Lilia shouted in pain as her back was bleeding profoundly, thus making the entire base from Antara to raise up a clamor, especially for Maru,
L-Lilia! What happened?!
She must be attacked. Quick, search for the closest spy to rush for her assistance.
The ones inside the capital are unreachable because of the magic barrier while the nearest one is more than one kilometer away.
The rank of that one?
Barely Energy Master. But he should reach there in a minute.
Send anyone you can, just do so already!
Don’t!
Lilia suddenly shouted as she looked behind at an assassin who’s wild aura destroyed even the nearby trees.
Don’t send anyone… He’s… too strong.
“My~ what a beautiful face you have there~.”
The assassin got closer to the kneeling Lilia, making her slightly tremble from his ferocious killing intent.
“If not for that old fossil wanting you alive, I would have enjoyed myself in violating and killing you slowly… But maybe one touch won’t make them too mad, would they~?”
After getting close enough he reached out toward her chest, making Lilia frown and quickly unleash her sword for a strike, making the assassin hastily retreat as his leather breast-plate had now a wide cut on it, his skin still uninjured.
“… You little slut. This was my best armor.”
“What a weak armor.”
Lilia sneered mockingly at his sharp glare, this making him quickly appear right in front of her and kick her right in the stomach.
“Guh!”
The kick was strong enough to send her through several huge trees, breaking a few of her ribs and making her spit out a mouthful of blood.
“Damn demon. You think I won’t kill you just because the old bastard asked me to capture you alive?! See how I’ll make some more holes in you!”
The assassin walked toward the unconscious Lilia, slowly raising his dagger and ready to land the finishing blow when-
-WHOSH!-
“Woa- Woaah! What the Hell is that?!”
The assassin hastily takes more steps back as a weird dark miasma envelops Lilia, killing all the plants and trees around her while a shadowy spirit suddenly appears behind her, glaring through two glowing white orbs at the assassin.
[You won’t kill her. I won’t let you do so!]
“Ugh!”
The dark miasma rushed toward him and the assassin used his all to dodge, aware that once struck by that eerie energy his life will be cut short.
[Silver cutting!]
Suddenly a thin and sharp strand of energy struck out toward the assassin, trying to penetrate his aura and reach the back of his head.
“As if I’d let you!”
The assassin felt the sudden needle-like energy wishing to penetrate the back of his head, trying to resist with his own aura.
[Death’s claws]
From bellow him two great claws suddenly appeared and wished to thorn him into pieces, but the assassin was too quick as he hastily jumped atop a dead tree.
[Corpse Puppet]
The shadow’s palm closed while aiming at the assassin atop the dead tree, making for all the branches to bend and coil around him like tentacles or like a group of snakes.
“As of this is enough to hold me-… Eh ?!”
The assassin wished to break the rotten branches with raw strength, but he suddenly saw how the branches were actually imbued with dark mana that was now slowly corroding his aura, letting for the dark needle at the back of his head to slowly penetrate further and further inside, slowly reaching his skin.
“N-no, no! Let me go! I don’t want to die yet!”
The assassin shouted desperately as the dark aura enveloped him more and more, corroding his aura and drying him from energy. With a dark and enraged tone, the spirit condemned him,
[Go beg Lucian for pity in your afterlife.]
“Not so fast.”
However, just as he wished to deal the finishing blow, another presence attracted the spirit’s attention. A flying blade imbued with mana of the Wind element flew toward the dark spirit, making it cancel his control over the dead tree and shooting out a condensed ball of miasma at the blade. After repelling the blade, the spirit suddenly sensed someone behind it, making the spirit shot out a sharp deadly finger at his back.
“Too slow.”
Suddenly its connection to Lilia got severed by a sword-strike, making the spirit’s powers to quickly disperse.
“A guarding spirit… Antara must be full of such tricks.”
Konstantin commented while sheathing his sword. He turned toward Lilia as he wished to grab her and bring her back, only to feel an eerie sensation come from behind. The resentful and dark voice of the shadow resounded as he turned towards it, glaring with a sharp stare,
[… We offered you compensations for something only your people are to blame. We decided to bow our heads after being wronged. But now you crossed the line. Mark my words, wolf. Your days are numbered.]
