World Sphere - 61 - Callem's Killing Intent

Chapter 61: Callem’s Killing Intent

Early on the morning of the seventh day, I made my way to Ennet’s house to meet Callem. When I knocked, Aelyn and Wynna were already inside, busy making breakfast. I joined them quickly, drawn in by the smell of cooking and the warmth of the hearth.

Aelyn kept glancing at me, clearly holding something back. Finally, I set down my mug and said, “You might as well ask.”

She hesitated only a moment. “Storme, why didn’t you ask me to join your delve team?” Her voice was quieter than usual—hurt, not angry.

I shook my head. “I don’t have a delve team. At least, I’m not planning to go delving myself. I’m hiring a few adventurers to harvest some specific things I need. One team will collect ingredients and consumables for the restaurant, and another will gather materials for building a skyship.”

That seemed to ease her disappointment—at least a little. “Callem and Wynna seem to think you are planning to attend the Dungeon Academy in Aegis City,” she retorted defensively.

I hadn’t shared the full extent of my plans with Aelyn, mostly because she’d been staying in town at Ennet’s house. We barely talked any longer and she treated me just like any other student during conditioning training. “That’s true,” I admitted. “But it’s only to make use of the magic training courses. Like I said, I don’t plan on delving myself.”

She still looked uncertain, a crease forming between her brows. “Don’t worry, Aelyn,” I added, trying to sound reassuring. “If everything goes according to plan, that mark on your neck will be gone within the year. You’ll be free of Skyholme—and of me,” I finished with a half-smile.

Her expression shifted, but I couldn’t tell whether it was doubt or reluctance. I was betting on the former. Just then, Callem stepped into the kitchen, and I was quietly grateful for the interruption.

“Callem, ready to head to Solaris? Selina said she’d meet us at the skyship docks. We’ll find a private spot to interview Talia, then catch a ship to Aegis City and hit the Adventurer Guild Hall.”

We wolfed down the rest of our food and made for the door. I paused on the threshold, glancing back. Aelyn had been somber all morning. On impulse, I offered, “Aelyn, want to come along? I could use your input.”

She blinked, surprised. “Yes!” she said—too quickly—and her whole face lit up. It was clear all she really wanted was to be included. From the sink, I caught Wynna and Ennet exchanging smiles they were trying—and failing—to hide as they did the dishes. Aelyn dashed off to get changed.

As we walked into town, I laid out for Callem what I was looking for in my delve team. “I need two core front liners—strong defensively, solid in melee. One support, preferably someone skilled in healing. Two scouts with good ranged attacks. And finally, a mage with strong offensive spells—someone versatile, effective for both controlling crowds and single targets. Plus, I’ll need at least two porters to harvest and process the dungeon haul. So, eight in total.”

Callem nodded thoughtfully. “You’ll probably find everything but the healer,” he said. “Healers are scarce in Skyholme. The navy usually recruits them before anyone else gets a chance, and there just aren’t enough to go around.”

His advice: recruit two mages, then offer one of them some incentive to imprint a few healing spells. I wasn’t sure about that. Mages didn’t exactly have generous aether matrices, and squeezing in a tier-two healing spell meant giving up space that could be used for a powerful offensive or defensive spell.

Aelyn walked quietly beside us, not saying a word—but I could tell she was absorbing every detail. We found Selina waiting on a bench near the docks. The skyship from the capital hadn’t arrived yet. Her eyes widened slightly when she saw Aelyn.

“I wasn’t expecting you,” she said, then launched into a question about how Aelyn’s third spell imprinting was coming along.

I blinked. Third? Last I heard, Aelyn was working on the cleanliness spell. But Selina had asked about the privacy spell. Had I really drifted that far from her since we stopped sharing the loft?

Callem and I moved a few paces aside while he went over the qualities he wanted to see in the two front-liners—reflexes, defensive positioning, good spatial awareness, and the grit to hold a line under pressure.

The skyship arrived not long after, drifting down silently. Talia disembarked, spotting Selina first. As she approached, Selina handled introductions smoothly. “Aelyn, Callem—this is Talia.”

Aelyn gave Talia a look like she could summon a storm cloud on the spot. Talia returned it with equal intensity. Lightning gazes appeared between the two. Why all the fireworks? This was their first time meeting.

Talia and Aelyn walked on either side of Selina, leading the way to our meeting spot. Callem and I followed a few paces behind. Callem chuckled under his breath. “I think those two are ready to face off for your attention, Storme.”

