Over the next few weeks, Elliot threw himself into his training. He practiced his stealth, honed his lockpicking skills, and even started learning a few basic spells with the help of a friendly mage named Lila. She was a petite woman with fiery red hair and a no-nonsense attitude, but she had a soft spot for rookies.

  “You’re not completely hopeless,” Lila said one afternoon as Elliot successfully cast a minor illusion spell. “But you’ve got a long way to go if you want to keep up with the big leagues.”

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence,” Elliot said dryly, though he couldn’t help but smile. Despite her tough exterior, Lila had become something of a mentor to him.

  As Elliot’s skills improved, so did his confidence. He took on more quests, ranging from simple deliveries to more challenging tasks like tracking down a missing person in the nearby town of Briarwood. Each mission brought new challenges and new lessons, and Elliot began to feel like he was finally finding his place in the guild.

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  But not everything was going smoothly. One evening, as Elliot was returning from a quest, he noticed a group of unfamiliar figures lurking near the guild hall. They were dressed in dark cloaks, their faces hidden, and they seemed to be watching the building intently.

  Elliot’s instincts kicked in, and he ducked behind a nearby cart to observe them. He couldn’t hear what they were saying, but their body language was tense, as if they were planning something. After a few minutes, they slipped away into the shadows, leaving Elliot with a sinking feeling in his gut.

  He hurried back to the guild and found Kael in the training yard. “I think we’ve got a problem,” Elliot said, recounting what he’d seen.

  Kael’s expression grew serious. “You did the right thing by telling me. I’ll inform the guildmaster. In the meantime, keep your eyes open and stay alert. If those people are who I think they are, we could be in for some trouble.”

  Elliot nodded, his earlier confidence replaced by a sense of unease. Whatever was coming, he knew he’d need to be ready.