"It's not like we want to do it… I didn't even experience such a thing!" ~Phey'lan vin Drokinia

"A week, huh…" Shallies pondered while working in the kitchen. "Wonder what else we should do…"

"We're back!" Phey'lan said, entering from the main door. "What's up, what's up?"

The seraphim arrived looking rather tired. Phey'lan, despite her brimming energy, was sweating all over and covered with dirt. Valor'el was the same, but he had kept the self-control to tidy himself up a bit before entering the tavern.

Arun'dul was the worst of them. He was covered in mud. His clothes were torn, and he had some scratches on his face, though they were already healing. Shallies directed him to the back of the tavern so he could wash himself there. Though she had the option to just help him tidy up with mana-control, the feeling of cleansing with water in a nice, hot shower was still the best way to wash out all the fatigue. So after the young seraph got rid of most of the dirt and mud, he was the first into the bathtub.

"What happened?" Shallies asked after things had calmed down. She offered Phey'lan and Valor'el a cup of coffee each.

"We went back to the Foul Wetlands," Valor'el started. "We wanted to check on the young noldzwjaks, if they were fitting in with their new foster parents."

"The litter recognized us and started playing, which brought the other kids in," Phey'lan added. "You know how these little buggers are, they'll nip and scratch, but they don't mean any harm. Once they realized we could take on their roughhousing, they all just went crazy."

"So basically, they attacked you on sight," Shallies concluded for them.

"Yep!" Phey'lan said. "They were lively little buggers. Arun'dul had a good time with them."

"Did not!" said the young seraph, his voice echoing from the bathroom.

"One of the younglings managed to cling onto his wings," Valor'el explained. "Almost managed to twist the joint. He jumped on one of the new kids, and the rest of the litter ganged up on him."

"After we confirmed that they're all now officially part of the pack, we acted to be defeated and made a run for it. There shouldn't be any disruptions involving them. At least, until they grow up."

Shallies nodded. "Good, I'll have Apple herd them away before Thrush'ven Alir shows up. For now, I need both of you to help out my students once more."

"Sure thing!" Phey'lan said, agreeing before the Godkiller could even explain what was going on.

"What for?" Valor'el asked, being the more curious person.

"My students will be dueling someone so that they can join the sub-raid for Thrush'ven Alir."

The implications of this statement resonated with the two veteran seraphim. They had undergone the same sort of test before. Almost anyone new would meet the same duel. But now that they had Godkiller Shallies backing them in an official capacity, at least as far as joining raids was concerned, there would be no need for them to take the test. Same was the deal for Arun'dul, but his permission would be specific just to this particular raid.

"Since there's three of them," Valor'el started. "They'll be matched against one Hero Class holder."

"I might taunt the guild into sending two Hero Class holders instead," Shallies said. "Or maybe ask for their princess to represent them.

"Didn't you say that she's a Level 100 Elemental Archmage?" Valor'el asked.

"And a Chronoadept?" Phey'lan added.

"Yep and yep," Shallies replied. "They would be hard-pressed to involve a second Hero Class holder if they send someone primed for Favored Class Ascension to participate in the duel. But at the same time, with the way things are going for the kids, they would be no match for her."

"And that's where we come in," Valor'el said, nodding. "If memory serves, this will probably be one of the harshest training you'll ever give them. I don't think most of your past students even consider it training, to be honest."

"And don't you make it any easier, Val. Just channel your seniors who did the same for you. That's goes the same for you, Phey. Just do what Val does."

Phey'lan's face became one of wonder. "What did they do to you, Val? I've only really heard rumors about how harsh Shallies' training can be."

"Well… You'll see."

Two days went by. Shallies instructed her mentees to come early for breakfast. She informed them they would be coming for a special training. She also told them about the duel, and the potential possibilities of it.

"What's our goal with regards to the duel?" Ren asked. "I don't think it would be possible for us to knock out a Hero Class holder, even with the three of us."

