"We can talk now." After walking in silence for a minute, my grandmother breaks it. I look at her with some confusion in my eyes. "I finally burst his ears with my Imra. His defenses were tough." I turn to look at the mage and see blood coming out of his ear canals. It seems he passed out from the pain.

I take a moment to study her skill. With my control over Imra and mana, I might be able to replicate something similar. The problem is the power it takes to both hold someone and strip away all their chances to resist while keeping them as a prisoner.

"Interested in my skill?" My grandmother looks at me while smiling. Though she tries to act as usual, I can feel her intense desire to kill him seeping through.

"Yeah, it seems like a good ability for taking prisoners." I'm being realistic—at some point, I'll need to fight against people, and if it's an organization, they'll have more members. Securing at least one prisoner to extract information could be key.

"Mine is quite lacking. If it weren't for the rank difference, something you can't yet hear because of your rank, and the fact that he was focused on his severed hand, it wouldn't have been so easy." She looks ahead, her tone cold. "In another situation, I would've had to cut off a limb or severely injure him to capture him."

So that's the strange element I couldn't detect in her ability. There's something that escapes me when I try to understand it—something I can't concentrate on to study.

"Your mother, with her ice affinity like yours, can create ice pressure that's impossible to break unless you're ridiculously strong." She glances at me for a second, then looks ahead again. "You could do something similar if you put your mind to it." I'm interested. I'll save that for the future after completing my current goals.

"When I'm ready to learn it, you'll have to teach me." My grandmother gives a dry laugh and nods gently. Right then, I remember something I need her help with.

"Grandma, since there's no one else around, I want to ask you something." She looks at me sideways for a moment. "As you know, I only have one skill slot left, and today while training I received two options. I don't know which to choose." Her expression turns to surprise for a second, then back to her usual cold gaze.

I begin explaining the situation—how I was practicing this morning and finally unlocked the skills. When I received the notification, I was thrilled. But getting two at once left me unsure, so I ran back to Mancor. She already knows what happened—she's here.

My grandmother stays silent for a few minutes, thinking. "The first option is good. A skill with a wide effect like that is quite rare. They're in high demand for hunts or dungeon assaults—they let you fight against a larger number of monsters." That makes sense—not everyone has the mana or control I do at my rank.

"As you know, when you acquire a skill, you also gain speed, power, and ease in improving it. That's crucial for skills like this, where they can save your team from being ambushed by a large group. However…" I was expecting this.

"You should choose the second one. You'll get more long-term benefits and might even combine it with another skill. If that happens, you'll free up a slot and gain an even better skill as a bonus." Combine it with another? That opens some ideas about what I could pair it with.

"It's just my advice, Maki. I see far more possibilities with the second choice." She looks at me—not directly, but I can feel it through my domain. "You're already imagining the possibilities. Just take the second one. You'll have another chance to pick the first later." Her cold expression returns and gives me space to think.

The walk back makes me reflect on how few skill slots I have. I've got one open, already reserved. One skill in reserve, I want to learn a gravity-related one, and who knows what else I might unlock. I need more slots! How can I get more? My mind starts brainstorming… then I remember to ask Grandma. The only thing I've thought of is: the Failed Hero's Dungeon.

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

I see the town walls and we follow them almost to the entrance. Noticing my grandmother's expression, I decide to go ahead and warn the guards. I advise them not to ask questions and to only speak if she asks first.

Their faces look confused—my words are hard to believe. But when they meet my grandmother and feel her pressure, they understand. Their faces turn serious, and they bow in respect. My grandmother slightly nods in return and keeps walking. She approaches a nearby watch post, one I had already cleared out.

This cabin is one of the newest ones built, fairly large and with a basement to imprison lawbreakers. I request some containment chains, and we head down to one of the two basement cells.

My grandmother releases the mage from her prison, then binds his arms and legs tightly with the chains. Once secured, I watch the runes do their work—they strip the mage of his mana and Imra, leaving him with no chance of escape.

"Fortunately, he's just an Advanced Sapphire rank. If he were Ruby, these chains wouldn't be enough." I nod at her words.

"Tell a guard to summon Randy immediately." I nod, go upstairs, and relay the order. The guard runs off to find Randy—I haven't seen him in a long time. I head back down and, upon seeing that bastard again, I feel the urge to kill him. I've been avoiding looking at him or letting myself be distracted. That feeling clouds my mind.

I go back upstairs to get some air. I grab a chair, turn it around, lean my arms on the backrest, rest my chin on my arms, and start thinking. The guards watch me from a distance.

No one dares say a word. If Grandma had arrived a little later, I might be dead—or the best I could've done was flee. That bastard showed up when I was almost out of mana. Things would've been very different otherwise.

After several minutes staring at the floor, I sense two people rushing into my domain. I lift my head—it's the guard I sent and Randy. He looks concerned, greets me, and I lead him down. Now's not the time for reunions.

He understands everything with a single glance. "Lady Rita summoned me. What are your orders?" He kneels, showing his loyalty.

"Send five Advanced Emerald-rank guards and one Sapphire-rank to the dungeon that caused the stampede. They must be trustworthy—they're collecting cores and monster parts. It may take several trips." I understand her precaution in sending a single Sapphire—it's a smart safeguard. My grandmother pauses briefly. "Send someone else to fetch Jarrid and Celes. They must come immediately—it's a Rank 4 case." Randy's eyes widen slightly at that, but he quickly steadies himself.

"Don't forget. They must be trustworthy, and keep everything as discreet as possible. Inform the outer guards too. That's all." Randy rises, bows, and leaves silently.

"He seems quite reliable." That's my first thought after all these years. He's become strong—he must be Advanced Sapphire rank now.

"He always was. That's why we trusted him with your life when you first went hunting." My grandmother forms a mana cushion on the floor and sits down. "He swore loyalty and proved it many times. Now he's strong and likes being useful to the people who gave him a chance." She sighs. "Randy would give his life for this territory. I'm fairly certain. I just hope that never happens." I agree—I don't want loyal and capable people to die.

I sit on a cushion from my dimensional bracelet. We sit together in silence. After a long while, my mana slowly recovers. I become useful again. I reactivate my domain—it had been off.

I sense people above me. From the posture of the one standing by the cabin door, I know who it is. Randy has returned and now stands guard. Two others are stationed at the corners. The remaining three likely went to secure the area or collect bodies.

I turn off my domain, trusting Randy. I need to regain my strength. I hate feeling useless. I glance at the mage—still unconscious. He hasn't stirred since fainting.

An hour later, we hear footsteps entering the cabin. My grandmother and I exchange a glance and stand. We both know who it is.

My father and mother descend the stairs. They see the bound figure and understand the situation. I start explaining how Grandma sent me, and she listens too—she doesn't yet know how many monsters I fought.

I take my time describing everything—the monsters, their abilities, many details about the three stampedes, and finally how the mage attacked. At that point, my parents' Imra flares slightly. I feel their killing intent—it's strong. I continue explaining up to Grandma's arrival.

Just as my grandmother finishes recounting what she witnessed, we hear a sound.

"Where am I?" We all turn at once. Before he can scream, the mage is surrounded by a prison similar to Grandma's, but this one has an ice affinity.

"Shut it, trash. You dared to touch my son. I just want to turn you into an ice cube and shatter you, but that still wouldn't satisfy my thirst for revenge." My mother steps forward to trap him. Grandma was right—this is completely different. The pressure is horrifying. It must feel like a prison below freezing.

My father touches her shoulder. "Calm down, Celes." His eyes show he's anything but calm. "He'll suffer worse than death before he dies."

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