The sensation of something snapping pulled him out of his meditations. Irritation at the disturbance flashed in his mind, but he let it go. A petty feeling that would only hold him back. Running mana through his technique, he purged the feeling from himself, relaxing slightly as cold logic took its place again.

Methodically, he ran his mind over the thousands of threads connected to his aura. One of them had snapped, and he would find which one it was. A jagged tendril woven of his aura and mana flailed about, the ends shredded as if eaten away. The irritation came back, stronger this time, before he purged it again. Feelings were a distraction.

Channeling his energies, he pushed them through the thread, building it anew as it followed the karmic imprint back out into the world and beyond, reconnecting him with his tool. "Arwen," he whispered, fond memories of a cute apprentice learning his first arrays coming to mind. Happiness. The young elf learned and advanced quickly, for a time at least. Then he started to slow in his advancement, fail in basic lessons. Couldn't keep up with the pace or his peers. A failure of an apprentice. Disappointment. All that mattered was strength, and the boy lacked the strength to meet his expectations.

Still, failure though he was, the boy would have his uses. Memories of the boy's begging as he tied him down in the ritual chamber came next. His face covered in tears as he babbled meaningless assurances that he could do better, be stronger, wasn't a failure. Meaningless drivel. If he could do better, he should have the first time instead of failing. If her could be stronger, he would have been stronger, wouldn't have failed. Arwen was weak and no longer had a place in his school. But the boy still had uses.

Sent out into the world with a mission, directed to another place to find those with potential. The boy still failed. Impressions of the boy's thoughts and actions filled him as the thread reconnected with the flailing other half. The boy's excitement as he indulged in sadism, toying with mere goblins. Searing pain as his heart was ripped out and crushed for his reckless impulsiveness and petty desires. Even more as Arwen's soul was pulled into the void, a feast for the others. Anger filled him for a moment at the boy's idiocy, but that emotion was purged like the others before. It would only impede analysis.

He reviewed Arwen's final memories, using Arwen's own underdeveloped aura sense to pick up the minute fluctuations of aura and mana as the goblin sacrificed tens of thousands of souls to tear a hole into the Void. A familiar technique. One he taught to his more advanced students. Curious. That emotion he allowed to stay. Curiosity was useful after all. Going back through his tool's memories, he watched the last few months of Arwen's life in reverse. The boy's poor imitation of his own training techniques. His impressions of the Academy's students. Most curiously, how a higher being appeared to torment the boy at random, though he was unsure how. Low level monsters didn't just appear out of thin air after all.

Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

His attention fully turned to Arwen's life, he smiled for the first time in years. He hadn't expected much from the boy, but his tool somehow stumbled upon something interesting before his death. Forest's Edge. He would make sure to investigate it. Thoroughly.

With an effort of will, Galimund resisted the urge to tear the latest scout reports as he set them down on a convenient table in the Guild's campaign room. Looking over the large battle map of the surrounding area, he watched as his assistants hurriedly moved, added, or removed markers from the large map, quickly giving visual representation to the situation from the latest scouting reports. The series of red markers in an area newly marked with yellow twine drew his attention.

The expedition to the Northwest had turned bloody with several Gold ranked threats making themselves known, and the casualties were massive. Tens dead and even more missing. Well beyond the Silver ranked threat assessment from just a week ago. Focusing closer on the red markers, he saw some etched with the Academy's insignia, drawing a deeper frown. Some of the dead were his students. It happened occasionally, but the punch to his gut never got easier. It was made worse by the clear intelligence failures that plagued this year's expedition. The threats they were looking at were far beyond students and newbie adventurers.

A full scale subjugation bounty had already gone out, mobilizing most of the Guild's stronger adventuring teams in the area, and he'd already sent a message to the Guild Leader requesting the Diamond ranker return.

Things were bad, but his intuition said they would get worse. He wasn't sure how that was possible short of the Guild getting dragged into a war, but his intuition was never wrong. His gut was telling him Lana would find out though.

His gaze flicked to the three grey markers to the West, and the enchanted Platinum pin that was steadily closing with the area. He wished such sympathetic enchantments were standard for the Guild, but too many feared the invasion of privacy. As the Guild's Intelligence Officer for the area, Lana didn't have a choice. Her amulet, like all Guild Officers', always showed her position. In the few seconds he watched the pin, it subtly shifted further West.

He had faith she'd recover the missing students and advisors, and maybe ease the stone he felt deep in his gut.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.