Spiderweb cracks spread through the dome of black and blue mana that swallowed them. Each class lit up in a mix of gold and red. It was the only light with which to see inside the dome.

Aiden stared at the crack in horror. Ted was beyond it. Oncot was also beyond it. But Ted was important. As horrible as it sounded, Oncot could be dead when the dome came down and he wouldn't be bothered.

Elami stepped up to the dome, eyes glancing around, taking in the cracks as they spread. He raised his hand to touch the dome and Aiden stopped him.

"Don't," he said, voice weak, losing will.

Elami paused, turned to look back at him. "I saw you use the item, Lord Lacheart. I am not new to the workings of enchantments."

"My question," Elami continued, "is why they are not attacking?"

All the heads present turned their heads, following his gaze. On one side of the dome, very carefully not touching it, were four dull white creatures. [Doppelganger]s.

They hovered, watching them from the corner.

Aiden remembered seeing them dart into the dome. They had been quick—quicker than Ted. He watched them, featureless faces illuminated by gold and red cracks that continued to fill the dome. With each crack that spread, Aiden felt the pull on his mana. He ignored it, relegated it to the back of his mind as he watched the [Doppelganger]s.

They were quiet, standing still.

Dreg's hand moved slowly. He reached for his bowstring without a physical arrow. Aiden said nothing. He waited, watched the creatures as they watched them.

"Should we attack?" Elami asked.

Aiden shook his head. He turned to look at Dreg. "Only take that shot if you know you won't miss."

Dreg paused. "What?"

"The [Doppelganger]s aren't attacking because they know that anything could break the dome," Elami said, gesturing at the dome of mana with its ever growing spiderwebs of cracks. "Their instincts tell them that leaving this dome will leave them to the mercy of what is outside."

"And if I miss and hit the dome?" Dreg asked.

"Then it all comes crumbling down."

Valdan's lips pressed into a thin line. "Any touch of any kind?"

"The only person allowed to touch it is the owner," Elami said.

Heads turned to Aiden. Taeli's consistent scowl was not gone. She watched him with venom in her eyes. Aiden wondered how long she was going to hate him.

Ultimately, it did not matter. What mattered was for how long the Death moss outside was going to be active. He held out with the hope that Ted had a way to survive. He hoped with all the hope that he could muster.

"Hold out," he said, in the end. "The dome will come down."

With all the attacks the dome was receiving from outside, he had barely lost two percent of his mana. They could hold out forever.

The twins stood next to Jang Su. They were quiet, waiting. There was nothing to do so nothing would be done.

"What was that outside?" Nesa, one of the twins, spoke eventually.

"Death moss," Dreg explained. "They are a very rare occurrence here, haven't seen one or heard of an attack in ages." He looked thoughtful. "They look no different from Life moss."

A scratching sound grated from outside the dome. Scratches lit up in the color of gold and red on the inside. Dreg moved instinctively away from it.

Aiden reached out and touched it with his palm. The force of attacks it was going through was settling down now. The attacks were dying out.

Please be alright, Ted.

"That's intriguing," Elami mused.

Aiden looked back. "What is…" his voice trailed off as he caught sight of something interesting.

One of the [Doppelganger]s had turned to the dome with its hand held out to it. It was a perfect imitation of what he had been doing.

That one, he concluded on sight.

The moment the shield was down, it would die first.

"Not that," Elami said, amusement still in its voice.

"Then what?" Jang Su asked, moving over to him, the twins following casually behind.

Elami looked at him, as if surprised to be asked a question by him. He looked thoughtful for a while before shrugging.

"Nothing too important," he said, before moving over to Aiden.

Aiden looked at him, hand still on the surface of the dome. "Too much pressure and it will break."

"Or if you cut off your connection to the enchantment, it will go down," Elami said dismissively, showing that he knew all that there was to know about the enchantment. "I'm more interested in the color of the protection," he said in a whisper. "This dome is supposed to take up the color of the mana the person is linked to."

Aiden said nothing.

Elami leaned a little closer, lowering the chances of being heard by the others. "I have not seen anyone with mana this color. Has your mana always been this color?"

Aiden found himself wondering if Elami needed to survive this expedition.

"It is intriguing," Elami said. "I've never seen the kind."

Curiosity or suspicion? Aiden wondered.

The spiderweb cracks reduced. The dome was slowly dying out into darkness once more. Aiden acted quickly. He moved over to Dreg, taking his hand off the dome.

