For a long while after the battle ended, none of them spoke.
The forest that had moments ago trembled beneath fire and wind had finally fallen silent. Moonlight filtered through the broken canopy overhead, illuminating shattered trees, scorched earth, and the bodies of fallen assassins scattered across the battlefield. The smell of burned wood mixed with blood lingered heavily in the cool night air, creating an atmosphere that felt strangely unreal.
Meenakshi slowly lowered herself against the trunk of a nearby tree and closed her eyes. Only now, after the danger had passed, did she realize how exhausted she truly was. Her arms felt heavy, her mana reserves nearly depleted, and every muscle in her body ached from the strain of casting spells continuously throughout the battle.
"We actually survived..." she murmured.
The words escaped before she could stop them.
Across from her, Veneela looked around at the destruction and nodded quietly. There was relief in her expression, but also disbelief.
"A few hours ago we were eating dinner," she said softly. "Now we're standing in the middle of a battlefield."
The absurdity of it made all three of them fall silent again.
Jayant sat on a fallen tree trunk while Veneela's healing magic slowly worked through the remaining injuries on his body. Most of the serious wounds had already closed, but his clothes remained stained with blood, making him look far worse than he actually felt.
For a few moments he simply listened to the wind.
Then his eyes drifted toward a large tree standing at the edge of the clearing.
Something about it felt strange.
Not dangerous.
Not threatening.
Just strange.
His gaze remained fixed there for several seconds before he suddenly spoke.
"I'm also hoping to finish this quickly."
Meenakshi opened one eye.
Veneela looked up.
Neither understood what he was talking about.
Jayant continued staring at the tree.
"What do you think?"
The forest remained silent.
No answer came.
Only the rustling of leaves responded.
Veneela followed his gaze toward the tree and frowned.
"Who are you talking to?"
Jayant blinked.
"No one answered?"
The confusion on both girls' faces was genuine.
After another few moments, he finally shrugged and looked away.
"Maybe I imagined it."
Truthfully, he didn't think so.
The wind had felt different around that tree ever since they arrived. Yet whatever was hidden there carried no hostility. There was no killing intent, no danger, and no sense of urgency.
For now, that was enough.
Stretching his shoulders, Jayant leaned back against the fallen log and glanced toward the girls.
"You two should recover as much mana as possible. I'm still fine."
Meenakshi stared at him as though he had just said something ridiculous.
"You were turned into a moving target for fire spells half an hour ago."
Jayant nodded.
"Correct."
"You were bleeding everywhere."
"Also correct."
"You can barely walk properly."
Jayant considered that statement before shaking his head.
"I can walk."
"Barely."
"Still walking."
The corners of Veneela's lips twitched upward.
Meenakshi pinched the bridge of her nose.
Sometimes talking to Jayant felt strangely exhausting.
The boy seemed completely incapable of understanding when he should be concerned about himself.
Eventually, after recovering a portion of their mana, Meenakshi straightened her posture and looked toward the battlefield.
"We should gather the spoils."
This time Jayant immediately agreed.
That at least sounded sensible.
More importantly, if the assassins were targeting them, there was a chance they might discover who had sent them.
The three began moving among the corpses.
Storage rings were collected one after another.
Weapons were inspected.
Pouches were searched.
Anything potentially useful was placed in a growing pile near the center of the clearing.
Unfortunately, the results proved disappointing.
Most of the rings contained little more than travel supplies, gold, poison vials, spare weapons, and cultivation resources. There was nothing particularly valuable and, more importantly, nothing that explained why they had been attacked.
Jayant searched through another ring before sighing dramatically.
"After risking my life, I expected something better than dried meat."
Meenakshi didn't even bother looking up.
"Most people would be searching for clues."
"I am."
"And?"
Jayant held up a piece of dried meat.
"I found dinner."
Veneela burst into laughter.
Even Meenakshi struggled to keep a straight face.
Sometimes it was impossible to tell whether Jayant was joking or completely serious.
Eventually only one storage ring remained.
The leader's.
Unlike the others, this ring contained far fewer items.
Several high-grade mana crystals.
A few rare herbs.
Some documents written in coded symbols.
And one black emblem.
The moment Meenakshi saw it, her entire body stiffened.
Jayant immediately noticed the change.
The girl who had calmly fought seven assassins without hesitation suddenly looked as though she had seen a ghost.
Without speaking, she slowly picked up the emblem.
The symbol engraved upon it resembled a black serpent coiled into a circle. Tiny crimson gemstones had been embedded where the eyes should have been, giving it an unsettling appearance beneath the moonlight.
Jayant accepted the emblem and examined it carefully.
Whatever this thing represented, it clearly wasn't good.
He glanced toward Meenakshi.