The shadow then pointed at the hand which Konstantin used for wielding the sword, making him freeze in shock while looking at his rotting fingers.
When did he-
[This curse shall never fade until one of us dies. Both you and your dog are under my spell, and no matter what you do it won’t disappear. If you don’t believe me, feel free to severe your arms.]
“…I don’t fear death.”
[But you will… for I’m The Reaper… and I’m coming for you.]
As the spirit finally dissipated, the only ones that still remained and talked with Konstantin until now were but the two dark blobs of light, they now also slowly disappearing,
“…”
“Ugh, f***! What the f*** was that?! Argh! My arm is burning!”
While Konstantin thought about what just happened, the assassin named Emilian got closer to him while covering his left elbow with a pained expression.
“Show me your arm.”
“Argh! Hey, watch it!”
Hearing him cry like that, he quickly grabbed his arm and made him show it to him after he pulled his sleeve up, only to see the same kind of rotting skin, making Konstantin understand that both of them have been cursed with the same kind of spell.
This proves to be more complicated than I thought.
Looking at the injured and unconscious Lilia, Konstantin couldn’t help but sigh at the ridiculous thought that they might have actually met another worthy adversary beside Victoria.
.
Back inside Antara the higher-ups already heard of the news while the others couldn’t help but guess everything from the monstrous and eerie pillar of dark energy suddenly released by Maru that was still guarding the otherwise deserted former Fortress, the elves army being also included inside the Main Mountain-City as everyone likes to call it.
As they all stared at the gathering of dark clouds nervously, the top leaders and even some of the sub-leaders gathered inside the King’s office atop the Middle Stone Tower, a heavy air making for anyone with a weak heart to tremble and sweat profoundly as they discussed their plans for the future,
“We have more than one thousand people above Initiate Core Warrior. All of them can at least use Great Body Enchanting spells and also singlehandedly kill at least a B ranked monster. If we don’t add the S ranked white-heads or the 200 grandmaster elves from Alfheim, I dare to say that Antara already has the might of a Medium Kingdom. Together with the former said, we can rival a Great Kingdom with ease.”
Bernard reported their incredible manpower with a severe tone, his anger evident.
“Yes, and all of this without even adding King Ryu, Queen Bonny, Founder Shen, and High Priestess Sylvia presences into this war. With all of you on the front rows, I’m confident to say that even if Urius Kingdom were to bring allies, we would still have no troubles in erasing their armies. Although they might have invited some players as well, I’m confident to say that not many could rival dragons, summon asteroids, or create stars like your highnesses.”
Andrew also added with cold eyes.
Gerome then stepped forward and placed down two maps, one drawn by the harpies and the other one of the Urius kingdom with their territories. Both of them had more red and blue lines and circles drawn here and there, with Xs appearing where the two differently colored lines would connect.
“My king, these are the plans for the upcoming war. We already made rushed plans in case we strike first or we wait for it to happen. If they strike first, we have the geographical advantage as the mist is often and thick in this mountainous area, while there are only a few places for an army to march through.”
Then Ellia stepped forward and with one of her claws protruded from her wings she also pointed at the map of Urius,
“And in case we were to strike first then we have the sky advantage, as quite many of our people know how to fly even if they’re not of Master power-rank. The flying demons, harpies, and fairies are willing to assist with aerial support.”
“The Fire Wings will always fight for their new home. We promise to do all we can to not let down our brothers and sisters in arms.”
Shiroko also took a step forward, a firm expression on her face and ready to risk her life, just like Antara’s people risked their own for hers.
“T-the healing department will be sure to do what we can, my king! While attending to the injuries we’ll be sure to not let ourselves be flanked either!”
Aura saluted nervously as she couldn’t help but feel some fear because of Ryu’s thick dragonic energies, fairies being instinctively afraid of a dragon’s brute strength and destructive might.
