《The Novel's Sidekick》


 Chapter 1 Prologue: Crossing Over

    It was a slow winter night when I got the notification of a new chapter release of my favourite web novel, Forbidden Realms.


    I was working four hours straight, backlogging the work I couldn''tplete earlier this week, but the single notification was enough to tempt a break earlier than I had nned.


    I''m not usually used to backlogging. In the 24th year of my life, I was already ustomed to getting things done in their usual time; from my work, cleaning the apartment, cooking food, and taking care of myself, though I had failed miserably sincest month.


    Except for the sleepless nights I spent on video games and reading web novels, my life had been calm and orderly.


    Well, that was until I caught the viral flu. Fortunately, I got better, although I had to skip work for a month. Sadly, money didn''t grow on trees (at least, not on the trees I own). The flu took much of my savings, and here I was doing extra work to get some part of my savings back, however small it might be.


    I hate backlogging.


    The temptation to read the newest chapter imed victory over the work, as I unlocked the phone, ignoring the rational mind that was telling me toplete the scripting first.


    It will only be ten minutes at best, I told myself. But the moment I clicked on the notification, my arm shook and the cell phone fell onto the ground.


    "Noooo!" I shouted, rocking back in a failed attempt to catch it back. On that note, the cry was not for my phone, but for what I read in the new chapter¡¯s title.


    Picking up my phone, I did not look for the damage. I unlocked the screen as if there were no cracks on it, to reread the title once more. It still said, ''Hiatus Notice''. ''I thought this book was doing well, even though it does not have too many fans, but why now? Why is it suddenly going on hiatus?''


    Rubbing the back of my head in confusion, I started reading the notice in its context, hoping the hiatus notice was not for long.


    ''The creation of a tale is more than just the effort of the writer¡ªthere are many people involved in bringing a tale to fruition. . . . It has been quite a long time since this story began, and the creator still has no idea how it will turn into a happy ending.¡¯ I interrupted myself and started over repeatedly.


    "What now?" I said, as my voice trailed off to the empty night. Now that the author mentioned it, the current situation for the characters looks quite hopeless, but I had wondered the author would probably give the MC another overpowering ability to bnce everything out, like the protagonist, Edward, didn''t already have two. Now it appears that was not the case. My heart ached even more as I scrolled down to view the next lines.


    "With a lot of thoughts over the past, I, the creator, finally took a serious decision to start it from the beginning again, but there is a slight problem. The few assistants I had before are not present now to help me finish this tale."


    "In the end, I can only ask for assistance from my dear readers." My eyes sparkled with excitement the moment I read that. "Among the many readers, I''ll choose only one to help me conclude the tale. I have left a few questions below. All you have to do is answer them and send them to this email address, forbiddenrealm2.0@****."


    My breathing became heavy and my palms turned a little stiff. I fiddled with my fingers in unease. For me, Forbidden Realms was more than just another web novel. In my depressed, introverted life, it was the favourite escapism that I could get into, and now, when the opportunity to work with the author came, I could not decide what to do.


    My fundamental dilemma was that I''m considering whether I will enjoy reading it if I get involved in its creation. But then another thought hit me, and that chased away the previous thought at once. What if another one gets the chance and turns the book into shit?


    Thinking back on the author, who already took many unpleasant steps, like killing off two great female leads mercilessly, I spected I should be the best candidate to get the chance. After all, there might not be another person in the universe who knows this story better than me. Except for the author, that is.


    I scrolled down to find the questions below. I read a couple of questions and scrolled down further and further, but the question did not end. Until it reached the 1000 mark. Were a thousand questions too few for the author?


    It appeared the author was quite serious about this, but I wondered how many of the readers would take the time to answer all of these 1000 questions.


    Shaking my head, I opened the webpage on my PC and started to answer one by one. The thought ofpleting my backlog entirely escaped from my mind.


    The questions seemed easy at the start, but became harder as they went further down.


    1. What is the name of the realm that the story takes ce in?


    It was a simple question. I wrote down the answer, ''Shrankor.''


    2. What year was it when the Starlight Academy was established?


    I answered, ¡°Year 389 of the third epoch.¡±


    3. Where was the Sword of Oath hidden?


    In the ruins of Roshansar.


    ¡­


    8. What does Edward fear the most, other than losing his loved ones?


    Edward was the main protagonist of Forbidden Realms, and as for what he fears the most, I know it very well. I wrote the answer, ''Edward fears closed space the most. He is ustrophobic, though I feel he fears being alone as well.''


    12.Why was Scar so hell-bent on helping Edward?


    17. What does King Alberan''s journal hide?<novelnext></novelnext>


    19. Why couldn''t Edward save Ciara?


    27. What did Edward find on the ind of the Dorkarians?


    I answered them all one by one, and for some questions, I had to stop for a little while to think them over properly. I felt fortunate to have a splendid memory. I might be bragging if I said it, but I usually never have a problem remembering things. It was not as good as a photographic memory, but still quite close to it.


    But for a few, I still had to go back and check a few of the chapters for answers. For instance, the author asked about some of the smallest details about some herbs or about some lesser-known demons¡ªhow could I remember them all? Luckily, I only had to browse for a couple of minutes to get the answer.


    I know it should be considered cheating, but this could not be seen as a test per se.


    The questions then became more about information and less about the characters. I know the author did a great job at world-building, with a rich world heritage, history, lore, and mystery¡ªmaybe a little excessive, but the world sure draws me in every time I read it. The only unfortunate thing was that it became less about the characters and more about the world.


    The questions about the world''s details were the hardest to answer, though, by cheating, ahem! I mean, fact checking, I answered them all. I will say it again: This is not a test.


    By the time I reached thest question, it was already midnight.


    "Last question," I thought out loud, flexing my fingers, which had be quite stiff after all the usage so far. Only then did I recall I had other work to do, though it was already past five hours spent on the questions. What do you love and hate about the Forbidden Realm? How far are you willing to go to conclude the story?


    I sucked in a frigid breath and closed my eyes. I tried to remember and write down everything that was on my mind. Surely, the 999 questions before this one refreshed my memory about why I love this book so much, even with its ws. There was no word limit, and the question appeared to be a broader one, so I did not cheap out on words.


    I praised the author for creating such a fantastic fantasy world with vibrant characters and cursed at him for killing Ciara and Yeriel. I told him to limit the suffering of Scar and Edward, and when I finally stopped, I had already written quite a few paragraphs.


    Now the only thing remaining was how far I would go to conclude the story.


    I answered as sincerely as I could.


    ''Honestly, I did not want this story to end. It has been with me for quite some time now, and I like it as much as my own life. But every story needs a happy ending, or a conclusion of sorts. Honestly, I don''t know how far I''ll go, but if I did not read the conclusion of the story, I would always feel like something was missing and feel empty.''


    Click. I emailed immediately, leaning back against the chair. I don''t know if my answer will be satisfactory to the author, but thinking about how many questions there were, there would not be many people who would answer them all.


    Sighing, I looked at the clock¡ªit was way past midnight. My throat felt sore as well. The muscles felt stiff with all the work. Then my cell phone rang. I stood up from the chair to look for something to eat as well as savour some drinks. Who was calling at this hour? I picked up the call that showed an unknown number.


    "Hello," I said as I answered the phone. "Who is this?"


    "This is the creator of Forbidden Realms." My heart skipped a beat just as I heard the hoarse voice. The voice continued, "You are the only one who answered all the questions."


    I thought there would be at least a few others who would answer all the questions, but it appeared there were none. Or they might not have finished typing it all yet. After all, it had barely been a few minutes since I had submitted my answer and not many were born with such a splendid memory as me, nor did many have the typing speed. I mustered up my courage to ask, but before that, the voice continued again.


    "Among all the 1000 questions, you wrongly answered one. No, it is not entirely wrong. In question 8, I asked what Edward fears the most. Aside from ustrophobia, Edward is afraid of another thing, or should I say, a person. Edward is afraid of Scar."


    "Huh?" I squinted my nose and confusion appeared on my face. This didn''t make sense, since Scar was as loyal as a person could be to another. Then why?


    "Other than that, all the answers satisfied me," the author said again. "You are selected to conclude the tales of the Forbidden Realms."


    "What? Really?"


    "Good luck. I hope you will do your best."


    The call was cut off, and I lunged up in glee, ignoring the fact that I was not answered in whatever way I could help the author. Then thest stray thought of the night came to my mind. How did the author get my phone number?


    In my glee, I ignored it as well as the quaking earth, but then I could not ignore it anymore, my head was already impaled with piercing pain. I jerked my arms, covering my head, as my apartment shook. All the stray thoughts were emptying my mind, and the pain consumed me. I felt like dying, and perhaps I was. Within the pain, I saw a slight lighting straight at me.


    The light soothed the pain, but my mind already could not endure it as I fell unconscious.


    At that time, I had no idea how the author wanted me to help. But when I learned, my life had already turned into an exciting disaster.


    ___________________________________


    Edited by Mysteries.


    Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 2 01: Scar

    STRAY CLOUDS


    PART ONE: YOUNG FLAME


    Q: What is Oscar''s ugliest scar?


    A: There are two, actually. The loss of two of the dearest women in his life.


    - - -


    I stopped the urge to vomit and gulped down whatever was trying to find its way through my throat. My head felt dizzy and tired. I remembered the earthquake, and then my vision darkened, but even now I could not open my eyes entirely.


    I had no idea how much time had passed. Even though the impaling pain was gone, it left a bothersome headache. Still, I managed to guess that it was still nighttime, and I wasn¡¯t alone.


    My feet shuffled across the earth as I felt a force shouldering me, dragging me somewhere. Someone was dragging me on her shoulder. Yes, it was a woman. I guessed it through the touch of her soft body, though no one came to my mind.


    "Pull yourself together, Scar," muttered the female under her breath beside me, probably having trouble dragging me. She should have been the one shouldering me, but I did not know who this voice belonged to.


    I tried to mutter something, but ended up groaning. I tried harder, but failed. In the end, the dizziness in my head imed it, and I lost consciousness.


    I did not know how much time it took for me to wake up, but by the time I woke up, my head was still dizzy, though far better than before. The smell of alcohol was oozing out of me, and I found myself lying in a warm bed. Weird, I thought. I do not remember drinkingst night.


    I tried to sit upright and felt my left palm was sped by someone else. It was a pair of soft palms, small and gentle like a female¡¯s. I turned towards the other person and blinked twice, looking at the owner of the palms. A fair maiden was sleeping alongside me, in the same bed, with the same nket.


    ''Yasmine,'' a name appeared in my head as if it was natural. I pulled my other arm and cleared out the strands of hair from her cheek. ''Pity, she fell in love with someone like me.''


    My arm became stiff at that very moment. Who is this girl? Yasmine? How do I know her name and where is this swirling emotioning from? All sorts of questions arose in my mind, and I felt sore in my throat. Water, I need water.


    With that thought, I pulled my arms away from her gently and rose with the utmost effort. All my bones and muscles felt sore, but I managed to stand up. I leaned against the wall to calm my nerves first. All sorts of crazy things were happening and I could not calm my head.


    I looked around the room to find that it was not my apartment. But those thoughts could wait; I needed water immediately. There was no water on the side table near the bed. The room appeared foreign to me, and so did all the things. It was quite a broad bedroom, though the way it was held did not appear to be a home where people stayed every day.


    Dry wood burned soothingly in the firece, warming the dim room a little. Even though everything was well ced where it should have been, I felt difort looking at it. The chilly atmosphere, coupled with the foreign room, was the reason for my difort. Breathing heavily, a couple of times, I walked in search of water.


    I did not find the water, but I did find the washroom. As soon as I stepped inside, I drew my head to the sink and let the cold water run through my hair. The cold water gave me a surreal peace of mind, and I drank the water to satisfy my sore throat. The water tasted a little sweet and satisfying.


    But my head felt dizzy again the moment I saw the face reflecting in the mirror. The face that showed up in the mirror was not mine, though it had some faint resemnce to myte teenage self. It was far more handsome. Be it the mboyant scarlet hair or the distant scarlet pupil that was almost alien to me. There was a mark on the right eyebrow all the way to the end of the forehead. A cut mark from a knife, maybe.


    As my senses cleared up, I could put together what was going on. I recalled who this face belonged to. I must be dreaming, I told myself. There was no other exnation.


    [Synchronisation ended.] A transparent text appeared before my eyes, and my facial expression darkened. The texts were in some unknownnguage that I did not know, but I could understand them pretty well.


    [Preparing the Status window.]


    Then arger transparent window appeared on my retina, proving my fear right.


    _____________


    Name: Oscar Emberheart


    Bloodline: Unawakened.


    Rank: Knight Squire.


    Private attributes:


    -Strength: D+ (Progress: 92/100)<novelnext></novelnext>


    -Agility: C (Progress: 87/500)


    -Perception: C (Progress: 11/500)


    -Spirit: B- (Progress: 112/2000)


    Trait:


    -Purgatory (Unawakened)


    Destiny points: 0


    ______________


    [The Creator of Forbidden Realms awarded you 10000 destiny points as a beginner bonus.]


    "There was no denying it," I muttered. "Was this the assistance the author was talking about?"


    As my mind became clear, I recalled everything. I answered a thousand questions from the creator of Forbidden Realm and got the opportunity to help the author finish this tale, but in no way did I expect this. Well, it¡¯s not every day I get transmigrated to someone else''s body. Other than feeling the cold, I felt lost.


    I felt like I''d been scammed, and the scam was of such a high level that I could not even perceive it even after being scammed. Even now, I feel it was a dream. I pinched my cheek until it was swollen and red. It hurts.


    "Scar," a gentle voice called from the bedroom. It was the girl, Yasmine.


    With no other choice, I returned to the bedroom to confront the fair maiden, albeit with some trepidation.


    Yasmine was standing near the window. The sun had not risen yet, but there was a faint light flickering. She wore a loose nightgown while her silver hair was in a braid. The cold wind from the window swayed the unorganised strands of her hair, as she stood there as if the cold had no effect on her. Unconditionally, she looked strikingly elegant.


    All sorts of emotions swirled in me, and the most apparent was pity. I felt sorry for just seeing her. Scar had treated her worse than a mortal enemy so that she would get away from him. He swindled money and went as far as stealing money from her. He broke her heart countless times, despite she having to make time to take care of him with her busy schedule. Yet she was here, taking care of him when everyone else had given up. I did not know how many times she helped him, like today, to get away from being passed out in a bar or behind bars.


    I had read the description of her in the book. A tall woman with long legs and a body with a supple shape. Her eyes were sparkling and her rosy-full lips parted at seeing him. She looked at him for a while and sighed.


    "How long will you keep doing this?" she pleaded.


    A question mark appeared in my head, and Yasmine seemed to notice it too through my face.


    "How much longer are you going to waste your life?" she asked again, with a painful exterior. She was so pure, even I felt an ache in my heart. "Your family has already stopped sending you money. Are you waiting till they disown you?"


    ''Don''t say a word,'' I screamed in my head. Though I could make out her words and it appeared I could converse in Mahendi too, I still chose to stand idle. I was not in my right mind with such crazy things happening in my life. All my emotions and feelings were heightened, and I could not think clearly.


    Everything was still surreal in my head. Surely, disaster will follow if I open my mouth now.


    "Are you going to be silent the entire time?" She asked, heaving her chest up and down and on the verge of crying.


    I was about to raise my arm to console her, but stopped. For some reason, I couldn¡¯t utter a word, nor could I confront her eyes either. Was it the residual emotion of Scar that was doing all this? Or was it my innate introverted disability to sentiment? I did not know for sure, but I certainly did not want to see someone crying before me, especially when she looked so strikingly beautiful.


    "I''m leaving," Yasmine said while she collected her purse from the desk. She strode off from the room, giving onest look at my face. "Please, I do not want to see you passed out in the street or in the bars again."


    ''I did nothing,'' I yelled inwardly, seeing her go.


    _____________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.


    Map of Shrankor in this paragraphment.

 Chapter 3 02: Destiny Points

    Q: Why can there be only twelve heroes? Why not more or less?


    A: I have a hypothesis, but I am not certain about this. It¡¯s most likely because there were 12 powers so strong that others could barely challenge them. Moreover, even if the holder of one of the 12 ancient powers dies, a new one will take his/her ce when the necessity arrives.


    - - -


    I left the inn when the sun rose in between the mountain ranges in the south, after getting my head around a lot of thoughts.


    The sun rose in thend of Starlight City, painting a clumsy canvas in gold and yellow. The vendors on the sidewalk had just opened their stalls and were preparing for the customers. A few waggons strode down the path. Horses¡ªso massive and magnificent that they couldpete with any champion stallion from the earth that¡ªcarried them.


    A faint gust of wind blew, and my red hair swayed a little along with it. Technically, the red hair was not mine, nor was the body. It belonged to the sidekick of my favourite web novel, Forbidden Realm, Scar, or Oscar Emberheart, should I say.


    I still could not believe what had transpired, but I could not deny it, either. After Yasmine left, I thought through the premise of the novel and recalled that in the beginning, Scar was a demotivated piece of shit whose onlymitment was on how to waste his life.


    In an ident, Scar got his mother killed, and med everything on himself. I don''t know if I could me him for being this way. Anyone would feel extreme guilt if they caused someone else''s death, much less their mother.


    Even though Scar was already better than most average knights, he never bothered to advance from squire to a proper knight. The reason being, to advance to knighthood, one had to sell his loyalty to a lordship, and Scar was not even ready to put his shit together, much less put anyone else''s. Well, in the end, he did sell his loyalty to the protagonist, Edward Eastwood, after going through another heartbreak.


    Shaking my head, I walked down the path towards the best academy in the realm, the Starlight Academy. The protagonist had not arrived at the academy yet, and to my knowledge, the story did not start from here.


    I had already checked the calendar, and found it was the 17th day of the month of Juliann, the year 1521.The year and month distribution in this realm was nearly identical to that on Earth, although I have a faint hypothesis that one second of this realm was a little longer than the earth, there¡¯s nothing concrete yet. The month of Juliann was thest of the year.


    As for the names of the months, they were named after the 12 heroes who fought against the demon invasion at the end of the second epoch. But that''s another story, one I am not entirely aware of.


    The story starts in some small town, from where Edward made his way into the Starlight Academy after oveing quite a few ordeals, and even when he arrived at the academy, he had to go through a lot to get his admission. I had not decided what to do about it, and before I even help the protagonist, I have to help myself.


    After moving for about half an hour, I reached the area of the academy. And to add, I was not walking just for working out or as a morning jog, but because I found no money in Scar''s belongings to travel in a waggon. Considering the early Scar, that was quite convincing. His family had stopped sending expenses, and whatever he got from Yasmine, he wasted on drinking, mostly.


    The academy was not in full swing, yet boys and girls in different attires were running around in the field, mostly training with swords or other weapons. I did not linger in the field anymore and made my way towards therge gate. Before it stood a couple of two-metre-tall guards, but it appeared they were not having a pleasant time.


    "We already told you, we can''t let you inside without a consent letter," the guard on the right said.


    They appeared to be arguing with some kid. I walked towards them and noticed it was a kid of fifteen or sixteen, and a female at that. fair-skinned with a tint of brownness, though it looked as if it had never been taken care of. Her hair was silvery and not in good condition, like her face. Her clothes were as good as any peasant, and as for belongings, she only had a purse made of clothing.


    "Please, will you call Professor Ranyan?" the girl said resolutely. Her tone was pleading, biting her lips. "He knows me. I havee a long way. I don''t know¡ª."


    "They all say the same thing," the other guard scoffed, "and Professor Ranyan is not around in the academy."


    I walked my way towards the gate, ignoring them when the two guards greeted me, bowing a little.


    "Why are you guys so loud in the morning?" I said, imitating what Scar would do.


    "You know, Master Oscar, so many kidse to this ce thinking they have talent and could be a mage or knight," the one on the right said. "We usually have tens of them during the day, but this little one came even before the gate was opened."


    That was quite true. The academy was technically open to everyone, though you would need talent as well as capital to get an education here.


    Many peasants came around this time of the year in the hope of being admitted to the academy and turning their lives around, despite the fact that the majority of them were not even allowed to enter the gate.


    "Why are you wasting time, then?" I said. "Send her to take the test, and be done with it."


    I left the gate and walked into the academy. A couple of tall buildings greeted my sight at once. I do not have to mention that Ie from the twenty-first century and have seen many magnificent buildings and monuments. Despite that, this was something else. It was like the grand set you see in historical or fantasy movies.


    The twin-buildings were made out of white marble, which was luminescent in the rising sun. One could not help but feel a little overwhelmed looking at these magnificent pieces. You literally have to look up to see the whole thing.


    The Starlight Academy had two departments, and both the majestic buildings were for them: the Knight or Mage department. Scar was a full-fledged pupil of the knight department in his first year, though counting the new year that was yet to arrive, it would be his third year in the first-year division.


    A grand fountain stood between the two grand buildings, and surrounding the fountain were a few stone statues armed with breasttes and all sorts of weapons, from the sword, spear, and hammer to staff and wand. Among them were the twelve old heroes and a few other personas who were addedter.


    ''No, I can not waste my time on what''s already gone,'' I thought, and opened the status window again. Originally, something like this was not in the book, and I had to look at it twice to understand everything. The understanding came to me like how I could understand thenguage and many other things in this world.


    Blue and white light expanded before my eyes, turning into a transparent window representing my attributes.


    _____________


    Name: Oscar Emberheart


    Bloodline: Unawakened.


    Rank: Knight Squire.


    Private attributes:


    -Strength: D+ (Progress: 92/100)


    -Agility: C (Progress: 87/500)


    -Perception: C (Progress: 11/500)


    -Spirit: B- (Progress: 112/2000)<novelnext></novelnext>


    Trait:


    -Purgatory (Unawakened)


    Destiny points: 10000


    ______________


    All the information I needed to know about those things poured into my head. Now I can fundamentallyprehend it. But thinking about how your involvement affects you and the world, I could not help but agree with the system.


    Even though this system only applies to me, the others get simr privileges without the stat window as well. They get Destiny points ording to their work, but they are allocated unconsciously to the attribute they want to cultivate. A knight would improve physically, and a spirit Magi would improve mentally.


    The advantage I got was that I could allocate exactly where I wanted the numbers. This might not sound very efficient, but it really is. The privilege was not something small. Moreover, I could stack the points and wait until my body became saturated from all the training and ingredients that could raise the stat.


    Other than the destiny points, physical and mental training of sorts could raise one''s stats, though it needs an umtion of many days of rigorous training. There was also the shortcut way of consuming some rare ingredients or potions that could raise the stat to some degree.


    The creator gave me 10,000 destiny points as a beginner bonus, which was quite a lot, considering that the tale had just begun. Destiny points are extremely important in this book, or should I say world.They can be used for the four private attributes, abilities, or your bloodline. Other than the skills that you had to work for, destiny points could help cultivate other attributes.


    The progress showed how many destiny points I needed to advance in each of the four attributes. Strength only needed 8 points to reach grade-C, while the others needed a little more. The higher the grade, the more points will be needed to advance. And so on. From, E+ to D- only took 10 points, D+ to C 100 points, C+ to B- 1000 points, and so on.


    It went down to ten multiples for one grade to the next grade, while for the progress in the same grade, it was quite less.


    Looking at my status window, I could not help but again think, I was better than the average Knight. Well, that was,implying I could fight like Scar, but I very much doubt that.


    With 10,000 points, I could get better attributes than most knights and be in the league of elite knights¡ªthose who are one or two steps away from Grand Knight. But all that did not matter, as my skill level was close to zero. Scar might be a prodigy in swordsmanship, but I''m not. I had never actually wielded a sword before today.


    I frowned and winced for a couple of minutes before finally being able to assuage the urge to invest all the points in the four attributes. In the current situation, it might make me an overpowered student, but in the long run, it was a terrible decision. Seriously, I would have done that if this body was someone else''s¡ªother than Scar¡¯s¡ªwith less potential.


    There are better options for Scar.


    More importantly, the attributes were more than what I could bring out even now, and there was still a lot of room for growth through physical training. Considering how Scar wasted his body on alcohol, I could actually raise strength and the other attributes at least one level higher in a few days of training.


    There were only two options for me to choose from now.The Emberheart Bloodline, or the Ability Purgatory, are both equally overpowered abilities with extreme demands. I am not sure if 10,000 destiny points will be able to awaken one of them. Let''s give it a try.


    [Purgatory: (Awakening: 1751/10000)]


    [Emberheart Bloodline: (Awakening: 5548/10000)]


    Quite some progress there. That means I will need 8249 or 4452 destiny points respectively to awaken Purgatory or the bloodline. Both were tempting options, and are rted somehow. I thought for a couple of minutes more and decided to awaken Purgatory. Without a doubt, this will be my biggest hope in this cruel world. Moreover, Purgatory can catalyse the awakening of the bloodline.


    Another thing was that the book did not mention where these powers came from, but it did mention that two people could not hold the same power at the same time.


    [Please confirm your decision to invest 8249 destiny points in the awakening of Purgatory]


    As I confirmed, few notifications came by.


    [You have invested 8249 destiny points in the awakening of the Ability Purgatory.]


    [It would take time to awaken the ability, as the host''s state of mind and physical body are not in sync. Please wait . . .]


    Well, I guess I can wait. I gazed at the room I was in. The room was quite broad and had two more rooms adjacent to it, each with a personal washroom. All were made of fine stones and stered in white. The ground used to be crystal clear, but dust and dirt dominated all over. Loose clothes, papers, and notebooks rested all over the ce.


    To call it not in a fair state would be a serious understatement. Scar never had his stuff well-ced. The usual kinds of stuff were tossed all around the room. There was a firece that was devoid of fire and only had burned charcoal in it. I probably used the hitter more often than I bought a few blocks of wood to run the firece.


    Then my eyes stuck towards the sword decorated just above the firece. Is that the sword? I wondered and found myself drawn to it. I pulled down the sheathed sword and found the fire symbol in it¡ªthe insignia of the House Emberheart.


    Goosebumps crept up my arms as I unsheathed the sword slowly. Another simr me sign greeted my sight just below the hilt. There was no mistake now. This really is that sword.


    Abruptly, my stomach growled, and I remembered that this body, or the old body of mine, had eaten nothingst night. Considering Scar, he would never cook anything himself. I left the sword where it was decorated and searched the room for money. Even though I was in the best academy in the realm, I could not get anything without money. Even the daily food and other expenses were carried by the students.


    I searched all over the ce where Scar might have left some money. From hiding ces to the general location, after all that, I found a few ss bottles that once held wine or other alcoholic drinks, and as for money, I did find some. 43 dynes and 70 tills in total.


    I thought it should be enough to buy me food for a couple of weeks, or a month, if I used it restively. The names of the currency in this world were dyne and tills. 100 tills made 1 dyne, and a couple of dynes were enough for a lower-ss house to spend an entire month.


    After some consideration, I did not go to check out the bedroom adjacent to it. I made a mental note to clean it up after I figured out a few things.


    Taking a couple of dynes and tills with me, I left the dorm room and made my way towards the cafeteria, searching for the location through my brain.


    First, I need to savour some food to think about my next steps.


    _________________


    Edited by Mysteries.


    Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 4 03: Academy

    Q: What is the source of the dark arts?


    A: The otherside.


    - - -


    The institute was on a break after the academic year was over. Most of the students had left for their homes or were in search of adventure. The ones that are left in the academy should have no ce to be or are too headstrong in their studies.


    Even though this ce was majestic and for nobility, there weremoners in fair numbers as well.


    The cafeteria I was looking for was supposed to be just around the corner of the dormitory, but when I got there, I found it was closed with a notice that told all the students of the Knight department to get their food from the Magic department''s cafeteria.


    With my empty stomach, I strode in the other direction. I passed the fountain again and, with me being too hungry, I did not get to appreciate the view this time either. Even though it was the start of fall, I could not help but feel a little hot here. Sweat beads formed on my forehead as I wiped it with my sleeve. Weird.


    The Magus department was far more vacant than the Knights''. Magi were typically trained indoors or invest themselves in the archive. I made my way towards the cafeteria, thinking learning wizardry was not a bad choice either. Scar had the talent for it, but no intention, as it contains a lot of studying. I will check that outter, but now filling my stomach takes priority.


    There were a few people present as I walked on the ss marble floor. Rows of tables were spread throughout the entire hall. There were only about a dozen people present. Most of them looked at me when I entered and then got back to their business, whispering among themselves. Just as I was about to ce an order, someone hit me on the shoulder.


    "Oscar!" a voice screamed behind me. It was not an enraged scream, though it was loud enough to convulse my eardrums.


    I looked back and saw a tall, handsome-looking man with blond hair and fair skin. He was not wearing a uniform, but a shirt and an overcoat above it, with a grin on his lips. He could be anybody, but his handsome appearance and scream pointed towards a very few that I read in the book. This could be Ben from House Dockrell. ording to the book, they had a merry rtionship with House Emberheart, and Ben was a nice fellow.


    "Don''t ever do that again," I barked at him stiffly.


    "Alright, alright," the youth said, though I did not know if he took my words seriously. Ben then looked around as if to see my tail. "That¡¯s odd. Where is your group of delinquents?"


    Right. Scar used to hang out with a few delinquents from the academy and could be called their boss. They should be away on vacation as well.


    ¡°At the very least, I hoped to see Julies,¡± Ben said again. ¡°Funny fe, he is. There are perhaps a handful of times I have seen him without tailing you.¡±


    ¡°I can say the same for Kyle,¡± I replied, and waited for Ben to get flustered.


    ¡°He will be back in a few days,¡± Ben said, looking away.


    ¡°Before the festival, I reckon,¡± I said, trying to sound as normal as I could. Somehow, I felt like a thief talking with Ben, with the fear of being discovered as an imposter with just a single wrong word. Fortunately, there¡¯s nothing to worry about there. I get paranoia like that at times.


    Ben did not acknowledge or dismiss my words and instead looked around the cafeteria. Still so flustered at my hints.


    "I need food," I said and went to the reception. There was ady in herte forties sitting. "Get me the usual."


    "The usual is not avable," the cafeteria staff said, not even giving me a look, busy with whatever she was reading. "You can only get the special dishes at this hour. Browse through this and choose."


    She gave me the menu card, and I browsed through it. Considering this was the cafeteria of the magic department, all the food was more extravagant and extremely beneficial to the spirit force. Everything looked delicious, but it was quite pricey; even the cheapest option was 50 tills. In the end, I chose a dish of meat with a few sds and seasonings. 73 tills in total. The other youth who was beside me made his order, and it was even more luxurious, billing over 2 dynes¡ªthe average monthly spending for a lower-ss family.


    Ben was a student in the Knight department, and with the allowance he got from home and earned through the missions, spending such money was not a problem for him.


    He seemed to have no ns to sit by himself and followed me to the same table. I did not turn him down, even though it makes me ufortable acting friendly with some unknown fe. Well, I do know him, though the book, and perhaps it will make it easy. I hope it will, since I will probably need his help with my training at some point in the near future. Don''t get me wrong, I have no problem with people; it was just that all of this was too sudden. I need to get my head around things for a few days to get ustomed to my new environment.


    Luckily, the food caught my interest, and i manage to ignore anything else. The food looked far more delicious than my regr sustenance, and just the smell was enough for my mouth to start watering. The meat appeared way too soft and probably melt with just a couple of bite. I was just about to take a bite of the meat when Ben shouted again. This time it was not my name, though it still hurt my eardrums.


    "Yeriel, over here," Ben shouted again, waving his palm, noticing the familiar figure conversing with the cafeteria staff, though the old woman behaved far better with her than with me.


    "I told you not to do that," I snapped at the youth again.


    "Sorry," said the youth, though he had his attention on the neer. He did not rest his hand until the girl came to their table.


    "Oscar and Ben, two oddballs of the knight''s department," Yeriel said,ing before the two of us. For some reason, I felt she did not like seeing me here. I wondered why. In the book, they have friendly rtionships and could be called good friends. Was something different here?


    "What are you doing here?" she asked, staring at both of us.


    Ben mentioned that the cafeteria of the Knight department was closed while I examined the girl before me.


    Her height was not the best of her feature, five feet five at the very best, but her other features were far better than her height. She had a gorgeous appearance, fair-skinned and dark-haired, but not as otherworldly as Yasmine, with her white hair and looks. But unlike Yasmine, her chest was fuller.


    Unlike us, she was wearing a uniform from the department of Magi¡ªthe thick robes suited her well. This was Yeriel, one of the female leads in the story, and as I had read, she was gorgeous in so many ways. But she was not a grape for me to pick.


    Giving her a nod, I carried on with my food. As I ate, I found myself far hungrier than I had imagined, and this te alone would not be enough for me. Though the food was a bit too spicy for my taste, making me feel hot inside, I wouldn''t mind another te of it.


    "It appears you are starving," Yeriel said and did not take a seat.


    "Aren''t you going to sit?" Ben asked. He had not started eating yet.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "No, I''m not that hungry," she said and was about to leave.


    I suddenly stopped eating and remembered the backstory of Yeriel. Unlike most of them here, she came here through a schrship and that schrship was not even enough for her studies, much less carrying on with all the expenses. The usual dishes that cost around 5 tills or fewer were already finished today, and that should be the reason she was not hungry.


    "Why don''t you sit down? It''s my treat today," I said, considering a little more spending could not make me poorer than I am right now. Moreover, Yeriel was one of a few friends Scar had.


    "You did not say that when¡ª" Ben could notplete his phrase, as I kicked his leg under the table.


    Yeriel still did not sit down. "No, I''m going to leave," she said.


    Ben was too dense to understand what I meant, so I kicked him again, until he agreed it was my treat.


    "Yes, yes, we are celebrating. Something good happened to Oscar," Ben said.


    I wasted a couple more phrases, and only then did Yeriel take a seat at their table. Seriously, this girl was too timid, even with her friends. I kept on staring at her, going over every detail of her behaviour, and found she was exactly the same as described in the book. Timid, and too honest with her expressions. And it appeared she was angry at me for some reason.


    ¡°What?¡± she asked, arching her eyebrows at me.


    ¡°I was wondering why you did not leave for home during this break,¡± I lied since I could not just say, I was just watching her because she was one of my favourite characters.


    ¡°Why have you not left?¡± She asked back, exchanging a knowing look. ¡°It is the only ce where we have some simrities. Sometimes one big blunder changes a lot of things, doesn¡¯t it?¡±


    I watched her bite her lips and found nothing to say. Evidently, her blunder was minisculepared to Scar¡¯s.


    "So, what is the good news?" she asked again, ring. "Was it why you are celebrating in the street yesterday?"


    Ben looked at me, finding nothing. "What''s the good news, Oscar?" he asked me. "You should be the one to give the good news. After all, it''s your glory."


    "I . . ." I paused to find the words. "Let''s just say I''m celebrating the asion of staying another year in the freshmen division."


    I almost pped myself at that. How could I find nothing to make up?


    "Right, only Oscar will joke about something like this," Ben snickered. "If you fail again, this will be your final year."


    Yeriel scowled at me. "That''s enough. You two don''t have to be considerate of me," she said politely. She probably found out what was going on. Maybe it was the poor performance from Ben. She stood up and was about to leave. "Don''t worry, I have something saved up in my dormitory, but thank you nheless."


    I sighed inwardly and kicked Ben again. This time, it was strong enough to get a response from Ben.


    "Yeriel, sit. I will order your meal," Ben said, as he stood up immediately. He should have guessed I would not have stopped my kicking if he had not solved it.


    "Sit down, sit down," I said again. "Ben, will you mind getting me another te? I feel awfully hungry today. "Ben had already left, and Yeriel did not sit back down, gawking at me. Did I do something to her? The simple answer was no, but I knew better. A few hours ago, It was not me, after all.


    ¡°Is there something that matters?¡± I asked her. ¡°Did I do something?¡±


    The gawk became a short re, as if asking: You do not know what you did? Then the food arrived, and the young woman from Endus could only sit. The ce and the way she was raised, even if wasting a single grain, is sin, and even though Yeriel came a long way from there, her upbringing was still in her blood and bones.


    She said to me, "I''ll give you back the money when I have enough," she said to me in one go, and I believed her. "Not because I''m ungrateful to you for offering me a meal, but because the money you are spending is not yours."


    My eyes blinked at the fair maiden.


    "Do you ever wonder how tough Yasmine had it? On top of her family situation, she had to take care of you, and you still make things difficult for her, with the excuse of your mother''s death. As if she or any other had lost no one."


    That hurt, and I could not help but look down. Now I know the reason behind her res. Other than having a good rtionship with Oscar, her friendship with Yasmine was even better. The unfortunate thing was that I could not me her or Scar. I felt like my insides were on fire, even in the cold winter weather, and it was not from her words.


    "Oscar? She asked again, finding my behaviour a little abnormal. "Aren''t you sweating a little too much?"


    I brought my palm to my forehead and found a lot of sweat on it. And then my vision turned blurry as a damning fever swept over my body. It was like I was boiling in a pot. Then I finally figured out what was going on. It was probably a side effect of the awakening. Purgatory was a forceful type of ability.


    In the book, when Oscar awakened it, it was already about eight months away from here. While I chose this early on, as it would be the biggest cheat I''ll ever get in this cruel world.


    My breathing got heavy, and I saw Yeriel''s lips moving. She should be saying something to me or screaming, but I could not hear a word and my vision turned dark as well. And then I passed out.


    Gosh! It''s two in a row. Was it natural to pass out as a transmigrator?


    ______


    Edited by Mysteries.


    Proofread by kqwxz

 Chapter 5 04: Purgatory

    Q: What differentiates a squire from a knight?


    A: The title and no lordship to follow.


    - - -


    I was in a dream, and I knew it. It was not my dream, nor did I remember how I appeared here, but I did know what was happening now. The memories¡ªScar''s memories¡ªwere rushing at me, surging like a high storm in the great seas.


    Images of Scar when he was a child surged in me one after another, bringing passions, sentiments, bitterness into me that were never present before. My heart warmed watching him triumph in a duel. How his siblings looked up to him. I felt proud watching him presented the sword, the very one used as a mere decoration now.


    At the age of twelve, Scar proved he was the prodigy the House Emberheart needed, and at the age of fifteen, he was presented with the founding sword. It was not just special because it had the family insignia on it, but because it held great meaning and power behind it. His mother was so proud of him that day.


    His mother. As images of Scar and his mother swirled around me, I felt a sudden surge of pain. The majority of them were of sunny days; days they were on a hunt; days when his mother taught him to write despite his tantrums; and days when his mother taught him to dance in order to impress youngdies. But seeing . . . no, feeling such scenes yed out in front of me, I felt a deep-rooted ache in my heart. It was like witnessing someone chewing needles, but a hundred times over.


    Unknowingly, I began to loathe myself.


    Wait, stop. This is Scar, not me. Remembering that, I pulled myself together. Right, I was at the cafeteria, eating, and then I passed out, and here I was.


    I looked and found the mes of memory hovering past me, still swirling like a whirlwind. Most of them held a certain emotion embedded in them. There were Scar''s greatest moments of happiness and sorrow.


    In those memories, I saw him leading his other siblings on the hunt. I saw him, wasting his days drinking. I saw him courting Yasmine even after dozens of failures. I saw him shouting at her dozens of times in breakdown. I saw himughing in euphoria with his mother, and I saw him crying with defeat before her dead body.


    I barely avoided being swayed by those emotional wildfires. Strangely, there was no memory of how she died, I thought. Even in the book, it is not clearly mentioned how Leahlyn¡ªScar''s mother, died, other than the fact that Scar mes himself for it.


    A year and a half passed, and all that turned into a scar in his heart.


    This was Scar. The embodiment of happiness and sorrow. He was a person who never belittled his aplishments, and he was a person who always thought he could do better. If something went wrong, he always thought it was his fault, even if it was not. And now that person is me.


    I suddenly felt a chill on my back, even though I was surrounded by mes. Can I do better than Scar? I wondered, and the answer came to my head. No, I can''t. Well, I could control my emotions better than he could, but not in other areas. Nobody could possibly be Scar. But did that mean I should give up?


    No. Giving up was not even an option.


    Other than the fact that I did not know what would happen if I failed, I could not give up. I was the chosen one to help conclude the tale, and I would have to see it through. As I thought that, the mes of memory entered my very being. Surprisingly, I did not feel the heat of the mes, though it was notforting either. The happiness and sorrows of Oscar Emberheart were embedded in me with the mes.


    If before I liked him as a character, he¡¯s now more like a brother to me¡ªa brother whose shoes I¡¯m borrowing. Now I could empathise with him strongly.


    Meanwhile, it was not just inside; I was burning.


    . . .


    Even outside, Scar''s body was so hot that it could boil eggs. And that was not all. Yeriel, who was beside him, was frightened and still. It had been a couple of hours or more since Oscar passed out, and she, along with Ben, had carried him into the medical ward. Unfortunately, there was hardly anyone present there that had more expertise in healing than her.


    With her experience in healing arts and medical science, she could feel something was changing inside Oscar. The mes were certainly burning him, but somehow he was healed as well. She had never seen such a case or even read about it. She sent Ben to call someone with better experience while she tried her abilities.


    She could only sigh and shake her head in helplessness, not having any ideas about what to do.


    ¡®Nothing is working,¡¯ she eximed, frustrated. So much for her pride in being the best healer among the students.


    Oscar''s body was literally on fire, which she could both see and feel. His red hair was even brighter than it had been before, like a raging me. Surges of crimson mes erupted from his body, thoroughly burning the mattress, producing a pungent smell. It was only a step before turning into full-fledged charcoal.


    Yeriel put her hand on his forehead and felt the heat. It was so hot that she found herself ufortable with it.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Abruptly, the firece, where the me that was currently warming the room, shook. Yeriel stood up instinctively and saw the me rising from it, moving towards where Oscar''s body was. Even the heater was having its heat drawn towards Scar''s body.


    She felt like stopping it, but she did not know how. Yeriel is an honour student in the arts of healing, yet she had a bewildered expression on her face seeing the scene unfold before her eyes.


    Oh, Ishar, she muttered under her breath, withdrawing a couple of steps. She could put off the fire if she wanted, but that might cause some serious problems with whatever transformations Oscar was going through. She could only hope that the healing would be enough to keep him in shape.


    Yeriel had seen nothing like this before, but she could tell it was not dangerous for Oscar, who was sleeping soundly. I will stop the fire, if I see anything wrong, she told herself and sped her palms together, fingers over fingers as smooth air like waves condensed into some mysterious pattern of symbols.


    A spell to form water ready to counter the fire if she sees something wrong, though she could not deny that all she was seeing was wrong.


    The me merged with his raging body, and that was not all. The mes in the surrounding rooms also flew towards their room. Even the little oilnterns were not safe from it. It was as if the mes were summoned by something. It all went towards the unconscious body. Now the mattress waspletely burned into ck charcoal, and so were Oscar''s clothes.


    His body rose in the air, and the mes surrounded him in a cocoon, revolving around him, mesmerisingly. His skin was burning, and it was healing at the same time as well. That appeared painful to even look for her, yet Scar did not even let out a squeak.


    It went on for a while until the mes faded away, and finally, Oscar seemed to have gained consciousness. His body copsed with a fit of coughs and heavy gasps.


    . . .


    When I awoke, I was surrounded by raging mes. A notification informed me it was the awakening of [Purgatory], but I couldn''t help but feel a little frightened. The mes did not seem particrly unpleasant. Though it burned a substantial chunk of my flesh, it was far less, considering the sheer number of mes that rushed at me. I did not have time to ponder this as I soon fell to the frigid floor. The oak bed had already turned to pure charcoal and ash.


    But that was thest of my problems. I broke into a fit of coughing, with heavy gasping for breath. The fire was consuming all the air near me, making it difficult for me to breathe. Fortunately, the worst is over.


    I breathed heavily and calmed my racing heart. The mes were already resolving, and I could finally see clearly.


    [Congrattions! You have awakened Purgatory.]


    [-Purgatory: (Mastery: E)


    Purgatory is the ability to wield me. It was the power to purify anything and all things. From healing to the overwhelming me, consuming everything in its path¡ªthat is what Purgatory is. It is the best weapon against all sins and evils. Whenever you use the me to consume evil and sin, you will get more used to this ability and it will be more powerful.]


    Even the healing ability was in action at the time, as most of my burned skin healed rapidly in the naked eyes. It was literally like magic, though it could only heal external wounds such as cuts, shes, burns, or other simr injuries.


    It was exactly what I expected, and I was far from being disappointed. The majority of its power has gone unmentioned in the prompt. Simply put, Purgatory was too powerful for me to handle with my current control over spirit energy. Simr scenes of me burning may ur in the future, but I can''t help but smile.


    Even though the mes are too potent and violent to control right now, what about six months from now? Six months should be enough for me to gain 10% of the power of Purgatory, and with just 10% of that, I could aplish a lot of things that many people could never achieve in a decade.


    As I stood up and was about to give augh, that¡¯s when I heard a scream. I looked to find Yeriel, who was screaming in front of me, covering her eyes with her palm.


    "You are not wearing anything, stupid," she yelled at me and rushed out of the room.


    I found out I was really wearing nothing and became flustered. Even though I was unharmed by the mes and fire, my clothes were not. Then it dawned on me. How would I leave if I didn¡¯t have anything to wear?


    "Yeriel,e back," I screamed after her. "No, first get me something to wear. How am I going to leave this ce?"


    _________________________


    Edited by Mysteries.Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 6 05: Healing

    Q: What is the Night of Brilliance?


    A: The one night every month when all the five moons share the same sky.


    - - -


    I tried to whistle on my way back to the dormitory. After cleaning the dorm room, I decided to go shopping a little. I did not think it would take me such a long time to buy a few groceries and household items and now even the moons have appeared in the evening sky. You heard that right, it''s moons¡ªplural. There were five moons in the Forbidden realm, or Shrankor¡ªI should say.


    The sky currently houses two moons. The first moon, Pra¡¯moon, was at the far horizon in the west while the second moon, Dai¡¯moon, was in the mid-sky and another one, Sa¡¯moon would rise in a couple of hours. I was so busy practising the newly acquired Purgatory that I had no time for sightseeing the other day.


    The Night of Brilliance wasing as well and with it woulde the year-end festival. Once every month in Shrankor, the five moons appear in the sky together, though it is only like that for an hour or two¡ªit was the most brilliance of the lunar light, and calling it the Night of Brilliance was no overstatement. I have read it is one of the most beautiful views to watch in Starlight City, or moremonly known as the City of Stars.


    Then there was the year-end festival on the asion of the triumph thousand years ago. I am not looking forward to the festival, although I was not so disapproving of watching the five moons together. It reminded me that there was something I needed to find on the night of the five moons, though it might not be possible this month.


    Coming back to the topic, the reason I was sote with the shopping was because whenever I went to a shop, nobody was ready to sell their things to me. Scar seemed to have amassed quite a debt in a few stores, and when I entered even a single step into their shop, they asked for the money before hearing anything out. I got myself safely out of here today, though it took a lot of effort.


    I need to do something about the money problem. I made a mental note of that.


    While there were shops where Scar did not have any debt, he simrly caused some catastrophes with his delinquent crew instead. I wondered why I had not seen them yet, even though I had been in this world for more than a couple of days now. Perhaps they were enjoying their vacation and woulde back before the uing year-end festival. At least that baldie will surelye. Will he be alright seeing his boss change so much?


    I had read about the festival in the book, but it held no interest for me. Perhaps it¡¯s because I''m a little introverted, or maybe because I don''t have any friends in this world. Well, even in my old world, I had only a couple of people who could be called friends. I wonder what they were doing? Perhaps at my funeral? Though I have no recollection of dying before the transmigration, it''s very probable that I died when the earth shook and the light came for me.


    A gust of icy wind blew, my muffler drifted along with it. The cold reckoning reminded me I was reminiscing too much about that mindless rambling. I walked along the sidewalk, shaking my head. Even during these hours, people were still at work, building the stage for the festival. The stores on the path were glittering with white light, which ran on something different from electricity.


    It was some luminescent stone that was worked through by artisans and made into amp-like shape. Providing there was enough fuel, it could go on for decades. Still, electricity was far more efficient. But I like the silence of this world. People were not busy all the time like my old world, though it would all change in a couple of years.


    I sighed and found a steel bench outside the park where the preparation for the festival was ongoing. Without a thought, I sat on the steel bench. The Starlight Academy was about a ten-minute walk from here. I could have gone straight to my dorm, and yet here I am, sitting alone and sighing. Was there really no way for me to go back to my old life?


    It was not that I was super happy with life in my old world, but still . . . I wonder what dad is doing. Is he taking his meds on time? If I am dead, then . . . I dismissed those thoughts, shaking my head.


    Still, the worry and emptiness did not leave me. Well, the emptiness will be filled when the story begins. I will have more things going on than I can probably handle, not to mention the protagonist will soon arrive. I wondered what Edward would be like up close. He was described as somewhat earnest and a little naive at the start, though he evolved through the course of the story.


    Abruptly, some cacophony entered my ears, bringing me back to reality. I looked in the direction where it wasing from and found a kid being chased away by a couple of middle-aged men. They were not obnoxious to the child and only yelled a few times. The kid did not utter a word in protest, but bowed a little before leaving.


    I heard something about wages. The kid was demanding money for something, but all she got was yellings from the men.


    As the kid came closer, I noticed to have seen this kid before. She was small and had not reached five feet yet. But the silver hair of the girl reminded me. The other day when I was about to enter the academy, she was trying to get in. It appeared she had not left yet.


    The girl, of fifteen-something age, gave a look towards me and the stuff in my arms before taking a seat on the same bench, though she was in the far corner. She seemed to remember me as well, as my face was far from being forgettable. She was shivering a little from the cold, though she was coping far better than I would have in those clothes.


    I wondered if I canfort her, though the look the kid was giving me told me she was unapproachable and did not need anyforting.


    "Life is hard," I uttered while my eyes were drawn to where the construction workers had yet to finish the day''s job.


    The girl did not say a word, and I gave up. I could barely manage to talk with another stranger, not to mention trying tofort one. The girl took out a small chunk of bread from her bag. She ate it without a word while I left my gaze on her.


    I returned to whistling, but no rhythm came. What happened? I used to be good at this. Abruptly, I saw another personing. A girl in her teenage years, though by the way she presented herself, made others think she was older.


    Then the whistle came out sessfully, just the way I wanted.


    And my God, she is gorgeous. She walked with poise, and it was like contempt for the models of my old world. Even though she was not as tall as Yasmine, nor as warm and pleasant to look at, there was something about her that drawn me in. Something I could not quite put my finger on. A tight blue dress hugged her body. Above it was another thick sweater, all buttons unbuttoned, disying her immature curves and edges.


    Her pale skin and the thick sweater indicated she was most likely from Victoria. Even though her exterior was quite cold and not much of her skin was exposed, she appeared quite the provocative type. I wondered why.


    "That''s a stunner." I discovered I said it aloud, albeit in mumbles. The chick, on the other hand, seemed to hear it as well. Not just the one who was eating bread in one mind, but the one I expressed the words for. I wondered how I became so . . . daring in this area? Picking up on girls I never knew.


    The youngdy from Victoria faltered on her walk and came before me, resting her luggage on the side. She seemed to recognise me. Well, there were not many people with strikingly red hair and a cut mark on their right-hand brow. I am also quite famous here, or rather, Infamous would be the right word, but this youngdy before me seemed to know me for more than the infamous rumours.


    In her haughty expression, the signs of empathy, sadness, and some rage came one after another before she turned tranquil. "I heard you are still wasting your life," the pale youngdy said in a cold and slow voice. "Aunt is definitely proud of you if she is watching from above."


    The girl did not wait to exchange more words, bit her lips, looked at me for a couple of seconds more and strode away slowly towards the direction of Starlight Academy.


    My eyes lingered on the haughty girl walking nonchntly, and I could faintly guess who she was. And if she is who I think she is. . . Shit! This young woman was probably Ciara Wintermoon.


    I stopped at that thought, my eyes glued to the disappearing figure.That exins why I acted like that.


    Like I have the ability to draw in the tyrannical mes of Purgatory, Ciara can actually influence others'' emotions to some degree. She most likely aroused my interest in her before giving me cold shoulders. She was as odd as it was mentioned in the book, but I found myself with a thin curve on my lips. It was like watching my favourite stage y with my favourite actors, giving her best performance.


    Ciara and Scar used to be good friends from childhood, but it turned into something nasty with both of their brutal personalities. Scar and Ciara had a good rtionship, and the same was true for their family. But cracks appeared slowly in the rtionship and with the endless depression Scar got from his mother''s death, they drifted apart more and more. Coupled with the fact that both of their families had a rivalry going on, whichter esctes into archenemies, the friendship turned to something that they could barely stand the others''pany.<novelnext></novelnext>


    I returned to my whistling, though the rhythm I made was as awful as the chilly wind. For some reason, I felt more chilled than before. Perhaps the thought of the girl was the reason. Even though nothing was wrong with her, Ciara was quite the odd type and behaved erratically on asion. She and Scar broke into some scenes asionally in the book. Violent scenes that looked apart from simple bickering.


    "Life is hard." said the girl, returning my words to myself. It did not look like she was pitying me or scorning me. She seemed far more understanding than anyone her age should be. I wondered what she had been through to get to that point.


    "Sure is." I could not help but sigh. I looked at her and found she still had not finished her meal yet. The piece of bread she had was barely enough for one meal, yet she appeared to be saving it forter.


    "Meow." A stray cat came and went straight towards the thin girl. It seemed to have noticed the food in her hands and rubbed its furry body against the thin girl''s leg as if asking for some.


    The expression of the thin girl stiffened, and she looked at me. I avoided her gaze, as if I saw nothing. I could have solved the problem with the cat, but I did not. Honestly, I wanted to see what she would do with the stray now.


    Gaining no pity from me, she broke off a small part, almost as small as the tip of her thumb and gave it to the stray. The cat meowed again and ate it. It did not leave after eating the small piece, but meowed again. The thin girl was considering again if she should give more.


    I could not watch it anymore, stood up slowly and brought a big chunk of bread¡ªfar better quality than the one the girl had. I broke a small piece off of it. The girl was looking right at the other piece when I stooped to give it to the cat.


    "This stray seems to like you," I said, bringing the other piece of bread to her. "Here."


    The thin girl shook her head. "I don''t need it," she said, as if too stubborn to take it.


    Looking at the resolute expression of the girl, I did not choose to convince her to take it. I stored the bread inside the bag and saw the pained expression on her exterior seeing the chunk of bread go away. She looked cute, as she motioned her head away.


    I was about to stand up when I noticed a bloody mark on her knees. It seemed to be strained for a few days and had not been taken care of. "You don''t need food, but you definitely need to care about this," I said, pointing at her knees. "Let me help."


    Just as I was about to put my palm on her knees, the girl shouted out.


    "What are you doing?" she asked and was trying to escape, but before she could do that, I caught her ankle. It was quite easy to catch her. Who knows how many days had gone by since she had a proper meal?


    "Sit down." I said in the mostmanding of a voice as I could muster. The girl sat down and I gave a not-so-good gesture that told her to hold her clothes above her knees. Seriously, I was fearing that I looked like an offender now. But no further shout from her gratified me.


    I breathed in slowly and imagined the mes of purgatory. I visualised the me appearing on my palm, swaying a little along with the wind. A thin strand of scarlet me appeared in my palm slowly. It was not a raging me, but a soothing one.


    The girl was frightened again and was struggling to escape, but when the me touched her wound, she stopped moving. It was not painful in the slightest. The me of purgatory was known for its extreme effect on demons and evil, but it had some healing factors as well, if used properly.


    "No sudden movements. I am not very good at this." I said quietly, beads of sweat forming on my forehead even in the cold weather. It''s only been a day since I awakened this ability and I don''t know how long it will take me to use it easily. I could use it on myself easily, but for anyone else, it was another story.


    After training in Purgatory for almost the entire day yesterday, I was able to do some smaller healing with it, though it was still damn hard for me, and it took a dozen more seconds to heal the slight wound. Other than healing, I could also attack with the raging me, though I almost burned my dorm room practising that, which earned me another round of cleaning.


    "Is it really hard to get into the academy?" the thin girl asked.


    I pondered for a second and answered, "I''m not sure."


    "How could you not? Aren''t you a student?" the girl asked again. Her voice was not pitiful in the slightest, but had a rather distinctive edge to it.


    "Have you not taken the admission test yet?"


    "They told me toe at dawn a couple of dayster."


    "I guess there is no harm in trying," I said, trying not to break the kid''s heart. It was not just about talent and hard work, money was a huge factor in the education. Well, when it was not?


    "I''ll get in for sure." the girl said, as resolution shed in her eyes as if certain she would. I myself have never been that certain about anything before.


    The healing was finished and even though there was a bit of bruise left, I was damn happy with what I did. Charity does help. "There you go."


    The thin girl thanked me, and I stood up with the intention of hitting the road. I did not look back. There were many things left for me to do at the dorm. The little shopping I got done already wasted so much time, I did not even get to practise any arts today. And there was the appointment I had with Ben at dawn.


    [You have gained 4 destiny points.]


    What! I looked at the transparent text in confusion. What did I do to get these points? Was it because of Ciara? I had no idea. Usually, you get destiny points for doing something that may change the world in a way, for better or worse. So in essence, if you have an impact on the world, you will get destiny points. But so far, what I have done was to just heal a kid, and the wound was not something serious either.


    That could mean only one thing, this kid will be a big yerter or there is no way I would get destiny points for healing her.


