Black Onyx - Forgotten Magic

"Isn't fifty gold a bit much for an Earth Dragon? I know it's quite well preserved but still..." Javiar commented when he left the infirmary with the Guildmaster.

Nodding, the Guildmaster agreed, "True, it is a bit much, but you have to consider the facts. If he didn't kill that beast, there would probably be many casualties before we could react. Even in Auralba, they didn't know of its existence. The extra gold can be considered a well-deserved reward."

"I see. But didn't he join the Guild only a month ago? How can a junior win against an Earth Dragon alone? Is he blessed by the gods?" Javiar continued the conversation with his suspicions.

The Guildmaster looked at him sideways, "You just might be right. I'm sure you are not aware of this but the lad can control all six Elements of magic!"

"What?!" Javiar's eyes bulged out and his mouth stayed wide open for a while after he heard the news.

"Yes, my daughter confirmed it… As you know, those geniuses that can use multiple Elements are really powerful and advance quickly in the study of magic. That's probably the reason why he was able to do what he did. Just don't spread the word around."

"Sigh, unfortunately, he met with a disaster so early on his path of life. If he had another decade to mature, he could possibly become another Arcane Battle Mage… Such a shame." The Guildmaster quietly lamented.

Javiar thought for a while and then said, "But, even if he lost an arm it's not like he has no options to advance. He can still use magic even without hands, can't he?"

"Ah," the Guildmaster patted Javiar's shoulder, "The mind of a mage is his most important asset. After such a severe traumatic experience many would crumble or stagnate for years. The higher you fly, the harder you fall. It's such a shame, a real shame…" He shook his head in sorrow as he sighed.

They soon arrived at the door of the Headmaster's office. A butler was patiently waiting for them with a paper in hand.

"Oh, has the king's reply arrived already?" the Headmaster quickened his steps and arrived before the butler.

"That is indeed so, Master. The messenger just left a minute ago." The butler handed over the sealed scroll.

"I see, good work!"

The Headmaster and the Guard Commander entered the office one after another.

"What did the king say, Crobus?" Javiar asked with interest as he leaned closer.

Guildmaster Crobus' thick eyebrows lifted and then furrowed together, "It's a letter from one of the ministers… It is much worse than we thought. Every city in the kingdom experienced the same attempt at the tax theft and some of them even succeeded."

"Oh?"

"Yeah… As you can imagine, the king is livid. Someone stole thousands of gold coins in monthly taxes, right under his nose. It says here that the king is setting up a reward for each Red Sun Viper member captured. The reward is one gold coin, quite generous…" the Guildmaster summarised the contents of the letter.

"So, should we heighten security in the city? Maybe some of those rats are still hiding inside," Javiar wondered.

"No," the Guildmaster Crobus shook his head, "Just double the guards at the city gates and do a thorough search of anyone suspicious. Now go, there is no time to waste!"

"Yes, sir!" Javiar saluted and left the office.

'What the hell is going on? How did these people know we were transporting taxes? There must be a traitor among us…' Thoughts like these were born in Guildmaster's mind as he watched across his city with worry.

The whole Kingdom of Myrtana reacted in a similar way. City lords ordered a higher guard inside their cities, there were more patrols on the roads and bounty hunters soon started sniffing around in the forests, searching for Blood Sun Viper members.

In the following days and weeks, many of the low-ranked Scales were found and captured, but only a few were brought to the capital. The reason for it was the insane suicide rate among the Scales.

They would do everything in their power to take their own life, instead of being tortured in the dungeons for information. If given just one minute of time, many would find a way to end their own life - even if it meant biting themselves to death.