Marked Ones: Advent of the Demon Prince

Wayne walked through the town center of Pelith, which held most of the shops and artisans of the area.

As the main thoroughfare of the town, every noble and merchant hoping to greet Lord Petra had to pass through here. This helped the area grow into a thriving mercantile district. As such the specific artisan he was looking for could be found here.

Wayne found a small, unassuming building that was nestled a few dozen yards from the main street. Those who did not know of it, could easily miss it. While it would have been an issue for most other merchants and craftsmen to be so hard to find, this particular individual preferred to choose his customers.

His great work basically traveled by word of mouth alone. Wayne had no doubt he would take on the job, since it was his best friend from childhood.

"Welcome, you ungrateful bastard…" a cranky looking man with sandy-blonde hair sneered at Wayne as he walked through the entry door.

"Is that any way to treat an old friend?"

"Old friends don't pay bills."

"Okay then how about a paying customer."

The man's demeanor changed instantly. A bright smile replaced his scowl. "Then welcome! How can I assist you?"

Wayne couldn't help but shake his head at his friend's antics. He had known Kart since they were children, and even back then the man was obsessed with money. This often ran counter to his desire to only work with specific customers…so really he was just a hypocrite.

"I have the antler from an Alpha Deer. I would like you to turn into a memento for my son."

Kart looked carefully at him and then the antler in his hands. Quicker than lightning, his hands darted to a piece of parchment and charcoal. Kart's hands moved quickly across the page as he drew up several designs.

Wayne waited patiently while he completed his work. Whenever Kart got like this he would vanish into his own little world. So, to kill time while waiting, he simply looked around the shop.

Kart's specialty was in jewelry and every piece he created was a masterpiece. Many of his works actually decorated the necks of nobles across the kingdom, including Lord Petra's wife.

Something with a faint magical presence caught Wayne's eye as he glanced along the displays. It was a small pendant in the shape of a feather. He did not have the ability to use any Ritual Magic, so he couldn't identify the necklace to find out what it did, but he could sense that it was a powerful item.

Checking the price tag, Wayne choked on his own spit and began a coughing fit.

"What's wrong?" Kart asked, looking up at the commotion.

"Seven hundred thousand gold for a fucking necklace?! Are you nuts?!" He sputtered.

"Oh that, yeah, no it's worth every copper. Trust me."

Wayne stared at his friend incredulously. He had no idea how he got his hands on such a powerful enchanted item, let alone how he imagined he would sell such a creation. A family of three like his own could live very comfortably for a year without working on only a hundred gold coins.

"And done." Kart said with a sigh. "Take a look."

"No, no, no. What's with the pendant?"

Kart glanced up with a smirk pasted on his face. Clearly he was proud of his enchanted item.

"That, my friend, is an Ancient Class enchanted necklace. It holds the enchantment [Wind Walking]. The user should be able to take up to one hundred steps into the air as though it were as solid as the ground beneath us."

Wayne's expression paled. Ancient Class enchantments were extremely rare. It was only one step away from Divine, which was the most powerful level of enchantment capable of being produced by mortals.

The Ranking for enchanted items were as follows:

Common, Uncommon, Rare, Legendary, Ancient, and Divine.

If one were to compare the same enchantment, like fire damage for example, that enchantment would be twice as strong for each class of enchantment, meaning a Divine Class fire sword was thirty-two times stronger than a Common Class fire sword.

There was one last rank above Divine, which was Primordial, however there were currently no known Primordial Class items, all the ones from legends had long been lost.

Primordial Class items were from the Age of Strife when the mortal races rose against the demons and wiped them from this world.

"Good luck selling it…I guess."

"Thanks! Anyway, look at these designs already. Also, you should be grateful I normally don't work with material as low ranked as an F-Rank beast. Why did you waste the time killing it anyway? I'm sure it took you a few seconds at most. Hardly worth remembering…" Kart pointed out.

"Like I said, it's for my son. He was the one who fought it off. He didn't kill it, but he got away with this…and his life."

Kart paused. "Your son that has no Weapon Arts Compatibility? He fought against an F-Rank beast and managed to escape with a trophy?"

"Yes."

Kart grumbled and closed his eyes while gripping his own arms. He threw his head back and groaned in frustration.

"Ughhh… Erghh… Fine!" He said finally, confusing Wayne. "This one's on the house…but it's for the boy, not for you."

Wayne smiled and selected his favorite design, a pendant carved in the shape of a deer.

*****

"Thank…you…daddy…" Natali beamed as she struggled to speak to her father.

