Astraea: The Journey of Magic

Gathik Valiance. The son of the current Count Valiance, Merik. Merik Valiance was the current Heir of a Count Family, which had formed due to the recognition of one of their ancestors who couldn't inherit their previous title as the third son of a Marquiss family, so they ended up establishing a whole new house. This had given them quite a bit of sway since they had achieved such results, although there had always been a bitterness about not having been allowed to succeed the Marquiss household despite their achievements. It was the true goal of their ancestor at the time, and it had ended up passed down throughout the count family.

Their ambition had only grown, but so had their desperation. Despite their merits, the original Marquiss family still stood on top of them, and despite the influence the Count Family had obtained, they had yet to be able to rise up the ranks. It resulted in them turning to darker methods, and indulging more to ease their woes. For the last few generations, though perhaps not everyone was aware, they had been growing quite despicable, despite history books being filled with nothing but praise for them. This, and other factors, had warped them into what they were known for today. Gathik and his father were the worst so far.

They took genuine pride in the humiliation and devastation in their victims, and saw anyone who tried to show them up or embarrass them, or those related to them, as valid targets. Ellie was a renowned beauty in whatever appearance she chose to be in, and she was incredibly skilled. Obtaining her talents for themselves was something they sought, but their overdeveloped pride made them think she would simply swoon and be entranced by them just by entering their household. Of course, they had a number of other methods as well they planned to use, as they had not gotten this far by being careless. Gathik was highly impulsive however, but he wasn't a complete fool despite appearances. He would never be capable of outsmarting Ozlo, but Ozlo had been forced into a variety of situations because Gathik could be hard to predict at time. One might refer to him as a Clever, Arrogant Fool.

That said, no one around him had ever truly pointed out his worst personality traits, the staff having been handpicked by the count for their loyalty and lack of care regarding morals, or because they had means to silence them and make them obey. Even when he went to the Royal Academy when he was nine years old, he had ended up quite proud and arrogant. He grew a following under him and gained connections. The Royal Academy had at max a ten year program, but not everyone stuck around the whole time, and some joined advanced classes at the start or skipped grades. He had completed it all, though there were always rumors of him cheating. Typically, only really dedicated and exceptional commoners, and Marquiss or above made it through to the final year coursework, the hardest of them all. His family always had achieved that each time, showing they were the same as the Marquiss, Dukes, and royalty. And while he wasn't a total failure in his studies, he clearly lacked wisdom, something that was tested just as much as knowledge retention and problem solving. Hence the rumors of cheating.

However, those rumors paled in comparison to what happened some years in. When he was in his seventh year, a nine year old boy took the school by storm. Ozlo Luminar, the prodigal child who at the time was a C-Rank adventurer, closing in on B-Rank. Having joined the Adventurer's Guild at six years old, its said he displayed uncanny talent but also incredibly intelligence and wisdom, rising to E-Rank in just a few weeks after joining. Throughout the whole world, even including children who were Starfallen or those born with special abilities and talents, a very small handful, perhaps only about 3-4 other children within the past decade, had accomplished this. All sorts of rumors were started about him. That his grandfather had his parents bathe in dragon blood when he was concieved, allowing draconic blood to flow through his veins. Others thought he might be an adopted Starfallen, and some thought he was actually a Demigod, or blessed by all of the gods of this world.

However, soon a new rumor rampaged throughout the school, blazing through everything. It was that he was an incredibly talented, but also incredibly hard working individual. He took studying to a new level, combining it with his combat exercises to train his mind and body at the same time. That he had managed to negotiate with dragons and formed pacts with them after studying up about them and their culture, which most people thought were just myth. That he had endured great trials, with no less then ten assassination attempts to try and send a message to his grandfather.

Of course, the rumors only grew more and more wild, but that first one was one people confirmed for themselves. He was absolutely a hard worker, with great wit.

And with all the attention on him, it meant that Gathik had trouble standing out and making his achievements known. Especially when Ozlo started school in the fifth grade of the Royal Academy. It was said that no one had ever done that since the First Prince of the King who founded the kingdom, and the only one since had been one of the princes of the current king. He didn't always get perfect scores, but he excelled and showed knowledge clearly beyond his years and talent that allowed him to skip grades anyways.

