Shield Of Vengeance

###Chapter 9: New Challenges

As Arie and the girl finally emerged from the shadowy depths of the dungeon, he took a deep breath, feeling the sunlight warm his face. Only now, outside of the oppressive gloom, did he notice the girl's face closely. In a flash of realization, he recognized her—the same missing adventurer who had been posted on the quest board days ago.

It felt like a stroke of luck; not only had he defeated a monster, but he'd also rescued someone on the guild's radar. "Two birds with one stone," he thought to himself, his mouth curving in a small, satisfied smile. But a nagging thought remained.

The creature they encountered—the Grimshale—had been unlike anything he'd ever faced on that dungeon level. Its speed, power, and ferocity were like nothing he expected for a single mob at that floor. Its attacks were swift and brutal, each one far more dangerous than any floor 10 boss he had fought before.

It was as if its strength, speed, and instinct were triple that of a typical monster. Arie's thoughts drifted back to the fight as they walked toward the surface, still trying to grasp how he'd barely come out alive.

Once they reached the surface, Arie invited the girl to accompany him to the guild, explaining, "I need to confirm that I defeated the Grimshale—and that I rescued you. You're the only witness to both."

She nodded, agreeing without hesitation. As they entered the guild, Arie headed straight to the counter, where the guild lady greeted him with a raised eyebrow. He recounted the entire encounter: the shock of discovering an enhanced Grimshale, the intense fight, and the girl's rescue.

As he spoke, he noticed the guild lady's expression shift from curiosity to shock.

"An enhanced species? On the tenth floor?" she asked, incredulous. "Enhanced creatures typically appear only near the twenty-fifth floor. You say its overall skill was triple that of a normal floor 10 boss?"

Arie nodded. "Exactly. If I hadn't been fully prepared, it might have gone differently." His hand unconsciously drifted to the healing scars from his battle wounds.

Despite his healing magic, he could still feel the faint soreness in his muscles—a reminder of how close he'd come to losing.

The guild lady processed this for a moment, her gaze lingering on Arie, assessing. "You may have just encountered something rare—and dangerous," she murmured, more to herself than to him.

"By the way," the girl beside him spoke up, her voice filled with gratitude. "I'm Mira. I... I can't thank you enough, Arie. You risked your life to save me, and I'll never forget that. I don't know how I could ever repay you."

"Nice to meet you, Mira," he replied, his tone softer as he met her gaze. "It was the right thing to do. I couldn't just leave you there, could I?" They exchanged a small smile, and after taking a moment to rest at the guild, Mira offered one last thank you before they went their separate ways.

When Arie finally made it home, the exhaustion hit him all at once. Dropping onto his bed, he replayed the day's events in his mind. For some reason, Mira's face lingered in his thoughts, sparking an odd sense of familiarity.

"Have I seen her before?" he murmured to himself, his eyes growing heavy. Before he could think further, he was asleep.

The next morning, Arie awoke to the faint glow of sunrise. Still groggy, he noticed a message from the guild, asking him to visit for "an important matter." Curiosity pulled him out of bed as he wondered what the guild could possibly want now.

On his way there, he mulled over the possibilities, until he reached the guild doors and was greeted with an unexpected surprise. The guild lady smiled as she handed him a sack of coins. "You forgot to claim your reward for the quest," she said with a slight smirk.

But that wasn't all. She handed him a second bag, larger than the first. "This one," she explained, "is from Mira. She left a note with it."

Arie opened the note, which read: Thank you so much, Arie. I don't know how I'll ever repay you for saving me, but I hope this can at least be a token of my gratitude.

His eyes widened as he checked the amount. 15,000 coins—more than double his quest reward. He now had a total of 25,000 coins, enough to cover his academy tuition several times over. Joy surged through him, and he barely restrained himself from running all the way to the academy to enroll.

After paying the 5,000 coin tuition, he signed the enrollment papers and received his academy schedule, which he could start the next morning at 8 a.m. With everything in order, Arie left the academy building, a new sense of excitement and relief filling him. He'd finally achieved his goal of enrolling and could now begin his training in earnest.

As he walked through the town streets, Arie realized he still had most of the day left. Looking for a quiet place to relax, he strolled toward a familiar hill, one of his favorite spots overlooking the village. He found a shaded tree and lay down beneath it, letting the sounds of nature calm his mind as he thought over everything that had happened, and how he knows, that he will face more challenges and harder ones too.

He closed his eyes, enjoying the warmth of the sun filtering through the leaves. His thoughts drifted from the fight with the Grimshale, to Mira, and finally to the academy. In the midst of all these reflections, he felt something else—a quiet anticipation, a sense that the path he was on would lead him to even greater challenges, and perhaps, even deeper mysteries.

As the afternoon turned to dusk, he lost track of time, drifting in and out of dreams, the day's events blurring into a calm, quiet peace that carried him gently into sleep once again.