza shivered a bit from that look.

"Thank you all for coming. Now, as I am sure you know, we have been asking E, F, and G rank adventurers to check in with the guild every day. This is indeed related to that" Ozlo said, his voice carrying across the entire room. In an instant, all the muttering and chatting died down, as he was able to capture everyone's attention. His voice had a sort of air of authority and importance, which seemed to be conveyed to everyone. It was clear he was used to speaking like this. "Lately, we have been seeing an unusual amount of Goblin activity in the nearby regions, and reports of groups as large as three or four goblins in the sewers even. To avoid unrest and worries, we have decided to organize a large scale Goblin Hunt. We have reports from scouts and familiars about the areas Goblins have been congreating in and their sizes, and we will be distributing zones for everyone to hunt in to avoid overlap. Please make sure to stay in your zones, this will be counted towards contribution and quest reward".

Everyone started talking when they heard Goblins.

"I am only G-Rank...my master did say I was ready but..."

"Same. It has mostly been Corrupted Animals in the fields".

"As an E-Rank, I will have to show you all the ropes!"

"With all these people, will multiple parties be in the same zone? Are we grouping up with strangers?"

Among them, one voice near Kuroki's group seemed especially worried.

"A Goblin Surge...at this time of year? And in the sewers in groups of four? There must be more to this then meets the eye".

Kuroki was not familiar with this world, but he did remember seeing the pack of three a few days ago when Amyris showed them the secret exit and entrance. In other words, someone had since seen a group of four, and it wasn't an isolated case? SO he had been wondering if there was something more to it.

Suddenly, the boy who Kuroki had focused in on raised his hand. Ozlo saw it, and called upon him.

"Yes, Riala? Ah, please introduce yourself clearly for everyone".

The boy nodded. He had a shield on one arm, but he had a staff in the other. There was also a sword at his hip. He had a made robe on, but also had a breastplate. He had armguards and kneeguards as well. He appeared to be about thirteen years old, with dark red hair and silver blue eyes. He also had wolf ears on his head and a wolf tail, showing him to be a Wolf Beastkin.

"Yes! I am Riala, F-Rank Adventurer, leader of the Soaring Shields party! My party members are Vio, Yethle, and Cairu".

Behind him there were three others. Vio appeared to be a boy in a purple cloak. He had a grimoire with him, but also two daggers. He was wearing a dark blue shirt and black shorts, as well as black sturdy boots. There was a girl named Yethle. She also had a shield on her arm, and a sword at her hip. She seemed a bit stockier and sturdier then the rest of them, and also had a mace with her as well. Her armor was the heaviest of all, being what Kuroki figured was probably half-plate. It seemed like she might be a Dwarf, but she seemed a bit tall for one, and she had raven black hair and purple eyes. As for Cairu, he had a toolbelt that had some tools and a lot of vials, as well as both a backpack and a large satchel. It was obvious he used a lot of them, but he also had a small shield on each forearm. He also had the pointed ears of an Elf, not to mention the slender body of one it seemed.

It would appear as if three out of four of them had shields, which made their party name make a lot of sense. However, that was not quite accurate.

The Mage is a shielder too. Vio seems to reflexively keep a magic barrier around them and ready. I can roughly sense the trace mana. In other words, all four have good defense. But they have two mages as well, and one can also join their frontline warrior for two frontline attackers. Even their support can defend if needed. Their magic could use some work, especially in concealment, but...they are good. In terms of balance and defense, they exceed us easily.

Kuroki's party had three people who could use magic, but Riku's was minor and Kaede's seemed even less. It wasn't that it was less powerful, but it was less flexible. They had certain specific things they could do well with it, but it couldn't match Kuroki's magic. That said, both of them had the ability to heal themselves and others with their magic, and Riku had some snazzy magic like his Flare Enchant. So it was best not to underestimate it.

Riku served as their vanguard, but Kaede could as well with her reflexes and knife skills, and Kuroki could assist them. Still, both were far better for evasion then defense. And Kuroki was their only ranged attacker. They had exceptionally good defensive gear thanks to Ellie, but gear could only do so much. And the three of them could tell that while their raw power and talent was higher, the party next to them had both experience and wisdom.