This infuriated Gathik. Along with the rumors, which inflated and got outlandish, includine one claiming he was an actual incarnation of a god, he was making Gathik look bad. At least in Gathik's perception. It was one thing if a higher noble did so, but this boy was just a grandchild of a count, not even him, a child of a count. Furthermore, to display such capability and to steal all the attention, Gathik's ego could not take it anymore, and he eventually challenged Ozlo to a duel. He intended to show the brat his place, a child who was seven years younger than him.

But that was when he witnessed the power that would one day give Ozlo the title Dragon Caller. Opening three summoning gates at once, the highest Ozlo was capable of at the time, he summoned two tiny dragons and one small dragon, but since he was only nine years old he could ride the small dragon perfectly fine. This infuritated Gathik even more, since he could only form a single summoning gate right now. Of course, he was also more focused on the knight courses, so that was even more unreasonable of him then normal. After all, Ozlo was agile and decent at sports, but his otherwise balanced courseload did include just a few more mage courses then others.

Still, the result was obvious. He didn't keep a calm mind, while Ozlo did, resulting in a total victory for Ozlo. But of course, that only made things worse. Beat downs, stealing his clothes, putting alcohol in his drinks, spreading malicious rumors, and more. Gathik went beyond normal bullying and went full on to humilate Ozlo and make him regret using what Gathik saw as "cheap and dirty tricks to cheat into victory".

But when next year rolled around, things got even worse. There was an attack on the school, and a huge swarm of monsters got inside. Gathik was the next head of his household, so as he should, he protected himself. But Ozlo proactively helped everyone, saving countless lives with his dragons. This also earned him his promotion to B-Rank, and he got the attention of the Royal Army, including Count Cremalis, whose family history was even longer and more distinguished then Gathik's own, and who even often had the ear of the King. Furthermore, apparently Cremalis' son, who had skipped a few grades himself, became friends with Ozlo. It was infuriating.

This had led to their conflict escalating, especially when Ozlo skipped grades into his year. As such, they both ended up entering the final year together, which was the only year Ozlo didn't, or rather, couldn't accelerate through his schoolwork. After all, that year involved a lot of critical thinking, considerations, and even simulations. Not Amyris' magical ones, but thought simulations using paper and such to record progress and see how things developed. Seeing how well they adapted to changes as things went on, to promote long term thinking. The final year had almost nothing to do with knowledge retention, but moreso these critical thinking, problem solving, and future anticipation skills. It was the hardest year of them all, and yet while Ozlo aced them, even with Valiance's "earned allowances", he just managed to pass.

His hatred of Ozlo was fierce, but he couldn't seem to ever successfully strike at the boy directly. Even two years after they graduated, Ozlo was this pressence that antagonized him just by existing, and yet he could do nothing about it. Nothing except strike at those that Ozlo got friendly with or took interest in.

This led him to the two in front of him. There were four in total actually, but two of them specifically had shown up his father, who had taken an interest in making them his new toys. Gathik found it to be a good cathartic way to vent as well, and shared many of his father's traits and habits. So the fact that there was a way to get back at Ellie, Ozlo, and enjoy themselves all at once? Gathik couldn't help but jump at it and take advantage of such a prime opportunity. Especially since it would also let them get back at Riza and Amyris as well, who they did not get along with either.

And from all his time setting up schemes to humiliate and harass Ozlo from the shadows, with some of them succeeding, he had various ways to pressure and manipulate people.

In short, rather than learning his lesson, he had just become even bigger scum.

Kuroki had actually been given this very explanation from Ozlo himself after what happened yesterday, so he was roughly aware of what this guy was like.

Everyone had their guard up as well. The knights already had their swords drawn. The knights were clearly superior to them in strength, and their options and time was limited. If it remained just speaking, maybe they had a chance but that seemed rather unlikely. They were four kids who lacked enough knowledge of noble etiquette and schemes, and he was someone who had that experience in spades. Kuroki wished he could say "I activate my trap card, Trap Hole!" to get rid of them all, but sadly this wasn't this kind of world.

So instead, he was incredibly on edge.

"Now, why don't you come with us. You must be so tired of working right, especially kids as young as you. We can treat you to lovely meals, and you wont have to do any dangerous work ever again".

For this party, who had not completely adapted yet and were still used to their old world, the offer in itself would likely be incredibly enticing. However, they could all hear the darkness in his tone, and the danger that he emanated. Not a single one of them was so foolish to accept, even Ryuu.

"Somehow I doubt that's the full story. Or that you would do something like that without getting something you want in return".