I glanced at the trio ahead, puzzled. They were twenty paces ahead, chatting—or at least pretending to be cordial. I didn’t have time to press him on the unusual comment before he shifted gears and started quizzing me again.

It was a game of perception. I had to keep my eyes forward while he asked me to recall details about people or objects we’d already passed. I was hitting about seventy percent accuracy, with another twenty percent only partially correct. Not perfect, but good for all the activity around us.

Selina led us into a small tea house tucked into a quiet street. We were seated on an upper balcony with a view of the square. As we settled in, Selina cast a transparent privacy shield, wrapping the space in shimmering silence.

I took a seat with Aelyn on my right and Callem on my left. Selina and Talia sat across from us. Selina poured tea with practiced ease, making it clear she was only here as an observer. Still, I was pretty sure the smirk she tried to hide was due to the unspoken tension crackling between Aelyn and Talia. They were both avoiding each other’s gaze now—but only barely. Everyone was waiting for me to begin.

I cleared my throat. “Talia. Selina mentioned you’re training as a combat wizard—and that she recommended you for a spot on my delve team.” Talia’s brow furrowed, and her gaze flicked between Callem and me, uncertain.

I clarified, “Callem is financing the operation, but I’m the one leading it. So, I’ll ask plainly: what makes you qualified for the team?”

She sat straighter, blinking once, getting uncomfortable. I hated interviews too. No matter how you answered, it always felt like you said the wrong thing.

Talia turned her full attention to me, locking eyes with a level of poise that surprised me. “I’m in my fourth year at the Mage Academy,” she began. “My imprinted spells include tier 2 fire whip, tier 2 ice lance, tier 1 spells: wizard lock, privacy, light, aether bolt, aether armor, and alarm. I’m currently working on the tier 3 spell fireball. I placed third in my year’s mage duels and currently rank fourth overall in my class.” She gave a quick nod, clearly practiced in listing her credentials.

“What levels are your spells?” I asked, mentally tracking each one. Talia hesitated, then glanced toward Selina, who gave me a pointed look before explaining.

“Storme,” she said gently, “In Skyholme, asking a mage their spell levels—especially during an interview—is considered impolite. But in this case, it’s fine.” She nodded to her granddaughter in permission.

Talia turned back to me. “Light was the first spell I learned, so it’s the highest—level 15. Privacy and alarm are both at level 7, though alarm is nearly 8. Aether bolt just reached level 12. Wizard lock is only level 3.” Her voice dropped slightly. “We only started real combat training last year, so aether armor is at level 8 for now, but it should hit 11 by the end of the year.” She brightened as she added proudly, “Fire whip is level 7, and ice lance is at 6!”

I couldn’t help but compare her progress to my own. My aether pool was nearly thirty times the size of most young mages. That meant faster recovery, more frequent practice, and greater spell endurance. I had only been awakened for just under a year and had already surpassed her in raw capacity, despite her five years of structured training.

Still, I gave her a genuine smile. “That’s very impressive, Talia.” She beamed at the compliment, her confidence blooming.

“How much space do you have left in your aether matrix for new spells?” I asked next.

Her smile dimmed slightly, and once again she looked to Selina, who gave an encouraging nod. “After the fireball spell is imprinted, I will have six more slots,” She seemed uncertain. So, she had a total of 20 slots for spell imprinting. Somewhat average for a mage.

Selina interrupted my calculations, “It will not be 6 open slots, but likely nine. I am giving her a dungeon aether matrix expander that will add three slots to her core.” Talia leaned in and hugged her great great great grandmother. “Of course, she will have to consult me on what those spells will be to occupy the additional space.”

I was tempted to ask Selina if she had a spell expander for me. I’d read about them—rare essences that could increase the capacity of a mage’s aether matrix by a percentage. They didn’t boost the aether core itself—those were different, far rarer dungeon prizes—but expanders were still considered a significant enhancement.

A Tier 1 expander provided a 5% increase, Tier 2 about 15%, and Tier 3 a full 25%. For any serious mage, that kind of expansion was a game-changer. Such a treasure would never be taken lightly.

“Quite a generous gift, Selina,” I said, giving her a knowing look. She smiled serenely but didn’t comment. I turned back to Talia. “What are your plans for your remaining spell slots? Where’s your focus going forward?”

“I was planning to imprint a tier 3 defensive spell, another tier 2 offensive spell,” she said, glancing briefly at Selina. “The other three slots are still undecided.” She took a breath, then continued more confidently. “For advancement, I’m focusing on evolving my fireball and ice lance. I’m hoping to push both to level 23 before graduation.”

