Gardener of Eden

Chapter 41: Chapter 41: Avengers Assemble

As the lecture concluded and students began pouring out of the amphitheater into the open courtyard, the air was thick with anxious chatter. The reality of a joint Tower expedition had completely upended everyone’s expectations for the mid-terms.

”Field-repairing under active corruption... now that gets the blood pumping,” Barney said, broad shoulders relaxing as he tossed his heavy leather tool belt over his shoulder. He glanced over at Rowan. ”So, Rowan, it’s pretty obvious we’re pairing up. My forge work needs top-grade materials, and your crops—well, there’s nothing in our year that touches what you grow.”

”Agreed,” Rowan said, adjusting his cloak as they walked along the stone path. ”A Blacksmith and a Gardener give us the core for equipment upkeep and resource generation. But if we’re entering the Tower’s lower floors, we’re going to need a balanced five-person squad. Next priority is an Alchemist.”

”Someone who actually knows how to process high-tier ingredients into real-time combat potions without blowing up their cauldron,” Barney noted, scanning the gathering crowd of students. ”And they’ll need to know how to handle your D-Grade poppies and cherries.”

Before Rowan could answer, a crisp voice cut through from the side of the courtyard fountain.

”If you’re looking for an Alchemist who won’t waste rare botanical yield, you can stop searching.”

Seraphina Vane stepped out from under the shade of the archway, holding a leather-bound catalog of field formulas. Ranked tied for first on the academy leaderboard alongside Rowan and Barney, her reputation in the Alchemy Department was unmatched for precision and purity ratios. ℴℴ𝘮

”I’ve seen the refined potency of the crops coming out of your plot, Rowan,” Seraphina said directly, her posture poised. ”Standard alchemists use low-grade catalysts that destroy fifty percent of a mana-herb’s active properties. With my refinement techniques, I can double the output of your Azure Recovery Poppies and Stimulant Cherries during a live push. Put me on your squad register.”

”That solves the production bottleneck,” Rowan said with a nod. ”Welcome aboard, Seraphina.”

Barney grinned, clapping his heavy hands together. ”Perfect. Three top-rankers on support and logistics. Now we just need the frontline iron and the backline firepower.”

”We need a melee combatant to hold the choke points around our field garden,” Rowan analyzed, opening the academy’s joint student roster on his pass. ”And a ranged combatant who can keep flying or fast-moving threats away from Barney’s forge station and Seraphina’s brewing area.”

”We need a melee combatant to hold the choke points around our field garden,” Rowan analyzed, opening the academy’s joint student roster on his pass. ”And a ranged combatant who can keep flying or fast-moving threats away from Barney’s forge station and Seraphina’s brewing area.”

Before Barney or Seraphina could offer a suggestion, two figures detached themselves from the edge of the courtyard and walked purposefully toward the trio.

They were unmistakably twins. The young man carried a heavy tower shield slung across his back and a broadsword at his hip, his posture grounded and firm. Beside him, his sister moved with light, measured steps, a composite recurve bow wrapped in protective leather hanging over her shoulder.

”If you’re looking for a frontline shield and backline cover that operate as a single unit, you won’t find a tighter pair than us,” the young man said, stopping a respectful few paces away. ”I’m Caelen Thorne—and this is my sister, Mirei.”

”We saw your rank placements on the board,” Mirei added, her tone calm and analytical. ”Individually, neither of us sits in the top ten. Caelen is ranked 24th in Vanguard, and I’m 28th in Ranged Evocation. But we don’t fight as individuals.”

Barney crossed his thick arms, eyeing Caelen’s shield and Mirei’s bow with a craftsman’s scrutiny. ”A sword-and-shield vanguard with an archer sister. Dual synergy?”

”Since awakening, we’ve cleared low-tier dungeons as a duo,” Caelen explained, tapping the steel reinforcement on his shield. ”I don’t just block—I draw aggro and funnel targets into predictable kill zones. Mirei doesn’t just shoot—she blind-fires into my blind spots without me needing to call out directions. In a static defensive setup like a field garden or a forge node, a top-ranked solo fighter will look for their own glory. We’re built purely to hold ground and cover support classes.”

Seraphina glanced at Rowan, her sharp eyes calculating the tactical value. ”A pre-existing synergy loop. It eliminates the friction of learning team coordination on the fly inside a live Tower layer.”

Rowan looked at Caelen’s solid stance and Mirei’s steady hands, then tapped their student IDs into his Sol-Aethel pass.

”Top-rank individual stats don’t mean much if the frontline can’t sync with the ranged cover,” Rowan said, locking the entries. ”Caelen, Mirei—welcome to the squad.”

”You won’t regret it,” Caelen said with a firm nod, while Mirei unslung her bow to check its string tension with a subtle smile.

Barney grinned, clapping his heavy hands together. ”All five slots filled. Three top-tier production specialists and a synchronized combat pair. That’s a real squad.”

***

With their roster locked, the five of them navigated the bustling courtyard toward the grand marble facade of the Sol-Aethel Administrative Hall. Inside, the spacious room was lined with glowing mana-terminals and bustling registration desks, where dozens of student groups were already vying for remaining squad slots.

They lined up at Desk 4, where an academy registrar—a stern woman wearing the silver brooch of a Senior Evaluation Officer—was cross-referencing squad submissions on her glowing tablet.

”Squad registration for the Mid-Term Spire Deployment,” she said briskly without looking up. ”Place your Sol-Aethel passes on the ledger pad.”

One by one, the five tapped their passes onto the polished crystal plate:

Rowan Vance — Agricultural Cultivation (Rank 1)

Barney Ironforge — Blacksmithing & Crafting (Rank 1)

Seraphina Vane — Alchemy & Apothecary (Rank 1)

Caelen Thorne — Vanguard Heavy Defense (Rank 24)

Mirei Thorne — Ranged Archery & Evocation (Rank 28)

The registrar paused, her quill hovering in mid-air as the five names illuminated on the central display. She glanced up, her eyes lingering on the three top-ranked production leads standing alongside the Thorne twins.

”Three Rank 1 production specialists in a single unit,” she remarked, tapping the tablet to verify their class archetypes. ”A Gardener, a Blacksmith, an Alchemist, backed by a paired Vanguard and Ranged wing. Balanced logistics and frontline coverage.”

She pressed her official seal onto the magical ledger. A soft chime echoed as five identical silver squad badges materialized on the desk, each engraved with their assigned deployment code: Squad 07 — Production & Defense Wing.

”Registration verified,” the registrar announced, sliding the badges forward. ”Squad 07 is officially locked for the Mid-Term Examination. No roster modifications permitted beyond this point. Report to the Spire Teleportation Staging Grounds at 0800 hours on exam morning.”

Rowan picked up his silver badge, pinning it to his collar as Barney, Seraphina, Caelen, and Mirei did the same.

”It’s official,” Barney grinned, adjusting his shoulder strap. ”Squad 07 is ready for the Tower.”