Supreme Magus

"I will." Elina nodded. "Be careful out there, sweetie."

"Mom, I'm a Divine Beast and a Magus!"

"And I'm your mother." She took his face in her hands. "Even if you were to become a Guardian, you'll always be my miracle baby."

***

"Lith and Protector together!" Solus jumped with joy as they picked up Ryman in Lutia. "This brings back so many memories."

"It does." Protector swallowed hard under Selia's glare.

"The fight against the Wither, Balkor, the church of the six. We sure went through thick and thin together." Solus continued, oblivious to the huntress' raising anger. "Friya, you were with us most of the times."

"Yeah, most of the times my husband almost died to help you guys." Selia chimed in before Friya could say a word. "The Wither was everybody's problem but the rest was all about you guys!

"I want him back in mint condition. I'm not going to raise four children alone. Am I clear?"

"Crystal." Nalrond's eyes stared at the huntress' finger that was millimeters away from his nose. "Also, I'll pay Ryman for his trouble. It wouldn't be fair to take him away from his family for nothing."

"We are friends." Ryman sounded offended. "I don't need or want your money. After everything you did for our kids while you lived with us, I should be the one paying you."

"I know we are friends." Nalrond nodded. "That's how I know that your family needs the money. I've got a share of silver mines and no bills to pay whereas you are still an Awakened apprentice who has to take care of four child-sized natural disasters.

"Consider it your compensation for the lost income. After all, you can't work while you help me."

"And we can't keep mooching off Lith." Selia sighed. "I don't like this either, but Nalrond has a point."

Their kids' Skinwalker armor were hand-me-downs from Aran and Leria. On top of that, ever since Selia had Awakened and trained with Kamila, they had moved in with the Verhens, eating their food.

Selia was a proud woman, but enchanted items cost a lot and the practice of magic consumed a lot of energy. On top of that, the time she spent training she couldn't use it to cook, clean, or take care of the children.

She had to rely on Elina's help and Kamila's resources for too many things for her comfort.

"Fine." Protector sighed. "Let's go, then."

They used the Warp Gate in the barn to reach the closest Mage Association branch to the Gabash village but didn't fly straight to their destination.

They split up to cover more ground and explored the area around the village for mana geysers.

"This is no waste of time." Lith explained via the communication amulet. "We can use a mana geyser for recon with the Watchtower once we have a lead on our mark and as a quick way out in case things get messy."

It would also help Solus to keep her strength but everyone knew about her real nature and took it for granted.

They found only one mana geyser near Gabash. Imprinting it required just a few seconds but they took their time to study the situation and scan their surroundings with the Watchtower floor.

"The bad news is there's nothing useful here." Lith said. "The good news is there's nothing useful here. The geyser is abandoned, and even if we rush here, there won't be anyone who can witness the tower's appearance."

"That's good to hear." Nalrond took a deep breath and shapeshifted his clothes into a mage robe with a large hood.

He also switched to his hybrid body. It wasn't as tall as the Agni form but was big enough to make Protector look normal. Then, he traced a few war runes on his face with his fingers.

"What are you doing?" Friya was puzzled. "We need the help of the people of Gabash, not to terrorize them. You look scary."

"That's the idea." He nodded. "As I told you, I went to Gabash in the past. I can't afford anyone to recognize me. The runes will draw the people's attention off my face even if it gets exposed.

"Furthermore, if someone does recognize me, the other Awakened will mistake their surprised expression for fear and ask no questions."

"Good thinking." Friya nodded. "Before we continue to Gabash, is there something we should know about your tribe? Some keyword or a specific sign that will identify us as friends?

"Otherwise even if we find the Rezar, they might run away if you are not with us."

"Just tell him that the Rezars were wrong." Nalrond sighed. "That the sun did rise."

"Is that an inside joke of your tribe?" Lith asked.

"Yes." Nalrond replied. "We always claimed we were so powerful that we could stop the sun from rising. That Dawn would never come."

"I'm sorry, man." Lith patted his shoulder and used the Warp Mirror to cover most of the distance separating them from Gabash.

He could have moved them straight into the village, but Lith wanted to familiarize himself with the area and not scare the locals more than necessary.

Gabash was a medium-sized village, about twice the size of Lutia back when Lith was a kid. There were about a dozen two-story stone houses at the center of the settlement and fifty more around them, all of different sizes and made of wood.

Lith and the others appeared on a road between cultivated fields. The farmers comprised the bulk of Gabash's population and lived on the outskirts of the village. Summer was almost over but wildfires and thieves were always a threat.

The harvest season was around the corner and the crops needed constant supervision, so more than one man witnessed the arrival of the group and snarled.

"This isn't a good sign." Nalrond said while waving the farmers goodbye. "If they've already gotten used to seeing people Warping, there must be way more Awakened than I thought."

His suspicion was confirmed the moment they entered the village. Gabash was bustling with activity like Lutia during the Spring Maiden festival. The restaurant was full and the bakery worked at full capacity to produce enough bread for everyone.

Money flowed and business flourished yet no one looked happy.

The foreigners had a disgruntled expression, either because they considered the hunt for the Rezar a waste of time or because they had yet to find any lead. The natives, instead, found the presence of the foreigners disturbing.

The villagers of Gabash liked money like anyone else but also valued their privacy. The Awakened had long overstayed their welcome and the villagers couldn't wait for their uninvited guests to leave.

A few local brawlers had tried to bully the less intimidating Awakened and persuade them to leave Gabash. They had ended up at the local healer's infirmary where they still resided.

That and a few demonstrations of the foreigners' magical prowess had made it clear that the villagers had no control over their own lives anymore.

"I've heard there's trouble here." Lith walked inside Gabash's main plaza like he owned the place, his Supreme Magus robe flowing behind him thanks to a conjured wind. "Which one of you is the village head?"