Ashley''s heart pounded in her chest as she faced her first adversary, a hooded figure with the monicker of ''fire-demon'' known for his relentless fire attacks. He wielded a paintbrush as his weapon of choice.


    How unconventional Ashley''s thought raced as she uncoiled her pen from her waist which acted as a fashionable belt.


    "Fascinating! I haven''t met an adversary who''s skilled at petty tricks, say, if I win that pen is mine yes?" the fire demon chuckles as he summons an inkstone filled to the brim with melted ink.


    The underground arena referee signals for the duel to start.


    Ashley''s thought raced, he must be confident, I should dodge first


    "Βολ?δα (volída) encore x5!" fire demon shouted, five balls of fire shot in rapid succession.


    [ Macro Skill: Reading (Master) ]


    Ashley''s pupils dilated, revealing the trajectory of each shot. She spins mid-air, confident of her athleticism. The balls of fire flew past her, exploding behind as she lands to gracefully.


    The fire demon fakes shocked expression which Ashley misread as an opening. She made a beeline straight to him while brandishing her pen like a whip.


    "I activate my trump card, "καθυστ?ρηση Βολ?δα (volída kathystérisi)" an explosion erupted from underneath her path sending her flying a few feet up.


    A roar of cheer erupted from the crowd, everyone seems to have placed their bets on the fire demon, with the odds of 100-0 in favor of Ashley''s adversary. Coming in the underground arena, the duo already knew something was off but decided to brush it off.


    "THAT''S CHEATING!" Ethan screamed from the bleachers. He knew that it was impossible to trigger a delayed explosion if the spell hasn''t been encoded beforehand. He surmises that the entire arena must be rigged with explosions.


    Nobody minds him though, the audience just laughed at his naivety. The referee shook his head, as if to say You should''ve known, anything goes in an underground arena...


    Ashley wanted to use her own cheats as well, her transformations could give her a gamblers'' edge; but this was meant to be a learning exercise—for them to get used to the usual rules in order to use that knowledge to augment their unique abilities. While she was falling from the she twisted her body by turning her pen into a giant fan, gazed upon the fire demon who was about to cast another volley of burning projectiles, sees the inkstone and recalling what the book taught them about magical inks, she suddenly had a brilliant idea.


    Her pen slithered swiftly like a viper catching its prey, its'' tip landing over the exposed ink, she whispered barely audible so the audience remains oblivious of the incantation "Til a'' the seas gang dry... and the rocks melt wi'' the sun... ξηρ?? (xirós)!" quoting a line from Robert Burns'' A Red, Red Rose.


    The ink hardened as if it had been exposed under the heat of the scorching sun. The fire demon now genuinely flabbergasted screamed, "MAGICAL INK CAN''T BE AFFECTED BY OTHER MAGICAL INK SPELLS, YOU CHEATER! WHAT DID YOU DO?!" in his frustration, he used his Lexical Reservoir to fire another volley.


    "Last time I checked, it''s completely legal to use soul ink and ancient script. Too bad poor demon can''t afford to find an ancient tome?" Ashley pouted as she mockingly replied easily dodging the fire volley as she did the first time. After two more volleys, the fire demon''s reservoir has completely depleted.


    "It''s the end of the line for you, Βολ?δα (volída) encore x5!" Ashley reiterated the fire demons'' signature spell this time using her soul ink.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    –20 Lexical Points


    [ Lexical Reservoir 230 / 250 ]


    She turns back before the volley hits the fire demon, explosions erupted in her wake. "So it costs 20 LRP. Too bad you only had 60 LRP to your name. What a loser," Ashley muses. Ethan raises a fist as she passes and gives a fist bump as a response.


    Ethan was next. He did a minor stretch and jog in place as he expectantly glances over the opponents'' entrance but no one came. The announcer makes a frantic announcement.


    "This arena is for commoners looking to earn a quick buck, the likes of you are NOT welcomed here. Bunch of aristocrats leeching off daddy''s money! The arena is officially closed for the day, we''ll resume when there no more NOBLES who look down on people."


    "I appreciate the pun but we''re not nob–" Ethan tried to dissuade when someone in the crowd cut him off "He can''t even take accountability but he likes to take taxes? That''s ballsy coming from a noble!"