"Ah see, I have been hearing rumors ever since the night of the shooting stars that some truly exceptional people have come to town. I suppose I would like to check some things out and answer a few questions, is all".

Not good. It almost sounds like he knows about the Starfallen.

They had been keeping it secret for now, since it was obvious that there were people out there hunting Starfallen and there was no reason to expose themselves to danger against a foe that was operating globally. But if this person knew about the Starfallen, based on what they heard, they could all be in grave danger.

It wouldn't even be impossible that he was working with them in some capacity, given the supposed shady dealings his family have had in secret for centuries now.

The four of them backed away, as the knights took another step forward. However, they suddenly felt a stone wall behind them were it had not been before, with a magician standing on top of it. It was the same magical that had been working with Gathik's father before.

"Not getting away this time, little ones".

This was without a doubt a bad situation. One of the knights took a step forward, to try and grab Kuroki's arm, only for Kuroki's cloak to grab it instead, and toss the knight away.

"Danger Level Greatly Exceeded Current Abilities. Cloak Tutorial Mode temporarily suspended. Full Combat Mode Authorized".

It was a robotic way of speaking, although Kuroki swore he felt a bit of warmth in there. Amyris said he had made it so the cloak would slowly let Kuroki use its full power over time, since he was worried it might prevent him from growing. It meant his life would be in danger, but otherwise, Kuroki would never be able to handle a strong opponent such as the Devil that had attacked Anna, and he would never be able to face his father properly, so Kuroki had agreed with it.

However, Kuroki hadn't known that Amyris had installed a safety feature to temporarily disable those restrictions should they wind up in an impossible situation. Apparently, if they had a zero percent chance of winning, it would activate. That said, its not like it was some sort of super ultra legendary piece of gear that could stop all attacks, and get them out of every mess.

"Well now, it looks like they gave you quite the gift. Tell me, what do you desire? I am sure I can find way to make it worth your while, telling me everything you know about this situation".

While he made such an enticing offer, his voice felt like the audio version of honey. Sweet and wonderful, and oh so great, as if it would be worth anything they had. Certainly, a noble offering that would be quite the offer. But only if it was true.

Kuroki and Riku snapped out of it quickly, and stopped the other two as well.

"I am being quite serious you know? I do want to make sure you tell me everything after all".

His voice still sounded like honey, but also with authority. Compliance was triggering, along with their desires. It forced them to waiver, to truly consider it. That was the sort of situation they were in, being compelled to listen to the request. Kuroki was worried that, if they were ordered to with the voice he was using right now, that they would be incapable of resisting. This wasn't just Compliance, it had to be some magic or special ability.

The cloak shimmered gold for a moment, and the conflict in his body eased up. One of the cloaks abilities was immunity or at least resistance to mental manipulation magic, and it seemed that it had worked in this instance.

The mage looked quite interested.

"Hey, I really want to see what that cloak can do" he said, looking at the cloak with great interest.

Kuroki meanwhile, looked at the man with resistance.

"I doubt I will ever trust someone who so easily resorts to mind control" Kuroki spat, as the knights all took a step towards them. They were wary of the cloak now, so it likely wouldn't be able to pick them up and throw them away so easily. Besides, it was mainly defensive.

And then in that moment, a growl resonated through the forest. It was a growl much different then anything they heard before. In an instant, all the birds took flight, and all the animals scampered away. Kuroki and the others felt fear, but not as much as the others did. The Knights whimpered, and one nearly dropped his sword. The mage suddenly layered several defensive spells on himself, and Gathik even used some sort of wrist tool to create a powerful barrier around himself. However, even still it almost looked like the color drained from their faces. It was as if they had selectively been hit with some sort of psychological attack. Kuroki almost wanted to call it targeted bloodlust, but there was no such thing right? Or did mana allow bloodlust to manifest as such an aura that it could exist as such?

Either way, with all of them distracted, the four cut through a side alley in these old crumbling ruins, where trees were even breaking through the ground in some areas. The knights however almost immediately moved, and they were faster. By the time they were out of the alley, they were surrounded again.

"Nice try, but you will be coming with us now".

Indeed, the situation looked quite dire. Kuroki hoped that something would come save them. Anything would be fine. The knights drew their swords and closed in, having no qualms in harming them to secure them.

But then, out of the forest, a fast shadow ripped through the woods. it charged into one knight and bit its arm, causing the knight to yell out in pain. The knight managed to shake it off, but his right arm was completely totaled and he had lost his sword. He quickly picked it up with his left hand, but it was clear he was right handed.