"That one," he told Dreg, nodding in the direction of the [Doppelganger] that had been imitating him.

It still had its hand held out to the dome in perfect imitation, but it was not touching it.

"Do I dismember it?" he asked in a whisper. "Take its arm?"

Aiden shook his head. "Kill it."

His eyes darted upwards as the last of the sparks died out. In the last flickers of light, he added: "Tag it and shoot it."

Aiden placed his hand against the dome as the lights went out. He felt no attacks outside it. He sensed no violence.

He cut off his supply of mana to the dome and moved immediately. The dome came down and he darted out, fingers of one hand moving.

[You have used Class skill Lone Weave]

…

[You have used Weave of Strength]

[Effect: +90% increase in strength]

[Duration: 00:05:00.]

…

[Strength 40 > (76)]

A massive arrow appeared in his hand and he notched in place. He took aim, skidding to a kneeling position and pulled back on the bow. He aimed low. The enchantment on the arm guard lit up in purple. Aiden felt the draw of the enchantment on his mana.

His mana dipped.

[Mana 94% > 79%]

Aiden frowned as a purple glow filled the space in front of him. Shamanic Enchantments, he thought with a frown. They were always so inefficient. An enchantment of this level was not supposed to draw this much mana.

He paused. The last of the attacks on the protection enchantment had died off in the direction he had opened it on. What he saw now told him the reason. There was a massive egg of Death moss in front of him. It had bundled itself up in one place.

Aiden couldn't see Ted or Oncot anywhere.

Where are you guys?

The longer he held the bow drawn, the more mana the enchantment pulled from him. His eyes darted around as he heard two bodies drop behind him. He ignored them. Valdan and the rest would put down the remaining [Doppelganger]s that had taken refuge in the protection enchantment with them.

Another body dropped. He ignored it.

What he could not ignore was when the egg of Death moss twitched. It pooled forward, gathering in his direction. Aiden frowned. It had ignored him and the others when it could not get past the protection enchantment only to focus elsewhere. Now there was life again for it to claim. And it would claim it.

The accumulation of moss shot straight at him. Aiden pressed his lips in a thin line, coming to a conclusion.

He released the bowstring and let the arrow fly.

It erupted in a massive boom that shook the air in the cave. The moss shot at him in a straight line and Aiden's arrow flew in a straight line. It pierced through the entire stream of moss. It eviscerated everything in its path.

Then it exploded against the egg. The massive arrow shattered on impact with the egg. The blast of wind exploded on impact.

A featureless head fell to the ground and rolled at his feet. Aiden didn't look down at it. He was too busy looking at what was in front of him.

His shot had struck against the giant moss egg to reveal an earth-brown cocoon. Aiden got to his feet, staring at it. He walked up to it very slowly.

Ted?

"Lord Lacheart," Valdan said, worry in his voice as he rushed up to Aiden and positioned himself in front of Aiden. He looked Aiden in the eye. "It might not be safe."

Aiden ignored him, eyes fixed on the cocoon. He stepped forward and Valdan grabbed him by the arm. It took Aiden every ounce of strength not to flip the knight on his back. Instead, he looked Valdan in the eye.

"It's not safe," Valdan repeated.

Aiden grit his teeth. "It's my brother."

Aiden didn't know of Ted having any cocoon skill that kept him safe. His heart prayed dearly that it was some summoned creature's skill and not some kind of evolution to [Demon King] that happened if he got a near death experience.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

As the days passed by, he was coming to the realization that there were too many things about the title that he did not know. He already knew that, but the weight of it was becoming heavier with every passing day.

How exactly had Ted gotten the title? It was a title, so it meant that he had to have performed something—achieved a feat—to get it. Defying death was an achievement. And how could it have happened?

There were too many variables, too many things he did not know.

Valdan released his hold on Aiden's arm. In his other hand, he held his sword at the ready. "You must understand," he said solemnly. "I will do whatever I have to do."

Aiden walked forward. "Do what you must."

Around them, everything was quiet. Everyone was quiet.

When he got to the cocoon. He placed his palm on it. It was rough to the touch, like the back of a walnut. It was also hard and firm. Scratch marks riddled its surface, most likely from the moss attack.

It was warm.

Now, he needed to find a way to open it. Cutting it might work but he would have to be care—

Something cracked. Aiden turned his attention upwards. Cracks spread from the top, rushing down to meet him. Valdan took a stance as Aiden stepped away from the cocoon.