    People begun to chant, "NO BALLS! NOBLE! NO BALLS! NOBLE!..." disdain and hatred plastered all over their faces as a deep-rooted anger burst out in that fateful moment. The negative emotions palpable in the evening air.


    "Let''s just get out of here. Sore losers, all of them..." Ashley taps Ethan''s shoulder as they walk away, while being thrown all sorts of things by a disgruntled crowd.


    Back in the luxurious inn, Ethan went to bed early, clearly dissatisfied with their trainings'' outcome. Ashley knocks on his door asking, "Professor, you... Uh... Need something? Anything?"


    Defeated, Ethan grudgingly replied, "Misery loves company, go away before you get affected with my bad luck."


    Ashley knew how setbacks affects someone like Ethan. He had seen him get qualified for an international writing competition once, but had to turn it down because the institution won''t give him a paid leave. At the time, he needed the money to pay a loan, so he chose work over something he genuinely enjoyed. He was dejected for a month, knowing that opportunities like that don''t come knocking twice, but, he really needed to pay that loan.


    Ashley tried to comfort him, "It wasn''t your fault, you know. If I hadn''t teased him, then you would''ve–"


    "I keep telling you I''m not in the habit of blaming others, get some sleep kid," Ethan cuts her off.


    "You once told me that I had to grow up and stop blaming my parents for everything I hated in life," she hesitated as her own tragic past flashed backed in her head. So many people comforted her with kind words, the maids, the gardener, her aunts, her friends, her favorite teacher; and yet, with her family''s influence, no one really tried to help her.


    Mustering the courage to speak her mind, she continued, "You should grow up too. And no, I''m not a kid. With all due respect, professor, you can''t push me away, I get to decide what I''ll do, and I''ve decided to stay here."


    Sighing, Ethan opens the door. "I give up. I wanted to bask in melancholy but a GROWN UP woman just won''t stay away from my damn door... You... want some snacks?"


    Almost immediately, Ashley stands up and happily walks in the room, "Midnight snacks, yey!"


    Ethan, leaves the door open and pulls out a basket of pixie tarts, a snack he bought from one of the food stalls earlier. It had a buttery golden crust, inside, the tart is filled with velvety cream bought from the elusive Pixie Conclaves. It''s rarity is the main reason why it costs 3 gold coins each. Atleast, that''s what the vendor told Ethan.


    He glanced at Ashley who sat cross-legged at the foot of the bed. Happily munching on the Pixie Tarts. "Not a kid, huh," Ethan chuckles, the weight in his chest easing up.


    "Pi-che?"


    Ethan and Ashley glanced at the door, flabbergasted over the sudden realization that Peachy had wandered off since they entered the tailor shop yesterday, they were too engrossed with equipping themselves that they barely noticed him gone.


    "Goodness! where have you been?!" Ashley lifts him up and gives him a warm hug.


    "Piche! Pi-Piche! Pi-Pi-Pi-che!" the penguin replied while making big gestures with his flappers and waddling its tail.


    "What do I need to do to finally understand him?" Ethan asks.


    "He''s not your familiar, instead of a direct translation, it''s more like a telephatic link, more like, I know what he means, not word for word," Ashley replied as Peachy continuously regaled her with his day out.


    "So, what did he say?"


    "Haha, this little guy said he stopped parallax from infiltrating through the sewers! This wee thing? stopped Parallax? So cute!"


    Ethan gives a hearty laugh, "Oh that''s the best thing I heard all day! Peachy you made me day!" Ethan offers him a tart but the penguin looks away. Dejected by the fact that none of them believe him.


    "Pi-Che!"


    "Of course we believe you! Our little cuddly hero saved the day!" Ashley rubs her cheeks over the baby penguin, it relents and started to enjoy the cuddle.


    "We should start dressing up our little hero then?" Ethan excitedly suggests.


    "Great idea!"


    The duo, tacitly agreed to set their worries aside and scrambled through their inventory looking for suitable apparels for the baby penguin—more than relieved that they haven''t lost this adorable bundle of joy.


    Just like that, another adventuring day concluded.