"What the hell? What is that doing here?!"

"A Shadehound? Why is a Rank D monster doing in these woods?"

The knights seemed shaken by the appearance of such a monster. It appeared to be a dog like monster, but its details were hard to make out. Given the fact it was totally darkened by its aura, it was hard to make out, and it could be anything between a Rottweiler and a Saint Bernard. Kuroki would prefer the later to the former. He knew of a rather nasty former one owned by his dad, while the latter he had only friendly interactions with and it was cute. However, the mage was even more concerned.

"Get your eyes checked, thats no normal Shadehound. Its aura is way too thick, and its eyes are way brighter then normal. Might be some sort of unique mutation or variant".

"Then capture those brats with your magic and lets pull back before this thing kills us".

These guys, how can they even think about capturing us still with this weird situation? Shadehounds don't appear in this region after all, Ozlo would have told us if there was such a possibility.

Indeed, right now, from further away, Ozlo was currently dumbfounded as he looked through the eyes of his familiar.

Why on earth is there a Shadehound there of all things?! Just what the fuck is going on in this forest...wait a second...

Quickly, Ozlo shared the senses of his dragon with the others.

"Ah you can see, an emergency situation has appeared. There is an at least D if not C-Ranked threat in the forest. Due to this, I will need to go there in case it is in a pack!"

"A pack of Shadehounds?!"

"Furthermore, as you might have noticed, its not a normal one, but possibly a unique...or perhaps even an enhanced specimen. This could mean its a C-Rank threat. As there is a noble and various F-Rankers at risk, in accordance with the agreement, I am setting off now".

Before anyone could argue or speak out, Ozlo slammed his palm onto the table as he pushed off it, jumping over the table and heading out of the tent. A small dragon, just big enough for him to ride, appeared out of a summoning gate in front of him. He quickly mounted, not even needing a saddle as it had protrusions that naturally became a seat for him, even supporting his back and giving him handhelds. He used magic as well to help keep him attached.

"Rakia! Lets fly! We need to go assist them before any packs show up!"

Hearing those words, the dragon set off, taking to the skies right in their direction. With this, Ozlo had managed to escape the stuffy noble atmosphere. He loosed his collar and removed the top button, making his neck and throat more comfortable.

"Just hold on guys. I am coming!"

At the same time, a cloaked figure saw him take off.

Hmm. So that is the Dragon Caller. To think he would be able to monitor a familiar from so far away, and use multiple familiars so well. It seems I was right to keep an eye on him. But even more annoyingly, my magic earlier had no effect on him. It brought Anna and even the Guildmaster to their knees, but no reaction at all from him?

The Cloaked Figure glared at Dragon Caller.

I suppose a glancing blow just wont be enough. I will have to deep dig into his mind then, and learn his secrets as well. Dragon Caller, you will be among my next victims.

And while that ominous declaration was made, things took a strange turn at where Kuroki was.

The Shadehound seemed to shift through the shadows, avoiding two sword strikes. The mage sent forth pieces of rope, which seemed to become snakes to try and tie up the four of them. However, there was a big difference between now and then.

"Brilliant Flash!"

"Heroic Slash!"

"Shadowslice".

"Frostfall".

Kuroki and Kaede knew how to fight back, and Riku and Ryuu were with them now. It was only natural that the same trick would not work twice. However, when the ropes simply seemed to attract to each other and reattach, it became clear the mage was no fool either. The mage threw some basic attack spells too, to keep Kuroki's cloak busy. Kuroki responded by sending some ice spikes at him, but he has his own barrier bracelet and it deflected them all.

Is this actually the same guy as before? I feel like the personality is different...maybe his apprentice?

The magic shown by the mage had managed to restrain him and Kaede instantly, but this guy lacked the same ability. While Kuroki thought it was because they were stronger, he also thought this guy might be another mage. Probably the apprentice. If so, that meant they might have to worry about the master showing up if they were not careful.

The Shadehound meanwhile bit down on another knight's arm. He had bitten one at the start of the battle, and a second one at some point while they were busy with the mage. Now every single knight had their armor partially damaged, and their dominant arms broken. However, it wasn't going for the kill.

It...is a monster right?

It was absolutely a monster, but something was off. It didn't attack Kuroki's group at all. It likely saw the knights as the bigger threat, but it never went for the kill. It was cautious, playing it safe. After all, they had knights and a mage.

