DIVINE BANE-Chapter 68: Found my next prey

The gates of Welford city stood tall, carved with intricate stone patterns and glinting golden runes. For Alex, this was a whole new world. It was his first time in such a bustling city, clean cobbled roads, stone houses with flowering balconies, and the air filled with the scent of baked bread and sizzling meat.

His eyes sparkled as he walked in awe, his backpack bouncing with each step. Beside him, Vasuki walked in her human form a tall, elegant woman with ocean blue hair that are iced at the edges with light blue and golden irises that shimmered like a snake's. She walked with grace but her expression screamed

"why am i babysitting my own master."

As they passed a street food stall, Alex's nose twitched. "Whoa! What is that smell?"

Before Vasuki could stop him, a smiling merchant waved a skewer of roasted meat. "Try this, traveler! First bite's free if you tell me your name!"

Alex took the bait. "I'm Alex! Thanks!"

The next moment, he was pulled toward another stall with spicy dumplings, then a candy vendor, then a merchant selling charmed trinkets.

Vasuki's eye twitched.

THUNK!

A swift palm chop landed on Alex's head, creating a visible bump.

"OW!" he yelped, holding the skewered meat and a shiny blue dumpling he didn't even remember buying.

"master," Vasuki growled. "You were nearly robbed three times. focus on what we came for "

She grabbed his collar and dragged him down the street as he stumbled along, still chewing the meat. "But it's really good..." he mumbled.

Vasuki sighed heavily and asked a nearby vendor, "Where is the Adventurer's Guild?"

The man pointed down the road. "Keep going straight until you hit the central fountain. Big black stone building on the right. you can't miss it, even if you try"

Without thanking him, Vasuki resumed dragging Alex in that direction.

"Let gooo, I can walk!" Alex groaned.

"I don't trust you to walk anymore," Vasuki snapped.

They finally arrived.

Before them stood a towering black stone building, looked ancient yet well-maintained. The guild symbol a silver sword crossed with a quill hung above its arched entrance. The hustle and clang of adventurers could already be heard from inside. Just like the man said, you really couldn't miss it.

Vasuki crossed her arms, eyes narrowing slightly.

"Well then, Master," she said with a calm yet firm voice.

"From here on, it's up to you. But I suggest you cover your face. It's better that no one knows who you are."

Alex nodded.

Without a word, he reached into his bag and pulled out his mask the red Asura skull mask, its empty eyes gleaming in the light. He placed it on with practiced ease. The moment it settled onto his face, his boyish aura faded. Now he looked mysterious, almost dangerous.

Vasuki gave a small smile, almost proud.

Then, with a whisper, she said, "I'll be watching, Master."

With that, her body shimmered and dissolved into light, slithering up Alex's arm as she returned to her serpent form, her inky-black body coiling and sealing into a tattoo that wrapped around his right arm. The gold shimmer of her eyes was the only thing that remained briefly before fading.

Alex flexed his arm slightly, feeling her presence merge with his own.

Before stepping inside, Alex took a deep breath and let his imagination run wild.

An adventure guild... there'll be brave warriors standing tall by the quest board, groups of elite adventurers planning their next dragon hunt, and of course, hot ladies from different guilds at the counters, all eager to welcome fresh recruits like me... maybe even fight over me! Haa... now this is gonna be epic.

With a grin on his face, he pushed the heavy door open.

THUD!

A massive axe slammed into the ground inches from his foot, the blade humming from impact.

Alex froze, eyes wide.

"...What the hell?!"

Inside, it was pure chaos. Adventurers were brawling across the floor, mugs flying, a table crashed into a wall, and someone was passed out on the stairs. The air smelled like booze, sweat, and bad decisions.

"This... this is nothing like I imagined. This isn't a guild. This is a bar with a side quest problem!"

Dodging a chair that flew past his head, Alex cautiously made his way toward the "New Recruits" counter.

Then he saw her.

A beautiful woman, tall, with wavy auburn orange hair, golden eyes, and a smirk that could cut steel stood at the desk, lazily flipping through a stack of forms.

Alex's mood brightened immediately.

Okay. Not all hope is lost.

Alex walked confidently up to the counter, trying his best to look cool and composed. He adjusted his red Asura skull mask and cleared his throat.

"I'm here for an adventurer card," he said.

The woman at the counter looked up lazily, one eyebrow raised. She gave him a once-over, then burst out laughing.

"A kid? Seriously? Look, this isn't a playground, and I'm not your babysitter. Run along back to mommy before someone in here uses you as target practice."