"Oh, you can," Shallies said. "You certainly can. Just because they're a hundred levels higher than you, and packed to the brim with Rare, Very Rare, and Legendary Equipment, doesn't mean she can take the three of you on at the same time. I'm kidding, of course."

"That's just worse!" Grace interjected. "It doesn't make sense for it to be called a duel, if it's three-on-one."

"Sure," Shallies admitted, giggling. "But we're not talking about a duel with personal stakes in this case, Grace. We're talking about a test that'll either let you in on the raid or not. Sub-raid, but you know what I mean."

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"The higher level participant acts as the Raid Boss in this scenario," Valor'el explained. "Usually, for cases like this one, your objective in the duel is to wound or pacify the opponent. This will signify that your capabilities are enough to go side-by-side with one of their raiders."

"So it's like Shallies' training for our first quest?" Tayin clarified. "But in this case, our opponent will be mimicking a Raid Boss, rather than a Level 20-ish monster."

"Not only that, but your opponent will be instructed to be ruthless," Shallies added. "Low-level monsters have a tendency to back away, or hide. Raid Bosses are confident with their durability. Yoshelle will have already experienced such a thing, and you can expect her to channel that ruthlessness in your duel. It's as much as her actually testing you, as it is a way to protect you from biting off more than you can chew. If you can't force her to accept you, then there'll be nothing more we can do from our end. In that respect, of course, you're expected to go all out and do your best, as if your lives are actually on the line."

"What if it's not Yoshelle?" Grace asked.

"It'll be her." Shallies smiled, and pointed up a finger. It was Tayin who guessed first that she wasn't preparing to cast a Spell. She continued after giving the halfling her Good Job Experience Points.

"Yoshelle's first choice to sponsor her ascension to Favored Class, is me. She wants to ascend into a Cataclysm Archmage, and I'm the best Divine Authority for that. But I also went and spoke to Maxims directly, instructing him to let you three into the sub-raid because I favor you three. I just told him to inform her daughter about it. So she'll want to test you three herself to see if I made the right choice."

"Or maybe she's jealous," Tayin teased.

"Maybe."

"Then what's the test for?" Tayin asked. Grace looked like she had the same question in mind. Ren was quickly going through his breakfast.

"I also told Maxims to give you that test," Shallies admitted. "I'm never one to give you an easy ticket while you're still going through your mentorship. I'm giving you the chance at a very prestigious ticket, but it's something you'll have to work hard for if you want to get it.

"In any case, even if Yoshelle doesn't end up being your opponent, we'll still make her our baseline. She's technically the highest performing Hero Class holder in the guild, and anyone else will be a touch weaker than her. So it's better to prepare against her than anyone else."

"So we're back to training then?" Ren inquired this time around. He had just finished his meal, drinking that final sip of his water. "I'm ready anytime."

"Well…" Shallies turned to Valor'el. "It's both training, and not training at the same time."

The seraphim stood. "I'll meet you near Catelyn Road."

"What in Ysvil's name is going on?"

Yoshelle gasped at the sight before her. After a day of going back and forth, she finally decided to confront Grace. She wanted to ask how the half-orc and her partymates had gotten the Godkiller's favor. But as soon as she neared The Adventurer's Beginning, she saw despair.

She even entertained the correlation of the favor with Shallies, but she didn't want to impose her suspicions directly without concrete proof. Besides, she was instructed to keep it a secret.

The Elemental Archmage had seen Valor'el and Phey'lan a couple of times. They had already introduced themselves to assist in the Thrush'ven Alir Raid as Godkiller Bernadette's representatives. So, she had been trying to get over her nerves to talk to them.

And now those two were beating up three Advanced Class holders like it was their pastime.

"Over here, Yoshelle," Shallies said. She was sitting on a hill, watching the group. "Thanks for making sure I have space to train my mentees."

"That's called training?"