“The cooking department won’t let any warrior unfed. We were able to find a way to conserve meat through drying and salting it, together with using the method Khalid came up with: using cans to completely seal the foods. As long as we keep everything under stable temperature, the food should still be fresh and tasty even after months. Using some Energy Stones should resolve this problem with ease.”
With a solemn expression, the dog-man Severus bowed his head, his sharp eyes looking up and waiting for further commands.
“…”
Seeing everyone so prepared to start a war against another kingdom, Bonny couldn’t help but look at Shiroko once again more intently. Feeling her dragonic eyes stare intently at her, Shiroko couldn’t help but feel her fur raise for a moment, then to lower her head and ask confused,
“Is- Is there a problem? My queen.”
“Shiroko. Are your people prepared to kill the ones of the races?”
“… We must, my queen.”
Bonny’s calm tone but eerie words made Shiroko lower her hears and tail, unable to help but frown deeply and answer back. Her answer wasn’t convincing to Bonny as she continued,
“A shivering heart will only bring its own doom on the battlefield. I suggest to remain inside the base and defend the base with Khalid, Aria, and other great warriors. To defend Antara is nothing to be embarrassed about as you never know when another wave will appear or another army with malicious intent will knock at our walls. War it’s full of surprises so I ask to be careful.”
Shiroko understood what she meant and couldn’t help but clench her fists in frustration. She saw many of her own people die in front of her eyes and also of another’s, she killed and fought with many demonic beasts as she was more or less already used with gore and blood. Even so, the thought of taking the life of a human, a dragoon, or a fellow beast-man, or especially a fairy’s when they all look like children, this thought simply made her back freeze while her stomach to revolt.
She then inhaled deeply, closed her eyes and after a while, she answered with a serious expression on her face,
“My queen. It is true that not everyone is alright with such an idea. However, we can still assist with at least a squad of our people. In case my king wishes to strike first, I’ll be sure to bring as many of my own as possible.”
“Hmm… Just be sure not to force anyone and neither yourself, Shiroko.”
“Yes, my queen.”
Understanding her worries, Shiroko calmed down and smiled gratefully, understanding that Antara truly cares for its people.
Hearing that the problem with the FireWings was almost completed, Ryu then turned toward Farnas, a white-headed bearman of S-rank that represented all the white-heads. His power-rank was that of a Great Saint, but his combat-might was quite low as he barely trained in combat or skills. Although his mind was rather powerful after resisting all those mind-controlling experiments and his spirit enchanted after all that suffering in the underground facilities, his knowledge was still lacking in almost every aspect, Ryu being unable to ask them to fight for their kingdom just yet.
“Farnas. Because of your lack of knowledge in combat or any other militaristic branches, I won’t dare to ask you and your people to simply throw your lives in a war over which you barely have any understandings. So let me ask. Do you wish to help us in defending the borders of Antara in front of a possible threat in our absence? Please don’t worry, you guys won’t be alone as many of our own warriors and even of the elves will remain here to help.”
Farnas never expected such benevolence to be shown to him and his people, unable to help but smile and bow his head in great respect.
“My king, please don’t worry. Antara saved us from that underground Hell, offered us shelter, great food, and a place where we can win our existence. But most importantly, we were offered the chance to have dreams. This alone made us willing to even throw away our otherwise meaningless lives to defend this only place that will accept us.”
“I thank you for this, and please never throw your lives, as they are yours and yours alone, not mine, not Shen’s, and no one else’s. Please take good care of it.”
“Yes, my king.”
Farnas bowed once again but then he couldn’t help but ask as the king said nothing of him,
“Also, my king. When you said that we’ll be helped by Antara’s warriors, you also meant about this great Maru? I’m sure that once he joins the fray, we won’t need to do anything even against a few waves.”
Observing his helpless smile, Ryu couldn’t help but laugh out, surprising everyone inside his office as his spirit unexpectedly ignited, covering the entire tower without a warning.
“Please don’t worry, Farnas. Your people will have the chance to shine against the demonic waves. Our Maru won’t remain here. He won’t permit it.”
Suddenly from the door, a dark energy started sweeping inside the office, the next moment having the door explode with pieces of wood flying around threateningly.
