Chapter 98: *Axel’s mentor*
When Axel saw that they were stunned by his words, he then said to them, "Kevin explained to me that in his past life, everyone who had been close to him ended up running away from him because they were too scared of him; it traumatized him a bit... I think... So, as he is just starting to trust people again, and you are his first and only friends so far, just be careful not to reopen his old scars."
Alan and Erik nodded; they understood better now. Erik said to reassure him, "I won’t talk about it, don’t worry." Axel smiled and asked them again, "So, what happened? Did Kevin manage to kill the Elite Warrior Vampire? And how did we get back here?"
Erik told Alan to explain what had happened in the boss room of the dungeon while he started to make them a big breakfast; he was hungry, and Alan and Axel had to be hungry too, especially Axel, who had missed two meals yesterday.
Alan explained to him what had happened: that Kevin had stabbed himself so he could use his Warrior Spirit skill, and after that, the Elite Warrior Vampire had had no chance against him, even after taking a special small black pill that had made him much stronger than before.
He also told him about the mark that had appeared on Kevin’s forehead but without going into details; he said he would tell him more when Kevin would waking up.
He then described how Kevin had taken his time to kill the Elite Warrior Vampire and how he had tortured him before his death. Axel was surprised to learn that it was also Kevin who had opened a teleportation portal and brought them all back here, in front of their pavilion.
Erik joined them with the breakfast when Alan was telling him that Kevin had passed out just after crossing the teleportation portal and that he was clutching three bloodstones with golden veins in his hands.
He supposed that they must have belonged to the Elite Warrior Vampire. He also told him what he had said to Ian that morning and what Erik had explained to the instructors, so they could all tell the same story if ever they asked them.
Axel knew that Alan would have found a plausible explanation for everyone, so it was all for the best. He thanked them both warmly and apologized for putting them in danger yesterday. He was blaming himself terribly; he had been too arrogant, and if anyone had been seriously injured or killed, he would have blamed himself his whole life for that.
Erik told him the exact same thing as Alan, "Everyone is fine; there are no ifs to consider, and we’re all going to benefit a lot from it, so there are no regrets to have."
He added because someone had to say it out loud, "But next time, maybe it will be better just to think twice before going inside a purple dungeon. Seeing how it has worn Kevin out to use his Warrior Spirit skill, we shouldn’t rely on it... At least, not before he becomes strong enough to use it without losing consciousness afterwards."
Alan and Axel both nodded, and Axel then said, "It’s not like we’re going to run into a purple dungeon on every one of our expeditions, but just in case it happens again, this time we will stay away from it. Dungeons with blue vortexes will do just fine from now on."
Alan agreed with him and said, "Indeed, right now it’s enough... Erik can now, thanks to you, participate in two expeditions per week with the Sun Sect, and if we take the opportunity to loot some blue dungeons this weekend, he will progress very quickly. As for Kevin, during the week, he will be able to gain experience points thanks to his daily quests and when he crafts potions, which is good in itself, because he has to improve in his mage skills too... Don’t worry, I will supervise him and help him as much as I can."
Axel smiled at him, but his face immediately tensed when he smelled a familiar scent moving towards their pavilion. It was Liam, one of the leaders of the Sun Sect and the one who had helped him the most to master his shapeshifting.
He was also a shapeshifter and he also changed into a wolf; that was why it was him who had been able to help him the most.
He whispered to warn Alan and Erik about Liam’s visit, and Alan told him that he was going to take care of it. He knew Liam well, and Ian must have warned him about Kevin, so he had surely decided to come and check on how he was doing. It was a little surprising though that he came here, but after all, Kevin was the only mage who had an affinity with three elements, and he was kind of Axel’s mentor, so he had to worry about him as well.
Alan motioned for him to return to the bedroom with Kevin, and while Erik was cleaning the kitchen, he went to open the door for Liam, who had just knocked.
Liam was really impressive; he must have been around 1.90 m tall and his body could only be described as a mountain of muscles. He had long white hair that reached down to his waist, dark eyes, and a natural aura of authority that exuded from him.
Liam exclaimed, surprised to see Alan here, "Alan? Am I in the wrong pavilion?"
Alan laughed and invited him in, "Of course not; Axel is with Kevin in their bedroom. Erik and I came to see how they were doing this morning, and we had breakfast together."
When he saw Liam nod his head, he took the opportunity to ask him, "What brings you here? Did you just come over to see if Kevin was okay?"
Liam nodded again and said, "Ian came to explain the situation to me. He told me that he only half believed you because he is sure that you wouldn’t have let Kevin put himself in this state, but he told me not to ask any questions and just to go and see if everything was fine."
Alan was speechless. Damn Ian, why did you have to tell all this to Liam? He coughed to hide his embarrassment and just told him, "What is happening to Kevin is really due to mental fatigue, but don’t worry; he will get better soon. I’m watching over him."
Liam then said something completely unexpected, "Ian also told me that it would be better if you became officially Kevin’s tutor... So, congratulations; from now on you will be his tutor."
When he saw that Alan was stunned, he added, "I will talk to the other leaders, so don’t worry. But don’t make me regret my choice; I don’t want this kind of thing to happen again, is that clear?"
Alan had a beaming smile on his face and he hastened to answer him, "Very clear, Liam; it won’t happen again, I promise."
Liam patted him on the shoulder and went to greet Erik, who was still in the kitchen. After some trivial talks, he asked them seriously again, "How is Axel? How is he handling it? It must have scared him a lot."
Alan answered him honestly, "He is handling it pretty well, but he refuses to leave Kevin’s side because he has nightmares when he sleeps alone." Liam opened his eyes wide and repeated, "Nightmares?"
Then, he thought about it, and if Axel refused to leave him, that could only mean that these nightmares must be quite violent. He asked out of curiosity, "Did Kevin tell you what kind of nightmares he was having?"
Alan and Erik shook their heads helplessly, and Erik said to him, "He doesn’t remember anything when he wakes up."
Liam then asked them, "Can I go see them? I just want to be sure that everything is okay." Alan was really relieved that Axel had woken up; otherwise, they would have been in trouble, "Of course you can go see them; Axel has left the door open."
Liam nodded and didn’t wait for Alan to show him the way; he didn’t need it. He just had to follow Axel’s scent to find them. When he got in front of the bedroom, he saw that Axel was sitting on the bed and that Kevin seemed to be sleeping peacefully next to him. It was really hard to imagine that he could have nightmares.
First, he was young—only 18—and having these kinds of nightmares could only be because he had experienced something that had traumatized him so much that it came to haunt him when he was in his deeper sleep.