    I looked back instantly in search of the thin girl, but could only find the stray cat licking its paw.


    _____________________


    Edited by Mysteries.


    Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 7 06: Instinct

    Q: What are the four supreme forms of stance?


    A: The mestance, the Windstance, the Earthstance, and the Voidstance.


    - - -


    The rays of sunlight hit my eyes as I ran out of my dorm room. The sun rose an hour ago, and I waste for my appointment. I wore heavy leather pants with a simr leather shirt¡ªwhich were efficient for training purposes.


    Passing the grand fountain of the academy, I took the path towards the indoor training hall where Ben would be waiting for me. There were only a few people on the way, and they were mostly training. Why else would they wake up this early in the morning? If not for my need to train, I would not even bother to wake up, considering the cold weather and early hours.


    The Starfall mountain range, from the south to the west, restricted most of the icy wind, yet it was still cold outside¡ªnot to mention it was only the beginning of fall. I wondered how the folks in Victoria live in that awful weather. Well, thankfully, that was not something I had to worry about. At least not for this month. My current worry was preparing myself for next month.


    As I entered the training hall, I found Ben right where I had expected him to be. He was alone in a corner, practising with his long-sword, wearing all the essories needed for it. He wore no helm, though I knew how hard it would be for someone to get a clear blow on his head. This son of Dockrell inherited their finest blood and will. Although this guy is friendly and silly most of the time, he is damn good at his job.


    "Sorry, sorry," I said,ing into the middle of the hall. "I overslept."


    "If you ask for someone''s help, you should at least have the decency toe at the right time." It was not Ben who said that, but another person who entered from the other side.


    He was in simr training clothes, but he also had the other essories, such as the leather jerkins and arm guards on. With ck hair, unlike my red or Ben''s golden and a slightly angr face, which could be considered handsome if one took the liberty, Kyle presented himself. He was not a noble, but the way he presented himself neatly threw him onto the list.


    Kyle was away on vacation, but it appeared he came back a couple of weeks before the holidays ended. ''Could not sleep well without seeing your partner, could you?'' Ben, Kyle and I were supposed to be in the same academic year, but with me failing, both of them advance to the next year.


    "Good morning Ben, Kyle," I said, ignoring what he said. It was one of my superpowers. I could ignore idle taunts like that effortlessly.


    Kyle nodded and said, "Now that you are here, put on those training clothes fast. I would like to see you are really as good as the rumours."


    "I think you are expecting too much," I said, cocking my head towards the pieces of equipment. Scar had not practised his swordsmanship for about eighteen months, and I had not picked up anything other than kitchen knives in my previous life¡ªI really don''t see a way to do justice to those rumours.


    "Humility," Kyle muttered, as if he could not believe his ears. "Ben, is he alright?"


    I raised an eyebrow. Right, Scar always had confidence in his abilities to the point of arrogance, even if he had not trained for months.


    "If I was still as good as the rumours," I answered in ce of Ben, "would I still be here?"


    Kyle stared at me with an odd expression and nodded. Exchanging the nod, I walked towards the side to equip first.


    Putting the stuff on the body turned out to be a hassle, though with Kyle''s help, it was over in a couple of minutes. I then went to pick up a training sword from the sides. Among the few options, I picked up a long-sword¡ªthe one Scar was most familiar with, and I like the most. It was only a fencing sword with moderately blunt des. It did not appear as a deadly weapon.


    But The moment I picked up the sword and took a stance, something clicked inside me and I felt like the sword was made only for me. It had a good weight to it and I think I can easily sever someone''s throat with this¡ªconsidering I could do that without flinching.


    "Don''t waste time,e at me," Kyle said. He was ready with his sword and helm on.


    I nodded, trying to dominate the tititing sensation on my palms. It was as if I had a decade long experience in swordsmanship. Could I really be good at this?


    "What are you waiting for with that nk expression?" Kyle said as his legs moved. "Has the genius swordsman fallen so low?"


    Kyle came at me with his sword before he even finished talking, not giving me even a second of time. I stumbled at his first attack, backing away.


    "I heard a lot about you when I entered the academy, but never saw it with my own eyes. Let''s see what you got," Kyle said again and motioned his sword skilfully towards my chest.


    I dodged without thinking, and our positions switched. Kyle crept at me again, sword high on his right. He swung, though this time I managed a block in time. But the guy drew back his sword and assaulted my other side.


    I was about to block again, but Kyle made a feint as his sword avoided mine, stopping just short of my right shoulder.


    "Come on, I know you can do better," Kyle teased and withdrew his sword. "Show me your skills from the old days."


    Kyle took a couple of steps back and gave me the gesture to carry on.


    I sucked in a deep breath and tried to imitate his footsteps and the way he used his sword. The duel began again, and this time I attacked first. My legs moved, and I swung my sword violently without holding anything back.


    Kyle blocked it easily. Within the quick encounter, our eyes met and I could see how bored he was. I was not good enough for him. I really did not like that look in his eyes. Keeping my breathing and footsteps under control, I attacked again. The sword made a swiss sound in the air, and it jerked towards Kyle.


    We exchanged a few more moves until the fellow threw me to the cold floor as if I was nothing. Perhaps I am not really good at this as I thought.


    "I have never duelled with the old you, but if this is all that left of you, I am truly disappointed," he said and was about to leave as if I held no esteem. "You should leave and carry on with whatever you were doing."<novelnext></novelnext>


    This time, his words got to me, and the sensation returned. It surged in me so intensely that I could not dominate it anymore. I knew what Kyle wanted from me, but I did not know if I ever managed to show him that thing. Scar was a prodigy in swordsmanship, where I am only a nerd, but I could not back down now. The sensation was giving me too many goosebumps to give up now.


    Bolts of lightning rushed into my head and I stood up. The grip of my sword tightened and my eyes narrowed. I have never been this focused in my entire life.


    "Again," I snarled, scurrying across the cold floor.


    The sword held on my right in a prominent position as I lurched at him, swinging it skillfully. Something changed. I did not feel odd holding the sword anymore. What odd was the sensation and how natural it felt in me. Kyle intercepted the sword as easily as before and in the next moment, his sword made the next move.


    I did not know why, but I let go of the grip on the hilt and pulled swiftly to a block. An unknown thrill swept over me, and I let it swallow me whole. My grip tightened before the opponent''s sword hit mine.


    Kyle''s eyes changed, and a smile appeared on my lips. I withdrew first, but Kyle chased me out.


    Kyle hacked down his sword towards me from the right. My gaze was only on the de and the arms that held it. In between, I even watched the movement of his legs. In that blink of an eye, Kyle tried to pull another feint, but I somehow caught onto it and beat him to deal a blow to his lower body.


    Kyle stumbled, and I chased after him. Pulling my sword in the other direction, twisting my arm, I lurched at long-sword. Kyle instinctively tried to block but my sword avoided it with a feint and reached for his neck. I did not know what I did. That moment was far tooplicated than it looked, but it felt too natural to me.


    Kyle fell to the ground on his four limbs in defeat. He stared at me with an awed look, rubbing his neck. In the heat of the moment, I actually forgot that we were only practising. Fortunately, the de was blunt, and we have not infused with spirit force. If not, even with the guard on, we have to shoot for the medical ward instantly.


    "Sorry." I released a deep breath and felt a little numb in my head. I did not know where all these came from. They were not the flowery moves nobles learn for a show, but killing arts.


    "Perhaps there is still hope for you," Kyle said.


    Come on, man. Just say you are awed. Letting out a chuckle, I reached out my arm towards him, and he took it. I pulled him up as the fellow gave me a scrutinising gaze. In my mind, there was something else going on. Did I use Young me just now? The third stance of the mestance?


    I had never seen those stances with my eyes, yet I actually performed them just now. Surely, it was not from me. Perhaps it is the instinct that still lives in the body? Whatever it is, I will take everything.


    "me Stance," Ben said from the side, throwing us sks of water. "Despite yourck of practice, I have seen few do better than you. I guess old blood never stagnates. You still have your fine instinct, though the moves need re-polishing."


    ? "That is exactly why I am here." I let the water replenish my thirst before focusing on the conversation.


    "Well, three hours a day at least is a must to get back to your old days."


    I nodded as my mind drifted off to the moves I had just drawn. Was it the residual instinct that still inhabits this body? Even with that, what Ben said is true. Even with the old blood being powerful, I still have to train. It was more like a necessary for me to train. Even if it was powerful, it would be even more so if properly cultivated.


    "Are you convinced now?" Ben asked Kyle, and his lips held a grin. He looked back at me and continued, "When I said that you asked my help, Kyle was hell-bent oning with me to see it. Looks like he was quite satisfied with it."


    "I was overwhelmed for a second," Kyle said with a snort, "and everything went the other way."


    "And why did you let yourself be overwhelmed?" Ben chuckled, seeing the bashful expression of his partner.


    "Fine, it was my loss."


    "That was probably a fluke," I said. Considering the chances of the residual instinct helping me in a life-or-death battle, I could not help but sigh. "I need to train further."


    "We are here every morning," Ben said, and he looked at Kyle for agreement. Getting a nod, he continued, "You can join us like today, though with our own skills being limited, we may not be of much help."


    "Do not bete like today," Kyle added.


    "Sure, thanks," I said and recalled another matter. "But it will not be possible tomorrow. I need to take the admission test."


    Ben and Kyle both looked at me, arching their eyebrows. Despite failing twice and standing on myst chance, I did not need to take the admission test to stay in the academy.


    Kyle was the first to pick up. "Are you thinking¡ª"


    "I''m not switching," I said, shaking my head. "I will try to get into the department of Magi if I can, while still trying to progress on the path of Knight."


    "Are you being serious?" Kyle asked, as if he could not believe it. "You know fighting with swords and sorcery are entirely different matters?"


    "I understand it very well," I admitted. "But I have to try at least."


    ___________________________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kwqxz.

 Chapter 8 07: Admission Test

    Q: What actually happened to Edward¡¯s family?


    A: It was mentioned that they all died in some unfortunate ident rted to Red Phantom.


    - - -


    Today was the day of admission and I went to the ce where the test would be held before the designated time. Part of the reason was that I woke up early and did not want to miss it, but more importantly, it was the curiosity about the thin girl I met a couple of days before.


    I had no recollection of someone like her in the novel, yet she gave me 4 destiny points for just healing a not-so-serious wound. Clearly, there is something about her I did not know yet. Well, the author did not have the luxury of writing about everyone in the web novel, but the kid appeared somewhat special¡ªat least, there should have been some mentions.


    Unless she died or failed to enter the academy.


    I went in front of the academic building where the magic department¡¯s test would be held and man! It was crowded. My old instinct yed its role, and I found a vacant corner to hide in. Well, hiding was not the right word. After all, I feared crowds and strangers only when I was young¡ªthey no longer strike any fear within me.


    But the ce I was in was too new for me. I have been living in Shrankor for four and a half days and still not used to it. It would take me far more time to get used to this ce.


    There were at least a couple thousand people in the lines, and the door of the building was still closed. Most of the people weremoners or lesser nobles, though at least a ninth of them should have noble lineage from their great grandfathers or else they might not even get to take the test.


    In the regtions, it was clearly stated that anyone with a proper identity and age could take the test, however, that was far from the truth. If they had strictly followed the rules, the test could have been extended for the entire academic year. After all, what was so embarrassing about failing the admissions test for the most prestigious academy in the realm? Boys and girls from all over the empire and even the neighbouring ces wille to take the test, thinking what if they have talent in the spirit arts?


    Boy-oh-boy, that would make the school a circus.


    This is where reality differs from the written regtions. The individuals in charge of the test sent away people just by ncing once at them. They told the crowds that with one nce, they could pierce through their talent and decide whether they have an affinity to spirit arts. In reality, what their eyes saw was the luxury of the candidates, from their clothes to any ornaments, to discern whether they came from a rich family or if they were just anothermoner wishing to hit it big.


    This was somewhat cruel to themoners, but the reality was far crueller as the academy''s tuition was not free. To be more specific, it is so expensive that most well-off families could not afford it, even if they possessedparable talent to a noble scion. Though there are those with exceptional talent who could receive a substantial schrship from the academy, sponsorship from other noble families, or even sponsorship from the imperial families. Yeriel was one of those few. Her family was not dirt poor, but they would have to invest their entire year''s savings to pay the tuition fee for a single month.


    Certainly, the Knight department was not like that. Then again, in the Knight''s department, they did not need expensive instruments and ingredients every day. I wonder how I will manage the tuition fee now, considering Daddy Emberheart has cut off his lines of capital to his once-favoured son.


    Unfortunately for me, I have to worry about all this even though I transmigrated into a first-ss noble. There are a lot of ways to earn money, I mused. Which one will be the easiest for me without getting me into trouble?


    The thought brought me back to the thin kid again. She did not appear to be from a well off family. Bloody hell, she did not even have warm clothing thest time I saw her. From what I observed, she might not even have a family.


    My scrutinising gaze searched throughout the crowd, hoping to find what I was looking for, but s! The kid was nowhere to be seen. Every so often, the guards came and cleared all the families of the candidates, and then the ce turned a little vacant. Now I had a better opportunity to look for her, but the result was the same.


    Time was running out, and it was only a few minutes before the gates would open. If that girl was not here by then, she might have to give up enlisting this year. I leaned against the cold wall, still looking for her, as I had nothing better to do. I wondered for what reason I cared so much about this stray kid. Was it just because she gave me the 4 destiny points or something else?


    Certainly, I have no n of farming destiny points from her, healing her, helping her in any sorts of ways. Trust me, if I could garner destiny points that way, I would have started a charity trust already. Unfortunately, gaining destiny points through these kinds of healing, or helping, stagnated easily.


    The building finally opened, and the girl was still nowhere to be seen. A dozen people or so appeared wearing long white robes. They stood on the podium in two separate groups. The group on the right, where mostly robust men stood, were for the Knights, while the group on the left where a few graceful figures stood with just a few males were for Magi.


    "Line up!" said the robust man, leading the knights. "Those that want to take the test for knights,e here. As for Magi, go to the left. And I need not have to mention the regtions."


    The boys and girls moved in lines immediately. Nobody made a noise and the only sounds heard were of feet shuffling on the gravel-covered ground. I moved as well and took a spot on the far end of the lines to the magic department.


    A few people told me I could go before them, but I declined as I had to watch out for the girl. The people before me seemed to have recognised me, or rather the infamous red hair and red eyes. The reverence towards the old blood of Emberheart runs deep.


    Both the people standing in front and behind me seemed to have a lot of questions staring at me with wide-open eyes. I knew what they were thinking. After all, a descendant of the Great House Emberheart should not have to take the test withmoners. I did not feel even a tiny bit of virtue in their reverence, but remembered about the infamous rumours. In all of their faces, the only thing I could think of was that they were scorning me. Perhaps they were, or why else would a prince with blue blood mingle with themoners?


    Is it my paranoia? Most likely. Taking in a deep breath, I ignored everything with my aloof, haughty look. Acting. Yes, that''s it. I have dealt with everything quite well these four days, ignoring the very first day, of course, I thought. Acting is the way. At least until I am no longer bothered by the piercing stares.


    The professor in charge took the candidates inside the building while I was still looking for the kid. A dozen professors working together would take only ten minutes or so to filter the candidates and it was even less for the magic department, as their number was not even half of the knights''.


    Half the numbers in my line had already entered. Why did I feel nervous? Was it for my test? Unlikely. With Scar''s overwhelming affinity for spirit, all I have to do is present myself well, and prove that I''m not a bloody imbecile, to get into the department of Magi. Thinking about the thin girl as well as the gazes of the crowd made me even more nervous than I already was. Fortunately, with Scar''s handsome and aloof look, almost no one could see through my inner nervousness.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Now there were only a dozen more people before me.


    "Oscar." a female voice called to me. I looked to find the woman leading the admissions into the magic department. "Are you looking for someone?"


    "Y-yes." I said, trying to recall the woman''s name.


    She appeared to be in her prime, though I hardly believe that. They were, after all, magi. Wizards had a much longer lifespan and could be young for a long time. She had ck hair, an oval-shaped face, and was fairly pretty, but not as gorgeous as Yasmine or Ciara. She appeared to be wearier, though she still had her charm, as all the boys in the camp were giving her the stares. Magus attracts crowds wherever they stand.


    I finally managed to remember who she was. She was none other than Scar''s maternal aunt.


    My attention was abruptly broken as I felt some disturbance in the direction of the gate and finally found what I was searching for. Surely, it was the kid, but she was on the ground, trying hard to get in, and her ankle was pulled away by the warders of the academy.


    "Let me go!" said the girl and threw a kick at the one who caught her ankle. The warder was not-so-subtle when dealing with a thin girl like her. She had capitalised on it and got her ankle free when the warder guarded against her kick.


    Getting free, she rolled on the ground and started running. She was fast and within a couple of seconds; she had caught most of the folks'' attention. The warder was not a person to let go. After all, it was his job not to. He lurched up and after a couple of manoeuvres; he appeared before the thin girl.


    "Wait!" I yelled at the two of them. The warder who was about to immobilise the girl stopped and so did the girl who was about to run away.


    I walked towards them amid the stares of hundreds of people. Feeling a little ufortable and uneasy from all the eyes on me, I continued on my path.


    "What happened?" I asked,ing before them.


    The girl answered before the warder. "They didn''t let me in."


    I looked at the warder with a sharp look and the aloofness aura of the nobility worked. I sighed in relief inwardly.


    "She waste getting in." the warder said. Even though he was giving the descendant of Emberheart proper respect, he was not looking down.


    I looked at the kid and saw her ufortable expression. I sighed. "It does not matter anymore," I said, looking at the warder. "Get back to your work."


    The warder did not do as he was told and looked at the professors on the podium. Seeing the nod from thedy in the magic department, he bowed a little before departing.


    I watched him go and transferred my gaze to the thin girl. She was fidgeting with her rags of clothing.


    "What''s your name?" I asked her.


    The thin girl was looking towards the crowd and the high podium where the men and women in charge stood. A resolution shed in her eyes.


    "Elinor," she answered.


    "Elinor," I repeated, searching through my memory for the name. There was no mention of it in the book. I could not help but take a deep breath before asking, "You want to get into the academy?"


    Elinor nodded instantly, and her eyes drifted off towards the lines. Even after I came to her rescue, she should be too high on adrenaline to feel this anxious.


    "Fine, then get in line," I said and walked back towards my line. I joined again at the end of it, ignoring the stare others were showing. Elinor came with me as well and stood behind me. "Apologies for the dy."


    ____________________________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 9 08: Elinor (1)

    Q: Difference between Spirit affinity and spirit purity?


    A: The former shows the potential of a practitioner, while thetter shows ss.


    - - -


    The sorting continued, and in that time, Elinor managed to calm herself down, breathing in and out.


    "Elinor, why do you want to join the academy?" I asked in an attempt to make small talk.


    She was startled to hear my voice again, as her entire focus was on the sorting. I had not turned around to look at her, but from the corner of my eyes; I saw her staring at me with a look, wondering what I was doing here. To her knowledge, I was already a pupil of the academy, not a good one. Nevertheless, I should not have to take the test.


    "How old are you?" she asked me instead. Her eyes were narrowed, and she was tiptoeing behind me as if trying to find out how tall she was. Not particrly tall. She did not even reach my shoulder while standing on her toes, now gawking at me depressingly.


    I was about to answer twenty-four, but stopped midway. I was twenty-four, but this body was not. Then again, I have no obligation to answer either. "Don''t worry, you will get there," I said


    "Why are you taking the test?" she asked me again.


    "I am not sure," I answered.


    "Maybe that is why you will fail," Elior muttered in an inaudible voice, though I still pierced my ears in a painful way.


    I snorted and watched the sorting. There were a couple stood before me, and soon, my turn came, as thedy in charge of the admission gave me her sweet smile. It was she who tried to convert Scar to the magic department, knowing he had a high spirit affinity. But more importantly, she was Scar''s aunt, Rosalyn Earther.


    "You finally had some sense and chose to transfer to the magic department," thedy leading the magic department said. "Get in then, I will not make things easy for you since you have chosen it yourself."


    I sucked in a deep breath and walked inside the building. Elinor was just behind me, ignoring others'' scornful, jealous gazes. If they knew the rumours about the infamous Oscar Emberheart, perhaps then they would not be so jealous.


    The hall was simr to any proper hall of the academy. The walls were stered in white with distinctive artistic features, glossy with the natural light, while the polished marble on the floor reflected the light. A row of portraits hung on the walls. Some held older generations of the academy, while in some were rare spirit beasts to mythical creatures. A tall, majestic reindeer held the portrait just beside me with the snowy, whitish background. In one nce, I made out it was the Winterheart Reindeer.


    But the one that held all the participants'' attention was the huge frame, disying the might of a supreme dragon, scaled in azure and gold, soaring in a high storm. Is this Roshear, the Tempest? Well, who else would it other than one of the twelve heroes?


    In the room, about seven-eighths were girls, as most girls had a high affinity for the spirit arts. It is how they gically are. Boys are good at brawling, while girls have weaker bodies, so to rece the hindrance, they have better spirit affinity than boys, though there was nock of exceptions in this world.


    Many boys are still born with high spirit affinity, and some girls work hard to diminish the gap in their physical strength. There were even a few who trained in both or something else.


    "You are switching from the Knight department to the Magic department?" Elinor asked, her eyes glinting at me.


    "No," I answered, "I just have too much free time at hand, so I decided to waste it all to learn the hardest thing the realm has to offer."


    "A worthy goal," Elinor joked, picking up my sarcasm, "but the rumours say you are not that bright."


    I cocked my head at her, showing some of my good white teeth. "The rumours also say I am an arrogant prick, who likes to get drunk and harass young women."


    This time my voice did not have any tone of sarcasm and hearing it out Elior actually withdrew half step. I could not help but chuckle.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Thisss is not really a peasant; she''s too intelligent for that. Perhaps amoner, and had education and rtively good upbringing¡ªI concluded, as she presented herself. Yes, she was curious like many here in the hall, but in the gleam of her eyes hid the confidence manycked in the room. Today she was not in that rag I saw the other day, but a new dress, though it got ruined with the little stunt. Also, she does have some guts, even for a teenager. Not many would call a prince not bright in the head, even in their jokes. Elinor actually read my sarcasm and concluded that I would not mind jokes about such things. Really, who is this kid?


    Rosalyn came before everyone and beside her were a few tables holding crystal orbs as big as a human head, as well as the other staff. These football-sized orbs were the spirit and element affinity checker. This was the first test of admission. They will sort the students again and choose fifty or so people to take the next test.


    "Reform the lines please!" Rosalyn said. "On this first test, your spirit and element will be tested and only fifty of you will go to the next round."


    Most of the faces who came to pass the entrance test darkened the very moment they heard that. There were over five hundred people here and only fifty will get to take the next test. Then what would be the number that would be epted? I knew the answer, and it was no more than five, even if there were many talented people. The number of seats for students was limited and there were barely enough professors to teach.


    "Those that will fail can take the other auxiliary department''s admission test. But here I would like to conclude the test with nomotion. Please begin, the instructor will help you check your spirit affinity."


    I again took a spot at the end of the line with the thin girl still behind me. The test started, and it took only a dozen or so seconds for each person. Most people were sent away after their disappointing results, while a few dozens remained for the next test. They passed the test, though not in flying colours.


    "So we have to touch the orb and it will check our talent?" Elinor asked me. "What is the other instructor doing there?"


    I did not answer her questions and stood there waiting until she pulled on my shirt. I looked at her from the corner of my eyes and gave a cold stare. Let''s see what she does now. Would she apologise, thinking I took her joke as an insult? Or see through it?


    Elinor flinched a little, though she got back to normal immediately.


    "I''m talking to you!" she said.


    "But I am not," I replied.


    "Why did you help me get in?" she asked again and did not stop pulling on my shirt.


    Did this kid not know about Scar''s infamous rumours? or does not believe it? That was probably it. Or how else could she have the audacity to annoy me like that? Perhaps my friendly behaviour gave her that vibe.


    In the end, I decided to give her an answer as she would not stop and I could not yell at her here. "I helped you because I was curious about you," I said.


    "That¡¯s an odd reason," she said. "So do nobles like you do this kind of charity on whims?"


    "You don''t seem to be the type to appreciate my charity," I said, raising an eyebrow.


    "That is not true," Elinor said firmly. "I am so grateful that you can''t imagine. It had been a rough few months since anyone helped me without ulterior motives. It had been so tough that I forgot to talk freely, and you helped me on three asions for no reason with such friendly behaviours . . . I can''t thank you enough for that. So please excuse me if any of myments make you feel displeased."


    My eyes widened at her words. This girl is quite a maniptor for her age. Though she did apologise, she present herself so that if I give her cold shoulder now, it would make me feel and look bad. Moreover, the awkwardness she presented in the middle made it even harder. I did not know if it was natural or she yed it to her advantage. Really, who is this kid?


    Since Elinor performed so well, I epted her apology, nodding slowly.


    She let out a whimper of relief, perhaps to let me know she was nervous. You can''t really get away with anything from the presence of nobles.


    ___

 Chapter 10 08: Elinor (2)

    Since Elinor performed so well, I epted her apology, nodding slowly.


    She let out a whimper of relief, perhaps to let me know she was nervous. You can''t really get away with anything from the presence of nobles.


    "So, what are you curious about?"


    "You probably do not know the answer, either," I said and saw there was no one before us. I turned to see the instructor looking at me with stiff eyes, calling my name, as if I wasted their time again.


    Don''t worry man, I willpensate well with my talent. I knew the theory behind how this orb works, and I did not need any help from the instructor to do it. It was a simple process. All I have to do was: put my palm against the ss surface and emitted spirit force into it. Rosalyn was looking at me along with dozen others as I put my palm on the orb. With a little effort, I emitted a few strands of spirit force into it.


    The orb lit up in crimson colours, to nobody''s surprise. The crimson colour represented House Emberheart''s affinity for fire, while the shining colour represented House Emberheart''s affinity for Spirit force.


    "me element affinity," the instructor took the reading as his eyes widened. "Grade nine Affinity towards Spirit Force. Spirit force purity: Grade six."


    ''That went well,'' I muttered under my breath, hearing some whispers in the crowd. So nothing changed in the transmigration. Grade nine could be called the highest level of affinity the orb could count. It was used to measure the calibre of one''s talent. It showed what a person could achieve if they only worked hard.


    With this score, I could get into the magic department no-question-asked. Yes, it was that rare. Of all the students in the academy, there might not even be five people with this level of spirit force affinity.


    While the purity of the spirit force is equally important, sadly, grade-six is the lowest level while grade-one is considered as the highest. As the purity of the spirit force is raised, the same spells or attacks will have more effect as well. I should have a better score than this. Then again, Scar wasted over a year on alcohol and other things, so not much surprise here.


    I stepped back and waited for Elinor to take her test with my curiosity raised. Was I just thinking too much about this kid, or she''s really would be a singrity? All will be proven in the test.


    I watched the thin girl go to take the test, but before she did, her and all the other people''s attentions were moved towards another table where another boy hadpleted his test.


    Now the orb was showing a staggering golden light that caused even more astonishmentpared to what happened during my test. The orb seemed to cannot contain the light within itself, flickering all over with its beaming reverence.


    "Grade-nine Spirit affinity." the instructor at the table announced. "Light attribute, Spirit force purity: Grade-five."


    The boy who astonished everyone in here was not ufortable from the gazes. He seemed to believe he was born for greatness and this small test meant nothing to him, but I knew better than that. Huh! I actually forgot about this fellow. But shouldn''t he appear in the same test as Edward? where is our protagonist now?


    The person before me who wore a hood andmon clothing was none other than the prince of the Mahener empire, Dareth Sholinar. With the background of the empire, Dareth never needed to take the test, yet he still did it, impersonating amoner. What does that tell?


    No, he was not here to get into the academy by his own means. He just liked to show off and watch others fawn over him. Like now, he unveiled his hood and let everyone see.


    I waited for a couple of seconds for someone to recognise the prince and just as I thought; it did not take more than a couple of seconds. Someone shouted in the hall that it was their prince (Technically, he was my prince too, as the state of Emberheart is a prominent part of the Mahenar Empire, and I am a prince myself. Though the identity of the son of the emperor and the identity of the son of a Highprince held a substantial difference.). The others started gossiping among themselves, looking at the prince.


    "What did I tell you? None stands a chance against Prince Dareth!" One said, just a couple strides away from me.


    "I even heard His Highness had already reached the level of a magus beforeing to the academy. This really is a monstrous-level genius." I was even considering whether they were being paid to give this performance. Then again, there is no shortage of these types of snobs.


    "I admit defeat willingly. There was no shame in losing to our prince." This one really overdid it.


    Dareth was enjoying this inside, though he presented the noble aura a prince should present. Even though he was wearing normal clothing, his golden hair and handsome, aloof face radiated a noble aura that could not be faked. I could not help but snort at those snobs.


    "Do you have a problem?" Dareth asked me. How in the hell did he hear that? It did not take him long to find my lineage, seeing the red hair and pupil. "Son of Emberheart?"


    "Yes, my throat is sore," I admitted, snorting once more. Was my personality changing or did I be too engrossed in acting?


    It was not that the person before me was evil; it was just that I do not like his power-hungry personality. Moreover, he had agitated Edward many times during the academic years and even afterwards. That should be enough of a reason for me to be annoyed with him as a reader.


    Talking about Edward, where is that guy exactly? He was supposed to take the test with Dareth, but so far I have not even gotten wind of the guy. Did the timeline change or something? But it could not be just because of my appearance, can it? I seriously did nothing other than preparing myself.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Dareth did not seem to like my answer, but with his image, he did not fall low enough to argue with me. Great, I was saved from a useless argument. My eyes drifted towards the girl, Elinor, who was taking the test. She was an anomaly here, and I would like to know how much talent she has.


    It appeared the girl did not need the help offered by the instructor to elevate one¡¯s spirit energy. She could do it herself, unlike most of the people here. Just like the showoff prince, the light flickered out from the orb and it was a blinding light. It was not golden like the prince of Mahenar, but entirely white with a silvery radiance.


    The silver-white light flickered on Elinor''s exterior as she gave a bright smile that could brighten even the darkest night. Pure and innocent.


    A deep frown appeared on my brows at once. ''What the hell?!'' I yelled inwardly, No, no, no, that cannot be right.''


    While the instructor announced the news, "Light Element affinity, Grade nine Spirit affinity, Spirit force Purity: Grade-Six."


    Yes, the result was the same as mine, but the impact she had was greater and there was a reason for that. But I cared about none of it. My mind raced, and I fought the will to run straight to the girl and interrogate her.


    "By the luck of Ishar," Rosalyn said, bringing her free hand to her heart. "We have four people with the highest spirit affinity in this batch. There had never been such a case in thest thousand-year history of Starlight Academy."


    I know who the other person she was talking about was. It was that attractive chick I got insulted by a couple of days before, but I was not worried about Ciara. Instead, it was the thin girl before me.


    Rosalyn came before Elinor and gave her another head-to-toe scan. She had previously done that when her nephew. I, brought that girl, but now it was more thorough.


    "What is your name?" she asked.


    "Elinor." the thin girl answered. "Elinor Eastwood."


    My face tensed further as I calcted the possibility.


    "Well, Elinor, it appears you have a bright future ahead of you," Rosalyn added. "Do your best in the next two tests."


    While I was still staring at her nkly, Elinor came back towards me. Eastwood, Professor Ranyan, Silver Hair, Light Element, everything makes sense now, but the girl in front of me did not. Who the hell is she? Where is Edward?


    "I did alright," she said, taking a stand beside me.


    I could not contain the question anymore. "Who are you?" I asked, trying hard not to shout in the room with a couple of hundred people.


    Elinor tilted her head to look at me. She did not understand the question and bit her lips with an expression that hid something. Guilt? Remorse?


    "Where did youe from?" I asked again.


    "You are weird," she said, hiding her fearful quivers, but then my arms held her shoulders and seeing my eyes staring through her, she could guess that I really wanted an answer from her. "Crn, it is a town in the southern outskirts of Mahenar, but I don''t see why you would be interested."


    Lightning shed in my head. This cannot be it. "Do you have an older brother?" I asked again, trying to be sure. "Any family?"


    "Had. A twin brother, a loving mother and a caring father," she said as her eyes turned moist, though she was not crying. Her body was still quivering, biting her lower lip. Her watery eyes gazed at me for a couple of seconds.


    She threw away my arms and left me to take a stand against the wall alone. Perhaps my question freaked her out or reminded her of the death of her family. She needed an empty space now to clear her mind to take the next test, and so did I.


    ''Why? Author? Why?''


    _________________________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 11 09: Second Round

    Q: What was Yeriel¡¯s mistake?


    A: The dream of knowledge and a broader world.


    - - -


    "Congrattions to the fifty of you," Rosalyn told the youths before her. After eliminating everyone else but these fifty, the hall turned far more vacant than before. "Sadly, the test is not over yet. There is no elimination in the next two rounds. Afterwards, we will select the pupils. Do not worry about anything else and just focus on achieving your best."


    I controlled myself far better than I had expected, though I knew it was nothing but a dy forter. Elinor, the thin girl¡ªthe person who made me suspicious about many things¡ªcame back before me. She had not spoken a word to me, nor was she appeared to be in a bright mood.


    I was wondering if my appearance changed the timeline in any way. Surely, there was the butterfly effect, but I have done almost nothing to change the world.


    In the book, Edward had no twin brother or sister, but Elinor appeared to have one, or had one, however, they all were dead now.


    Other than the intervention of our Friend, The Almighty Author, nothing makes sense. I only hope this kid has the same two abilities as Edward or else the world may already be doomed.


    I sighed inwardly and tried to ignore the striking oddity before me. Well, ignoring things was one of my specialities, so it was not that difficult. At least, not now. I had to prepare for the examination. Though I have some clues about how the next two rounds will go, I have no clear notion of how well I will do. I had prepared nothing, nor had I studied, as I knew a couple of days would not be enough.


    My memory was not the problem here. As I said before, I have an almost photographic memory. It was just that I did not have the books to prepare for it. I can only borrow books or read books from the Knight division of the archive. There were still other ways, but I figured there was no need, so I have been inclusive with myself for a broader perspective, only training my spirit energy, and noting down all the important stuff that will happen in the future as well as the 1000 questions.


    The admission mostly depends on the innate talent that I have and my ability to learn new things. I am almost the best at the former, but for thetter, I should have some talent¡ªunsure how much, though. The next two tests were just a formality for me and the other two with the highest grade of Spirit Force and Affinity. I guess I will do fine, but I will need to take the test to find out how fine it will be.


    The second round was the least important to my knowledge. It was a written test to see how much the candidates knew about the order of the Magi and other things such as history, science, geography, math etc.


    The few instructions brought me, along with the forty-nine others, to another room. They announced the rules for the written test and mentioned another time that there was no elimination.


    I took a seat in a corner and saw the thin girl sitting on the desk across from it. The prince took one in the other direction as the instructors brought in the question sheet.


    For some reason, I felt a little nervous. It has been quite a while since Ist took any tests, not to mention that the fate of this world and mine somewhat depends on it.


    I skimmed through the entire question sheet, trying to find any questions I could answer. My lips twitched at once. It was a good thing there was no elimination in this round. It looks like I have to give my best in the next round.


    Well, it was not like I could not answer any of the questions. I could answer a couple of questions about the general herbs that could be used for healing. I answered a few more questions on the subject ¡®The History of the Realm¡¯ and as for the question about general sorcery, I answered a few, though I have no idea if any of it was entirely true. I might not get the passing grade there, but I could possibly get close to it.


    That reminded me that there was no passing grade. It was just to check if the students had previously had any introduction to sorcery or magic so that they could prepare the curriculum and allocate resources ordingly.


    Though only three or four out of all will get to the authentic magic department, a few might get the chance to learn in the ''lesser-talent'' sses.


    Within half an hour, I had finished my exam. I looked around and saw others with deep frowns or beads of sweat on their faces. As if they were having life and death battles with the test paper.


    The prince, as it was expected of him, seemed to be doing well, whereas Elinor was wholeheartedly focused on the test she was taking.


    I did not wait for the exam to end, but stood up and delivered my answer sheets to the instructor before leaving to get fresh air.


    The sun was brimming with splendour in the wintery atmosphere. A slow gust of wind blew from the mountain in the south, carrying the dry leaves. Rows ofrge naked trees stood at the embarkment of the academy, their branches swaying a little along with the wind.


    I strolled along the path before taking a seat on a bench. Warders had already sent away the eliminated candidates, and the ce was now empty. I had not had my breakfast yet, so I took the container I had brought out of my bag.


    Among a few of my redeeming abilities, cooking is one. A man needs to have some hobby. An interest to waste time. I would not consider myself a top chef, but I am confident enough to open a diner, though I have no intention of doing that.


    I just made my food to keep my mind busy, or I would have been worrying about the things that I have no way of affecting. I kept my mind busy almost all the time and with that came tiredness, so I got a good night''s sleep most of the time.<novelnext></novelnext>


    The container could not keep the food warm. I had the idea of warming it up with the mes of purgatory, but chose not to. I would probably burn it with my poor control over the ability. It was still as dominating as ever.


    Even if the food was cold, somehow it still tasted good. Only the egg felt a little repulsion, but the vegetables were far better than in my old world. I had never been good with most of the vegetables, but some of them can be changed now.


    "How did your exam go?" the thin girl said, strolling silently on the green lush grass.


    Seeing her face, the questions came to me again, and I could not help but stare at her nkly.


    "You look really foolish, you know." Elinor said, taking a seat next to me."I reckon your test did not go well."


    "I can say the same to you," I replied, and I did not forget to stuff my mouth with the food. "Not even half the time has passed, yet you are here."


    The thin girl snorted. "There was not a single question I could not answer," she said proudly.


    The way she said it showed she was not proud of it. As if it was natural for her to do that. ''Dear lord,'' I thought, ''Even their personalities are the same.''


    "Why do you look pensive, then?" I asked, fidgeting with my food. "Do you think it is unfair? That you cannot see your family anymore?"


    I did not know why I asked that. Perhaps the worrisome thoughts I was bottling up leaked their way out. Her and my situations are different, but neither of us can see our families again.


    "Can I have some water?" She did not answer the question, instead asked for water while looking down at her feet.


    My palm stopped as I recalled that the girl before me probably had eaten nothing. There was not much food left for me to share with her. I swallowed thest bit of it heavily and cursed my insensibility inwardly.


    I gave her the sk of water and found an apple and a couple of bananas inside my bag. That would not be enough for her, but that was the best I could offer at the moment. She did not take it at first, but after insisting a couple of times, she finally took it, though she did not eat them outright.


    I wondered what I would do with her. What will I do she is the protagonist? I had no answer.


    "Do you know how much the tuition costs here?" she asked.


    That was what she worried about. It appeared she was quite confident about getting in. Well, if both her and Edward''s origins were the same, then there was no need for her to worry.


    "The bare minimum should be a couple of thousand dynes for a month," I said and could not help but sigh. "To have a proper education without worrying, it would be about ten thousand dynes." The numbers sounded heavy to even me. "But you can get by with less in the first few months."


    Even though the girl appeared to be expecting it, she flinched at hearing it out of my mouth. She appeared far more depressed than Edward was¡ªthough that was probably one of the effects of being a female. To be fair, Edward was just as depressive, but he could hide it well.


    I stood up, carrying my stuff. I can do nothing to soothe her now, nor will I like to do. ''If she really is the protagonist, she needs to solve her problem on her own.''


    "With the schrship and doing some errands for the academy, you could get the bare minimum for the tutge," I said and looked at the broken white clouds in the sky. "And you can get a sponsor if you like. There should be plenty to take someone of your talent. Although ites with a price."


    I saw her nod, even though she did not say a word or eat the fruits I gave her. There was half an hour left before the next round. I could not worry about someone else, even if that person turned out to be the protagonist.


    "I am really d to learn you did not turn into what the rumours say."


    I turned at her words and stare at her for a while. She said nothing, not even nce at me. Shaking my head, I left her with those words and went inside the academic building to prepare for the next round.


    __________________________


    Drop power stones, or Golden Tickets if you appropriate the work.

 Chapter 12 10: Third Round

    Q: Who established the Starlight Academy?


    A: King Alberan.


    - - -


    I looked at the paper scroll with a frown on my brows. For the third andst round, we have to imitate a magic form from the scroll we were given¡ªthe one I am currently holding.


    Other than delivering the scroll, the instructor gave no more instruction, though that did note as a surprise to me.


    Looking at the enchantments inscribed on the scroll, I could tell I could imitate them by spending some effort, though I was sure the spell I would create would not work. No, it was not just my ipetency, but the scroll in my palm actually was a false form.


    This was not just a test of the students'' learning ability, but also their creativity and mental strength. Imitating the spell was not the only test here.


    I knew the form was broken, so even if I imitated all the things, nothing would happen. The instructor wanted to see if the students could find it on their own and try to solve it.


    On that note, I did not find the error on my own. I had the advantage of knowing what Edward did with the test on his first try. The protagonist of the book found the error in it after his first try and even solved it to the best of his ability, gaining the highest score on the test.


    My eyes could not help but drift off towards where the thin girl was. She was inspecting the scroll in all directions, with a cute arch in her brows.


    No, I cannot becent looking at her. She would do fine, but I have to figure out my own way there.


    Unlike me, she should have some introduction to magic. She was the protagonist''s recement, for Ishar''s sake. Yes, I have improved. I started cursing in the name of Ishar¡ªthe dead god of Shrankor. Oops, spoilers! It was one of those spoilers that people would kill for. As much as I want to consider myself as an atheist, I have no intention of starting a revolution, or holy war, this name. I would not want those zealots, those fanatics, to batter my name, denouncing me as a heretic, sphemer, among a few other things.


    Shaking my head, I focused on the scroll in my palm. I thought my experience as a coder would help in some areas, but that was not the case here.


    Those two were entirely different things. One was a mundane machinenguage. While this was a supernaturalnguage, there was no link in between. But my knowledge of geometry had some, though I would be damned if only geometry was enough to solve this puzzle.


    How easy would it be if I only had to click a button on the keyboard to solve this? I did not linger on the thoughts and started to inspect the broken magic form again.


    To my knowledge, all the answers on how to solve the problem are contained within the spell form. All I had to do was to explore every one of them to find the correct way. But I did not know if that was entirely true. Through his tryouts, Edward found out the errors of the form, linking it with his knowledge and the answer he got from the form.


    In my case, neither do I have the knowledge nor have I found the errors yet. And worse, each of the forms presented to the students was different and had another unique problem with it. So just knowing that there was a problem was not enough.


    Well, at least I knew better than most of the people here. All of them had started inscribing the form, including the showoff prince. Some even wasted a couple of their parchment papers. I can do better than that.


    I picked up the inscribing pen, which looked like an ancient fountain pen from my world, though the ink was something else. It is a cheap magic ingredient that novice sorcerers use in practice.


    I was not clear what it was created from, other than spirit stones, but I do know its function. It works like a semiconductor in modern electronics. If you invest the energy, i.e., the spirit force, it will form the spell that you have inscribed.


    At first, novices did not know how to create the spell form in thin air, so they needed the help of the inscribing pen and the parchment paper to create the medium first. As their expertise grows, they will learn to do it without the help of the paper-pen medium.


    The form I was given was a fire-attribute elementary spell, which was awfullyplicated. At least eight timesplicated, I reckoned.


    I drew the form of the form first and if there was no problem; I started drawing the surrounding frames. I have enough geometric sense that I left an equal space between the boxes where the rune enchantments will be put together.<novelnext></novelnext>


    I only need half an hour to draw all the runes, whereas most of the youth have already squandered a few attempts. Are they so useless that they cannot even imitate the figure? It was not like we were asked to imitate the work of Picasso. That might have to do with the teachings of this world.


    I saw the showoff prince delivering his papers to the instructor. He gave me and the thin girl another look before leaving, head held high. I did not know what he did, but I was sure he could not solve the puzzle within half an hour.


    It was not that the showoff prince was ipetent; he did have knowledge about fundamental sorcery and talent, but sometimes all it took was a little hard work andmon sense. But our Prince was too proud and presumptuous to think he had done something wrong here.


    On another note, I could have delivered my papers now too, but I did not. I might have gotten into the magic department with the talent I had and the near-perfect imitation, but I wanted to see if I could solve the problem.


    I calmed my breath and infused a thin strand of spirit force into the input of the spell form. The geometric figure on the paper was an octagon with eight smaller octagons inside, and inside the smaller octagons, there were eight more in each of them. Inside all the octagons, runes were inscribed all around.


    I was wrong. It was not eight times, but eight multiplied by eight times ofplications. Still, it is an elementary form and I must give them a round of apuse for making it like this. This thing had no actual use. Any higher form will be easier to create than this one.


    I did not have to infuse mana into the runes, but into the path of the octagons. It would light up the runes and form the spell. In theory, that was correct.


    But in reality, it was an entirely different case. As the strand of spirit force was about toplete a course in one of the sixty-four small octagons, the parchment lit up in me. Within a few seconds, the paper turned into ashes, bringing all my effort to nothing.


    Rosalyn, my aunt, gave me a smile, looking at what I was doing. Perhaps she was thinking, I have a working brain to check if the form was right or not, unlike someone else, full of arrogance. Is this form her doing, though? Probably not. Her standing was far above that of the others in the academy, but she should have known it just from the look of it.


    More importantly, I knew something like this would happen, but I did not know it would be so early. Fortunately, I was watching it closely to find out the error in it. The rules in the lines that were closest to the sides of the octagon were the problem here. They were not actually symmetrical, even though they appeared to be.


    Taking out another parchment paper, I started inscribing again. I did not start with the structural form of the entire form, but I only inscribed one of the smallest 64 octagons.


    I am not an idiot who would redo the entire project. Working hard is alright, but working smart is certainly undervalued. I marked where I thought the problem was andpared it with the other octagons.


    Within a few seconds, I found out the blunder I made first. I tried it out a couple of times more with the smallest octagon and found out what I was looking for.


    There were four types of unique rune structures inside the form, and three of them should be wrong. All I have to do is try out all three of them, making them symmetrical, and see which one was right, hoping nothing else was wrong with this thing that I could not even check.


    I released a heavy, self-conscious sigh. It would take me at least four hours to finish. For what it''s worth, there was some surety of its sess, and I have some talent in this.


    Abruptly, my attention was moved to Elinor again, and I saw her standing up with her answer papers. She went to Rosalyn and gave her the papers. My aunt gave the paper back to her as if she wanted to see the result of what Elinor did.


    The thin girl infused her spirit force and immediately the orb of light appeared, as the paper crushed into bits within it. The light rose to a degree before she stopped infusing mana into it. For the time being, it stayed like that.


    Rosalyn gave her a smile that implied that she would not have a problem getting into the academy. My aunt looked at me, exchange a nod that told me ''you can do it'' and left with the thin girl.


    I sighed and got back to work. A part of myzy self just wanted to give up, but I dominated that part of myself and got back to work.


    There is a long road ahead of me.


    ______________________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 13 11: End Of Admission

    Q: What did Edward do on his first encounter with Professor Ranyan?


    A: He pickpocketed one of the best Magus of the realm.


    - - -


    My aunt gave me a second look and continued on checking my answer sheet. Her lips curved up as she checked, as if I had risen above her expectations. Undoubtedly, I have. After all, I had done such a boring and bothersome thing for four hours straight.


    Honestly, I was awfully proud of what I did with the test. There was not a single student present in the testing area when I finished perfecting the spell form. My arms and legs were cramping, though I was still proud of my aplishment, ignoring the fact that I had an edge in the exam over everyone else with the knowledge from the novel.


    "This is excellent!" Rosalyn said, still checking the answer. "So you were not wasting your time so far."


    She was about to pat my head, though somehow I dodged that instinctively. She smiled at me and led me into the magic department.


    "So that means I have passed?" I asked, to be sure.


    "Yes," she said, walking. "Though your second round of papers was terrible, you have seeded with brilliance in the other two rounds. Ignoring that girl you brought in, your score is the highest on the test."


    "Not that it matters," I added. Only getting into the magic department matters. A high score was only an addition.


    "Liah would have been so proud of you if she was here with us."


    My heart ached hearing that name. It was the name of Scar''s mother, but I felt as if it was my mother she was talking about. It was not like that before, but after I went through the awakening of Purgatory, I became an awful lot empathic to Scar. I wouldn''t say it was a bad thing, and I can make distinctions with it easily, but whenever that name, or anything rted to his mother, came up, I felt a daunting urge to hate myself.


    [You have gained 100 destiny points.]


    Luckily, another piece of good news stopped me from digging deeper into those feelings. Only by getting into the magic department of the Starlight Academy, I got 100 destiny points. It looks like I have to continue my studies wholeheartedly for the points.


    The easiest way to get destiny points is to have some impact on the realm. And merely getting into the best academy in the realm got me 100 points. It clearly showed how impactful this ce is in the realm. I wondered how much I would get after graduating. There are only a couple of other ces in the realm that will get me suchrge numbers of points just by getting in there. So, I shouldn''t waste any of the opportunities.


    ¡°So what changed the mind of my favourite nephew?¡± Rosalyn asked.


    ¡°Aunt, you only have one nephew, but I have noints being your favourite,¡± I said, grinning.


    This time, Rosalyn got the better of me, shuffling my hair with her palm. I gave her an ufortable look, and she smiled.


    ¡°Seriously, what changed your mind?¡± she asked. ¡°All these times, I tried to convert you. Either you yed it down saying you wanted to be the greatest swordsman, or studying goes over your head.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what I should say,¡± I said, striding along with her on the polished marble floor. ¡°Back then, everything else was working out for me. Perhaps I like a change of pace.¡±


    ¡°Well, I am d you decided that,¡± Rosalyn said with a sigh. ¡°I know you miss her and me yourself, but you need to let it go at some point."


    I let out a heavy sigh and nodded. There was not much for me to reply to here. This kind of conversation makes me very ufortable.


    "Have you ever wondered which department of high arts you wanted to major in?" she asked again.


    "I''m not sure," I answered at once. "With the me element, the path narrows down to a few things. As for others, I will try out Sympathetic Communion, Thaumaturgy, general warding, and other spirit abilities if I can."


    To be honest, I am really pumped up to learn all that, but I am not sure what I will be good at. Other than the me that will be my main weapon, I have to learn other things and the most important among them are Thaumaturgy and Sympathetic Communion.


    Communion was one of the spirit arts that anyone with spirit power could learn, though very few could master. While Thaumaturgy was far harder to learn, while the perks were obvious.


    Magically speaking, a magus could not be called Grand Magus if he had not mastered Thaumaturgy. Other than that, I have my eyes on the Art of Warding and the Lost art of Runes.


    Even though there were only three things other than the general me element arts, I can imagine how much it would take to master even one of them. Not to mention, I have to learn the fundamental arts of knights as well.


    Unlike the mentally exhausting things in the magic department, the Knighthood would consume all my physical energy. I was even wondering if I could even seed. I might not be theziest person alive, but I was still quitezy. On the fair side, I can expect some fast growth there.


    As I wondered about those things, we arrived at the administrative office. A dozen more students were already waiting there and not all of them got through the exam I took just now. Today should be the first day of check-in before the academic year starts. So, finding other students here was no big deal.


    Among the dozen, the prince drew my sight first, and he was not alone. He was discussing something with Elinor. The thin girl was now dressed in the academy''s uniform, which, despite being a sizerger than she needed, made her look much better. But her face still had some hidden worries in it, as she listened to what the prince had to say.


    I took a few steps back and leaned against the wall, trying to hear what the prince was trying to convey to our protagonist. Surely, it was not a love confession.


    " . . . Can you even imagine what it would be like to serve the empire at the forefront? All the glory, majesty, grandeur, and prestige that it will bring you?" Ah, so the prince is already busy with his recruitment, and here I was thinking he was like any other teenager. "Evidently, with your talent, you will get a schrship from the academy, but that will not be enough. Sure, it will be enough if you just want to be a third-rate Magus. But the question is, are you content with just that?"<novelnext></novelnext>


    Elior gave a slow nod that meant no sort of her agreement or disagreement, but it was enough for the price to continue. Her eyes found my figure in the hall, though Prince Dareth had other things to say.


    "Do you know how many get an offer like this from the empire like the one I am giving you?" Dareth asked, though clearly not looking for an answer. "Barely any. Thest one I knew was Adarsh, who will be the youngest Grand Magus in the realm if he''s not already." But our prince said nothing about if the youngest Grand Magus took the offer or not, or how much the empire helped him to be the youngest grand magus.


    "Your talent is in the same league as him and very few others. I am sure you will think about it carefully before choosing. Just remember, the empire will be your biggest supporter if there are any." He said thest part a little louder, eyeing around the others.


    Dareth was trying to get Elinor on the empire''s side, though I knew it was particrly on his side and by the looks of things¡ªElinor was giving, I was sure she would not like to go there. At least not now. Even though our prince over-exaggerates things, there is some truth in it. You really need a lot of capital to stay and learn from the academy.


    Then my eyes drifted towards a youngdy of fine figure. Ciara. She was here too for the check-in. She seemed to notice my gaze and looked back at me for once, then continued standing like I was nothing but thin air to her.


    I raised an eyebrow. Should I go to her? No, not now. She was Ciara, of all people. She probably will say something inappropriate before everyone else.


    The prince had not finished his te with her. Elinor only got a chance to leave when an escort came to whisper something in the ears of the prince.


    Elinor bowed slightly, as it was courteous before leaving. She came directly towards me with a radiant smile. Seriously, did she have some protagonist sense that tells her I am her sidekick?


    "You finally finished your exam," she said jokingly. "I was wondering if you left already, giving up."


    "You seem to be in a better mood," I said as I leanedfortably against the sidewall. The test had drained all of my energy to stand properly. I tried to channel the Spirit Art of Breathing to refresh myself, breathing evenly.


    Scar knew how to do it better, but I''m still at the rudimentary level. Mediation and peace of mind are the paths to seeding¡ªthe ones I currently have a hard time finding.


    I made a mental note to get more information on this from the library or the Ben-Kyle duo. Breathing was clearly not solely about the mind; the physical body yed a significant role as well. Scar had not trained for over a year, and that was why it was so hard for me. I had to start almost from scratch.


    "Why would I not be in a good mood?" She asked. "I have been wandering for months trying to get here and finally seeded. It surely puts me in a good mood."


    "So, what were you conversing about with our prince?" I asked then, though I knew the answer.


    "Funny that you noticed, though if you listened carefully, you could tell it was not a conversation. A conversation is something where two or more people talk amongst themselves. Here, with the prince, I was only the listener," she said as her eyes drifted off towards the prince, who seemed to be in a bad mood now. Perhaps he learned about his poor judgement in the test. "Oh Saras, he likes to hear his own voice."


    I raised an eyebrow at herst sentence. "Should you be saying something like this openly?"


    Elior touched her mouth and looked around. Fortunately, nobody heard. "Prince Dareth was too good at conversing, while I barely listened to everything. Apparently, he wanted to sponsor me in the academy."


    ''Her style of speaking has changed,'' I thought in my head. ''Just like Edward.'' The girl before me was not a peasant if she really had the same lineage as Edward Eastwood, but a lower-ss noble who lost everything a couple of years ago.


    She was acting pitifully so far just for the survival instinct, and now that she got into a better ce, her upbringing showed itself. Though I am sure there is still some part of her that could not let go of that side.


    "Really?" I said, imitating a start.


    "He really is too good at conversation," she continued in a whisper. "He started with disregarding my presence and left nothing to remind me that I am a nobody here and if I did not have someone like him on my back, I would graduate as a nobody."


    Elinor was barely audible in a voice that only I could hear, smiling as if she was joking with me. Surely, she was smart for her age. Still, she could not help but sigh. "The worst thing is that what he said is true."


    A snort of contempt came, even though I knew all of this. This kid, Prince Dareth, was barely sixteen, yet he was dreaming about bing the emperor. Talk about ambition. But I could not me him, as it was in his upbringing.


    "So, what are your thoughts about joining him?" I asked with a smile.


    I knew she was contemptuous about joining with the prince, but I still asked to make sure. In the book, Edward did not take the offer at first. Later, through a lot of problems and disputes, he had to take the sponsorship and do dirty work for Prince Dareth for a while.


    I am not sure if this time it will go the same way if I did not involve myself. But thinking about how Dareth tried to pressure other sponsors to overlook her, I became far more sceptical.


    Elinor shook her head, as if she was not sure. "My schrship has not been approved yet," she said. "I have to wait until Professor Ranyan arrives. If you did not know, a board member of the Magi Department could only rmend a single seed per decade for the schrship. Professor Ranyan was my only hope of getting that."


    Right, Professor Ranyan. My brows knitted together. If all had gone ording to the book before I got here, that professor might already be dead. Though I could not be sure, as his corpse was never found in the book.


    Looking at the bright mood the girl was in, I refrained frommenting on the topic, as Professor Ranyan was her first teacher and should be quite dear to her. Let''s not disturb her mood today.


    ________________________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 14 12: Starlight Archive

    Q: Who has the best chance at providing salvation against the approaching doom?


    A: The Twelve Heroes.


    - - -


    There were a few things that did not work well with Scar, and books were at the top of the list. Yet here I am today, on my way to the archive. The people on the way even gave a look as if the sun rose from the north today. In no way had they imagined the prodigal son in the library studying.