“Kya?!”
“Huh?”
“Ah?”
Aura, Fiora, and even Shiroko shouted surprised after seeing the wooden pieces suddenly stop at a meter distance from them, lightly levitating in the air. Bonny then deactivated her telekinesis and the wooden pieces fell instantly while the dark aura was also nulled by Ryu’s which now covered the entire tower. At the door a shocked Maru appeared, frozen in place as he was still holding the handle of the door. Feeling everyone stare at him, Maru scratched the back of his head with a helpless smile while waving the handle in hello.
“G-good day, everyone~… I’m sorry for the door, my king. I’ll be sure to repair it.”
“Hahahaha~! Put that aside, Maru. I see Lilia’s kidnapping almost made your inner demons have your cultivation deviated.”
“Y-yes…”
His face then darkened with guilt and sadness, but Ryu’s next words made him wake up from his dark thoughts.
“Listen here, Maru. If you let your stupid demons take over you now, then who will go and save Lilia? Are you that weak at heart? Will you let her die just like that?”
“NO!”
His aura exploded once again uncontrollably but Ryu was able to subdue his power without having anyone injured. However, a sadistic smile appeared on Ryu’s face while he continued,
“If so, restrain this darkness inside you and be sure to unleash it in front of the enemy. Keep yourself in check at least until we get those Urius fools in front of our eyes.”
“Yes, my king.”
Understanding that his rage and frustration was shared by everyone inside this office, Maru calmed down as his aura finally took a more stable form, his destructive force now appearing more concentrated and dangerous than ever.
“Now that everyone is here… Let us talk about our next move, shall we?”
““Yes, my king.””
With sharp eyes and fist clenched, everyone calmed down their chaotic hearts to be able to come up with a whole plan for the upcoming salvation mission and the inevitable War. Not only was everyone furious about the fact that Urius took as prisoner someone of their own, but what also made them wish for war was to make Urius understand that, in war, the messengers are not to be harmed, a knowledge that’s universally known to any nation, kingdom, or race. Because, if the war was just about killing, Ryu would have gone to Urius himself to take the king’s head.
And this time I will do so.
Ryu’s golden draconic eyes shone with fury and Bonny was also angered by Urius’ ways of taking action. They all then started talking about the future plans, when Ignatius suddenly contacted Ryu with worrying news.
The separate space has been cracked?!
Ryu got out of the office for a moment and left the others to continue their heated conversation as he started talking with his master more intently,
[You heard me right, young dragon. A strong dark aura with essences of Death and Wrath invaded this space from the entrance. Let me guess… Has the little piglet lost control over himself for a moment? The Old Soul taught him not the cleanest forms of Truths.]Aah… so that’s why…
With the ridiculously dangerous and deadly aura Maru emanated before Ryu could null it, he must’ve guessed that a huge part of it must’ve swept inside the underground tunnel that was going toward the separate space.
[And I can feel how this space has one great weak spot as if a crack has been sealed not too long ago. And by the way it feels, it must’ve been sealed in quite a hurry and without too much knowledge on this domain. Has the Old Soul done this?]
Yes…
[Being the one connected with this space, he is also the only one able to keep this space stable. The dark aura from outside the barrier of this space is asking for the little piglet’s dark aura. The two are now corroding the space from both inside and outside.]
Can master Ignatius help us this time as well?
Ryu couldn’t help but feel extremely nervous at the thought of having a Gate to the Abyss right under his kingdom. If this rift inside the underground space were to open for good, then day Z might be coming much faster than anticipated.
Who would have thought that just because of some anger issues from one of my subordinates, the end of the world would come a few times faster…
Hearing his thoughts, Ignatius couldn’t help but smile amused then continued,
[In fact, without that young lad’s dark aura, I might’ve not been able to identify the weakened sealed crack. If not for your little piglet, this old lizard might have discovered the problem a few days too late.]
