Danikeli reached for the quill White Wolf had discarded. The moment his small fingers wrapped around the wooden barrel, the ink inside began to hiss. He didn't notice the way the Guild Master winced or how Green Wolf instinctively adjusted his stance to be ready for a sprint.

  With a tongue poking out of the corner of his mouth in deep concentration, Danikeli leaned over the desk. He was so short he had to stand on the tips of his toes, his ribs pressing against the edge of the counter. The parchment beneath his hand began to turn a brittle, toasted brown, but he moved with the steady determination of a boy who had practiced his letters every night before bed.

  Danikeli Kusuri

  He finished the last flourish of the 'i' just as the quill finally gave up, the nib melting into a blob of charred wood and ash. He set the remains of the tool down and looked up, beaming with a pride that didn't match the scorched circle he was standing in.

  "I'm all signed up," he announced.

  The Guild Master snatched the scroll away with the speed of a man rescuing a child from a fire, blowing on the blackened edges of the parchment. He stared at the name. It was written in a neat, childish script, but the ink hadn't just dried; it had been baked into the fibers of the paper.

  "Independent Solo," the Master muttered, his voice shaking as he rolled the scroll back up. "May the Hero Malaccus have mercy on your soul, boy, because if the monsters don't get you, the heatstroke will."

  White Wolf looked at the charred signature and then at his two companions. He didn't say a word, but the message was clear. He signaled with a sharp tilt of his head toward the exit.

  "We move out," White Wolf commanded. "The Wolffire Group takes the lead. Everyone else, stay back. And you—" He pointed a gauntleted finger at Danikeli. "Five hundred yards. If I see a single spark from you near my men, I’ll extinguish it myself."

  Red Wolf and Green Wolf followed their leader, deliberately stepping around the blackened patch of floor where Danikeli stood. The rest of the adventurers in the hall remained frozen, watching as the seven-year-old adjusted his oversized sword belt.

  Danikeli didn't seem to mind the threat. He just waved a small, slightly glowing hand at the retreating armored figures. "I'll stay back! I'm good at staying back!"

  As the guild hall began to empty in the wake of the Wolffire Group, Danikeli hopped off the charred floorboards. He felt a strange, rhythmic thumping in his chest—a heat that wanted to be let out. He looked toward the heavy iron doors that led to the streets of Nev?ehir and the yawning, dark mouth of the Derinkuyu Caves beyond.

  He had a mission now. He was an adventurer.

  The sun beat down on the dusty outskirts of Nev?ehir, but the entrance to the Derinkuyu Caves offered no such warmth. It was a jagged, yawning maw in the earth that seemed to swallow the light. As Danikeli approached, his short legs working hard to keep pace with his excitement, he found his path blocked by more than just shadows.

  The Wolffire Group had reached the entrance first and, true to their word, had established a perimeter. A thick, shimmering barrier of green light—courtesy of Green Wolf’s specialized mana—was stretched across the primary tunnel. It hummed with a low, warning vibration that made the air feel like it was buzzing.

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  "Hold it right there, sparky," Green Wolf said, leaning against a rocky outcrop. He held a glowing jade staff across his knees, looking down at the seven-year-old with a smirk. "White Wolf’s orders. The 'Five Hundred Yard Rule' starts now. We go down, clear the first three hubs, and once we send up a signal flare, the tag-alongs get to move."

  "But the Guild Master said I'm an Independent Solo," Danikeli said, squinting at the green light. The heat in his chest was fluttering now, like a bird trying to escape a cage. "If I wait too long, the monsters might get bored and leave."

  Red Wolf, who was busy checking the straps on his heavy gauntlets, snorted. "Bored? Kid, the things in the Bottomless Cave don't get bored. They get hungry. And you look like a snack-sized morsel."

  Beyond the green barrier, Danikeli could see White Wolf standing at the edge of the first great descent. The leader didn't look back; he was staring into the abyss of Derinkuyu, his white armor the only thing visible in the deepening gloom.

  "I'm not a snack," Danikeli muttered under his breath. He looked at the barrier. To him, the green light looked like a thin sheet of sugar glass. He could feel the Great Sage magic swirling in his marrow, whispering that the barrier was barely a lukewarm breeze compared to the sun sitting behind his ribs.

  "Just sit tight, kid," Green Wolf added, closing his eyes for a brief meditation. "Consider it a nap time. If you’re lucky, we’ll leave a stray slime for you to poke with that toothpick of yours."

  Danikeli took a step forward. The ground beneath his feet didn't just char this time; it turned to molten glass in the shape of his boot print. He didn't want to be mean, and he certainly didn't want to break the rules, but the "Dungeon Break" was coming, and he could hear the walls of the cave groaning.

  "I think," Danikeli said, his voice dropping an octave as a halo of white-hot mana began to crown his head, "that I should probably go in first. Just to make sure the floor is safe."

  Green Wolf didn’t even have time to open his eyes.

  The air around Danikeli didn't just get hot; it became heavy, a physical weight that pressed against the cave walls until the limestone began to weep moisture. The green barrier, a masterwork of defensive mana that could stop a charging minotaur, began to ripple and distort. It made a sound like a violin string stretched to the point of snapping.

  "Hey, kid, I said back—" Green Wolf started, his eyes flying open.

  He never finished the sentence. As Danikeli took a single, innocent step toward the light, the "Great Sage" magic within him surged in a silent, invisible pulse. The green barrier didn't just break; it vaporized. The mana shattered into a thousand emerald shards that dissolved into steam before they could hit the ground.

  The recoil sent Green Wolf sprawling backward, his jade staff clattering against the rocks. Red Wolf dropped to one knee, shielding his face as a wave of dry, desert heat rolled over them, smelling of ancient suns and ozone.

  "The barrier..." Green Wolf gasped, staring at his empty hands. "That was a Grade-7 seal! It's gone!"

  Danikeli walked through the space where the wall had been, his boots clicking softly on the stone. He looked back at the two men, his expression one of genuine concern. "I'm sorry. I think the wind blew it away. It’s very drafty in here."

  White Wolf had spun around at the sound of the collapse, his hand already gripping his white-enameled claymore. He watched as the seven-year-old walked past his two stunned lieutenants, the boy’s silhouette framed by a flickering, ethereal glow. The stone under Danikeli’s feet was glowing a dull, cherry red, leaving a trail of cooling embers behind him.

  "You," White Wolf hissed, his voice a mix of disbelief and budding predatory instinct. "What kind of monster are you?"

  "I'm Danikeli," the boy replied with a polite nod. "And the Guild Master said I have to clear the cave so the city doesn't break. Since your wall is gone, I'll go down first and check if it’s too dark. You can follow me if you want!"

  Without waiting for an answer, Danikeli turned and skipped toward the first great vertical shaft of Derinkuyu. He jumped into the black abyss without a torch, a tiny, glowing ember falling into a throat of stone that had been dark for a thousand years.

  Red Wolf stared at the empty tunnel. "Did... did that kid just jump down the three-story drop?"

  White Wolf didn't answer. He just looked at the scorched footprints and the shattered remnants of the barrier. "Move," he commanded, his voice tight. "Before he melts the entire dungeon."