    Unfortunately for them, the sun might really have risen from the north, or possibly a ghost was upying Scar''s body. Thest time I checked, it was thetter.


    I kept my head straight, ignoring all their looks, and arrived at the front entrance of The Archive. It was an entirely separate building from the two departments, close to the staff lounge, but by no means was it small.


    To my knowledge, this ce held all the knowledge of the realm for thest millennia¡ªthat was a lot, but unfortunately, not enough for certain pieces of information which were deliberately wiped out. At least it would suffice for now.


    Sucking in a breath, I walked inside. The inside was much warmer and quieter than the outside. Adding to the fact that the academic year had not started yet, the main library was mostly vacant. Other than books rted to sorcery, you can actually find anything here; from historical pieces to some cheap romance stuff, from the books about rising machinery to religious books where doctorate we are at the mercy of the almighty, everything can be found within the boundary of these walls.


    The academy was vastly vacant now, and the same was true for the archive. I was about to go look for the books I needed for my studies and other purposes, but before that, my eyes drifted off towards a particr corner where a few desks were set up to check out almost everything about the archive. Usually, students and some staff work together to keep the archive productive, but it appears it''s only a couple of students now.


    Only a couple of people were sitting there. Not library staff, but a couple of students who work at the library for a few tills. The blue ribbon on their uniforms told us they were second-year students here.


    These two folks were in charge of everything from recording the borrowed books to the issuing of notices to return the books that were borrowed. But by the way, they presented themselves, sought a frown from me.


    I did not need to get myself busy there, as I had yet to choose the books, yet I could not help but walk towards there. Interestingly, I knew one of them.


    Yeriel was sitting on her seat ufortably as an arm was wrapped around her shoulder like a snake. The youth that was sitting beside her did not even hide the fact that he was squeezing her shoulder while pulling her towards him. He appeared to be telling her some story about his glory or sorts, while Yeriel did everything to get away. Her everything was, of course, not enough.


    A snort came through my throat as I appeared before the particr desk.


    "We are busy now;eter," the youth told me, not giving even a single look while he kept on squeezing her shoulder.


    Yeriel looked down in shame, avoiding my gaze. She looked everywhere but at me with an ufortable expression. She could not even stop the boy. If she made a scene here, it would only go one way.


    Being amoner, she could perfectly imagine what it would be like. With her identity as an honour student at the academy, she might be fine, but the same cannot be said for her family. She already had a sour rtionship with her family, and something ever happened again, perhaps it will be the end of her.


    I did not go back as the youth told me to, but made a knock on the desk to get their attention.


    "Starlight Archive," I said, reading the text on a te on the desk. "So, I came to the right ce. I thought it was some cheap bar or brothel."


    The youngster finally looked at me. Seeing my red hair and pupil with the cut mark on the brow, his expression stiffened. "What, Oscar Emberheart?" he said, with a mocking expression. "Are you really in the right ce? Did you hit your head on something to get here?"


    "On that note, you should not be here either." I returned the mock and continued. "If you want to get your way with women, go to a brothel, for Ishar''s sake. You can try it in some back alleyways as well. At least the woman you harass may have a justified reason to scream without making it difficult for her. Just don''t do it in such a respectable institution."


    I pointed at all the tapestries hung on the wall, and continued, "I know it''s very hard to demean some urges, but at least think of the environment you are in. All the tapestries, shelves full of books are a huge giveaway. All you have to do is look at them once. Can''t be that hard, can it?"


    The youth''s face darkened. "What are you even looking for here?" he said in contempt. "This ce is not for a delinquent like you."


    "This is not a ce for molesters like you, either." I pushed.


    The youth''s arm that was wrapped around Yeriel''s shoulder stiffened as his face turned red.


    "Do I have to call some library staff before you stop harassing her?" I spoke brusquely with narrowed eyes. Even though Scar lived like a ck sheep for over a year, his cold face still works.


    The youth let go of her shoulder and transferred his entire focus to me. He will not let go of this insult that easily. If nothing else, the noble''s son never ceases to have arrogance.


    Then the noble son remembered something. This was the magic department side of things. Knights were not allowed here. Well, they could request books on certain asions, but those asions are awfully rare.


    I understood what was going on in his head, but I did not give him a chance to open his mouth and hold out the paper I brought in with me. "This should be enough for me to stroll around and borrow books," I said. This was a special ess form I got from my aunt after I asked her to give me permission to enter the library. "Can you read it?"


    The noble son found nothing to embarrass me, though the anger already went up in his head. All he could do was give me a few angry res.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Clicking my tongue, I turned my attention to the fair maiden beside the boy. "Yeriel," I said, and she looked at me at once. If I leave her here, she will once again be within the snake-arms. Well, teaching her some tricks will work in the long run, but now, there is only one option.


    Though in the long run, she needs to learn to stand up for herself; it is better for me to help her now. "Will you be kind enough to help me look for a few volumes of books?" I asked politely, with a thin smile. The smile looks good on me, right? Of course it would. Ignoring my original body, there might not be more than a couple more youth dashingly handsome than this.


    The girl nodded and stood up at once. She appeared as if she would even go hunting demons rather than sit here for another moment. Between the res of the noble son, Yeriel led me into the library.


    "Who was that?" I asked after covering a couple of shelves.


    "You don''t recognise him?" she asked, raising her brows. "He is Althan Kimber. If you do not remember clearly, you dislocated his arm a year before."


    I said, "Ah, a brat from House Kimber." though I had no idea about other things. That exins how he had the gall to look straight at me. In position, House Emberheart and Kimber had the same reputation, though Emberheart was far ahead with their military achievements.


    Kids like Althan looked tomoners for one thing only, how to bedding them without any trouble, and after that thing was done, all matters closed. However, Yeriel was a special case here. Despite her family being nothing butmoners, her identity as an honour student held her a little higher.


    That rest her in the middle of nobles and high-rankingmoners; meaning horny kids like Althan could not do as they pleased with her. Althan had to get her permission before bedding her. I shook my head at that thought.


    "So what are you looking for?" she asked, not sure which way to go. High shelves everywhere, full of books. She should be working here for enough time to know what block held what kinds of books.


    "I need a lot of things, actually," I said. "Let''s start with the books about fundamental arts, such as Evocation, Invocation, Warding, and, most importantly, Spirit Maniption."


    "That is quite a lot if you want to take it with you. Do you have some specific titles that you want? I can say there were over a thousand books on fundamental sorcery here."


    I frowned. My aunt had not told me anything, not that I asked specifically. But I have no intention of going looking for her now as a living and walking solution was before me. "Yeriel, you are an honour student," I said. "Will you rmend something that you found helpful in your freshman year?"


    Yeriel nodded hastily, and her eyes glittered. She led me to collect the books with a merry expression. She picked up books one by one and gave them to me to hold. In just a few minutes, there were about a dozen leather-bound books on my arm, each one as thick as my arm.


    I did not know if I made a blunder by asking for a book rmendation from her. It did not look like she would stop until she buried me with books.


    "Boss!" A shout entered my ears, and I felt someone jump on me from behind. I spun with natural instinct, but by the time it was toote.


    I lost my bnce and fell down on the cold floor. Not to mention, I threw away the books in my arms. Fortunately, it did not hurt that much as I looked back to see who had the audacity to y something on me, Oscar the Great.


    The first thing that came into my vision was the shining bald head. There was only one bald dude who called Scar - Boss - and with the iconic idiotic looks, I knew exactly who this person was. It was none other than the loyal underling of Scar. So he finally arrived.


    I brought out my arm and pped quite hard on the shining bald head instantly.


    "Ouch." shouted the bald-headed fe as he stood up. He jumped at me again, though not violently like before. "No love for your favourite sidekick?"


    "Look at what you did, Julies." I pped at him on the head again before, though not too violently. "Fortunately, there was no staff nearby, or else we might have been thrown out of here."


    "What''s the big deal?" said Julies in his loud, high-pitched voice, as if he was trying to offend everyone reading inside the library. Yep, that was my most loyal underling alright.


    He was not tall enough to be a delinquent, but had what resembled peach fuzz on his face, with the iconic bald head. He could have been called fairly handsome if not for the thin frame of his body and a shining bald head, coupled with the ck sses he wore most of the time. I would not be wrong to say he was trying really hard to be a delinquent. I even have theories that Julies only wanted to be delinquent to follow Scar.


    I mostly thought that Julies was a fan of Scar and would do anything for his boss. And he did help Scar many times, though this gentleman disappeared suddenly with no one noticing. I wondered what his deal was. Nobody knows his past, nor does he talk about his family and other matters.


    But unfortunately, Scar himself was in so much pain, he did not even notice someone like Julies, who simrly had issues that he never shared with anyone.


    "Keep your voice down and help me," I said, sighing. I joined Yeriel in picking up the books that I had thrown away with the sudden attack from my underlings.


    "Boss, this ain¡¯t you, right?" he asked again, getting down near me. This time, his voice was much quieter. "Picking up books, anxious about getting thrown out. This ain¡¯t anything like you. Not a single bit like you. Caught a fever or somethin¡¯?"


    "Thanks for letting me know again," I said, and felt a little tired. "And for your information, I am leaving everything behind and turning over a new leaf."


    ______________________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 15 13: Transmigrator

    Q: Who supposedly had hobbies in music and other arts among the twelve heroes?


    A: From all the little tidbits in the book, I can make out that Manas was supposedly good at music, but most of the others held some expertise in other arts, like Ayaan in painting, Kish in reading and writing.


    - - -


    "No!" Julies shouted dramatically, as if his life was severed.


    "Keep your voice down!" I red at the guy and apologised to Yeriel again. She was probably thinking we were no better than the circus crew. Nah, considering it was her, it most likely was not, even if we did appear like circus clowns.


    "Why?" Julies asked in a whisper.


    "What why?" Then I remembered something important. I got permission from my aunt to enter this room, but Julies did not. "Please tell me you did not just sneak in without anyone noticing."


    ¡°Of course, I did not sneak in.¡± Julies said proudly. ¡°I barged in. I think those blokes wille pretty soon.¡±


    I smacked my forehead.


    "Why, boss?" Julies almost screamed again, but I stopped him, holding his mouth with my palm. I gave him a re that was meant as ast warning before letting go of his mouth. He continued in a whisper again, "Boss, you are perfect. Why are you trying to be borin'' like her?"


    ''I would like to believe that too.¡¯ I sighed inwardly.


    "I know it will be tough for you and others," I said, slowly rising up. "But I can''t help it. It has been a good year and a half, but now I have to retire from delinquency. A man needs to grow up sometime."


    "No, this is a dream, right?" Julies said, and he pinched his own cheek as hard as he could. "I didn''t believe it when I heard it from that weird duo, but hearin'' it out of your mouth. . . I ain''t believin'' it, either."


    "By the way, where were you thesest few days?" I could not help but ask. The baldie before me was no less than a mystery.


    "I was . . . somewhere," Julies said in a low tone. "But by no way, I will miss the festival and the night of the five moons. So, here I am."


    I did not continue to push him on the topic, knowing it would be for nothing.


    "Boss, you seem to be . . ." Julies said, looking at me peculiarly, standing up, "Strange."


    "Here''s a bald dude who wears sunsses even in the dark, and only Ishar knows where he was for thest two weeks, and he''s calling me strange." I clicked my tongue while I wondered what Julies picked up in the little exchange. Certainly, I did not go with the pretence all the time. After that incident with the awakening. I felt terribly familiar than I would like, but appears things couldn''t be hidden from everyone.


    "Well, we all are pretty strange," Julies admitted, "but you appear a tad extra strange today."


    "Really?" I sighed inwardly. "I guess you have to ept the new me then."


    Julies was about to say something, but I handed him half of my leather bounds, before ring to make sure he stays silent.


    "Yeriel," I said and took the other books from her, "I think I already have enough books on Fundamental Magic."


    "But there are a few more that would be useful¡ª"


    "I think I''m good." I cut her out. Honestly, I have no idea how much of this book I could even digest to even try out more. "Let''s go to the knight''s side before someonees to catch Juls. I need to pick up a few more from there too."


    "Do you even need my help there?" Yeriel asked me casually.


    Evidently, she had no more ideas about the Knight department than I had about it.


    "Do you want to go back to that Kimber kid?" I asked her in return.


    Yeriel showed an ufortable expression. She was supposed to be there working as the archive assistant, but things like that Althan did to her really gives her the creep.


    "Come,e," Julies said, "Perhaps you will learn to grow some spine stayin'' near Boss."


    I shook my head and was about to berate Julies, but Yeriel did join, muttering under her breath. "I will get the fine than to go back there now."


    "Is it really this hard all the time?"


    "No," Yeriel said in a whisper, eyeing the path and then her eyes directed towards me. "But I would like if you do not involve yourself in it."


    "Why?"


    "Don''t you remember?" she aside incredulously. "Last time you went all violent like always, and because of that, Yasmine suffered. Words are alright, but please don''t be violent like you always are."


    I raised an eyebrow at her words and nodded. Well, even though I had the intention of helping her, I would like to do it without violence if I can. As we walked, I found Julies seemed to be staring at me frequently with the same peculiar gaze.


    "Strange," he muttered.


    The areas allocated to the knights were far limitedpared to the magus and other stuff. The knights were, after all, not much of a reader''s sort. Though one would be shocked to find out, lots of the upper-level students have regring and going here. After all, this world has very few options for entertainment.


    "Boss, will you not think about it?" asked Julies for about the 3rd time as we arrived there.


    I ignored the short, bald guy, takingrge strides that Yeriel was having trouble covering. Surprisingly, Julies was fine with his thin and short body, though it appeared that he was running. We covered the separation corridor between the two departments of the archive and the part allocated to the knights was not even one-fifth of the archive. Honestly, I can''t me them. After all, the magi, seekers, or schrs were mostly interested in books.


    At that very moment, I entered. A few familiar faces greeted me. It was the Ben-Kyle duo, my training friends in the morning. Each one of them had books on their arms, but they were mostly talking among themselves.


    But my eyes drifted off towards another person sitting on the other end of the study table with her hair unbound. Burning white hair, pale white skin, and a soft frown on her brows. She was reading a thick volume of books with a pen and paper in her arms.


    A couple more open books were before her on the table, as she was taking notes. Oh, Ishar, I thought. She looked too cute for me to handle. I might fall in love with her if this continues.


    I knew this was Scar''s residual emotions left inside this body, but I couldn''t help but stare at her in a mesmerising way. Yasmine was like a dream, a dream that I did not want to wake up from.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Or I am just a simp.


    I finally remembered why Scar had dislocated Althan''s arm back then. It was because he said something bad about Yasmine, though the core of the fault was none other than Scar.


    "Look, Oscar is here," Ben said in the middle. Even though this guy was loud most of the time, staying in the library for many days had put some sense into him, unlike my underling, Julies, who still followed me here.


    That call from Ben not only broke my mesmerised state, but also told the people present here that the prodigal son had returned to the library. On that note, Scar had been to the library before, but not for study or something along those lines, of course.


    He had onlye here to look at Yasmine, or else how could someone like her get to like him? Like many others, Scar was still a somewhat arrogant snob himself. He had put quite the work into the courtship before she even gave him a chance.


    "I see you are quite serious about this," Kyle said to me, gazing at the books in my hands.


    I nodded and found Yasmine looking at me.


    "I heard you joined the Magus Department?" she asked, as if could not believe it. "I thought you hated studying. What made you change that mindset?"


    "There are a lot of reasons," I said and rested the books on the desk, not subtly. It made a big thud as I took a seat across from her. Yeriel joined the seat next to Yasmine, while my bald underling brought out a chair as there were none avable nearby. "But the gist is, I no longer want to live like a moron anymore."


    "Is this the truth?" she asked again as the cute frown deepened. "Or is it just another plea to ask for money from me?"


    "Have I ever lied to you?" I said. Well, that was subtle, and I think it was what Scar had told her every time before doing something drastic. And yes, Oscar had never lied to Yasmine, though it can''t be said he waspletely truthful as well. Scar did not even leave the women he liked out of his dirty ys. I continued, pointing at Ben and Kyle. "You can ask these two about it."


    Kyle looked at me, but chose to keep his silence. Bastard, I will give him a good beating tomorrow. That depends on whether I can catch him off guard. My training was going well, but I was still not prepared enough. Well, it has only been over a week.


    "It seems to be the truth," Ben added, as Yasmine gave them a look. "He has not missed any morning training five days in a row now."


    Yasmine transferred her gaze to me again and gave me a good look in the eyes. I reckon she did find something different about me, though she was not sure. And the look on her face showed she was hopeful about me, though I couldn''t tell if she trusted me or not.


    Scar had pulled enough shits on her to doubt him. If it was any other girl, they might have left already, as my first girlfriend did. Crap! I was reminded of my embarrassing past again.


    "What are you reading?" Yeriel asked and took a look at the papers. I gave her thumbs up inwardly for saving me from the stares.


    "History," Yasmine said with an exhaustive expression. "For a job interview."


    A frown appeared on my brows as I heard that. Apparently, Yasmine would graduate in a few days after the knighthood ceremony. She would leave and join the Knight Regiment of the Mahener empire.


    That was alright, as Scar was meant to join that as well, or promised her to, but unfortunately, here I am still in my freshman year. What worried me was what would happen next.


    "Wow," Yeriel said with a start, "I did not know you needed to read the biography of the twelve heroes and so many other legendary figures to get a job. Not to mention with your expertise."


    Yasmine said ufortably, "It''s a specific kind of job offer, where I will get to learn a lot of other things as well. Not to mention, it would be an honour if I got the job."


    I sighed upon hearing that. I knew what she was talking about when I heard the job title. It was the job that would get her into trouble and eventually kill her. I was about to dissuade her from that, but Yeriel went on.


    "That reminded me you will be leaving in a few days."


    "Yes." Yasmine lifted her head from the books to look at me. I gave her a pressed-lips smile as the conversation hovered on a silent awkwardness. Every one of us here knows of our history, but they know nothing to amend that.


    "The Night of Brilliance ising in a few days," Kyle said awkwardly. "It''s thest of this year, I and Ben n to go for moon gazing in the Starfall mountains. Anyone would like toe?"


    "You know what, I have not seen the moons from there even it''s about a year I have been here," Yeriel joined as her eyes sparkled. For a typical Endian young woman like her, it was only of the holies asion. "Yasmine, how about us, we lots, visit for moon gazing before you leave?"


    Yeriel looked from Yasmine to me, and so did the silver-haired maidan, and Ben-kyle duo joined in the staring as well. That left only Julies, well, let''s just forget about Julies for a second.


    "Why are they all looking at me?" I asked, "Surely, I know you can find a better event manager--" Abruptly, I stood up, noticing an image in one of Yasmine''s books.


    I almost lunged towards her and pulled that book from her. "Hey," Yasmine said, but my eyes were on the picture in the book. There was a portrait of a woman in her mid-twenties on the entire page. Even though the book was quite old and the picture was just a copy, I could make out that the person was strikingly beautiful.


    Long silver hair like Yasmine, but this one was more beautiful and significantly otherworldly. Somehow, her face felt a little frightening. But that was not the reason for my astonishment. But because the name had been written below it.


    Adriana, the one who tried too hard.


    It was the name of one of the twelve heroes that saved humanity a thousand and five hundred years ago in the battle against the demons. So, the reason for my astonishment was that the name was not written in any of thenguages of Shrankor, but in something of my old world. Something I am familiar with. It was handwritten in some twisted form, but it''s pretty easy for me to make out.


    "Adriana Proudsmith," Yasmine said, finding my interest. "They say her beauty was so peerless that even the kings of their time raged war for her. For her sake, there was some fighting between the twelve heroes, too."


    "Who drew this?" I asked in a shaking voice.


    "Obviously it was Ayaan List, her husband," Yeriel answered. "There was only one painter among the twelve heroes. Why are you asking dumb questions?"


    "Did he write this as well?" I asked, pointing towards the text below the portrait.


    "Yes," Yasmine said. "It is written that Ayaan List created this type of code and nobody, as yet, has found a way to decode it."


    I could not help butugh at hearing that. It was not something Ayaan List had created, but some twisted version of themonnguage of my old world. But that was a bigger issue here.


    The issue is that there was another person before me who transmigrated to this realm fifteen hundred years ago.


    Things just got a bitplicated here.


    _______________________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 16 14: A Tool (1)

    Question 29: Who created Ember?


    Unknown. But it is possibly not created through the hands of humans.


    - - -


    I was reviewing my second failed attempt at making pizza when I heard the knock on the door. Then the door opened.


    "Julies, I don¡¯t know what the point of knocking is if you are going to barge every time," I said in annoyance, carrying the tray with the failed pizza on it into the drawing-room. Well, at least I would have some to share.


    "Good evening, Brother." a feminine voice greeted me as I entered the room, with a cheerful smile on her lips.


    Other than Julies, there were two more individuals in the room. A girl with identical red hair and pupils, though hers was far less lustrous than mine. Still, it was enough to know she was from the same lineage as Scar. An escort knight with a stoic expression stood by on her back.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t invite them inside.¡± Julies said impatiently.


    I sighed, shaking my head. For one thing, I knew they woulde sooner orter. Well, let¡¯s get it over with then.


    "Good evening to you, too." I greeted her back with the most brilliant smile I could muster. "Sweet little sister and Sir Lorne."


    My little sister raised an eyebrow at my greeting, while the knight, Sir Lorne, bowed his head a little and remained with his same stony expression.


    Lily was about sixteen or seventeen, with pale olive skin, crimson red hair, and an ember-heart that asked for every attention it could get.


    I could guess her name so easily, as Scar only had one sister at that age and she was quite annoying at times. Lily looked quite heroic with the red armour and the sword in her waist, but my gaze moved to the other person next to her.


    It was the knight in his prime, simrly dressed in battle armour and with a sword on his back. He did not look heroic like the teenage girl, but I better not underestimate someone who came as an escort with the youngdy of the Emberheart family.


    I frowned slightly as I stared at Sir Lorne. I remembered him; Lorne was one of the best Knights they had in the family with a few others. Though he had not reached the level of Grand Knight, he was still well known in the circle.


    Lorne was as stoic as it was described in the book, but he appeared cool in his own way. He is one of those characters that appears cool even when they are doing nothing. Look at me. I''m so cool that I don''t even need to open my mouth.


    Both of us exchanged a nce and nodded. Seriously, I love this guy.


    ¡°Boss, what do you have there?¡± Julies asked, eyes glued to the pizza I¡¯m holding.


    "Something I made to keep me upied," I said, as I motioned for them to take their seats. Some stress-eat while I stress-cook.


    ¡°It did not turn out as I had wanted," I muttered under my breath. "I could not get the desired form of mozzare, but I guess this will suffice for now. This world really needs some upgrades in culinary and cuisine.¡±


    ¡°What are you talkin¡¯ about?¡± Julies asked,ing closer to me while the other two kept on standing.


    ¡°Nothing,¡± I said, shaking my head. "Please make yourself home, little sister, Sir Lorne."


    Lily gave me an odd look, as if something was wrong with me. Well, that means I seeded.


    Julies brought his nose above the pizza to suck in a few breaths of its odour. "Smells odd, yet delicious," he said and gave me a look. "Since when can you cook, Boss?"


    I noticed even Lily was staring at me, wanting to know the answer as well. Well, Scar was never really a cook, so finding me with home cooked food was really odd, especially since there was no one else who could¡¯ve made it, but I yed it cool, dismissively, like it was nothing.<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡°It was one of my many excellent traits,¡± I said with a brilliant smile. For one thing, Scar was never humble. I gave the tray to Julies shortly. the pizza was already sliced up, so he could prepare with it easily while I deal with them. ¡°Julies, will you mind serving it to our guest? They havee a long way, after all.¡±


    ¡°Well, of course,¡± Julies said and got inside with the tray.


    ¡°I am not here to eat whatever you made,¡± Lily said without wasting time.


    ¡°Sure,¡± I said and took a seat next to the firece. ¡°But it''s bad manners not to offer something.¡±


    Lily snorted. ¡°Since when do you care about manners?¡±


    ¡°Fair point.¡± I shrugged and shouted, ¡°Julies, make it three. My sweet little sister has some problem with her bowels.¡±


    Lily red at me. In otaku culture, Lily could be called a Tsundere, though she didn''t love her Onii Chan¡ªScar. And most particrly, they were barely half-siblings.


    Their father had quite a few offspring. Among the few, Lily stood out as one of the prodigies. She should have been in the academy, but Lily was more of an adventurous type, and the academy held little for her. Still, like any other member of the House Emberheart, she had trouble keeping her emotion inside.


    ¡°So, what do I owe this pleasure?¡±


    Lily clicked her tongue and looked at Lorne, who handed her a scroll with the family¡¯s insignia on it. A decree.


    "I am going for a hunt," Lily said, approaching with the decree in hand, "and Sir Lorne is employed as an escort, but before that, I¡¯m here to collect something that doesn''t belong to you."


    I took the scroll and looked at her. ¡°So you came to take my dignity?¡±


    "If you have any," Lily sneered back, with clear contempt in her eyes. "Big brother, it''s been quite a long time since we siblings looked up at you. You are not who you used to be. Tell me honestly, what have you done in thest one and a half years other than being a disgrace?"


    I ignored her words and opened the scroll to find what I had feared. It was the decree from their father to give away the ancestral sword to Lily.


    Julies returned by the time I finished reading, holding three tes with slices of pizza on them. "Why does the atmosphere of the room feel off?" he muttered, and his eyes drifted off towards the decree in my hand. "They came to take away something again, huh?" The short, bald fe shot res at the two guests.


    "Well, of course, it is for the sword," I said, with no emotion on my face. I stood upright and held my hand out to take the sword decorated on the wall near the firece.


    The scabbard had the mark of a me sign in it¡ªthe insignia of the Emberheart family. It was the founding sword of the family. It held great meaning to hold the family sword as the heir. Mostly, the holder of the sword was decided as the next Lord of the house.


    Originally, Scar was the current owner of the sword, but events escted, and Scar, being the prodigal son, was thrown off the family, losing every bit of connection with the family.


    Lily¡¯s eyes beamed. ¡°Brother,¡± she said, ¡°you should just give up now; you have already disgraced the sword enough.¡±


    "Funny," I started, "You just said I disgraced this sword. How can a sword be disgraced? It''s just a tool, little sister. I acknowledge it''s best at what it can do, which is to kill. However, it''s nothing more than a tool. Now, how do you disgrace a tool? All I did was not put it to use."


    Lily¡¯s face turned red, while Lorne¡¯s stoic face broke finally as he gave me a surprising gaze. They really did not consider swords as their tool, but as their lifeblood, so hearing something like this was odd for them.


    "Either way,¡± Lily snarled, ¡°it does not matter. I came prepared. I already got permission from Father and came with the decree. You can''t do a thing about it."


    . . .

 Chapter 17 14: A Tool (2)

    "Either way,¡± Lily snarled, ¡°it does not matter. I came prepared. I already got permission from Father and came with the decree. You can''t do a thing about it."


    "Of course, youe prepared; If you hadn''t, it wouldn¡¯t be you, would it?" I said, and I rested my buttocks on the chair once more, the sword on onep and the te of pizza on the other, no anger or other emotion visible on my face.


    "But you''d be gravely mistaken if you thought I''d give up the sword so easily," I said with a slight smile.


    Julies moved to give the other te to Sir Lorne, who took it, still staring with a stony face. Julies returned to my side with his te in hand. His eyes red at the two, while his palm shoved one slice of the pizza into his mouth.


    ¡°How does it taste?¡± I asked, genuinely curious.


    ¡°Odd,¡± Julies answered, chewing. ¡°It¡¯s sweet, sour, and a bit bitter at the same time. Acidic too. It feels off.¡±


    ¡°Well, you will get over it the more you eat it,¡± I said and took a slice.


    "So, you n to make more of it?" he asked, with his mouth continuing to chew. "The odd taste does not go off, but I seem to crave it more now. Really odd. Boss, do you have a name for it?"


    I was about to answer when I heard Lily coughed, staring at us like we two are buffoons.


    ¡°Right, where were we?¡± I said and looked at the sword, the decree. I took another bite to say, ¡°Lily, you will not have this sword, oh crap! I forgot about the sauce. Julz, get me the sauce, will you?.¡±


    Juliesughed and went back again while Lily gave me one of her insufferable res.


    "Little sister, you don¡¯t know what you are missing," I said, holding up a slice of the pizza. "You see this? It will change the future, and I will make sure it does."


    ¡°Whatever,¡± Lily snorted. "Let''s rest the argument here. It will only waste my precious time. Just give me the sword, and I¡¯ll leave.¡±


    "It¡¯s the sword again. Little sister, why are you so fixated on the sword?" I asked in a condescending, cool voice. "I know it¡¯s a fine sword and all, but do you really think our other siblings will really consent to you taking the throne?"


    Lily frowned. She knew very well what I was talking about. House Emberheart is a house with one of the oldest heritage and traditions. They will never let someone weak sit at the top. While Lily is not weak, she is but a woman, which entitles to weakness in the old teachings. It will be twice as harder for her than anyone else with less aptitude.


    ¡°I will still be better than you with it,¡± she said.


    "I suppose you are right," I agreed. Even though I needed the sword for the future, I did not need the title of High Prince. The lord of the house had to worry about a lot of things, from the state, empire politics, and the wellbeing of the house, while I already had enough on my te to think about them. Moreover, I knew nothing about governing. I suppose I could learn it, but there are more concerning matters.


    ¡°What do you want?¡± Lily asked obnoxiously.


    Originally, Scar had made a scene here, breaking into fits and shouting over his sister. But that was not really a viable option. He was reluctant to give up the sword, as it held many meaningful memories of him and his mother. Unfortunately, keeping the sword was not an option. Thisss came with a decree, after all. Let''s get whatever advantage I can get here while keeping the door open.


    ¡°Ahh,¡± I said, ¡°I am d we came down to some negotiations.¡±


    Julies returned with the sauce. I took it from him and dropped it into the slice while Lily impatiently tapped her foot.


    "You know, little sister, life has not been treating me well for some time," I started. "There are so many problems already, and the original story has not even started yet, and I still have to deal with mundane problems like paying the bills."


    ¡°So this is it?¡± Lily said sceptically. ¡°You want money?¡±


    "Money is one of many solutions," I said, taking another bite, nice and slow, taking every option on how to annoy her. For one thing, I know her character very well. The more she sees I''m in control, the more she would like toe to apromise. I was her favourite brother, after all. "While it could not solve every one of my problems, it could deal with the mundane ones. As you know, since the family had cut off their lines of credit, I have made quite a debt."


    ¡°So, money it is.¡±


    ¡°Chacha,¡± I clicked my tongue. ¡°Have you heard of the term: borrow, little sister?¡±


    Lily gave me an incredulous look. ¡°That is not possible. Father forbade it personally for any of us to send you money or any kind of help.¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    "Of course he did." I finished the slice and continued. "But we can always get away with bending the rules." I stood upright again. "I cannot give up this sword, and I know for certain you will not find better use of this sword than I, but what I can do is lend it to you with some promise."


    Lily looked at me carefully and nodded slightly. I know what she was thinking, but if she thought she could take it for granted, she was gravely mistaken.


    She was probably thinking it''s difficult for me to yield, so I came up with these negotiations, though that did not stop her from having all the smiles.


    Iughed at that thought. After all, there was not a second person in this realm who could awaken the sword other than Scar.


    Ignoring the fact that the sword still misses a certain part, it was still a powerful artifact, nheless. There was still the residual ego of Scar that did not want me to yield the sword.


    "You know, I heard some weird stuffing to the academy," Lily started, "and seeing you now made me feel like something really going on. Brother, you appear to have changed a lot. I don¡¯t know if it''s one of your pretences where you act all goofy to swindle money, but I¡¯ll take the sword, giving you the little dignity and respect you have in my view.


    "As for all the stuff you said about lending, we are all lending it in the first ce. We don¡¯t own this sword; we are all given chances to hold for a certain time."


    I chuckled. "You sound like a real philosopher now. That means the body I''m holding isn''t mine," I said and which is actually true, "just borrowing it for a time, until it bes fertilisers, nor are the clothes or anything else. Either way, I am d we came to an agreement."


    "Daryl''s breath, you are bing witty with your mouth," Lily said with a snort. ¡°Should we start the ritual, then?¡±


    I did not waste a breath and unsheathed the sword. Light flickered a little and reflected off of Ember. Ember was the name of the sword, and it held perfectly in my wide palm.


    It was not just a fine sword. Though I said it was only a tool, it really is not. I can''t say there''s another piece like this in House Emberheart, and nor were there more than five pieces like this on the maind, despite missing one significant piece.


    There was the me insignia of the House Emberheart just below its hilt. It looked brand new, even though the sword was ancient and had a history of over fifteen hundred years. It had a good weight on it, and I found myself having no problem carrying it. But I have to let it go now.


    Releasing a deep breath, I ran the de into my other palm. Scarlet blood oozed out from the cut, and I let it drop into the me insignia.


    The insignia lit up in scarlet, and Lily came kneeling before me, bringing her arms forward.


    In the custom of the House Emberheart, one had to announce that he was transferring ownership of the sword, but I was in no mood for it.


    I gave the sword to Lily, who took it and cut her palm as well. She let the blood drip into the insignia and the ritual was done. She stood up and gave me a bright smile.


    ¡°Don¡¯t forget the agreement,¡± I said. ¡°I wille back for the sword.¡±


    "Hmph," Lily snorted coldly and left with Sir Lorne with the sword.


    I sighed again and sat in the chair,ing out of my pretence. Scar''s sword held many meanings for him, despite the fact that he hadn''t used it or demonstrated his abilities in over a year and a half. It was given to him when his mother was still alive, and she was so d to see him wield it.


    Scar''s father, Lord Emberheart, gave Lily permission to take the sword. So, that meant he had lost all hope for Scar. It''s just one step away from disownment.


    ¡°Boss, are you alright?¡±


    ¡°They really should have eaten the pizza,¡± I said.


    Looks like I won''t have free time any time soon.


    __________________________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 18 15: Changes

    Q: At least how many ancient Ward left in the Realm?


    A: No more than 400.


    - - -


    Starlight City was quiterge, but it did not have the cramped building design of my old world. Over a couple million people reside in the city, which does not make it crowded in the slightest, but the periphery of the academy was always a ce over-upied all day.


    The sun was on the north horizon, illuminating my face as I walked down the path with its usual reddish-golden glow. I ignored the young studentsing back from missions; the ones arguing over the charge of horses, a few on their bicycles.


    A couple of horse waggons creaked along the path all the time¡ªthere was never a shortage of people of wealth in this city, nor was it of peasants.


    Vendors pitched their sales with overly superficial discounts in rows on the sidewalk. There were mostly vegetables, fish, meats, and some every-day items. I needed none of these for today, so I decided to stride away, as the market would be packed in no time.


    Today¡¯s main agenda is going to the Guild. I need to meet up with a gentleman there to discuss some business. Essentially, this will have an impact on the future of the realm and could also make me filthy rich.


    The Guild is one of the other biggest organisations on the maind, along with the academy. It was actually an alliance of many crafters, alchemists, artisans, jewellers, schrs, and seekers. With the growing pressure from the Empire, these creative individuals thought they needed to do something, and in the end, they came up with the Guild, which in the end, made it easier for the Empire to keep the tabs on as well as to govern.


    For today, my goal is to meet a brilliant schr to discuss the invention of something this worldcks, as well as other things that I am not that knowledgeable about.


    The book was great in its description, but I can¡¯t get all the information from there. I need to understand the market, its rules and regtions, what can be allowed and what will not.


    Guns, for example. Yes, this world has guns, and Ruthalyn has some improvised ones that could hurt a spirit practitioner badly if used well. Sadly, the empirecks that technology and those guns could not be smuggled outrageously. So there are strictws on gun production and even anything rted to new production or trade.


    The person I am going to meet today is not a magus or even a spirit practitioner, but his inventions will change the future of the realm to some extent. But before he could get to create that big pie, he will have huge restrictions on his path. What I wanted to do was make it a bit easier for him so that I can some portion of the pie.


    "Hey, young master," a gruff voice called out abruptly as I looked at my sides. I gave the speaker a questioning look as he continued. "Yes, yes, you, young master."


    The one that called out to me was actually a weary man, way past his prime. A thin, scrawny old man with white whiskers. Old age had turned all the hair white, but a good portion of it still remains.


    The old man appeared to be selling his wares, but unlike others who were on a stand or trolley, he was on the ground on a thick, dirty nket. Commodities such as small vials of potions or medicinal soup, various ingredients, such as dry leaves, roots, bones and even some hair, were tossed around on the nket clumsily. What caught my attention was a fancy-looking inkwell in silver, as well as the brushes next to it.


    The old man was rocking back and forth on his sitting previously, but sat upright, finding me.


    "Young master." the old man called out again, satisfied that he had ignited my interest. "You are in luck, as I have not sold it yet."


    ¡°Sold what?¡± I asked, confusingly.


    The old man looked around, finding everyone was minding their business. He put his left palm into his robes to bring out a small vial containing red liquid inside it. He presented it to me with a proud smile on his lips, as if presenting some ambrosia.


    "What is this?" I said with a slight frown, while taking the small vial and examining it. Well, it could be everything from some voured wine to some alchemic potion of sorts.


    ¡°This is the legendary love potion!¡± the old man announced proudly, ¡°and of the best quality, too.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I was bbergasted. ¡°Really?¡± I checked the tiny vial again. So this is the thing that makes every teenager hysterical.


    "Yes, young master. You can put trust in old Adrin''s reputation on this!" the old man said with a heartyugh, puffing his own chest.


    That name did not ring any bells in my mind and I would be damned to put anything in it, considering the vial I am holding is anything but legal. ¡°You know, you can be put to prison if someone finds out you are selling this?¡± I said, ¡°even I may be pulled into questions just holding it.¡±


    ¡°Not at all, young master,¡± old man, Adrin said incredulously. ¡°This is not what you think it is.¡±


    ¡°So, this is not a love potion?¡±


    "It is." Adrin frowned, shuffling back and forth in his sitting. "It is a love potion, but not that kind. You can put this old Adrin¡¯s reputation on it."


    ¡°So, it is a love potion,¡± I asked, amused, ¡°but not really?¡±


    The old man seemed in jeopardy after hearing that. He cleared his throat by coughing and staring me in the eyes.


    "It is what you think it is," he said, "But something more."


    ¡°That¡¯s what they all say.¡± I snorted and tossed back the supposedly love potion.


    "Young master," Adrin called as his voice turned rather painful, as if someone was standing on his foot. "You are missing a big time."


    "Thank you very much, but I don¡¯t think I will ever need it in my life."


    Probably.


    I was about to leave when the old man actually strangled my legs, pleading me to buy that potion like it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.


    I should have thought right. This isn¡¯t just an old man, but he''s somewhat crazy too!


    "Hey, let go!" I called, not using all of my strength for fear of injuring this frail old man." Or I¡¯ll call the enforcers right¡ª"


    ¡°Young master, take it!¡± old Adrin begged. ¡°You can really put old Adrin¡¯s reputation in it.¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    "You will go to prison with your reputation for all I care. Just let go of my leg." This was really turning into a scene and would likely get others'' attention. Whom am I kidding? This was a busy marketce.


    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s happening here?¡± a voice shouted, and I found two men in their enforcer attire approaching.


    ¡°Enforcers.¡± I announced, ¡°Old man, let go now.¡±


    Before I could even finish my phrase, the old man let go. Moving swiftly like a hurricane, he collected his nket roughly with all its contents before making a rush.


    And man, he could run. He did not look all that weak in that dash and it appeared that old Adrid must really have had some reputation for this kind of act.


    One of the enforcers pursued the old man, while the other jogged beside to question me. I came clean, mentioning he was trying to sell me some weird potion that may or may not be real. The enforcer did not seem all that surprised by the issue.


    After a few regr questions, he released me, stating that I shoulde to the enforcer¡¯s office if I see something like this again.


    ¡°That was one weird encounter," I muttered, giving the marketce another look. After the scene, it resumed its usual business and cacophony.


    By the time I reached the Guild, the sun already sat and Pra''moon was already in the sky.


    The public building for The Guild was not anything outrageous like the academy, but it had its reputation. It was a wide building, stered white like any other. With a vast garden that tells stories of its wealth, it led to an entrance that opened into a wide reception. Dozens of people were busy at work in the several counters of distinct divisions of the guild.


    Wasting no time, I walked on the polished marble as the luminescent stones on the ceiling lit up one after another. I checked each of the counters: Alchemy, Craft, Jewels, Artificing, and finally, Science.


    Giving the other another look, I moved to the counter with the entitles with a big sign of Science above it.


    Unlike the counters for Alchemy, Crafting, or Jewels, this one was empty with an old man drowsing off.


    Good thing there was a bell there. Without considering the well-being of the old man, I rang the bell, as the old man was wide awake. This one was really old, far older than the Old Adrin I just met.


    The receptionist coughed a couple of times and put on his sses that were hanging on his neck to look at me. I don¡¯t know if he could even see me clearly.


    "How can I help you?" the old man asked with a voice that was weary and slow, as if something was stuck in his throat.


    "Good evening." I said. "I wanted to meet with the Great schr Grivin."


    The old man shuffled through his thick book once and then looked at me nkly, as if he did not understand.


    Great. "I want to meet the Great Schr Grivin?" I repeated, a bit louder.


    ¡°Great Schr Grivin?¡± the old man repeated the book. ¡°I am sorry, but that is not possible.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I frowned. ¡°Just tell him, Prince of the state of Emberheart wants to meet him.¡±


    The old man only shook his head. ¡°Schr Grivin is no more.¡± he said, sighing.


    ¡°What?¡± I asked with a start. ¡°How?¡±


    Schr Grivin was supposed to be one of the big-name scientists whose work will help provide another source of energy to the world, but now I hear he''s dead. Really, something really must be wrong.


    "It happened a couple months ago," the receptionist said. "Schr Grivin was one of the best of us. It was really an unfortunate event."


    ¡°How did this happen?¡±


    "Suicide." the old man sighed. "We heard there was too much pressure on him with the research he was doing. and atst he could not take it anymore . . . hanged himself. Really unfortunate. At only the age of 58, he could have contributed so more . . ."


    "It is really unfortunate." I agreed. "Now what will be even more unfortunate will be if his work, his lifeblood, is lost with his death."


    "Fortunately, it is not. Grivin has a son, just as brilliant as him. Though he¡¯s young, he has the ambition to see it through." The old man¡¯s voice trailed off as if he was not convinced by little Grivin.


    I conversed with him for another couple of minutes, taking in information about Little Grivin, who turned out to be at the Starlight Academy as well. I guess I will have to deal with him then.


    This incident is undoubtedly something big. The world is going off tracks of the book. Schr Grivin was supposed to suffer a lot in order to get funding and get his papers approved after half-dozen times, but never to the extent of suicide. I need to check out the whole matterter.


    Strange, very strange. It seems like an investigation into the details of his death is necessary. . .


    Sighing, I got out of the guild, nudging my palms into my pockets, ready to leave for the academy.


    There was something inside my left pocket. I took it out to find it was a small vial containing red liquid.


    ¡°What the . . .¡±


    ______________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 19 16: Moon Gazing (1)

    Q: How many Dominions are there exactly?


    A: Unknown, but currently, the maind has inheritances of six.


    - - -


    It''s the eleventh day after my transmigration and the day before the end-of-year festival.


    Now, what would normal students at Starlight Academy do at this time? Attend the festival and prepare for the next academic year? That''s probably what''s going to happen, but before that, we made ns to camp on the precarious mountain on a whim, where wild spirit beasts as well as other savage things roam amok. Though that would be unlikely by our problem.


    The swift, stiff gust of winds were the only problem so far on our journey. The mountains were on the colder side, but with all the climbing, I barely felt any cold. It has been four hours since we left the academy, on horses at first to the foot of the mountain, then entirely on foot, and such climbing in such a brief period could even make spirit practitioner tired. And that too with a heavy load on our back. Fortunately, my strength had advanced to Grade-C yesterday, or so the load was of no trouble.


    "This ce looked as good as any, right?" I said, pointing at the rocky sides a dozen metres away from me.


    Surely, we won''t want to climb to the peak. Though Ben-Kyle duo wanted to go exactly there, we voted against it to dismiss that. On the brighter side, this side of the mountain was not filled with snow or ice. Starlight City always gets the better of the mountains, unlike Victoria, which is situated on the other side of the mountain range.


    The Starlight City was a natural fortress with the Starfall mountain range, surrounding from south to west. The mountain range protects thend from the extreme cold. That was not all. The mountain holds many natural or unnatural treasures that help the spirit practitioner in many ways, bringing wealth to the city.


    "This ce is not that good for moon gazing," Yasmine said. "Though we can rest here for a while."


    Yasmine was not in her usual gown now, but in leather armour with a sword at her waist, though everyone else other than Julies and Yeriel carried one with them. Yasmine looked like a heroic knight and more of a leader of the group than anyone else, and I think she had it in herself.


    Yeriel was the one who was at her worst. Unlike everyone else with their trained body of knights, she was a magus apprentice. Though her spirit energy reserves could recover her exhaustion fast, there was still a limitation on it. The bald fellow helped her to carry the load, but did not limit her excitement.


    The girl with the lowest physical strength in the group was the most excited about the camping as she had never seen all the moons together in one sky so up close, not to mention the year-end moon gazing was a tradition among her people.


    Apparently, this world had not one, two, but five moons, but rarely did they align in the same sky. The five moonse into the same sky once a month, but in most months, it is not as apparent as today.


    Honestly, the Night of Brilliance was one single most important event in the Realm. Many things happen during this time ¡ª good or bad. I wanted to give it a look as well, though I would have been fine with just gazing out of my window. I was never really an adventurous type, however, that needs to be changed.


    We rested there for a while. Yasmine handed me a sk of water for me and Yeriel. The sun was still in the sky, radiating in its after glow. The sunset in Starlight city is always breathtaking, not to mention when we were on the mountain. There were still a couple of hours before it turns dark, and almost six hours before all five moons would appear in the same sky. I wondered if the site would be satisfied enough with all the climbing I did.


    Ben and Kyle were doing their best, so I did not need to worry about any beasts attacking. Not to mention Yasmine was beside me, who was a far better knight than the duo put together. Well, I should be good enough, too. Ignoring my skills, the stats are enough for me to contest with Yasmine, who will get her knighthood in a couple of days.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Genuinely, I felt down just thinking about it. If only Scar had not wasted his good body on alcohol. Well, no point in diminishing on what already passed. My trainings were going well, and I have some talent for high arts, though I would need some help from a proper magus to get anywhere. Then again, who won''t need any help to learn high arts of the order of Magi?


    There were also those mindless training on spirit energy that helps in control. A couple week ago, I was your average sry worker, and now with an Adventurer with a sword on my back. Anything could happen att his rate. Perhaps a dragon will appear and give us ride now. Nah, there was most likely no dragon on the maind.


    Abruptly, my thought process was interrupted as I heard a familiar voice.


    "Surprise, surprise, never thought to meet you here, brother," a female voice said, and I did not even need to turn my head to know who it belonged to. It was none other than my Tsundere half-sister, Lily.


    When Ben and Kyle heard the voice, they were rmed at first, but when they realised it was Lily and Sir Lorne, they rxed. The neer duo were in the same costume as they came to my dorm a couple of days ago, though more disorganised now. Lily was less heroic than her first appearance, while Lorne was still with that stone face as if no emotion will ever shower on that stone.


    Sir Lorne gave a nod to me, acknowledging my presence where my good sister did not even bother to greet me on ords to her Tsundere personality. Lily was with the ancestral sword, and it surely did not look good on her back. The sword was over a metre long, while Lily was not short, she was not tall like me either. Perhaps I just did not want to see her with that sword.


    My loyal underling red at her for me, as he knew how meaningful it was for me, even though I gave up on that sword. Not only that, the news of that was all over the academy by the second day. Lily was never the person to keep her achievement secret.


    "What are you guys doing here?" She asked.


    "We are here for the moon gazing," Yasmine said, though her expression was not the brightest. She did not take it smoothly on the whole matter though she never said a word about it.


    Somehow, I felt somewhat relieved to see it. Really, I was considering thinking if all the feelings I had towards this beautiful maiden came from just Scar, or there are some from me too?


    "What a coincidence, we had the same thought after our hunting," Lily said and asked. "Mind if we join?"


    Yasmine looked at me for approval and seeing me nod, she nodded as well. And thus, our small team of six turned into a team of eight.


    Apart from being annoyed by Lily, I was relieved to see Sir Lorne, a First-ss Knight, here with us. I had only been here in this world for eleven days, and this mountain range might not be the most dangerous ce in the Realm, but it still held danger that even a lone knight fears to wander on his own.


    With the asion being if not the most auspicious phenomenon, and this chapter of moon gazing not being a canon of the original book, something could happen here. My mind of a reader has a gut feeling about this.


    _ _ _

 Chapter 20 16: Moon Gazing (2)

    We made our way towards higher grounds. In these few days, I touched the sketch of the spirit breathing technique, and I''m sure Scar''s mastery of it helped me there. Even though I was not at the level where it could heal a slight wound, I could still refresh myself from exhaustion.


    On the way, Lily made a disy of her prize, the hide and spirit core of a wild spirit wolf she had hunted. She even talked loudly enough for me to hear, mentioning how useful the new sword was for her, as if it was made for her. I only congratted her, nonchntly saying, "Good for you."


    Don''t make me hate you too much, little sister. In the book, the light cat-and-mouse hitch between the two siblings had turned into something more, so the two could not even look at each other to stay under the same roof.


    Both of them were at fault there, and Scar did not even bother to make things better with her and his family. But I am not Scar. I will do everything within my power to repair the rtionship between not only the siblings, but the entire family as well.


    Well, it should be added, my limit was quite narrow. I just wish Lily would not get annoying enough that I would have to leave her as Scar did.


    We arrived at a rocky terrain when the sun was setting and it was the first time I felt chilly on the climb. Surprisingly, these areas in the mountain range were not particrly covered with snow. The winter was barely starting, and there hadn''t been any snowfall so far. Whereas the state of Victoria was covered with snow all year round. Whereas the mountains stand tall to block the icy wind for the people of Starlight City.


    We brought camping tents with us, though one of them was not enough to hold over three people together. We now have four of them, with Lily and Sir Lorne joining. Ben and Kyle kept a tent within themselves, while Yasmine joined Yeriel, leaving me and Julies for one. Lily stayed with Sir Lorne as she did not have much of a rtionship with any of us.


    Then came the share of other tasks. Honestly, nobody expected anything from me, and I lived up to their expectations as I did not even bother to join when they divided the tasks. Though I did help in preparing the meal, we are having nothing fancy, some porridge with some snacks we brought with us.


    I did get some suspicious gazes as well, though this was from the silver-haired maiden. I still haven''t confronted her after the first meeting at the inn. Honestly, I fear what to say to her. Even though Yasmine is forgiving, Scar had done far awful things to her. Perhaps I will find some alone time with her to discuss the wrongs my predecessor had done to her.


    Ben and Kyle were still tasked with security while Yasmine was the substitute with Sir Lorne. In between, I helped the rest with putting up the tents.


    "Isn''t this just like old time, little sister?" I teased Lily with a bright smile on my lips.


    While Lilly snorted in reply. My smile broadened. She really does not like to be called Little sister, I thought. I guess, I will call her that all the time from now on.


    When most of the tasks were done, there were already two moons in the sky, apanied by the sound of wild animals and the cricketing of insects. The swift wind never stopped, only rose in its chilliness.


    I looked at the sky and wondered, "Would the sight really be otherworldly?". Considering I''m in another world, it really might be. I just wish the night would not be so otherworldly that I would have to pick up the sword.


    . . .


    The night was far colder than I had assumed and the promised moon was yet to appear.


    There were four at the moment, while the icy wind was almost unbearable for me even with this body, which was far stronger than my actual body.


    I wrapped my body around the nket I had with me. Others had made fun of me, but I felt no shame about it. Why would I be ashamed if I froze with a cold? Funny thing was that Yeriel joined me on the nket club soon, sitting closer to the bonfire. Julies was outrageous like always, only he was in thin clothing, sitting beside me nonchntly, watching everything.


    Within the nket, I watched Sir Lorne and others hunt the lone spirit wolf. And this was not the first one that they had killed one. A few came before as well, noticing the fire they had raised. The other animals had left after a little tussle, but mostly, these savage wolves were not ready to let go without a fight, even if they died.


    With the few days of training I had, I could manage topare the skills of a seasoned knight to someone like Kyle or Ben. The movements of Sir Lorne were less shy than the duo, yet somehow he was far more effective. I had not seen him waste time on useless shy moves or movements. He did what was needed. Scar''s technique were not shy either, as they were likely trained by the same master, Grand Knight Hial Gorthan.


    Though there might have been ws in his technique, I was too green to notice them. Now, I have a better way to train, not just imitate the duo of Ben and Kyle. I have to cut out the useless movements and learn to draw the sword each time with purpose. It sounds easy, but I had no idea how hard it would be.


    In general, a prodigy takes half a decade or more to gain the title of true swordsman, but I seemed to have the residual instinct with this body, though I did not go along with the word prodigy.


    Fortunately, swordsmanship was not the only thing I learned. In sorcery, I appeared to have far more talent than Scar; all I need to do now is to make progress while maintaining the skills of a knight.


    "Do you want to fight as well?" Yasmine asked from beside me. Other than her, there were Yeriel, Lily, and Julies surrounding the wood fire. "You keep staring at it like you miss fighting."


    "Nah, I''m good," I said. I might have tried if it was day, but it was dark now, even though there were four moons hovering in the sky, giving far more light than I had ever seen during any night.<novelnext></novelnext>


    With that, I turned my attention to the girls and what they were talking about.


    It turned out they were talking about the moon gazing tradition among the people of Endus¡ªa neighbouring kingdom of the Mahener Empire.


    Yeriel was telling others how her family celebrates the asion each year. Though I knew a little about it from the books, my interest in the topic arose, thinking of listening to an original resident of the realm.


    "I think the tradition of lighting candles has already been adopted by many othernds," said Yasmine as she reminisced. "On this asion, my entire family lit candles and prayed to Ishar for the souls of those who had passed away, hoping that they would have a better life in the next life."


    "In Endus, it is entirely different," Yeriel said. "We did not pray for a decrease in this event. It''s mostly a celebration of what is toe, and it''s especially popr among newlyweds. Both the husband and wife watch the moon together and wish for offspring."


    "That sounds romantic and stupid at the same time." Juliesughed out with a grin. "For offspring, why do you even need to pray? All you have to do is¡ª"


    Seeing the res from others, Julies stopped. In the end, everyone got what he was trying to say. That bald guy was still wearing his dark sses. I was sure by now he had a couple of screws loose, perhaps a chunni.


    "They mostly pray for male offspring," Yeriel added, to get back to the topic.


    "Oh, I know, Endus is rather conservative," Lily said, as she did not like the idea.


    "Well, I would not say conservative, but it''s just that the folks of Mahenar are more open-minded." Yeriel could not help but sigh. "I had to go through so much trouble to get the approval for admission into the academy. That''s why I think Mahener is a better ce to stay, though you people are far more aggressive with everything."


    "You are right there." I chuckled.


    The others arrived as we talked. Ben and Kyle had most of the blood on their bodies, while Sir Lorne was in his typical stand. Like his skills, he was calctive in any conversation. He only opened his mouth when it was needed. Really, can''t this guy refrain from acting cool?


    "I wonder if we could get to see the moons with no disturbance." Lily said, and she was talking about wild beasts.


    "I figured not," Lorne added, and looked up at the skies. All four moons were held the sky, Pra''moon and Zis''mon in the west, Dai''moon in the middle, and Sai''mon in the south. Only the one in the middle, Daimon, was a full moon. "Sar''moon will appear soon, but before that, we should start dining. It is already quirete than the usual time."


    Others agreed with that. Yasmine went as the guard on this asion. Lorne stood straight like a stone while the duo of Ben and Kyle rested.


    Yeriel was ready to serve the food, and I went to help her as I felt a little bad for not doing anything progressive like Yasmine or Ben-Kyle duo.


    The mild aroma of the porridge drifted into the air, and I felt my hunger rise. we have eaten nothing since first break at noon. Julies got busy bringing other snacks, while the others seated near the fire.


    Abruptly, I felt some goosebumps on my arms and looked around to see what the deal was. I found it was not just me that noticed the change.


    Ben and Kyle stood up again, alert with their hands on the scabbard. Yeriel stood near me while I watched Lornee before everyone and lift his sword.


    The seasoned knight pointed his sword forward and shouted, "Stay where you are, stranger!"


    ____________________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.


    Discord:


    https://discord.gg/yA45JpRDPn

 Chapter 21 17: Undead

    Q: What are the threats of civilization?


    A: The Bloodsucker, and Flesheater to some degree, but the real threat is always the Saider.


    - - -


    "Stay where you are, stranger."


    Finally, a figure appeared where Lorne''s sword was pointed at, but the stranger that appeared did not happen to be in any position to do any harm to them or anything to them.


    His entire body was blood-soaked, and it was still oozing out from the wound in his left shoulder and chest. It was as if he fled away from a battlefield, not that there was any battlefield nearby. Other than the Starlight City, this ce was all barren mountain range. Could some wild spirit beast have done it? The elderly man appeared he could die at any moment. Savage beasts were likely the assant. Then again, why would this elderly man venture into the wilderness? He certainly did not appear to be the type to be here for Moon Gazing, nor was he of the age.


