"Okay, I think that concludes our discussion".
Sullivan exhaled softly and took the silver cup on the table. A night had passed since he sent Ryan and his parties to investigate the Dungeon, along with his daughter.
He received the message from one of the guards that took them there. They will begin investigating today.
"Yes, thank you for your time, Your Highness".
The guild master flipped the stack of documents in his hand, the result of their long discussion about the Dungeon. However, it was still not done. There were still several steps before the kingdom acknowledged the Dungeon as the Duke's property.
"Then, Your Highness, I will take my leave". The guild master stood up and slightly bowed his head.
Sullivan nodded and stood up, exchanging firm handshakes to encourage each other because the next matter would be tedious. He swept his gaze, following the retreating figure of the guild master, who slowly left the room.
'Huuf'. Alone in the room, Sullivan exhaled for what felt like a hundredth times, and his eyes wandered toward the window behind the desk in his office. He returned to his desk and sat on the chair, where he committed to work, but somehow, he couldn't find the motivation.
A day had passed since Silvia accompanied the Midnight family. They even had to halt their departure; he sent a message to the King and his family in the capital, telling them something urgent had happened in the state.
Sullivan looked forward and saw the mountain of papers. His face crumpled and shifted outside toward the clear sky, "I hope they are doing fine out there?".
The knocking sound rang across the room, disrupting his thoughts. Sullivan rubbed his nose, turned to the door, and opened his lips. "Who is it?"
"It's Hamdal, Your Highness".
"You may enter".
The man pulled the door and entered—Hamdal, a head butler who had served the Duke's family for generations.
He was an older man in his sixties with a calm expression. He was a bit tall, around 180 cm, wearing a tailored black and silver trim suit that exuded his graceful appearance.
Following behind the man, a head shorter than Hamdal, a woman in her late teens stepped forward. She wore a prim Maid uniform that covered her body. Her shoulder-length black hair cascades as she bowed her head in practiced movement.
'Ah, right, there is a new hire that will tend to Silvia's personnel. ' Sullivan's face stiffened.
"This is our new hire, Mrs. Julia".
A week before the Midnight Family came, Count Magna recommended that some fresh blood be applied to be Silvia's caretaker because Silvia would soon be attending the Academy in her fifteenth year of age.
After careful inspection and a menial test, the woman passed, and today was her first day. Julia's black eyes darted around, searching for the individual she would be attending to.
"Welcome, Julia. I welcome you to the family, and I hope you can serve my daughter to the best of your ability".
"Yes, I will dedicate everything to Mylady Silvia". Julia placed her hand on the chest and lowered her head calmly. Her long bangs covered her shrunken eyes, exuding an eerie madness.
'Ehehe, I will not disappoint you, My lord'. The grin on her lips lasts only for fleeting moments as Julia's face returns to normal.
***
The battle between Ryan, Jin, and the horde of monsters began. Silvia could see the full scene thanks to the tiny sun in the ceilings.
Silvia stood at the back, watching with clenched fists and heart pounding. She sucked a deep breath and gulped her saliva, sweat trickling down her temple as she felt the tension rise.
Her ringing ears muted as she saw Lord Ryan swing his sword sideways and behead five goblins' heads at once.
A gust of violent wind pushed away the goblins standing behind. Lord Ryan steadied his stance and swung his sword diagonally, splitting a goblin into two.
On the other side, Silvia witnesses Jin and his familiar technique massacre every living goblin that stands in his path. Each arc of Jin's blade whistled through the air like a whirlwind of silver edge and blue fluid scatters on the ground, followed by a hollowed shriek with several bodies that fell, creating carnage.
"It was not even a battle'. Silvia exhaled softly, her eyes darted around the battlefield.
Even though more than fifty goblins were blocking their front, the two casually slaughtered their way, clearing the field with their deadly dances.
Silvia's eyes focus, capturing deeply the figure of the boy who kept running forward like a gale. His hands blurred with sharp and deadly movement. Behind him, a ton of monster body parts 'poof' apart, turning into smoke and leaving a grey mana stone scattered away.
'Jin!?'. Silvia's eyes flashed as she observed every detail of the battle, unaware that most of the time, her gaze never left Jin.
She began capturing the minuscule details of Jin's habits, swings, steps, breath, and muscle movements. Her eyes flashed in conviction, and her brain replayed the movement inside her mind.
It was just a matter of time before she could implement it in her everyday life.
However, a sudden distortion in her vision snapped her away from the daze. Silvia's breath quickened, and her heart pounded so loudly that she was afraid it would burst.