"Don't worry about it. And don't strain your throat talking just to say thank you!" Derrik chastised.

Natali was beyond ecstatic that her father had agreed to teach her to fight with weapons. Currently they were in the barracks training area. It was her father's day off, so he took the opportunity to use that time to spend with her and teach her how to fight.

Their first step was to have her try out all the weapons and see if she had any Compatibilities. Derrik handed her a single-handed axe and instructed Natali to take a few swings.

She attempted to swing the weapon, but it felt awkward and unnatural, so Derrik quickly took it from her before she could hurt herself.

"Nope, nope…that one isn't it…here, try this."

Her father handed her a shortsword to try. Unfortunately, the same result. Next she was given a bow, but she could not even draw the string.

"Daddy…"

"Stop talking Natali…you're gonna ruin all your progress if you force yourself." Derrik stated while taking the bow back. "What to try next…spear? Mace? Hammer? Longsword…"

Natali giggled at how serious her father was in trying to find a good weapon for her. She did not expect him to agree to her request when she asked. She had assumed he would scoff at her and claim that she was too young to learn how to fight.

Not only did he agree, but he even agreed with great enthusiasm. Obviously her mother was concerned, but Natali maintained a resolute and firm stance. Thanks to that, her mother eventually relented.

Natali began to look along the weapon rack for anything that looked interesting. Her eyes settled on a small blade. Something called out to her, making her reach out and touch the handle.

The next thing she knew she had the weapon in her hand. That feeling she had of something calling out to her was sated, but only partially.

Natali continued looking around, trying desperately to figure out what was calling out to her. Panic began to set in. Something felt unnatural to her with the weapon in her hand, yet natural at the same time. These conflicting feelings only served to give her anxiety.

Suddenly her eyes locked on a second blade similar to the one in her hand. Feeling like it was the answer to her problems, she reached out with her left hand and grabbed it as well. Derrik had turned around and watched the entire situation with an inquisitive gaze.

Information flooded into Natali's head the moment she had both daggers gripped in her hands. Moments later, she began to twirl the daggers in her hands as if she was a circus performer that had been doing it her whole life.

She stopped, then shouted, "[Dagger Arts: Rapid Strike]!"

Natali made two swings back-to-back at such great speed her hands appeared to be nothing more than a blur. A look of surprise settled on her own and her father's face.

Natali not only had the knowledge of how to use the weapon, but part of her felt stronger somehow, like she was slightly faster and stronger.

Somehow the volume and noise that escaped her was clearer than she had been her entire life. It also didn't hurt!

"Well, well…that was a Novice Ranked skill you just used…Congratulations on your Dagger Arts…and welcome to the Novice Rank!" Derrik grinned proudly.

"Mmm!" Natali confirmed with a smile. She was happy to know that she successfully found a weapon with which she had a Compatibility.

Eventually she would learn if she had any Magic Compatibilities, but for now this was enough. She felt a large hand settle on her shoulder that then guided her to a practice dummy.

"Alright, I guess it's time for you to start practicing. I cannot use Dagger Arts myself, but I can still teach you some things." Derrik advised. "It's going to be up to you to keep practicing…but promise me one thing."

"Mmm?"

"I know you have been practicing with your mark, but don't do it here, okay? I think you have great potential for combining your mark with Dagger Arts…just don't do it here."

She paused and thought about what her father said. It was true she had been practicing a lot with the Mark of Recall. However, it didn't dawn on her that it could be useful to use with her newfound Weapon Arts.

Derrik noticed the look on her face and sighed. "Alright, we are alone in here right now…so one time, okay?"

"Mmm!"

Natali turned to face the training dummy and whispered, "[Recall]".

The mark on her left hand glowed before it dimmed and stopped.

"[Dagger Arts: Pierce]!" When she shouted out the skill, the dagger in her left hand seemed to magically sharpen. Using every ounce of strength she had, she threw it at the target.

In an instant, it buried itself deep into the chest of the wooden dummy. Not even a second later, she snapped her fingers on her left hand. Derrik's eyes widened as the dagger vanished from its spot and reappeared instantaneously in his daughter's hand.

Derrik couldn't help himself from gulping. "That is going to be quite the deadly combination one day. Alright Natali, once a week I will guide your training. However it is your responsibility to train your mark and practice your forms on your own every day. Understand?"

"Mmm!"

"Good. Don't neglect your lessons from your mother either. This will give you the tools to prepare you if the worst comes to happen, but in a perfect world, the gods will see to it that you protect the next Oracle."

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