The Golem Mage

The team had diligently prepared for their next mission and were ready to depart the following morning, their belongings were already packed, and anticipation filled the air. However, as they gathered, a sense of unease began to settle upon them, as they realised that their captain was nowhere to be found.

”Hmm, why is Alec not down yet?, he’s the one who suggested we leave this city today so we would be able to meet up with the rest of our missions,” Beatrice voiced her concern.

Her mind has been preoccupied with thoughts of her own cultivation, despite spending the previous day cultivating , she felt the need for an additional push to propel her into the next stage.

The memory of facing a horde of undead creatures accompanied by her loyal puppets came to mind, that was when she had experienced true growth and felt the next stage was slightly opening up, eager to face the challenges that lay ahead, Beatrice hoped that her breakthrough would enable her to assist Alec, should they encounter a similar situation like the Chronomancer once again.

Arthur, always resourceful, stepped in to salvage the situation.

”Alec is never late like this, no worries, I’ll go call him,” he assured the team.

As he quickly made his way up the stairs to find Alec and inform him of their readiness to depart.

–

Ascending to Alec’s room, Arthur’s confusion deepened.

As Alec had not even woken up, perplexed by the development, he approached Alec and tapped him gently.

Slowly, Alec opened his eyes, stretching his body as if he had just emerged from a long and rejuvenating slumber, however, a furrow formed on Alec’s brow as he glanced out the window, realizing the daylight had already broken.

Turning to Arthur, Alec questioned, ”Why is it morning already?, What happened?”

”Please tell me I’m still dreaming and it’s not already morning?” Alec pleaded, his voice filled with disbelief.

Arthur regarded him with a mix of surprise and concern before responding,

”I’m afraid you’re not dreaming, Boss, and yes, it’s morning.” Arthur replied

Fatigued, Alec allowed himself to sink back onto the bed, contemplating the events that had unfolded.

As he stared at the ceiling, Alec attempted to recollect what had transpired the previous night, he recalled entering the newly upgraded space within the Amulet Artifact and selecting the second level door.

However, his arrogance had gotten the best of him as he chose to survey his new surroundings from a higher vantage point, this mistake had provided the Sparrowkeet with an opportunity to swiftly eliminate him.

Though Alec had perished, he now understood that the Amulet had created a new world within itself, Determined to re-enter, Alec had believed that sleeping once more would transport him back to this hidden realm.

However, to his dismay, he had succumbed to a deep slumber, feeling reinvigorated by the energy the Amulet had bestowed upon him as compensation for his demise in the realm,

He had still been left unaware of the chances that if he still confront a demonic beast and was able to kill it maybe he would accrue valuable experience points.

Furthermore, he remained completely clueless on how to activate the means of transportation into the Amulet world, uncertain if it was a one-time occurrence.

Pushing these thoughts aside, Alec turned to face Arthur with renewed determination.

”Tell everyone to wait for me, I will join you shortly!” he declared.

Despite his demise, Alec had come to realize that the Amulet had indeed created a new world, and he yearned to find a way to enter it again, unlike its previous damaged state, where anyone could access it and the Chronomancer had exploited it as a twisted game prison, this new world held promises yet to be discovered.

–

A few minutes after bidding farewell to the city of time, Alec and his team embarked on their journey, the entire city had gathered to bid them farewell, faces beaming with gratitude and pride for their heroic actions.

As they waved goodbye to the well wishers, the rest of the team, apart from Alec, felt a newfound sense of accomplishment, as they infused mana in their legs allowing them to run faster, propelling them forward on their mission.

The restriction of not using mana had served as a training period for the city of time, teaching them how to survive without relying on Mana energy. Luckily, they all emerged from this challenge unscathed, with no casualties.

So now with the assistance of mana enforcement, fatigue was no longer a pressing issue, enabling them to cover more ground, however, as nightfall approached, they realized they still had a considerable distance to cover before reaching their next destination, prompting the need to find a suitable spot to camp.

It was Sophie, the fourth girl in the group, who suggested seeking shelter in a nearby cave, the idea was met with unanimous agreement, as exhaustion from the excessive use of mana left them yearning for rest and the chance to replenish their energy.

As the team settled down, Agnes found herself lost in thought, contemplating the significance of their upcoming mission, she perceived a connection between its completion and their ongoing journey, much like how the previous experience of restraining their mana had prepared them for the race of death.

Alec’s voice broke through her musings, reminding everyone of the unfamiliar territory they found themselves in.

With caution in his voice, he proposed taking turns as night watch due to the uncertain encounters they might face, curiosity getting the better of him, he turned to Endrick and Sophie, asking,

”By the way, what are your abilities?” Alec sought a deeper understanding of his team members’ strengths and skills.

”I possess an affinity for the plant element,” Endrick declared, earning a nod of encouragement from Alec. It struck Alec that Endrick would be the first plant mage he would work with, and he was eager to witness the strength that came with plant element unique abilities.

With this in mind, Alec had no reservations about Endrick’s role as a plant mage in their team.

Though Sophie’s confession took Alec by surprise.

”Well, you already know about my low shadow element affinity,” she began,

”but I also have a low affinity talent for beast taming, however, I haven’t had much success in my attempts so far.”

Alec’s curiosity deepened, realizing that he had once again encountered another distinctive ability that is linked to one of the ancient clans, however, despite Sophie possessing this skill and the potential association with one of the ancient clans of the Northern Kingdom, Sophie exhibited none of the arrogant demeanor typically associated with those from the ancient clans.

In Alec’s experience, individuals like Pale, who even had no significant position within the ancient clan, displayed an unwarranted air of superiority.

These encounters had fostered a prejudice within Alec towards the members of the ancient clans, but upon observing Sophie’s gentle nature, he found it difficult to believe that she shared that bloodline.

Alec’s curiosity got the better of him, and he decided to address the subject directly.

”Are you from an ancient clan?” he asked, noticing Sophie’s head bowing down slightly in response.