Silence filled the cavern. The fight had ended as the sounds of clinking metal slowly grew louder.

  "Xylus!" Tyrian's voice shouted. He quickly made his way down, holding his left hand up to shine his way with light. The two bodies in the distance alerted Tyrian. He quickly made his way over, the light revealing Xylus and a dead Hobgoblin.

  "Xylus!" Tyrian shouted his name. He rushed over to the young boy. Darkness oozed off of the boy as the glow of something in Xylus' chest pulled Tyrian's eyes. He pulled the collar of the boy's shirt down, revealing the Shade mark.

  "By the gods!" Tyrian gasped. "He's acquired it!" Tyrian checked the boy's pulse and noticed he was alive. He let out a sigh of relief and noticed Shadowbane glowing brightly in the Hobgoblin's chest.

  "Did he kill… a Hobgoblin?" Tyrian asked. The Hobgoblin had many puncture wounds, oozing with blood. "It looks like he did a number on it." Tyrian reached for Shadowbane, only to watch it poof into smoke. The sound of the proofing in the distance made him look up.

  Tyrian stood up and moved past the dead Hobgoblin and unconscious Xylus. He reached the stone bridge and noticed lots of blood. He looked up and noticed the stalactites fine.

  'How many did he encounter?' Tyrian wondered. He looked behind him, shining the light towards the dimly lit boy's and hobgoblin's body. ‘It's dead. He's unconscious. I should take him back but I need to assess the situation and know full well what transpired here.'

  Tyrian took in the scene. Dead goblins laid throughout the tunnel. He entered the lit area and noticed it was a makeshift camp for the goblins. A couple of dead goblins laid on the floor and Tyrian waves his hand over the place.

  "Reveal what has transpired here." Tyrian commanded. He watched as white energy started to replicate the scene. "Xylus wandered in here and hid here. A goblin came and he killed it, alerting three nearby and causing everything to happen." Tyrian sighed and waved his hand and the images died.

  "An eight year old easily killing goblins like he's on a hunt for some food…" Tyrian turned to head back to the unconscious Xylus. "The only problem he ran into was this Hobgoblin… What is this kid even made of? Did Nura give him many gifts? I know Shades are strong but I didn't think a child Shade would be on par with a fresh Adventurer…"

  Tyrian sighed and lifted the boy into a sitting position. He took the bag which was in better condition than its master and slung it across his shoulders. He lifted the boy up and started out of the cavern.

  "At least this solves one of our issues." Tyrian bit his lip. "He can't be killed for possessing Dark Magic now. People will be wary of him… Now we gotta figure out the situation with that girl… Is Grand Magus actually watching over the supposed Hero? Or is Niya just blessed by the gods?"

  3 Days Later

  Xylus' eyes fluttered open. He was wrapped in bedsheets. He took in his surroundings. The memories of the battle flashed in his head and he immediately shot up screaming, "Where am I? The Hobgoblin!"

  Footsteps rushed over to the door and opened. Victor and Tyrian entered the room. As Xylus began to talk gibberish.

  "You're okay, Xylus!" Victor tried to calm the boy down. "You're fine!" Xylus huffed and puffed as he took in his surroundings. He really was at Mr. Victor's home.

  "W-w-what happened? The goblins and the fish people and the h-h-hobgoblin… My daggers!" Xylus flailed around as Victor grabbed the boy, trying to pull his split mind together.

  "Xylus, calm down first. Breathe. Breathe." Victor instructed. Xylus' staggered and heavy breaths kept the boy in a panic. He tried his best to calm himself. The initial rush of adrenaline died down and Victor and Tyrian let out a breath of relief.

  "What happened?" Xylus asked. "Did you find me, Mr. Victor?"

  "No, I didn't." Victor shook his head.

  "I found you." Tyrian told him.

  "You did?" Xylus raised his eyebrows in surprise.

  "You had a mighty battle, Xylus. I'm surprised you managed to kill all those goblins and the hobgoblin with ease. You managed to live through it." Tyrian praised the child. No prodigy child could ever reach Xylus' feat.

  Xylus sighed and nodded.

  "So it did happen." Xylus immediately looked down at his bandaged body. He glanced at where the Shade mark should be. The bandages were in the way.

