Chapter 371 One Year Later

[Eighteen Months Later]

[Age Eighteen]

It was the season of autumn once again; the leaves hanging to the limbs of trees turned to a colorful array between yellow and red, descending upon the grass like tranquil rainfall. Waiting outside of the Dragonheart residence was Julius, who had allowed his beard to grow out, becoming bushy. The man was equipped in his standard adventuring gear, looking back through the open doorway of the house.

"Ready, Emilio?" Julius asked.

Everett was waiting outside as well, having grown some and chiseled the few places of fat on his body into muscle, wearing new, platinum armor with a rectangular shield and his hair now combed-over, made neat by Treyna's finesse.

Stepping through the doorway, the Dragonheart, growing out of being seen as "young", now a man himself responded with a smile, "Yeah, yeah, I'm here!"

Closing the door and catching up with the other two men, Emilio stood slightly taller than his own father now, acquiring quite the legendary growth spurt as he lost all semblance of the boy he once was, having grown into a fine man over the last eighteen months.

"Damn, when you'd get so tall?..." Julius looked up at Emilio's forehead.

"Hm?"

"Nothing," Julius scratched his beard.

A ponytail now descended behind his head, cascading down his olive cape, which he wore over a black-and-gold vest over a long-sleeved, leather shirt. The sleek, metallic arm of his remained with the same schematic of black steel, though resized to fit his new physique.

On his left arm, he wore steel armor; a belt kept his blade–"Silver Wing"--attached to his hip.

Setting out on an easy-going quest alongside Everett and his father, Emilio walked side-by-side with them as a grown man, holding a smile that had been reforged by times of peace.

"Goblins again today?" Everett asked.

"Actually, no," Julius grinned, "Today, we've got orcs to handle! They're in a cave towards the east road."

"Orcs? That could be a nice warm up," Emilio said.

"Betcha five crowns that Everett could toss an orc over his head," Julius said, "I mean, you've been putting on layers of muscle, Ev!"

Julius playfully slapped Everett on the back while laughing, though the bet wasn't reciprocated by Emilio.

"I am not betting against that..." Emilio wryly chuckled.

Everett couldn't help but laugh, "I could do it–probably!"

It was a nice walk through the outskirts of Yullim, along a dirt road neighbored by autumn trees that led to the cave in question for the orc-slaying bounty. There weren't many adventurers that lived within Yullim, mainly ones that passed through the town and handled quests irregularly, leaving such bounties mainly to the Dragonheart residence.

"Did you send that letter to your old teacher? What was her name again...Celery?" Julius wondered, scratching his chin.

"Celly," Emilio corrected him with a playful sigh before nodding, "And yeah, I did. I don't know if she'll have the time to actually come and visit though–I mean, I think she's a full-time teacher now."

"That's great–she really taught you well when she was here. You were just a runt then," Julius chuckled.

While orcs were far superior to goblins in combat ability in every regard, there was one thing they fell short on: they were as dumb as bricks. What made goblins a plague to human settlements was their cowardice that allowed them to flee and hide, recuperating and repopulating.

However, orcs openly challenged any that entered their territory—even those they would be better off running from.

As the pig-faced orc slammed its rugged axe down upon Julius, the bearded man sidestepped the attack before flinging the orc's weapon-wielding arm from its shoulder with a single slash.

SQUELCH

Repugnant blood sprayed on the floor of the cave as the orc stumbled back, letting out bellowing cries.

Julius had kept up and even increased his training since his son's return, often sparring with both Emilio and Everett as he reached higher levels of strength. In an instant, he dashed by the orc, taking his head from his shoulders with one more slash.

"That's one for me," Julius said with a smile, swiping the blood from his blade.

"Two more for me," Emilio playfully responded.

"Wha—?" The confidence from Julius was tested immediately.

The remark from Emilio bore fruit as two more wild orcs rushed in from the shadows of the dark cave, only for them to be instantly dealt with as Emilio pressed his boot against the ground.

As the orcs tried closing in from either side of the amethyst-eyed man, stone spikes speared upward from the ground, piercing the heads of the orcs from the unspoken magecraft.

"Tch," Julius clicked his tongue, having his natural competitive drive tested.

There wasn't any sort of competition agreed upon by any of them, but as the saying goes: boys will be boys.

"I've got one too—!"

Everett yelled out as he rushed in towards one of the orcs, taking the initiative against the barbaric creature, who looked shocked to be met by a human that stood larger than itself.

"Raaagh!" Everett yelled out.

With a bash of his shield, the bumpkin obliterated the orc, knocking it back against a far wall.

"Nice one," Emilio complimented.

Everett didn't seem too pleased with the aftermath, finding the front of his shield running slick with the gross blood of the orc.

As they headed in deeper, the mastery of magecraft that Emilio had honed over the past year was put on display once more: a pair of orcs dropped down from a higher elevation within the cave.

Snap.

With a snap of his fingers, Emilio swiftly commanded the manifestation of water, using the aquatic essence like formless blades as they cut through the orcs in an instant. It was precise enough not to leave a single scratch on the surrounding stone, and quick enough to eliminate the enemies before they could even perceive the attack.

"And two more for me," Emilio claimed.

"It ain't a competition," Julius walked past him with a huff, almost as if pouting.

It was surprising just how many orcs had already occupied the isolated cave, some varying in size as a few more intercepted their path. They had light-pink skin and pig noses, wearing ragged leather fabric and painted in what seemed to be blood.

For the sake of his father's pride, Emilio decided to allow his father to take the initiative on this one as Julius dashed forward with his sword in hand.