Frankly speaking, they might be F-Rank right now, but I think they are more like E-Rank. They might even already be closing in on D-Rank...

That was Kuroki's impression, although admittedly he was missing a lot of information, and might be inflating it a bit since he held them in high regards due to their insight.

While having such thoughts, Riala began to ask his question.

"Is this a Goblin Surge? Should we be expecting Hobgoblins or the like?"

At those words, everyone began to murmur and be concerned. They had every right to, Goblins might be F-Rank, but Hobs could be E or even D rank. A lot of people used the rank system as a reference, even though it wasn't perfect and had plenty of flaws. It was still the best system they had for comparisons though.

"According to our scouts, not a single Hobgoblin or other higher form of Goblin has been seen. So far its just a lot of Goblins, but they appear to be acting independnetly and in small groups. No shamans or mages have been sighed, nor signs of organized leadership".

Ozlo's words spread relief to the entire group. Everyone...well, almost everyone...here was G to E ranked. If Hobs appeared, there could be casualties. The rank system wasn't perfect, but the reason it survived for so long was because it was still useful and accurate for plenty of normal cases. G-Ranks hadn't even proven their full combat abilities to the guild yet, but they had to some degree or else they would be H-Rank. They were still basically a trainee rank in the end though.

Asking them to fight Hobs would be entirely unreasonable.

"What will happen is that we will have G-Ranks participate in no less then groups of six, under the direction of an E-Rank adventurer. Otherwise, it will be made of E and F rank combat groups, which will be given areas to work in. Multiple parties will be working in the same area, so make sure you introduce yourself to anyone working in the same sector as you and coordinate with them. Each combat group must be made of at least four F-Rank or three E-Rank adventurers, and needs to be well balanced. Furthermore, let me remind you that this is a long term over time mass subjugation mission. You will need to fight while conserving strength and resources for future battles. Unless absolutely necessary, do not pull out or leave your areas, and if you have to, notify other parties so that they will be able to adapt accordingly. I want everyone to have safety whistles with them for this purpose. You whistle once to request the status of nearby parties. Three whistles is to check in and say you are fine. Two whistles either means that you are in danger or need help, or you need to pull out due to exhaustion or injury. If you do not hear whistles from adjacent parties, a single long blow as loud and as hard as you can will be the signal for maximum distress, and you are to pull back to the city. That shouldn't happen, but we are adventurers. We face danger every day, and unexpected monster attacks can always happen. There shouldn't be any danger, but please excercise maximum safety".

Ozlo then motioned two others to come onto stage as he continued with his explanation.

"In addition, by request of Count Valiance and the City Council, on the first two days, the sewers will be handled only by E-Rankers".

This caused quite a stir within the adventurers.

"Hold on, if a Goblin Surge is happening, there will be far more goblins in the forest then in the sewers still! If they are just invading the sewers, the number in the forest will be even higher!"

"What the hell is this farce?!"

"Yeah! Why are we E-Rankers being sent into the sewers when we will be needed more in the forest?!"

Ozlo just let out a sigh, and unconsciously nodded with everything they said. He clearly found it baffling as well.

"...in addition" Ozlo continued with a low, monotone voice that showed clearer disdain then his expression did. "The sewer sweep will start in the Noble and Central districts, and head outwards, starting with the older more built up districts".

"What the hell? Seriously?"

"Come on Ozlo! Don't let them boss you around! Show them who is boss!"

"Those districts are the furtherest away from the forest entrances and any goblin sightings! ANd don't nobles have their own security anyways? You drag them down and question them about this Ozlo?"

Ozlo seemed to twitch a bit, as he heard such statements. He then slammed his hands down on the podium that had been brought for him.

"I know, its completely stupid! Me, the Guildmaster, the Vice-Guildmaster, we all argued and pointed out how unreasonable it was! It is completely idiotic! Why on earth would they make us send E-Rankers into the sewers when the real danger is in the forest?! But no, Count Valiance is apparently a whiny little shit who thinks its beneath his guards to have them kill Goblins! Not only that, but he tried to make us do all of this for free you know?!"