Grace yelled, getting up her feet as she dashed recklessly towards Valor'el. She raised both Mana-Edges for a desperate attack. Ren, Yoshelle recognized after doing a bit of research, hastily followed the half-orc's lead. And Tayin yelled invocations so obvious that any kid with a shred of talent would know what the Spell was.

Yoshelle considered that the three might have been going at it for hours now. But none of them looked tired or sluggish. At the most, they all looked frustrated.

So much wasted movement…

All of them were denied by Valor'el. He wasn't even lenient about it. He wore his complete Mana-Armor. Truth be told, even if the seraph didn't move an inch, he would've still been completely unscathed.

But to add insult to injury, Phey'lan weaved through the three, punching their stomachs while imbuing her fists with Enlightened Ascendant fortifications. Yoshelle could feel the pain in her abdomen just watching the torture.

"I'm preparing them for you," Shallies said. "Your father should've told you everything at this point. You're the one who'll be their opponent, right?"

"You're making them fight two Favored Class holders, both of whom are allowed to use their Favored Class Skillsets, just to prepare them to fight a Hero Class holder?"

"They've taken worse odds," Shallies said proudly. "At the very least, both Valor'el and Phey'lan won't kill any of them."

"I heard about the Great Kraken," Yoshelle admitted. "It just sounds so crazy."

"They also fought and killed a six-horned noldzwjak."

"No way!"

"You'll be even more shocked to know that Grace was only Level 15 when they did that."

Yoshelle felt her brain freeze with what she had just heard. Her mind leaned towards leeching, but she fought against the thought. There was no way Godkiller Bernadette would favor someone like that.

As if reading her mind, Shallies opened her System Console. "Wanna watch how they did it?"

The Guild Princess could only nod.

The entire thing was the exact opposite of what was in front of her today. The party of three in the System Console looked unbelievably confident. They looked like veterans. Even Grace. Their teamwork was exact and flexible at the same time. As if…

"You made them practice their surprise attacks to perfection…" Yoshelle said.

"As someone who has real explosive potential within her arsenal, I'm sure you know how dangerous those three can be when they have all the advantages," Shallies explained. "Their challenge now is how to deal with their stronger adversaries if their surprise attacks fail. Or in this case, if they can't catch you by surprise at all."

As if to prove her point, the scene within the System Console showed how Grace was almost killed. Yoshelle leaned forward, shocked by the turn of events. In the back of her mind, she already knew the half-orc had survived. But the amount of damage she'd taken meant she couldn't explain how she was still standing today.

"Angel's Tear," Shallies explained. "I gave them one each before I sent them to take a quest."

"You sent them on a quest to kill a six-horned noldzwjak?" Yoshelle couldn't believe her own question. Even a mentor with extremely high standards wouldn't send a Level 15 Base Class adventurer on a quest to hunt such a creature even when accompanied by two Advanced Class holders.

Shallies shook her head. "I sent them on a quest to find me some magical ingredients. They hunted that noldzwjak on their own."

"Wha…?"

"Crazy, right? They weren't even my mentees yet when they did that." Shallies giggled. "There's a whole story behind it. Regardless, I gave them a good scolding after they got home."

Yoshelle felt a completely different feeling after digesting what she had just witnessed. She looked at the three adventurers again. They were all trying to get back on their feet. There was desperation on their faces, but there was one thing clear in all of their expressions.

None of them thought their current training was unfair. There was absolute trust in their expressions. Trust that Shallies wasn't guiding them astray.

But still… This won't do.

Frustration.

Yoshelle got up on her feet and headed towards the training people.

"Tayin! Stop shouting your invocations! Ren, you should be the one going in first! And Grace, you won't achieve anything by just dashing in recklessly!"

Yoshelle heard Shallies laugh out loud behind her, and she felt heat rise to her neck. But after the three looked at her with shocked faces, their expressions calmed down.

Just like what she had instructed, it was Ren who dashed in first.

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