Chapter 188: Ya’ll split the party?

Words : 1641 Updated : Sep 27th, 2025

Chapter 188: Ya’ll split the party? Fiona looked better, not as tired as she had the day before. Lord Ridgewood looked unchanged, which Cass was grateful for. He also didn’t approach Cass, which he was sure was probably due to the fact that Lucian was glaring daggers at him. Fiona gave Cass a light smile as she came to a stop before them, Lord Ridgewood at her side. "Did you sleep well?" She asked and Cass felt like this was a loaded question. Cass gave a partial truth. "Well, I woke up in an even worse state than the previous night. My body wracked with shivers and I felt a bone deep cold. Thankfully, Lucian was easy to awaken and he helped by using his magic power. I was able to sleep better after that." Cass told her. Fiona’s face held a genuine concern for Cass as she listened to his words. She put her hands on her hips, listening, and nodded when Cass finished. "Good. I’m glad to hear that putting you two in the same tent had some perks." Lucian let out a muffled snort and Cass felt his face warm. He wanted to smack him, but he didn’t want to trigger any suspicion since it appeared as if Fiona had no idea. She was, after all, a human in this hodge podge group of humans and monsters. She didn’t have superior hearing, and from the blank look that Lord Ridgewood was giving them, he hadn’t heard. He had a feeling that he would have given them a lecture about impropriety if he had. Cass wasn’t sure if the shoe fit, but that was the new vibe he was getting from Lord Ridgewood. A stiff, uptight knight. "Sure. Perks." Lucian said, muffling his laughter and that was when Fiona got suspicious. "Did you do something to Cass?" She accused, fully believing that whatever had happened, Lucian had initiated it. Fuck. Cass wanted that to be true. "He didn’t." Cass said quickly, too quickly, and he watched as Fiona’s brows dropped and she looked even more concerned. "It’s fine. How did the scouting go?" Cass asked and Fiona sighed, shifting on her feet. "Well, we found a dead end. No traps either, but without Lucy we won’t know for sure. Eddie and Ava were going down the other fork. I’m worried since they aren’t back yet. I told them that they could absolutely lead a horde here and we’d deal with it. They can’t move quickly. It’s their numbers that are concerning." Fiona said and Cass agreed. "So I’m free to break down camp then?" Cass asked and Fiona smiled, nodding. "Yes please, Cass." Cass nodded, shoving his wrappers into his bag and he kept it open as he began to fold up the tents again. Lucian focused on putting out the small remnants of the fire while Cass did so, and feeling the two different magic types working at the same time was quite strange. Cass didn’t hate it, but it gave him a kind of thrill. Did other magical beings feel this kind of feeling all the time? It kind of felt like he was on drugs. Not that Cass had ever known what that was like, he had just had it described to himself by other orphans who had gone down that route. Within a few minutes it looked like they had never been here. The pallets were moved back, everything was back to the way that it was before. Fiona nodded, glancing at Cass a few more times then was normal before she exhaled slowly. "Let’s go fine Eddie and Ava." She told the group and Cass nodded. "Oh, do you want me to cast the mental magic?" Cass asked. "Since Vespertine isn’t here?" Fiona cast him a look. "Are you okay to do so?" Cass blinked. What kind of question was that? To Cass, maybe that made sense, but to Lord Blackburn? Very insulting, Fiona. She flinched as if she was able to hear what Cass had thought, or he just wasn’t hiding his displeasure all that much. "T-That would be great, Cass." She said and Cass nodded, before he thought back to what he had to do to protect them. It was a simple hand motion, and soon a small shield protected all of their minds, including Lucian’s. Lucian chuckled. "Those gods really gave you some kind of boost, didn’t they?" He joked quietly to Cass and Cass glanced at the others. They were looking at them. Probably because Lucian was walking beside him, all lovey dovey, and it wasn’t as if Cass could do anything about it. He couldn’t tell the man to get his shit together. It would only draw more attention to his behaviour, and also he wasn’t going to stop it. He could already hear Lucian whining that he wasn’t hurting anyone by walking beside Cass. Even if he was giving him big, puppy dog eyes that practically