Alex didn't flinch. Instead, he raised his palm slowly, letting his rhu hum through the air.

Fwoosh.

A flicker of flame danced on one finger.

Crack

.A spark of lightning on others.

Swirl.

A puff of wind spun above the other finger.

Drip.

A sphere of water hovered silently in the center of his palm.

The chaos in the guild faded for a second. The woman's eyes widened. Her smirk was gone, replaced by genuine shock.

"...What's your age again?"

Alex, not wanting to spill too much, replied smoothly, "Fourteen."

The woman blinked. "Fourteen, huh...? You're a bit short for that, but who cares. Not like height affects paperwork."

Without another word, she grabbed a pen and started filling out the forms. No more laughing. No more sarcasm.

Alex stood there, arms crossed, pretending to be unbothered, while inside he was screaming

Heck yeah. That shut her up!

As the woman jotted down the basics, she glanced back up and asked casually, "Alright, last question, when did you awaken your Rhu core?"

Alex scratched his cheek under the mask. "Uh... a few weeks ago?"

The pen in her hand stopped mid-scribble.

She looked at him. Really looked at him this time. "A few weeks ago?"

The words weren't loud, but they echoed.

A few adventurers nearby paused mid-drink or mid-argument, glancing over. Then someone whispered:

"Did he say weeks?"

"No way. He just summoned four elements. That takes months or may be years of control and practice"

"Is he bluffing?"

More heads turned. The noise in the guild shifted. A low murmur spread like fire through dry grass.

The woman leaned in slightly, eyes sharp now. "Kid... you mean to say you awakened your core just few weeks ago and can already do spell work?"

(In celestial magic, spell work is a specialized discipline. It falls under the broader category of Rhu usage, which includes four main branches: body reinforcement, weapon enhancement, spell work, and tool pioneering.)

Alex shrugged like it was no big deal. "Yeah? Why, is that weird?"

Weird was an understatement.

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The woman leaned back in her chair, staring at him as if she was reassessing everything.

"...You're not normal. At all."

Alex, trying to play it cool, replied, "I get that a lot."

People around him were already whispering louder, some skeptical, others wide-eyed. One rough-looking adventurer muttered,

"What kind of monster awakens a core and pulls off that kind of spell work in weeks...?"

But Alex kept his calm, even if inside he was screaming,

Okay this is kinda cool, not gonna lie.

The murmurs and glances grew too loud to ignore, the woman gestured to a glowing crystal orb embedded into a stone pedestal beside the desk.

"Alright, prodigy, place your hand here. Let's see where you actually stand."

Alex raised a brow but did as asked.

The moment his palm touched the orb, light exploded inside it, shimmering blue, gold, and faint hints of crimson.

The room quieted.

The orb glowed steadily.

"Tier: Low Master," the orb announced in a mechanical tone.

The guild hall fell into stunned silence.

The woman blinked at the orb, then at Alex. "You're already a Low Master... and you've only had your Rhu core for a few weeks?"

Alex scratched his neck awkwardly. "...Is that bad?"

"No," she said, still dazed. "It's terrifying."

Without another word, she stamped his documents, reached beneath the desk, and handed him a small rectangular badge made of bronze.

"Here's your Adventurer ID. Welcome to the guild, Bronze-rank."

Alex looked at it curiously. "Bronze? What's that mean?"

The woman cleared her throat, regaining her composure.

"That's your current rank. Adventurers are sorted into five ranks: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, and then if you survive long enough then Mithril."

"Mithril..." Alex repeated, his eyes sparkling behind the mask.

She continued, "Missions and dungeons are ranked too. They go from C up to S. C-rank is for beginners. S-rank? That's where the legends go to die."

Alex gave a slow nod, absorbing... well, some of that.

Inside his head: Mithril. Top spot. I gotta get there.

Everything else? Already forgotten.

Alex took the bronze badge in his hand, giving it a curious flip under the light. With a simple nod, he turned and began walking out of the building.

Behind him, half the adventurers in the guild suddenly scrambled to their feet and followed, some pretending to leave casually, others already whispering into magical devices or sprinting down the street to report to their factions.

The lady at the counter slumped into her seat, eyes still wide.

"What the heck..." she muttered. "That kid... he might actually become a platinum adventurer someday."

Just then, from the upper corner of the guild hall, in a shadowed balcony where the light didn't quite reach, a figure stirred.

A girl leaned against the railing, her face veiled by a dark hood, only the glint of her amused eyes visible. A wicked little smirk crept across her lips.

"Haah..." she whispered, her voice soft like silk and sharp like a dagger. "Found my next prey."