    "Please, help me," the elderly man pleaded, and immediately fell to his knees. "Bring my word to the academy, tell them to prepare. The Saider¡ª"


    I shuddered, and it was not from the chilly wind. The others looked at the blood-soaked man as if he was a madman.


    The wrinkled face of the elderly figure was stained with blood and pale from losing blood. His clothing, which had once been in good condition, was now tattered on his body, barely hanging on and swaying with the wind, despite the fact that it was stained with blood.


    There was nothing noteworthy about the elderly man, other than the wooden stick in his arm that appeared to be a wand. A magic wand?


    "Wait, Professor Ranyan?" Yeriel shouted abruptly and moved a couple of steps forward. She peered carefully at the tattered neer and stayed put with her judgement. "It''s Professor Ranyan."


    Lorne seemed to notice that as well. He did not lower the point of his sword though and gestured for us to not approach. He moved near the man on his knees to inspect him, and his stoney face, which was already devoid of any emotion, became raging with fury.


    Abruptly, the wind seemed to have stopped blowing, and I could not help but grip the hilt of my sword tightly, ncing around. Something''s wrong. My hunch turned true. It looks like we will not only be moon gazing tonight. I even wondered if we even had a chance of that.


    "The space," Yeriel muttered, looking around, uncertain, "is sealed?"


    "Everyone stay calm and steady," Yasmine said, narrowing her eyes around.


    Seeing the elderly man before me, I recalled the notable scene of Professor Ranyan from the book. He appeared in the very first chapter when Edward tried to steal money from this man.


    The author described him as a handsome man in histe prime, with an angr face and a striking presence. Though he appeared somewhat clumsy and emotional, as Edward did seed in stealing from a man who was supposed to be one of the pirs of the academy.


    I did not know about the striking presence or the clumsiness, but in no way did he appear in histe prime now, rather a couple of decades older. His face was angr and pale white from all the blood he had lost. He looked like he would die any moment if he did not go through any treatment, yet none of them had uttered a word about it so far.


    Something wasing, or someone. Maybe more than one, and it''s ominous. The wind had stopped blowing, and the moons lit night loomed into a murky ckness even further. I knew what these signs meant. It was what Yeriel said, the surrounding space was being sealed.


    "Take him quickly and try to treat his wound," Lorne said, pointing towards the devastating figure on his four limbs. His narrowed eyes scanned the surroundings and exchanged a nce with me first, and then with Yasmine and the others. "Be prepared and stay behind me, together. The surrounding area has been sealed, so we can''t run away."


    Yeriel was the only one who had any expertise in healing and got near the professor. Kyle helped her carry him behind them. While I wondered about the abomination who could seal a region. Small it may be, it takes a Grand Magus level individual to seal any kind of area. A savage beast did not have this kind of ability.


    The one who could answer the question, the wounded professor, had already lost consciousness, and Yeriel started to check out what was wrong with this person.


    "Sir Lorne," Lily said, gasping for breath. She was not the brightest one of the bunch, but seeing one of the pirs of the academy in such a state, she could imagine the trouble they were in. "What are we up against?"


    Lorne did not answer the question, but prepared himself. "Young Lady Lily and Miss Yeriel, please bring the wounded to the edge of the sealed area and try to find a way to create a hole in it."


    "But¡ª" Lily was about to disagree, but Lorne had already moved on to the next person.


    "Young Lord Oscar and Lady Yasmine," Lorne said, looking at them. "Protect your sister and the others."


    I did not know what to do, but in such a situation, I only nodded, digesting the fact that Lorne trusted me more than the others. While Yasmine did the same. It appeared whatever was after Professor Ranyan, Lorne would not be enough to deal with it alone.


    "What do we do, Sir?" Kyle asked.


    Lorne was about to answer, but his and everyone else''s, including mine, attention was moved to the two silhouettes approaching us.<novelnext></novelnext>


    It was as if they appeared out of nowhere in the darkness. I did not need to see them clearly to know what we were up against. The awful stink that assaulted my nose had narrowed down the list to very few, and with the bulky humanoid body and rotten skin, one of them was certainly a ghoul.


    "It appears our pursuit has found a few morembs for us," the other person said. He was a tall, lean man with a thick dark cloak on. Even in the darkness, I could make out that he was strikingly handsome and in his prime. He had a sharp nose, pale fair skin, and little canine-like teeth.


    Both his eyes were cold, as the being before us radiated an aura of nobility that said he was better than anyone else present here.


    Lorne controlled his rage to return to the stony exterior, though the same couldn¡¯t be said for others, including me. Man, I wish I had a talent like that.


    A seasoned knight is a seasoned knight indeed.


    "Since when did the bloodsuckers have the audacity to appear even near Starlight City?" Sir Lorne asked, while gesturing with his finger for us to get away.


    None of us actually had, not only because we were still frightened, but we needed a better opportunity at least, as all of us were entirely clear how fast a ghoul could be.


    "Audacity?" the tall vampire asked mockingly. "We are always here, snuggling in below your nose, human. It is just your inability to discover us."


    "Don''t waste words on those pesky humans, my lord," the ghoul screeched out. "Just say the word, and I''ll make sure none of them leaves this sealed space."


    "Now, now, Xion, it is not every day we meet so many juicy humans, especially humans of this breed." the vampire said, licking his lips.


    His eyes moved towards us, especially at Yasmine, Yeriel, and Lily. His eyes narrowed a little when they drifted towards Julies, but they went towards Lorne again. "It had been so long since I had fed on nobledies."


    Something was wrong with this bloodsucker, and it appeared I was the only one to notice it. In this world, fantasy creatures like vampires, ghouls, forest fairies, and many other races exist.


    Among them, vampires are mostly the antagonists of the story, though there were a few societies of vampires who had a pact to a certain degree with the higher-order of the Realm. But that can''t be said for all of them. Such as the one before us.


    Another note to add: the vampires in these realms, and the ones from the lore of my old world, have some differences. The striking one is that the vampires of Shrankor did not have to feed on blood to stay alive. It is not a necessity but a luxury, though it did have some psychological and substantial effects on them. If one got addicted to the taste, there was no saving for him.


    The one before us, evidently, was not from the group ofw-abiding vampires. But that was not the only thing that was wrong.


    Even if this vampire was a rogue, he should not have had the audacity to say those kinds of words, even if that was going through his head.


    From what''s shown on the outside, vampires are usually the noble bunch. Even if they had thoughts of killing some nobledy and feeding on them, they would behave as if it was a noble thing.


    But here, the bloodsucker seemed to be out of order, disoriented. He was not doing very well at controlling his impulses.


    Maybe he was exhausted after the battle and needs to feed. Professor Ranyan was not a regr Magus to scoff at either. He was, after all, one of the six Grand Magi of the academy.


    "I have an offer for you, Knight," the bloodsucker said with a twisted smile on his thin lips. "The insignia on your sword showed you are an escort from House Emberheart. I will give you a chance to leave with your life and the life of the kids you are escorting, but you have to leave the others behind."


    The others sucked in cold breaths after hearing that. Even though they were the brightest in the Starlight Academy, they never encountered such a situation or such dangers.


    Though I felt an unnerving fear, my rational brain was still working. There was no way this bloodsucker would let a couple of them go if it was in its peak state, which meant it was already injured and could not go for long. But Lorne seemed to understand that too, though no one could tell from his stony face. Huh! I can actually understand him. Well, that was an insightful thought to have in such circumstances.


    Lorne did not even flinch, and he had never battled vampires before, but never of this calibre. Still, he brandished his sword with spirit energy. The de of the sword lit up with fire spirit with the sh of scarlet me.


    There was no hesitation in his eyes. He said little too, just shouted at us. "Go, don¡¯t look back. Leave!"


    "I see, you have chosen the path of death," the bloodsucker said, and he looked towards the ghoul. "Xion, you can devour the boys, but leave thedies for me."


    "As your wish, my lord," Xion said with delight and jumped towards us with his huge body.


    _____________________

 Chapter 22 18: Fear

    Q: What''s the most frightening thing about the Undead?


    A: It is not that they are hard to kill, nor was it because they have uncanny abilities. It''s the corruption.


    - - -


    We did not wait for the vampire lord to give orders. Yeriel ran first, and Lily carried the wounded Professor Ranyan on her back.


    Yasmine didn''t seem ready to leave Lorne alone, so I nudged her before pulling her away. Julies, on the other hand, was by my side, ready with the daggers in his arms. Ben and Kyle joined in the run as well, though they were thest of us.


    My mind was already numbed with adrenaline as we rushed. We''d never be able to outrun that ghoul. Well, Yasmine could with her wind attribute, and as she was the only one who had reached the level of a general Knight and only needed a ceremony to garner the title, but she would not run.


    We had caught up with Yeriel and Lily, who were carrying the wounded professor, and by then the ghoul was already upon on Ben and Kyle. Even with the two of them together, Ben and Kyle would not be a challenge to the ghoul. All they could do would be to dy it for a little longer.


    Would that time be enough for us to get away? I wondered. Possibly. But that would mean we would have to leave the duo behind to die. In no way, in my right mind, could I make that decision with a clear conscience, yet my legs did not stop.


    There was another person who would not leave others behind, and she did not have even a tad bit of cowardice in her. Yasmine stopped in her tracks abruptly and took a deep breath, narrowing her eyes at the undead creature.


    Bearing her sword in her arms, she went to help the duo while I stopped. My mind and body froze as I panted. The three together might have a chance, but there was more of a chance of them being hurt, as well as something serious.


    I did not want to see that, especially Yasmine. I tried to muster up my courage and then felt a nudge on my shoulder.


    "Boss, what''s the n?" Julies asked.


    "I . . ." I said nothing. In the book, Scar was a character that had the courage of a lion, like a king, yet here I''m struggling to even make a decision about my actions.


    Pathetic, I yelled in my head, and here I was thinking about ending the story while I could not even deal with an unforeseen incident. Gritting my teeth, I muster everything to pretend I am not frightened. Which was actually a challenging task, but I am a master at pretending. I calmed down, imaging a ck void in my mind.


    Abruptly, a shout woke me up from my stupor.


    "No!" Kyle shouted in the middle of the fight, as abruptly, a body flew away towards us, spraying blood in the air.


    It was Ben. A huge wound was in his chest, with a big hole through the breastte and leather jerkins. Blood was oozing out inrge amounts as Ben coughed.


    "Nayam!" Yeriel cried.


    My mind rang, and I rushed to him. I never seen some on bleeding so much. Without thinking, I stooped down, pressing my palms against his chest, trying to stop the blood froming out. Not that it helped properly.


    My breathing was troubled just seeing the quantity of blood in my palm. There was no stopping it. It was like a damn leakage in a water pipe, spraying with my palm pressed against the wound.


    "Yeriel!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, forgetting the fact that I could do a little healing with Purgatory. It was not that I was unsure of my healing ability, but I clearly had forgotten about it entirely at the moment, though it would not be of much help.


    Ben will die if his wounds are not taken care of. There was no stopping to the blood that rushed out of his chest. "Yeriel, pleasee and help!"


    Yeriel had noticed it before I even shouted for help. She rushed towards us instantly, ignoring the fact that there was a two metre tall monster just half a dozen yards away. Yasmine and Kyle could barely keep it at bay.


    "Oh, Ishar." she said at once, seeing the wound. "Nayam, help me!"


    She crouched down and swirled the spirit force in her body.


    "We have to stop the blood from rushing out of the body first."


    She did not start healing first, but started preparing an octagonal magic circle. Within seconds, the circle was lit in the white afterglow of the spirit force. From the knowledge of the book, I knew what she was trying to do. The moment her spell wasplete, I withdrew my palms, and the spell restricted the blood from rushing from the wound. It did damn good of a job than what I did with my hands.


    Sweat beads formed on her forehead as Yeriel was about to start the healing when we heard the deafening screech of the ghoul.<novelnext></novelnext>


    There was only Yasmine now who was keeping the monster at bay. She was not injured, but the same could not be said for Kyle, who was thrown away with a dropkick.


    "Lord Vallod said not to kill the women. That''s why you are still alive, human girl." the ghoul said to Yasmine as if trying to dismay her into thinking that she was not a match for it. Perhaps the ghoul really thought that, and perhaps that really was the truth.


    "Boss, I''m going to help them." Julies said, with knives in both of his arms. "We have to y it together to stop it or buy time for Sir Lorne to help us."


    My eyes narrowed as I watched him move to help Yasmine. I stood up, eyes glued to the undead. Even though it was dark, my vision was clearing, and the spirit force was surging in my body. I can do nothing to help in the healing, but there was something else I can be of great help.


    "Scar, would you mind helping here?" Yasmine yelled in the middle.


    Clearly, she was having trouble dealing with the ghoul alone. Julies was there, but he was not much of a help. He was fast and sneaky, but his attacks had low damage, and the ghoul could heal within a couple of seconds.


    Yeriel was still doing her healing and so far it was working, though it would take about a minute for her to close the wound. There was nothing like instant healing that did not leave even a mark behind, and even if there was, Yeriel, who only had the experience of a year, did not know it.


    She whispered, "He had lost a lot of blood and there was a wound in his lungs. He might live, but I . . ."


    She did notplete her phrase, but I have some ideas about what she was trying to say. I did not want to think that now, as there was a greater and immediate danger before us. What else was there to do? I pick up the sword and throw myself at the ghoul.


    Instinct pulled my body as I rushed at the ghoul, lurching my sword into a horizontal sh, spirit force churning in the de. The sword hit in its torso, as grey-red blood oozed out of the cut. I did not have the time to celebrate as the cut closed up in naked eyes. I cursed the ghoul and its super regeneration, withdrawing.


    Yasmine took my ce, blocked the arm that the ghoul shot at me. "Your fire attribute will be more effective against this undead," she yelled again, "and I canplement it with the wi--" It did not even let herplete the phrase, hammering towards her head with its freearm.


    Her sword blocked the ghoul''s w as she rotated behind it to deal a blow. She had failed, but Julies lurched up from her behind and shoved his dagger on its neck.


    Getting the chance, my short underling pulled himself up and ran his other dagger over the jaws of the ghoul. But a hammer of an arm jerked towards him and threw him away, crushing a few of his ribs as his body crushed again on the rocky ground. His sses flung away in the midway as he cried in pain.


    The Undead yanked back the dagger from his neck as the wound started to close up. It was the only threatening would they would have managed to deal, unfortunately it rendered useless against its super regeneration. It screeched and rushed to the figure of Julies, intending to get its meal, ignoring Yasmine.


    "You . . . have . . . made . . . me . . . hungry!" it said. All the regenerationes at a cost, the ghoul needs to eat flesh to sustain its body and its ability. It crept at the immobile Julies, who looked at it straight in the eyes.


    My mind rang, and my legs just started moving, but I knew I would not make it when a water cannon fired from behind me towards the ghoul.


    It was Yeriel who used her spells. The swirling water gun showered like a freaking Niagara waterfall on the ghoul, yet it could not have an impact. All it did was dy the ghoul from approaching Julies, and that quick moment was enough for me to creep close to it.


    My blood was swelling, burning in passion, not just rhetorically. Still, I did not give up on the basics that I learned in these few days. Even though the thing was a hideous and terrifying existence and could kill me, I pulled my sword without shaking.


    I shoved my sword at the lower body of the ghoul at once, and I felt like it was piercing a stone pir. I surged with more spirit force. If there''s one that I did notck, it was spirit force. The spirit force strengthened the sword, augment its piercing power, as the de reached its bone.


    The huge undead creature threw a hammer of w at me. I twisted my head downwards, yanking back the sword as it lurched into a block right at the side of my shoulder. The w hammered against my sword as both collided against my shoulder, calling a yelp from me.


    A me of fury rose in my heart, and I could tell it was the bloodline. Even though the bloodline of Emberheart is still slumbering in my veins, it will never bow to these dark creatures. My eyes narrowed further as the red pupils seemed to glow a little in the dark. The churning spirit force turned red, raging hot.


    My vision was far better now. The others wereing in. Kyle stood up and looked at the ghoul with cold eyes. Yasmine was ready to use her wind, while Julies was already standing with his broken ribs. And that was not all. My half-sister arrived bearing the ancestral sword.


    Funny, how pathetic I have been at the first sight of this monster. The helplessness I felt a couple minute ago, the helplessness that froze me still, was nowhere to be seen.


    I still fear the huge, ugly, inhuman creature, but it was not enough to freeze me. I rose to the challenge with an unyielding presence in my will.


    It was time to put the purging mes of Purgatory to use.


    ________________________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 23 19: Flame (1)

    Q: What is the possible source of Ward?


    A: It likely came from Ishtar.


    - - -


    Meanwhile, Lorne alone was battling against the vampire lord with a bare sword.


    "You sent away others," the bloodsucker said casually, as his ws elongated into a scarlet dagger-like. "Do you think they can stop Xion? Or do you think you can stop me and still have time to rescue them? The stars on your sword show you have not reached the level of Grand Knight yet. Far from it from the aura I am seeing. Can you even put up with a couple of my attacks?"


    At the noble words of the bloodsucker, Lorne uttered nothing, and with a stony look on his face, he advanced towards the bloodsucker, rushing with his top agility, eyes narrowing, gripping the hilt tight.


    The fiery sword zed in the ever-grandeur of the scarlet me as he swung it right at the chest of the vampire.


    The vampire moved effortlessly to dodge his attacks with always the arrogant, aloof, noble smile on his lips. He swiped both of his ws towards Lorne as a bloody aura released from him and assaulted Lorne. It was a force of its own, murky and deadly as it loomed towards Lorne.


    The knight swung his sword in arcs around him to block all the deadly blows. Of all things, the sword of Emberheart specialises in condemning evil, and the undead go straight to the top of the list of evil.


    "Impressive," the Vampire Lord said. "Stop this then."


    Then the bloodsucker rushed towards Lorne like a bolt of lightning while he swiped his dagger-like ws all over to assault Lorne.


    Lorne dodged and blocked most of them, yet a few of them still got some skin of him. Wherever it touched, it broke his old armour easily, and when it touched his raw skin, it left burning indignation there.


    Lorne was regretting not bringing his Ward with him. Though it was slightly damaged and might get even more damaged if he used it, he could use it here. But he would not mind getting it damaged here at all. Not at all, it seemed.


    The vampire was not just fast with his mouth; even his legs were slightly faster than Lorne''s. Even after supplying spirit force to arm it, his armour was nothing but ragged leather against him. But it can''t be like the Ward and never will be.


    Wards can save your life in battle because they are lighter on your body and provide far more security as long as you fuel them with enough spirit force. Here, the vampire lord was in his own league, slicing his poor armour to nothing more than rags.


    The armour was not the only of Lorne''s worries, though.


    The fire sword of the House Emberheart was quite demanding, especially for anyone who was not rted by blood to the Emberheart. Lorne only got this sword a couple of months ago after making many achievements for the house, and he still has not adapted well to such a power-hungry sword.


    It was even sucking spirit energy from his defences, so anyone could guess how unruly the sword was. But even with that disadvantage, there was still a striking advantage.


    He needed one blow, and only a single blow, to deal a serious injury to the vampire. Without a second of pondering, he enabled his dominion, as his blue eyes glittered in the dark. Strange things, these dominions.


    As far as his knowledge goes, there were five types, and each of the five held five unique powers. Even among the elite knights, the Dominion was scarce. Only after his aplishments in the military was Lorne awarded this one. He got it after paying with his blood.


    The dominion he held is called the dominion of the Seer¡ªit lets him see the flow of force in his opponent''s body and hide his own flow. It did not have any offensive skills, but with his swordsmanship, he could use it with extreme precision and know the next moves of his opponent.


    Unfortunately for him, the opponent he was fighting today was way over his league. He was even having a problem reading the energy flowing through the bloodsucker''s body.


    "Ah, the dominion of a seer, ye?" the bloodsuckermented with evident contempt in his eyes. He had lived a couple hundred years and surely he had seen this before and learned to avoid it, too.


    They had exchanged over a dozen blows in the quick encounter, and somehow he felt he was not the only one who was thinking of shortening the battle. The bloodsucker wasing at him with vicious blows one after another while he blocked most of them but still suffered from a few of them.


    The tall undead withdrew for a moment and looked at the blood on his dagger-like w. It was Lorne''s blood, and the bloodsucker tasted it, running his tongue over the ws.


    The bloodsucker''s eyes glowed with delight, and his face twisted even more."Ahh, what a delightful taste," he said. "Perhaps I am too hungry to even judge it."


    But at that very moment, Lorne picked up his pace, and his speed was even further boostedpared to the vampire. He could be a little faster than even now, pumping extra spirit force, but that needed to wait. He needed to wait for the opportunity.


    He crept right before the vampire lord and swept his fiery sword through the lower body. His opponent dodged, somehow twisting his body inhumanely, but Lorne came with the sword again. This time, it was aimed squarely at the arrogant, handsome face.


    The vampire lord jerked his head to a duck, but the sword twisted in the path and came at him again.


    This time, the undead could not dodge anymore, as the de made a bloody wound on his shoulder. The vampire tried to fling himself away to minimise the impact of the blow.


    But Lorne did not want to let go of his target so easily. He took advantage of the situation and dashed towards the vampire, who was on his way to copsing on the ground.


    But he did not. With a swift somersault, the vampire stood up, and luckily, Lorne saw through it with the power of the seer.<novelnext></novelnext>


    A sword greeted the bloodsucker at his throat, warping the spirit force in a slow roar. The undead stepped sideways for a dodge, but the fiery sword made a feint, and the me burned even further at that very moment.


    The slow roar of the spirit force warped away, fastened as it approached the undead.


    Lorne put everything on that attack and if this connects where he intended, then it may very well be the deciding blow.


    The sword was about to pierce the gut of the vampire when the undead put up their freaking knee as a block against the sword. The sword easily broke the defence and cut off the limb entirely.


    Before the leg could even fall on the ground, a twisted smile appeared on the face of the bloodsucker, and a sudden dark force was released from his body in such an utter fashion that Lorne was flung away a couple of dozen metres away from the impact.


    He was not the only one who was looking for the opportunity it seemed.


    Lorne dropped to the stony ground pathetically. Blood bubbled out from all over his body, not just the exposed part of his head. The leather armour he was wearing soon turned bloody, as he coughed out more blood from his mouth and nose.


    The impact first broke a few of his bones, then messed up his spirit force channelling system, and then blew him away. But worse, he lost his sword.


    No amount of brute force could do it like this, invade the body, and destroy it from within. It needs practice, talent and high control over the art. There sure was a force to reckon with in the attack, but the blow was far more vicious than Lorne could even have thought.


    "Do you think you are only battling a regr vampire?" the bloodsucker said in a simrly raging and contentious voice.


    His left leg, which he used to block the fiery sword, was cut off from the knees, yet no blood was oozing out of the wound. He restricted it with some kind of method. He then looked towards the cut-off leg a couple of metres away. His gaze concentrated on it, and the leg seemed to shake a little at first.


    "See this?" the vampire said again, and the cut-off leg flew towards him. "This is the art you humans are so proud of. In the couple hundred years I lived, I picked a few sorceries from humans myself. And it is truly a delight to crush humans with their own making."


    Lorne was in a messed up state to worry about what the Vampire was saying. He made a great blunder this time. He should have thought this bloodsucker was simrly skilled in sorcery or else how could he put down someone like Professor Ranyan.


    At first, Lorne was cautious as he had never battled someone this powerful, but at the same time, he was worried about the kids as well. And with that fear in mind, he fell into the scheme of the vampire.


    The vampire seemed to be in the mood to enjoy his first meal today, as he did not make haste to kill Lorne. He put the cut-off leg on and tried to paste it on the stump which had once been his left knee. Some bloody glow came from the wound, and it solidified with the cut-off leg. It was certainly not like before, but it was definitely an overpowered ability to heal an injury of such a level.


    Lorne crawled towards the sword a few metres away. He could not use sorcery as the vampire did with his lost leg, so he had to work for it physically, crawling.


    That was not all. He was trying to fend off the dark, deadly aura that had infected his channelling system. It proved to be quite difficult, but he still got his hands on his spirit force again.


    "All this fighting and moving and fighting, again and again, has made me hungry, very hungry," the bloodsucker said. His face had lost its handsomeness and dignity a long time ago. It was now the face of a savage, a predator, who was looking at his prey.


    "Usually, I prefer humans of a younger age, but it seems I have to make up with you for now. Those groups of girls looked tasty as well. So I''ve decided to satisfy my hunger and then enjoy them for a longer period of time," said the vampire with a twisted smile.


    Anger rose in Lorne''s heart, and he surged through the spirit in his channel again, ignoring the deadly aura in his system. He was only a couple of arms away from his sword when the deadly dark force came at him again. This time it was not so overwhelming, but still deadly enough.


    Fortunately, he was prepared for it. The seasoned knight burst out of spirit energy from his lower body and rolled on the ground swiftly. In between, he had gotten hold of the sword.


    "You still have the strength to fight?" The vampire seemed a little surprised.


    "Well, it doesn''t matter. The deadly force of the undead will consume your life force gradually. Maybe I should give another hand and savour the feast. It has been quite some time now that I have controlled my hunger."


    _________________________


    For those who are wondering about the Ranks of Knights here.


    -Knight Squire: On the path to be a knight.


    -Knight: Taken an oath to protect the chosen Lord.


    -Grand Knight: A seasoned Knight whose achievement and skills speak for themselves.


    -Royal Knight: It is not just the lordship that the Royal Knight Protect, but the entire Kingdom.


    ? -Radiant Knight: They are the protector of the realm.


    Another thing to add, a magus majoring in battle is far more powerful than a Knight within a simr realm. Other than Knight and Mages, there are other systems as well, it will be introducedter as in the maind these two are the main conventional path.

 Chapter 24 19: Flame (2)

    A dropkick lurched right at my face, and I somehow pulled the sword towards it in a block. The hammer of a leg thumped against the sword, and I felt the wrecking tremor in my palms. Even holding the hilt became a challenge.


    It was painful to some extent, but the ghoul was in far more pain than I ever was. I did not jerk the sword in just a block, but rested it right where the kick came from. The sword pierced the toe of the foot from the inside out, and just looking at it made him sick. Luckily, I was not at the other end.


    I jerked the sword back and withdrew instantly. It would not be wrong to say the sess I had with the lucky urrence did a great deal to lift my confidence. But with that confidence came a little craziness as well.


    I seriously never thought I would be this good in battle.


    I froze up for nothing. The blood in my veins was somewhat responsible for it, as it is most effective against evil, which includes the undead. Then there was that instinct left in the body.


    The ghoul came after me, but it did not have free reins like before when it was only dealing with Kyle and Yasmine.


    The tall maiden came right behind the undead and swung her sword at the back of its knees. Her white hair drifted as she made a reverse swing along before withdrawing. Those were the full-shes, infusing the full power of her wind attribute.


    The monster roared and screeched in pain, which was quite horrifying to listen to. But none of them were actually horrified like they were at the beginning. Finally, they had seeded in dealing with two sessive blows and both were more impactful than before.


    Yeriel''s water gun came again and showered on the ghoul, limiting it to the very spot. While Yasmine swung her sword as a medium to release the sharp gale of wind that made a cross mark on the chest of their opponent, Xion the Ghoul.


    If it was just a human, it would have been dead many times over. Ignoring its healing capabilities, it would have died a couple of times already.


    Finally, Kyle came around the back of the ghoul and assaulted its lower body again. That was what they were taught in the academy. Fiends like these take a lot of effort and time to heal wounds on the joints or other spots like the head and neck.


    And it was the same for the abomination they were fighting. Its toe that was pierced through has not healed yet, but the cross marks Yasmine caused are already on the way to healing.


    "Why are you not using your me?" Yasmine shouted at me. After all, mes or light-attributed attacks were the most effective against the undead. Given how desperate of a situation they were in, her question was not unfounded.


    I have already considered everything. With my current ability, I could only do two or three things with Purgatory, and only one of them might be useful. But the problem was that I could use it only once, and it would leave me almost immobilised after that. How can I bring this up to her now, in short?


    "I have a n," that''s what I said in the end. "But I need everyone''s help."


    I looked at everyone, from Yasmine, Yeriel, and Lily to Kyle, who was still messing with the monster with an enraged voice. Seeing his partner getting such a blow made it hard for him to not get enraged.


    I was about to mention a little about what I was nning when, abruptly, I felt a disturbance from ahead. That came from where the Bloodsucker and Lorne were battling. That troubled me further.


    "We need to break the seal and call for help," Lily said, as she was worried about her knight, and she had every reason to be. Lorne was a fine knight in the book whoter advanced to the rank of Grand Knight, but here he was not enough to finish the vampire.


    "Yeriel, can you create a hole in the barrier?" I asked Yeriel, as she was the only one who had any expertise in high arts among them. Well, the knights could break it as well, but brute force will take far longer than the actual process that was taught to the order of magi.


    Seeing her nod, I threw her a small orb-like crystal. "Good. Create a hole at once and call for help with that."


    That was with me the entire time. My suspicious and frightened brain was of some use. I somehow had the hunch that something might go wrong today at this auspicious event. That was why I always kept the emergency SOS orb with me. Now I can only hope Yeriel could make a hole in time and someone from the academy got the signal and came to our rescue.


    Yeriel rushed out soon, seeing no one had dismissed the n. For a change, I looked at Lily. I considered asking for the sword from her, but changed my mind. That thing was too unfamiliar to me to use in these emergencies, and most importantly, it was a power-hungry weapon that I might not be able to handle with my control.


    Kyle finally withdrew from the ghoul as it was approaching us now.


    "Lily, use your firepower alongside Yasmine to tire it out," I snarled, drawing spirit force on my sword as it churn. I used the breathing technique of the Knights and visualised the me, though I did not let it out at the moment. I only have one chance to steal everything.


    Lily did notin. Even though like any Emberheart she has a fiery head, she did not argue with my decision.


    The silver-haired maiden and the redhead weed the ghoul with their swords in their arms. With all the injuries to its lower body, it was a little slower than before, however, two females were insufficient to deal with it.


    Yasmine battled in close quarters, keeping it at bay for Lily to deal with the mes on it.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Lily did not have as much spirit force as I did, but her mes were truly effective against the ghoul. Kyle joined the fray and battled in close quarters¡ªother than his swordsmanship, he had nothing else to show, but his attacks were not light either.


    The ghoul screeches and tries to throw Yasmine off, jerking its hammer of a w. It may have held its punches from the maidens before because it was a direct order from its lord, but the struggle had reached a new level. It no longer had the luxury of holding back.


    Yasmine had no way of blocking the w. Luckily, I was close by. I approached at the very moment and blocked her arm. The overwhelming strength was enough for me to copse, but I mustered every bit of strength I could muster in my legs to keep myself there.


    "We got this," I snarled, and a leg hustled at me, throwing me off a couple of metres away. I had enough time to get myself into a safer position where the kick would not have much impact, though it still hurt like hell.


    Lily released the ember again and burned a good portion of the skin. The ghoul roared in madness, rampaging as if it had no other reason to remain sane.


    Even though it was healing that could be seen with naked eyes, it consumed him with enough power¡ªnot to mention the pain. Its hunger has increased, and we must keep it going for a little longer.


    The four of us fought like that for nearly two minutes, and I managed to get the momentum I needed to bring out Purgatory. Now all Ick is a good opportunity.


    All of our lungs were pumping air like crazy and heavy gasps escaped from our mouths. Kyle and Lily nearly had no stamina left, while Yasmine was the only one who was in a fair state to continue. As for me, I only have one attack left.


    "Yeriel should have dug the hole by now," I reasoned, and I exchanged nces with the others. It was time now.


    Kyle ran first and then Lily with the ming sword. The two engaged the undead in left and right, while Yasmine moved to the front. I was in the back, running in.


    The ghoul screeched, throwing arms in madness. He did not even remember the order from the bloodsucker to leave the females alive. It was jerking its arms and legs in madness.


    Lily yelped for help and her body flew away with her sword stuck in its torso. When Kyle could not muster more strength as well as when he was about to be thrown off by the ghoul, I shouted at Yasmine, who was trying to help him.


    "Toss me up!" I shouted.


    Yasmine did not have time to understand what I was implying, but she did what I asked her to. A heavy weave of wind tossed me about a dozen metres in the air.


    I felt a rush of excitement and fear, but I had no time for it. A scarlet me rose from my arm and zed the sword into a ming de. I jerked my arm back and shot it right at the ghoul below.


    That was not the end, nor the attack I was preparing for. With the newfound ability, there were two or three things I could do.


    Other than the little healing and the small fire that could be used in cooking, the other thing I could do was release everything at once. I almost burned my dorm once doing that, and now I was trying to do exactly that. Or far worse, if you ask me.


    The ming sword pierced the right shoulder of the ghoul. I was off by a few inchesst time, but I won''t be this time. The spirit force burned inside my channels, roaring, raging and screaming. It was utterly painful for me and I gritted my teeth to continue.


    A scarlet ember rose from my palm at once, and I raged it towards the ghoul, still dropping from the air. It was not the trickle of a me that Lily conjured, but a zing me that would consume everything in its path.


    The ghoul screeched, and it rang in my eardrums, hurting them, but it was far less than the raging burn I was getting in the channelling path. I dropped to the ground on my leg, hurting it a little. Luckily, I got what I intended; the fire consumed the ghoul all over.


    Yasmine joined me and weaved her wind around the body of the struggling ghoul to get the most out of the fire. With the help of the wind swirling all around the berserk undead, only a little of the fire was wasted.


    We watched the fire of purgatory consume the ghoul. Yasmine and I were standing before it, and Kyle and Lily were on the ground. With the effect of punishing evil, the ghoul was feeling far more pain than he ever had in his life while burning in the me.


    Purgatory was said to cleanse the soul of all evil in folklore, but in this case, it devoured the ghoul like a hungry wolf. Either way, I''m deeply satisfied.


    "We made it," I said, and felt a weakness in my body and mind. There was no spirit force in my system, and I fell just as the bones of the ghoul fell on the ground.


    ______________________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 25 20: Rescue (1)

    Q: What is Roghara?


    A: It was the sword dance that was yed during the Demon-subjugating festival every year. Legend has it that Roghara uses all four standard forms of stances in the dance.


    - - -


    The path was lit with bright lights on the asion of the year-end festival. The city was crowded, even though it was almost midnight. On such asion like the year-end Demon-subjugating festival, it was a prettymon view. Some are looking at the stages; while some are waiting for the fifth moon to appear in the sky.


    Children ran around in glee, even in the crowded road. A few of them almost collided with May. She had to get out of the way for them once in a while. The huge loads on her back certainly did not make it easy for her.


    While somehow the children seemed to ignore the man with the dark sunsses next to May, who was strolling nonchntly. They could not evene into contact with Adarsh, who was much more in middle-of-the-path than May.


    The two of them finally returned to Starlight city after adventuring for half a year. Both of them lived their entire life in this city and celebrated many festivals here. The scene of lights shimmering, people yelling, children ying, dancing certainly made them feel home.


    "We actually made it on time, Adarsh," May said, walking a couple step forward. She had an enormous bag on her back while two slightly smaller ones were on her arms. While Adarsh strolled with only a handbag, making a mockery of chivalry.


    "You were making a fuss about nothing," Adarsh said, grumbling. "Look, your moons have not appeared yet. I seriously don''t know if you have even grown up a little."


    He had sunsses on even in the night, yet he looked as cool in it as how silly Scar''s underling Julies appeared in it. Well,pared to the bald and small wannabe delinquent, Adarsh had everything going for him.


    "Look, who''s talking," May snorted. "It was like yesterday, you are grumbling about not getting to y Rockball on our way."


    "Do you want to go to the academy directly or spend some time here?" Adarsh conceded, noting May''s eyes wandering around the shops and other things that were installed on the asion of the festival.


    Who would believe me if I said I had appointed her to take care of me? He wondered, watching her childlike wonder. Well, May was always the responsible type of the duo, but on asions like this, she bes excited and restless like a kid.


    She wanted to go to the academy first after the long journey they''d been on for the past two weeks, but after seeing the gleeman dance with the children and the crowd''sughter, she was reconsidering. She was restraining herself quite much, considering the new role she has been given.


    Abruptly, a firework exploded in the middle of the mountain sky, making a distinctive noise from the usual ones. The crowd''s eyes drifted there at once, cheering. They did not know why they were firing fireworks. The main festival was supposed to be tomorrow, yet they all cheered.


    May''s lips, which were curved up, stiffened at once upon seeing the fireworks. It was the pulses that came along with the fireworks that made her stiffen.


    "That is an emergency signal, right?" Adarsh asked, frowning. His keen senses already picked up the spiritual pulses that explosion released.


    May nodded. "Looks like someone from the academy is in trouble on the mountain," she said. "We should go¡ª"


    "I should go," Adarsh said, looking at the afterglow of the fireworks. He gave his handbag to May, preparing to leave. "You stay here. I''ll be back in two minutes."


    "Adarsh, wait. Your eyes. They had been through the surgery only a couple of weeks ago. Wait up for me, for Ishar''s sake."


    May''s words were in vain, as the youthful figure beside her shot into the sky and rushed towards the mountain, flying. May yelled from behind, but Adarsh put nothing on his mind.


    Gritting her teeth at her friend''s callousness, May searched around to find a safe spot to leave their belongings. Finding that did not prove difficult as well. She went inside a permanent shop near the road and dropped her bags.


    Asking the shopkeeper to take care of it, she prepared to leave as well. She took in a breath, as the dust under her feet churned. She pushed against it to lurch up in the air. May was certainly good at this, but the time she wasted on settling their belonging in that store, Adarsh already took half of the distance as lead.


    It did not even take half a minute for Adarsh to appear in the sky where the signal popped a few moments ago. At that very moment, he sensed the sealed site before him and a person on her knees below.


    Adarsh flew down and nced at the girl. "I know you," he said to her, though no name appeared in his head. He knew her face, but it was quite hard for him to remember names.


    No joke, he barely knows the names of a few handfuls of people. May was good at that, that''s why he epted her as his assistant. All he could remember about this girl was that she was a student of the department of the Magi and an honour student at that.


    "Magus Adarsh?" Yeriel was bewildered at first, seeing the man in his early prime. The dark sunsses made it quite difficult for her to recognise, but she knew only one person with such a bearing. Moreover, there were some rumours that he had been appointed as their new president.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Adarsh nodded, looking at her state very carefully.


    The post was not the president of some club or students'' council in the academy, but the actual president of the Starlight Academy. Though he will only be the acting president, covering for his teacher, he was still at the very top of the academy. There was technically no one above him, including the seat holders of the Magi and Knight divisions.


    "There is a bloodsucker and an undead ghoul inside the sealed space," she said, fumbling for words. She was clearly not in her right mind. Among many branches of magi, she chose the path that did not lead her to battle on any lines, so encountering such creatures today crazed her head dearly.


    Not to mention, she healed two people and created a hole in such a short time, drawing in more than what she was capable of.


    Adarsh, or rather, the acting president of the academy, arched his eyebrows and put his palm against the dark wall that restricted his entry.


    "Don''t worry," he said, and tremors appeared in the barrier''s wall. The wall started to shake heavily, and it did not take even a couple of seconds for the barrier to copse. The wall sundered like scraps of paper and then turned to nothingness.


    Yeriel''s eyes widened, as she had never seen such a disy of power before. It took her all to create a small hole for her to slide out, and the barrier repaired itself the very next moment, yet seeing the scene of the entire barrier copsing, her surprise was not unjustified. She guessed gaining the post of president was not small talk.


    ''Bloodsucker, huh?'' Adarsh''s eyes drifted forward, and he saw a few students on the ground.


    ¡®They don''t need my help, but the disturbance a little far from there might not be the case,¡¯ thought Adarsh as he flew away towards the main source of the disturbance at once, shouting, "May wille soon, don''t worry."


    . . .


    Lorne was fighting against the vampire, even though blood was oozing out from everywhere on his body. This fellow had not learned to stop, and even the vampire lord seemed to think that.


    The bloodsucker did not have it easy, but the sess was within his arm. The only thing that got him down for good was the death of Xion. A loyal underling like that was hard toe by. But given the few attractivedies he saw, he tried to lighten up his mood, chuckling on the thought that how fun it would be to feed on them.


    Abruptly, his expression darkened, and his long brows knitted together tightly. The barrier he erected with an artefact and his own undead energy crumbled, like a balloon popping.


    ''What happened? The kids did it?'' he thought. "No, that can''t be possible. Did the professor wake up, or did someone else appear, but how could they have broken it so easily?'' The thought of fleeing came into his head, but he felt reluctant about leaving empty-handed. Moreover, he had not finished his actual job yet.


    "Let''s get my body function rightly first," he said, and advanced towards Lorne, intending to feed on the Knight.


    All the battles and the chase took a toll on his mind and body. He had strayed away from his normal behaviour as a noble vampire long ago.


    Lorne was barely standing and even his spirit force had run out. He tried hard not to copse, and saw the vampireing at him, but then the bloodsucker stopped and looked up.


    It was not a bird that was in the sky, but a human figure, with dark sunsses on. It was not just the bloodsucker that had the question, but Lorne as well.


    Adarsh came down and looked at the undead from head to toe.


    "You are the only one that came?" the vampire asked, considering how much more difficult it would be for him to deal with another magus.


    If this person was on the same level as the old professor, then he probably had to make a run for it.


    Surprisingly, he did not feel threatened or under any pressure of spirit force from the youth, like he felt against Professor Ranyan, but he could not be callous.


    "Well," Adarsh said, ncing at Lorne and all around. "My Knight should be on her way, though I reckon her trouble will be for nothing."


    "Big words," the Bloodsucker said, understanding the meaning behind that phrase. "Are those dark sses for some sick fashion that you human y with, or are you truly blind?"


    "Actually, this is quite troublesome," Adarsh agreed, gesturing at his sses. "But what can I do? The world is just too bright for me."


    - - -

 Chapter 26 20: Rescue (2)

    As the bloodsucker lifted his arm, a twisted grin appeared on his lips and a wave of gloomy, dark force gushed out of his body, forming small nails like projectiles. There were tens of them and with a simple jerk of his arm, all of them shot towards the human before him.


    Adarsh just tilted his head a little and saw the dark nailsing at him, but he stood there like it was nothing, as if the attack was of no harm to him. What followed next was exactly that.


    Before the nails could even reach within two metres of Adarsh, all the dark force in the nails dissolved in the thin air.


    "You have to do a lot better than this if you want to leave from here," Adarsh said and gave the bloodsucker another chance to show his skills.


    ''What happened?'' the vampire lord wondered. ''I did not even feel the spirit power released by this human. Was is some kind of stealth technique? Looks like I have to go all out.'' He cut his arm at once, and scarlet, dark blood rushed out of it and hovered in the air all around him.


    "Blood sorcery?" the human said. "I can''t say I have not seen this before. Show me something that I have not seen before and make it quick. Can''t keep ady waiting, can we?"


    The blood that was hovering in the air turned even darker and the bloodsucker rushed towards the young man, shooting all the blood. He was trying to catch his opponent off guard in the close quarters, as the person before him appeared to be only a magus. In close quarters, he was nothing.


    But getting close to Adarsh turned out to be challenging. He did not run, but floated around with swift speed. Even with the blood, he could not get close enough to activate the attack.


    "You can run around, but what about him?" the bloodsucker said and hurled his blood towards Lorne who was on the ground.


    "Disappointing," Adarsh stated, and he came before the knight. He thought his opponent was somewhat strong, and he had to use some of his secret skills to finish him¡ªyet against a little of his domination, the bloodsucker gave in and went for Lorne, who could not retaliate¡ªdisappointed him.


    This is what the weak do; they attack those who are weaker than them.


    The darkish blood hurled him, but this time he did not move away. Just as it came a couple of metres away from him, all of them exploded, warping fire and air all over. That was not all. The vampire shot more of his blood towards his opponent. The bombardment continued for a few more seconds as the vampire did not rest, shooting his blood.


    "A vampire of Vallod lineage," Adarsh said, recognising the vampire''s blood ability. The fire and sting cleared before him, warping into a crumble paper, only leaving the burning odour. Not even a single hair on his body was harmed. "Looks like I have to take you for some questioning."


    The vampire''s mind rang, and he felt naked from the gazes of the human magus. He had met existences far more powerful than this young magus, but somehow he felt this was the worst enemy for him. The young magus dominated him entirely with just his presence. That was why he did not feel any pressure from this human at first. He was just too good at masking his spiritual aura. Not just that, he was as good at weaponising it as well.


    All the blood he lost, and the umted hunger, made him unable to think straight. "You can only take me when you are alive," he shouted, while dark force gusted out from his body, surrounding them.


    A murky gloom of darkness loomed around them, covering the three people together as the inside turned pitch ck. Heaviness filled and the darkness disrupted the working of the six senses.


    "DOMAIN DECLARATION."


    "So, you do have something interesting to show," Adarsh said, and he gazed around to notice the dead aura surrounding them in the domain. "Why were you acting weak, then?"


    If this bloodsuckerpleted the domain, then he would be far stronger in it than in any other ce. The murky feeling rose as the domain almost consolidated.


    The vampireughed crazily, as if he had already won. Well, it was not his fault¡ªafter all, to his knowledge, most of the humans, even in the Grand Mage level powerhouses, did not know how to create a domain, much less battle it.


    "Unfortunately, you have chosen the worst opponent to show your domain, especially when it is iplete," Adarsh said, and his eyes scanned for the weak spot in the domain. Domains were certainly powerful against anyone, but Adarsh was not just anyone. He had the best training that the academy has to offer, not to mention his natural talent and effort. "Found it."


    He made his left palm into a fist and jerked to his left. A piercing swirl of spirit aura hurled out from there at once, and it bolted toward the wall. The domain, which covered almost every direction, copsed in the blink of an eye.


    The surroundings turned normal again as the five moons appeared in the same sky. Only a jerk of a fist was enough to asunder the domain like it was a scrap of paper.


    Well, he did use spirit force, a dense proportion of it apanied by his spiritual aura. Otherwise, how would it be this easy?


    The vampire coughed out blood, and that was not the only ce blood was oozing out. Even his nostrils, ears and eyes were bloody from the counter effect. "How?"


    "Do I have to exin myself to you?" Adarsh said arrogantly and walked towards the vampire, who was on his knees. "The only exnation I can give you is that you are weak. Weak against me. Nowe with me like a good boy. We will have plenty of time to talk."


    Adarsh was about to capture the vampire for questioning, but his feet faltered suddenly. The vampire screamed at the very moment, and a dark aura rose from his body and consumed him entirely in the blink of an eye.<novelnext></novelnext>


    The deadly force did not rest there and shot directly towards Adarsh.


    ''A Death curse?'' Adarsh lifted his palms in a cross over his chest.


    "You have every dirty trick on your sleeve, huh?" He released his arm and bound the deadly force before it could contaminate him. "Had," he corrected and saw the unrecognisable corpse of the vampire. Fortunately, I am immune to most dark curses.


    He could not even tell what this creature was if he had not seen the bloodsucker before.


    "What a waste!"


    . . .


    My insides were burning, and I could do nothing to soothe them. I didn''t even have a single strand of spirit energy to soothe the pain. Gritting my teeth, I copsed on the earth.


    Fortunately, help had arrived. All of us saw the figure shooting in the sky. Though I did not recognise the person, he should be able to stop the vampire until the backupes.


    "Scar!" Yasmine said,ing near me. She looked at my pale face and understood that I had used up all my spirit energy, though she did not know about the burning I was feeling. She continued, rubbing my face. "You will be alright."


    And I believed her.


    Kyle was looking after his unconscious mate. The blood stopped oozing out, and the condition was mostly stabilised, yet we could not guess what type of difficulty Ben will be in.


    "Everyone''s alright?" Yeriel said, and he came towards them. With her was another person, a female¡ªprobably the backup. She seemed to havee from a long way, as sweat was dripping down on her face and she was panting slightly.


    "Looks like Adarsh already dealt with the attacker," the neer said, looking forward to the direction where the bombardment came a moment ago.


    I sighed in relief at hearing the name, and the exhaustion came right then, as I guessed there was no worry. Human minds are simple, yet the mostplicated things in the universe.


    When you are in trouble, it will do everything in its power to keep consciousness, but it will give in so suddenly if reliefes.


    I passed out again, for the third time after the transmigration and again, this time again with a maiden beside me, thinking there was no danger.


    I thought all the crazy stuff was over for the night, and I could rest freely.


    How stupid of me!


    _______________________


    Ranking system for the Mages.


    -Magus/Sorcerer Apprentice: Students with raw talent, but do not know the way or have not mastered it yet.


    -Magus/Sorcerer: After learning the way around spirit force, their skills have been recognised by the academy or the council.


    -Grand Magus: A seasoned Mage who has mastered at least two Spirit arts.


    -Royal Magus: When the grand mage can touch the higherw of Spirit.


    -Arch Magus: The limit of the realm.


    P.S: In the same rank, A sorcerer is awfully weakpared to Magi. The titles are known a little differently all over the realm, and the titles might be different in another region apart from the maind.

 Chapter 27 21: Moonless (1)

    Q: Why is summoning is almost impossible in Shrankor?


    A: Becuase the path to the Fairy Realm, Ishtar is sealed from the Shrankor.


    - - -


    I squinted my nose, looking all around me in the gloomy atmosphere. Yasmine, who was by my side when I passed out, was gone, and so were the others. It was not the rocky terrain I was sitting in, but in the middle of grand debris and ruin.


    I was not in the Starfall mountain range, but some ce else. Somewhere I hadn''t been before.


    Nothing made sense. The night was cold and crusty. While the air gave the feeling of . . . heavy. Heavy and stiff. There was a murky, stuffy feeling about it that already got me on edge. I did not need to see the ruins before me to know something was wrong here.


    Not just something, almost everything was wrong here.


    Strong gusts of wind were blowing, and I worked up to stand upright. My body felt heavy, and I found a thick, ted breastte with other arm and leg guards all over my body. They were possibly the reason for the heaviness, but I reckon there was something more. All felt so surreal, it had to be some illusion or hallucination.


    "Yasmine," I called hopelessly, and as I expected, no one answered.


    Before me was a vast ruin of buildings. Only the debris from skyscrapers could have been this extensive. Debris, shards of ss, concrete remnants, metal splinters pointing out, were all over wherever my eyes drifted. Fire was ring in some areas, while in most others it had already finished burning, but the crusty smell of burning still remained. The wind carried dust and ash, as the darkness loomed to make it intimidating.


    If this is all fake, my hallucination; then I am darn good with wild imagination.


    The more I gazed at it, the colder my inner feelings got. It had to be an earthquake of degree 8 or above on the Richter scale to destroy such constructions, but that was not the only thing that made my heart race.


    Despite the skyscraper being inhabitable and almost unrecognisable from its lost grandeur, the way it was built struck me the hardest. It was not the style of Shrankor¡ªmeaning not the mediaeval, Victorian era kind of construction.


    I had been transmigrated here for about a couple of weeks, yet all the buildings I came across were the most were old-fashioned that I had ever seen in historical movies or sites. But the ruins before me were not some historical site, nor was it some old-fashioned constructions.


    The skyscrapers were strangely modern. At least they had been before the destruction. It was quite simr to the high-storeyed skyscrapers that could be seen in any big city in my old world. I could not help but wonder about the connection.


    Ash and dust hovered in the air and blew along with the gale, while some ces burned in a crimson fire after the devastation that had taken ce.


    Unconsciously, I looked up at the skies, trying to discern something. My spine turned cold instantly. The sky was almost empty. Other than the few twinkling stars on the faraway horizon, there was nothing. Among the five freaking moons of Shrankor, there was not a single one of them in the sky.


    Where am I? My mind wondered. But I can''t possibly expect an answer.


    "This can''t be happening. It must be a dream," I muttered. "Dream, yes dream. It has to be a dream. Wait, Dream?"


    Now I couldprehend a little about what was happening.


    "Holy mother of God, this is a dream. A dreamscape."


    But that revtion brought in another question: How did I appear here?


    That realisation relieved me a little, as I was not going crazy. But all things did not add up. The Forbidden Realms consist of different a few realms. Three of them stood out the most. Shrankor ¡ª the middle realm, the ce where the tale takes ce most of the time. Ishtar¡ªthe high realm, the fairy realm, that was sealed away from Shrankor. And the third one is the Other side, the Abyss.


    While the ce I am in is none of the three, it is actually not a physical realm like the other three.<novelnext></novelnext>


    The Realm Of Dreams is not a constructive ce, but rather a cognitive realm that exists between ces, though it is difficult to ess.


    I wondered how I got here. Just passing out did not exin it, nor do I recall Scar having a talent for Dreamwalking.


    I did not ponder for long, as I knew that getting an answer here was almost impossible. My eyes drifted towards the moonless skies again. Even the stars were one-tenth of what I see in Starlight City.


    I pondered, trying toe up with some strokes of a strategy. That proved to be difficult. Information. I need more information to evene up with a n.


    Gazing around, I crept into the ruins. A heavy axe appeared in my view on the path. Without a second thought, I picked it up and saw it had dark marks of blood on it. I shuddered a little and kept the axe. Who knows what this ce has to offer?


    The axe was actually finely built and not a wood-cutting one either. I reckoned it was made of good metal, keeping in mind that it would be used in battle. Other than a little heavy, I found it rather solid in my arms.


    The stiff, icy wind gave a chill to my spine as I tried to minimise the sound of my steps, but with the heavy boots I was wearing, that proved to be a difficult task. I was going to climb to the top of the ruins to see if I could recognise anything or the way to take off.


    There was a space in the Starfall mountain range that worked as some kind of a convergent point between this cognitive realm and Shrankor. Most likely, I will have to find a point to get back to.


    Then again, this ce could be far away from the Starfall mountains. I thought about other convention points between the two realms and shivered just learning the options. If not Starfall Peak, possibly Ruthalyn, or possibly out of the maind.


    What if I am really outside of the maind? What if it''s Dvarka, the ind of Darkorians where I have to get to? I shook my head in disapproval immediately.


    My luck can''t be that bad, can it? Maybe I am overthinking it. Maybe it was one of those kinds of dreams, and when I wake up, all of it would disappear. That didn''t happen to my transmigration, and most likely won''t with this one, either. I got back to my climbing but before I could climb the wrecked building; I thought I heard something.


    "Help . . ." That sounded rather strange, but I could make out I was not the only one here. Someone else was with me and was asking for help. The voice was almost like a whimper, which made me look all around for it.


    After covering a dozen yards, I got to see the owner of the voice. A man in a simr breastte and guards was lying with concrete stone over both of his legs. I almost vomited at the sight of bare-bones sticking out of one of the legs. I wonder how this man is still alive. Perhaps being a knight was the reason.


    "Can you hear me?" I asked, crouching down near the face of the man.


    "Help," was all the man said. His eyelids blinked a few times as he was having problems even opening it. I reckoned it was the least of his problems.


    ¡°Hold on a little longer," I said, attempting to lift the concrete off his leg. It was quite heavy, and I surmised that with the new strength of my body, I could barely lift a little using all my strength.


    That proved to be right. I slowly lifted the stone and started to pull the man, ignoring the horrifying wound with all my effort. The man moaned like a girl, and he probably left with only that much strength to do that.


    I wondered what I could do to relieve him of the pain. The healing of Purgatory won''t help as the wound was too wide, nor do I have a medicine kit with me. I have nothing, to be exact.


    Even the armour and clothes I wore appeared foreign to me. I couldn''t possibly make sense of anything other than that I am in the Dream Realm.


    Scar possibly never had those. That could mean only one thing.


    Abruptly, my thought process broke, and I looked around, steadfastly. A moment ago, I felt like something shifting in the darkness. My eyes drifted all around, trying to find out if it was really something or just my mind ying tricks.


    This time, a loud squeak came, warping in the heavy air as it drifted into my ears. My stomach churned in that instance.


    I did not know what creature it belonged to, but it sounded like bad news to me. Without even thinking deeply or being considerate of the injured knight on the ground, I lifted him up on my back and made a run for it.

 Chapter 28 21: Moonless (2)

    The thing that made the screech was just before me, waiting to devour me whole. It had six or eight legs, I couldn''t tell because my attention was focused on its maw. A horrifying maw, twice the size of my head. I reckoned it could bite my head off easily with all those sharp, dagger-like teeth. It was something that came straight out of my nightmares.


    I spun at once and dashed, not giving the horrendous thing another look. The thing that came straight from a nightmare worked its legs and bolted towards me, squeaking all the way.


    It was certainly not like the majestic roar of a lion, but it filled me with horror, nheless.


    My speed was far swifter than usual, yet I had problems keeping away from this nightmare beast. Not to mention the load I was carrying on my back. This nightmare creature had more legspared to all my limbs.


    The thought of abandoning the wounded man came into my head, but I just could not do it with a clear conscience¡ªnot to mention, I''m not sure if the thing would leave me alone after doing that. Then I recalled that the creatures of nightmares only chase after the ones that are frightened.


    Am I frightened? Absolutely.


    To be added, being frightened was an understatement. I had only seen the creature one quick moment, yet everything about the creature drew every primal fear out of me.


    The shiny dark skin had no fur and was reflecting some of the burning light around us. It had no apparent eyes or nose, but I could be wrong there. It was half a dozen metres long and about a metre tall, with that horrifying maw. I have nothing to say about the maw, apart from the fact that it could crush my head and living soul with just one bite.


