Amelia: The Level Zero [Hero]

Wolfwater had been attacked. It was a brief assault, and thanks to Noele the Noble Spellsword’s efforts, the perpetrator had been defeated. The battle ended quickly— it had barely even lasted a minute. But that didn’t mean that the village escaped unscathed. 

I cast my gaze over my surroundings. I saw the damage that had been done to the nearby houses. Various buildings had been toppled over, and there were a few scattered craters along the gravel road. There had been a few small fires spreading around Wolfwater, but I quickly extinguished the flames before it could burn down too much of the nearby foliage. 

Other than that, I didn’t do too much to help out. I saved a few lives, and I handed out some of Garron’s healing potions. But I let others deal with the main bulk of the work. Noele took down the Cloying Witch, and now, her parents were handling the aftermath. A crowd gathered around both Nolan and Nicole as I watched from a distance, and a hooded figure approached me from behind.

“Hiding your identity, I see.” I glanced back towards Xakor as he chuckled at me. His face was masked by some sort of obfuscation magic from his cloak. His four arms were also hidden, and he shook his head.

“Xrr… I would rather not cause a panic right now,” he said, glancing towards Noele. 

A few children and their parents were gratefully approaching the blonde girl. She just smiled and nodded at them as Garron looked on from the side. He wore a sense of wonder and amazement in his face, and I was sure he had more than a handful of questions to ask her later on. 

Xakor shrugged as he turned back to me. “And I’d prefer to let those who deserve attention right now be the ones to receive it.”

“Are you really that famous?” I asked, raising a brow.

“Indeed,” he said with a sagely nod. “Unlike the [Hero King] and the [Mystic Craftsman], my notoriety expands across all four continents. I once even served a feast for the Merfolk King long ago.”

“Wait, I thought the merfolk hated land dwellers?”

“My species can breathe in water as well as we can breathe on land.” Xakor smirked, gesturing at these tiny slits on his neck.

I blinked. “That’s… convenient.”

“Xrr, yes. And because of that, the merfolk trusted me enough to let me into their kingdom.” 

“Food really is the door to the heart, huh?” I remarked idly.

Xakor shrugged back at me. “An odd saying. But I must agree with it. After all, without food, we cannot live.” 

“Yeah…” I narrowed my eyes as I turned back to face the rest of the village.

There were families crying, their homes destroyed. [Farmers] who had been transporting their crops stared at the burnt remains of what their fields had yielded. There were even some who had died during the initial attack— before the Cloying Witch even arrived at Wolfwater.

Jerome— the man who warned us about what was going on— had just left the village when he had been attacked. The golems had destroyed his wagon, before slaughtering a handful of other [Farmers]. So there were at least a dozen dead from this encounter… and so soon after the Miststorm Riders razed down a large chunk of the farmland around the village?

It was a tragedy. I felt a slight pang of guilt, watching these scenes unfold one after another. I wanted to help— but I also didn’t want to deal with all this crap. I helped beat up the bad guys, and that was enough…? That still didn’t feel right.

I pursed my lips as I looked back towards Xakor. Even through his shadowed gaze, I could tell he wanted to give a helping hand… or four. And I got an idea. It might not be the best idea in the world, but it was an idea. After all, it wasn’t like we couldn’t help out in other ways, right?

“Xakor, remember that offer you gave me?” I said, and the otherworlder raised a brow.

“Xrr, I do.” He placed a hand on his chin as he faced me. “Was it something you needed right away, Amelia?”

“Maybe not right at this moment. We can figure out its details tomorrow. But—” I hesitated, before glancing back at the destruction wrought across the village. “What about we open up a restaurant here in Wolfwater?”

That made Xakor pause. He blinked at me a few times— which was many more times than he had blinked since we first met. The alien gaped at me, repeating what I had just said.

“Open up… a restaurant?” 

“It can double as a food bank too, I guess,” I said, shaking my head. “I’m going to be honest, I don’t actually care about the money anymore. Although… I don’t know if I can fund the entire operation myself, which is why I need your help with this.”

“That is certainly very interesting. And if we do leverage my name, we can even attract people from Whiteridge, giving them a reason to visit Wolfwater and bolster the economy.” Xakor nodded approvingly. But he raised his head, before peering at me. “However, I do have one question.” 

I met his gaze curiously. “What is it?” 

“Why do you wish to do this?” he asked. “From what Evan told me, you are a recluse. Or in his words— you are lazy, dull, and utterly unsociable.”

“That’s… rude,” I said flatly. Then I sighed. “But also fair.”

I looked past the crowd gathered just ahead of me, my gaze focusing only on Noele. My apprentice or whatever. The blonde girl was smiling and laughing with Garron as they entertained a group of wide-eyed children.

I closed my eyes, before giving a half-hearted shrug. “I have nothing better to do, I guess.”

Xakor tilted his head, but didn’t press me more. “I see.”

The two of us stood there for a moment, watching the nervous hubbub from the panic and chaos slowly die down. 

“But… what should we serve at this restaurant?” Xakor asked, and I tapped a finger on my chin.