That caught my attention. Level 23 was a milestone—where a spell matrix began to evolve on its own. Beyond the standard spell evolution, the spell would receive a passive boost of roughly ten percent to power and efficiency. Not many mages reached that threshold. Higher levels meant slower gains and exponentially more time to advance a spell. The grind was real.

I nodded and turned to Callem, having finished my line of questioning. He took over, asking Talia about her real-world combat experience. Her response was modest: just a year of basic academy training with melee weapons, and no real practice since. Selina pursed her lips at that, shooting Callem a narrow-eyed look of disapproval—as if she'd expected him to avoid the question.

Still, close-quarters ability mattered. I didn’t want anyone on the team who couldn’t defend themselves if things got tight. We were just about ready to wrap up the meeting when Aelyn chimed in, her tone casual but probing.

“Do you have many friends at the academy?” she asked, then added, “Any outstanding debts?”

Talia’s answers were short and clipped, her tone suddenly cool. The air between them was tense again. I had no idea how two people who had exchanged maybe ten words their entire lives could already dislike each other so much. I let Aelyn needle her and studied Talia’s body language.

When Aelyn was done, I made my decision. Talia was an excellent mage by Skyholme standards. “So, Talia, here’s my offer. A one-year contract, starting after the current academy term ends. You’ll be provided housing and meals at my inn in Aegis City. You’ll be required to participate in one delve per week. Your pay will be one gold per successful delve, with a 20% bonus if you exceed quota by 30% or more.”

She looked confused, so I clarified. “My delve team isn’t focused on treasure hunting—we’re harvesters. I need a strong team to secure an area, and skilled delvers to gather specific resources.”

She considered that, then asked, “What about failed delves?”

I hadn’t thought about that. I improvised. “No penalty for up to five failed delves within a year. After that, there’ll be no weekly pay for each failure.” She nodded—indicating that was fair.

“Oh—and since you’ll still be attending the Mage Academy,” I added, “we’ll schedule your delves on your day off. I’ll also cover your skyship travel back and forth from the capital.”

Talia left with a visible excitement all over her face. Aelyn, on the other hand, muttered under her breath, “Too generous for such an inexperienced mage.” She was definitely jealous—and I thought it was kind of cute.

I nudged her playfully. “So, Aelyn, are you coming with us to Aegis City?”

She smirked. “Yes. Someone has to look after your best interests.”

Later, aboard the skyship, Aelyn joined me at the bow. The wind tugged at her hair—it seemed the anti-wind enchantment on this ship was partially broken. She leaned into me, her expression unreadable.

“Storme,” she said, “you could’ve done better. Her thoughts were mostly focused on you. Like she was trying to win you over—as if you were a prize stallion. Selina told her about your massive potential, and now she wants to ride it all the way to her own power.” Ah. So that was the root of it—Aelyn wasn’t just annoyed. She was worried Talia would try to use me.

“I thought you were not going to read anyone again?” I said amused.

“It was just surface thoughts and I did it to protect you. I am your servant, after all,” she said playfully.

I gave it some thought and nodded. “Thanks for the heads up,” I said genuinely. “Were you able to read Selina?”

“Demons, no! I tried once and she whiplashed my mind hard enough to give me a headache for three days.” She chuckled darkly. “Talia, though? She’s just starting to build her mental defenses. They’re not strong enough to stop me.”

As the skyship descended, I pointed toward a recently renovated building. “That’s mine,” I said. Aelyn looked impressed at the polished facade. In bold, massive elegant script across the front: The Shiny Platinum Restaurant & Bakery.

She laughed. “You really do like big things, Storme.”

I had no clever comeback, so we just joined Callem for the walk to the Adventurers’ Guild. Callem had rented a private training room to evaluate our candidates, but we were nearly an hour early. He turned to Aelyn and me. “Want to challenge me while we wait?”

Aelyn lit up with excitement, and I summoned a staff from my dimensional closet. I had about a dozen stored—some enchanted, some mundane. Aelyn and I hadn’t fought together since we were at the farm, trying to humble Gareth. We quickly regained our non-verbal communication.

We tried flanking Callem, pressing from both sides, but couldn’t break through his guard. Aelyn threw herself into the fight, repeatedly sacrificing herself to give me an opening. I wasn’t sure if it was Aelyn’s growing number of bruises or Callem’s smug grin that pushed me over the edge, and I triggered lightning reflexes.

Callem reacted immediately. His stance shifted, his movements sharpening to match my increased speed. I was faster now, definitely—but he still blocked every strike with those heavy twin short swords of his.

