The journey from Uladia to the Darkless organization’s main base camp was long, tedious, and, most of all, completely uneventful… Or at least for the first week.

Silas would have loved to kill one or two beasts before eventually reaching the main base. That’s where all the political drama happens, and he was not in the mood to politically destroy someone’s career.

What he was in the mood for was killing beasts, but not only did the majority of them completely avoid them, the ones that did attack were all in the solid-amethyst core or higher. 

This made it Archie and Death’s job to kill them as quickly as possible without letting them reach within a 100-meter radius of the group.

However, despite making Silas lose out on actually killing any beasts or monsters throughout the entire journey, in the end, he came to realize that it might have been a blessing in disguise.

Since he had nothing to do throughout the entire journey, he took time to read books, practice and study basic magic, and even learn how to cultivate while doing menial tasks.

Of course, it was still hard to cultivate while listening to others, but over the first week, it became easier and easier, as if it was slowly becoming an instinct rather than a thought and action.

They still had about three weeks of their journey left, so it was more than enough time for him to learn more about his future comrades.

“Missing your family?” Archie asked with a warm smile.

“A little.” Silas sighed.

“Being away from your family for the first time is hard. I know the feeling.” Archie comforted.

“You do?” Silas raised a brow.

“Of course I do. Do I look like I’ve been born and raised in this organization?” Archie chuckled.

“You’re not better than us!” A feminine voice shouted from behind, having seemingly overheard their conversation.

Silas looked at Archie with an inquisitive look. His reaction might differ depending on the situation and how much he trusted everyone around him.

“Yes I am!” Archie shouted back, making Silas widen his eyes.

He was almost certain the woman would have been executed in front of everyone. Despite how much Archie reminded Silas of himself, Archie was unpredictable for that same reason.

“Don’t worry. You can trust everyone here with your life.” Archie smiled.

“What about Death?” Silas narrowed his eyes.

“As long as you are a part of Darkless, he will not say anything about you to anyone outside the organization.” Archie shrugged before adding-

“He’s also terrified of me.” He chuckled.

“Understandable.” Silas nodded.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Archie narrowed his eyes.

“N-Nothing.” 

“Why are you stuttering?”

‘He’s really in his element around these people… He must really trust them.’ Silas thought.

Before coming to Gilea, he didn’t really have a group of people he could trust with his whole being. Well, except his cat. 

‘Rest in peace my friend.’ Silas clapped his hand and lowered his head in prayer, an action that made everyone who saw him raise a brow before looking away.

They walked for a few more hours before setting camp in a patch of the forest. Apparently, they weren’t out of the county yet, and the Uladia forest took up almost a third of the county.

Over the last week, Silas learned quite a lot about his family, and he finally understood why his grandmother was so angry at him when he accepted Nymira’s duel.

According to Archie, the Skylark family was apparently a noble family known for their powerful mages and knights. The family’s entire history was based upon their founder, William Blake Skylark, who is said to have been one of the strongest mages on the continent when the kingdom was created, and the close associate of the first king.

Archie presumed that they wanted to kidnap Silas and Syra due to the fact that Lochras married outside the family. Incest was common among noble families because they wanted to “preserve the bloodline’s purit.”

However, Silas doubted that it was the real reason behind their kidnapping.

If it was really about the purity of the bloodline, wouldn’t they want them dead? Also, wouldn’t they want Lex dead too? It didn’t make sense, but Archie didn’t seem to care since it wasn’t his problem to deal with.

It was Silas’.

“How hard do you think it’ll be to destroy a noble family?” Silas whispered while casting an air spell around them that lowered their voices significantly to anyone listening around them.

If we’re talking about you specifically, I’d say you’ll have to reach the sapphire core at the very least.

“Shit… That much?” Silas gritted his teeth.

“That’s for you. Anyone else would probably have to reach the emerald core before even considering attacking them. The Skylark family is powerful. Oliver was essentially a proxy who comes from a branch family of a branch family. He was nothing.” Archie laughed.

The conversation ended then and there. They said nothing else, but Archie understood what Silas was thinking.

‘I’m so damn weak…’ Silas dispelled the spell around them and balled his hands into fists.

Silas understood his weakness well…

It was almost too obvious, and he hated it.

He hated being so weak… So damn weak…

Sure, to everyone else, he might seem like a prodigy. Hell, in 20 to 30 years, even the nobles might revere him.

He needed to train. No, he needed the harshest type of training he’s ever gotten.

Looking down at his hand, Silas sighed.

They were covered in blood again. They were always covered in blood. 

‘How am I going to protect them if I remain this weak…’ Silas thought before looking into the sky.

He really didn’t want to do it, but now he understood that it was the only choice that remained.

‘I hope I’m a masochist.’

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