The crack expanded, reaching out like the branches of a tree. Then the cocoon opened. It let out a puff of steam that sent the hem of Aiden's coat billowing.

Everyone waited. Aiden realized that Valdan was not the only one prepared for combat. Dreg had his bow drawn and aiming. Jang Su had his hand on the hilt of his sword. Even Taeli looked ready to draw blood.

The only person that looked unbothered was Elami.

I can take them, Aiden told himself as he waited for the steam to die out. If he had to fight his way through to keep Ted alive, he could. He had to.

It would cost him a lot, but he could find a pathway to success. The only problem would be succeeding without killing Valdan. Refusing to go all out for Valdan's safety might cost him his life, but…

I can't kill Valdan.

Aiden shook the thought from his mind as the steam finally dissipated.

"Phew!" Ted let out a low whistle of relief. "I thought I was a goner. Those things move fast."

He had Oncot resting his head on his lap, eyes closed. Oncot's chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm.

Ted gave Aiden a smile and a wave.

"Took you long enough to…" his words trailed off as the smile on his face slackened. He looked past Aiden to the others. "I can't say that I care much for the audience."

Aiden heard the sound of about an inch of blade slipping back into its sheath. He assumed it was the sound of Jang Su sheathing his weapon.

With a sigh, Aiden relaxed. He still wasn't a fan of the way his instincts worked. Bow still in hand, he had been ready to take the lives of everyone behind him if he had to. One of the things he wanted to do differently in this life was to be a deterrent against the idea of going after Ted if he became the [Demon King], but the possibility of ending so many lives was beginning to look very testing.

Aiden nodded at the cocoon and the slime still covering Ted and Oncot. "What's this?"

"Protective cocoon," Ted answered, pulling himself out of the cocoon. He did so forcefully, extricating himself from the slime. It tore like a membrane, revealing itself to not be slime.

Ted shook some off before reaching for Oncot and pulling him by the shoulder.

Aiden stepped up to the cocoon and picked up a piece of torn slime.

"Skill?" he asked, holding up the piece in his hand.

Ted shook his head. "Got a familiar that can do that. Oncot wasn't as lucky as I was, though."

He turned to Elami who was watching and waiting.

"You think you can do anything about his back?" he asked, turning Oncot on his stomach.

The big man's back looked as if someone had been trying to skin him. His muscles were bare with lacerations and what looked like gouge marks.

Taeli looked away. The twins grimaced. Dreg gave no reaction, but anyone with any experience knew that he was trying to be the strong one in the team. Aiden almost told him that there was no harm in showing some level of emotion. As a leader, emotion was a tool. You needed to use it properly.

Elami walked up to Oncot and squatted next to him. He poked the large man's back. In front of them, Ted's cocoon fell apart completely then began dissipating into the air.

As Elami studied Oncot's back, Ted pointed in the direction they were supposed to be heading in.

"Shouldn't we be worried about that?" he asked.

The Death moss remained, illuminating the distance further down. Aiden looked down at their feet, confirming what he already knew. Solid ground was beneath them, not a touch of the moss remained.

"Death moss act like a hive mind," Elami said, placing both hands flat on Oncot's back. "Once they have fed enough, they go back into dormancy. With the amount of [Doppelganger]s lost, I would say that they have grown dormant."

Taeli scoffed. "Willing to bet your life on it?"

"Careful how you treat your [Healer], child," Elami said with a worrying smile, still looking down at Oncot's back. "It is never a good idea to draw your [Healer]'s ire."

For all her anger and lack of decent behavior, Taeli knew to shut up. The last thing anyone wanted was to be in need of serious healing only to have their [Healer] turn their back on them. It was rarely a thing that happened blatantly, but there were still ways that a [Healer] could ruin you subtly in an expedition.

"Can you heal him?" Ted asked Elami, referring to Oncot.

Curious, Elami asked, "Must he survive?"

"He risked his life to save mine."

"But would his presence truly have made a difference?" Elami looked pointedly in the direction the cocoon had been.

"Difference or not," Ted said, "he was willing to make the sacrifice. That is what matters."

Elami gave him a look. "Do you treat your summoned familiar with equal care?"

"He's not a familiar."

Everyone had fallen quiet, listening to their argument.

"That was not the question," Elami pointed out.

"If you spend enough time with me, you will find out," Ted answered. He wasn't frowning, but he wasn't smiling either. "He must survive."