    The nightmare was getting closer and closer, and remembering its appearance only made my fear worse. I tried the Knights'' breathing technique as well as the Visualisation that helped in manipting the Spirit Force.


    Fortunately, there was some spirit force in this person''s body.


    The person''s body I am inhibiting now was clearly not Scar''s. I did not know what happened or how I hopped from one body to another, nor did I have time to ponder, as the creature wasing to swallow my head.


    The visualisation did help in decreasing the fear; though it was not all gone, my body was not stiff in the slightest. The breathing helped as well. I imagined the me, rolling on the ground. Leaving the man there, I stood up, facing the nightmare face-to-face. Eye to eye. No, not eye to eye. My eyes were on the chainsaw¡ªlike a cavity.


    The fear that I pinned down a moment ago started to find its way to strangle me again. But it''s toote to be led by fear.


    I imagined the me and the crimson fire rose in my arm, and so did the axe in my arm. I jerked the axe towards the head¡ªthe maw of the nightmare creature. It made a deep mark in the maw as the creature squealed. I managed to keep the stances I learned in the few days and withdrew.


    Something did not feel right. The me I was using did not appear to be the raging and dominating me of Purgatory, but simply a spirit me. The quick conclusion I came up with was that I was not inhibiting Scar''s body, but someone else with me-attributed spirit force.


    "Damn!" I screamed as my ears grew numb with the cursing. "Damn, damn, fucking damn it!"


    The nightmare creature bolted at me, and I screamed again. The axe was raging in mes and so was my mind, which raged in the only song of burning.


    I jerked the axe in my arm and jumped straight at the creature. The knife-like teeth seemed to mock my presence, but that did not stop me. I came in just at the top of the creature and dropped a heavy kick on its head. Lurching the axe in both hands, I swung it around in its long neck.


    The creature wailed and jerked its body, trying to fling me away, which it seeded easily. I had no grip on its body, so needless to say, I was flung a dozen metres away into the ruins.


    My back hit the concrete, and I felt like hell. Fortunately, there were no sharp metal splinters there. I did not know how many bones in my body were broken, yet I still tried to get up. A couple more cracking noises came, with a couple more bones breaking as I stood up, using the axe.


    Gasps of breath escaped from my mouth, and I gazed at the abomination again. It looked at me too, though I saw no eyes in its head.


    The eyeless monster screeched and bolted towards me. Six legs, I muttered.


    I ground my teeth and worked my legs to get out of the way. Its head hit the wrecked concrete and wrecked it even more. In that short time, I lurched upright, struggling to have another go.


    "Why am I here?" I screamed and swung the axe on therge body of the abomination like a madman. Before the thing could scream in pain, it threw a kick at my gut, flinging me away.


    A yelp escaped from my mouth as I was flung away. Again.


    I shot half a dozen metres away, and the pain had not gone numb. Dizziness consumed me, as I coughed out blood on my limbs. I couldn''t even make out the direction.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Why am I here, just to suffer?


    "Am I just here to suffer?" I screamed at the top of my lungs. "Answer me, you fucking author!"


    The only answer I got was the warping screeches of the eyeless nightmare creature. It hurled at me again, baring its knife-like teeth.


    I tried to muster what was left of me, which was not a lot, if I am being generous.


    My legs gave way and the thought of giving up came. I roared with everything I had and started rolling away from its path. But in the end, it was all for nothing. Before I could muster the strength to pick my body up, the knife-like teeth crushed my head.


    And nk!


    First, it hurt like death, and then I woke up from the nightmare.


    I screamed, sitting upright instinctively. My breathing was heavy, like a wretched dog on its way to death. Breaths of fast air escaped from my mouth as I had trouble breathing. My ears were buzzing with the loud beeping. Sanity was only a word in my mind, as I had just experienced death in the blink of an eye.


    I did not know what it felt like, as I was numb with pain. The only feeling I got there was emptiness. Vast emptiness.


    "Scar?" The voice of a girl came into my ears, and it brought a little sanity to my mind. I blinked a couple of times as my vision cleared out.


    Yasmine was before me. Her face was pale and her eyes were worried, looking at me.


    "Are you alright? Scar?" she asked again, sping my arm.


    As I tried to answer, I felt her palm on my hand. "I . . . I don''t know . . ."


    "You are fine," she said and hugged me, rubbing my head that was crushed by tens of knives like teeth a moment ago. My mind began to register that I was alive. "You will be fine."


    I tried to believe her, and my body gave way to her softness. "It was a . . . nightmare."


    Yasmine stayed in that position for a couple of minutes and only let go when my breathing got better. My mind calmed down a lot by then, though I still had the afterthoughts.


    I found the others were looking at us. Other than the unconscious Ben and Lorne, Kyle and Lily were sitting next to them. The others were staring at me with a peculiar gaze. Except for my underling, who was looking at me with a worried gaze, and Yeriel, who was looking at Yasmine and me, there were two more people.


    Ady with her hair tied up on her back. She had pretty features, but my eyes drifted off towards the male next to her, wearing dark sunsses. Thedy was rebutting the man, who did everything to ignore her rebuttal.


    The man appeared just as described in the book. He was cool and handsome even when he was doing nothing. And when he does stuff, he does it with style. This is one of the strongest men in the realm, or he will be. He is the mysterious Adarsh Starlight.


    Then I remembered about the moons. The reason we went through all this hassle. I looked up, and a sigh came from my mouth. There were four moons in the sky; the fifth one, Sar''moon, sat when I was unconscious.


    All this hustle for nothing. And it wouldn''t be wrong to say I died for nothing.


    ___________________________


    Edited by Mystereies. Proofread by kqwxz.


    The chapters are usually 2k words long, but if it goes over 3k words, it will be parted into two parts.


    As for the ''only to suffer'' part, its meme intended.

 Chapter 29 22: Just Your Friendly Neighbourhood Delinquent

    Q: Why Edward could not save Ciara


    A: Because he chose to save Scar.


    - - -


    I was reading a book on the basics of Warding and recuperating from the injuries I got yesterday. My channelling system got a little wrecked after I overflew it with purgatory, but it was nothing that a good rest couldn''t heal. All I needed was to stay cooped up in my room, not try my hand at channelling.


    Today was the year-end festival but I have no intention of going out, even if this world is twice as marvellouspared to my old world. But it appeared my dear baldy had other ns, as I heard him call on my door.


    "Boss!" yelled Julies, while knocking.


    I opened the door and found another person with my short, bald, weird underling.


    In contrast to Julies, the neer was a broad youth, though a little shortpared to Ben, he got all the muscles where he needed them. He was dark-skinned with dark hair and eyes. But currently, the broad-shouldered youth had a pensive look on his face, like he had done something wrong and needed to atone for it.


    That should be Eran us, another one of my underlings. Thest one of the useful bunch, I reckoned.


    "Boss, I brought Eran to atone for his transgressions," Julies said and threw the guy who was twice the size of him before me. Julies certainly has his way of things.


    Eran came right in my leg and embraced it, immobilising me. If I did not recognise this person, I would have taken it as an attack.


    "Boss, forgive me!" Eran yelled, not letting go of my legs. "I tried my best, but still passed. Please forgive me. Don''t throw me away."


    "Let go of my leg," I shouted at him, trying to get away. "Why are you asking for forgiveness in the first ce?"


    "Boss, I tried so hard," Eran continued. "I tried very hard to fail in the test, yet somehow, I passed. Please forgive me."


    "Is that something you need to apologise for?" I said and finally freed my legs from this guy.


    "But we made a pact that we will not pass the test until Boss himself did it."


    "There is something like that?" I could not help but sigh. "This is so stupid. Stand up, you are embarrassing me."


    Then my mind came up with how Eran passed the test. Unlike Julies, who was only here for a single year, Eran was here for another year. The one in charge most likely did not want to lose out on such a promising knight candidate.


    Or most likely, they wanted to get him out of my influence. The academy has a history of recruiting knight candidates from peasants.


    Or it could also be Eran''s fear that he would not make it to all the courses on hisst try. We are all given 3 years of time to advance. If someone fails in that time, be it a noble''s son, or some peasant, they have to say goodbye to the academy.


    Like Eran, I was at a dead end. If I don''t pass this year, I will be sent off from the academy as well, which I have no intention of doing. Not until I get what I need from here, at any rate.


    "Boss, I heard you are retiring from delinquency?" Eran asked again, picking his body up.


    "You heard that right, just don''t make a big scene like this baldy."


    Eran looked at me, then at Julies. They seemed toe to an understanding together and didn''t try to convince me for now. But I reckoned they wouldn''t be swayed too easily.


    "Boss, let''s go to the festival," Julies said, pulling my arm. "You were so tired yesterday, so let''s celebrate today."


    I sighed. "Do I really have to go?'''' It was not that I had a problem with the festival. I just don''t like people staring at me as if I''m some kind of zoo animal, judging me for things I never did. If only I had a normal demeanour.


    Don''t get me wrong, I have no problem with the handsome exterior, but with the unique red hair and pupil, all my efforts to blend in with the crowd were almost futile. A cap might do it, but it is not a solution either. I have to make the image of Scar better, more responsible, someone that others can trust.


    Perhaps I should start from today.


    "Yes, let''s go. Let''s go." Julies continued to pull me out of my room. "I know you have ns with your sweetheart in the evening, but spend the afternoon with us. It''s not like a festival every day."


    I do not actually have any ns. All I did aftering back from the mountain was sleep. Actually, I still have some ufortable feelings inside, but I could not let myself get cooped up in the dorm for an entire day.


    This world has almost nothing for entertainment''s sake. At least, there''s nothing that I can do alone. I went to the library before and read a few books there, but did not find peace in reading.


    Maybe I wanted to see someone in the library, but could not find the one I was looking for.


    In the end, I let the baldy drag me away. The academy has more people now. Almost all the people hade back on the asion of the festival, and the academic year will start in a couple of days. Mostly because of the festival.


    After all, only in two ces was the festival celebrated as big as in the City of Stars. The first was in Sholistin, the capital of Mahenar, and the other was in Endus¡ªYeriel''s country.


    Even though the sun had about an hour to set, the path out of the academy was almost packed. Boys and girls wandered down the path, some as a couple, some in groups. They wore new clothing, adorning pieces of jewellery and holding big smiles on their faces. They walked in, creating loud waves ofughter and cacophony.


    It looked quite like the summer festival that was overly done in every school anime.


    I looked at the three of us. None of our clothes were filthy, if I may say so, but they weren''t new or extravagant either.


    "We are all poor, right?" I asked the obvious question, taking a mental note to do something about itter. The energy n around Scientist Grivin turned out to be a flop, so I have to do something else for now.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "Yes," Eran said without embarrassment. "If we did not steal or take the stuff by force, I did not know if we could manage to live this year."


    "All the dynes I brought are spent as well. The academy is a sucker for money," Julies said. "I should have stolen more when I ran away," he muttered again.


    "What did you say, Julz?" I asked. "Something about running away?"


    "Nothing," the bald guy with the dark sses said. He ran off to change the topic, yelling, "Hey look, a sweet shop."


    I shook my head. I was right. Julies had some problems and ran away from home. Though I''m not sure, the bald head and weird getup can only mean one thing: he was hiding his identity. He was not one of the main characters in the book, but he had a story of his own. A story that had not been told in the book. Perhaps I should not think of it as a book. Then again, I never thought of it as a book. To be exact, none of their behaviour proved anything less than a unique individual. They are not characters, but actual human beings.


    Was this really inside of a book then? These questions are troublesome for my little brain.


    By the time we arrived at the sweet shop that Julies ran off to, that guy had already eaten a couple of pieces of sweet.


    "Boss, do you want one?" he said to me, holding out another big lollipop, though the content was squashy. "This bloke makes it sweet and squashy."


    "No, I''m good."


    Julies gave the lollipop to Eran. The group of three was about to leave when he heard the shopkeeper say:


    "Lads, you forgot to pay."


    Julies looked back and gave the keeper a look of contempt, as if he was some big shot. "Are you new here?" he asked, and his voice was loud and cold, not the usual loud and cheerful one. He made his arm into a fist and showed it to the shopkeeper. "Do you want some of these, mate?"


    "Lad, just pay the bill. It''s only six tills, not something big for the pupil of the Academy," the shop owner said again, though he flinched again.


    "Heh," Julies continued with contempt in his eyes. "The fact I used your shop is a great fortune of your ancestors. Go ask him for¡ª"


    I could not wait anymore and put my hand on his chest, gesturing to him to stop. "Just pay the bill, Julz," I said, opening my purse, which held all of my assets as in thirty-something dyne.


    I brought out a silver coin of ten tills and was about to give it to the shop owner.


    "Boss, what are you doin''?" Julies yelled as if I did something sphemous. "I already came to an understanding with this bloke. He ain''t need it."


    "Don''t yell, you twit." I cursed my luck. Was it really this hard to hide from people''s gaze? I reckoned all the vendors would know of my arrival if I did not shut this baldy''s mouth.


    "Here, take it." I held the money towards the shop owner, showing the cold front of Scar. The shopkeeper flinched just by looking at my face.


    The shopkeeper recognised me and now feared taking the money. Great, I thought. Oh, God, humour me. Is it so hard for others to get it? I was not nning on anything close to delinquency.


    "Master Oscar, how about you keep your money?" the shopkeeper said, cowering. "Consider it . . . Hmm, a present to your friends."


    My face pained, and I felt ufortable from the gazes I was getting. Should I threaten this guy to take it? I considered and found it to be the only way now.


    "Keep it," I said coldly, showing narrowed, cold eyes.


    The shopkeeper took it and stood there as if he had forgotten what to do with it.


    "My change?" I reminded him. A great start in my agenda to quit delinquency. Is this what Julz and Eran wanted? No, they had some brains, but never this scheming. They probably wanted to remind me, we can get away thing doing anything like this.


    "Right." The shopkeeper recoiled and fumbled with the coins to give me four tills back.


    I let out a self-conscious breath. So much for a little outing.


    "Boss," Julies said with a glint in his eyes. "Do you know what you did?"


    I did not answer, and in the corner of my eyes, I saw two familiar figures. Elinor, the substitute for Edward¡ªthe protagonist of the story, she still wore the unfitted magic department uniform with her silver hair tied in a bun behind her. She looked quite cute in it and nothing else, contrasting with the girl next to her, who held most of the stares of the public.


    Ciara wore her usual tight outfit, an extravagant blue gown with pearls embroidered all over it as it went further down to her toes. Perhaps Starlight City was too warm for her as a denizen of Victoria. She had light makeup on, and she was one gorgeous piece of art. As for ornaments, she only has a pendant on her neck and two blue earpieces.


    The two of them seemed to have seen all the drama that urred here. Elinor gave a slight bow and smiled a little while Ciara nced at me and the two others behind me before leaving with Elinor with a face that told, I disappointed her.


    A great start to end my career in delinquency.


    I pressed my lips tight. Going to the festival appeared to be a really awful choice for me.


    _____________________________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.


    Another chapter in a couple of hours.

 Chapter 30 23: Resolution(1)

    Q: What is the most potent power against the corrosion of Dark force?


    A: Purgatory and Spirit of Restoration.


    - - -


    The sky housed the stars, and three moons glittered in brilliance, along with the luminescent stones decorated all around the festival squares. Two of the older ones were yet to appear, though the five would not converge together today. The people at the festival were not seeking the moons today, but enjoying the festival with full spirit, creating the cacophony that I hate the most.


    This certainly doesn''t appear to be a mediaeval world. Not for today, at least. I was tired just from the stares of the surrounding people, though for once, I enjoyed giving cold eyes to shut them off.


    In truth, they were not in the wrong, but it was my little baldy who had not stopped his delinquency even a little on the asion of the festival. I even felt he was doing it more to show how good the life of a delinquent was¡ªso that I would get back to the old days.


    How good it will feel to take things by force and yell at the owners if they say anything. Certainly, it looked tempting, but no thanks, it was not for me.


    Julies made a fuss at every shop we went into, and atst, I had to give him the icy stare to shut him up. As much as he was unruly, he abided by most of mymands. All in all, he would be a good underling to have if he shut his mouth most of the time and stopped yelling at everything.


    On the other hand, Eran was more silent. I reckon 80% of the conversation was covered by the baldy; I was about 15%, and the rest was Eran.


    It had been a couple of hours since I was here with my two underlings, and so far, we had seen almost everything this festival has to offer, though I could not say that I enjoyed it.


    It was mostly me and Eran running after Julies, so that he wouldn''t cause more mischief. Surprisingly, I found Eran was not much of a delinquent. I knew the big guy looked frightening, but soft and gentle on the inside. The book did not go into details about these few characters, like Eran. People appeared to have mistaken him for a delinquent based solely on his appearance.


    "Boss, look," Julies said and gestured to where a group of girls were walking.


    I looked and found it was the group of Yasmine and Yeriel. There were a few others, but I did not recognise any of them.


    They seemed to notice my gaze as well, and all of them smiled at the white-haired maiden before taking their leave. Even Yeriel left, giving her a sweet smile.


    "Boss," Julies said with reluctance. "We''ll get going as well."


    "Hey." Before I could say anything Julies left, dragging away Eran with him. I could not help but shake my head and gazed at the fair maidening towards me.


    Yasmine smiled and walked forward towards me. Her white hair was resting on her shoulders, glistening in the light. A breathtaking presence indeed. A simr white gown hugged her slender body from the long leg to the narrow waist to the supple chest. She had silver earrings and a silver pendant on her neck. In one sentence, I couldn''t take my eyes off of her.


    I can''t say she did not put on makeup, but she looked like an otherworldly fairy to me. Perhaps I was lucky to be transmigrated as Scar. Though my impression could be biassed, I could not take my gaze off of her as she came towards me with slow steps.


    By the luck of Ishar, she''s beautiful.


    Her hair swayed along with the stiff wind, and her eyes twinkled as she said, "I went to call you."


    "You look beautiful," Iplimented, and she tried to hide her blush.


    "At least you have noticed," she said, and stood next to me, escaping the face-to-face view. "But I can''t say the same to you. Are you sleeping well? You have dark patches under your eyes, and your face looks weary and tired."


    "It''s alright," I said. "I¡¯m just studying a bit." And having trouble sleeping after the near-death experience with the ghoul. Well, now that I think about it. I had certainly seen death, even for a blink of an eye. My spine turned cold at that very instant and shuddered.


    Other than that, it was really alright. For many hours after midnight, I worked on the books on the basics of art, and for a couple of days, I even forgot to sleep.


    But all in all, it was alright, considering I could be termed an Insomniac-coffee-drinking monster. The other problem I had was waking up early in the cold. What I can say is that I was never really an early riser. On that note, this world has no rm clock, and though the pendulum clock rang, it was so damn quiet that I missed the morning practice for a couple of times. I reckon I will need a couple of months to build up the tendency.


    "That''s good to hear, but you need to take care of your body as well," she said. "You will be under more pressure this year if you want to grasp both branches of spirit art. Stay away from alcohol as much as you can."


    "I''m taking care of it," I said, smiling at her. "I have not touched alcohol thest two weeks."


    ? "Hmm?" She looked at me piercingly to see if I was telling the truth. Her eyes never left mine, and I tried not to flinch. This girl had already endured a great deal because of her scars. I didn''t want her to be concerned about me even after she left.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "You are lying." She said.


    My lips pressed hard, and I thought I''m not too good at lying. "Well, I did drink, but it was far lesspared to before," I said. In my defence, there were few leftovers at the dorm, and my throat was sore. "I only drank once or twice." Undoubtedly, I was not drinking in depression, and certainly, this was an enormous improvement over the old Scar.


    She continued to stare at me for some time before looking at her feet, as if she held some disappointment in me, or it could be just my guessing.


    I wish it was only thetter.


    "Yasmine," I called, and did not know what to say. Honestly, it was not my fault. That bastard, Scar. I forgive all your crimes, but why did you hurt this girl so much?


    "Let''s put those aside," she said, and held out the two papernterns¡ªI didn''t even notice. Well, I did notice, but I ignored it, considering how charming Yasmine was.


    "You did not have time to wish for your mother yesterday, so I brought these," she said and gave me one of the papernterns.


    Usually, on the night of the five moons, the people of the Mahenar empire pray for the wellbeing of the deceased. But yesterday, with all the things going on, from the vampire attack to the nightmare, I, and the others as well, forgot to light thentern.


    "Let''s go," she said and held my palm. "The river will be vacant today."


    The river was about a ten-minute walk from there, and the entire path was packed with people. For a change, they did not stare at me like before, but at the gorgeous maiden in white beside me. I did not know if I should be happy about this.


    There were people dancing in the stage wearing various costumes as a rather ear-catching music was yed. Too loud and too festive were the words to describe the music, but it does have a feeling of dance into it. Fast rhythm in the chorus with drums enthralling it further. Certainly, a song of battle, and matched well with the sword dance.


    "Wait here a second," Yasmine said and left me towards a shop near us. While my eyes drifted towards the stage.


    Dancers were dancing on the stage, but this dance was something different. It was practically like a battle dance. One man in a bare upper body danced with a ming sword while the others were impersonating demons, wearing all kinds of hideous costumes, with colour on their faces and horns on their heads.


    They battled within the dance while the bare-chested man defeated all the demons.


    If I''m not wrong, this was called the Demon Abominating Dance, or Roghara as it was called in the old tongue, though I reckon there were other names for it. It was beautiful to watch, even with my eyes, which were not meant for art.


    Unfortunately, their representation of the demons was wrong. At least they were entirely wrong about the Saider.


    "Let''s go," Yasmine came, buying whatever she needed, and nudging me.


    We walked again in the crowd under the star-filled sky. I somewhat felt a little pride to go on like that with such a beautiful girl.


    The river was not as vacant as Yasmine said it would be, but we did manage to find a vacant bank after walking for five minutes further. By the way, the river is called Yeriel, and yes, the Yeriel at the academy was named after this river. Some fun facts about the story: It was one of the thousand questions I answered to get here.


    We walked hand in hand, though we had no fear of slipping down the slope. The grass was soft and cold as droplets of water had already formed from the mist. The mist was hovering over Yeriel, ying along with her own rhythm and wind.


    We exchanged nces and crouched down near the water. I brought out the paperntern Yasmine gave me and lit it up by bringing a little me of Purgatory. But for the well-wishing and praying, I did not just do it for Scar''s mother, but for my mother as well. She had cardiovascr disease, and left me when I was in high school.


    Fortunately, I did not turn out like Scar. Well, our situations were definitely different. Scar med himself for his mother''s death, though I''m not sure how much he was actually responsible for.


    I did not get an explicit reference to this in the book, nor in the few memories, I got from Scar. I could not help but bite my lip while blowing the paperntern into the water.


    Yasmine did the same, and I saw tears dripping from her eyes. She was reminiscing about her elder brother, who died on the battlefield when she was barely twelve. I sped her palm, and she wiped the tears from her eyes.


    I wish they were really well wherever they are now, even if two of them were characters, and I do not believe in God or heaven.


    _______________________

 Chapter 31 23: Resolution(2)

    Yasmine blew thentern, and I saw tears dripping from her eyes. She was recalling her elder brother who died on the battlefield when she was barely twelve. I sped her palm, and she wiped the tears from her eyes.


    She gave me a smile and brought out what she bought from the shop. They were two ck threads, and I knew exactly what they were. On the maind, it was widely known in various names such as Thread of Protection, Thread of Preservation, or even Fate. Usually, one''s loved one binds this ck thread to their ankle, and it would protect them from darkness and the eyes of the ones that hide in the darkness.


    But most importantly, it was a promise.


    "Did Yeriel put you into this?" I asked, as it was mainly the people of Endus who believed in this, though it was quite widespread.


    On my old world, there were some traditions like that as well, though I always thought of them as superstitions. But in Shrankor it was a different case entirely. Dreams, emotions, thoughts, held power; people''s beliefs, faith, held power; and with the belief of the widespread millions of people on the maind, this ck thread really held some magical power.


    But Yasmine bought it for me, so it held even more meaning. There is no helping it. I might fall for her truly.


    "Scar," she said, looking at my feet. "I''ll leave in a couple of days."


    I released a breath. "I know," I said, and I was reminded of what happened to her after that once again.


    My face darkened instantly. Actually, I searched the archive on ount of it for hours. The beautiful girl before me will actually die, and that too, in a painful way, suffering for weeks.


    That was the turning point for Scar. My back became stiff with the cold as I looked at her twinkling eyes again. "Could you not leave?" I asked in a shaky voice.


    "You know, I can''t do that," Yasmine said and touched my left ankle with her palm. Her palms were warm and soft as she tied the ck string to my ankle. "My family depends on me. I cannot give up on them." She looked at me and gave me the other string. Baring her ankle before me, she smiled. "Not yet."


    That smile was the most charming thing I''ve ever seen in my life. I did not know if it was the residual feelings of Scar, but I do know that I want nothing to happen to her.


    I remember crying reading the chapter where she died. My eyes were just about to burst into tears now, so I looked down at her ankle and bound the string slowly. My palms shook, and so did her ankle.


    I only looked up when I managed to control the tears from flowing out, but it all burst forth when I saw the twinkling tears in her eyes.


    "Why are you crying?" she asked me.


    "I don''t know," I lied. The tieing was done, though my palms were still at her ankle and my eyes locked with hers.


    "It''s not like I cannote back," she whispered.


    I left her ankle and sped her palm, bringing it closer to my lips. I did not know where to start, as there is a good chance I can''t stop her, but I started anyway.


    "I know you wanted this for your all life, but . . ." I paused. "I know I am being selfish, but please, can you--"


    Yasmine shook her head as we sat side by side, her hands on mine. I know I can''t stop her, even if I tell her the whole thing and she believes me through some sheer luck, she will still leave, as it was the path of the spirit practitioner. Moreover, someone else''s life tied to it as well, someone who is far more essential to the plot.


    I have thought about all that and which ways it could go, and on many asions, Yasmine''s life can be saved, but I just did not want her to face that kind of danger. Yes, I know I am paranoid, but I did not like to take chances.


    "We can talk through themunication channel," Yasmine broke the silence.


    "Yes," I said, letting out a sigh. "I don''t think they will let us use that every day, even if we paid in full."


    "Not that you have that kind of money." Yasmine chuckled.


    "How many times do you think it will be allowed, then?"


    "Once a week, perhaps."


    "Once a week it is, then," I agreed.


    Yasmine looked at the star-filled skies, leaning against me. "You have changed, Scar."


    Four moons radiated in their brilliance on her face, as I looked at her with a little fear in my mind. I guess I could not hide everything from her. In the end, Scar and I are entirely different people.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "You lied to me today," she said again in a low tone, looking back to me. "You have deceived me many times with your words, crushed my heart many times, but you never lied to me directly."


    I knew what she was talking about. Scar, at his worst, swindled money from her day after day and even fell so low as to steal money from her. He passed out in the streets or in bars, drinking all night, and she had to bring him out of there among the stares of many. All of that was already toxic enough for her to still stay in the rtionship. Sadly, it was not even the end of it.


    Among many things, rumours hurt ady the most. There were countless outrageous rumours about her in the academy for Scar. Like Yasmine, was sleeping with Scar in order to improve her family''s position with the help of House Emberheart. She did not leave him even after that. Scar tried to stop all that, but his path was violent and only went as far as thrashing a few. But violence barely did anything to stop the rumours.


    It only dropped the candle fire to ignite the wildfire.


    Even though none of these were my own acts, my heart still throbbed just remembering them. I wondered if all those things were better than the simple, harmless lie I told her, so that she wouldn''t be worried about me.


    "I know that no apology I offer will be enough for what I did," I tried to apologise for what I did not do, but she stopped me.


    "I''m not finished yet," she said, putting her index finger on my lips. "Lying to me is not the only change. And I can forgive you for lying if you do not lose yourself again. I know how hard it is for you when you lost your mother." She held out her palm to touch the scar on my right eyebrow. "You never talked about it."


    I looked down, indicating I was not ready. Well, as a matter of fact, I am not sure what exactly happened as well.


    "I wish someday you will be open about it." She sighed. "But that''s talk of another day. You know, how d I am to see you redeeming the earnest self that you lost after her death. No, you are even more earnest than then, and less arrogant, though your arrogance had a thrilling charm to it."


    I cracked a smile, and she smiled, too.


    "You talk less and listen to people more. Your anger and fits have lessened as well. You even showed care for other people other than yourself, me, and a few, which is the biggest improvement, I must say."


    I looked at her as my eyes widened.


    "I can forget the harmless lying, as I''m not an honest person entirely," she said, looking at me and touching my cheek. "But please never lose your earnest self again."


    I guess she was watching me as well as I was. I even considered telling her the truth, but the fear of being cast away strangled me. Not before she''s safe, I told myself. I won''t even think about it until she''s safe and sound.


    "I will never lie to you again," I said, resolving my mind. ''I will not let anything happen to this woman. It doesn''t matter if it''s Scar''s feelings or mine.''


    Yasmine smiled brightly and hugged me. She smelt childlike, like the sunshine of one sunny autumn day.


    "You know, there is something else that changed as well," she whispered in my embrace.


    "What?"


    "Before, your palms would always wander around my body wildly, as if hungry for the sensual pleasure of touch," she said in a whimper.


    I looked at her face to see it was all red and blushing, trying to snuggle away and hid.


    "Do you want my palms to wander around your body?!" I could not help but say, swallowing a breath.


    She snorted and looked away at the star-filled sky, as lots of fireworks burst one after another, enlightening the sky and the river.


    I kept her palm in mine and resolved to undermine the half-heartiness that still left in me. I will do everything so that she won''t have to suffer the same fate.


    Looks like I finally have a goal.


    _______________________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.


    https://discord.gg/yA45JpRDPn

 Chapter 32 24: Madness (1)

    Q: Why do almost half of the twelve powers have side-effects?


    A: Original reason is unknown, but it was hinted that it was rted to curse.


    - - -


    I stood before a statue, looking directly at it, ignoring all the other glorious figures around it. Even though the statues were about one-and-a-half times taller than usual, the one before me still looked a little shortpared to the surrounding others.


    ording to the historical records, the one before me was just a few shades away from six feet, fairly handsome with a thick-framed ss in his eyes. There was some debate about the colour of his skin and hair. I surmised different nations gave him different appearances, iming he was their people.


    But I knew that the person in the statue before me was not of any nation in Shrankor, but a fellow transmigrator who came before me a thousand and five hundred years ago. Well, truth be told, I am not sure about that as well. Other designs involved here; designs¡ªI am not aware of. Things were gettingplicated even though I am doing nothing to change the plot. Sighing, I returned my attention to the statue again.


    Ayaan List, the Cursed Eye, one of the twelve heroes.


    I did not know what to think, looking at the statue. Only questions came into my mind. Was he like me? Transmigrated to someone else''s body with full memory intact? Did the author involve in this as well? It''s probably the author.


    But more questions came with that assumption. The story starts at the third age, but the Ayaan List came over a thousand and five hundred years ago, just before the end of the second age. Well, if we went on with history, Ayaan List himself had his hands on hailing the end of the epoch with a few others.


    I could not help but rub my forehead and recall the only thing I got from his biography. There was not a lot of information about the twelve heroes. And about Ayaan List was the scarcest, along with his wife, Adriana¡ªas if someone tried their best to hide everything about them. But one thing still struck me when I researched the biography.


    The portrait of Ayaan List that he drew himself.


    He did not write his name there. Instead, it was a line in the tongue I recognise. ''I killed people.'' Even the portrait was somewhat repulsive and glitched while keeping some striking parts. I did not know if he was self-reflecting or something else, yet I could not eliminate the words from my brain.


    I killed people.


    Certainly, the events he experienced in this world were more than enough to cause trauma and question his own humanity. It was only a couple of days ago that I faced the ghoul, and with just that brief encounter, it changed me. Worse of all, I can''t do anything to stop the change.


    "What are you doing there?" A voice called from behind. It was Elinor, in her white garb of the division of Magus.


    "Nothing," I said, shaking my head. Walking away from the statue, I stood near the fountain. The academy will start tomorrow. I wonder what she''s doing here now. It could be rted to the ident. "I am waiting for others to arrive."


    "You know, I heard there happen to be some disturbance the night before the festival. Are you here because of that?" she said, guessing through my face. "Well, I was called up for some reason as well."


    "Well, something like that," I said. We all were told to say nothing about that incident to anyone before they solve some matters. Though it was likely Elinor would get to know about the attack rted to the undead soon enough.


    What puzzled me was that I still have not got the destiny points yet. It was quick when I passed the admission test.


    Professor Ranyan was a person who was meant to die, yet somehow we managed to save him. This should give a good number of destiny points, yet I have got nothing as of yet. There was no point in killing that ghoul. Perhaps the problem is not solved yet.


    "Scar," another voice called, and I did not need to look behind to know who it belonged to. It was Yasmine, and she was not wearing a uniform, but in a while, free gown, simple, but lovely. She had already graduated with the highest score from the Knight department, and her knighthood ceremony would be held today in the afternoon along with the others. But now she should be here for the same reason as me. The questionnaires about the attack.


    "You are here," I said. "Where are the others?"


    Yasmine shook her head, telling me she did not know. Well, there was no wind of Julies, I have checked, but the others wouldn''t be irresponsible as him. As I was wondering, I noticed the two silver-haired youngdies were staring at each other, frowning. A chuckle escaped from my mouth as I introduced them.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Both of them had burning silver hair, but Yasmine clearly won in the contest of looks and everywhere else, from the slender body to the sparkling eyes to the long legs. Elinor did have a lovely face, but she only looked cute to me, not to mention she was barely a kid. But Yasmine was everything I dreamt of. Well, my opinion could be biassed. Nheless, Elinor is the most important individual to the plot¡ªshe was, after all, our protagonist.


    We walked into the office building of the academy. Elinor looked at us peculiarly and followed without a word. Now we need to go to the third floor, and just when we arrived there, the woman I saw with the President the other night brought us in.


    May was her name. She was the current president''s Knight as well as an assistant in all things pertaining to the academy. She even brought Elinor with us, which confused the frail girl.


    A few people were already present in the room. Other than the familiar faces of Adarsh Starlight, my aunt, Lorne, and Lily, there were a few other notable people. The thing that caught my vision was Professor Ranyan on the bed, and beside him were two other men. They were not in healer or doctor suits, though.


    From their size, I could guess who they were: retired knights who worked in the academy, taking care of stuff that did not need them to fight.


    "Is that the girl?" the young president asked, eyeing Elinor. The ck sses were still in his eyes as he stood leaning against the desk.


    May nodded, and Adarsh called for Elinor to move towards him. The short girl did hesitantly, then her eyes wandered to the figure in the bed.


    "Do you know this person?" the president asked her, pointing towards Professor Ranyan.


    Elinor looked carefully, and her eyes widened to find it was Professor Ranyan, the person who introduced spirit arts to her.


    "Teacher," she called, moving before the bed. Though the one standing before her stopped her. "What happened to him? Is he injured?"


    "You will be informed about it soon," May said, touching the shoulder of the frail girl. "First, answer a few questions of the President."


    Elinor looked around to find the president, though she did not know which one was the president. In the end, May helped her by turning her head towards the person in sunsses. I almostughed out loud, seeing this, and so did May.


    The young president red at his Knight slightly. "How do you know Professor Ranyan?" Adarsh asked the frail girl in a stern voice. "Tell me everything about your encounter with Professor Ranyan."


    Elinor flinched, hearing the stern voice of the president. May brought her a chair and tried to calm her down. She started with how she met with Professor Ranyan and how he helped her escape from a few thugs. Then their paths crossed again when she saw him sleeping outside in the cold.


    After conversing, she learned he was a Magus and asked him to guide her if she could learn magic. The professorughed, but he did check if she had any talent for sorcery. And when he found out about her talent, he was so happy that he agreed to teach her for a couple of weeks.


    A couple of weeks turned into a couple of months. Elinor learned many things about spirit arts and the world from the professor. In the end, one day, she found the professor had already left, leaving two letters.


    The one for her¡ªhe told her to get into Starlight Academy¡ªand the other one will assist her in obtaining the schrship she needs to survive here. Unfortunately, she lost both of them and almost got sold to human traffickers.


    Luckily, she had learned more than enough in two months and got her freedom. Then she made a journey for a couple of months to get here. That was all. I knew most of it because it was canon in the book, though that was Edward, and a few things were left out.


    By the time Elinor finished, Kyle, Julies, and Yeriel appeared in the room and silently listened to everything. Yeriel was dumbstruck hearing the experience of Elinor, while the others shared her bewilderment as well.


    Ben was not here. His condition was better, but that was not enough to let him move out of the bed. I went to see him once and his treatment went better than we had assumed, though he might never get close to the level of Grand Knight. It was a tremendous blow to him and his family. Everyone had high hopes for him.


    . . .

 Chapter 33 24: Madness (2)

    Meanwhile, the president did not finish his questioning.


    "Did he mention anything about the thing he was investigating or where he was going next?" Adarsh asked, raising a brow.


    "He did not mention that sort," Elinor said. "But I saw him trying to decipher some ancient text. When I asked what it was, he only said ''some urban myths''."


    "Anything out of the norm?"


    Elinor frowned and closed her eyes for the pondering. "I saw him having bad dreams, more than twice," she said, remembering. "Once I heard him mumble something about a Key and the Forsakers."


    I raised my brow at hearing that. It looks like Professor Ranyan was up to something good, but the vampires got him before he could get there. Though I''m not 100% sure about it, I think I know what the Key¡ªElinor¡ªwas talking about. The Sword of Oath was the key to salvation, and the Forsakers held the path to the sword.


    It was not just me that just raised brows; almost all of them had simr expressions on, including the president. After all, the forsakers did not have a good rtionship with the maind. Or the other way around. Mostly the other way around. That was not all, it was almost impossible to reach their ind, not that we will have a homely wee if we reach there.


    "I told you everything I know," Elinor said. "Please tell me what happened to my teacher."


    Adarsh looked at the girl and to his knight. May nodded as he began. "Six months ago, my teacher left, giving me the responsibility of the academy," Adarsh said, rubbing his forehead. "When I asked him where he was going, all he told me was he was searching for something and he was not the only one. It appeared Professor Ranyan was one of the confidants of my teacher. Professor Ranyan most likely found something and got in trouble with the bloodsuckers."


    It appeared President Adarsh was not telling everything he knew, but considering the importance of the matter, it was better that fewer people knew about it.


    "Will he be alright?" Elinor asked, making a fist.


    The room turned silent, and Adarsh''s eyes drifted off towards the figure in the bed. He knows the man pretty well¡ªafter all, he was once a student just few years ago, and Professor Ranyan was the pir of the academy. Yet things change so easily.


    "There is no threat to his life," May said, biting her lips. "But I fear his mind is already broken. His mind and spirit were already tainted with an evil, dark force. Our best healer found no remedy, and we also asked for help from the empire, but nothing conclusive yet." May paused for a few moments, scanning everyone''s face. She gave Yeriel a second look, who first checked on the professor, and it was likely she noticed it too. She continued, turning to Elior. "He woke up a few times, but all the time he screamed in madness. He even called your name a bunch of times."


    "What?" Elinor looked at the man sleeping on the bed with a fright. The professor, Ranyan, on the bed was far thinner and olderpared to thest time she saw him, but that was not the problem. She just heard her teacher growing mad.


    "Wake him up," Adarsh said to the men next to the bed. "He screamed her name countless times; I would like to see if he can build up a rity of mind seeing her."


    The two men nodded and nudged the professor slowly, drawing a few strand of spirit force. It took a couple of minutes for the professor to wake up. When he opened his eyelids, the first scene he saw was Elinor before him.


    "Teacher," Elinor said with a pained face.


    Professor jerked his head instantly and caught the shoulders of the thin girl unexpectedly.


    "Elinor, Elinor," he bellowed, looking at her with his distant eyes. "Thank Ishar, they did not get you. Only you can save us. You have to save us. Saider, they . . . they areing. They wille for you. . . ."


    "Teacher, please." The anguish broadened on Elior''s face, and it was not just from the arms that held her shoulder roughly.


    "You have to be safe, Elinor. Don''t let them catch you."


    Adarsh gestured towards the two men with pressed lips. The two men nodded and injected something into the professor as he passed out again. There was no helping it.


    I could not help but shake my head and saw the teary eyes of my aunt. Was there something between Rosalyn and Professor Ranyan? Perhaps. But I see no way to bring back his sanity. The evil force of the dark corrupted his mind. And if it was something rted to the Saider, then there was no way he would be the old Ranyan again.<novelnext></novelnext>


    I could have tried to cleanse the evil from his mind, but my mastery of Purgatory was too low and there was a very high chance of him dying instead. I could not help but look at Elinor, at her teary face.


    Maybe if we two could work together, then there is a chance, but none of us is a master of our ability. Professor Ranyan would only suffer more from it. At least he has a chance. Perhaps in a year or two, we might be able to bring him back, though I doubt he would be left with much at that time.


    "Professor Rosalyn," May said. "Will you mind taking Elinor with you?"


    My aunt nodded and left with the teary protagonist. On that note, there was no mention of Edward crying except at the beginning of the book, as if he was a man of steel. Elinor appeared to be far more emotional than Elinor; perhaps this was a hormonal thing for girls.


    I heard Yeriel murmuring with Yasmine about Saider and the twelve heroes that they killed them all. And I''m sure everyone else held the same mindset as well, that the world was safe from the Saider. Unfortunately, it was not. Well, at least they brought peace for over one thousand and five hundred years.


    Chaos will walk on Shrankor again. It is inevitable, we can do nothing about it.


    Now it was our turn to answer the question, though they had heard everything about the attack on the night of the attack. But they needed to make sure there was nothing left off. This was a serious matter because it was an attack by vampires, and it was taking ce within the Starfall mountain range.


    ? "Would anyone like to add or ask anything?" May asked.


    I raised my arm first. Getting their approval, I started, "At first, Sir Lorne and the Bloodsucker had some conversation where the vampire said something along the lines of, ''We always snuggle under your noses, it''s just the human''s inability to find us.''¡± I looked at Lorne with everyone else.


    "Yes, he did say something like that," Lorne agreed, and the others nodded as well.


    "What are you getting at, Redhead?" President Adarsh asked.


    "I think he did not just say it metaphorically," I said, pointing towards the earth. "They really could be under us, snuggling, and the best ce for that is the subterranean region. They''d have easy ess to information about humanity, and sneaking in and out would be much easier. Though many colonies of the tainted have taken the oath to never harm humans, there are still groups of the bloodsuckers growing for centuries."


    A frown appeared on the brows of the young president and so did in his Knight, May''s.


    "There is some feasibility in your hypothesis," May said, exchanging a nce with Adarsh. "But it could be wrong as well. It would take immense human resources to even start investigating, and only the power of the academy is not enough."


    "Of course," I said, though I''m sure the vampires were living underground while blending with humans to deal a fatal blow. Moreover, they will find the evidence of it soon enough, my argument should be enough to make them more vignt. "But even if there is a faint chance of it turning true--"


    "I got it," Adarsh said, cutting me off. "We will look into the matter."


    I was not satisfied with just that, but I could not get more from it. After all, I did not have evidence; it was just the words of a mad vampire. Still, informing one of the most influential people in Shrankor was enough for now.


    [You have gained 144 destiny points.]


    Abruptly, a transparent notification greeted my sight as all the questioning finished.


    So, this was what the system was waiting for: for me to spill that out to the president. But I was happy to get 144 points. That was quite a lot, but considering Adarsh Starlight involved himself in it, I thought the number would have to be half of the one I got.


    Perhaps, the event will be more impactful to the realm than I thought.


    ___________________________________

 Chapter 34 Chaptee 25: The Laws Of Magic

    Q: What is a Warlock?


    A: Some spirit practitioner, preferably a Sorcerer or Magus, who broke one or many of the sevenws of Magic.


    - - -


    The ssroom of the Magus Department was more vacant and extravagantpared to the knights''. In the wide ssroom that could hold a hundred students, there were only forty-odd students sitting on the semicircr benches all the way to the slightly high stage.


    Among the forty-odd students, only a dozen or so were male,pletely the opposite of the knight department. Usually, girls have more affinity towards high arts than boys, while the exact opposite for physical arts, though exceptions are everywhere. For example, Yasmine got her knighthood a couple of days ago, and she had the highest score among the knights, and as for a male magus, Adarsh Starlight would be the best example.


    So it was true that gender ys a role here, but with hard work and talent, it could be overturned as well. Though even with all that, something could not be changed. The nature of men was always forceful, and even if they learned sorcery, their spell would be more forceful than that of a woman. Simrly, a female knight would be more protective than a male. This is how man and woman were created or manifested¡ªI would say, as I do not believe in god or gods.


    But should I now? Oh, Almighty Author, please don''t put me through all the misery Scar had been through. Completing my daily prayer, I put my attention back to the ss.


    I was sitting in the high seat in the back with a couple of notebooks and fountain pens before me. Even though I had a splendid memory, I did not want to take chances with the first ss.


    All the students were already here, and among them, I saw the familiar figure of Elinor, and next to her was the showoff prince Dareth. He had not stopped in his approach to ringing her in. Ciara was not far away from them as well. Another noble youngdy seemed to want to talk to her, but Ciara was oblivious to all that.


    Apart from them, I did not recognise anyone, though a few of them were giving me unnerving gazes. I was, after all, a couple of yearste to take the ss here.


    The door of the ssroom opened, and my aunt entered with a few items in her arm. The students greeted her by standing up, and she greeted them back, telling them to sit. I checked the items she was holding, a worn-out short branch of a tree¡ªa wand, a few coins, and nothing else.


    "You forty are the best candidates on the maind," Rosalyn said. "Ignoring Ruthalyn, that is," she continued, correcting herself. "The forty-odd of you came from different families, with different heritages and different fortunes, but remember, to the academy, you are all the same. Any other distinction onlyes after you prove your worth."


    If only all of that were true.


    "But first, I must inform you of a few facts, shattering some misconceptions, I should say. You may have heard or dreamt of learning some great spell and winning a war single-handedly or flying from one nation to another. Lofty dreams, but all that is hardly possible. Those are all lies. Even the great general of the Mahenar Empire, Gareth Sholinar, cannot win a war single-handedly, nor can our president fly freely from one nation to another."


    Mutterings came from the students, and Rosalyn let them out for a certain time. The two names she mentioned just now were the two people at the peak of their art. Well, Adarsh Starlight most likely is not, but he will be soon. They said that even if the emperor copsed, as long as the great general still held the reins, the empire would still stand.


    While our new president was still young, he still needed to showcase his strength to create a legend for himself. I think the young president is far more powerful than his mentor, though I''m not sure how powerful he is right now.


    And yet, Rosalyn said they could not do the things others heard in the rumours. Well, what my aunt said was not wrong. Gareth Sholinar or Adarsh Starlight could not win a war by themselves, but their involvement could overturn any situation. There were a couple more like them, though.


    "Remember, what we teach here are the known arts, and there are limitations to the spirit arts," Rosalyn continued. "And understanding one''s limitations is the first step in learning the arts. You can do many brilliant things with the spirit force, but if you cross the limit, you have to pay for it dearly."


    That was unfortunately true. A magus'' mind could break if he pulled more force than he was capable of, or his body could just burst out if the spirit force went berserk, causing turmoil in the blood vessels. That was why the school. The Starlight Academy will make sure none of us make such a disaster for ourselves and others.


    "Thene thews of magic, seven in total, and if you break any of them, the consequences will be dire." Rosalyn''s soft voice turned sharper. "I think most of you are aware of a few of them, but it''s my duty to inform everyone about them.


    "Firstw: Thee shalt not toucheth the other side. The firstw was erected by the progenitor, Ishar himself." And the progenitor spoke Shakespearean. " The firstw forbids touching anything rted to the other side and demons."


    And Saider, well, hardly any of them believed it if my aunt mentioned Saider here.


    "Secondw: Thee shalt not consume the flesh of humans or drinketh the blood,¡± Rosalyn''s voice reverberated in the ssroom as the students looked at one another. "The secondw forbids eating the flesh of humans or drinking the blood of humans. It was created specifically tobat the bloodsuckers and other undead that still roam thend.¡±


    "The thirdw: Thee shalt not killeth innocent mortals implies that it is forbidden to hurt or kill a mortal with magic, but there are manyplications to this rule. For example, if a non-spirit user is trying to kill a magus, then you could use spirit force to harm them. I rmend using some free time to read the rulebook carefully.


    "Fourth Law: Thee shalt not invade the body or mind of another. The vition of mind and body. You shall not forcefully vite one''s body and mind with spirit force. Any type of ck curse, dark magic, or necromancy is prohibited. If you are found in the act ofmitting any one of those, you will be put to justice immediately.


    "Fifthw: Thee shalt not summon creatures of another realm or open the outer gates. Any type of summoning arts is forbidden, and so are the ones that mess with the outer gates."


    I did not know if my aunt understood properly what she was saying. Well, she should know what the summoning arts and outer gates imply, but she probably did not know why. I could barely guess a little. Now that I think about it, I have already vited two of thews, though it was hardly my fault. I have vited Scar''s body and mind, and I was also summoned from a different realm.


    In my defence, it isn''t my fault.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "Sixth Law: Thee shalt not enve another. It is forbidden to enve another with spirit arts." But it''s alright with brawls.


    "Seventhw, Thee shalt not alter the current of time."


    I knew all the sevenws, and I could not help but think that all of them were connected to a single thing.


    And it is needless to say, I have no intention of viting any of the rules, though my intention hardly matters on the grand scale of the plot. I had broken two of thews already, unknowingly. Fortunately, nobody hade to put me to justice.


    "These sevenws are those that every magus, sorcerer, and spirit practitioner has to follow. If you are found to be viting any of thews, you will be punished dearly. This rule applies to everyone, from the student to the adept or grand magus. You can check the mission board to know the bounty put on those warlocks who broke thews."


    I really didn''t want to break any of the rules, but as I previously stated, my wish is meaningless. The way the events in the book will ur, I''m bound to cross thews and not just me. My eyes drifted towards Elinor and Ciara.


    "Now that I already mentioned thews, it''s time to start the ss." Rosalyn finally rested in her seat. "For today''s ss, I''ll exin Spirit Binding. It is a fundamental art that is useful in many other arts."


    I have read about Spirit Binding and even wanted to try it, but I stopped myself, as I only have the knowledge. Spirit bindinges in handy in many arts, from sympatheticmunion to thaumaturgy, and even sometimes in Evocation.


    Think of it as the voodoo doll; like how, with the hair of some person, a practitioner sticks it to a doll and then harms the owner of the hair. It was something like that, but for real.


    Thaumaturgy and Sympathetic Communion were very simr. The only difference was that in Sympathetic Syphoning, you had to draw a sympathetic line between simr items, whereas thaumaturgy was more difficult and worked on a grand scale. But in both of them, a link must be formed before attempting the spell.


    While Evocation is the fastest spell that a mage or sorcerer could attempt directly, It uses the practitioner''s own spirit force, so it was faster and easier to cast, unlike the other two, where you have to create a link and force the spirit of the realm to work along with your spiritual force.


    Rosalyn showed the small wand to the ss, and after shaking it for a little while, the wand flew away from her arm and hovered in the air along with her finger.


    "Can anyone tell me which form of magic this is?" she asked.


    A few of the students picked their arms up, and I did too. Rosalyn looked at all of us before pointing at the frail girl.


    "This is sympathetic binding," Elinor said.


    "Correct. Can you exin how I did it?"


    Elinor nodded. "Obviously, the wand is yours, so you have a deep connection with it," she said. "You drew your spirit force and linked it with your connection to the wand to move it in the air."


    "Correct again." Rosalyn gestured with her arm to tell her to sit down. "Communion is a somewhat easy art to learn, but it''s far harder to master. Where Thaumaturgy is even harder. Many small but efficient skills, like tracking someone or Warding, use Thaumaturgy, and it has uses in broader spells such as Domain Arts.¡±


    "But,¡± She continued. ¡°Without learning these two, you could not be called a true magus. Though there are many powerful individuals that be famous without even learning one of those."


    "Professor, how could they do that?" a girl asked, standing up.


    "They had mastered their evocation art to the limit," Rosalyn said. "Evocation is the direct way of spell casting. It is fast and effective magic. It takes your spirit force as you do not manipte the spirit force of nature with it. So naturally, it would take more of your force. The less talented students in some auxiliary sses, all they learned was evocation, and even many other ces taught the generalws of evocation.


    "You all know your element, so your achievement in evocation skills on that element would be thergest, though you could learn the other elements as well, but it would be inefficient and take a lot of your spirit force.


    "I''m the head professor who will be responsible for your course this year. I will teach the basics of Spirit Binding along withmunion, and wind element Evocation. For other elements, there are other professors.


    "Now here are a few things you need to get before starting your tutge. . . ."


    ________________________


    Edited my Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 35 26: Her Test

    Q: What is the most influential known Dominion?


    A: They all y some vital roles. But Gravity appears to have an edge in that, as there is no limit to its power.


    - - -


    Yasmine felt more nervous than any other day in her life. She was not this nervous a couple of weeks ago at her knighthood ceremony, nor was she a couple of days ago when she fused with a dominion. Perhaps it was a side-effect of the dominion, though her mind told her otherwise.


    The reason for her nervousness was nothing other than the unknown test she would take in a few minutes.


    She released a deep breath and looked at the image reflecting in the restroom mirror. On her body was a skin-tight battle te, hiding all her skin from neck to toe, and it was not anything heavy she had worn before.


    It was a dark-coloured, thick cloth-like object made of a mystical fabric that reacts to spirit force. Though it appeared only to be thick clothing, with the infusion of spirit force, it became tougher than any breastte she ever wore. Also, it could absorb and divert shock waves of any impact, physical or spiritual.


    Ward, as it was known throughout the maind, and there are no more than 400 pieces of such battle te on the maind if you ignore the False-Wards.


    Though Ward appeared to be skin-tight as there was no space for air in between, but it was superfortable to wear. Moreover, if she infused even a little spirit force into it, it would seal away all the surrounding effects on her body and would have a better defence than any metal armour¡ªconsidering the fact that she fuels it with enough spirit force.


    It was something the empire presented her with, especially for the test today, and if she seeded in the test, it would be hers.


    Only a select few are given opportunities like this. Despite the fact that they had already given her something more valuable than the Ward.


    They had already given her one Dominion that her body could handle. If she seeds in the test today, then perhaps she will get another one when her body and soul are capable of holding another one. Then there''s the prestige and honour she and her family will receive if she seeds.


    Be it the full-body Ward, or the Dominion, both were extremely scarce, even in the empire. Only the elite and loyal subjects get them after years of service.


    She only got it so early because of the connection her father had with the Emperor''s brother. With her father''s connection and devotion, coupled with the result she had shown in the academy, they had shown high promise in her, giving her a valuable Dominion and Ward just after her graduation.


    Even though they had fallen quite low, it was hard for even the empire to get loyal subjects that would risk their lives for the good of the empire.


    ''For my father,'' She thought, and braided her hair behind her head and looked at her face again, as if trying to find the resolve she needed.


    She already knew this day woulde six months ago. However, that did not stop her from being nervous. This is the biggest hurdle of her life¡ªa test that might seal the fate of her and her family.Not that she did not have other options.


    The Academy had given her an offer, and in some sense¡ªquite simr to this one, though there was no glory for Amaan in it. It would have been the best job for her if she had chosen the academy, but she had to leave her family behind for that, and there was no way she could do that.


    All these efforts and hard work she had put in throughout the years would be for nought if she abandon her goal now.


    "Yasmine, are you ready?" a voice called outside of her room. It was her father''s voice.


    "In a minute," she said and washed her face. Water was quite scarce here, but she needed all the rity the cold water had to offer. She wore the battle-gown over the ward to distract herself from those thoughts. The battle gown was expensive as well, but it could not hold a candle against the Ward.


    Still, she wore it as even though the ward concealed all her skin; she felt naked wearing it. What''s more, the gown would give extra protection to her and the ward.


    All her gear barely weighed a couple of kilogrammes. It was certainly an enormous improvement, and she was more adaptable with her thin frame. Weight is, after all, a terrible factor for her with her wind attributes, but with this new gear she could make up for a lot of things.


    Afterpleting all her preparations, she opened the door of her room and got out. The loving face of her father greeted her. Rogan Amaan, her father, had aged badly over thest couple of years. He did not have white hair like her, though a good portion of it turned white with age. With teary eyes like hers, he looked at her daughter.


    "Father," she said, bringing out a sweet smile. "Why are you like this? It''s like you are marrying off your daughter."


    "It''s no less than marrying off my daughter," he said, and embraced her daughter. After a few seconds, he let her out of his embrace, giving her a good look. Yasmine was tall for a girl and almost reached her father''s nose when she stood straight. "Your shoulders are stiff, and I can feel you are more tense than usual."


    "Of course I am," Yasmine admitted truthfully, as she could not hide it from her father. "This is the biggest test of my life."


    "Yes," he said, and touched her cheek. "It was only yesterday when you were so little, ying with your brother in the backyard, yet now . . . I wish your mother would be here to see this day." He paused and sighed. Then he unfastened the straps around his waist to bring the sheathed long sword. He looked at it for a couple of seconds before giving it to his daughter. "I want you to have it."


    "Father, I can''t." Yasmine did not even consider it and pushed it towards her father.


    "Yasmine, look at me," her father said, and she looked straight into her eyes. "After a lot of thinking, I have decided. I am retiring. My state has got even worse. I could not stop my arm from shaking when I gripped the hilt. I cannot protect the Lord now."


