Chapter 133 Friends?

In the lawlessness that the storm presented, Lucas was starting to form his own dark red aura of pure rage and despair. To most experiencing it, they would only notice the rage and anger that the pressure gave off. But to people like Elam, he could tell Lucas wasn't fully in control yet, the small stream of tears showed him that something was off.

Sadly, his words couldn't possibly reach Lucas, his own pressure was competing with Lucas's, this combined with the discord the storm brought resulted in pandemonium. Elam was happy that Lucas exceeded his own expectations, but was scared at the cost.

Lucas slowly stood up right, removing the snow on top of him, his aura made the things around him erode, the snow started to vaporize. The strange uncontrollable tendrils of the aura that crept further trying to take more of its surroundings under its might.

"Lucas!", the plea didn't reach anybody as Lucas was completely immersed into his own world. Any further attempt at communication failed, the only solace was that he was still under the pressure of a late Rank 2 mage, keeping him in place.

Elam wasn't sure what he would do if he was released, but if his aura was anything to go off of, it wouldn't be good.

"Lucas, calm down.", Elam reached his hand towards Lucas, increasing the pressure to push him back down. He felt like his own pressure was being absorbed in the chaotic nature of Lucas's. Elam increased the amount of pressure, making his own willpower dwindle.

"Lucas, control your emotions, stop this!", yet it didn't result in anything. Slowly the chaotic pressure started to disappear. 'His willpower must've run out.'

Elam brought Lucas back inside and tucked him in the couch while making some tea for himself. Although it ended pretty anticlimactic, the aura that Lucas manifested was something extremely unique.

'To create an aura you need to be at least Rank 2, to think he would naturally already develop one.'

What Elam didn't know was that there was nothing natural about Lucas's aura, it was an artificially made one that could only be fueled by his trauma.

'The only issue is controlling it, guess that should happen after a bit of training. I should ask them to see when Eleven's mission starts. With an artifact for defense and offense combined with an aura he should be strong enough to handle it.'

Elam didn't know the details of the mission, but if the contact gave his approval it either meant it was going to be an extremely difficult mission or one that is crucial for Lucas's growth.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Avesta was a pretty normal city close to the border with the Holy Kingdom. The only remarkable things were the sharply tooth-shaped mountain and the lush forest around it. Some would mention the academy, but to the ones in the know, that academy really didn't amount to much. It was seen as a last resort if the applicants didn't have the recourses to enter the more prestigious universities. It was a group of incompetent teachers to the rest of the country.

The forest was open to anyone willing to take a hike or a risk. The border was plagued by bandits and monster nests. The closer you were to the city the safer, but that didn't amount to much since the city never bothered to send out rescue squads or patrol the forest. The mayor received a lot of criticism for such a lousy security, not that it bothered him in the slightest.

Not that deep into the forest was a cute brown little rabbit that was hopping around looking for some tasty weeds. Its black eyes reflected the green shrubbery filled with berries. It hopped from one place to another thinking of the nest and his adorable little baby rabbits.

It found a river to drink from, relieving it from its thirst. Hopping around, it found a decent meal it just needed to bring it back. The only issue was, a fox was close by. Stopping its movements the rabbit weighed its choices. The fox hadn't noticed the rabbit yet, but its ears were standing up, waiting to pick up the slightest sounds.

The rabbit needed to make a choice. Wait until the fox moves away and hope the fox doesn't smell it, or take a risk and run for it.

THUMP

An arrow stuck right in the neck of the rabbit.

The surrounding animals and nature didn't notice the arrow and kept going with their life as if the arrow had never been fired in the first place. In the shadow of a tree not far from the deceased rabbit a silhouette came into motion. Only when it reached for the rabbit did the fox notice and scrambled away.

Taking the rabbit with him, the silhouette went to its hideout. Underneath a dead tree was a small and far from cozy space. Roots from the tree burrowed its way into the walls of the chamber. All the walls were a bit wet, and it felt damp, at least it was always pretty cold which was perfect for its resident, which was of course Eleven.

On one of the walls hung a map filled with scribbles and arrows. Despite the wet dirt, it was fairly easy to hang up the map, as the roots provided ample support. The city and his own hideout were on the bottom of the map while a red circle showed his destination.

Looking at the map his suppressed anger flared up, yet it died down as fast as it appeared. He wasn't someone that easily got angered, he was taught not to let his emotions take control of his bodily functions. Growing up in a "training camp", he learned a lot of different things.

Everything he had right now came from them, his combat style, his knowledge even his clothing, which he stole from a senior. The garbs were meant to be used during missions, so it hid most of his facial features and made his steps a bit muffled. There were enchanted robes as well, but they were too guarded for him to steal.

His escape was only be possible with the help and training he received from them. Every time he thought about what happened his heart felt a slight sting. While he escaped, all his comrades had to stay behind, stuck under their oppressive ruling.

As the only escapee, Eleven felt it was his duty to return to free all of them.

The only thing standing in his way was his own weakness, he wasn't the strongest. He was trained to be an assassin, nothing else. If he had to hide and take out a target in one fell swoop, it wouldn't be that much of an issue. But to fight against an entire camp of assassins was asking for the impossible.

His little stand-off with Lucas showed that he was nothing special. Inspiring him to create his own stealth spell and assassination techniques.