Aiden knew the way those with the [Summoner] class treated their familiars. They treated them as familiars—expendable. Familiars died and returned to the void to be resummoned once more. There were familiars that required certain ingredients to summon, though. [Summoner]s treated those ones with extra care because they didn't simply die and return. You had to go through certain processes to create them.

That pulled one of the mysteries of Nastild to Aiden's mind. Since time immemorial, Nastild had always sought the answer to the origin of the summoned creatures. Just where did they come from. There were creatures that could be summoned from actual physical points in Nastild, but there were also the enigmatic summoned creatures. Creatures that did not exist on Nastild except through summoning.

Listening to Elami's question and thinking about it, Aiden found himself wondering on a subject that he never really cared about. Where did the summoned creatures come from?

With Ted, he had a good guess. Wherever [Gates of Hell] led him to—potentially hell—that was where he got all his summoned creatures from. The question was if it was unique to each [Summoner] or if there was more to it.

Do they summon all their creatures from the same place he summons his from?

It was difficult to accept since Ted's familiars were more on the eldritch side of things, even if some were arguably normal. For instance, Aiden had never seen someone summon a [Basiliker] before.

"Then I will heal him," Elami said finally.

To Aiden's surprise, too many people sighed in relief. Dreg was one of them. They had been worried that Elami would refuse.

"On one condition," Elami said, then looked at Aiden.

"Your negotiation is with my brother," Aiden said, taking an intentional step back.

Ted shrugged. "My brother can speak for me."

Aiden held back his scowl. Ted enjoyed putting him in difficult positions a little too much.

"So," Ted said. "What is your condition."

"Membership on your team," Elami said simply. "And I will be allowed to study your summoned familiars."

"That's two conditions," Aiden interrupted before Ted could say anything, not that Ted had wanted to. "You said one condition."

Elami shrugged. "My apologies. Two conditions it is, then."

Aiden was already shaking his head. "I refuse."

Ted cocked a surprised brow at that.

Dreg stepped up with a scowl. "Oncot's life hangs in the balance."

Aiden gestured at everyone present. "Every life here hangs in the balance. We knew this when we stepped into this cave." He spared a glance at Taeli. "Everyone."

He wondered if she'd somehow known of the Death moss and had brought them here intentionally. There was a possibility that fatality had not been her intentions but Aiden was running out of benefits of doubt to give.

"You will allow Oncot die," Taeli spat.

"Careful, child," Aiden said with venom in his voice, not forgotten that she had taken the wrong turn that had led them here. "I would hesitate to let him die, but I would slit your throat without batting an eye if you continue to talk back."

Dreg stepped forward. Valdan did the same. Both men seemed to square off. Aiden had no doubt that Valdan would win three times over in a fight against Dreg.

"You will not harm a member of my team," Dreg said.

Aiden watched him, knew that he would not back down from it.

With a sigh, he said, "She will come upon a decision to make soon. Understand this: she has made a wrong decision already. If she makes a wrong decision when the time comes, her life becomes forfeit."

Dreg paused and Aiden watched his expression. There was confusion there, surprise. He waited. Realization did not arrive.

He did not know. Taeli had acted of her own volition. Then again, there was always the possibility that he was a very good actor.

"Taeli knows what I am talking about," he said in the end.

Dreg looked at her. Taeli met his gaze in challenge. "What?"

"Do you know what he is talking about?" Dreg asked.

She shook her head. "Paranoia is a quality of young lords. His threats are nothing but a desire to be superior."

Aiden paused. Those were very philosophical sounding sentences.

Dreg returned his attention to Aiden.

"It matters not," Aiden said before the [Archer] could speak. "If she makes the wrong decision, she will be left behind."

"Then you will have to leave us behind as well," Dreg said.

"And so be it."

"What makes you think we will stay behind?" Taeli challenged.

What was it with the lady and drawing his ire? Every word that came out of her mouth challenged him to slit her throat and be done with it.

"I'll make you stay behind," he said simply. "How does not matter."

Taeli's stance lowered slightly.

Aiden could not believe how stupidly reckless she was about to become. Did she really think that she could take him in a fight? Or was she banking on winning in a team fight?

"If you all fight, I will be on the side of the [Summoner]," Elami said casually. "I just felt that that piece of information would be necessary in the decision making about to happen. The child should do well to make the right decision when the time comes. Personally," he turned his head to look at Dreg, "I don't think your team can win against theirs."

Dreg frowned. In the end, he looked away. His hands were balled into fists, his knuckle white around his grip on his bow.

Valdan turned away then and walked over to Aiden.