    "But, Father¡ª"


    "Listen to me, girl," her father said, cutting her off. His arms softened her shoulders. "Even if I do not retire, I can''t do the things I used to do. I''m ageing. Lord Gareth is not saying anything because of the good rtionship I have built with him through the ages, but people talk. It would be better for me to retire with some dignity before I am asked to do it."<novelnext></novelnext>


    Yasmine burst out in tears, and her father hugged her again. They stayed like that for a dozen seconds as Rogan caressed his daughter''s back soothingly.


    He could not help but wonder if his decision was right. Not about his retirement, but sending out Yasmine, even after he lost his other child.


    "Alright, stop crying. Lord Gareth will preside over your test. You should not let them see you in such a state." Her father strapped the sword onto her back before giving another look at her face. Seeing the resolute look on her face, he nodded. His only constion was that if she passed, her job would be a lot safer.


    The father-daughter pair walked out of the stone building, and the sight of a dry canyon greeted them. Rows of stone buildings were curved along the ridge of the canyon, and most of them had been built simr to the ones they were in a moment ago.


    The temperature was hot and extreme at times, though it was not currently. It was still too hot for ordinary people to stay here. She heard that Haktshin Canyon was once, long ago, a sea in some old poems and tales, but there were no historical records of it being one. Though, for thest decade, it has been nothing but a battlefield.


    Soldiers trained in the middle of the canyon. The numbers were well over thousands, and the ones that were doing their job were multiplied a few times higher than that. They were all in maroon dresses¡ªthe code of Lord Gareth''s army.


    With her father''s guide, Yasmine went to the middle of the canyon where the soldiers were practising. Precisely speaking, they were moving towards a certain man. A man who was sitting in the sun, seemingly appreciatingthe morning sun, though it was too hot to appreciate.


    There was no sword or weapon on his body and he appeared harmless, yet no one in the realm could say the man before them was unarmed. He was a man in histe prime, clean-shaven with half his ck hair having gone brown. He was in a maroon dress as well, but he was far darker than the ordinary soldiers.


    "My lord," her father greeted, cupping his fist on his chest before bowing. She followed and did the same.


    The one before them was none other than Lord Gareth. Highprince Gareth Sholinar, brother to the Emperor, the Prince of War. If the emperor was the mastermind behind the prosperity of the Mahenar Empire, then Gareth Sholinar was the strength behind it.


    Lord Gareth gave a look at her father first, noticing no sword on him, then looked at her. Yasmine''s heart shook a little. She felt the power she gained a few days ago, rumbling in her chest before going silent.


    Swallowing silently, she recalled the other time she had seen this man before, when she was little. He hade to her home, and even yed with her when she was little, but that one look told her he was something else.


    "Rx," Highprince Gareth said, and whiffed at the soldier he was speaking to. "Bring Aaelin here."


    Yasmine and her father stood straight, as if Lord Gareth''s word had the exact opposite effect.


    Gareth looked at the both of them and could not help but think both the daughter and father pair were alike. "Rogan, your daughter is just like you."


    They still had not rxed. Then Gareth''s eyes drifted off towards the sword on Yasmine''s back. He recognised it at once. It was the sword that he had presented to Rogan a decade ago, after winning a war against Ruthalyn. How could he forget that? It was a prize from the war.


    "Rogan, what does that mean?" Gareth asked, knitting his brows. Rogan had hinted this to him before, but he never thought it would be so early. After all, Rogan was only a couple of years older than him.


    "Yes, my lord," Rogan¡ªYasmine''s father¡ªthe aged knight, admitted. "I''ll give you an official paperwork for the retirement in a couple more days."


    "Have you thought through all this? What will you do after this?"


    "I have thought countless times, my lord," Rogan said, breathing out softly. "In the end, I could only retire. As for what''s after this, I''m not sure myself. Perhaps I might consider teaching young soldiers, or going back to mynd."


    Gareth sighed. "We will talk about thister," he said, and his eyes moved to the girl with silver hair next to him. "You can rx now, girl."


    Yasmine ignored the ''girl'' in which Highprince addressed her, as she learned from her father, Lord Gareth addressed novices with Girl or Boy until they went through some real battle.


    "I''m rxed, sir," Yasmine answered stiffly. If this was called rxed, then people woulde to see her tense appearance.


    "As you say," Gareth said, amused. "I reckon the fusion went with no issues?"


    "Yes, Sir," Yasmine answered. After the infusion with the Dominion, it could have had some side effects if they could not fully digest the new power, but that was not the case for her. Her spirit and body epted it whole.


    "Good, we will start your test here now," the Highprince said and looked behind towards a few soldiersing. "Your test will be a duel with him."


    The one Gareth was pointing at was a rather handsome man and had some resemnce to him, though the neer''s hair was golden, unlike his dark and brown.


    Yasmine had seen this person before and knew it was none other than the eldest son of Gareth Sholinar, Aaelin Sholinar.


    She could not help but let out a deep breath. For her first hurdle, she has to duel against the son of the greatest general. No pressure.


    _____________________


    Edited by Mysteries. Proofread by kqwxz.

 Chapter 36 27: Her Duel (1)

    Q: What is the mystery of Dominion?


    A: The power of dominion is both limited and infinite at the same time. A paradox. It is mentioned that the power of the same type of dominiones from the same source, yet some can pull more than others.


    - - -


    The person before Yasmine was the prince of the Mahenar Empire, Aaelin Sholinar. Nevertheless, Aaelin could not hide from the rumours. But unlike the person she was dating, Aaelin was not a delinquent nor an alcoholic.


    All the bad rumours she heard about him were rted to girls, though she was not sure how much of it was true. But one thing was certain: Aaelin enjoyed courtingdies. He gave the impression of being honest with everyone, but he managed to irritate every young woman he met and by the looks he was giving her. He was not far away from getting on her bad side, either.


    The two of them moved to a vacant spot while the other four, including her father, Lord Gareth, and two others, followed. Among the two neers, one was younger than her and was the youngest son of Lord Gareth, Gabin Sholinar.


    Gabin has a lot more inmon with her brother than Lord Gareth himself. He had simr shimmering blond hair and eyes to her opponent, but hecked the assurance Aaelin exuded. He did not have the build of a fighter either, though he was in the maroon code.


    The other person was another male in his early thirties¡ªwith the badge of a captain. There really weren''t that many girls in the army. Aside from themon soldiers, only about 5% weredies in the unit; the rest were scribes, other workers and the families of high-ranking officers and soldiers.


    Yasmine brought out her sword¡ªthe one her father gave her a little while ago and ran her spirit force through it. Spirit surged in her body, lightening her, strengthening her than she ever felt before. The amount of reinforcement the sword gave her was almost threefoldpared to her old sword. It has a spirit force reinforcement of nearly 150%.


    Apanied by such enormous power and the lighter gear, she held onto a strength that she had never felt before.


    "Start," Lord Gareth said from the sides as both of the two duellists ran at each other, bearing their sword.


    Yasmine tests the water with a half-sh at the handsome, tall man. In the duel, Aaelin was entirely a different personpared to the one she had seen. His eyes were narrowed and focussed as he met her blow. Swords shed as the metallic ng resounded, with the release of spirit force from the sh.


    She could not underestimate this person. Apanied by the fact that he was the son of the Prince of War and especially trained by him, with the best resources of the Empire, she could never take it easy against him. With all that, even a talentless person would soar like a dragon.


    The earth below her feet shook, and Aaelin threw her another piercing blow. Yasmine ducked and felt the earth lift her up in the air. That was not all. The sharp edges of the earth lurched at her fiercely after her sessive ducks.


    Earth element, she thought and made a full-sh of wind on the earth as her body lifted about a couple of yards in the air, splitting the earth into fragments of stones and splinters. The sharp splinters remained; another weapon for her opponent to use. But she beat him to it.


    Yasmine sucked in a deep breath and triggered the power of the dominion on the stone splinters she had just shattered. The dominion she was presented to was one of the best of the four the empire had. It was the Dominion of Gravity. Though she was never taught how to use it, it came naturally to her the moment she fused with the power.


    She used the gravitational pull on the sharp splinters with her sword, pointing around them. The basic rule of using a dominion is you have to use some gestures and movement of the body to trigger it. It was somewhat the same, yet different for everyone until they mastered the dominion. Yasmine had to use her arms as if she was picking them up with her palm to shove them towards her opponent.


    Unlike her expectations, the stones did little to stop her opponent. The splinters could not even get close to a couple of yards as another surge of gravitational push worked against her gravitational force.


    Yasmine felt silly for expecting anything from her push. Evidently, it was never meant to be easy.


    "Imend you for having such mastery of the dominion in just a few days," Aaelin said with a smile. "But how do you expect to use it against someone who has been mastering gravity for two years?"


    Yasmine said nothing and ground her teeth. She pulled everything she had, stamping her feet on the ground. Her feet dug into the stony ground, but even with all that, she could not make the stones budge even an inch.


    He''s strong, she mused, gritting her teeth. This was the worst problem with the dominion of gravity. If the opponent had more mastery and force behind his gravitational push, there was no way for the other person to get an inch.


    Yet she still pushed. Not because she did not have other tricks, but she felt she could pull more. Even though she had little time to practise her newfound ability and had never used it fully, she didn''t worry about it here. First, she needed to understand how strong her opponent''s dominion was, and how far she could push. If Gravity does not deliver her victory, she will have to find another way.


    "Oh boy," Aaelin said, and a glint appeared in his eyes.<novelnext></novelnext>


    The tension between the two gravitational forces against one another crumbled the stone splinters. Even though Yasmine had only been familiar with her dominion for a couple of days, she did not lose out in the struggle of pushing against Aaelin. Some portions of the splinters had turned into pure dust, while some turned into smaller rocks, and moreover, most of them escaped from Yasmine''s grip. Raw power could only do that much.


    Yasmine''s mind rang as she saw the stones lurching at her violently, as well as the dust blinding her vision. She saw iting and already had ways to get out of the way.


    She surged the wind element and pulled a full-sh far more powerful than before, flinging away the stones out of her way. She escaped from the stones, but immediately a figure shot towards her, in her blind spot, giving a hard sh to her right thigh.


    Her initial defence broke easily, like cutting through paper, but the Ward she wore restricted most of it, though she could not ignore the pain. But she felt humiliated more than pain by the blow. Her opponent had not shed with his de; more like a sword-p with the breadth of the sword.


    "Father, how do you expect her to win against Aaelin?" Gabin asked, frowning. This kind of y was nothing new to him. Even when they were little, Aaelin never grew tired of his tricks. "Aaelin already has all the advantages he needs to win it. There is no chance for her. No offence, Sir Rogan."


    "None taken," Rogan said, though his eyes did not move from the duel.


    "It''s not about winning or losing, Gabin," Gareth said. "All I want to see is if she meets the criteria needed for the job. So far, I am surprised to see that push from her. In raw power of the dominion, she is barely below Aaelin. It seems like taking gravity as her first dominion was the best decision for her."


    In the duelling ground, Aaelin was now flying all around, making shes and hacks at Yasmine with all the advantage he got from the higher ground. Yasmine was barely keeping up on the ground, and if not for the new gears, she would have already lost.


    Fortunately, her new sword could ignore the gravitational pull of her opponent. If she came with her other sword, it would really be a disaster for her.


    "I would be really disappointed if she did not figure out how to fling herself using gravity," Garethmented, while Rogan sped his palms into fists.


    Yasmine took a deep breath and saw her opponenting to the ground. She understood he was using the Dominion of gravity as a force to move himself, but she could not figure out how.


    Her opponent took the flight again, and she resolved herself to do it as well. She triggered the dominion''s gravity on herself and tried to lurch against the''s gravity. Yet nothing happened, other than the indignation she felt inside. It was as if all her force was nullified when she tried to lift herself up.


    In theory, every particle has its own gravity, but some are so minuscule that it does not matter against the gravity of the realm. Just like hers when she tried to lift her body against the gravity of Shrankor. Her dominion was minusculepared to Shrankor''s.


    Was it because I did not have enough training? She thought and found that it was not the case. She was probably doing something wrong. In between the battles, she thought about all the elements that came into y when she used the dominion of gravity.


    She looked at her opponent and thought, ''He might be powerful, but in no way does he have the strength to pull himself against the gravity of the realm. Then how?!''


    ''What if I do the opposite?'' with that thought, she did not lift herself against the gravity of the realm, but instead, she pushed all her surge of dominion against the ground.


    She was trying to push the realm away from her, and it worked. Her body lurched upwards instantly, perpendicr to where she was standing.


    Weird. Now that I think about it, whenever I use gravity, I work against a stronger force. She felt like an idiot. When she tried to lift herself up using gravity, it did not work, yet now when she used it against the gravity of the, it worked. But even after seeding, another problem arose. It was too damn hard to control.


    One moment she was shooting towards the sky and the next she was dropping on earth. And worse, it took away a lot more spirit force than any normal pull or push.


    "You finally get it, huh," Aaelin said, and he came at her bearing the sword. "The dominion of gravity doesn''t work on yourself as you yourself is the centre of gravity. All the force turns to zero when you use it like that."


    His exnation helped her understand, but she still did not know how to control her position in the air. Yet her damn opponent showered her with attack after attack while exining to her how the dominion works. So generous of him! She knew he was doing it half-heartedly, or else she would have failed already.


    "Even though the dominion does not work on yourself, it does on others," Aaelin said, smirking. He lifted one of his arms and used pull on her figure as she lurched towards him, and the worse thing was she could not work her dominion to stop him.


    - - -

 Chapter 37 27: Her Duel (2)

    Everything she tried backfired. She could neither stop the pulling force nor change the direction with her wind element. Then an absurd idea got into her head. Yasmine stopped pushing against the ground and instead made Aaelin her anchor.


    What she did was exactly the same as her opponent. Since working to free herself was almost useless, she pulled towards her opponent, narrowing her eyes.


    A glint of surprise appeared in the eyes of her opponent, and she prepared a full-sh. It appeared her opponent was doing the same as both of them shed together with the sword.


    The wind roared, and the air warped and churned, discharging spirit force from the sh.


    Aaelin shoved his sword with the earth elemental full-sh. Unlike wind element full-sh which releases gales of des at the opponent, Earth element full-sh cannot do that, but what it can do was not the other elements can. Yasmine felt like the weapon that blocked her sword was not a sword, but a hammer instead. A thousand-pound hammer. The pressure it brought was not something she could handle. Her sword pulled away, and she barely managed to keep it in her arm.


    The two of them fell to the ground, as there was no gravitational force to let them fight in the air. Yasmine withdrew instantly and took her stance. Sweat beads formed on her forehead and cheeks, while the man before her was in far better shape.


    Aaelin''s body shot towards her, and Yasmine did not engage immediately like the other time. She could barely fight, much less challenge someone who had a couple of years of experience more with his abilities. Ignoring the iing attack, she shot upwards in the sky, trying to get used to flying. First, she needed to figure out how to levitate. All she could do was shoot up, down, or move around in sudden lurching.


    She shouldn''t have been frustrated since it was the first time she was using gravity for real, but that smiling face of the young prince made her disheartened.


    Aaelin''s figure appeared in the sky as his sword turned darker and heavier. "Stability takes time," he said, and walked in the air towards her. His steps were orderly, as if he was stepping on some invisible ss in the air. "Try to move your anchor in the direction you want to go. It will be problematic at the start, but it''s the easiest way to learn."


    Yasmine thought about it and found the reason to be reassuring. While walking on foot, she had to move her legs. Then why not while using the dominion of gravity? She tried to force the push at 30 degrees to her point of mass.


    In the next moment, her body shot perpendicr to the 30-degree push as well. Knitting her brows, she moved in the direction towards her opponent.


    Aaelin weed her, still standing nonchntly in the air. When she was just before him, he pulled his sword in a full-sh, drawing some gravitational push with his earth attribute. The move was far more terrifying than anything she felt during the match, weighing against her violently.


    Yasmine raised her eyebrows, noticing her opponent using the gravitational force in two directions. Even though she knew nothing much about the ability, she could tell if she tried, it would be disastrous.


    She was barely keeping herself stable in the air, much less using it on two ends like him. Instead, she pushed more force against the surface of the ground and twisted her body using the wind elemental full-sh.


    She dodged his blow, giving him a gale of swift wind, yet her opponent was still standing there. Biting her lip, she tried to find a way to get away, though nothing that would help came to her mind.


    She could not use her wind stance in the air, nor could she pull up against someone who had trained far more time with the ability. Worse, her spirit force is already on the verge of running out.


    Aaelin seemed to know that as well. "Let''s finish this then," he said, and pointed his sword at the stones on the ground.


    Dozens of stone splinters, small or midsize, rose in the air, and with a swing of his sword, all of them rushed towards Yasmine, churning in a storm of stone splinters and dust.


    Yasmine weakened the push and came to the ground, but the stones did not stop in their course, still shooting at her with the push from Aaelin. Sucking in a deep breath, Yasmine called the gale for thest time. With her arms gripped hard on the sword, she swung with all her strength.


    The gale wind pushed into one single line and ignored the stones to make its way towards Aaelin, twirling in its way.


    Aaelin was really surprised. He immediately pulled his earth-attributed into a full-sh and managed to block the wind, though he was a dozen yards away by that time. Moreover, in his shock, he forgot to stop the stones from hurting her.


    He thought the silver-haired girl before her would stop the stones from hurting her, yet she went for an attack against him. He was about to shout for his father, but found there was no need to.


    "That''s enough," Gareth said, and the stones stopped at hismand,ing to a halt just before Yasmine. Even the dust was in the air, came to a sudden stop. It remained like that for a blink of an eye before dropping to the ground.


    Lord Gareth walked towards her and the others followed him. With him were the other three, including her father. Her father was an unreadable expression¡ªand she knew what it meant. Disappointment.


    But in the next moment, he gave her a smile with a slight nod of approval. That did not make her feel better.


    She was looking down when she heard a voice.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "Stand up," Lord Gareth said,ing right before her.


    She did, shaking her head a couple of times.


    "Aaelin, what do you think about her?" Gareth asked his eldest son, who joined him in a moment.


    Aaelin tilted his head and looked at the silver-haired girl, who stood stiffly. "She''s beautiful," he mumbled.


    A pebble hit Aaelin straight on the forehead as heined to his father.


    "I asked you about her performance." Gareth red at her son.


    "But Father, I answered that about her performance, too." Aaelin came back with a save, though she only got a curt re from her. "I think she has a good head butcks experience. She was maybe a little too tense in the battle and made a few poor decisions, likeing at me straight. Her techniques were fine, but have not gone through enough actual battles. That being said, I was surprised to see her showing such progress on her dominion."


    Gareth nodded as if it was enough of an evaluation for her. "Yasmine," he called. "Do you know about the history of the sword you are holding?"


    Yasmine knew a few things about the sword, but she also knew it was not her ce to answer.


    Gareth lifted his head to show a scar on his neck. "Do you see this?" he said. "It was over a decade ago during the war when thousands of Ruthalynian soldiers surrounded me and my men. I had barely a hundred against a thousand trained Ruthalynian soldiers. At that time, your father was by my side. If not for him, I would not be here today.


    "I didn''t just give that sword to Rogan because he saved my life, but also because it was a sword worthy of him."


    Yasmine nodded and looked at her father. All of these words meant one thing to her: she has failed.


    "By far, you are still unworthy of holding your father''s mantle," Gareth said, and released a breath. "There are over a dozen knights in the empire who can use the sword better than you, but since your father has decided, and I have seen your potential, you will learn to be worthy of it."


    "Yes, sir," Yasmine said at once resolutely.


    "Unlike those dozens, you have something better. Do you know what it is? Potential and time. You are barely eighteen, at the cusp of your growth. Keep at it, and you will be good in no time."


    "Yes, sir."


    "At ease," Gareth said, but Yasmine did not, standing like a spear even with her fatigue. He thought about it and looked from Rogan to Yasmine again. "Have you killed anyone before?"


    Yasmine shook her head hesitantly. "I have not, sir."


    "I expected as much," Gareth muttered. "For the next two months, you will train with the soldiers and prepare for your next test. I don''t have to tell you that my niece is quite a picky girl when choosing her Honour Knight. Work hard."


    Yasmine was startled and looked at the leaving figure. "Does that mean--"


    "Yes, you passed," Gareth said. "Amara asked for ady Knight, and I don''t think there was any gooddy Knight avable that she had not rejected yet. Work hard."


    Yasmine could not believe it, actually. She actually seeded. Oh, Ishar. I seeded. Though it was only the first test of her conquest, she actually seeded, and got the approval of the Highprince of Steel.


    All her frustration from the match sipped away, and Yasmine found herself with a new resolve to perform better in the next test.


    __________________________

 Chapter 38 28: First Mission (1)

    Q: What does Stargrave hide?


    A: The Orb of Colour and the path.


    - - -


    "Boss," Julies called. "Where are we goin''?"


    "Haven''t I told you already?" I said. "We are going to make some money." That was one of the reasons, but my initial goal is to get some experience.


    The academic year started a couple of days ago, reminding me again how poor I am. I had about 20 dynes left of the money, which is more than enough for a lower-middle-ss family to live off easily, but it will not cover a few dregs, considering the ingredients I need to buy to even practise a few spirit arts are tens of times expensive.


    Moreover, to build up my physical toughness, I need to eat suitable food as well, which costs a lot of money too. All in all, I need dynes, a lot of them.


    The problem could have been solved if I could have shown my worth to daddy Emberheart, but the problem is, I''m still not ready yet. Just entering the magic division did not speak volumes about my aplishment. At least not to the Highprince of Fire.


    In the end, all I could try was to earn myself. Luckily, I have a few ideas to turn my pockets heavy, but that has to wait for at least a month until I finish an important job. For now, some small money to get by would be sufficient. Well, considering the expense of the things, the small amount of money would not even be enough for me to get by. But luckily, my angel left me another couple of hundred dynes.


    I had turned Yasmine down when she came to give me the money, and she left, but when I returned to my dorm, I found she left the money with a letter.


    I felt shame spending her money. So, I decided to earn from the very next day.


    "I got what you said, but where exactly are we goin''?" Julies asked in his usual loud tone. And it wouldn''t need to mention that he had the ck sses on even now, while the sunlight was reflecting off his shiny head.


    He was dressed in the academy''s uniform with leather jerkins underneath, so do I. While I had a sword, the baldy had a machete on his waist. But this shorty was good at hiding his knives all over his body.


    "To the mission hall," I said and pointed to the building where all the missions for the students of the academy were posted.


    "Boss, you should have said that earlier," Julies said. But considering why I asked him to bring his badge and weapons along with him, he should have guessed already. This baldy was a little slow at getting things. Then again, you can do a lot of other things with the badge as well¡ªLike, borrowing stuff and never returning them for once (General delinquent business). "I would have called Eran and others."


    "No, we two are good," I said. Actually, I did not want to call this baldy. Sadly for me, Julies stays next door. Just when I left my dormitory, this guy jumped at me as if waiting for me to leave my room. As for the reason, I did not want to call all my delinquent gang? It was quite simple; they make a mess wherever they appear. Ignoring Eran, all of them are the rotten bunch.


    I just wanted to start silently and have an exemry track record in the mission hall, considering I will be taking missions from this ce for a while.


    Seeing our uniform and iconic duo, the warders let us in. The bottom floor was quite empty at this hour and, considering the year was just starting, not many students wanted to take any missions yet. But our protagonist was not your typical fresh student.


    Elinor was arguing with the elderly man in charge of the mission half. The bald head and the impable white dress of the elderly man told he was one of the priests. Let¡¯s just hope he is not one of the zealers.


    Unlike in my previous world, priests in this one did not just spend their days worshipping their god or poaching followers from others. Well, at least not all of them.


    Moreover, anyone working in the mission hall was likely a retired Spirit practitioner. Then again, the majority of the zealots were spirit practitioners.


    I coughed at that thought and walked further towards them to listen to what they were arguing about. It turned out, our protagonist wanted to take a mission at a higher level, but she had not tested her capability yet, so the staff could not give her what she wanted. He asked her to get the testing done first ande back with the badge.


    On the other hand, her reasons were valid as well. The testing for the new students has not started yet. That''s why she should regret not having an approval letter from Professor Rosalyn or someone else.


    I looked at the mission they were arguing about. It was the task of finding some herbs from the mountains, and the rewards were quite handsome, ording to the strands of each herb you could find.


    It seemed quite an easy quest, but seeing the names of the herbs listed: Red Cudweed, Acx flower, Stone roots, Vine of Azarth, and many more, I figured it was not. Well, it is easy, but time-consuming.


    Only the red cudweed could be found with a little effort, but for the others, you had to search hard, not to mention the wilderness was full of wild animals. But that was of no concern to me.


    The mission needs a 2-star badge for eptance, and fortunately, I have a 3-star badge. Among many things, this was one of the useful things Scar had left me, though I could have taken the test again.


    "I would like to take this mission," I said to the old man. If there were no herbs, I can hunt a few spirit beasts as well to earn some dynes. The market for that is always high.


    Elinor and the old man looked at me at once. While Elinor red at me cutely, the old man asked for the badge. I gave him the badge, and he gave me the parchment scroll where the details were mentioned. The old man needed to prepare a few other things, and I needed to sign before I could go.


    The old man was writing the papers while Elinor tucked my shirt. I raised an eyebrow at her and heard her say:<novelnext></novelnext>


    "Can I take this mission with you, please?" her eyes were like a cute puppy that one could not say no to. Truth be told, I knew this was her strategy.


    Though the Edward I read about was not a scammer, he was good at judging people, and if this girl had all the traits of Edward then, she could possibly know how weak I was against cute things.


    More importantly, I needed to get to know her better in order to confirm that she has the same two characteristics as Edward. Unlike me or a few others who only have one cheat trait, our protagonist has two, actually.


    I have seen her using the light element, so it could possibly be the Light of Wisdom. Though Light of Wisdom was at the same level as Purgatory, it was her other ability that I and the story needed the most.


    But it would be more than just tricky for her to reveal it to me. Given the early Edward, Elinor may not have even awakened it yet, or she may have been the only one who knew about it.


    "Is that allowed?" I asked the old man even though I knew it was allowed with some special use. I have a higher grade badge, so technically I could take another person of lower grade. Moreover, there was Julies. He had a 2-star badge, though he had not taken the test for months.


    The elderly priest looked at the pitiful eyes the frail girl was making, and he could say no to that as well. In the end, he agreed.


    ¡°The paperwork will take a few minutes,¡± I told Julies. ¡°Why don¡¯t you take care of the horses at that time?¡±


    Juliespiled like a good underling, while Elinor waited with me toplete the paperwork.


    The paperwork took no more than five minutes even with slow old man, but that five minutes were enough for Julies to make some mess on his own, and it appeared it was with someone I knew.


    Althan Kimber was sprouting his speech on how he was superior, while Julies had an amused expression on his lips, listening to everything he had to say.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have any clue about what you did, do you?¡± Althan said in his superior tone. ¡°Do you know what this little amount of time causes me? How would it? You and your master have no decency and decorum, after all.¡±


    "Does my face tell you I give a damn?" Julies chuckled and found me and Elinor walking towards the conflict. "And look, the boss is here. You even lost your chance to strike when I was alone."


    Althan grunted and transferred his gaze to me. His eyes, which were of anger, bled into hatred and resentment.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I asked. ¡°Julies, did you--¡±


    "Boss, this time it is not my fault," Julies cut in before I could finish. "You know, young prince Kimber has a low tolerance for anyone he thinks lower than him? He thinks he can take away our horses just spending some dynes and his mouth.


    It turned out there were only four stallions left. Julies got ourselves three of them, but Prince Kimber wanted to go on with his adventure and offered a couple of dynes in exchange for the horses. Ideally, this situation would have been yed on the favour of Althan, unfortunately, they other party was Julies.


    ¡°That sounds very much like him,¡± I agreed. ¡°But no need to care. Just treat his words like thin air.¡±


    "You are going overboard, Emberheart," Althan shouted, drawing on spirit force. Wisps of the energy gathered around his arms, twisting around his fingers. Even his two underlings noticed it and looked prepared with their weapons.


    I took one step, an amused expression on my lips. "You sure want to fight here?" I said, touching the hilt of the sword. Julies joined me by my side while Elinor looked observant but prepared. She did not have experience in this kind of conflict, but she was as alert as a bird.


    For a few seconds, silence flowed in the space for both groups, as we red at each other, trying to intimidate one another.


    "Walk away, Kimber," I said, with confidence in my voice. A two-and-a-half metre flesh-eating monster was enough to intimidate me easily, but not Althan, who obviously didn¡¯t have the spine to fight with me.


    And as I thought, he exchanged useless words along the line of ¡®I will deal with youter¡¯, before walking away.


    ¡°You sure are famous,¡± Elinor said, sighing in relief.


    ¡°You have no idea,¡± I said as Julies led us to the horses.


    Then Elinor tucked in my overcoat from behind, with an uncertain expression. I raised an eyebrow to ask what it was as she answered: ¡°I never rode a horse before.¡±


    I did not know what to say to her, but a curve appeared on my lips. It was a couple of weeks ago, I had the same expression as her, staring at the horses. I never rode horses in my life before, but with the superior strength and heightened senses that came with spirit force, it went fine. Elinor would do fine, I''m sure of it.


    ¡°Well, it is first time for everything,¡± I said, ¡°Try it for a couple of times, or Julies can carry you with his horse.¡±


    Now, all we need is to make our way to the mountain, which will be an hour or two journey if we rush at our top speed and next will be picking up the ingredients which would be time-consuming, but we had quite the time in our hands.

 Chapter 39 28: First Mission (2)

    My initial idea was to go to the mission alone, to get used to working alone and to have some experience and confidence in myself, but staring at the hungry spirit wolf before the eyes, all those thoughts emptied my mind. I had to swallow my breath and resolve my mind again.


    I narrowed my eyes at the spirit wolf, gripping the hilt of the sword tight. The wolf before me was slightlyrger than an average lion in my old world if only lions ever were average. It had grey and ck fur all over its body with savage teeth bared. It was not as horrifying as the six-legged nightmare beast, but this one was hungry enough to chew my head easily. Using its four majestic limbs, the wolf lunged at the very sight of me.


    I kept my stance and armed the sword with spirit force. The sword lit up in a radish glow, even though I was not using purgatory, my spirit force had the glow of red.


    Narrowing my eyes, I weed the wolf while keeping my anxiety under control by breathing evenly. My legs moved rapidly, and with how I got to know the new body in two weeks'' time, I made a side swing to its lower body, though it connected only to its upper body as it lunged at me.


    The attack was heavy, but the spirit wolf was not a helpless beast, either. The blood that I imed from it was barely enough for it to show me some respect. My legs moved again, raising the sword on my right side. As I was moving towards the wolf, the wolf came at me as well, howling its savage cry.


    I lurched the sword in an attempt at another sh, but the wolf overpowered me, ignoring the pain I caused it. The wolf climbed upon me as my back fell to the ground. The grass was soft, but I had no time to appreciate as the hungry thing was over me, attempting to appreciate the taste of my flesh.


    I jerked my sword, as my heartbeat rose. The huge wolf that was over me, trying to give a bite to my head, though I stopped it with the sword against its savage w.


    Yes, I have the strength of an average knight, but that was not enough to overpower a huge spirit wolf like this one. Moreover, the residual instinct was not working, meaning I had to cope with the beast and my fear at the same time.


    What can I say? It''s too darn exciting. Maybe a little too much for my own good.


    In the contest of strength, I clearly lost, but I already had everything nned for what I would do if this situation came to be. Beforeing here, I had thought of dozens of possibilities to fight out with a wolf or other savage beast in the mountains under different circumstances. It was the only way a normal person like me could survive; prepare for every possible way.


    And more importantly, the current situation was not out of the possibilities.


    I supported the entire sword, pulling my right elbow against it, while my left arm pulled a knife out of my waist. Within a second, I infused an outrageous amount of spirit force into the dagger and jabbed my left arm right into its neck. The dagger pierced the weak neck of the spirit beast, and I hammered my arm again on the dagger as Scarlet dark blood oozed out in a spray. The wolf howled in weakness and pain as its head throbbed against me.


    I finally had the strength to pull my body. Even though I tried not to stain myself with the blood, a good portion of it tainted my left arm, shoulder, and chest. The wolf died in a couple more seconds as its lifeless corpse stained the green grass. I managed to stand upright and breathed in and out heavily.


    Why did I try it again?


    I could have done all that easily. All I had to do was: draw in the mes of Purgatory, and that would not have smeared me in blood, either.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Then why did I force myself into close quarters against such a savage beast? For the thrill? Trust me, Scar might be a battle-thirsty maniac, but I take no pleasure in it. Not in the slightest here.


    Some say hunting is fun and thrilling, yet all I felt was horror and disgusting feelings inside. I gave myself time to get over this, though I kept my eyes on the dead wolf and the blood all over.


    It was not thrilling in the slightest. Though I did feel some thrill duelling with Kyle and Ben, it is to be added that neither of the two had been intending to kill me.


    Why did I give it a shot? The answeres through another question: why am I training to be a knight if all I do is burn everything with fire? Because it was not enough. Only I know what we will face, and I did not want to die, knowing I could have trained better in both ways.


    Well, I was not all bad, after all. I managed to kill a spirit wolf in close quarters. Maybe when I lose my fear, I will find the thrill too.


    Letting out a self-conscious breath, I crouched down to open the head of the spirit wolf, sticking the dagger. Blood gushed out of it, and it was to be added that I was not doing this for some sick pleasure.


    In Shrankor, all the spirit beasts slowly formed a spirit core in their head or in some other ces. This beast supposedly should have had one in its head as well; unfortunately, there was none. I guess that exins why I managed to kill it so smoothly.


    "Looks like I have to make my way with these teeth and nails," I muttered. Other than the spirit core or the spirit heart, there are a few other things that could be sold, though the price of them would be marginally lower. Ignoring the hide that I could not take, I might be able to get 20 dynes or more with the nails and the elongated teeth. They were useful as magical ingredients.


    By the way, it was not the only beast I killed. I killed another wolf and a fox, though there was no spirit core either and I used a bow to do that. My archery was surprisingly good. Well, with the high perception and dozens of metres of distance into y, of course, it would be easier. Other than that, I found a dozen stalks of the herbs we were looking for. That would add a couple more dynes.


    Cutting out the money for the horse that we borrowed and the mission hall fee, I will have about thirty dynes if I find nothing else after these. Quite a sum for my first mission. I thought I would manage even less, but four hours to get that much money made me quite satisfied, though I knew this was no way near the capital I would need in the future. One thing at a time, Aaron, I told myself.


    Moping the blood as much as I could, I moved to pick up my bow and arrows. I had enough of a close-quarters battle for today. I wondered if the other two had any luck with their search.


    The sun and moon on the horizon told there was only about an hour of the light left, while the stiff wind was blowing fast. I really would not like to spend more time on the mountain today. Even though this part was not covered with snow, and there was no blizzard iing any time soon.


    Winter was quite cruel here, though the true winter was yet toe.


    ____________________

 Chapter 40 29: Trouble

    Q: What does Oscar hate the most?


    A: Himself.


    - - -


    Even though they had not climbed too high, and there was no ice, the weather here was on the colder side. Julies didn''t seem to have any problem, though. But it was not the same for Elinor. She was still in the school garment with hair tied on the back of her head, but since they had quite the luck with their search, she had no time to frown upon the cold or the stiff breeze blowing.


    They had found a herd of red cudweed. Though the price of each strand of cudweed was the lowest on the list, only 4 tills per piece; they had found a herd of a few hundreds of red cudweeds altogether, even if they ignored the younger ones.


    Elinor was picking up the red cudweeds when she heard Julies say:


    "I guess this would relieve me from the pain for a week or so." His eyes moved towards the ck cat that came with Elinor and was following her since they were moving into the wild. "Ain¡¯t you gonna pet that cat?"


    "Meow!" The cat wanted to know as well. It was the same homeless stray Elinor had fed when she met Scar on the bench. When they were borrowing the horses, it came out of nowhere and silently joined Elinor on the back of the horse.


    "I do not have time or money to take care of myself. How can I bother with this stray?" Elinor said.


    The cat meowed quietly with sadness. It was quite intelligent for a cat, though it was like all bones and fur, it was not entirely bad looking. Perhaps some amount of food twice a day would make it cuter.


    "What are you sayin¡¯, girl?" Julies said. "I heard from Boss, you have the highest talent in the magic department this year. You will be rich in no time."


    "That no time is two or three years from now," Elinor said and pulled the root with much force. The sun was at the horizon, peeking through the mountains, painting a clumsy canvas of golden red in the clouds.


    The cat rubbed its bony body against her legs as if it really wanted to stay with her. Even Elinor had to think about the pros and cons of adopting a cat. In her lonesome life, having a cat did not sound so bad, and then there was her issue with staying alone, but she still could not bring herself to take that.


    "But, I think that cat is a lucky charm for you," Julies muttered. "How ¡®bout this, if we find the golden vine of Azarth, which is, of course, the most expensive item on the list, you have to adopt the cat?"


    Elinor did not answer at first, but seeing the high spirit of the stray, she could only nod.


    The bald chap with the sunsses grinned evilly, as if his evil n had seeded. "Now, would you believe me if I tell you I already found the golden vine before findin¡¯ this?"


    Elinor''s lips stiffened, but she could not bring herself to hate this guy. Moreover, his personality reminded him of her brother, which troubled her even more. She sighed and pushed away the thoughts of her twin brother. Luckily, she had other things to upy her mind, like calcting the price of the golden vines and other herbs, for example. 50 dynes for a metre long golden vine. Then there was that stone vine as well, though it was a lot cheaper.


    She finished collecting the cudweed, and let the baldy lead her to the ce he saw the golden vines of Azarth. Elior has never seen Azarth with her own eyes, but she read about it. It was supposed to be a parasite leaving off some other tree. Julies led her for half an hour into deeper of the forest, as the darkness intensified. When they finally stopped, and she got to see with her own eyes, she could not help but swallow.


    "That''s one high tree to climb," Elinor said, looking at the two hundred metres tall tree before her. Another of the moon appeared on the other horizon by the time.


    It was all straight and higher than most of the trees in the surrounding area, with thick vines all over in grey and green, giving a gloomy vibe to the surrounding areas. The darkness seemed to loom there significantly more. Then again, the green and grey vine surrounding the straight tall tree that currently appeared as ck made it seem so. Thousands of vines loomed enveloping the tree, giving a ghastly vibe to three. If only they could make it do with any vines. But what they needed was the golden vine of Azarth and to get that, they had to climb the tree and find it.


    That quite troublesome job, searching between the thousands of the vines in the looming darkness that surrounded the tree.


    "So, who''s going to climb up?" Elinor asked again, looking at the shiny head of Julies. Only after asking did she find out, she was not supposed to be asking that.


    "I found the tree, so you should do the climbin¡¯," Julies said with a grin. ¡°Can¡¯t leave everything to this old Juls, can you?¡±


    Elinor''s face paled, and she looked at the tall tree again. She made a pitiful face at the very moment while Juliesughed out seeing that.


    "I''m just joking. I know your frail body is not good for climbing, so just try to find any stone root of the vines if you can."


    Elinor sighed in relief and saw the bald fellow preparing to climb up the tall tree. The stray was still with her, trying to get her attention, but she stared at the odd fellow with the sunsses on.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "Are you going to climb up wearing those?" she asked, gesturing at the sunsses. The sun was already about to set and the light was barely enough for them to make out. She was not sure if the fellow before her could see with the dark sunsses on.


    Julies looked at the golden-red afterglow at the north horizon and moved his eyes to the tall tree then. "Guess I have to put them off for now," he said and removed the sunsses.


    "Wow!" Elinor muttered at once, peering Julies'' eyes. Those two eyes were big, sparkling in the purple glow and almost like a young maiden. Soft and beautiful, but there was something else in that purple glow that she could not bring herself to look away. It was as if it yed some charm on her and she found the bald youth before her to be someone she could not forget ever in her life.


    A frown appeared in Julies'' eyebrows as he looked away instantly. Elinor finally got over her trance. She sucked in a deep breath and ran her spirit force in her body to even clear out whatever ethereal feeling she got from looking into those eyes.


    "I ain¡¯t wear this just for show," he said and did not look at her again.


    Elinor was silent for a moment. "I thought you were just copying the president," she said. "But I can''t lie if I ever saw any more beautiful eyes than that."


    "If I could, I would let you have it," Julies muttered, sighing. "But I''m sure you ain¡¯t gonna like it, either."


    He got back to his business and was about to climb up, keeping his sunsses in his pocket.


    Elinor did not know what to say, stood there silently, watching the fellow climbing up swiftly on the tree. She could not help but sigh, too.


    It was not just her life that was bitter and lonely. Even this guy who talked nonsense all the time withughter and glee was lonely as well. Like her, the others had to deal with the cruelty of life just the same. Suddenly, the face of a raging boy with red hair appeared on her head. A stiff wind blew and swayed her white robe. She shuddered and brought her mind back to reality.


    She had to find the stone root of the vines. So far, she has done nothing butborious work. All the findings of the herbs came from Julies. All she did was help to gather them. Even so, there were few wild beasts, but Julies led her to the ces without catching their attention. Julies is a delinquent, but she can''t deny his skills.


    The Azarth grows a lot of vines and only one of two of them turns golden each year. As for the stone root of the vines, it was only a little less rarepared to the golden vine. Bringing out a hand knife, she got to work.


    Only the older ones of the vines could create a stone root, so she went further into the gathering of the vines, pulling and turning to see how sturdy it was. There were at least a couple thousand vines and one-third among them were rooted to the earth. It would take much more time for Julies to find the golden vine than for her to find any stone roots.


    She moved, pulling and turning, then one vine came that did not even budge a little. She had to force all of her strength to make it even bend a little. A sharp smile appeared on her lips, as this should be the first stone root she found. She crouched down to unearth the root when a loud voice entered her ears.


    "Girl," Julies shouted. "I found it, the golden vine, and it''s big. This thing could go for a couple of hundred dynes if I am not wrong."


    Elinor could not help but look up, though she saw nothing in the inundating darkness of the trees and vines. Looks like they would be able to return before the third moon appears in the sky. She moved her hand faster and found a stony lump after unearthing about two feet of the earth. That was the stone root she finally found. Cutting it out using a little spirit force, she was about to smile but her smile stiffened, hearing a scream from Julies.


    "Shit!" She heard Julies scream again. "Girl, run quickly."


    Elinor narrowed her eyes and heard the screams of Julies telling her to run away. She put her ears to work to hear some weird buzzings of some insects, as well as the sounds of Julies, moving swiftly from the tree. She moved away out of the looming vines, bringing the ck cat with her, and saw what was going on.


    "There is a huge hive of the hunter bee here," Julies screamed as he slid from vine to vine like a circus champion. One had to admit, the short bald youth was better than a monkey at this kind of movement.


    "Whatcha doin¡¯ girl, run away." Julies got lower to the level where he could see Elinor standing under the tree like a doll. He could barely put up any defence against his spirit force, as thousands of the hunter bees were after him. Yet this girl was still standing. Was she frozen with fear, or did she not know what these bees could do?


    When Julies was about a couple of dozen metres above ground, she found Elinor was not standing in fear, but attempting something else.


    Light enlightened out from Elinor''s body. Every part of her body was brimming with the white glow of light and it only rose as Julies came down. She released all the light forward, blinding the bees that were after her. Even Julies had a problem with a special kind of eyes. The bees sang in chaos, and Elinor opened her eyes, releasing a slow breath.


    "Hurry, we have to run," Julies said and pulled her arms. On his shoulder was the two-metre-long golden vine. "Your light ain''t gonna be enough."


    Just as Julies said it within a few more seconds, the bees came after them, buzzing in madness.


    ____________________________________________

 Chapter 41 30: Fools Courage (1)

    Q: Who created False-Ward?


    A: Professor Club.


    - - -


    The sun eventually sat, and my work was almost done. I found nothing else after hunting the wolf, though I was not unsatisfied. So I moved towards the direction my other twopanions left in the search. I wondered what the other two found so far, though I had no high hopes for them.


    Elinor might be the protagonist, but she would only bring bad luck if it follows the rules of the book. Well, danger and opportunity walk hand in hand. Like once she got Scar a Dominion, or the Orb of Colours for Ciara. But I can''t actually wait for her to get into danger to find the treasure. I have to do it for myself. At least, for the dominion part.


    Unconsciously, my eyes drifted towards the north on the snow-filled white cliff of the mountains.


    Just as I thought about it, bad luck really caught up with our protagonist as I saw the two frail figures moving towards me, gasping for breaths. I did not need to look for more to notice it was Julies and Elinor¡ªthey were rushing away from something, though I saw no wild animal after them.


    Still, I brought out my sword, when I heard Julies say:


    "Boss, run away. There are hundreds of hunter bees after us."


    I narrowed my eyes at once while my ears picked up the buzzing of the bees first. Though in the dark, it was almost impossible to see it; I managed to make out the bees moving behind. I sheath my sword as it would not be of any use against the bees, and started running, though I kept my speed slow for the other two to catch up.


    "Are you two alright? How many of them sting you?" I could not help but ask.


    "I''m good," Julies said, gesturing towards Elinor. "But she''s not. She already got a few stings."


    "How did you two mess up with these bees?" I asked. If it was some wolves or other animal, I could have said nothing, but these bees are far harder to deal with and it''s not that they were not deadly. A couple of strings could kill a normal person if not treated within time or they were unlucky. While as a spirit practitioner, it was a dozen of stings or more ording to the resistance. Though there were various other side effects.


    "I was cutting the golden vines from the Azarth tree," Julies shouted. "But I failed to see the beehive there."


    "You have no sense," I snarled at him. Moreover, they seemed to lose their bags as well where they were gathering the herbs, though the baldy had a golden vine on his neck. "You don''t know hunter bees like to make their hive near the golden root to suck the juices from there?"


    I heard nothing from Julies but a painful scream from Elinor. A bee seemed to sting her even with Julies, helping her all the way he could to protect the frail girl.


    "Talkin'' ain''t gonna solve anything," my underling said. "Why don''t you burn them alive, boss?"


    "I could, but it would be really difficult to burn them all out with my control," I said. "The hunter bees have a good instinct. They would move away the moment I fired at them."


    "We ain''t got no better option than that," Julies said. He was almost safe from the bites of the bees as he had coated a thinyer of spirit force surrounding his body, though it would be a problem if several of the bees came to bite him together.


    On the other hand, I had not learned to do that yet. I reckoned it would take me a couple of weeks to learn the basic coating skill, though I could try some half-assed lump of spirit force around my body. It would have been a lot easier if I had less spirit energy. Well, I wasn''tining about having more spirit energy than my peers; it was just that the more force you have, the harder it is to control them.


    Still, I did infuse spirit energy to protect some parts of my body which would be super awkward if stung by the bees. Unexpectedly, an outrageous n came to my mind.


    "Alright then, Julies, bring that girl away when I fire at the bees," I yelled at them while imagining the mes. I got a magnificent n to exterminate the bees, though I only hope that I would get an ample amount of destiny points from it.<novelnext></novelnext>


    I have B- in spirit force. The sheer amount of that number was high enough to be an adept magus or sorcerer if not for my weak control and no mastery in the art. Fortunately, the normal usage of purgatory only had side effects on my channels; it did not burn me or my clothes if I used it efficiently. I swirled the spirit energy I could and tried to form the mes, though I did not give it the sign to let out of my body.


    I waited for the bees toe at me and it did not take long as one of the bees tried to sting right at my neck. It was a worse ce to get stung by a bee, luckily, I already infused a lump of spirit force there, as the sting could not stab my skin. Unfortunately, my arms were not safe, nor was my face. A couple of the hunter bees got what they intended, one at my arm and the other at the cheek.


    Tens of bees wereing at me like I was their free meal. As I felt the agony, I let out the scarlet mes of purgatory, surrounding the three-metre of my radius.


    I actually used my body as bait to burn these freaking bees. Those that were close to me burned at once, including the ones that stung me. Within a second, I burned out hundreds of bees and I still have a lot of spirit force left.


    I had not given it all like the other time with the ghoul, because I knew I could not finish all the bees at once. As I heard no bees nearby, I stopped the fire. After a few times of usage of the ability, I could manage to put a leash on the purgatory before it ran rampant.


    "Hey," I screamed to call the bees. "Come on, sting me again. I am waiting. Fu*king stupid bees."


    The finger-sized hunter bees dide after only a few seconds, forgetting what happened to their colleagues a moment ago. These bees are so stupid. Well, so am I.


    I repeated the same thing again when another bee stung me. Scarlet fire lit up in the darkness, and I saw the bees turning into ashes. It was a satisfying scene to watch. After all, they just stung me, but still, somehow, I felt stupid. Sadly, the little healing of Purgatory does no work when I am using it is another thing.


    Moreover, purgatory disrupts the flow of other skills as it is greedy for the spirit force, greedy to consume anything and everything. The lumps of coating I created broke, leaving me wide open for the bees.


    Why do I do this?


    Scar fights out with such charisma and skill, where here I''m using myself as bait to kill these bees. Though I''m sure even Scar would choose something like this if he was in my shoes.


    I stopped the fire again and breathed in and out to calm my heart. I still have three-quarters of spirit inside me, so I could repeat it a few more times more, though thinking about one of two hunter bee stingings every time made me tremble.


    Still, I continued with the process. Purgatory was still so useful when it''s barely at mastery level D-, I wonder how freaking powerful I will be if I managed to link it to the spiritual force of the realm. Though I need to learn Thaumaturgy before I can do that. It was not a wrong decision to get into the magic department, after all.


    Scar was an overpowered character, but he never learned to link purgatory with the world''s spiritual force. All the difference he made was with the sword and his mastery over the dominions.


    I stopped the me again and screamed at the bees that were still within the areas, though I reckoned I already finished two-thirds of them. Yet they still came at me as I''m their archenemy. The few that stung me already released their pheromone to attract more bees towards me. Now it was just: do or die to me, though the bees would be the only ones to die.


    I had repeated that eight times and got stung by nine bees before I found Julies running in. He screamed just as he saw me.


    "Boss, what happened to your handsome face?"


    "Can''t you guess?" I said and felt a headache iing. My legs felt weak while the stiff wind did not affect me, with the burning I''m feeling. Luckily, the healing of purgatory was working to relieve my pain. "I really did a stupid thing, didn''t I?!"


    Julies did not answer and got near me. "Can you walk?" he asked, though he shouldered me first and got back to moving away from there.


    - - -

 Chapter 42 30: Fools Courage (2)

    "Will he be alright?" Elinor asked, looking at the figureid on the bed.


    Oscar''s face was already quite bad with the stings, and it appeared he could not avoid a fever now. Even though he said he will be alright before resting with his innate healing factor, they were not as convinced. Hunter Bees could kill spirit practitioners if one was unlucky.


    Julies changed the wet cotton from his forehead, with a little frown on his forehead. There were actually a dozen stung on his boss''s body. He could have run away, but he still used his body as bait to make it safe for them. And in doing so, he used most of his spirit force, which made the situation even worse for him.


    "He''ll be fine," Julies said. "He''s far stronger than he looks. You should worry about yourself, girl. I reckon you got more sting than you can handle as well."


    It was dark, and they were in an inn now. Julies had led the horses to the nearest inn. They could have made it into the academy, but they were not sure about making the journey in the dark, especially while the two of them were bitten badly. Well, Julies was bitten too, but he seemed fine.


    "The pain is gone after I took the medicine," the white hair girl said. "Though my head is a little feverish, I''ll be fine."


    Julies nodded when he heard her say it again.


    "I just wondered how you are fine," she said, gesturing towards Scar. "After all, he''s in such a state, while you are fine."


    "It''s probably because Boss has not practised his spirit arts sincest year," Julies answered uncertainty. "Moreover, his new ability was far more demanding. I heard from him, he couldn''t use any other skill properly during that time. Also, I am quite resilient to these poisons."


    Elinor nodded, as there was no better exnation, and what Julies said was convincing enough. She looked at the figure sleeping with crooked lips and difort. There was no anger in him, and he really did not appear like what she usually assumed. It takes a lot of courage to bait yourself to deal a blow to the enemy, especially when you are in such pain.


    ''Howe the famous son of Emberheart became so humble?'' She did not know, but it should be for the best. ''I owe him again.'' She could not help but sigh.


    "Are you fallin'' for my boss?" Julies snickeredughingly. "Sadly for you, boss already has a girl in his life."


    "I ain''t," Elinor yelled, and felt a little pain in her head. Though she found out the bald fellow was just pulling her legs. "I was just wondering, he''s nothing like the rumour."


    "Of course," Julies said. "Even though everyone saw him as an egoist person, boss had the biggest heart, though he''s changing a lot these days. I have no problem with most of it, but . . ."


    "But?" Elinor asked, seeing the bald guy struggling, sping his palms into fists.


    "I just don''t know from where he got the idea of bing a boring guy." Julies sighed and looked at the feverish face of the redhead. "He''s really serious about giving up on delinquency."


    "You really are not joking." Elinor did not know what to say. "What''s good about being a delinquent? And why do you even want to be a delinquent?"


    "Why wouldn''t I want to be?" the bald fellow said. "I really like when people see me with fear and stand apart from my path. With such esteem, you can avoid a lot of problems."


    Elinor shook her head again. Her cat was already fast asleep, finding a warm spot near the heater.


    "Right, you have not given it a name yet," Julies said and changed the wet cloth from Oscar''s forehead again.


    "You still want me to pet it after all we have been through?"


    "Why not? You ain''t gonna push away from your responsibility now. That cat is your responsibility now. Also, we did find the golden root. As for the other things, don''t worry about it. Think of it as a necessity for your first experience." Julies arched his brows, looking at the ck cat sleeping through the dark sses. Nobody but him knew how much he could see in the night. "I will shoot a few names. Pick one you like.


    "Let''s see. Jon, Rob, Van, Alon, Tom, Peter, Pitt, KIlim, Seth, Rufas, Ruth, . . ." Julies shoot wherever names came into his mind.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "Those aren''t really names of cats," Elinor said warily. "How about Luck then? You said it''s lucky for me?"


    "Sounds good, it''s called Luck from now on," Julies nodded his head in agreement. "It''s gettingte. You should sleep now."


    He watched the thin girl leave with the cat to the next room and get up in bed. He sat on the other side of the bed, wrapping his lower body in the nket before removing the sses from his eyes. With misty eyes, he looked at his boss and changed the wet cloth on the forehead again.


    . . .


    I felt a warm palm on my forehead and a little headache in my head. That''s right, I got stung by the hunter bees and had a high fever. With a little effort, I tried to open my heavy eyelids. In the little opening of my eye shutters, I managed to see a maiden with white hair next to me, with her palm on my forehead.


    I could not help but bring my palm to her cheek and called, "Yasmine."


    The white-haired maiden moved away instantly, and I woke up properly to find it was not Yasmine, but a frail girl of fifteen.


    "Sorry," I told Elinor, and sat up. My head was still heavy, but the fever was down a lot.


    "I was just checking your fever," Elinor exined timidly or acted timidly. I could not tell.


    "Where''s Juls?"


    Elinor shook her head. "I woke up a few minutes ago and had not seen him."


    I thought about doing the morning meditation, and my eyes drifted off towards the clock on the wall. It was well past eight, and I recalled that I had a ss at ten o''clock. The horse would take an hour at the slightest, and a little more time in the mission hall if it was empty. It''s very much that I would miss the ss or would bete for the arrival.


    "Looks like I have to get my notes from someone else," I said out loud, though there was no one I knew properly in the magic department and I hate bothering Rosalyn, my aunt.


    "We can still make it if he came back in time, though," Elinor said. "Though we have to skip breakfast and other things."


    Just then, the door of their room shot open and out came a short bald youth with big baggage on his back, and a broad smile on his lips. A sweet smell wasing off him the moment he entered.


    "Good to see you two are awake," Julies said with a bright smile. "I went back to bring back theponents we lost. Fortunately, nothing was lost. And that''s not all I found."


    Saying that, the bald youth brought out a big container as a sweet and drunk smell surrounded the room.


    "This is the honey from the hunter beehive?" I asked, sucking in a cold breath. This honey was more expensive than anything they had found yesterday and there was the danger of the hunter bee, even though I had killed a lot of them yesterday.


    "You really have the courage to go there again," I said and checked him head to toe. Julies appeared to be fine. I could see no stung marks on his body.


    The price of the honey of the hunter bee was expensive, not just because it''s super useful in making medicine and a lot of other things, there was also a good chance that one would die from the bites of the bees. Moreover, even a knight or apprentice thinks twice to search for it, fearing the queen bee. So only professionals in this area go to salvage honey from the hunter bees, though the casualties were no less.


    "We all got stung by so many bees yesterday," Julies said with a smile. "I just thought it would look bad if we returned empty-handed. Gotta keep our reputation, right, boss?"


    _________________________

 Chapter 43 31: Miles Apart (1)

    Q: What creature has the most precious Spirit core?


    A: Stonegorger.


    - - -


    ? I kind of liked the serenity of the academy library. Most of my time here was spent on researching various kinds of things. Such as the twelve heroes, the book hadn¡¯t gone deep into their existence. There were only some tidbits here and there, but the more I researched, the more I became bewildered.


    It was as if someone did a fantastic job at erasing their existence from the pages of history, leaving behind only myths and legends of the past. Same was true for Saider, other than proiming them as the demon who wants the end of the world, there was almost nothing else.