***
A flash of memories resurfaced. It was the memory she had when sparring with those people who called themselves adept and masters in swordsmanship. One by one, they carried a tremendous amount of confidence, and they left with nothing but curses.
'I am honored to have a chance to spar against the heaven-chosen person…', The first time was a young man in his mid-twenties.
They started the spar, and both were determined to clinch a victory from the other, not until Silvia's movement began to adapt to her opponent's.
When the man swung, Silvia swung at the same trajectory. When he thrust, Silvia thrust, letting both sword tips clash until, in the end, she placed the tip of her wooden sword on the man's chest.
Her face brightened, and her lips curved into a beautiful smile, yet the man slapped her with harsh words: 'Hmmpt, you are nothing but an insult to a swordsman'.
The man left with a fuming expression, and Duke Sullivan couldn't even dare criticize him, as he also noticed something wrong with Silvia's movement.
'Haha, I will become your opponent, be prepared, girl…', The second challenge came from an Adventurer who boasts an overwhelming power in his swing.
Both start intensely, using wooden swords that whistle around in the air. Each swing from the man creates a tiny shockwave, which until Silvia also does the same, 'You are no fun. I would rather deal with a hundredth of a monster than you, a mindless puppet who knows only to swing a sword'.
Several challenges came, but the outcome was the same: they left, carving a deep scar that slowly ripped the little girl's tender heart.
Lastly, the one who dealt her the bigger blows was none other than a retired captain of a royal knight who was still active as an instructor in the capital. Her father invites him to the house to teach Silvia how to polish her talent more.
But reality was cruel because that day opened the gate to her first destruction: 'There is no personality in your swing. You are unfit to be called a swordsman. Give up on your sword!'
From that moment on, her heart shredded into tiny pieces; it was impossible to mend. The light vanished from her eyes as she stared at the hardened skin of her palm.
A trail of blood, coming from the popping blister, flowed through her wrist until it twisted and fell onto the ground.
It had been hellish and tortuous grit from Silvia. Her trained body couldn't do anything but follow its program to swing a sword every day.
Agony slowly crawled through her body and mind, pushing her into the abyss of no return until she met a boy whose capabilities couldn't be matched by her.
***
"...via? Lady Silvia!?".
"Ah!? I'm sorry, what?".
Marina's shout woke Silvia from her daydream. She glanced at her side and witnessed Lord Ryan and Lady Marina staring at her with brows furrowed in worry.
"Lady Silvia, are you okay?" Marina stood before her, draping a towel she had taken from the storage and wiping the cold sweat that drenched the poor girl's forehead. "You are soaking wet".
"Let's take a break". Ryan opened his lips, but Silvia shook her head. Her eyes darted around until they settled on Jin, who approached closed, holding a bag of mana stones.
"Jin". Her voice cracked, seeming hesitant to call the boy's name.
Jin's head tilts to the side, watching the soaking Silvia. Her breath was rough, eyes flickering in distress. He walked closer, seeing her stretching her hand forward.
But, when Jin tried to grasp her hand, Silvia's body jolted and stepped back.
"I'm fine. Thank you for the concern, everyone." Silvia took the towel from Marina's hand and slightly bowed her head.
Silence hung around them as Jin and his parents exchanged some awkward looks. They forced their stiff mouths to open, but they let out only a silent gesture as the words got stuck in their throats.
"What's the matter, everyone?". Silvia's gaze swept over the group, prompting them to moisten their parched throat.
"N-Nothing". Jin stepped forward and stood beside the girl, "Are you ready to continue?".
"Yeah". Silvia nodded, her lips parted in a lighthearted smile.
Jin turned to his parents and saw them nod in understanding silence.
"Okay, we will continue the investigation. For those who are tired, let me know".
"Okay". Silvia replied.
Jin and Marina nodded their heads and began to resume their walk toward the deepest part.
The sound of their footsteps bounced in every corner, enhancing the eerie feeling that shrouded the space. Jin's eyes reflected a gleaming pebble on the side, but he turned ahead and focused on the group.
The group strode in silence, moving forward for one purpose: to search for a stair or a maw that would lead them to the next level.
When they catch a glimpse of the rocky wall, the place begins to growl. A sudden tremor in their feet alerts the group. But Ryan and Marina stand unfazed, watching the thing happen with parted lips.
In front of him, the wall shook and spewed dust that carried from the trapped wind inside. It moved to the side, revealing another long passage descending like a staircase.
Jin and Silvia heard the adults chuckling beside them and saw Ryan step forward from the others, "Let's go to the second floor".