  "Are you looking for your Shade mark?" Tyrian asked.

  Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

  "Mmm, it's–" Xylus looked up. "How do you know about that?"

  "I checked you. I saw it glowing when I reached your unconscious body. You have your Shade mark." Tyrian motioned.

  "Ah, so I really wasn’t seeing things."

  "Xylus, did you really wander into that cave I told you specifically not to go into?" Victor asked.

  "Ye-yeah…" Xylus nodded. "But I only went in because I thought that witch was gonna burn me alive! Or make me into fertilizer!"

  "I'm not mad you went into it." Victor calmed him down. "I knew you would eventually go in. I just hoped it wasn't then."

  "What's passed has passed. Let it stay in the past." Tyrian commented. Victor nodded and stood up from his crouched position.

  "I'll bring you some food and water. You must be hungry. You can recount your tale to me and Tyrian. Tyrian wants to be sure what transpired." Victor told Xylus.

  Xylus ate the food, asking for seconds and thirds before he was sated. He gulped down three cups of water and sighed in relief. He felt way better with food and water in his system.

  "So can you explain what happened?" Tyrian asked, sitting in a chair next to Victor. Xylus recounted the tale to the men. They listened, not interrupting him until he finished.

  "So what Tyrian saw was the truth." Victor nodded.

  "Huh? Tyrian saw everything?" Xylus asked, confused.

  "I have the ability to reveal what has happened in a place if the event has recently occurred. I saw what happened and figured I'd ask you, when you woke up. I'm sad that what I saw was true but you fought valiantly." Tyrian explained.

  "Ahh." Xylus nodded. He leaned into his pillow and crossed his arms.

  "Now I have to report to the Order about this." Tyrian groaned, standing.

  "Hm? Why?" Xylus asked.

  "The Grand Magus has been persistent on you not being a Shade of the forgotten darkness god, Nura. She refuses to believe it without you revealing your Shade mark to the whole Order. I told the Order and Grand Magus of what transpired but Grand Magus insists I'm lying. Like I can lie when it comes to my job." Tyrian filled Xylus in.

  "So you need to go with him." Victor told Xylus.

  "Huh? I do? Now?" Xylus asked. Victor nodded.

  "I would go, too, but I cannot step foot into the Temple due to my Exiled status. You have to go and represent yourself with Tyrian backing you. I have to attend my classes soon anyways, so go with Templar Tyrian and try to be on your best behavior." Victor told him.

  "O-okay." Xylus nodded.

  "Get dressed. Your wounds should've healed when I healed you then but Victor put some ointment on you to help with soreness and such. Be careful changing and moving around." Tyrian told Xylus. The two men filtered out of the room.

  "Oh, bathe while you're at it." Victor instructed him before closing the door.

  Xylus slowly got out of bed, standing on his feet. He slowly walked around, feeling his body sore in different places.

  He moved to grab a set of clothes when the System chimed in.

  [Xylus you have a ton of new things to do here.]

  'Oh, yeah huh…? What's first?' Xylus asked, taking the clothes and turning around. He wandered out of the room and into the bathroom. A fresh warm bath had been drawn for him while he was slowly walking around. He shut the door and unbandaged his torso and legs and pulled his clothes off.

  He sank into the tub as the System started to do it's work.

  [We should probably address the biggest thing first. You have reached level 10. You have unlocked many additional things but the concerning one is choosing a Class.]

  "What's a Class?" Xylus asked. The System pulled a new screen up.

  [Class is a specialization path you choose. This will mold your Rankings, skills, spells, and the way you fight. Upgrading your Class will give you a bigger assortment of Rankings and change how your leveling system works, overall.

  Here are the classes you can choose based on your Rankings:]

  Rogue: Just like a thief, the Rogue plays dirty. Your background as a thief and dexterity would make the Rogue class a great choice. Added proficiencies with daggers, swords, daggers and traps.

  Ranger: If you like to keep your distance and use precise aim to take down your enemies, the Ranger class would be for you! Proficiency with bows and swords, the Ranger could possibly bend their knowledge of the land to their favor.

  Mage: A risky choice, but your capabilities in magic would grow. Mages stay far away from a fight and use their Intelligence to turn the tide of battle into their favor.