For now, he was going with bow and arrows. If he hid his presence from afar and aimed at the right spot he could silently take out any prey. He configured a spell that made his arrow sharper and muffled the sound of impact. Sound waves needed air or a medium to move, but if that medium was taken away you would be able to see an explosion without hearing it.

Eleven didn't know every detail, far from it even, but he knew the basics from his training camp. On one hand he felt great that he figured out some techniques that helped him get better as an assassin and furthers his plan. On the other hand he felt disgusted that he needed to use his knowledge from the training camp in order to grow.

The more he relied on their teachings the more he felt angry.

Sitting down on a makeshift chair made of old wood filled the damp room with creaky noises. Resting for a second he noticed the smell of his little hideout was still horrible.

The corpse that was previously in his hideout had already been burnt to a crisp, and he made sure to scatter the ashes in multiple places. The information the body gave was enough to create a plan of attack. He knew where they were, with how many and the added details.

Every time he thought back to that conversation it felt like something was off, like he was remembering it wrongly. He had absolutely no reason to doubt his own memory, yet he couldn't shake the feeling that there was something wrong. Still, that was no reason to dwell on it for so long, he attributed that feeling to the fact he had been working extremely hard for the last couple of weeks.

Shutting himself off from society and thinking up the best way to attack took a toll on him. His eyes had deep dark circles around them, and he looked a lot more mature. His previous naivety had been hardened by living out in the forest for weeks on his own.

In his own dark clothing that obscured his face, his eyes were the only visible thing. If his clothing wasn't obscuring most of his skin anyone would see how white it had become. It was comparable to Gilbert, but Eleven still had a few steps before it got that bad. He was white, not vampire white.

Looking at the map once more he was determined.

'This is finished, I only need one more thing, a companion.'

Eleven had worked out most of the details, but when it came to firepower he didn't really have anything up his sleeves. He had a few spells that would be very damaging, but if the overseer of the camp was almost Rank 2 or goddess forbid, a low Rank 2 he would be doomed. If there was someone that he had in mind it was of course Lucas.

Stepping out of his hideout he went to the academy, it had been quite some time since he stepped foot inside it. The only lessons he needed were the ones from Gilbert and the moment he had what he wanted there was no reason to keep going. Luckily for him, Gilbert also stopped giving lessons. Eleven thought it was because of the entrance fee they had to pay, and he was using it now.

Without hesitation, he went to the mountain he once visited to spy on Lucas. It went terrible for him then, but at least he knew where Lucas lived.

At the foot of the mountain he prepared himself for the uphill battle of the blizzard.

"Another assassin in broad daylight? You know your kind is already seen as deplorable, do you want to add stupid to the list as well?"

Someone of comparable age to himself was arrogantly standing at the foot of the mountain with his hands behind his back. His short dark blue hair gave off a feeling that he took very well care of his appearance. With a slight stubble and sharp eyes, the man cocked his head up a bit in order to look down on Eleven.

Eleven assumed a battle stance. The man was well-dressed and had a posture only suitable for nobility. He looked clean and polished. Fights between mages occurred now and then, but most fights never took place inside cities, thus the moment mages met outside of them, battles could always take place. Nobility was known for their aggressive behavior, but Eleven found it hard to believe he was about to be attacked.

"What are you talking about?"

"Should we add oblivious to it as well? Do you not realize how you look?"

Although they were confronting each other, the hostility wasn't there, making both sides keep their aggression back.

"I'm visiting a friend, that's all."

"A friend you say? How interesting, there's only one person known to be on this mountain, so I guess we both know who we're talking about. Still, you visit a friend with that appearance? You're hardly presentable."

He said while pinching his nose in an overly dramatic way. Eleven didn't notice until now that it had been weeks since he last bathed or washed himself.

"Still, who are you to guard this mountain?"

"Guard? Hahaha, no no no, I've just arrived as well, there have been a lot of rumors of assassins being sent to this place, and I wanted to talk to him. Plus, who are you? I don't remember your appearance during the tests and the school competition a few weeks ago."

Eleven had always hated his own name since it constantly reminded him of where he came, a number, easily disposable, easily replaceable. If he had to live with him this name, he would have to make it his own.

"Eleven, I didn't bother with the school competition."

"Curious, why would you let go of such an opportunity? Although I'm not one to speak, you can call me Asta."

Eleven didn't recognize the name and wasn't sure whether or not to be impressed. The man was clearly very proud of his name.

"Well, shall we visit our friend?"

"Wait, you're friends with him?"

"Well, technically we're not really friends, but more acquaintances. It's only a matter of time before he realizes that we were meant to be friends."

Now Eleven was extremely confused, he didn't see Lucas as someone that was easily approachable. He thought Asta was a very strange man, although he himself also stuck out like a sore thumb.

Moving up the mountain the blizzard slowly started to freeze the surroundings. Eleven used a basic spell to keep a flame close by. It wasn't as complex as Elam's bubble of warmth or Lucas's unique heating technique, it was the most basic way to keep yourself warm.

"Tch, how despicable, using elemental magic is just a crutch for those with not true capability for magic.", Asta waved his hand around and a bubble of light blue was formed around him. The bubble was created out of pure magic and gave of its own light. Eleven didn't bother answering him, there was no point to it.

Not long after did Eleven reach the place where he last got to. Expecting the powerful eyes to appear again to ward him off, he steeled himself, yet no such thing stood in their path this time. In the distance, if he focussed his eyes, he could see a small cabin not that far ahead.