Still, I was getting closer. His reactions, while still incredible, weren’t quite perfect. His shirt was soaked with sweat, but he was smiling, enjoying this. My extra pressure gave Aelyn room to press her own attacks. After about three minutes of intense engagement, I felt the spell tick up to level 12. If I could just push it one more level, maybe…

I had around forty minutes of aether before I ran dry. Aelyn, sensing my focus, doubled down on her attacks. Callem’s grin widened; he was clearly having the time of his life. Then he baited me. “Oh, Storme, even with this spell, Gareth could still beat you. You’ll need to get creative.”

Fine. I began chaining techniques I’d learned from Elora, trying to overwhelm him with unpredictable strikes. His breathing was becoming strained, and fifteen minutes into it, my spell hit level 13. I disengaged to let the spell matrix evolve—recasting it would integrate the new enhancements. Callem looked confused, thinking I’d given up. Even Aelyn blinked at me, puzzled. She was soaked with sweat like we were.

I grinned and returned to combat, I caught Callem slightly off guard. My staff clipped his elbow—just a glancing blow, but his eyes widened. I still hadn’t wiped the grin off his face. Fine, old man. You asked for it.

I surged forward, doubling the spell’s power with overdrive. My speed jumped from 73% above baseline to 146%. My first two strikes landed—his left knee, then his right shoulder. We were winning and then everything changed.

His playful gleam vanished in an instant. His aura turned cold, suffocating. I’d never believed in “killing intent.” I thought it was just a trope from my past life. But now? I felt like I was at the bottom of a well, and Callem was looking down from the edge above. Aelyn immediately retreated, leaving me alone.

The next exchange was a blur. I think I struck him eight or nine times, but I took just as many slashes myself. My staff was splintering. My body screamed at me to stop, but I kept going. Callem could have ended it at any point—but he didn’t.

Eventually, I collapsed, panting. Callem stood over me, then dropped beside me cross-legged, sweat dripping into pools, a small gash bleeding on his forehead.

We said nothing for a while as I used the first trickle of restored aether to heal my worst wounds. I reached over and assessed his injuries—six solid bruises and a light concussion. I healed the concussion first, then alternated between us.

A knock came at the door. “Ten minutes,” Callem called out. He looked over at me. “I was wondering when you were going to challenge me or Gareth. I’ve been following you at night. Saw you working on that spell. It's impressive, Storme. If I hadn’t prepared for it mentally, you’d have had me when you first cast it.”

I lay back flat on the ground, staring at the ceiling. Aelyn was in the corner, nursing her injuries. I waved her over and healed two torn ligaments and bruises.

“Callem, that’s bullshit,” I muttered. “You could’ve had me any time.”

He shook his head. “Not true. You pulled your strike to my head. If you hadn’t, you might have knocked me out.” I honestly didn’t even remember landing a headshot. The whole fight had blurred together.

“Well, it cost me. I’ve got four broken bones. It'll take time before I can fully fix the ligaments and tendons.” I stood slowly, groaning.

Callem looked concerned, but I waved him off. “Side effect of the spell when I overclock it. You didn’t do most of the damage—just ruined a perfectly good outfit.” A quick cleanliness spell removed the blood, sweat, and grime, revealing all the torn fabric. I pulled out a fresh set of clothes from storage and changed.

“So. when are you going to challenge Gareth?” Aelyn asked brightly, now bandaged and cheerful again. Callem looked at me, equally curious.

I shrugged. “I don’t know. I don’t want to crush his confidence. Also… my spell leveled twice during those forty minutes. That shouldn’t even be possible.”

“I figured as much,” Callem said. “Fighting a stronger opponent—especially one that doesn’t pull punches—forces growth. I didn’t hold much back. You should’ve felt threatened.” Oh, I had. “If you want,” he added, “I’ll join you on your nightly runs to Twin Rocks.”

I blinked. He’d been following me? Yes, that is what he said earlier, but it was just clicking now. “I’d appreciate it,” I said. “I think lightning reflexes might be my best spell—both offensively and defensively. I plan to make it a priority.”

Callem gave a wicked grin. “In that case, I’m sure Elijah and Elora would love to come too.” I groaned. How did I keep getting roped into these things?

“We should focus on why we are here,” Callem said at last. “A friend of mine put together a strong list of candidates.”

He stood carefully, checking his limbs like a man rediscovering his age. I saw the same gleam in his eye that I’d seen months ago when he realized what a treasure Gareth was. Now, he was looking at me the same way.

Well, at least I get to choose who I hire. “Let’s meet the contestants,” I said, still healing myself.

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