Everyone began booing, not at Ozlo but Valiance. It was only then that the guildmaster spoke up.

"Ozlo, you are letting your malice get the better of you".

"Oh...sorry, I just had to vent a bit. In any case, since this was clearly unreasonable, especially since I wanted E-Rankers in the forest to gaurentee all of your safeties, I will be having monitors help to oversee the region. Many will be the scouts, tamers, and Familiar users that we used to ascertain the threat level, while others will be volunteers. However, keep in mind they will not be engaging in combat unless necessary. Think of them like reserves for emergencies. Also, its not like I could get that many of them, since this is kind of a low paying job for them, so make sure to be grateful for their volunteer work".

"Oi oi, you didn't give us the option of saying no!" a rough looking man said. He was wearing a black cloak, a dark red shirt, and black short pants. They went beyond the knee but didn't get close to the ankle. He had black boots that appeared light yet sturdy, and he had a bow slung around his shoulder, as well as a quiver.

"Oh, but I think you had plenty of choices, Jay. Either do this to make amends or pay back the guild, or..."

Face your punishment, from me directly.

The last words were not spoken aloud, and yet everyone seemed to hear and understand them. Everyone in the room had chills run down their spines.

Jay seemed to back off. "...right right, sorry".

"Glad you understand. And remember, the rest of you, to take your monitor duties very seriously, or I will come deal with the issue myself. You are also to ensure peace between all the parties as well, after all. Whether you are here out of virtue, or to make amends, you will keep watch over your juniors properly. Unless, you want to save me money on dragon kibble".

Some people were spooked, and a few of the monitors that were there seemed to get squirmish. But among the younger adventurers, the admiration only grew.

"Oh man, that is Dragon Caller Ozlo for you".

"He is so cool! Even his threats are awesome!"

"I wonder if he is single...do you think he will go out on a date with me?"

"Nah, I don't think he is your type. Rumor has it he likes girls, dude".

"I heard he doesn't care about gender, only about personality and reliability".

"Then maybe I do have a chance!"

And apparently there were some who were just infatuated with him. Or rather, it seemed that there were a surprising number of people with gossip about his dating life. It quickly became a hot topic among them all, and Ozlo had an awkward look on his face hearing it. Actually, he might just be embarrassed because one adventurer proposed to him on the spot. Naturally he declined with a "Sorry, I am too busy with my work right now to date anyone seriously".

Kuroki was quite surprised by this. Granted all of his knowledge came from fiction, but he heard that Adventurer's Guilds were typically rough and rowdy. Certainly, it had been like that when he and Riku registered, and when Kaede registered. But apparently the guild was not so two dimensional. Love gossip was incredibly popular it seemed.

"I am surprised. To think relationship gossip would be so strong here".

"Yeah..."

"Even the girls in our class never spoke this much, Riku".

"Well, its probably because lots of people here know about the value of life" a voice said. Kuroki turned towards its source, and saw Riala there.

It seemed his party had come over to greet them during the interruption.

"Riala, right?"

"Mhm. Yeah" the wolf beastkin boy said. "I don't recognize you, are you three new around here?"

"Ah, yeah. We just got to town recently" Kuroki said. "We registered a few days ago even".

"Ah, so you are the group from rumors. The one who came in with the legends Amyris and Riza, and defeated a group of six troublemakers who were both drunk and high".

"...exactly how much was that story spread around" Kuroki asked, concerned.

"Enough that a lot of people have their eye on you. Its not that its rare, but...two of you are ten years old, and you are what? Fourteen? Fifteen?"

The trio were amazed. Riala had apparently been able to figure out Kuroki's age instantly. Only a very small handful belonged to that group. Rather, it was really just Ozlo and maybe Riza.

"Are you really F-Rank?"

"Ah, yeah. Some things happened. Anyways, its nice to meet you. Lets watch each other's backs out there...although, it looks like you need a fourth member first".

"Ah, I got that covered" a boy said. Riala and his party were surprised by the sudden appearance of a black haired Riza.

"What are..."