    Something very fishy here. Fortunately, I don¡¯t have to worry about any of that anytime soon. I have a couple of years in my hand, and in that time, I need to take everything I can get my hands on and find all the hero candidates. Hence the archive. I have been researching some locations for weeks now. Everything is ready now. All I need is to wait for the Night of Brilliance to approach.


    Also, from the tidbits, I managed to get some information about some of the heroes'' power. That was another important part the bookcked. Well, counting myself, I am sure about five more individuals, while I have suspicions about a few others. Like the girl sitting across from me, exining the theories behind sympatheticmunion.


    ¡°I told you to not force it,¡± Yeriel said, ¡°the bond between the items is weak. You need to have a subtle touch to influence it.¡±


    ¡°I am subtle,¡± I said and at that very moment, as if trying to prove me wrong, the coin shook for thest time before the link between them broke. I let out a breath self-consciously and stared at the other coin in my palm, grudgingly.


    ¡°Really, Oscar.¡± Yeriel took both of the coins from me. ¡°You call that a subtle touch. It''s like you are trying to make a horse out of a pig. Look at this carefully.¡±


    As Yeriel finished her phrase, one of the coins from her palm shot up, which looked nothing surprising from the outside to even most novice spirit practitioners. Anyone could lift or manipte seemingly small objects with their spirit force¡ªthe heavier or vtile the object was, the harder it was to manipte them. A small silver coin was easy in that case.


    But what Yeriel did was not some basic spirit energy maniption. Peering carefully, I could hardly feel her using any spirit energy¡ªit was all through the sympathetic link.


    Lifting the coin into the air was only the beginning. At hermand, the coin spun horizontally for a while, and as she arched her eyebrow at me, it stopped and started spinning vertically. It didn¡¯t end there. The coin suddenly lurched at me at a frightening speed. I almost fell off the seat, but it stopped just before my forehead.


    ¡°That is some frightening level of control,¡± I praised, swallowing a breath. ¡°Your talent is really wasted in healing.¡±


    Yeriel collected back her coin and shot a curt re at me. ¡°You think fighting and killing are better than healing?¡± she asked, offended. ¡°Of course you would think that. I was wrong to expect some--¡±


    ¡°No, no,¡± I cut her off before she could continue. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean it like that.¡±


    ¡°Then what did you mean it for?¡±


    I opened my mouth and closed it again, finding no words. ¡°Sorry,¡± I apologised, atst.


    Yeriel looked at me peculiarly. ¡°Yasmine was right,¡± she muttered. ¡°You certainly changed.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°You never apologised before. Even when it''s your fault, you would just make up for it with something else.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± I scoffed off and tried to change the topic. ¡°So, your calling is healing, so why have you learned Communion and that too this deep?¡±


    ¡°Why do you fence every day even though you can make it up with a gun?¡± Yeriel asked instead.


    ¡°A gun certainly has its advantages, but it''s overly limited in its power,¡± I said immediately and stopped, figuring out what she meant. ¡°Oh, I got what you are trying to say.¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡°Yes, even though sympathetic bonds don¡¯t really have any practical values in healing, it''s the best way to train your controls. Control is what differentiates a Sorcerer from a Magus. A Sorcerer can have great strength, but he will never have the subtle touch of a Magus.¡±


    I nodded, agreeing entirely with her. ¡°How long do you think it will take me to get to the level of your control?¡±


    A thoughtful expression held her face, but before she could answer, someone else did in her ce.


    ¡°I have been training for two whole years, and learned seven of the nine basic forms,¡± Althan, who was silent at his desk the whole time, cut in. He wouldn¡¯t let it go when he could bite even a little. He continued with a snort of contempt. ¡°I trained for 2 hours at least five days a week for the whole two years. What does that tell you?¡±


    ¡°That you¡¯re slow?¡± I turned my head towards Althan and found him scowling at me. Seriously, what¡¯s the problem with this fe? Can¡¯t let us be without interrupting? As for thement, it wasn¡¯t entirely sarcastic. I was curious about it too. ¡°Well?¡±


    Althan snorted in return.


    Well, I admit, thatment was mostly sarcastic. Shaking my head, I returned to Yeriel.


    ¡°I am not sure,¡± she answered, returning the coins to me. ¡°There are a few factors into y, such as the rtionship between the sympathetic items, the practitioner¡¯s mindset and talent.¡±


    ¡°Well, these silver coins were supposedly made at the same time and released on the day of the current emperor¡¯s coronation, and went through simr treatment before bing sympathetic items.¡± I paid ten whole dynes for the five silver coins¡ªtwenty times higher than their actual price¡ªjust because they have some sympathetic connection between them.


    The strength of a sympathetic bond is proportional to the rtion between the sympathetic items. This was the first rule of thumb in sympathetic arts.


    Sympathetic Communion is an art that uses the links between the two or more items to influence them. It isn¡¯t about how magical they were, but it''s about how great they were connected.


    ¡°You bought it?¡± Yeriel ran her palm in her hair to bring out her hair pin. Her ck hair loosened on her back as she showed me the metallic hairpin¡ªit has a sharp point, enough to stick it into someone''s flesh. ¡°Usually, most bought items tend to lose their sympatheticponents. Some say it''s about the emotional connection.¡±


    The sharp hairpin then shot up in the air and danced along Yeriel¡¯s fingers. She made it do the spinning, twisting, turning, whatever else she did with the coins, but this time it appeared far more natural even though the hairpin weighed a few times more than the coins. I knew exactly what she was trying to convey.


    ¡°This hairpin has been with me for over a decade,¡± Yeriel exined. ¡°My mother bought it for me. Later, your Aunt, Professor Rosalyn, helped me turn it to the other edge sharp and pointy to use as a self-defence item. You should find something like that too if you want to pursue this art to the fullest.¡±


    I nodded, entirely understanding what Yeriel was saying. Actually, I knew full well about Yeriel¡¯s hairpin¡ªit was something she used to get herself free from a vampire inter parts of the story.


    Even though these small sympathetic tools were just some minor tricks, it''s very efficient in some crises. First, it took little to no spirit energy to manipte, and secondly, it came with an unexpected surprise. When you have nothing in hand, sometimes these small tricks can save your life¡ªjust as it did for Yeriel.


    Unfortunately, it was extremely hard, or time-consuming, to get sympathetic items like that. Yeriel¡¯s hairpin was with her for decades. What do I have?


    Abruptly, the pendulum clock rang, bringing me out of my musing.


    ¡°Crap! It''s already five,¡± I muttered, standing up, collecting my things which were limited to a couple of books, a notebook, two fountain pens, and the coins.


    ¡°What''s the rush?¡± Yeriel asked, bewildered at my sudden haste.


    ¡°It''s the day,¡± I said, collecting back everything in the bag as a bright smile held my face. ¡°It''s the day we promised to contact each other.¡±


    _ _ _

 Chapter 44 31: Miles Apart (2)

    ¡°Aaelin, please tell me again, why have you brought me here?¡± Gavin asked his elder brother, grumbling as both siblings moved to a particr house in the camp without resting a moment after finishing their task.


    The sun hung low on the horizon, and Pra''moon peeked twinkling. Luminescent stones were lit in most of the stone houses, as the two of them approached a particr house next to the main base.


    ¡°Nothing much,¡± Aaelin answered. ¡°I thought you would love to have a talk with mother.¡±


    ¡°Why now?¡± Gavin questioned. ¡°It''s almost midnight in Sholistin. Do you really think it''s a good idea to bother her now?¡±


    Aaelin squinted his eyes. Certainly, he had not thought about that. ¡°Come on. Mother is a Magus. She wouldn¡¯t mind her dear children bothering a little.¡±


    Gavin frowned at his brother, looking at his exterior carefully. Aaelin was actually half a head taller, with a prominent jawline and a handsome face, but with the cheeky grin, he was shing, it didn¡¯t take long for Gavin to figure out the main reason behind such a sudden urge.


    ¡°Kisana was in charge of the booth now, right?¡± he asked with a piercing re.


    Aaelin looked away, not admitting or denying it. Well, it was likely the case. His good brother could have been the ideal dating material; he¡¯s good looking, Heir to the princedom and even to the Throne, an elite Knight at a young age. What else can a maiden ask for? Aaelin would have been an ideal man, if only he was not that oblivious and blunt at times, which put him at the wrong end with every rtionship he had so far.


    ¡°Well, I was considering having a talk with mother, sooner orter,¡± Gavin said, sighing, admitting defeat in his brother¡¯s pursuit. ¡°Maybe I should ask her to arrange someone for you, or should I wait for you to screw this up? Well, considering mother, she probably arranged something already.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Aaelin said immediately. ¡°Do not speak a single word rted to my love life to mother.¡±


    ¡°Sure, but you have to promise me one thing,¡± Gavin agreed, but with a condition in ce.


    ¡°If it''s about the hunt, I can¡¯t do anything about it,¡± Aaelin said instantly, guessing where Gavin was going with it.


    Perhaps not all oblivious. Gavin sped his palms into fists. ¡°How about I watch from hundreds of yards away?¡± he negotiated. ¡°You know, the season ising. I wouldn¡¯t have a chance then."


    ¡°I can take you if it was a well-organised hunt,¡± Aaelin said, pondering for a moment, ¡°but only if you get permission from father.¡±


    ¡°Why do you have to bring father into everything?¡±


    ¡°It''s you who brought mother first.¡±


    The siblings approached the booth as Gavin went inside first, while Aaelin looked around first to join. As Gavin had thought, the one in charge of themunication channels for this time was none other than Kisana¡ªdaughter of Lord Varuth, a high-ranking officer in his father''s army. She has the tall posture of a Mahenarian woman, olive-skinned with rare curly ck hair hung on her back. A full sleeve gown hugged her body, even though it was always searing hot here. She lifted her head from the book she was reading to look in their direction.


    Kisana was about to greet Gavin, but her expression grew sour, finding Aaelin trailing behind.


    Gavin gave his elder brother a t look, as if asking: How had he already destroyed his chances with her?


    Aaelinughed stupidly in response, greeting, ¡°Hello, Kisana,¡± he said, ¡°apologies that I could not join you yesterday. I was quite busy with--¡±


    ¡°Training a recruit.¡± Kisanapleted his sentence, snorting. She ignored Aaelin and gazed at Gavin to inquire. ¡°Do I need to help you connect?¡±


    ¡°No, I will manage,¡± Gavin said, giving his brother a look, which says: you better be grateful.


    Gavin advanced, giving some free time for the two to chat. Sitting down on the seat Kisana was before, Gavin registered his name and whom he was contracting on the register first.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Other than the register book, there were two fictions on the table. It did not surprise Gavin, finding both of them were romances. Women, young or old, irrespective of age, all love these kinds of romances. Gavin had read a couple. Usually, the story revolved around a young female apprentice who falls in love with all kinds of characters, such as a teacher (not your average elderly wizard), or a (bad boy) ssmate, or a prince(exactly opposite his brother, whocks the vocabry to speak flowery words), an enemy prince (even better).


    Gavin always wondered why can''t they fall for a low-key character, such as a janitor. Doesn''t the janitor deserve some love? Shaking his head, he reached for the receiver of themunication device.


    Themunication device was huge, taking up almost two-thirds of the desk, not to mention the desk was no smaller than a six by four feet desk. There were smaller versions of this device, but this one was the hub of themunication channel, which connects all the smaller counterparts to wherever they wanted to connect.


    Gavin kept an ear open to perceive how was Aaelin¡¯s business was going, which turned out just as he imagined: Kisana giving him a cold shoulder, as Aaelin gave her excuses after excuses.


    Letting out a breath, Gavin infused spirit energy into the receiver, searching for the private line that connects to his mother. Not many people own a private line, with themunication line only being invented less than a decade ago. It''s exponentially expensive, even to the royal family.


    Overlooking the links that connect to other hubs, Gavin checked for the specific link that connects to his mother. It didn¡¯t take long to find, as he was quite familiar with the device, though it would take a minute or two to connect.


    Gavin turned his head again to check on Aaelin to find another person joining them. Gavin raised an eyebrow at the neer. It was Sir Rogan¡¯s daughter, who joined the camp only a week ago, justpleting her education at the academy.


    Gavin looked at the three carefully. With the blessing of his bloodline into y, he didn¡¯t miss any exchange between the trio. Gavin was no fighter, but he had talents in other ces, like this, using the bloodline power to notice the smallest details that others overlook. Even Aaelin, who was an excellent knight, was not as good as him.


    His mother empathised that it has to be rted to one¡¯s personality. Aaelin was never good at reading people, like their father. Hell, he was even more oblivious than father, while Gavin seemed to inherit this from his mother, though it was scarcely lowpared to what his mother could do, but with the bloodline into y, he was better than he needed to be.


    The first thing he noticed was that Kisana didn¡¯t seem to like Yasmine all that much, even though they were meeting for the first time. It was likely Aaelin¡¯s fault. How was it was Aaelin¡¯s fault? Well, he was in charge of new recruits, and Yasmine being one, he was in charge of her training. Also, Yasmine was new to her Dominion and needed training. It was likely to help her did Aaelin miss the date yesterday.


    Still, it was kind of a jerk move on Aaelin¡¯s part, but Gavin had to admit both of them were two training maniacs, one minded and oblivious at times. Just like now, none of Yasmine or Aaelin noticed the change in Kisana¡¯s bodynguage, or her phrase being a bit on the sour side.


    ¡°Hello,¡± a voice echoed out of the device, as Gavin withdrew his interest from the trio.


    ¡°Mother, it¡¯s me,¡± Gavin said, ¡°Good eveni, oh, it''s goodnight for you. I didn¡¯t know you would be awake at this hour.¡±


    ¡°Usually, I don¡¯t,¡± his mother¡¯s voice came again, ¡°but I was talking to Amara just now. So, why do you call? All of you are healthy, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Gavin gave Aaelin a side look. ¡°Mother, I have a request of you.¡± He paused for several seconds to open his lips again, hesitantly. ¡°Can you get me father¡¯s consent to go on a hunt?¡±


    ¡°A hunt? I thought you don¡¯t likebat, and also your illness--¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t likebat, it''s just I''m terrible at it,¡± Gavin said, exhaling, ¡°My health has been good so far, also, my visit will be highly educational. I¡¯ll be content with just observing it from a hundred yards away.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± his mother didn¡¯t answer immediately. ¡°I¡¯ll talk with your father, but no promise on my part. If your father sees it fit, then you can go. And also, you should ask your father first. You know your father, if he learns it from me, it is unlikely you will get the chance.¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± Gavin said, sighing inwardly. He forgot about that entirely. His father¡¯s personality was just too upright. If he finds out about his request from mother, it is unlikely he would have a good chance this time around. He might even deny him the chance just to teach him a lesson. He sighed again.


    ¡°Anything else?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Gavin said, and looked at his brother. ¡°Aaelin wants to talk as well.¡± Saying that, he blocked the line and yelled, fearing his brother would destroy his chances with both of the women, spilling out some nonsense. ¡°Hey, Aaelin, Mother wants to talk to you.¡±


    - - -

 Chapter 45 31: Miles Apart (3)

    Yasmine waited for themunication channel to be cleared. She was not in haste in the slightest, after all, she would have about five minutes to talk freely, so she better be prepared for what she wanted to talk about.


    The service of themunication channels is exponentially expensive, even more so than the travel expense to where you wanted to contact. However, once a week, every spirit practitioner was given a chance to use it for some time, which was about five minutes, while for themon soldiers, it was once a month.


    Some might find this extremely stingy, however, themunication service in Highprince Gareth''s army was thexest among all the armies of the empire. In other ces,mon soldiers were barely given chances to contract their families.


    Yasmine waited to use her first quota, nodding and affirming at what Kisana and Aaelin were conversing about. She remained calm, recollecting what she should talk about. ¡®I¡¯m just being silly,¡¯ she told herself. It was barely a week she was away, and she was already missing him. Well, other than missing, there was that anxiety as well.


    What if he lost himself in guilt and started drinking again? She told herself she was just being paranoid, but some part of her still could not believe Scar regained his earnest self. It was like yesterday, she was trying everything so that he could get over his guilt, and when he finally did, she couldn¡¯t believe it.


    She knew she was paranoid just because she was away, but she couldn¡¯t help it.


    ¡°Lady Yasmine,¡± Kisana called, ¡°you are here to check on your family?¡±


    Yasmine shook her head. Her closest family, her father, was already here, and she did meet others on the way here. So, there was no point in checking on them.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to contact the Academy,¡± Yasmine said. ¡°There is someone--¡±


    ¡°Your suitor?¡± Kisana cut in, eyes sparked with curiosity.


    Yasmine thought for a second and nodded. ¡°Yes,¡± she said.


    Aaelin raised an eyebrow from the sides, finding it out firsthand.


    ¡°You are still with Oscar?¡± Kisana continued, keeping an eye on Aaelin. ¡°After all you--¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± This time Yasmine didn¡¯t let Kisana finish.


    ¡°Well, the academy was so vibrant with his courtship to you, when I was there,¡± Kisana continued. ¡°Tell me if it''s true, I heard Oscar single-handedly won the great game and ask you out, bellowing before thousands of crowd?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Yasmine said, blushing. And it was not even the most outrageous things he had done for her. ¡°Well, he didn¡¯t beat the five of them single-handedly. He had help.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m lost,¡± Aaelin cut in. ¡°Are you guys talking about Oscar Emberheart, heir to House Emberheart?¡±


    ¡°Well, of course,¡± Kisana answered, ¡°but he¡¯s heir no more. Do you know him?¡±


    ¡°I remember meeting a couple of times during the feast, but not so personally,¡± Aaelin said, recalling. ¡°You said he¡¯s not the heir anymore? What happened?¡±


    ¡°Oh, of course, how can I forgot? A mule has a better idea of the political manoeuvres of the empire than you,¡± Kisana said, sighing. ¡°While I am really surprised you don¡¯t know Oscar Emberheart that personally. I thought you two already duelled countless times.¡±


    ¡°The feasts were not meant for duelling, and I never admitted to the academy,¡± Aaelin gave excuses. ¡°There is only a faint chance of us meeting other than any social gathering.¡±


    There were many political disputes at the academy. It was established as an institution standing apart from the empire or any nation. The empire rarely involves itself directly. And Aaelin, being one of the princes, was never admitted to the academy, respecting that rule. Well, if he pushed, he could have, but the Knight¡¯s department was degrading, so instead, he chose his father¡¯s army. There was nock of excellent knights who could teach and spar with him here.


    There was also his father. Countless young squires or even knights would do anything just for a moment of advice from him.


    "You mention duel?" Aaelin raised an eyebrow. "Is he good at duelling?"


    "He defeated five opponents in the great game single-handedly," Kisana said, "you tell me."


    Aaelin turned towards her, and Yasmine let out a breath. "He had help," she said, "but yes, he did y the major role in eliminating all of them."


    "Other than that, I think you two will have a fun time dueling." Kisanaughed. "Hmm, I would also like to see whom of the two arrogant princes wins it."


    "Arrogant?" Aaelin snorted. "I am not arrogant."


    Yasmine and Kisanaughed at the same time. Even she didn''t know him for long, she could see the pride in his eyes easily.


    "I am not," Aaelin said, flustering.


    "We believe you," Kisana said, stillughing.


    "Scar is extremely arrogant," Yasmine added, chuckling, "but at least he admits it."


    Aaelin was about to deny more when Gavin called him.


    ¡°Hey, Aaelin, Mother wants to talk to you.¡±


    ¡°Excusesdies.¡± Aaelin advanced to themunication channel while Gavin returned and joined them.


    Gavin had simr features as his brother, but he seemed so different. Other than not having the muscles or height, Gavin appeared as an earnest young noble scion. Yasmine didn¡¯t know him that well. Well, if she had to mention she didn¡¯t know anyone well here, other than her father, that was.


    ¡°Good evening,¡± greeted the young prince.


    Yasmine nodded and greeted back. Weirdly, she found the young prince staring at her.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Gavin came back from his stupor after several seconds, flustering¡ªhe really does a better job at that than his elder brother. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but would you mind if I ask something?¡± Getting her nod, he continued. ¡°Your hair. Are they like this always? Natural white?¡±


    Yasmine raised an eyebrow. It was not the first time she noticed someone taking an interest in her hair. Burning white hair like her kind of stood out wherever she goes. However, nobody in House Amaan had silver hair like her, her father mentioned she inherited it from her mother and nothing else.


    ¡°It is like this as far as my memories go,¡± she answered.


    ¡°My aunt, I mean thete Empress, had silver hair,¡± Gavin added. ¡°Other than that, I spotted none having silver hair.¡±


    ¡°It is rare," Kisana added. "Other than some mutations, it''s absolutely rare toe across someone with silver hair.¡±


    As they talked, Aaelin finished his call, and Yasmine finally got the channel free. She advanced a couple of steps to look back again. She didn¡¯t have a clue on how to utilise the instrument. It had something to do with the Spiritual cloud, but she''s not very adept in it.


    ¡°Oh, you can¡¯t link the channels,¡± Kisana said and looked at the Sholinar siblings. ¡°Gavin, would you mind helping her a little, while I have something to say to your brother?¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡± Gavin said and advanced while the other two withdrew, Kisana straightforwardly, while Aaelin took a peek at the other two.


    ¡°Do you have a private channel or--¡± Gavin asked approaching the instruments.


    ¡°The primary hub of Starlight academy,¡± Yasmine said, taking the seat.


    As Gavin finished linking, he held out the receiver towards Yasmine.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± Yasmine said and infused a little spirit energy into the receiver.


    Gavin nodded and withdrew a step. He still remained, as she would likely need his help again if there was any problem with the connection.


    The call connected without a hitch as a feminine voice came out of the receiver. ¡°Hello, this is Starlight Academy. May I know who I¡¯m speaking to and who you want to contact?¡±


    Yasmine took a deep breath. ¡°Yasmine Amaan,¡± she said, ¡°I want to contact Oscar Emberheart.¡±


    ¡°Thank you. Please wait a few moments.¡±


    No voice came out of the receiver for some time and Gavin withdrew out of the chamber, giving her some privacy.


    As Yasmine waited, her heart fluttered a little. The silly feeling came back, and then she heard the voice.


    ¡°Yasmine.¡±


    Yasmine inhaled and all the nervousness washed away as she heard the voice. ¡°Scar,¡± she called, ¡°You waited long?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I waited the whole week,¡± Scar said. ¡°How have you been these few days? Have you settled in there?¡±


    ¡°Yes, so far, I have had no problem. My father is here, so he saw through everything.¡± She paused for a second and continued, ¡°I have missed you.¡±


    ¡°Me too.¡±


    ¡°So, how are you doing?¡±


    ¡°Not too bad, I guess,¡± Scar''s voice echoed out of the receiver. ¡°The magic stuff is hard, but I¡¯m taking every bit of help I can. I¡¯ve been doing missions now and then, so far . . . It''s all busy and good. How''s it on your end?¡±


    Yasmine sighed in relief, hearing it out. She then told him how she was given a Dominion, a Ward, and also, her father gave her his sword. Scar joked about how she could throw him around so easily. Sheughed and shared some hardships she felt here.


    ¡°Other than being searing hot, the training is nothing like the Academy,¡± she said. ¡°I wish I had Daaryl¡¯s breath.¡±


    ¡°Well, it is tough,¡± Scar paused for a second, ¡°but take care of yourself. Don¡¯t just work as you do without resting.¡±


    ¡°I know, it¡¯s just . . .¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°My father, he''s retiring,¡± Yasmine said with a sigh. ¡°He gave me his sword¡ªthe sword he earned in service of Highprince Gareth. So the pressure is very high. I have to prove myself worthy of the sword . . .¡±


    ¡°Yasmine, do you know how stupid that sounded?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Yasmine arched her eyebrow.


    ¡°It''s a sword, Yasmine. Yes, your father has earned that sword and it''s the pride of your house, but in the end, it''s a tool. No matter how fine it is in its job, it will always be a tool for killing. Do not be foolish and think you have to be worthy of some tool. What you have to do is learn how to use the tool efficiently.¡±


    ___________


    Sorry for the dy, from now it would be regr. More chapters toe today.

 Chapter 46 32: Progress And Plans (1)

    Q: What affects Victory the most in the Fall?


    A: Other than the bone-chilling cold, there was the ice creatures surge, such as Ice Myra from Frosnds.


    - - -


    Do you know how many times a professional stage performer or a magician practises a trick sessfully before showing it in front of an audience?


    The answer is at least ten thousand times, and I was talking about sessful tries, not the half-assed failed ones. In those ten thousand tries, the trick became almost second nature to the performer that he could perform even with close eyes. In a sense, the swordsmanship or the arts we learn in the academy are just the same.


    To master an art, you have to be sessful ten thousand times. Talent may y a big role in learning, but only with perseverance and hard work would you be able to master the art.


    I have learned many things in my life and was good at a few of them. From Coding, which was my profession, to cooking, ying video games, and ying musical instruments such as guitar, piano. I was capable of these few things, but I never had the urge to be an expert in any of those. Well, no one could me me. My life was not dependent on it then. Unlike now.


    Narrowing my eyes, I surged the spirit force into the thin line on the de and kept at it until it became a little chaotic for me to control. Sweat beads dripped down from my face as I swung the sword.


    A surge of force was released from the sword and attacked right at the chest of the test dummy. It left a couple of inches of deep mark on the stone dummy, indicating the sh was potent enough.


    If it was any normal person in ce of the dummy, that person would be cut into two pieces easily, and it''s just with the surge of force.


    I wiped the sweat from my forehead, cheeks, and noticed many girls from the knight department were watching me. Well, I could not me them, as the face I own now was something far more handsome for its own good. Though I would be lying if I say I did not enjoy the looks¡ªgirls were giving me. Other than the loathsome looks I get whenever I got out, this is quite refreshing. Thankfully, most of the freshmen knew nothing of my infamous character, nor did they suffer in Scar''s hand.


    It was a new thing to me, and I did not know if I will ever be fed up with this.


    Maybe after ten thousand times.


    Well, at least, they gave me the motivation to keep working on the sh techniques without a break. Don''t think I''m pathetic. It''s only natural for humans to want to get the reverence and likeness of others. If that''s not the case, then it''s weird. Only the one that stands above all, or a madman, does not care about what others think. I am none of those.


    On that note, I have never been like this before. Yes, I cared about others'' views of me. It would have bothered me if my colleagues thought I was a lonesome weird pervert who has nothing going for him. But that was all an insignificant part of my life. I had almost be indifferent to it in my old world. Not entirely, but almost; yet here now, I was getting motivated just from the gazes of the girls. I finallyprehend the purpose of cheerleaders.


    Sorry, girls. I already got Yasmine. But you can all cheer for me if you like.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Releasing the breath, I concentrated again. The ones I was training currently were the sh techniques of the Knights. It has mainly two basic shes: Half-sh and Full-sh. Both of the sh techniques were widely spread throughout the realm, and one needed to master both of them before he could get the title of a Knight. Though there might be a few unique techniques that a few grand knights created for themselves, which far out-ssed the two basic techniques, but that was a story for another time.


    Scar actually mastered the Half-sh at the age of 12, while many squires could not even when they were adults. If one thinks that is outrageous, then he would probably scream to learn the next. After only two months in the academy, Scar mastered the Full-sh as well. Even Yasmine, who got the highest score of her years, took over two years in the academy to master both shes, so you could guess how much of a monster Scar was.


    Luckily for me, my practice was going well, and I had to thank Scar for that. I was sessful in the Half-sh hundreds of times, though it''s still far away from the mastery level. It might be because of the residual instinct left in the body that I did not feel many hindrances in learning the technique. All I need is: keep my concentration on the straight line of the de and force out spirit energy. Then make the sh, releasing the force at once with the momentum¡ªI built up.


    While I was pretty good at the Half-sh technique, my Full-sh was terrible.


    Full sh was simr to the half sh technique, but it''s not the spiritual force you attack with the full sh, but your element. Fire was for me, and my fire attribute was not just any fire. Ignoring the Ember in my blood, Purgatory was the most unruly and devastating me in the realm. You could guess why it was so problematic for me.


    Despite that, it was not that I can''t make Full-sh. Actually, I have a more sessful rate with full-shes than half-shes, but I fear I might kill someone identally. I am not very good at controlling how much power I would want to attack with.


    Then there were the me Stances. I barely practised them as I already had my hands full with the sh techniques and the sorcery. My body kind of had some instinct on those moves, but I had no one to teach me how to improve them. So, I could only drop them for now.


    Don''t believe what''s written in some web novels, Swordsmanship is not an easy skill to pick. It is more than just swings and shes where all one has to do is scream the name of the move. With no one''s help, it''s almost impossible to be a true swordsman.


    Scarlet me zed my sword, and I tried all my efforts to condense it into the thin line of the de. Within the blink of an eye, the me fluctuated as I made the sh instantly.


    The high sh of fire assaulted the stone dummy as I shook my head. Still too powerful. I fear I might injure Kyle or Ben identally after they are ready for the practice again.


    "Boss, you will turn that sword into a scrap within another hour at this rate," Julies said, throwing a wet towel at me. "You have taken a new hobby of destroying swords instead of wasting money on drinks. I wondered which one of the two is more expensive."


    Probably theter, then again, at least, the training would add something.


    I caught the towel and looked at the sword. It was a fine sword, but nothing else. It cost me six dynes and with that, you could guess it was not something specially made to adapt with spirit force, much less the fire attribute. With each swing I make, I''m burning my money with it. And I already wasted 5 of those, just as good swords.


    "It wouldst a couple hundred more swings," I said and took a seat on the rock on the sides. ''I need a better sword, and I know where to get it.'' Though it will be a little troublesome.


    _ _ _

 Chapter 47 32: Progress And Plans (2)

    Unlike Julies, who only came to the training ss for me, the other freshmen of the Knight department were practising their swings while the instructor kept a watch from a distance. Well, Julies had nothing to learn here, though I must say, practising a little won''t hurt.


    The ss of the Knight department was mostly divided into two parts. One was inside the ssroom where we learned about WarCraft, tactics, survival, and many things along the line. While outside was where we practice, duel, and the instructor helps us in improving our skills.


    Not something shy or extravagant, like the magic department. Then again, the Knight department was falling apart in the Starlight academy. Well, the situation is not that dire. It was just falling away from the Order of the Magi. A few hundred years ago it was exactly opposite, the academy dominated by the order of Knights, while a few powerful Magi held the other parts. But after the new discoveries were made in the path of Higharts, the order of Magi rose as the dominant part of the academy, even though their numbers were five times smaller.


    Then there were other reasons. The biggest and recent one of that was the dis-involvement of Ruthalyn in anything rted to the academy. Currently, the academy is only packed with students from the Empire, and the surrounding nations that do not pose any threat to the empire, unlike Ruthalyn.


    With the excuse of the academy being partial to the Mahenar empire, Ruthalyn pulled away all their resources as well as the candidates, Knights, and the handful of powerful Magi they possessed, from the academy.


    Well, calling it an excuse might be wrong. Though Starlight Academy was impartial about many things, they are a bit partial when ites to the Empire. After all, the founder of the academy¡ªKing Alberan¡ªwas also the founder of the Mahenar Empire. Nobody could ignore the overwhelming strength the empire had established, and it''s even far stronger than the time of establishment.


    It was just that Ruthalyn does not like it very much.


    The students, Knights of the magi, who were pulled away by Ruthalyn were not much of a problem. There was nock of talent after all. What the academy (the Empire)cked is the technology of many itemsbuilt by Ruthalynians. Even the biggest academy in the realm cannot replicate many itemsof Ruthalyn. Many things thate as a necessity for a knight nowadays.


    Getting back to the topic, why am I still attending the Knight''s department if it''s degrading? The answer was simple. I wanted to get my hands on the Dominion of the Knights.


    The art of Knights did not just end with the swing, sh or manoeuvre of other weapons. There are some ancient powers that are capable of many more features¡ªthat even the high arts have trouble replicating. These ancient powers are called the Dominion of Knights.


    In ancient times or before the third epoch, there were Knights who did not lose even when battling with the magi, but now only a handful of such knights were avable in the realm. Why was that?


    Because of the war that had drawn the conclusion of the second epoch. In that war, many sources of the dominion were lost.


    The Half-sh and Full-sh I was practising does not belong to the dominions, it was just the mastery of the two basic skills. Every country has ess to these sh techniques, but things were not the same for Dominions.


    There were Six types of Dominions that had been found till thetest chapter of the book. The Starlight Academy possesses three among them. That being said¡ªthe Empire has ess to all three. Moreover, the Empire has another dominion secretly stashed and only the most outstanding royal blood or highly loyal Knight got to take it. While Ruthalyn has the exclusive privilege of one.


    And for thest, it was owned by Oscar Emberheart. Not me, but the Oscar of the book. However, it was not him who found the Dominion, but it was Edward. Since the protagonist did not have expertise in close quarters, he gave it to his loyal Knight.


    I need to get my hands on that before I could win something from the academy. Luckily, I knew where the power was at, though it would be dangerous for the current me. That''s why I was practising so hard, because I don''t have to wait for Elinor to find it and give it to me.<novelnext></novelnext>


    I can''t wait for Elinor to find it for me. And who could tell what that frail girl does with it?


    I practised for an hour more, aiming to turn the fine sword into scrap metal. While my good underling yed a little, though he kept on staring here and there all the time. Well, actually, there was not much to learn for the little fellow here. Even though Julies looked wacky and weird, he had the capacity to be an elite easily. However, I must admit, this little fellow was almost dull with the theories.


    That reminded me of Zane. He was just as hopeless at theories, but in practical terms, he''s unmatched. He''s probably on a mission, though I can''t say I am looking forward to our next encounter. There is some bad blood between Scar and him, though once they were best buddies.


    There are a few other important individuals I have not met yet. Perhaps it was for the best. I am still a half-assed fighter, and the rumours never stopped, even after my numerous attempts. Actions speak louder than words. That''s what I have been working on. I can not actually stop the mouths of the public with words or force. I have to make it happen with my actions.


    Fortunately, not all looked at me as a worthless brat. Julies and Eran regarded me as their leader¡ªeven though I am no less than a failure. Rosalyn, my aunt, regarded me still as a child¡ªher little nephew¡ªthat she had to look after in absence of her elder sister. Ben and Kyle had no good rtionship with Oscar, but they still helped me train. And Yasmine.


    She was someone I never deserve, but I will work for it.


    Sweat dripped down from my face as the sword zed again. This was myst try as my spirit force reserve was almost empty, not to mention the fatigue I have stacked. I wished it would have been easy, like the anime characters did with the sword moves. If only all I had to do was yell the name of the moves like an anime character, and the move would automatically release from my sword.


    How easy it would be for me! I poured a lot more force than usual for thest try, attempting on the first stance of mestance, Young me. This stance uses a lot of spirit force in the board stoke. With both of may palms on the hilt, I twisted sideways, elbows bent on hiding the sword as red fiery energy churned.


    The tip, which was pointed upwards, lurched downwards with a majestic sweep at the stone dummy. Young mes could be used in various ways, but what I intended was the full sweep, releases everything.


    "Getsuga Tensho." 1


    Only after Ipleted the sh did I realise I have actually said that out loud, like an anime character. I was about to hide my face somewhere, luckily to notice all the others barely had time to notice me. They all were tired, and now they were sitting on stones, rxing; though a few of them looked at me after hearing me yell. They had a puzzled look on their faces as they did not understand what just happened.


    I must admit, I kind of felt satisfied, yelling that, though I would not like to do that in front of anyone ever again.


    Julies was among the few who heard me yell. "What was that?" he asked with a curious gaze and, seeing me flustered, he forgot about it. His gaze moved to my sword, and he opened his lips again. "Anyway, congrattions on wasting another one."


    - - -

 Chapter 48 32: Progress And Plans (3)

    "Anyway, congrattions on wasting another one."


    I could not help but shake my head, looking at the sword. It was merely scrap metal now, and only could be used to cut vegetables¡ªthough even at that it won''t be that useful.


    There goes my 6 dynes. It''s already over 30 dynes, and that was only spent to buy the swords. I have already spent over a hundred dynes to buy ingredients to practise high arts. If only money making was so easy. Should I just ckmail people about the secrets I know about them? No, there are still other ways.


    "Looks like I need a better weapon far earlier if I want to progress on my sword art," Imented.


    Using cheap swords to practise spirit arts is practically inefficient, though it does teach me some lessons about control. If I had Ember with me now, I would have never used it this carefully. Damaging Ember is almost impossible for even a Royal Knight, or Grand Magus. While I have to worry a lot when using thesemon swords, as my spirit arts damage them quite easily if I am not careful. Well, still being careful, it can onlyst a day longer.


    "That''s why I said we should sell the honey," Julies muttered. "It could at least buy you a low-level artifact with at least 15 to 20% reinforcement."


    The artifact of this worldes with the percentage figure¡ªit indicates how much boast it could give to spirit force. A normal low-level artifact has 10 to 20% reinforcement with no extra element, while the weapons, Knights like Lorne use are just below the top ones, it gives 80-100% spirit force Reinforcement with some other elements. Though all of it looked palepared to the sword, I had lost to Lily.


    Well, it was an unawakened item, so it does not matter for now. I''ll surely take it from her when I have the chance.


    "No," I said, shaking my head. "The honey is a far better item to just waste to buy a weapon which I may not use after half a year. Besides, are you taking a couple of drops of honey every day, Juls? You know, it''s an excellent item to nourish the body."


    "Yes, yes," Julies said, as if he did not understand me. If it was a month ago, they would have sold all the honey and partied like crazy with alcohol and all other stuff, yet now his boss''s (me) entire focus was on growth.


    I clicked my tongue at the bald fellow. He might not see it, but every day I got to know how useful the honey was from the hunter bees.


    _____________


    Name: Oscar Emberheart


    Bloodline: Unawakened.


    Rank: Knight Squire.


    Private attributes:


    -Strength: C- (Progress: 12/200)


    -Agility: C (Progress: 117/500)


    -Perception: C (Progress: 46/500)


    -Spirit: B- (Progress: 137/2000)


    Trait:


    -Purgatory (Unique): (Mastery: D-)


    Destiny points: 2048


    ______________


    The mission gave me 28 destiny points after we returned to the mission hall for the check-in, while after that Ipleted a few more tasks to gain 21 points more. All the missions I took were normal ones. Well, they were mainly to train myself, so it''s natural to go from Easy to difficult. However, the points I got from these missions were just some hand''s change. Maybe farming points from Elinor would far more productive, unfortunately, the system doesn''t work that way.


    Completing these few missions, I gained some insights into how the system works.


    First, the mission to collect herbs had got me 28 points while the other ones all less than 10. Well, the other ones were simr level missions, but in none of them, I met something like the hunter bees.<novelnext></novelnext>


    So here was the judgement: The destiny points system runs on mostly how others perceive one. If we hide everything about the honey and the lumps from the stings, then possibly we will get fewer points. Instead, I burned hundreds of hunter bees and came with arge container of the honey, proving we have done far better than just collecting a few herbs.


    There were a lot of people in the mission hall and academy that saw using with the honey, and also, with my messed up face. They didugh a lot, but one can not ignore that it was a tough aplishment for a student. That''s why the increment in the destiny points.


    I even thought about blowing my trumpet all over the starlight city if I ever do something like that again. Though it would embarrass me a lot, I don''t mind if I use others to do that in my stead¡ªnot to mention the increment in destiny points. I must check out my theory at least once.


    Moreover, the more simr missions you do, the fewer points you will get onpletions¡ªwhich was actually easy to grasp. If one gets the same number of destiny points on the same mission again and again, then the power scale of this world would have been just too overpowered.


    However, the story of the honey did not just end there. In just seven days, the honey helped me gain 62 points in all four attributes in total. I was not sure how much it would help me until my body would be saturated, but all of it would be worth it. I reckoned it would be 500 to 1000 ording to how much effort I put in.


    If I drank the honey, and slept soundly, then little good that would do, but if I train while consuming the honey, it will boost the growth exponentially. I would have never got over 30 points with just the training I did. This honey was really a life changer for me. I would certainly look for other items like honey that would work as a catalyst in my growth. The numbers were not ignorable at all; it almost doubled my normal speed, though I trained like crazy in these few days.


    "Attention." the instructor said, pping his palms, asking for everyone''s attention. He came before everyone and continued. "The training will end here for today, but I have an announcement to make."


    I frowned at the weary instructor. He was a retired Knight that looked after the freshman students when the regr Knight instructors was away, though I could not ignore the weary man before me. He was called Natrim Sn, one of the board members of the Knight department.


    "I''m sure all of you know, from this year Grand Magus Adarsh Starlight would take the permanent position as the President of the board and the Academy," Instructor Natrim said and seeing no one was uttering anything, he continued. "Like many other Presidents over the centuries, the new president wishes to make a few changes to the academy, and it is mostly on how the teaching and tests work at the academy are taken.


    "President Adarsh did not think the academy is downgrading, at least not the division of Magi, but he would like to speed up the advancement even further. He had presented a lot of ns about what he intended to change and most of them were under process. Now, why I''m speaking all of this to you fellows who are only attending the academy for a couple of weeks . . ."


    Natrim stopped and looked for me for a change and a few others that have failed in the annual exam. "Through the new way, President Adarsh was intending, both the department of Knight and Magic will change a lot, and it would be better in some areas, but it will be a lot tougher for a few of you.


    "The official announcement would take a couple of weeks to a month toe, but before that, I am telling you about this to make sure you all are ready for it. There is a new demotionw that will be put into action where any student who does not meet a certain goal will be demoted to the ss for the Warders or the lesser talents."


    The students erupt into protest this time, and I wondered why this change now. The academy was supposed to change, but it would have been from the next year. Was it something to do with the vampire attack, or did Adarsh Starlight find a new lead?


    "The opposite is true as well," the instructor continued. "Students from the lesser talent sses will be promoted if they perform better than any of you. Put all of this into your mind and work hard."


    Natrim left after that, and I heard the mutter of my underling.


    "Looks like I could not get away with presenting empty term papers from now on."


    I had the urge to p the shiny head of Julies, hearing that. Well, with the progress I''m making, I have no fear of getting demoted nor Julies if this fellow works a little hard with the theories, but the same was not true for my other underlings.


    Not all of them were geniuses, like Julie or Eran. Actually, not a single one of them was like that. Like they had not even attended today''s training, even though I was attending. I put the thoughts of the others away and thought about my own position.


    I have to improve Purgatory to at least C if not B within six months. That almost looked like an impossible job. Maybe if I have a lot of evil to burn, then it might be possible. If I cannot, I have to use other ways to stop Yasmine. And then there were other things.


    Three things. I need to get my hands on three things before the game begins. Money, a suitable weapon and the ancient Dominion.


    ____________________


    1 Getsuga tenshou: a Bleach reference.


    _ _ _


    Drop power stones, golden thingy,ments, reviews, whatever you have if you appropriate the story.


    Discord:


    https://discord.gg/yA45JpRDPn

 Chapter 49 33: Fortunetelling (1)

    Q: What are the signs of the approaching descent?


    A: The changing weather, the surge in the number of beast waves, and the outer gates being unstable.


    - - -


    In the outskirts alleyway of Starlight city, a youth walked towards a gang of hoodlums. The youth had a hood on his head, so the members of the gangs could not see his appearance clearly¡ªcoupling with the fact that it was already evening. However, that did not stop the gang from throwing all sorts of yells at the youth.


    "Hey punk, get outta here, before you don''t have a chance to," the one on the side of the leader yelled, and it was barely anything goodpared to the other ones.


    The other ones showered their daggers and clubs, threateningly like they would not mind beating him if he kept oning towards them.


    "Gentlemen, let''s not resort to violence, shall we?" the youth in the hood said hesitantly. There were a few coins in his arm, making chimes as he approached the gang. "I only have a few questions. If you answer it honestly, nobody would get hurt. It''s a win-win for everyone."


    "To hell with your questions and win-win," One of the hoodlums shouted and charged at the youth, bearing his club.


    "Oh, violence, it is," the youth said, sighing.


    Unfortunately for him, before he could even lift his club a foot threw him away with a dropkick on his chest. His body shot towards where he came from and only stopped, crashing against the wall.


    The youth tilted his head as if thinking he had used far more strength than he intended, but then shook his head instantly as the few lots of the hoodlums were approaching him with various weapons in their arsenal. They didn''t assault like the heedless one did, the dropkick was enough to make them cautious. So, they loomed around him, weapons ready at any actions.


    "I don''t have time for this," said the youth and threw all the coins in his arm except for one.


    The coins shot towards the hoodlums and hit them hard on the forehead as if all their names had been written on the coins. They squirmed in pain on their forelimbs. By the way, there were only three coins the youth threw, and they were all silver coins of ten tills. The three coins did not just drop to the ground after they assaulted the three hoodlums, but still floated before their eyes threateningly.


    "A sorcerer," two of the hoodlums, who were still standing as they did not get hit by the coins, said together. They stepped back one step instantly, dropping their weapons.


    "Can we have a talk now?" the youth said and when he saw the nod of the leaders, he made a gesture with his arm, and the coins returned to his palm, joining the other one.


    "Good," the youth said and removed the hood from his head, revealing the scarlet hair and handsome cold appearance. It was none other than Scar or Aaron, to be precise.


    I released a breath and came before the leader of the gang. Nothing works here if you ask properly. In the end, I had to invest a little mysticism and acting to get the result¡ªnot that I hated it. Achievement unlocked! he mused inwardly, grinning. After training for a whole month, you can now intimidate low level thugs.


    I hid my grinning face immediately and returned to the cold look, ready to interrogate the thugs. "A few kids went missing sincest week," I said, looking at the gang leader. "Do you have any information about it?"


    The gang leader did not open his mouth at first, but when he heard the noise of coin chiming and saw them hovering in the air, he had to open his mouth. Just some paltry tricks! I might get popr at birthday parties.


    "I have seen a few weird people in cloaks," he said, gulping down a hard breath. "They were only three or four dangerous-looking men and had firearms with them, and I have seen them doing suspicious things likeing and going with sacks. They were on the west side. I''m not sure if¡ª"


    I arched my brows. "Show me the path," I said and got up, but the leader of the gang did not. "Come on, I already wasted all day on this task."


    Abruptly a single firework resounded on my back, and I looked towards it frowning. "Is that the west?" I asked the hoodlum, who nodded aggressively. "Goodbye then, I''ll look for you guyster."


    Without giving a second look at the gangs, I leapt around to climb up a one-storied building nearby and looked at the signal in the sky. Looks like Eran or Julies found the kidnapper before me and now was in a tricky situation.


    I started sprinting above on the roofs, from one roof to another towards the fire, hoping the situation was still under control. It was supposedly a low-level task I took from the mission hall because I had some business on the outskirts of the city, but there was a hidden quest in it.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Supposedly, it looked like a case of kidnapping kids, but it was something more, actually. The kids the kidnappers kidnapped actually used as livestock for the bloodsuckers. Such an act already got on my nerves just when I remembered it being a mid-level piece of the second arc of the story, which would solve after dozens of kids got devoured.


    Edward was supposed to solve it, but that was at ater date, however, I could not leave the kids for death with a clear consciousness. In the end, I called two of my brilliant underlings, Julies and Eran, toplete this task with me.


    It took a couple of minutes for me to approach the building from where the signal was called and it was supposedly Eran who had made the signal. Currently, he was bound inside the building as the kidnappers were arguing if they should kill him or not.


    I suppose they would not, after all, kidnapping a few kids and killing a spirit practitioner were two entirely different things. One would mostly be dealt with by the normal enforcer, while thetter would be from the spirit practitioner. They would very much not like to do that, however, if the academy or even anyone finds out their involvement with the bloodsucker, this case would only go to the magic enforcer and warders. That was what I intended.


    I did not enter the room for rescue immediately, seeing Eran bound. I could pretty much guess what had transpired here. Supposedly, Eran found the location of the kidnappers and came to rescue heedless, seeing the helpless children. Still, Eran would not supposedly go so easily, not to mention they were barely marcernary. The kidnappers probably threatened, using the kids as hostages to disarm the broad, dark man.


    Eran may be a spirit practitioner and not far away from being an actual knight, however, this fellow was actually a simple, soft, and a kind man contradicting his appearance. Still, Eran somehow managed to use the signal. Good job for that.


    I loomed outside the building, as my head brewed a feasible n. There were four kidnappers inside the building, all of them hiding their faces with masks. I could put three off together using Sympathetic coins for some time, though I was not sure of the sess. Moreover, it wouldn''t even be unconscious.


    It only has been a couple of weeks since I have learned the sympathetic bindings, and could manipte the coins using one as an anchor to the other three. I could only do three of the coins together because the coins were linked together and weighed a lot less. The art did not even need a couple of strands of spirit force. All I got to do was keep the precision of mind.


    However, it really was a paltry trick. Should I make a huge hole with fire, instead? If only, the kids were not there.


    As I was risking shooting the coins, the roof of the building broke abruptly, and a short, bald figure dropped like a bolt of lightning. I gritted my teeth instantly, finding Julies doing his reckless act again. Without considering for a second, I shot the three coins and broke the window to get in.


    But what happened inside the room was something out of my expectation. When Julies fell, he took one of the masked guys with a hack of his dagger. While one of the other men actually protected the kids with his body like a selfless hero.


    Surely, every man has some heroism in them, but seriously, that man was a mercenary. I mean, even I, as an introvert, knew what the term mercenary meant. Or was the name of Mercenary sullied for no reason?


    I didn''t get what was happening, and my coins lost their momentum as well. Well, to be precise, there was no need for me to use my little sympathetic ability. Julies handled it on his own while Eran, the guy I thought who was bound, actually freed himself from the bindings and took care of the man that was before him.


    "Boss," Julies shouted at me, strangling a man double of his size. "Take care of him, my spell wore off him."


    The one Julies'' eyes were pointing at was the masked kidnapper that protected the three kids from the heavy concrete falling. Though he was already in terrible shape, he appeared to have some juice left, preparing to fire his firearms. So, not even a tad bit of heroism.


    I did not have time to think and took Julies'' words for it. I shot a couple of coins right at the face of the kidnapper, holding nothing back. The coins struck him in the middle of his brows and broke the mask before he went senseless.


    And I did not need to mention the face that came out was not of some bloodsuckers or their underlings, but a human. Well, a mercenary, but he''s very much human. Humans did these sorts of things to each other in this cruel world. Even though I knew it, I could not help but release a breath, shaking my head.


    It took a couple more seconds for the chaos to be sorted. Julies left the man he was strangling towards the kids while Eran joined him.


    I give them a minute or two to take care of the kids before asking, "Can you give me an exnation for your reckless act, Julies?"


    "Boss, I wasn''t reckless," Julies said at once. "I have used one of their own men to free Eran first without them knowing before assaulting them when I had a clear chance of sess."


    "You used one of their own men?" I repeated his words, knitting my brow. Only now I recalled how little I know about Julies. Even in the book he was something the author ignored on many asions. However, It sure did look like it, the way the kidnapper saved the kids. But here came a big question. "How do you do that?"


    ______________________


    The map of Shrankor in this paragraphment.

 Chapter 50 33: Fortunetelling (2)

    I waited for Julies to give a definite answer, but the bald dude only looked away, saying it could not be exined in a short period. In the end, I let go of the topic, seeing Julies was not ready to open up about it. He even seemed to have some conservative thoughts about it.


    I could guess he had some hypnotising ability, but I did not understand why he needs to be secretive even to his boss. If it''s psychosis, then it''s a different case, but something like that wasn''t possible to imprint in such a short term. Being a good boss, I did not press on the matter, thinking Julies woulde clean when he is ready.


    The sun had set already, and I barely had time to finish my own thing--the original reason I came to the outskirts--Which was to secure a weapon I would need in my trip, other than catching these smugglers.


    "You two will take it from here," I said to them. "Bring the kids to the Enforcer''s office and leave the smugglers to the warders in the academy. I think they were doing these kinds of things for a while now, and it could be rted to the bloodsuckers."


    Julies and Eran''s eyes widened at hearing that. They had previouslyined a lot about taking on such a low-level task. I only managed to bring them saying we were saving little kids, but hearing the main reason, both of their expressions stiffened. This matter was not so simple after all.


    Vampires had been silent for a few years now, other than the attack three weeks ago. However, that will change eventually.


    Collecting back my coins, I walked towards the entrance of the door. The linked coins were quite important for the trick to sess. Unless, it would be immensely hard for me to even lift the coins. The sympathetic binding did not use spirit force all that much, it just used the link between two simr items to manipte one another. The coins hovered as I walked.


    "Boss, where are you going?" Julies asked.


    "To prepare a few things before my departure," I answered and walked out of the building. I would have liked to bring the criminals with them as it was a serious matter, but I don''t have much time in hand.


    I have been making ns to get my hands on the unique dominion for a while now. The ce where it was hidden now was quite a dangerous ce for me to venture, even though my overall attributes were better than an average knight. So to get my odds of sess better, I need a better weapon. And today was the very reason I was on the outskirts of Starlight city.


    Originally, I would have gone there a few monthster, before the midterm, but considering about the issues I had to deal with, I couldn''t wait longer. It was almost impossible for me to stop Yasmine, and even if I do stop her forcefully, someone else might get hurt in her ce. If it turned out to be a key character, then the book is fu*ked in the end.


    I''m almost sure another key figure would get hurt there if I somehow stopped Yasmine. If it was the princess who Yasmine would be escorting, then it would be a huge problem, as she would be a major key element of the story. But I could not let Yasmine die so miserably. In the end, all I could do was get the matter in my own hands. In six months, I would get my ability to the level to a point where I could help her tackle the misfortune.


    Thousands of glittering stars held the skies of the starlight city, as well as the three moons, giving the city a picturesque look. It would have been a great view to look at if there was not that stiff wind that gave me shivers.


    I pulled the hood over my head again. Naturally, it was the time of winter, so it was supposed to be cold. Even though there was a mountain range from the west to the south, it could not block all the chilly wind froming.


    There were a few people in the path, and the marketce was fairly crowded, even though it was only the outskirts. The major market ce near the academy was the real deal, while this onecks many aspects. The biggest aspect itcked was the magicalponents that held half of the stores in the main marketce. Well, I was not here to shop, but I would take back a thing or two.


    Now, all I needed to do first was look for a ce called Dragon''s Fang. Supposedly, it was not an easy ce to find on your own, but I knew where to look for it.


    Walking around the marketce, I found a big nostalgia store holding a lot of stuff, from good quality toys, and tools to poor quality stuff. The farther I went inside, the better the old product got. I got a view of some musical instruments as well, but I did not examine them, as I have better things to do now.


    "Can I help you?" It was an elderly man with white whiskers and weary eyes, burning some aromatic incense on the store. A few insects buzzed around the luminescent stones, as it enlightened the entire store fairly.


    "I''m looking for a fortune-telling," I said with a smile.


    The old man looked at me as if trying to peer into my intention.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "It''s an odd time toe for fortune-telling," the old manmented. "Go straight down and then left. Knock on the second door you see. I hope you do not get yelled at."


    I tilted my head and thanked the old man, pondering. Were there any other details that were not mentioned in the book, or am I missing something?


    I followed the instructions and went down before knocking on the second door that came into my view.


    "Who is it?" a feminine voice said with an ent that was different from the empire. It''s a bit vic, while the mostly it appeared clumsily Mahendi. I have not mingled with that many people yet to know where the ent came from.


    "I came for fortune-telling and some other business," I said, and waited for the door to open.


    "Didn''t that old man tell you, it''s not time for that yet? Come a couple of days." The voice sure did not have anything sweet about it.


    I raised an eyebrow. "The old man did tell, but he gave me the path as I''m a special customer," I lied. "I promise it won''t take much time, and you will perhaps gain something from it as well."


    There was no sound for a while, and then the door opened with a tall woman with a smoking pipe in her mouth. The woman had brown skin and white eyes, a weirdbination¡ªand I guessed at once--she was the one I was looking for. Dakota was her name, the owner of the Silvereyes which gave her some vision about the future in unusual times.


    She was a woman in her mid-twenties orte twenties¡ªI did not know, but she did have a fairly pretty face and dark hair left unbound on her shoulders and back. A loose nightgown with bare arms held her body, giving me a good look at her cleavage¡ªnot that she had that big of plots. In the book, she only appears for a short time and talks about some crazy things with a few main characters before leaving.


    The book did not mention her history, but it does seem she had some problems with her usual eyes to finally settle here on the outskirts of Starlight City.


    Dakota looked at me nkly for some time. Her brows knitted together for a couple of seconds before she released a heavy breath.


    "You want fortune-telling?" Dakota said nonchntly. "I got one for you. Stay away from the white-haired girl, and you will be fine. Leave the fees to the old man and get out."


    Finishing her phrase, the woman with the pipe got inside her room and was about to close the door.


    Luckily, I had some knowledge about her behaviour and got my leg inside the door before she could close it. With the sturdy body I got, it did not hurt at all, though there was a frown on my brows. Her words were still ringing in my ears.


    Stay away from white-haired girls, and you will be fine.


    _____________________


    Discord:


    https://discord.gg/yA45JpRDPn

 Chapter 51 34: Punisher (1)

    Q: Where''s the Tomb of Aasghar located?


    A: The Wilderness of Eathenir.


    - -


    Stay away from white-haired girls, and you will be fine.


    A couple of faces instantly appeared in my head, and I knew which one of them would bring all the dangers towards herself and others that are close to her. Nevertheless, I would like to hear everything she saw in her vision. It might help in some areas to know what I will be up against.