"You could've handled that better," he whispered as he passed him.

Aiden knew it. He just… he…

His annoyance deepened. If he had stopped Taeli from taking the wrong route the first time, none of this would've happened. He would not have felt the panic he had felt when he'd thought that Ted would not make it.

You could've handled it better.

It was as simple as that. There were no excuses to be had or made. He accepted the scolding in silence.

"I share blame in this chaos," Elami said suddenly. "So let's do this. If I heal the fat one, would I be permitted to study the familiars?"

Aiden gave it some thought. There were people who had a passion for things that existed outside their classes. It would not be out of the way for a [Healer] to take an interest in familiars, just as a banker could just as easily have a love for reading.

"And joining the team?" he asked.

"I'm sure my skills will speak well enough for me," Elami said. "So do we have a deal?"

Aiden looked at Ted and saw the urging in his brother's eyes. With a sigh, he nodded.

"We have a deal."

"Good." Elami turned to Oncot and his hands glowed a bright blue.

Aiden frowned, watching the glow. There was something off about the blue. In his eyes, it didn't look blue. It looked like a color masquerading as blue—a color trying to be blue.

He blinked it away as he found Jang Su approaching him.

"What about the moss?" Jang Su asked.

Aiden walked forward. "Death moss is easy to deal with as long as you are outside its reach. All you need is fire."

He retrieved an enchanted item from his soldier belt and simply tossed it into forward, something crossed his mind and he stopped himself from channeling the mana required to activate it into it. It landed within the glowing moss.

Watching the enchantment, a thought came to mind. Just how far could his skills take him? If he…

A plan formed in his mind, and he gestured for them to move back. He had an idea.

Jang Su gave him an odd look.

"I need space," he said to everyone when no one moved away. "I want to try something."

The orb was still within the moss. The moss did not react to it since it was not alive or sapient.

Everyone complied with his request, stepping back until they all stood behind him now.

[You have used Class skill Walking Canvas]

Aiden held the skill in mind as his mana erupted out of him. His interface said nothing about the reach of the skill, so it was entirely up to him. He was its limit. He could push it as far as he could or control it.

He kept it tucked neatly around him, close enough that none of the others were within reach. What he had in mind was either going to work out well or it was going to cause some problems for him. With everyone behind him, they would not see what he was about to do.

"Ted?" he said.

"I'm listening," Ted answered without missing a beat.

"In case what I'm about to do fails," he said, "be ready to have Elami heal me."

Ted paused. "Should I be worried?"

Aiden kept a tight hold on his mana as he weaved a sign with his hands. "Yes."

[You have used Class skill Broken Weave]

…

[You have used Broken Weave of Lesser Flame]

The weaker the better.

He felt the sparks begin to erupt around him. He heard someone gasp in awe but couldn't tell who it was.

Ignoring it, Aiden prepared the second stage of his plan.

[You have used Weave of Endurance]

He sucked in a deep breath, felt his lungs expand, reaching limits he knew they wouldn't have been able to reach with out the weave of strength and the weave of endurance coursing through him right now. The breath was hot in his lungs and he let it out.

Alright, then.

It was time for the last stage.

He sucked in a very deep breath and weaved the last sign into existence.

[You have used Weave of Lesser Gas]

The moment he felt the slightest touch of the gas, he expelled all the air from his lungs, blowing it all out of his mouth with all the force he could muster.

The air ignited in front of him. It was chaotic and violent. It exploded in a wave. The air from his mouth, however, guided all of it.

Aiden's eyes widened in the ecstasy of achievement as a chaotic wave of fire poured forth. It rolled forward, consuming everything in its path.

The air around him had lit up in a gust of flame but only in the way that would be expected of a pocket of gas. It had ignited around him for only a fraction before extinguishing.

Gasps erupted behind him as the Death moss burned in front of him. The flame rolled forward, burning and consuming, reaching further down and lighting their path.

Aiden watched it all in amazement as he terminated [Walking Canvas]. The fire kept roiling forward, destroying everything.

Ted barked in laughter, stepping up to Aiden as things burnt.

"What the hell was that?" he asked in interest.

Aiden wasn't sure how to say it. It had just been a thought, requiring at least three separate weavings, four, if you counted the weave of strength.

In the end, his sense of achievement overrode even his irritation towards Taeli as he looked at his brother with a wide grin. He might have just achieved the dreams of some children who'd watched a lot of fantasy movies growing up.

"I think I just learnt how to breath fire."

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.