"Now now, is that any way to talk to your C-Rank adventurer friend, Myra?" Riza mentioned, showing his guild card. Certainly enough it said C-Rank and that his name was Myra. But Kuroki could figure it was probably a fake. Or rather, he was more interested in how the photo ID even had hair that wasn't blonde. Did he know a secret way to change it, or did he somehow change his actual genetics to make it black, at least when the card was made?

"...I dont recognize you either, and you seem hella suspicious. Also, those three look utterly baffled by you. Are you really their friend?"

Riala was apparently quite perceptive, and didn't even remotely buy into Riza's lies.

"Well, in any case, its not me who is joining you. See, there is a fresh adventurer who just made F-Rank last night. Apparently he is a knight trainee and kind of young, but he has potential. He doesn't have anyone to go with however, and since their group needs another vanguard, its a good fit!"

It must be the Starfallen he said had potential. Apparently he was a second grader before, so he would be the youngest of us all, but his combat abilities were apparently enough to impress Riza. I just have no idea what kind of person we will get.

"I guess this was set up then. Well, anyways" Riala said, proceeding to ignore Riza. "Lets stay safe and make it back alive, alright?"

Kuroki nodded. Before they could continue though, Ozlo's voice broke through.

"Anyways, enough with that" he said, as someone was being tied up and detained behind him. He was shouting things like "dont steal my girlfriend you freak" and a knfie had been dropped on the ground behind Ozlo, so apparently they missed something dramatic there. "Now, in addition to the scouts, I have recruited Myra, a wandering C-Rank Adventurer, as well two apprentices of the Magician of the Silver Hour, Lyrian Bell and Saphiril Danes".

He introduced a boy and girl respectively. The boy, Lyrian, appeared to be around fourteen years old. From what Kuroki had heard, he was actually almost a B-Rank Adventurer in his own right, so it seemed odd he was still introduced as an apprentice. The girl meanwhile appeared to be about fifteen or sixteen. Both had ornate blue cloaks with silver trimmings, and Lyrian had a grimoire like Kuroki, but he also had a wand. Meanwhile, Saphiril had a staff with her, although the end of her staff was a blade. Kuroki was not sure how that worked, but it was probably for her combat style.

"That said, we cant have everyone hunting Goblins. The Goblin numbers may have increased, but the other monster populations have not decreased. We have confirmed Izahara, also known as Horned Rabbits, are still prevalent throughout the fields through the forest, so we obviously cant guarantee a clear path to or from the forest. Also Giant Mantises, and Demon Cats. We have also reported a few slimes, so if you see one and you dont have a magic user, avoid them and try to get a magic user to come help you. In truth, I want a number of new F-Rankers and G-Rankers to focus in on these fields on the first day, thin them out and clear the path. Depending on how well it goes, G-Rankers in the fields will be asked to hold the line as F-Rankers move to the forest to help provide relief and hunt goblins".

The city wasn't so foolish as to leave a monster infested woods bordering it. Although parts of it got very close, and one gate was still located in a forested area where more dangerous monsters could appear, the rest were more open or had huge fields.

Incidentally, that gate was the one Kuroki entered the city for the first time.

"Now, I want groups to come up one at a time to the various receptionist desks. We each have a set number of areas to distribute, all arranged ahead of time, and there is plenty for everyone. Frankly, we could probably use more poeple, but of course we have to waste so many on the damn sewers".

Ozlo let out another grumble, before everyone got sorted. At that time, a new face came in.

"You are Kuroki's party right? Thanks for having me!" An energetic, youthful voice spoke up. They turned and saw an eight year old boy, shortsword by his side, looking up at them. "To think though that everyone of us is..."

At those words, Kuroki quickly put his hand on his mouth and spoke in a hushed tone. "Shh shh, don't say that out loud. You never know who, or what, might be listening".

The boy realized what he meant, and quickly stopped himself. Kuroki removed his hand.

"Sorry sorry, I got all excited again".

Since it was known there was something out there hunting Starfallen, they were trying to keep it under wraps. If Kuroki was being honest, he was actually a bit concerned Riala might figure it out considering how sharp he was, but he also seemed to have the knowhow to keep secrets at least. Still, speaking of it in a public place was certianly ill advised.

"Anyways, what is your name?"