“Food from Earth, maybe?” I suggested. “And some of your more popular dishes too?”

“Xrr, I had assumed as such. But let me rephrase the question,” Xakor said as he crossed two of his arms. “What can we serve with the ingredients we have available around the area?” He gestured towards the farmlands, and I paused.

“Now that’s a good question.” And to be honest, I hadn’t even thought it through either. 

 

—--

 

[You have defeated the Cloying Witch!]

No level up, Noele thought as she stared at the notification flashing before her eyes. She had received a second notification from the World System, but she tried her best to ignore it. At least, for now. 

[Class advancement available! Please choose one of the following Class advancements:

[Champion Spellsword] - A [Champion Spellsword] is a protector of justice— savior of the weak, and the light in the darkness. With blades or magic, they will defend those who cannot fend for themselves, and they will rise to any danger that threatens the weak. It is the first step down the path of heroism, and that is why a [Champion] is a precursor to something greater… something more…

Do you accept this Class?

There are no other Classes advancements available for you.]

I still don’t get it, the Noble Spellsword thought. Why me?

It was a question that had weighed on her for ten days, now. But it felt wrong to just accept this Class advancement without consulting Amelia. So Noele had been waiting for the right opportunity to bring it up. And now, with the Cloying Witch’s attack, along with her connection to the Sect of Abyssal Thorns, the blonde girl thought she had finally found the right moment to approach her mentor.

She quickly excused herself from the gushing crowd of children, leaving Garron behind to deal with their questions, before seeking out the brown-haired woman. Amelia stood off to the side, conversing with Xakor as Noele approached.

The Noble Spellsword wasn’t sure what to say. She wasn’t even certain how she’d start. But she steeled herself and drew closer.

“Amelia,” Noele started. “Can we talk—” And the blonde girl paused. 

“I was thinking about middle eastern cuisine…”

“Middle eastern? That sounds intriguing. Tell me more…”

Both Xakor and Amelia halted mid-conversation, before glancing at Noele. The blonde girl just tried to work her jaw as she stared at them.

“What… are you two talking about?” she asked.

“We’re talking about falafels,” Amelia said simply. “Maybe some pita and hummus. Kebabs and pilafs too.”

“What?” Noele blinked. “That doesn’t explain anything.”

“Xrr… to put it simply, we’re going to be opening up a restaurant,” Xakor explained as he gestured towards the village. “We would likely use our first few months of profit to aid with rebuilding Wolfwater too. It is… a charity?”

Amelia rolled her eyes. “It’s not a charity. I don’t really care about making a profit, but it is still for-profit. I’m just also going to be helping out where I can.”

“Yes,” Xakor agreed. “Which I am sure Wolfwater would appreciate.”

“Wait, this was your idea?” Noele stared at her mentor with round eyes. 

“Yeah.” Amelia just nodded. “What about it?”

The blonde girl furrowed her brows, leaning closer. “First you said you don’t care about money, and now you’re actively trying to help others out? Are you sure you’re not sick, Amelia?”

Amelia just snorted. “Man, if this is how you’re going to react when I do good things, maybe I should be more selfish.”

“I’m just kidding,” Noele said with a small smile. “It’s just surprising. That’s all.”

She couldn’t lie and say she wasn’t happy to see her mentor being less uptight when compared to before. When the two first met, Amelia was dead set on being a complete and utter social outcast who only cared about money. But now, Noele could see that something had changed since then. 

It was curious. The Noble Spellsword wondered what it could be. But she shook her head, dismissing the thought. Instead, she remembered why she had come here. Why have I been chosen as a [Champion]? Should I even take this Class? It was a question she didn’t have an answer to. So she took a step forward, taking in a deep breath.

“Amelia,” Noele said, holding her mentor’s gaze. “Can we talk?”

And the brown-haired woman raised a quizzical brow. “Uh, sure?”

 

—--

 

Guardian Angel Z357 paused as he zipped over the clouds, sensing the weak aura of the Void leaking into the planet. He had failed to find any signs of the Grand Nova Empire— the Elder Dragons were nowhere to be found. But now, his attention was directed back towards Laxo. His twelve eyes focused only on a single location.

There? Guardian Angel Z357 was certain he had passed by that city just a few hours ago. But now, there was another surge of depravity there. He spread his wings wide, ready to fly back to Laxo right this instant.

And he sensed another disturbance. It came from Laxo as well, but it was located further to the east. 

Another? the thought crossed Guardian Angel Z357’s mind. And his twelve eyes focused. This second disturbance was also located close to a prior rift— the rift located in the middle of the forest. Odd.

Guardian Angel Z357 lacked the abilities to clone himself. If he could, he would have split off towards both locations right this instant. But now, he was faced with a dilemma. It was not an easy decision to make. Especially with both traces of the Void rapidly dissipating. If he investigated one, the other might be gone by the time he arrived at the scene of the other.

He glanced between these two locations, sensing the Void’s essence leaking into Vacuos. Both sources of power were already fading, but one was evidently much stronger. Like its connection to the Void was far more prominent.

Knowing that, Guardian Angel Z357 made his decision.

 

MelasD

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