"Jump!" said Jules calmly, like a monk who had reached enlightenment.

"What do you mean, jump?" protested Numa. "We’re still flying on the back of a dragon, and the HQ is about two hundred meters below us."

"Yeah, so what? Can't you see? The Magick Knight Corps HQ was built on top of a steep cliff, with no entrance or exit," Jules said. "You need to be creative to enter the premises. So like I said, jump!"

"Yeah, I get it, but still-"

"Relax, your spell is still active, right? Then you'll easily survive that jump."

"But why can't we land with the dragon? There's a big empty field there, right at the center of the castle." Numa clenched his jaw, frustration creeping into it at his superior’s nonchalance.

"First of all, Ashara doesn't like our HQ, so this is pretty much as far as she would take us to it. Second of all, I'm not going with you."

"Wait, you're not? I thought you’d be the one to introduce me to the people there."

"No, kid. I need to get back to the frontline to support Elric, remember? Besides, I already told those guys below about you. In fact, they are expecting you right now. So, steel your heart, and jump!"

Numa looked down. Because they were quite far above the ground, he could see the Magick Knight HQ in its entirety. The ashen walls, four towering watchtowers at the corners, massive buildings rising at the back, and two smaller structures flanking the sides. And as Jules said, the wide-open field that occupied the majority of the center part of the castle.

"...Is there really no way in? I mean, other than jumping inside?" asked Numa.

"Well, there are, but this is by far the fastest one. Come on now, we don't have all day."

"Ah...shit, shit, shit. Ok, be brave. You can do it." Numa slapped his cheeks and tried his best to stand up. "Alright then, thank you for everything, Sir Jules."

"Good luck down there, kid. This is the beginning of your new journey." Jules let out a big smile. "I'll be seeing you."

As soon as Ashara hovered right above the field, Numa readied himself.  "Ok, here goes nothing!"

He jumped.

***

Oren had been the caretaker of the Magick Knight HQ, also known to the locals as the Ashguard Castle, for decades. His job was to ensure that everything within the ashen walls of the castle, from logistics to hygiene, ran as smoothly as possible.

In his fifty years of service, Oren had seen countless Magick Knights come and go. Some lived on to be a legend, but most of them fell in combat. And now, Sir Jules told him that he would meet a new Magick Knight today, possibly sometime before noon. And since this was Sir Jules, the new recruit would likely be dropped from the sky. It wouldn’t be the first time he’d done it, and it would certainly, hopefully, not be the last.

The sun was at close to its highest point, so Oren walked to the side of the field and sat down. He had barely been sitting for a couple of minutes when someone came crashing down with a loud boom.

Oren calmly walked toward the spot where the young man touched the ground. He had already prepared several Health Potions in his pouch. Just in case the new recruit had bruises or broken bones. But once he got a closer look, the young man seemed to be fine.

"Welcome to the Magick Knight HQ, young man," said Oren to the dark-haired young man who was still lying on the ground. His body was covered in a faint blue light.

"Ughh....fucking hell, that was scary. I thought I was gonna die." The young man kept complaining, not realizing that Oren was standing there beside him. "I swear to the Gods, I'm gonna add tons of salt to Sir Jules' drinks the next time I see him."

"Hah, that's a good one. I thought you'd say that you'll beat him up, which is pretty much an impossible feat to achieve. But annoying him with a silly prank like that would certainly work," said Oren, amused. He purposely spoke louder this time so that the young man noticed him.

"Oh, shit! Uh, hello, sir." The young man was flustered. He quickly stood up, straightened his back, and placed his right hand over his left chest. "My name is Numa, sir. I was recruited to be a Magick Knight by Sir Jules. I'm sorry I didn't notice your arrival, sir. I was uh-a bit confused after that fall."

"What an amusing young man!" murmured Oren to himself. "Yes, sir, Jules already notified me about your arrival and your circumstances of joining the Magick Knight Corps. He said you did well in your first battle?"

"Ah, well, I managed to take down two beastmen. But that was not my achievement alone; I was helped by my seniors, one of whom was Sir Jules."

Oren looked at Numa from head to toe. He was certainly taller than most people his age, and his body also appeared to be quite muscular, but that kind of physique was a dime a dozen in the Magick Knight. So it must've been his magic that made Sir Jules recruit him.

"I see that you are still protected by your magic. Is that a body-strengthening magic?" asked Oren.

"Yes, sir. This is a spell that had been passed down in my family for generations."

"I see. No wonder you could survive that fall. What other spell can you use?"

"Unfortunately, nothing, sir. This is the only spell that I can use," said the young man. He seemed to be quite troubled by it.

"Only a body-strengthening magic?" Oren stroked his beard with his right hand. "That's not good. That is the basis of every offensive and defensive magic. Every Magick Knight worth their salt can cast some version of that spell. You need more than that."

"..."

Oren frowned slightly. He pondered for a second, and then came to a simple conclusion.

"Ah, silly me, I haven't introduced myself. My name is Oren. I'm the caretaker of the Magick Knight Corps HQ, or as people like to call it, the Ashguard Castle." Oren smiled and offered a handshake to Numa.

The young man bowed for a bit and was ready to shake Oren's hand. But the moment his hand touched the old caretaker's right hand, Oren grabbed it tightly, pulled it to his side, and then unleashed a left hook aimed toward the young man's face.

The new recruit was pushed a couple of meters back by that sudden punch. Oren was sure he had a clean hit, but he's not sure if his hand managed to make contact with the young man's head. On the contrary, it felt like he was hitting a concrete wall. "So your spell is not a regular body-strengthening magic. Interesting," whispered Oren.

"What the fuck was that?" shouted the young man. "Are you crazy? What's with you, Magick Knights, and your obsession with suddenly hitting people?" He slowly stood back up, clearly unharmed.

"You said your name was Numa, right?" Oren smiled. "Consider this a little test before you can officially join the Magick Knight. If you can land a hit on me, no matter where, I will accept you and even give you a tour of the Ashguard Castle. But if you can't, I will throw you off that cliff and banish you from the Magick Knight Corps. So come on, let's have a little fight."