TBATE - Not Bound By Fate

Part 20

"Incoming from above!" Jasmines shouted as the ice bats were preparing to attack. In response I prepared a fire barrier to form above us the moment the bats dove in, and a few seconds later they turned to ash.

"Nice timing Note!" One of the adventures of the party clearing this dungeon said and I just nodded to thank him.

"To think those little things would be more annoying than the boss. Seriously, how is it that the minions did more damage than that mutant frost bull!?" The leader of the party said.

I got closer to the boss to inspect it. I tried looking for its core but found nothing, proving this was one of the dungeons Agrona got his hands on. He has recently started becoming more bold with the corruption plan, making it more obvious that someone was meddling with the dungeons of Dicathen but there were never any tracks left behind making it impossible to prove anything and leaving adventures to just speculate about it without really doing something regarding the situation.

"Should we head back?" Jasmine broke me out of my thoughts.

"Sure, there's nothing here for us anyways."

She nodded and we started making our way up the dungeon. Once we were far away enough I signaled for her to grab my shoulder and we Godstedped back to our camp.

Over the last two and a half years we had grown even closer than in the last timeline to the point I trusted her enough to tell about my aetheric abilities.

"It's hard getting used to this." She said, her expression showing she was a bit nauseous.

"But you're getting there. Remember the first time?"

"Please don't talk about it, it's not helping." I giggled at her statement remembering she spent half a day lying down with a headache after letting go of her breakfast. "Just start packing so we can go back to the guild."

"Aye aye, ma'am."

I started packing everything and soon was done with it, storring my things in the storage rune while Jasmine used her ring to do the same while looking jealous.

"Don't look at me like, I told you before that the moment I figure out how to replicate this rune, you're getting it first."

"Just making sure you remember." She paused for a second. "Should we walk or run back to the outpost?" She asked me, knowing I could just use Godstep again but preferring not to.

"Let's just walk, it shouldn't take more than an hour to get there." She simply nodded and we started our tack back to the outpost mostly in silence until the midway point.

"How's Sylvie been doing in Xyrus academy?" Jasmine asked.

At the start of the year Sylvie got bored from staying at home all day and didn't feel like becoming an adventurer with me, so to combat that boredom mom suggested she join Xyrus or a school like the one Ellie was attending to pass time. She was reluctant at first but in the end decided on Xyrus academy.

"A bit too well if you ask me." I answered Jasmine.

"What do you mean?" She looked at me curiously.

"For starters, she has managed to establish her own faction in the school with little effort. Then there's the titles those kids have been using to talk about her. Stuff like Queen of Purity and the Battle Goddess of Xyrus."

"I get the first one with her ability to use pure mana, but Battle Goddess? Where did that one come from?"

"Apparently a few weeks after classes started, a noble girl was jealous because her crush confessed to Sylvie so she gathered twenty or so other students to teach her a lesson. The student council got word of what was happening and decided to take action, but when they arrived at the scene all they found was Sylvie sitting on top of a pile of lightly bruised and unconscious students enjoying some snacks."

"That... she really is something else."

"She is. By the way, her other title isn't because of her pure mana manipulation."

"Then why do they call her that?"

"Because she rejected every boy that confessed so far." I said feeling proud of her. I also made a mental note to get the names of those boys so that they can pay for their sins.

"Is that seriously the reason?"

"Yep." We continued walking in silence and soon we reached the outpost, but we didn't expect what we saw in front of the guild branch.

"Is that Kaspian? What's he doing here?" I asked.

"It looks like he's waiting for someone." The moment Jasmine finished speaking he noticed us and walked over.

"It has been a while Miss Flamesworth, Mister Note. Please come with me, there is a person of great importance waiting for you." He greeted us in a serious tone.

Jasmine and I looked at each other for a moment before following him inside the building to a room that was a bit more isolated. When the door opened my eyes widened as I saw Varay inside. Jasmine seemed confused but walked in and I followed. Kaspian closed the door behind us and took a seat to Varays left.

"Please sit down, you two." She said with her usual cold voice and aloof expression. "I'm here to make a request, but first let me introduce myself. I am Varay Aurae, and I come on the king's behalf."

On the king's behalf? What could Blaine possibly want with us?

"Jasmine Flamesworth."

"Note." We introduced ourselves. "What could the king of Sapin possibly want with us Miss Aurae?" I voiced my doubts.

"A few days ago, during the investigation of a corrupt noble's property, a secret passage was discovered beneath the garden. At first it was thought that the tunnel was used to smuggle illegal merchandise, but after questioning the suspect he revealed to not have known of passage. After further investigation it was discovered that the tunnel leads to what we suspect is the ruins of a city built by the ancient mages. Unfortunately we were not able to confirm our suspicions because of the spells left in place by them." Varay explained to us.

So that's why she came to me. She must have told Blaine she knew someone who could help and asked permission to hire me.

"I see, but that still doesn't explain why you are talking to us, or what the request is." I said playing along with her theatrics.

"The request is to help the archeologist explore the ruins safely. As for why you two were chosen, is because I heard you are quite knowledgeable about the ancient mages arts and can even use some yourself." Varay responded and made Kaspian's eyes go wide in surprise but he kept it to himself. I gave a quick glance to Jasmine and could see the gears turning in her head as she connected what I told her about aether and what was known about the Djinn and their creations.

"You are quite well informed Miss Aurae. What do you Jasmine, should we take the job?"

"We should, she came here specifically for you and I'm quite curious about what we can find in those ruins." She replied.

"Well, you heard her. Where should we go and when?" I asked.

"Come to the royal palace in Etistin three days from now, you'll get more details there. I'll be waiting at the front gate for you two. Any more questions?"

"None." Jasmine and I said in unison.

We all got up and left the room. Varay went her own way while Kaspian, Jasmine and I stayed in the guild to process the reward of the mission we just got back from.

"Hey Regis, get your ass over here."

"Huh, why? I'm busy right now."

"There have been some interesting developments and I need you with me just in case."

"I'll fill you in once you're here."

"Fine, on my way."

Who would've thought the butterfly effect would lead to Djinn ruins under Etistin. I don't know why but I have a good feeling about this.