I-is that so…
Ryu was but only more troubled. He knew that now he had no other choice but to ask for Shen’s help. Something that he wished to avoid as he knew that Shen, at this moment, has no love for this kingdom but only an empty feeling of duty that might sooner or later extinguish the moment things will turn too troublesome. Adding to the fact that Shen wishes to get back home, Ryu can’t help but hesitate to ask for his help.
I wonder if I should ask for Sylvia’s help-
[It will be useless, young dragon.]
Huh?
Knowing about his worries, Ignatius immediately interjected and firmly pushed him into taking a decision,
[The only one who can control this space it’s the Old Soul. He is the Master of this Dungeon and nobody else can meddle with how his own territory is maintained. Just like how you of the races have hierarchy and properties, the same is with the Universal Law where once someone becomes Master over a property, he is but the only one who can decide what happens there.]
…Alright
[Also… one of the refuging gods requires your presence inside the separate space.]
W-who?!
[Be quick, young dragon.]
“The Hell… Sigh~.”
With a long sigh, Ryu was quite confused momentarily but decided to first inform Shen about the news with the separate space. The first question he asked was something that Ryu wished he won’t think about,
But what caused him to lose control over his emotions?
… How come you always ask first the most crucial questions all the time?
I would be dumb to ask about the insignificant details first, won’t I?
… Depends what you take as “insignificant”, right? For example, what you say about some war starting between three kingdoms?
What the heck you asking? Alright, enough with the psychological play. If you don’t wish to answer, I won’t ask. So all I have to do is to return and find a way to repair the weakened seal, right?
If you could…
Alright… God damn! Why whenever I have to work with seals the world’s fate it’s at stake? What the Hell, man?
Dude, how should I know? Blame your shitty luck.
I already am!
Both of them sighed frustrated and finished their conversation with Shen’s agreement. Now that he had to come and deal with the separate space’s crisis, he now needed someone to work as his substitute.
“…”
“What.”
The only person Shen had in mind to work as a teacher in his place was Sabin, but the moment he turned from the window of his little wooden house, he now saw Sabin laying down comfortably in his bed, sucking at some candy he brought while strolling around the campus. The plain and confused expression on his face made Shen’s already sharp glare to intensify but then only to sigh lightly and calm his throbbing temples.
“Mind if I ask… Just what the Hell are you doing on my bed? In my house?”
“Boss, what are you asking now? I finished my missions. Let me take a break, will you? I’m damn tired already.”
“Tired, yeah… For sure I can see that.”
Unamused, Shen stared at the relaxing Sabin and then simply smiled, making Sabin have a bad feeling about this.
If boss smiles, then s*** goes bad. Out we go!
However, just as he was about to jump outside the window, with a mana thread Shen immediately pulls him by the hood, making him droop outside the window on his back, his legs leaving without his upper body for a moment. With a muffled groan Sabin slammed on the earth, opening his eyes only to see a smiling Shen looking at him through the window from above. A bad premonition inevitably made Sabin’s heart to sink.
“Guess what Sabin~. I need your help with something~.”
“…Boss, can I refuse? I feel my stomach unwell.”
“Aw~ I wish you could refuse. However, this is no request my little damn Sabin, but an order. And you know how orders are: irrefutable~.”
“B-but boss! I might have gastritis or something!”
Seeing him still talking back, Shen turned serious and asked with a deep voice, making Sabin tremble from head to toes then get back up in a salute position,
“Do you really wish to have stomach pains now? I could fulfill your desire with ease, just stay still.”
“N-no! Boss, I’m fine! Say what you need and I’ll do it without batting an eye!”
“Screw around with me like that again and see how I’ll make you learn by heart every stomach sickness from A to Z.”
“Yes, yes. Please don’t be so mad, boss.”
With a forced smile, Sabin got back inside Shen’s wooden house then Shen explained to him what he had to teach the children in his absence. To be sure everything goes fine, Shen offered him a telepathic ring, only to experience another Deja’Vu,
“B-boss, I’m truly flattered with this, but don’t you already have Sylvia? How could you do that to her-“
“One more word and your tongue will be used as a hitting target by the brats.”
“…”
Completely sealing his own lips, Sabin took the ring then commented no more.
