[Self-Imposed Objective Complete: Defeat A-Rank Breach Boss (Pallifiend Alpha)]

[Reward: 6,000 XP]

[Self-Imposed Objective Complete: Clear A-Rank Breach (Pallifiends)]

[Reward: 6,000 XP]

These, along with gathering some experience points at the workshop earlier had put his balance at 78500 in total.

Ethan removed the mask, and it dissolved into red mist. He turned back toward his team, who were all staring at him in varying degrees of awe and amusement.

Percival shook his head and rolled his eyes.

—

Back at the guild’s lobby, the energy was still high from the successful breach clear.

As the team filed through the entrance, each member made a point of acknowledging Bettie’s performance.

Bettie’s cheeks flushed slightly, though she tried to hide it by looking down.

Percival and Wilson, as her former classmates, were the most surprised. They didn’t remember much about Bettie from class, given how she usually kept to herself.

It made them wonder if she had always possessed this level of talent, and if so, why she had never been known for it.

-

Now back in Ethan’s study, where It looked like they were in the middle of a back-and-forth.

"Just admit it," Ethan said, gesturing at her with a grin. "You liked the thrill."

Bettie replied back. "I only used the spells the way I did because they were A-ranked monsters."

Ethan raised an eyebrow, clearly not buying it. "Uh-huh. Sure. I’ll have you know that you were smiling the entire time."

"I did not—" Bettie started, but she stopped herself, her lips pressing together as she fought back a smile.

"It felt good, didn’t it?" Ethan continued, leaning forward slightly.

Bettie hesitated for a moment, then her resistance crumbled. "Oh, Ethan, it felt really good," she said, her tone almost dreamy now.

The words came out immediately, without hesitation, and her face softened into a genuine smile.

She stopped trying to deny it any longer.

"Seee?" Ethan said, with a widening smile. "Come on, Elizabeth. Don’t make me ask you again."

Bettie’s expression changed and her smile faded just slightly. "Ethan..." she said, her tone almost apologetic.

"You know you love this," Ethan pressed, his voice gentle but insistent. "Not just because you have the talent to cast most spells now, but because you actually get to use those spells out there."

Bettie exhaled slowly, letting her gaze fall to her hands. She said nothing, because she knew he was right.

Over the past month, Bettie had mastered a considerable number of spells but had barely had the chance to use them.

There was no real outlet for her abilities, and working as an assistant at the academy didn’t give her many opportunities to demonstrate them in teaching either.

As a result, most of her knowledge remained theoretical, limited to controlled and safe demonstrations.

But today she had let all it out and it felt incredible.

Ethan didn’t wait for her to respond, instead he stood up and walked quickly to his desk, grabbing two small envelopes he had prepared earlier.

He returned and sat down beside her on the couch, holding them out.

Bettie turned to face him, her eyes following the envelopes.

Ethan gestured with his left hand first. "This one," he said, "is your pay for joining us today. It’s almost half of what the team makes in a week."

Bettie’s eyes widened slightly.

Then he motioned with his right hand. "This one contains a letter for part-time employment, and inside is half of what just one of the team members made last month."

Bettie stared at the envelope, now in proper surprise. "That’s..."

"I know," Ethan said with a smile. "I wouldn’t do this normally—"

From the bathroom connected to his study, Hayley’s voice suddenly rang out, "And Percy will hear of it!"

Ethan chuckled, and Bettie smiled.

If Percival found out Ethan was offering someone half of what the team made last month just to consider part-time work, he would absolutely lose his mind.

Not only would he make a fuss, but he’d demand a wage increase on the spot.

Ethan shook his head, still smiling. "Pay no attention to Hayley."

He turned back to Bettie. "Now hear me out. I made sure this building isn’t too far from the company, which also means it’s not that far from Elserion Academy either."

He gestured toward the envelopes again. "All that’s left for you is to tell me your conditions for part-time work. When you’d be available. What times work for you. And maybe we can figure something out."

Bettie looked at him for a long moment, then let out a soft breath. "Ethan, I like a good pay. But you know it isn’t really about the money now..."

Her voice was calm, and there was a gentle smile on her face.

"I know, I know," Ethan said, returning the smile. "But it’s part of what I have, and it’s part of what I’ll use."

Bettie sighed, then asked again in the same gentle tone, "But... why? Why are you pushing for this?"

From the bathroom, Hayley’s voice cut in again. "Yes, Ethan! Tell us, why?!"

A part of her didn’t appreciate another woman getting all this attention.

Ethan shook his head amusingly, then refocused on Bettie. "Okay, tell me this, Elizabeth. Do you know the monster we faced today?"

Bettie nodded. "Yes. It was a Pallifiend."

"And do you know the best way to kill it?" he followed up.

She answered. "They don’t have any identifiable weaknesses, so you just overwhelm them with your own strength."

"Good," Ethan said. "This is one of the reasons I want you on the team. The rest of us had no idea what those monsters were, or what their weaknesses might’ve been."

He leaned forward slightly. "Of course, over time, we’ve gained some experience. But there’s still so much we don’t know. And we would end more than half our battles with that kind of valuable knowledge if we had someone like you."

Bettie tilted her head. "But any experienced awakener from a guild would know most of these things too."

Ethan nodded. "You’re right. They would. But we don’t exactly have a lot of people applying to join us..."

He sighed, "You see, I’m the most hated person in the world of guilds right now. And no one’s trying to get involved with Clustervayne because of that."

Bettie smiled sympathetically. "Yeah, I’ve seen some of the articles. They were really brutal."

Ethan sighed again. "Yup. But most importantly, there’s your talent. And look, it’s never been a criteria for me. But now you’re stronger. And I’d be lying if I said having another S-tier caster in Clustervayne wouldn’t be a massive win."

Bettie exhaled slowly, her gaze dropping to the envelopes again. She opened her mouth to speak, but Ethan raised a hand gently.

"Wait," he said. "Don’t say anything just yet."

He motioned both hands toward her, offering the envelopes again.

"Take them. And at least consider it one more time. Hold on to whichever one you pick, and return the other one to me tomorrow."

Bettie looked at him for a moment. Then her gaze shifted down to the envelopes.

The one in his right hand was marked "Bettie In." The one in his left was marked "Bettie Out."

She smiled at the labels, then looked back up at Ethan’s expectant face.

The least she could do was consider it again, so she reached out and took both envelopes.

Ethan gave her an acknowledging nod, then stood and returned to his seat behind the desk.

Bettie ended up stayed in the guild with them for the rest of the day.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​