The Shadehound did look at them sometimes, but quickly looked away. Was it checking on their condition, or was it being scared off by whatever startled the knights before?

The answer would soon come to them, as the mage tried to attack the Shadehound, only for it to dodge the attacks as it hurt the knights a bit more. However, as it broke the chestplate on one of the knights, it suddenly backed off and gained distance.

But then as the knights took out potions and drank them, their wounds began to recover, although their armor did not. However unlike Kuroki's group, they used them quite recklessly, not measuring their dosages at all. Perhaps they couldn't in this battle, however Kuroki felt like they were using the right amount still. Was it their experience? Kuroki's group couldn't measure at a glance, they had to be careful and it could take up to a minute to apply a potion sometimes. A gap in the difference of experience between the two groups.

Kuroki had to duck and dodge as Valiance came after him, unleashing a flame wave out of his sword as he swung it. Kuroki slammed his foot down and made a wall of ice, and then used Water Puppetry to attack while keeping a water shield on standby, displaying a perfected attack flow that kept his allies safe and his enemies at bay. This was added onto by the fact that he deployed several magical splinters of light into the air.

"Shards of light, rain down upon my foes. Pierce the heavens themselves as you scour them all! Shining Rain!"

The splinters and shards suddenly multiplied, before raining down upon Valiance with a fury. Riku used Brilliant Flash to strike at him, but was replled by the barrier. THe barrier also absorbed Kuroki's attack, as they shattered into dust and particles of light upon impact with the hardened barrier. It was as if his shield was incapable of being harmed, as it stayed strong. Even Kaede could not penetrate it when she sneaked behind and backstabbed it.

Ryuu however started to act on his own, as he became enshrouded by a golden aura. He then charged at Valiance, and for the briefest of moments, seemed to chip the barrier as his blade was also covered by golden light. This resulted in Valiance unleashing a powerful attack against Ryuu before he could recover, sending him sprawling and leaving him unable to help as he was sent a bit away.

The mage meanwhile sent rope at them again, as it moved its way towards the group. Kuroki froze them again, but they seemed more resistant and broke free, so he switched things up. He moved his hands in a large circular motion, before pressing them into the center. A large glyph, with many glyphs inside of it, appeared. All the calculations were deployed, and then a magical effect was invoked. A tempest erupted from his hand, with lightning swirling around it. It arced between the metal armor, causing a great deal of pain to the already injured knights nearby.

And yet right as Gathik tried to strike again, his sword got knocked from his hand as Ozlo appeared there, a dragon on his shoulder as he landed in from the sky.

"Well now, what do we have here" Ozlo muttered, directing a cold gaze towards Valiance. "I believe I made myself abundently clear about starting causing trouble, did I not?"

"Tsk. You bastard, this doesn't concern you".

Ozlo then looked over at the nights, and where the Shadehound used to be. Once Ozlo appeared, the thing took off at top speed, running away from him. Although Ozlo felt like it might have also been running towards someone as well.

"Now then, with there being no witnesses here, perhaps I should settle things now, if you have gone this far off the deep end?"

"My father would bring down hell upon you if you tried!"

"But you have already been shown to be so stupid, its annoying to think I might actually do him a favor by getting rid of you...how bothersome".

Gathik glared at him, apparently taking that as quite the insult. Ozlo however seemed not to care for his glaring, instead looking over to where the knights were.

"Incidentally, I believe Cremalis will likely want to have a word or two. I am sure he has been reporting this whole situation to those in charge, and perhaps even the king".

Hearing that, Valiance growled, but seemed to withdraw.

"Everyone, we are leaving for today. But know this, Ozlo. You will kneel before me".

"Have fun getting scolded!" Ozlo said in a cheery voice, causing Gathik to shoot him a dirty look. "Now then, you lot. Please make sure to avoid going out at night, and please try to avoid him as much as possible, but be warned. He is tenacious, foolish, and both stupid and smart at the same time. He is a fool like that".

"R-right. So we just continue then?"

"Yes. I should be able to help you avoid any more trouble tonight, but we do still need to work".

"Right. Okay then. Thanks for the help, Ozlo".

"Against that guy? Anytime. You should be thankful to that weird Shadehound though. If that thing didn't show up, I never would have made it here. Although, rabbits, goblins, and now SHadehounds....I am concerned by this level of activity. Please take note of and report any more oddities you find, okay?"

The group nodded, and with that, they got back to work.