An Archmage Among Adventurers

The silence after the creature’s fall was almost suffocating, thick with disbelief. The air, once alive with the sounds of battle, now felt unnaturally still, as though even the wind dared not stir. Ellie stood motionless, her fingers locked around the rough stone of the cliffside, her knuckles white. The other adventurers gathered themselves nearby, eyes wide, minds clearly struggling to grasp what had just happened.

Talan was the first to move. He rose slowly from his crouch, his sharp gaze sweeping the scene, lingering for a moment on the yawning abyss where the creature had disappeared. Then, his eyes found Ellie, and something in his expression shifted—almost like reverence, but sharper, like the edge of a blade that had never been used on her before.

“I don’t believe it,” he said, voice low with awe. He moved closer to the edge, peering down into the dark chasm below. “She… took it down. Alone.”

Ellie’s heart slammed against her ribs, her breath catching. Alone. She wanted to say something—anything—to correct him. To explain that the creature’s fall had been nothing more than a stroke of dumb luck. But her throat clenched around the words, and they lodged there, buried beneath a rising tide of doubt. She had tripped. It had been an accident. And yet…

Gorran approached next, sword still drawn, though it now hung loosely in his grip. His eyes, usually hard as steel, were wide as he stared at her. “I’ve fought monsters my entire life,” he murmured, “but I’ve never seen anyone—mage or otherwise—do what you just did.”

Ellie shook her head, words clawing at her throat. “No, you don’t understand—”

“You did,” he interrupted, his voice softer but no less certain. “We all saw it. The thing didn’t stand a chance.”

Iona stepped forward, her axe slung casually over her shoulder, though her face was anything but casual. “Damn right.” Her tone was firm, unquestioning, the way one states a simple, undeniable truth. “You barely broke a sweat. It was over before we knew what hit it.”

The lie pressed heavier now, closing around her like a vice. Ellie opened her mouth to protest, but their gazes—full of awe, of respect, even a flicker of fear—held her silent. The truth, so sharp and clear in her own mind, seemed impossible to voice here. If she told them what had really happened—that the creature’s fall was a fluke, a simple misstep—would they believe her? Or worse, would they think she was hiding something more dangerous, some secret power?

Her throat tightened. “I didn’t—”

Gorran cut her off with a firm shake of his head. “No need to be modest. Magic like that... I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Ellie swallowed hard, a strange dizziness creeping over her. Magic? There had been no magic. It was a trick of gravity, of bad footing—nothing more. And yet, every time she tried to deny it, the story grew, shaping itself into something larger than she could control.

Iona let out a rough laugh, breaking the tension. “Next time, maybe give us a little warning before you pull something like that, yeah? Could’ve been helpful to know what you’re capable of.”

“There won’t be a next time,” Ellie muttered, but it was more to herself than anyone else. Her voice sounded foreign in her own ears, distant.

But they didn’t hear her—or didn’t want to. Already, the weight of their fear and tension was lifting, replaced by quiet admiration and something close to relief. They exchanged glances, nodding to one another, as though the threat had passed and everything was safe once more.

“Let’s not forget why we’re here,” Talan said quietly, his eyes still lingering on Ellie for a moment before turning toward the dark entrance of the mines. “We’ve got someone to rescue.”

The group shifted, their focus redirected to the task at hand. Ellie remained frozen, her feet rooted to the spot as she watched them move. The lie that had started small, unspoken, had grown monstrous, wrapping itself around her with each word they spoke.

Gorran glanced back over his shoulder. “Ellie? You coming?”

She nodded numbly, though the motion felt heavy, her limbs weighed down by the burden of the unspoken truth. Her feet carried her forward, but her mind churned, caught in the endless loop of uncertainty.

Inside the mines, they found the missing adventurer—a gaunt man, slumped against the stone wall, bruised and filthy, but alive. His wrists were bound, chafed raw by the ropes that had held him captive. The moment they cut him free, he let out a shaky breath, eyes haunted as they flicked to the dark corners of the cavern.

“I thought I was done for.” His voice cracked as he rubbed his wrists, his gaze drifting across the group before settling on Ellie. “That thing—it would’ve gotten me if you hadn’t…”

He trailed off, his words hanging in the thick air, his eyes landing on Ellie with a kind of fragile hope. Around them, silence stretched, the cavern narrowing its focus, everyone waiting for her to claim the victory they all believed she’d earned.

Ellie’s heart pounded in her chest. The truth teetered on the edge of her tongue, desperate to spill out. She wanted to tell them she hadn’t saved anyone—that she was as helpless as the man before them had been. But as she met their gazes, the weight of their belief crushed her.

The lie had grown too large to fight.

She nodded, her lips pressed into a thin line. The man smiled, weak but grateful, and the others shifted, voices rising in quiet triumph. The creature was dead. The mission was a success. They had all survived.

And Ellie, the one who had done nothing, was the hero they needed her to be.

As they started down the trail, Gorran clapped her on the back, his grin easy and approving. Iona even flashed a rare smile, one of camaraderie. But Ellie’s stomach twisted, cold and hollow. The more she denied it, the more they believed.

And the more they believed, the harder it became to escape.