"Ryuu Takahashi. But you can just call me Ryuu".

Hmmm...now that I think about it, I feel like we all have been using our first names far more then our family names. I wonder if its an affect of the Starfall...

While thinking of that, he had Ryuu explain his strengths. Apparently he didn't really have much magic, but he could boost himself physically and create flying slashes and such. He could apparently radiate some sort of heroic aura too, but Kuroki told him not to do that in town. At least until he saw it for himself.

"Alright everyone. Lets get to it!"

"What is our party name by the way?" Ryuu asked.

"Silver Storm" Kuroki replied. He did it in honor of Master's title, Magician of the Silver Hour. And the fact they were brought here via a storm, technically.

The party went up and eventually as the line decreased, they made it to Ozlo's counter. It took about an hour though.

"Ah, sorry for the wait. A few people just had to argue their assigned areas. Anyways...so what is your party's name?"

"Silver Storm".

"Can I see your ID cards to register the party properly?"

All of them showed their ID cards, and Ozlo recorded everything properly. He wrote something down in a ledger, and then looked through the maps.

"Okay. So, I am going to start you guys out on field duty. That said, you all are pretty talented, so I am setting you up near the forest. If you manage to clear the area and get things done, I want you guys to go into the forest and provide relief for the parties that were fighting goblins, mainly the F-Rank ones. E-Ranks should have developed more stamina, but...you never know".

"Understood. Can you tell us what is valuable about the monsters in the area? We haven't heard details about it yet".

"Ah yes, of course. Given your...circumstances...that makes sense. All the magic cores are good to get. They always sell decently well, even small ones from weak monsters you will be fighting. After all, they are needed to fuel magic tools and are used in some recombinations. As for their other parts...Horned Rabbits tend to not taste very well, except for their legs for some reason. And their horns can get some price, since they are used by artisans for things...and also for arts and crafts. I think they get ground down into the color yellow for paint. Slimes...honestly its just their core. The slime they produce can be valuable, but you need vials and containers to hold it, since its quite acidic. Supposedly they were created by the Evil God specifically to spite the logistics corps, who happen to be the main bounty placers on slimes. Since slimes eat through equipment and gear and make their lives hell. They dissolve cloth, metal, anything they can, but once defeated their slime becomes less acidic. There are also slimes that are non-acidic, but they make you very slippery instead which makes it hard to stand properly and fight, so they are also annoying. With either slime, any weapon you have and any clothes or armor you are wearing essentially become a detriment. And then they either dissolve you, or suffocate you. Even the slippery ones can dissolve people once they eat them by the way".

So basically, slimes were incredibly annoying, but it seemed like unless you got surrounded by them, surprised by them, or if one managed to make it close to you, they could be dealt with.

"Since that means any weapon that goes inside of them is getting slowly disolved, it ruins weapons you try to use on them, so while it is still possible to defeat them with weapons, magic is the best option. Giant Mantises are probably the most dangerous in the field. Their arms are basically blades, they blend into the grass, and they can jump and strike fast. That said...they have basically no endurance. A single hit will probably kill one. If you even accidentally step on one somehow, that will probably kill it. Its happened in the past. A lot".

"How big are they exactly?"

"They are about the same height as the grass in the field, which...goes to just above Kuroki's belly button I would say. There are areas the grass is higher though".

"Understood. And then Demon Cats?"

"They look like cats, but are pitch black, have horns, and can breathe fire. When they mature, its said they can shoot beams from their eyes as well. They also have little wings on their backs. They also like to steal things. Food, weapons, water, clothes".

"Clothes?"

"If you go swimming, make sure you secure your clothes under a rock. You dont want to run through the forest bare butt naked while a cat has your underwear on top of its head. It happens more than you would think".

"Noted".

Kuroki didn't plan on going swimming anyways, at least not in the middle of a request, and not in a forest in a world he is not used to yet.

"Now, here. I have marked the area on your map, so please head there and start to deal with the monsters present. You only need to be out during the day, when the sun is starting to set, you should start returning. We need everyone safe and well rested to keep it up the next day".

"Understood. We are heading out then".

And so their first job as adventurers began.