Raven's first impression of Ryan was that he was a friendly and cheerful person. Ryan's approach and his initiative to get closer to Raven had left a friendly mark between them, but Raven truly could not accept the idea of Ryan being the team leader. Deep inside, he believed that strength alone was the decisive factor—that the strongest should ascend the throne of leadership. This was Raven's point of view; after all, he had spent many years in an environment unsuitable for living among creatures he knew nothing about, and humans far more evil than the monsters surrounding him. Therefore, the concept of strength was of utmost importance to him.
While Raven was lost in his thoughts, his hand still clasping Ryan's, Ryan waved with his other hand:
"Hey, are you okay? Are you sick?"
At that moment, Raven quickly regained his focus:
"Haha, in fact, nothing. I was just a little distracted."
Ryan sighed:
"Alright, if that's the case, it's fine. You really worried me."
These were Ryan's words after Raven reassured him that he was fine.
Ryan said:
"Okay, forget it. Tell me, what's your name?"
Raven replied:
"Huh, I don't know why everyone here wants to know my name. Is it really that important? Well, my name is Raven, as far as I remember."
Ryan smiled upon hearing the name:
"Haah, Raven! That's a truly great name. Do you know something? I've been waiting for a new member to join our ranks for some time, so now we have to return to our headquarters as soon as possible and celebrate your joining us."
The emotions that filled Raven at that moment were indescribable. It was the first time people had treated him with such kindness. Are humans really that kind? He had stayed close to the sorcerer all the time, the only human he knew, and he had been extremely evil to him. Even the monsters feared his wrath. Therefore, he had thought humans were like that by nature, but it seemed these ones were different.
Here, Raven wiped away a tear from his eye, and an expression of happiness and satisfaction appeared on his face. He said:
"Haha, yes, let's return quickly. You said your name is Ryan, right? From this moment, I swear my complete and absolute loyalty to you and to this organization, as long as I have a pulse."
Ryan replied:
"And I welcome you as well. From today, Raven, you have become a Shadow Warrior of the Shadow Warriors."
After this introductory session between Ryan and Raven, Raven officially joined the Shadow Warriors organization.
Meanwhile, Carlos was working on suppressing Tiel's curse. Carlos was giving his utmost effort. Controlling such a massive amount of Aether with precise accuracy was extremely difficult; even a small mistake could harm Tiel. Carlos's level of Aether was higher and stronger than Tiel's body could handle, so any mistake could be fatal.
Haah… Carlos took a deep sigh.
He sighed and fell to the ground:
"Finally… finally, I'm done. It was really difficult. I really need rest now."
After successfully suppressing the curse, Carlos fell to the ground a second time from exhaustion.
At that moment, Raven and Ryan entered the rocky cave.
Ryan asked:
"Guys, are you ready to… haah? What's wrong with you? Why are you in this miserable state?"
Except for Ryan and Raven, the rest of the team was indeed in a miserable condition; exhaustion was eating away at their bones.
Tala replied:
"Alright, Ryan, we're very tired. We need some rest. What do you think about guarding the area a little while we take a break?"
Ryan said:
"Haah? Rest? Tired? Is this really the time? We need to return quickly, we have a new member, and the teacher is surely waiting impatiently there."
Ryan was frustrated and tried to scold them, but the team's state was so bad that his words were practically meaningless.
Carlos answered clearly, exhaustion evident on his face:
"Hey, Ryan, how about you and Raven stay here to get to know each other better, while giving us a little rest?"
As soon as he said this, Carlos fell into a deep sleep, and Tala had already done the same. Tiel was in a somewhat stable condition and also fell into a deep sleep.
Ryan's annoyance was very clear and obvious on his face:
"Tsk, tsk…"
In a good-natured initiative, Raven tried to ease Ryan's anger:
"Alright, alright, calm down. There's no harm in taking a little rest here for a while. Let them sleep a bit. What do you think about strolling a little nearby while they rest?"
Ryan liked this idea, then suddenly a more crazy idea struck his mind:
"Alright, Raven, I have a fun idea too. Let's go and leave them to sleep a little."
The two of them went out walking near the team's resting place, exchanging small talk.
Then Ryan asked a question that piqued Raven's interest:
"Tell me about your fight against Carlos earlier. It seems it was an interesting battle."
Raven replied:
"Huh, actually, it wasn't interesting at all. It was exhausting. Carlos is a tough opponent for me. His fast movements and control over natural elements were very annoying. You could say it was a one-sided fight. He relied only on absolute strength; I didn't pay any attention to techniques or abilities—just overwhelming physical power to crush my enemies. But after my battle with Carlos, I truly understood the reason I failed against him."
Ryan said:
"Haah, so it was a great battle. I can imagine it in my mind. Actually, I've been trying to close the gap between myself and Carlos for two consecutive years, but he was always one step ahead of me. By the way, since it was a bad fight for you as you described, how about having another one, a better one?"
Raven answered:
"Well, actually, I have realized my limits, so I need to wait more before fighting Carlos again."
Ryan said:
"It seems you didn't understand the matter correctly. What I mean is that the fight is with me, here and now."
Raven stopped and froze upon hearing Ryan's words. Ryan had just invited him to a friendly battle. There was no reason for Raven to refuse this request.
"Alright, I agree. Also, the condition for losing is to knock the opponent to the ground. Is that okay with you?"
Ryan replied:
"Yes, that's perfect. Now, are you ready?"
---
"End of Chapter