"The assassins didn't scare you this much."
His tone carried no mockery.
Only curiosity.
For several seconds Meenakshi remained silent.
When she finally spoke, her voice sounded far more serious than before.
"Because I know what this means."
Something in her expression immediately erased any trace of humor from the situation.
Even Veneela had gone pale.
Jayant slowly lowered the emblem.
"Then explain."
Meenakshi took a deep breath.
"That's the insignia of the Dark Serpent Guild."
The name clearly carried weight.
Unfortunately, it carried absolutely no meaning for Jayant.
Seeing his blank expression, Meenakshi realized she would have to start from the beginning.
"The Dark Serpent Guild is one of the most feared assassin organizations on the continent. They don't belong to any kingdom, they don't answer to nobles, and they don't follow laws. If someone can afford their price, they'll accept almost any contract."
As she spoke, her gaze remained fixed on the emblem.
"Governors have been assassinated inside heavily guarded cities. Noble families have disappeared overnight. Military commanders have been killed in the middle of campaigns. Even powerful mages think twice before provoking them."
Veneela quietly nodded.
"My father used to tell stories about them. Most people think they're just rumors until they actually encounter one of their symbols."
Jayant listened carefully.
The more they explained, the less he liked the situation.
"What makes them truly dangerous isn't just their strength," Meenakshi continued. "It's their persistence. If a mission fails, they don't simply give up."
The implication settled over the group like a dark cloud.
Jayant looked toward the corpses scattered throughout the clearing.
Then back toward the emblem.
"So killing these people solved nothing."
"It solved tonight's problem," Meenakshi replied. "Tomorrow's problem is another matter."
For a few moments nobody spoke.
Eventually Jayant asked the question that mattered most.
"How strong is the guild leader?"
Meenakshi hesitated before answering.
"No one knows for certain. Most information about him comes from rumors, but the common belief is that he's an S-Rank expert."
Even Jayant's expression became slightly more serious.
An S-Rank.
The very thought sounded troublesome.
Silence lingered between them for a while as everyone considered the implications.
Then, completely out of nowhere, Jayant asked another question.
"Who would win?"
Both girls blinked.
"What?" Meenakshi asked.
"The Dark Serpent Guild or Vidya Academy."
The question caught them completely off guard.
Yet after a moment of thought, Meenakshi answered without hesitation.
"Vidya Academy."
Her confidence was absolute.
"The Academy's influence rivals entire kingdoms. There are organizations that can challenge nations, but the Dark Serpent Guild isn't one of them."
Jayant nodded slowly.
The seriousness that had settled over his face vanished almost instantly.
"Then the solution seems obvious."
Veneela looked suspicious.
Whenever Jayant said something was obvious, it usually wasn't.
"What solution?"
Jayant casually tossed the black emblem into his storage ring before standing up.
"If stronger assassins are coming and the Academy is stronger than the assassins, then we simply reach the Academy before they reach us."
The forest fell silent.
Meenakshi stared.
Veneela stared.
Jayant stared back.
After several seconds, Veneela suddenly began laughing.
The sound echoed through the clearing.
Even Meenakshi couldn't stop herself from smiling.
The situation remained dangerous.
Possibly more dangerous than before.
Yet somehow Jayant always found a way to make impossible situations sound strangely manageable.
Watching the two girls laugh, even he found himself smiling.
Far above them, hidden among the darkness of the forest canopy, an old man silently observed everything.
Unlike before, there was no surprise in his eyes.
The journey from the village had already shown him enough.
The battle had merely confirmed his earlier observations.
Meenakshi possessed remarkable control over water magic, especially for someone her age. Veneela's healing abilities were equally impressive, and her calmness under pressure suggested considerable potential.
Yet it was Jayant who continued drawing his attention.
Not because of strength.
Not because of talent.
But because of instincts.
Twice during the journey and once during the battle, the boy had reacted to traces of his concealed presence. He couldn't locate him, couldn't identify him, and clearly didn't understand what he was sensing.
Yet he sensed something.
That alone was extraordinary.
The old man had spent decades teaching, observing, and evaluating young talents. He had seen geniuses who could manipulate mana effortlessly and prodigies who mastered spells in days.
Jayant wasn't like them.
The boy felt more like a survivor.
Someone whose senses had been sharpened by circumstances far harsher than they should have been.
Slowly withdrawing a sheet of golden paper from his sleeve, the old man wrote several brief lines upon its surface. Ancient runes glowed faintly before the paper dissolved into particles of golden light and vanished into the night.
His report had been sent.
As the three children prepared to continue their journey toward Vidya Academy, the old man watched them for a few moments longer.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
The academy was expecting talented students.
What it was about to receive, however, might prove far more interesting.