screamed that something had happened between them last night. He just hoped that it didn’t cause them problems later on. "I can’t say. You’re an expert in this field. I’m just excited that I’m able to grow even at my age when it comes to magic." Cass told him sincerely and Lucian’s expression softened. Fiona chuckled. "That, and all gifts from the gods aren’t just gifts, Lucian. They’re tools. That probably means Cass has a big task in his future where he is going to need higher level magic." Fiona was so casual about it. She hadn’t outright said that Cass was tasked with a special mission from the gods. That he was a hero, but it was practically implied. Lord Ridgewood was glancing between him and Fiona, confusion, and another emotion he couldn’t pinpoint on his face. It was too complex for Cass to get a good understanding of what it was. "Then that just means I can keep teaching him things, doesn’t it?" Lucian said, excited. Fiona let out a chuckle. "Well, maybe? As I suggested yesterday, Cass, keep that part to yourself. While Lucy can teach you magic, who knows if you’re even able to use it?" It was a relatively good diversion, especially around Lord Ridgewood. Cass let out a deep sigh. "Fair enough. I do enjoy the theories. Speaking with someone who has used those levels of magic in practise is interesting enough." Cass told her, not lying in the slightest. Both him and Lord Blackburn were nerds in the truest sense. Cass just hadn’t tackled all of Lord Blackburn’s books in his office yet. He didn’t have enough time in a day to get what he wanted to get done, done. "I’ve noticed. Your study is full of magical theory books." Fiona commented before her voice grew somber. "We’re getting close to where we divided. Lucy, can you smell anything?" She asked and Lucian let out a loud sniff. "Oh yeah. We better get moving. I think they might be in trouble." That set off the three athletic members of the party on high alert. Cass could feel the tension rise among them, and Cass picked up the pace to match their strides. He was embarrassed at how winded he got, but he kept pushing through. No one was supposed to die in a dungeon. Well, one person was supposed to die in a dungeon, and he was doing his best to avoid it. He didn’t want to do any of that equal exchange bullshit with one of his party members. He’d rather sub in a rando to fill that role. Maybe his grandfather? Eh? It was a suggestion. If someone was reading his thoughts, he didn’t think it would be a bad suggestion, you know? He was already working on not being a villain, why not eliminate two while he was at it? "-Ava! Pull! Back!" It was Vespertine’s voice. Loud. Clear. Frantic. Fiona picked up the pace and Cass just wasn’t able to keep up. Lucian noticed it immediately and Cass waved off his concern. "Go. Join them. I have magic. I’ll be there shortly after." Cass huffed out between breaths and watched as they raced away. Lucian had summoned a magic light for them as they drew further away from Cass. Not far enough that he wasn’t able to see them, but just far enough that determination filled Cass. Getting fit had just shot up the list of things he needed to do. Fucking hell, this was damn embarrassing. He couldn’t even keep up? Awful. The sounds got louder the closer they got. It was clear that they had run into trouble, and by the time that Cass had arrived, the others had jumped in to help. Lady Ava had been single handedly holding most of the monsters at bay with her holy power, something that Cass should have been aware that she was able to do, but was still surprised by it when he saw it with his own eyes. Vespertine had been protecting her. Cass didn’t understand why until he saw it. The chest. Any chests found in dungeons were extremely valuable. They usually held something valuable but only Fiona could open them. There was also another catch that was devious, and very demon-like. If they weren’t in your line of sight before the hero opened it, it would fade away and whatever treasure was inside was lost forever. They had experienced this themselves in the first dungeon they had gone through. Cass remembered how devastated everyone had been, and how much Fiona had kicked herself about it in the story. So it was a bit surreal to see one so soon. Not that Cass was complaining. It just...it was another thing to make this world feel real to him. That, and all of the fucking zombies surrounding them.

Chapter 188: Ya’ll split the party?

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