    "Hey, what''s the big idea?" Dakota yelled, trying her best to crush my leg in the door frame. "You got what you needed, now, get out."


    "Didn''t I say I have some other business?" I said. Getting the fortune-telling done was only a side intention, while my primary goal ofing here was to get a weapon I would need for the next few months. Looking at the anger ridden face of the brown-skinned woman, I reckoned it won''t be that easy.


    "What else do you need?" she asked, squinting her nose, finally stopping from crushing my legs. She was, after all, not a noob against spirit practitioners, and knew I would not leave if she did not entertain me for some time.


    "I want to borrow something," I said. "I hear you loan people stuff?"


    "We don''t loan things to everyone," she said. "We only loan to people who are capable of returning with more odds. First, I have to investigate about you, your standing, and if you can return the odds, then we might consider lending something to you. All of this will take at least a couple of days. Just leave showing your face to the old man, and you could leave your name as well."


    "Unfortunately, I don''t have a couple days," I said, shaking my head. Then I removed the hood from the top of my head, revealing red hair and pupils--iconic only to a single-family in the realm. "However, I''m sure you would not need to check my background for a couple of days to find anything. I am quite famous here."


    Dakota knitted her brows and looked at my smiling, smug face. She finally seemed to recall what these red hair and pupil implies.


    "Oscar Emberheart?" she asked and seeing me nod, she continued, "you are famous, though infamous would be the right word to characterise better."


    Dakota stepped out of her room and closed the door. Smoking as she usually does, she started to walk further into the corridor as if its natural for me to follow her.


    "Investing in you is quite a difficult deal," she said. "There is a very slim chance that I will get my returns. But since you would not leave without taking a look, follow me. Let''s see what you can offer."


    I followed her and wondered if she did not feel cold with only the thin, sleeveless, and loose gown. I swirled a few strands of spirit force inside my channel to ward away the cold as we approached the end of the corridor. She stood before thest room of the corridor, bringing a chain of keys out of her cleavage. Was it hidden in her bra?


    My eyes popped seeing that. Was that the most secure ce to hide the keys? Come on girl, you could do better. She seemed to notice my look and gave me a contemptuous click of the tongue.


    She opened the door and a dark and small staircase that went all the way down weed us. Without saying a word, she moved, and I followed, observing all around. This was the Dragon''s Fang. The nostalgia store in the front was just for a show.


    After reaching the end of the stairs, what weed us was an empty broad space, just like I had assumed. There was a big cage inside in the middle, which I assumed to be a fighting ring. Every month once or twice there will be a fight inside with all the other bettings and many other things. Not many people know such things happened under the secure city of Starlight.<novelnext></novelnext>


    That''s the Dragon''s Fang alright.


    Though it was not mostly illegal, this girl would get in trouble eventually, but that was not the case today.


    We left the battle ring to go even deeper and a couple more levels below before she knocked on the door muttering something that I did not hear correctly, nor did I understand. It was in some othernguage.


    The heavy metal door opened, and the storage room lit up, however, no one was present on the other end. Perhaps hid immediately after opening the door. I was not sure even with my extra knowledge from the books.


    She brought me inside, not fearing that I might do something to her before fleeing with some valuable item. She had her pieces in ces or how she could run such a business under the surveince of the freaking Starlight Academy. I reckoned she sent the right amount of money to the right people, so the warders or enforcers who were responsible for this area let her do the bidding. Though it would all be eradicated if there were no bars or regtions in ce. This was just some sorted-out underworld stuff.


    "The Infamous Oscar Emberheart," Dakota said, closing the door. A couple more luminescent stones lit up in the ceiling immediately, bringing the light of the room to an eye-friendly level. "Tell me what you need."


    "A weapon, a sword, actually," I said as my eyes drifted towards the wasteid on the ground to the shining armour or weapons disyed on disy on the wall. Actually, I know what I need, but bringing that to her would be quite difficult. Like what I would say if she asked how I knew about the exact sword.


    "Everything''s on disy; choose anything, then we will negotiate," she said, and took a seat in the middle of the storage room like the madame of the ce which she really was.


    I released a breath and looked for the weapon I had in mind. It was quite a valuable weapon, and could possibly be worth as much as all the junk put together. She could possibly store it somewhere more secure. Within my search, my eyes went to many useful artifacts that woulde in handy in many difficult situations, but none of them would with my current one. They were good, but none had the features that I couldn''t possibly get elsewhere.


    Until my eyes drifted towards a full-body Ward, shining in the pale silver dark colour. Wait, it wasn''t a ward, but a false one. However, it appeared a lot thicker and heavier than the usual False-ward. Going on at the design alone, I could guess it was an old product, and evidently, not one of the empires.


    "That''s an old design of the Ruthalynian Knight''s gear that was never put to use after the war a decade ago," Dakota said, seeing my interest in the gear. "Are you interested in that? Though I''m not sure if you will be capable of tolerating it for over five minutes."


    "I''m looking for a sword with fire attribute amplification," I said andid my eyes on the swords showcased on the walls. Most of them were low-grade artifacts with 10 to 20% reinforcement, while a few there might have reached 50 or 60%, but that''s barely would be helpful in my case.


    "You don''t fancy any of those?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "Well, I assumed they were nothing fanciful to the heir of the Emberheart."


    I did not know if she said it out of contempt, knowing I was cut off from all sources of capital from the house or only speaking her mind. But since I was here to borrow things, I did not mind.


    Dakota stood up and went near an old metal armour that stood like a statue in the corner. She removed the empty helm from the armour set before putting her palm inside. Next, she brought out her palm with a shiny needle sword. Though a nail sword would be a better word to describe it.


    Yep, that was the one I was looking for.


    ___________________________

 Chapter 52 34: Punisher (2)

    Dakota brought the metre long nail sword to me, and I took it from her, exhaling. The sword had a good weight on it, almost double that of any regr sword. Even though it was almost like a nail, its sides were not round. It had sharp edges, and was quite sharp enough to im lives.


    I forced my spirit force inside the de first and then infused the mes of purgatory in it. Other than the hilt, all the sharp edges turned in a crimson glory of purgatory and it even amplified it by more than 50%. A text lit up in crimson near the helt, it was written in old tongue, which I couldn''t read, unlike the regr Mahendi, but I can guess what''s written there.


    It''s the name of the sword.


    [Punisher: (Unique) (Grade:S)


    This sword has a history of thousands of years and the way it was created was long lost. Legend has it, in the end, battle of the second epoch, thest wielder of this sword used his blood to channel spirit force against the demons and engraved his will.


    +90% Spirit force revolution.


    +64% Fire element amplification.


    +1 in Strength (Limited to S-grade)


    Fury: Uses the blood essence to pull more spirit force into the sword. It is a formidable skill that uses the hidden force of the body to its advantage. Over usage of this ability may lead to a permanent bacsh. ]


    "Do you have a sheath for this?" I asked, and the very moment Dakota threw a round sheath at me.


    "I see you are satisfied with the sword," Dakota said, returning to her chair, and now she had papers and a lot of stuff before her. "Now let me see what you can offer in return. I had high hopes since its the first time I''m dealing with a prince."


    "How much will it be for me to borrow?" I asked. "For a month, at least."


    "10000 dynes," Dakota gave a staggering number at once, which might even be enough to buy a good low-grade sword with a 30% revolution advantage.


    I shook my head instantly, "And how much would it be to buy it entirely?" I asked with a calm expression.


    "I don''t know," Dakota said, pondering. "That is a relic, its priceless however, I don''t mind selling it for a few million perhaps."


    Honestly, what she said was right; nobody knows the price of a sword like this. Nobody in their right mind will sell in in dynes. In a sense, this item was priceless, and selling it only meant losing a valuable item, though it would only rot here with her if she does nothing with it.


    Unfortunately, not to mention buying the sword, I could not even loan it for even a week.


    Dynes should be the best option to loan this item, however, I did not have the amount that would be needed to lend this sword. That leaves me with very few other choices, and none of them will be as easy as what money could do. I smiled awkwardly at the chocte-skinned woman.


    "That smile tells me you don''t have a lot to offer," Dakota said and opened the drawer of the desk. From inside, she brought out a syringe and a ss vial. "Looks like I will need some of your blood to be safe."


    I took a step back purposefully. Even though I got the act of being Scar to some level, I still feel chills in some scenes. Like this one before, where a girl asked for my blood.


    In this realm, you could do a lot of things with blood. She could give me a curse that I would be bound to her or if she had a good amount of my blood, she could go as far as killing me, providing the fact she was well adept in blood curse.


    Starlight Academy has an ironw that anyone who was subjected to the usage of ck magic or this type of curse would be put behind bars first before going through the trials. However, even if the academy had a hardw against these types of curses, I would not like to test my luck going through this.


    "Don''t you have any other ways?" I asked hesitantly.


    "I do," the Dakota said, cocking her head, and curling up her lips. "But none of them will be useful in your case."


    "You could not at least curse the heir to the Emberheart family," I added, and I was not just trying my luck. Though my rtionship with the family was on the verge of breaking off, they would not put up with someone cursing their own blood. Also, my maternal family, they have three capable magus in their ranks--its nothing to be scoffed at.


    "That is true," Dakota said, however, the curl on her lips did not leave. "But I can sell it at a good price. I''m sure Lord Emberheart already has several enemies who would not mind paying a small amount to deal a blow to him."


    ''Damn woman,'' I cursed my luck. Now I am only left with myst two choices. "How about you take it as an investment?"


    "Investment in what?"


    "In me," I said with a straight face.


    "What are you, my future husband or something?" Dakota said, and this time not smiling. "I have lived enough of my life to know what this will lead to. And it will be you running away with my treasure. Moreover, you have history of destroying stuff."<novelnext></novelnext>


    ''I guess Scar''s character is not so trusting,'' I thought, knitting my brow. ''So, there''s only one choice now.''


    "How much do you earn from each match in the cage?" I asked, inhaling.


    ? "It depends on the match," she said, raising her eyebrows. She seemed to understand what I was getting at.


    "Say, how about I battle in the cage a couple of times and you lend me the sword for half a year?" I went straight to the deal.


    This offer was far more tempting to her than raw cash. After all, it was not every day, she had some knighte into herir asking for a match, much less a prince like myself.


    Initially, I wanted the sword for a month for now, but this option was myst resort as well, and I would not very much like to do that. My fear being, what if the House learns about it and disowns me? They have other reasons for it, and I would only be providing another one. And if Lily and my other darling siblings brought something to the ear of the lord Father, it would very likely be possible.


    I only agreed with this because I had no other option, and not many knew about the underground cage fight, even the people who lived in the city. So a couple of times, this stunt could likely go in their blind eye. Not to mention I could manage to earn the money needed to loan the sword as well.


    "Bringing a prince into the cage does seem tempting," Dakotamented, and I felt a little chill from her voice. "But you have to go at least six times inside the cage."


    I shook my head immediately. "Two is the limit," I said. "And that is with the deration that I could give up the cage if I could bring you the dynes."


    . . .


    I walked out of the room with the new sword in my waist as well as a load on my back. The load contains the prototype False-ward of Ruthalyn.


    In the end, Dakota did not budge for less than 4 times of me in the cage, so I decided to take more things. Though there were other perks as well, like I could give up on the cage fights providing double the cash she had loaned it for, while she would give me 14% of the profit from the match.


    This woman was very difficult to deal with when the topic was money. Only after arguing for a whole hour did I get that percentage. Her initial n was to give me a thousand dynes for each match, which was certainly a tempting offer if one doesn''t know the entire story. However, I was dead set on getting a percentage cut, and was going for 25%, but that seemed a lot since, I''m getting the sword and suit for six months.


    This woman didn''t be a sessful business owner at such a young age for no reason. Only after a lot of hassle did I get the 14% cut. I was not sure how much that would be in dynes, but I was sure it would be at least be 10000 dynes in total.


    Moreover, that girl didn''t leave a blind spot in the contact like she would only give me the dynes after I finish battling all the four matches. Meaning I could not use that money to pull out from the matches.


    Damn bitch! Maybe I should invest in her instead. I was never a businessman, and she fine woman who knows her stuff. If only I could trust her.


    In the end, it was a lose-lose situation for both of us. She had the fear that I would run away with her treasure, though I have no intention of doing that. There was a fair im in that she could report it directly to the academy or House Emberheart. While I had the fear of getting discovered in this underground cage fighting.


    If I manage to bring at least 4 months time, I have confidence that I will only be winning situation for myself. I am confident I will be able to tackle the fear of being disowned and could possibly get the lines of the capital fixed with the house as well.


    "By the way," I said to the woman who was leading me out of the underground hall. "What did you see in the vision?"


    Dakota stopped in her lead and looked at me. "How do you know I have a vision?" she said. Only a few people knew she could tell fortunes of people, but almost none about the visions.


    I cursed myself for the slip of tongue, not that It would hurt that much. "I know a lot of things, more than you assume," I said mysteriously. "So what did you see?"


    "Will it make any difference?" Dakota said and continued to walk. "I''m sure you will not listen to me and go after whatever the white-haired girl or fate will pull you together. In the end, it''s all the same."


    Dakota sighed, and I got she will not tell me exactly what she saw now.


    We came to the nostalgia store on the ground floor again as she waited for me to leave.


    I was about to leave with the two treasures in my arms, but faltered suddenly. A curl appeared on my lips.


    "You know, I can do some fortune-telling myself as well," I said, and looked at her eyes, reflecting the lights of the luminescent stones. "I have an advice for you. Stay away from a man who wears sunsses all the time if you want to keep your freedom."


    And for dramatic effect, also to look cool, I did not look at her face before leaving though I had a terrible urge to look at her face. I only call myself thinking there will be better chances.


    ___________________


    The editor of this book has some exams, so thest few chapters quality is a bit off. The problem willst a week or so. Thank you.

 Chapter 53 35: Fascination

    Q: What''s the name of the unique Dominion Oscar owned?


    A: Oscar named it Dominion of Shift, but I think the name is a bit inappropriate, considering what the Dominion could do.


    - - -


    I felt a bit ufortable from the gazes my aunt was giving me. Was it really a right choice to open about it right now? I thought for the second time, letting out a breath.


    ¡°Show me,¡± Rosalyn said, curious. She still hadn¡¯t believed me; well, it was not her fault.


    The problem was that I chose toe clean to my aunt about the casting of evocative me spells with no chanting. Seriously, it seemed it was a bigger deal than I thought. Well, it was not that I¡¯m the only unique case in this regard. Most of the Grand magus could do it with mentalmand, while there were a few individuals like me who could cast without chanting with no particr training, but there was a hidden story behind that.


    ¡°Well,¡± Rosalyn said, raising an eyebrow, a bit impatient. ¡°Show me.¡±


    Nodding my head, I concentrated, burning all thoughts, imagining the mes of purgatory. The scarlet me coiling around my palm to concentrate into a fiery ball of me.


    ¡°No chanting,¡± Rosalyn said, wheezing. She approached me immediately to stand next. ¡°Do it again.¡±


    I followed, forming two fireballs this time, none losing out to the other.


    ¡°What else can you do?¡± she asked, eyes staring at the me unblinkingly.


    ¡°Pretty much everything,¡± I said as I manipte the mes toprise a small dragon, which came out as a serpent. It was not just the fault of my poor control, the me was just too dominating to be controlled by my will, not to mention the forming a dragon needs a delicate hand. ¡°Well, my everything kind of limited now. I can do anything, limited to my mental capacity.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Rosalyn nodded, not showing even a bit of disappointment. ¡°These . . . only limited to fire spells?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± I answered truthfully.


    ¡°Alright, let exercise it a bit,¡± she said, ¡°try to manipte the spells as you go.¡±


    And that a bit longed for half an hour, before I finally staggered on the seat, all juiced sucked out of me. I still had spirit energy left, but not much of mental fortitude. ¡°Aunt, I don¡¯t think I can go on for further.¡±


    Rosalyn now had a notebook on her arm. She had noted down everything she had me tested for the time, and even now she looked at it with fascination in her eyes. Wizard, I thought, and smiled to myself. They forget everything provided with something interesting and promising.


    ¡°I don¡¯t see what the big idea in this is,¡± I said, feigning ignorance. ¡°So what if I can cast without chanting? It didn¡¯t make the spell stronger or anything.¡±


    ¡°You talk like a brute, dear nephew,¡± Rosalyn said, finally resting her notebook and taking her seat across from me. ¡°Do you know why its call spells?¡±


    ¡°Because we have to spell it,¡± I tried with a grin, ¡°literally?¡±


    ¡°Exactly,¡± Rosalyn said, nodding approvingly.


    ¡°But there were ways to cast other than chanting,¡± I argued, not just I wanted to feign ignorance, but also because I was extremely curious about this topic.


    Yes, I had titbits from the book, but that can¡¯t bepared to magus who practised the high arts for two third of her life. Magic is fascinating, especially to me, who had no prior education in it.


    ¡°I had literally seen Yeriel casting a healing spell on Ben with no chanting, and that spell tooplicating as well.¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Rosalyn agreed, ¡°there are other schools of casting than the simple chanting. What Yeriel did was far moreplicated than simple chanting. I have seen her work, also trained her. She was particrly good at it, and it wouldn''t be wrong to say she has the purest spiritual energy I¡¯ve ever seen."


    "Even purer than you?"


    "I''m not talking about control, but the sheer basis of the energy. You should know, everyone''s spiritual signature is different.¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡° I agreed. ¡°It forms naturally as we grow. Our emotions, driving force, experience all mingled together to give a unique nature to the spiritual energy. That is why a soldier who spent a decade on the battlefield will have a dominating nature in his spiritual energy than a florist. But what that has to do with Yeriel?¡±


    "Basically, her spiritual nature is odd," Rosalyn continued. "It''s as if it was left untouched since she was born. I never thought it would be possible, yet here she is."


    "Does it have something to do with her nature?" I asked, recalling. In some part of the story, Yeriel even healed people who had done awful deeds to her and others. People who had no path of redemption.


    "I don''t know for sure, however, it''s rted to her pure soul. Her pure spiritual energy is best for these kinds of healing bindings, but it will alwaysck the destructing force that everyone likes to practise. The healing spell she cast was impossible to cast through chanting. It¡¯s just tooplicated."


    "Well, Yeriel didn''t seem to care," I said. So it''s fine. As she had mentioned, healing arts are no way inferior to the arts of destruction.


    Rosalyn continued with her exnation. ¡°Chanting is the oldest school of magic. It acts inmands; fast, destructive evocative spells¡ªthat¡¯s its advantage. You have to visualise and willed it with the specific amand chant. If youcked even in one of the three, the casting will fail.¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    I knew all that, but it still fascinated me. Like how could it be so easy to cast, spelling somemand words, while in other school we have to form some geometrical structures?


    ¡°What about the shing technique we practise?¡± I asked her. ¡°It doesn¡¯t need any chanting or even any bindings. I thought it was a form of unstructured manifestation of magic.¡±


    ¡°It is an unstructured manifestation of the elements,¡± Rosalyn agreed. ¡°It¡¯s also an ancient discipline. Usually, a knight or squire went past so long on the discipline that they don¡¯t need any chanting and binding to manifest the element. It''s very simple discipline, and all you require is perseverance to learn that.


    ¡°Moreover, I don¡¯t know if you know this, but most knight unknowingly sacrifice a part of their spiritual energy to that of their element, so that they won¡¯t have any hindrance in the manifestation.¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that improper?¡± I couldn¡¯t help but ask. Yes, element could be powerful, however, there were many things a single element can¡¯t do. Spirit energy has a lot of usages, other than the destructive spell, it can heal one¡¯s body far sooner than normal, and give extraordinary sensory ability, however, the more you transform energy to a particr element, the less advantage you will get in these other quirks.


    ¡°Not particrly,¡± Rosalyn said. ¡°Yes, it would be a waste for a Magus to do it, but for a knight whocks the control, precision, and delicate hand, it¡¯s probably the best thing to carry out. If you have no hope of learning any high arts, it''s better to sacrifice some part of your spiritual energy for the destructive force.¡±


    ¡°I think my non-chanting casting is some form of the shing,¡± I added, hesitantly. Actually, I don¡¯t know everything about it, and wished to learn what my aunt found out from all the tests. ¡°Probably some kind of non-structural casting.¡±


    ¡°It is, but it¡¯s farplicating than I can interpret,¡± Rosalyn said. ¡°If I take the liberty of words, then what you doing is not any casting, not in the way of magic¡ªwe practise¡ªat least. It''s more like the pure manifestation of magic. You realise what I¡¯m saying?¡±


    ¡°You mean a natural urrence like lightning?¡±


    ¡°Exactly,¡± Rosalyn said as her eyes beamed, ¡°however, you are doing it purposefully, and to do that, you are unintentionally binding yourself as the anchor to form the manifestation. Which makes it particrly easier for you to wield the me, however, if anything goes wrong¡ª¡°


    ¡°I alone will suffer the bacsh,¡± Ipleted her sentence.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Rosalyn said and stood up. ¡°I think I¡¯m missing a lot of things. It isn¡¯t all like the bloodline ingenuity of the Emberheart, where almost all the spiritual energy transformed into mes, however, your spiritual energy did go through some mutations. I need to do more test to find out more.¡±


    Rosalyn paused for a second, arching her eyebrows at me. ¡°You know what? You are not the only unique case in this regard. Elinor, thess you helped before, had gone through this kind of mutations as well, however, her condition is a lot different. Now that I think about it, she could probably cast without chanting as well.¡±


    I frowned. It seemed my hypothesis was right. Seemed like all or at least most of the wielder of the twelve powers can do non-chanting casts. It would be a bit easier for me to find them, getting this knowledge.


    ¡°Aunt,¡± I asked hesitantly, ¡°do you know anyone who could cast without chanting? Not like the mentalmand one cultivates in the grand magus ranks, but natural casting like me.¡±


    Rosalyn looked at me carefully, probably probing where I¡¯m getting at. ¡°Yes,¡± she said, ¡°I know a couple, and both of them held high positions in the realm. The first is the emperor, the strongest man in the realm, while the other is our President.¡±


    I was hoping for something like that, yet I still couldn¡¯t help but suck in air.


    ¡°Whatever it is, you should still imitate the natural evocation way in front of public eyes, before we figure out more. Have you said anything about it to anyone else?¡±


    I shook my head and didn¡¯t go deeper into the topic. We have already gone quite deep into it far earlier than I intended, so better not give any more ideas to my overly smart aunt.


    ¡°Good,¡± Rosalyn said, and gazed at the clock, which was striking close to six. ¡°It¡¯ste, you better go and rest.¡±


    I nodded, but remained there, bringing out a pamphlet out of my pocket. ¡°Aunt,¡± I said, pausing, ¡°there is something else I need your help with as well.¡±


    I held the pamphlet out towards her, and my aunt took it. She read as a frown appeared on her brows. What I gave her was actually a mission hall pamphlet, describing the nature of the particr mission that I''m intending to take. Actually, it wasn¡¯t the mission that interested me, but the ce the mission needed me to go. It was quite close to the ce where the Dominion was hidden. It would be the best camouge mission I could get my hands on, without putting out too much suspicions. Naturally, it would interest me.


    ¡°Warlock sighting,¡± Rosalyn read, shaking her head. ¡°And it¡¯s in Victoria. This single mission would take you a couple of weeks to a month. Are you seriously thinking of dropping your education for an entire month just to do this single mission?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± I said, and mentioned the excuse I prepared beforehand. ¡°Aunt, I¡¯m out of shape and wasted over a year. Despite all the practice I did, it wouldn¡¯t be enough to get me back to my old form. I think I require something like this. A long break where I can practise as I please, and do some actual missions. Also, it''s Victoria. I haven¡¯t been there for a long time.¡±


    Rosalyn became silent. Victoria was hernd. She was born and raised there, and so did Scar¡¯s mother. After her death, Scar had never been there, not even at her funeral. ¡°Still, you will miss a lot of sses.¡±


    ¡°Yes, but I can recover from that, if you help meter,¡± I said, beaming a smile at my aunt. ¡°Or you aren¡¯t willing to help your favourite nephew?¡±


    Just as I thought, my smile was too much for my aunt to handle. Finally, she exhaled, saying, ¡°When are you intending to leave?¡±


    ¡°Tomorrow or the day after, the sooner it''s possible.¡±


    Rosalyn grunted. ¡°I need to make a couple of calls,¡± she said. ¡°Meet me tomorrow morning.¡±


    ¡°Thanks, aunt, you¡¯re the best.¡± I stood up from the seat and moved my way out of her room, only to stop near the door.


    I looked back at her and said again, ¡°There¡¯s something else. I would need your help too. Do you have something that can help me hide my aura?¡±

 Chapter 54 36: Journey (1)

    Q: What is a rift?


    A: It''s basically gap between dimensions. If the spatial nodes of some ces are shattered or be unstable, it bes an ideal ce to form a rift.


    - - -


    Even though this world was in the mediaeval period, it developed pretty darn well with magic and applied science. Despite all that it can¡¯tpare to my old world, however, it does have a few wonders of innovation. Like the train before me.


    I stood in the station, along with hundreds of people, staring at the approaching train. It was a pretty big train that runs on diluted spirit stones¡ªkind of like the fossil fuel of this world, but interestingly enough, the train does not make that much noise, though it works on air pressure and streams.


    I kind of like the vibe of it just by the look of it. ording to the book, it could go pretty fast, but it was only allowed to go under a hundred kilometres per hours in normal situations like this. The end of the Proudsmith, the first month, wasing, and so did the Night of Brilliance. I have two days to reach the mountain to take the dominion or I had to wait another month again, which I would initially like to, but the situation did not let me. I needed to grow fast.


    My pondering got lost as I heard a voice from beside me.


    "Boss," Julies called, nudging me. "Why are you staring at the train like you''ve never seen it before?"


    They don''t know, but I was the only person in this world, who might have seen the trains the longest time in their life¡ªnot that it was an achievement or anything. I was just thinking about the differences between this world and my old world, also the choices I have. Oh, right, I keep on doing that. Fine, I''ll stop.


    "I will be away for at least a couple of weeks," I said to Julies and Eran, who managed time to send me to Victoria. "You two got to look into the kidnapping matter. Something fishy is going on."


    After they took in the kidnappers the other day, they actually found nothing about the bloodsucker. Luckily, there was no sign of psychosis in their mind, either. I was fearing for Julies for no reason. The only useful things the kidnappers told that they deliver the kids to another location where other people take charge of things. So what we found was another location. I suppose it won''t be as easy.


    "Boss, you are finally doing real mission stuff. Do you really have to go alone?" Julies said and Eran joined, "At least, take one of us with you."


    "Nah, not this time," I said, though I would very much like to take them. Their skills would be greatly helpful in many areas that Icked. "As I told you, you two got to work on the kidnapper matter. It''s a serious issue, and more, you guys can get demoted if you do not work hard from now on."


    Getting demoted was not only their fears, but mine too. I would not attend the sses for about a month, and though I could manage the knight department, the magic department was another matter.


    Luckily, I have my sweet aunt. Though she was demanding in her teaching, she had helped me a lot of times, like how easily I got the leave of absence, not to mention the few stuff I took from her for this journey. She was really a sweet aunt. I wish I had someone like her in my original life.


    I dropped those thoughts and looked at the two and the approaching train again.


    "If things work well, then I''ll be back in less than a fortnight," I said and nudged the shoulders of the short and tall guy. The three of us looked really weird together.


    "Goodbye then," I said and heard the whistle. We bid goodbye as I walked towards the train. I have loads of packages with me as well as the new sword, so I did not rush, not that I would need to.


    The train would leave in half an hour and I had already booked a ticket. Considering both worlds, the train ticket of this world is far more expensive. I will have to go to Victoria, which was on the other side of the mountain and would be a journey of four hours or more. The ticket had cost me three dyne and twenty tills¡ªthat was almost as high as the cost of food for a week of a lower-middle-ss family.


    Train was not for everybody in this world¡ªnot that I have a problem because of that. I walked almost to the end of the long train and was about to get into thepartment when another person collided against me from behind. With my constitution of a knight, I had no problem bncing myself. Sadly, the other person was not so lucky.


    "Man, what''s the rush?" I said and found the person who collided with me was someone I knew.<novelnext></novelnext>


    It was Althan Kimber, heir to the Princedom of Kimber. I had met him a few times after the transmigration in this realm, and from what I could tell, my rtionship with him was not merry. Like about a month ago, I embarrassed him in the library for taking advantage of Yeriel, or the time next to mission hall.


    However, he was not alone this time. A few lesser talents and warder candidates were with him, as well as a couple of apprentice mages. That¡¯s odd. I wondered why the rich boy was going to the normalpartment; he should be in the first ss.


    "Oscar," Althan said and got up. Even though he was the one who collided and fell, he seemed to think all of that was my fault. Well, if it was any normal person in ce of me, he certainly wouldn¡¯t have to fall.


    "You are going somewhere, Kimber?" I asked and got onto the train before him.


    "On a mission," he said and got into the train and after me, the few with him followed.


    I did not converse with him for more, as we don¡¯t stare eye to eye with each other. I moved to take a window seat. The tickets I took were only for the normalpartment, so there was no seat booking or anything. Luckily, all the window seats were not filled.


    I got my seat, and after putting the bags in the right ce, I opened a thick volume of a notebook. It was where I wrote down everything I knew about the story, including the thousand questions, many of my spections, and research. I had no fear of being discovered out; the reason was simple, nobody alive knew thisnguage in the realm. This was going to be a long, boring journey, so I brought out another volume, this time a book on Higharts.


    Thaumaturgy was something that was hardest to learn in all spirit arts. Even simple skills like tracking take years to learn. Though I have ess to most of the theoretical books thanks to my sweet aunt, I still have not even touched the frame of the art. Sympathetic art came so easily to me, so I guess, I have not got the inner meaning of it yet.


    As I was reading the books, some cacophony came to my ears. Normally, I would have ignored it like nothing, but I recognised the voices¡ªmost particrly, two of them. One was none other than the mighty son of Kimber, who was pulling the arm of a fair maiden. While the other person he was pulling was naturally someone I know.


    It was none other than Yeriel, who was politely refusing the opportunity the mighty noble son was giving her, which was, of course, to sit next to him. What could be more glorious to her than sit next to our mighty Althan, as he take advantage of her?


    Sometimes I wondered, Are I and Althan fated to be enemies?


    Now I know why this boy had not gone to the first ss. He still wanted to try his kingdom crashing charisma and charm on Yeriel. But how can I see one of my favourite female leads being courted by one of the detestable character? Moreover, it appeared no better than harassment in the public eye. I might not be her Knight in shining armour, but I was still a Knight.


    Well, still a Squire, because I did not have the resolve yet, but that¡¯s not important.


    "Yeriel," I called, smiling. "I saved you a seat."


    My tone was as if I was actually waiting for her to join me. Though Yeriel did not get what I was trying, Kimber let go of her hands.


    "Come quickly," I said again, seeing her frozen. "Or someone else will take it."


    I gave an iconic cold smile of Scar to Althan as I watched Yeriel walk towards me. While Althan gnashed his teeth looking at me. If eyes could curse, I would be dead already.


    ________________________


    The book will go under paywall in this month, I don''t have a date, but it would be sometimes in the middle.

 Chapter 55 36: Journey (2)

    "It''s about time you learn to defend yourself, Yeriel," I told the Endus woman as she sat beside me, sighing in relief.


    Yeriel didn¡¯t answer, but inhaled to calm herself. She wore a white dress and overcoat above it with a pink ribbon and her sympathetic hairpin on her hair, which mostlyid unbound on her back and shoulder. It was simple clothing, but this girl was beautiful in anything. I wondered if she realised that or not, and learns to defend herself, or she will suffer wherever she goes.


    Then suddenly a thought hit me. In the book, Yeriel''s nature never changed. She was always gentle, and Edward had to defend her many times until she died. But there was no Edward. While the kid, Elinor, was busy dealing with her own stuff.


    My thoughts drifted off further on to how she died. My resentment towards the Author rose again. Like why was he so good at killing girls? Was he a sadist that likes to see men break into tears? Giving motivation to characters is good, but there were many other ways to do that rather than just killing their loved ones. He did it with both Scar and Edward. Just thinking about it made my teeth gnash.


    Holy hell, I don¡¯t think there isn¡¯t any lead character that isn¡¯t suffering from PTSD.


    I calmed myself, thinking that day was still far away, and I was doing everything in my power to not let any of that happen. Looking at her face, my resolution rose again; another reason for me to be strong.


    "You should be reaching the rank of a Magus, no?" I asked. "That itself does not lose out to many nobles." Despite the prestige of a single magus was far below any princedom, she should have the self-esteem to refuse anyone with her rank.


    "Healer," Yeriel corrected me.


    "Same thing," I said. After all, healing is a lot harder to learn than the arts that harm people. ¡°Or do you think healing is inferior to destructive arts?¡±


    Yeriel snorted at my smug face. Well, I did use her own words against her, so there was that.


    "Where are you going?" she asked as her eyes drifted off towards the book I was reading. It was something she rmended, while I already stashed my secret notebook.


    "Victoria," I said. "I have taken on a mission there and there¡¯s also some other business."


    And that other business takes priority over the mission, however, I could not abandon the mission, or else things would get a little unpleasant for my aunt. She had misused her position to give in to my interest. It would look bad if I abandon that without even trying.


    It was actually a simple mission, but not easy. I have to search for the tracks of a warlock and that needs a lot of groundwork for it toplete. Or else how could I take a leave of absence for a month so easily?


    "What a coincidence," Yeriel said. "I''m going there as well and that too on a mission, though mine is healing a couple of people."


    "I see," I said, nodding. Even though Yeriel learned a few spells about harming, she never takes missions that require her to fight on her own. She mostly works as a healer. "By the way, that gang, are they with you on the same mission?"


    Yeriel''s eyes drifted towards where the group of Althan and his underlings were sitting. She shook her head, saying, ¡°Does any one of them look like a healer type? Their number looks like going for a hunt or something."


    ¡°Then they were probably stalking you,¡± I added.


    ? Yeriel shook ufortably, but didn¡¯t say a word. While I got back to my reading. It would take us about six-hour or less to reach my destination, so I will find a lot of time to converse with her.


    The train left at the promised time, and I had to close the window to not get the chills from the stiff wind. The wind and the ce I will be going are even more awful than this. Just thinking about it makes me sick.


    . . .


    Victoria station was lit in the luminescence, as I came out from the train. Behind me was Yeriel, who had even another sweater on her, while I wore a thick cloak. It was not thatte in the night, but half of the stalls were already closed on ount of the cold.


    Victoria was on the other side of the Starlight mountain range, so there was nothing to stop the icy winding in from Frosnds, bringing its temperature to the low extremes. Just thinking about climbing the mountain that was full of the savage beast and chilling cold gave me a headache.


    Even though Victoria was under the Regime of the empire, the situation was a little different. It was a free nation not long ago, where house Wintermoon held all the positions of its monarchy, however, things changed in the beast surge sixteen years back, when Victoria couldn¡¯t just get by with its own resources. They had to lean on both directions of the empire as well as the Academy, whoever give them more security and less scrutiny.


    Well, on the brighter side, the empire didn¡¯t take control of Victoria as it did with Kazir. Mostly, because it would be inefficient since Victoria was covered with snow all year, and under the threat of the beast surge quite frequently in each fall. Besides, it was the homnd of a few powerful magus families such as Wintermoon, my maternal house Earther, Prinson, and also, Grand Magus Ranyan was born here, though that held nothing currently with the professor¡¯s terrible condition.


    "This is goodbye for now," Yeriel said and I nodded.


    The direction we would be moving was the opposite. She had to go move into the capital to the house of a highlord to cure the illness of his spouse and child while I was supposed to check in at the enforcers¡¯ office on the outskirts. It was quite close to the station.<novelnext></novelnext>


    My aunt told me to make time to visit my maternal home, which was in Victoria City, however, I am not entirely sure if I would go visit or not.


    "Thanks again for helping me," I said as I watched her go. In the journey, she helped me with her understanding of Thaumaturgy, and it helped me quite a bit.


    I hit the road as well, forgetting that Althan and his underling should be leaving now as well.


    I was nning to look for an inn nearby first, but felt a tuck in my shoulder.


    "The enforcer''s office is in the other direction," said a woman, tucking my shoulder. I looked to find it was a woman wearing a blue sweater and matching gloves, hat, and boots. The woman was in her early twenties, or in the mid-twenties, with white skin and clear eyes. Somehow I think I knew thisdy, and then the resemnces hit me together.


    "What? Why are you staring at me like that?" thedy said again. "You don''t recognise your aunt?"


    I was right. This really was Shailyn, the youngest of my aunt. She had pretty resemnces to Rosalyn, though Shailyn was not of the quiet type. Unlike my other aunt, Shailyn was not made for teaching, so she worked in Victoria as an arbiter magus among the academy, empire and the capital.


    "Of course, I recognised you," I blurted. "I was just surprised to see you here."


    "Of course I would be here. This is my city," Shailyn said, wrapping her arms around my shoulder, though she could not do that entirely as I was close to two metres tall, while she was tall for a woman, but didn¡¯t reach my neck. However, only a re from her made my spine bend. "Sister called me, saying you would arrive for a serious mission. She was worried about you, so she told me to take care of you."


    And you¡¯re already doing a fine job of it, letting me walk like a standing turtle.


    ¡°That¡¯s very much like aunt Rosalyn,¡± I said, ¡°but I wondered why she didn¡¯t tell me everything.¡± These actuallyplicated things. ''Looks like I have to deal with Shailyn first before leaving for the mountain.¡¯


    "Seeing you, I''m really surprised," Shailyn said. " Rosa did mention something, but your behaviour seemed to have changed a lot since thest time I saw you at the festival six months ago. You were awful back then."


    I smiled awkwardly, not knowing what Scar did to her back then. Probably yelled at her, or threw stuff. I was about to apologise for it when I heard her again.


    ¡°Well, you don''t look awful now, but I still have suspicions. If I saw anything like that again, I won''t be gentle like the other time. I will beat the crap out of you until you will feel sorry for yourself."


    "I believe you," I said, swallowing. "But you have nothing to worry."


    She escorted me to the enforcer''s office then and mentioned she had already prepared a room for me where she stays. Her home was in the city, which was still an hour or more from here on a carriage, so she stays in a rented-ce with a few of her colleagues. I could not find a proper reason to reject it, and it would be difficult to find a good one in this hour, so I went with her.


    "So, why did you take on such a difficult task for your level?"


    "Aunt, I know you graduated with a high score from the magic division," I said, smiling. "But you should not underestimate me."


    "Oh really," Shailyn snorted. "Looks like someone found their confidence back. I would like to see what you have tomorrow.


    "Nevertheless, you should not look down on your mission. Unlike you, who only learn and have never gone through the hardship of battle and war, the warlock we are against is someone vile. You don''t know how far they would fall to get their goal."


    I raised an eyebrow. "Aunt, can you give me more details about the task?" I asked. ¡°I only know its Investigation mission with a 3 star difficulty"


    "Let''s finish our business first," Shailyn said. "Just know this, we are not just after a single Warlock, but a group, who called themselves Dark Deer. Weird name, right? But apparently, they are the real deal. Sister only let you have this mission because I was in charge of this part of Victoria. She also mentioned you have something to do here and attacked her tender spot that she could not dismiss you. You¡¯re really cheeky with Rosa, but I would be damned if I will let you have your way that easily. I will watch over you every second."


    "Great," I said, gritting my teeth, though the name of the group, Dark Deer, did not go unnoticed in my ears. Looks like the lines always align.


    "By the way, how''s Ciara?" my aunt asked again. "That girl left even earlier than the time to attend the academy. Did you clear everything with her?"


    I smiled awkwardly again. It appeared the rtionship between the two families has not gone too sour as yet.


    _________________________

 Chapter 56 37: Dominion Of Seer (1)

    Q: What are themon features of every Dominion?


    A: All Dominions work in two ways. One is Against, and the other is With. Every Dominion can attack and defend against the same power.


    - - -


    I woke up earlier than usual, however, I had no intention of leaving the bed in the slightest. Partially because of the cold, and partially, I was devising a n. Well, a good meditation in the morning doesn¡¯t hurt. Thinking that, I sat cross-legged in meditative posture on the bed.


    After the journey yesterday, Shailyn brought me to her ce and introduced me to her friends as well as the people I will work with on this mission.


    We hadn¡¯t discussed much about the warlock situation as I came quitetest night, however, I did pick up a couple of things here and there. I thought I would work fast and leave within a couple of weeks, but knowing it''s Dark Deer, I think it would probably take more time.


    Dark Deer was not just some notorious group. They have infamy in many ces in the surroundings. In the book, it was Edward who dealt with this group on a mission, but that was a yearter when their notoriety reached another level. But this is good as well. The faster these groups get what they deserve, the better it will be for the story. However, it would take away a stepping stone from Elinor and possibly could undermine her growth.


    My only fear was that this case might dy my chance of getting hands on the power for another month. The dominion that I wanted was actually hidden in a sealed rift, and what''s more, that sealed rift only opens once in a month for a few hours when the five moons came in the same sky.


    The Night of Brilliance is tomorrow. I only have 36 hours to get there or I have to wait for another month. I checked the location on the map long ago and 36 hours was a lot of time to get there, considering I will be on my own the entire time. But what I need to focus was not all that time, but the exact time of the Night of Brilliance.


    Sadly, my aunt wouldn¡¯t let me be on my own. Though shecked Rosalyn¡¯s motherly nature, she was no less protective. With the fact that their elder sister was no more, she would do anything in her power to protect me.


    It would take me about six-hours to get to the ce, so I have to find the space in the evening tomorrow. Moreover, I heard the Warlock and his gangs were in the mountains, so probably finding the time wouldn¡¯t be that difficult.


    After the usual mediation for about an hour, I walked out of my room to find Shailyn was waiting for me with another person with her. A stern-looking woman with baster skin and pale blonde hair bound on her back. Shailyn introduced usst night. She was Noyar, Shailyn''s partner, and of the same age. She had battle gear of light leather jerkins on her body, with a sheathed arming sword on her waist. Probably on her way to morning training.


    Every mage needed a knight escort with them, and it was Noyar for Shailyn, though I knew they were more than just work partners. The youngdy knight was half a head taller than my aunt with just a pretty face, though she was far stricter and didn¡¯t talk too much. I reckon she and Lorne would have a great team together.


    "I was just about to wake you up," Shailyn said. "Let''s go to the yards. I would like to see the abilities of my arrogant nephew before filling you in on the mission."


    ¡°Sure,¡° I agreed withoutining. Even if Shailyn didn¡¯t consider it, I would¡¯ve done something to show my abilities to get their confidence and approval or else how could they give me free rein on the mission? With that thought, I ran to my room again to bring back the nail sword as well as the leather jerkins. I did not want to show the other borrowed gear for now, as it would only ask for unnecessary gazes.


    It took me about five minutes to prepare the armour, and then I rushed towards therge yards. The yard was cleaned off all the snow that had fallenst night, though the outside was covered in a thickyer of snow. Shailyn and Noyar were waiting for me there. Noticing my appearance, my aunt said, "So, who do you want to practice with?"


    I considered it for a second and said, "You Knight, aunt.¡±


    Noyar picked up her brows at my words, but she brought out her sword from the scabbard before taking a stance before me.


    I did the same and brought out the Punisher.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "That''s an odd sword you have there," Shailyn said, knitting her brows. "What happened to the other one, the one with the family crest?"


    "It''s a long story," I said, though it was not and Shailyn probably guessed it already. Luckily, my aunt knows better than to not embarrass me on that ount. "Don''t worry though, I''ll earn it back." After all, it''s a sword that only I could wield.


    ¡°Well, begin then.¡±


    The duel began and none of us went straight to attack, but we kept ourselves at hand''s distance while shing in low swift shes.


    Honestly, I think I have better or simr physical or spiritual attributespared to Noyar, but considering she could have one or more dominions and more experience, the duel could go anyway. If she was adept in over one dominion, then I have to say goodbye to my victory. Though two should be her limit and she could not possibly have the chance to earn over one in her short career.


    ¡°Noyar,¡± Shailyn called, ¡°are you looking down on my nephew? Don¡¯t hold back. Give him your best thrashing.¡±


    Luckily for me, I was already aware of what dominion she had, and already had a feasible n prepared to outss it. I sted a half-sh at her and she dodged with a swift, graceful movement, bending her waist. She even polished her movement skills, which I have not even learned properly yet, however, I could keep up with the residual instinct of the body. Barely.


    What Scar had learned in the past was known as the me stance. it was something that was created before the third epoch and possibly in the hands of the ancestor who held the power of purgatory. The stances were profoundly linked to the Emberheart blood in my vein as well as the Purgatory.


    Though it was considered sword stances, it was more about the usage of the sword with swift movements, manoeuvring the body differently to assault.


    ? As I was mostly on the defensive trying to tire her out to use her dominion, she came up with a full-sh of the water attribute. Her arming sword lurched in a smooth arch of heavy water as she sted it towards me.


    I narrowed my eyes and swiftly moved away from the path. Though water attributes caused a lot less damage, it was immensely harder for me to dodge as the arch of heavy des of water moved ording to my path. This separates a graduate with years of experience and any greenhorns in the academy.


    I quickly manoeuvred the second stance of the me stance, Knowing the me. Unlike the third stance Young me, which was far freer, and uses sweeping technique, Knowing the me is more strict. My nail sword lit up in the ever glory of purgatory as I cast the tip of the sword backwards, elbows bending.


    I rode over the des of water to deal a full-sh. The scarlet me rose higher than usual in the stance of Knowing the me, as it called for more spirit force as well. With the lung, I lurched the sword in a full arch swing, splitting off her full-sh.


    Water vanished in that instance, as almost a full arch of the devastating me rushed at Noyar. I knew these stances were more of an offensive skill than a defensive or movement, but seeing them with my own eyes impressed me further.


    Noyar''s blue eyes lit up, beaming with the mysterious power. She moved away swiftly as if already knew where the attack wasing and moving towards.


    Dominion of Seer. It was the most fraudulent cheat among the dominions against someone who didn¡¯t have the same kind. Dominion of Seer could peer through any flow of spiritual force or aura in the opponent''s body to perceive their next attack. Simply put, anyone with even marginal mastery could render all the skills of an opponent of a simr calibre useless.


    There was other usage of it as well. However, the most frightening was that someone with more expertise in this particr dominion could even see a few seconds into the future.


    ______________________________

 Chapter 57 37: Dominion Of Seer (2)

    There are two ways to win against someone with the dominion of seer if youck the same dominion. The first was to overwhelm the opponent with sheer force. Give no time to the opponent or force her so violently that she could not do a thing, even if she can see through all the attacks.


    Sadly, Icked that sheer amount of power. Despite Purgatory being a feasible option, I would not like to force everything out because it would leave me unconscious again. I reckon I will need to use purgatory soon, so I would like to save it for that. What¡¯s more, this was only a spar, and it''s not like I don¡¯t have any option.


    That left me with only one choice: waste time in the duel and wait for an opportunity. Even though this ability was outrageous and could peer into the next moves of the opponents, there were clear limitations in it.


    The first was it takes a lot of mental fortitude and focus to precisely use it. For a knight like Noyar, it wouldn¡¯t be more than a couple of minutes at once. It mostly depended on the perception attribute and supposedly, even people with grade-A perception could only use it for about five minutes at once.


    With Noyar''s ability, she could only use it for two minutes at best. I have to get that two minutes out of her.


    After dodging the full-sh that I used with Knowing the me stance, Noyar turned off the dominion. She knows how to use it efficiently. It will be harder than I thought.


    With the nail sword in my arm, I crept at her again. Fire and water charging one another, none ready to lose out to one another. On that note, I have to move around further to avoid her des of heavy water. Noyar really polished her moves in the years she had, while my fire attribute held the advantage in its power.


    Her sword move could reach out for at least five metres and she could bend in that direction by twisting her force and sword as well. Well, I could do that as well, but not so skilfully, and it''s pretty hard to bend the overwhelming mes of purgatory.


    We really wrecked the yard with fire and water, destroying the grass as well as the wall surrounding it. Though the mes and water created through spirit force dissolve quickly after they were not fuelled with spirit force, they had left more than just a few scars on the yards.


    As we battled, Noyar seemed to get frustrated at not finishing only a student with her expertise. She was efficient in using her Dominion and movements, but shecked that threatening force to end me without effort. Moreover, I nned out this spar before the match began.


    Frustrated, she turned on the dominion and her eyes lit up in oceanic blue again. Her eyes gazed at me and my sword before moving swiftly towards me, attempting a feint with a half-sh.


    What startled me was that I actually managed to see through it, but actually, it was moreplicated than that. She currently has the dominion turned on, so this was likely to be a trap. So, I could see through her feint only because she wanted me to.


    Why would someone of her calibre show her feint before making her move? She was likely trying to trap me.


    I was right; it was a trap, however, I was prepared for her trap and had a trap of my own. I went directly to her faint and my sword to move it towards her right thigh. She saw through it easily, and that was what I actually wanted. Her half-sh changed to a full-sh as des of water bolted at me.


    At that very moment, I did something insane. Well, I was preparing for it, yet at the spar of moment, I couldn¡¯t help but feel a jolt of excitement.


    I dropped every bit of spirit force out of my sword, as well as the armament coating. However, that was not enough. Even if I didn¡¯t revolve spiritual energy, Dominion of Seer could see through the residual aura. That¡¯s where came the ring I borrowed from Rosalyn.


    At the very spar of moment, I triggered the runes in the ring as it hid all the residual aura surrounding my body. And then I feinted my sword, ignoring her open thigh to dodge the full-shshing my way. Next My elbows bend together, as I hid the sword, pointing upwards.


    There was no spiritual force on the on the attack, nor any residual aura. How could you read my moves? This n was stupid, but it''s the only way for a non-seer user like me to keep my attack hidden from her.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Completing the third stance, Young me, I lurched at her, sweeping the sword at a frightening speed. Her eyes yelped in surprise as I feinted again, the sweep from her chest to lower body. Her sword missed mine, as Punisher mmed her lower body, shattering the armament coating like clear ss.


    I didn¡¯t hold back my physical strength, as I did not have the armament of the spirit force. However, I never imagined my attack would shatter her defence of the lower body so easily.


    Noyar fell to the ground with startled eyes, however, it was not my win here. A surge of heavy water blew under my foot, twisted and coiled around my foot like a snake to jerk with a sudden pull.


    Next, I joined Noyar on the ground. I guessed I should¡¯ve expected something like this from a seasoned Knight.


    ¡°This should be it for now." Shailyn pped her palms to get our attention as we both stared at each other, dumfounded. ¡°Let''s escape quickly, or we¡¯ll be yelled at by the Gardener."


    Saying that she actually ran off on her own, leaving her nephew and partner on the ground. I stood up immediately as well and with an exchange of nces with Noyar, we both took off as well, leaving a wreck of a yard with scarred ster on the walls.


    "I did not expect you to do something so . . .'''' Noyar paused to find the right word.


    "Insane?" I asked.


    What I did was actually a little crazy, but it certainly was effective. Without the knowledge from the book, something like this would nevere to my mind. The Dominion of Seer peers into the flow of spirit force, so the only way to counter it for me was this little insane n.


    That¡¯s the other way to battle against someone with the dominion of seer. Drop your spirit armament so that you can hide your moves.


    However, another person with more expertise will still see-through, it was not the same with Noyar. After all, she was a young Knight, and it may not even be that long before she got hold of the dominion.


    This spar actually excited me about the power of Dominion. I couldn¡¯t wait to get my hands on the dominion that I was looking for. That power was not as outrageous as the dominion of Seer, however, nobody knows how to fight it yet.


    My little showcase of craziness seemed to earn a little respect from Noyar, while my aunt yelled at me for trying something like that. She only stopped when Noyar admitted it was an effective n if someone was confident in their skills.


    Looks like I would be saved from my aunt''s babysitting, though I''m sure she won''t leave me on my own entirely.


    ________________


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 Chapter 58 38: Dark Deer

    Q: Why did the leader of Dark Deer try to enthral Edward?


    A: The leader of the cult wanted to augment her dark arts, and there couldn''t be any better resource to do that than pure spiritual energy.


    - - -


    "Is this really the leader of Dark Deer?" I asked, looking at the sketch on the desk.


    The sweet fragrant scent of the warm tea drifted off to my nose, but even with my addiction to tea, my entire focus was on the picture. This doesn¡¯t make sense. What in the world? I mused, knitting my brows.


    Shailyn nodded, taking the sketch. "Rojar Iker, a warlock with a bounty of over 5000 dynes," she announced. "He had broken threews of magic, from enving through mind magic, necromancy, to experimenting on innocents. He had 37 cases in his name and many unknown that we did not have records off."


    I nodded, though my mind drifted off to other thoughts. The Dark Deer leader that appeared one year from here was actually someone else. It was actually a female who tried to enthral Edward, but in the end, got herself killed. Though the damage she did to Edward and others was devastating enough.


    However, a year before that incident, the leader of such an infamous cult was someone else. I wondered what had happened before that, or to be exact, what would happen. The book did not exin the origin of the Dark Deer much, nor did it mention the identity of the female leader. Surely something must have happened in between the times, and possibly will happen in the next few days.


    ¡°Rojar Iker was like a rabid dog a couple of years back,¡± Shailyn quoted from the report. ¡°Then he went missing, only to reappear a few months back on his madness of experimenting on innocents again. However, this time he¡¯s not alone. He has a full crew with him this time around.¡±


    Considering the knowledge I got from the novel, I understood some of their goals, but I stayed silent for my aunt and others to introduce them to me first.


    Just then, the door of the room creaked open and came out a fair-skinned, tall man in his prime.


    ¡°You¡¯rete, William,¡± Shailyn said, giving the neer a stern look.


    ¡°Well, I was on time, however, Mrs Sonina wouldn¡¯t shut up about the yards getting destroyed,¡± William, the neer, replied with a smirk. ¡°And how can I, her kind-hearted tenant, ignore it? I took the liberty fix as much as I could, however . . .¡± William gave us three t looks. ¡°The few individuals that demolished the yards did have some skill and experience in destroying gardens. Lady Shailyn, you wouldn¡¯t have an insight into it, would you?¡±


    Shailyn¡¯s stern look broke into an ufortableugh as she gestured for William to take his seat.


    That was William, someone I had no recollection of from the book. Supposedly, he was a lesser talent, and became a sorcerer in his mid-twenties. I met himst night and during our short encounter; he disclosed his envy of my position more than once. There was no shortage ofints from him about his poor status, either; like he could¡¯ve been a magus already if his family had even a hundredth of my family¡¯s wealth.


    However, I did hear a good word or two from Shailyn about him. Other than his relentlessints about being poor, he¡¯s a pleasantpany to have.


    Noyar cleared her throat to get everyone¡¯s attention. "Other than the warlock, there are two uwful warders with him that do not lose out to a knight." She introduced a couple more sketches. ¡°We¡¯re not sure if they possess any dominion, but the way dominions are regted, it was unlikely they held one. There might be even a few more small fries with them. We cannot look down on them as a whole."


    I nodded. Clearly, I knew the details about the crew. I knew what type of power they have as well as the number of people, but considering what I knew was something of the future, it might not even be useful for this situation. The crew actually has more people than the picture shown here. One year is a lot of time, after all, many things could go wrong.


    Thisplicates my original mission altogether. I have to deal with a lot of crap before I can go on with my task, considering the objective of the Dark Deer was the same as I thought.


    "So what are the objectives of this Dark Deer?" William asked. "And what''s up with the awful naming sense?"


    I have to agree with William on this. Even though Dark Deer has some connection with the group, this name was horrible. It does have a spooky vibe, but sounded far weirder in my ears. I guess I have to me the author for his poor naming sense.


    "We are not sure about the name," Noyar said, sipping on her aromatic tea. "As for the objective of the group, we only know they were looking for something in the mountains. A few warders appointed there have noticed their presence, and they even killed a couple of them."


    "In the mountains, in such cold weather," William repeated, pondering hard. In the end, he only sighed, shivering. "The only thing I cane up with is that they are dumb. A high blizzard will hit tonight or tomorrow. In such weather, even using spirit force will be a challenge. What could they be searching in the mountains?"


    Noyar red at the young man, though she could not deny much of what he said. The blizzard on the starlight mountain range was so devastating that it even limits the usage of spirit force, not to mention the awful weather. People actually die there if they do not find a suitable shade.


    "They are surely onto something," Shailyn said, knitting her brows at the sketch of the warlock. "Rojar Iker was more powerful than a regr adept mage with all his dark arts into y. Could he use some dark art to tap into the force of the blizzard?"<novelnext></novelnext>


    Noyar and William shuddered at that thought. While I denied it outright.


    "No, that was not possible, he will die even attempting it," Shailyn denied her hypothesis, too. "Even a grand magus cannot do that without dying."


    To tap into the natural force, you need to have a strong anchor, which in most cases the magus himself. Rojar Iker may be a master at dark arts, but he won¡¯t be that suicidal. Wait, there was no Rojar Iker in the future, maybe? I shook my head, eliminating that thought. He would die even before inflicting anything on Victory or anywhere, there was no way he could try something this stupid.


    I considered the situations for a moment and mused on how to open my mouth about the knowledge I was imparted with.


    "Aunt," I called, as it would be the perfect situation to let out something I knew. "Do you know the legend of the Winterheart Reindeer?"


    Shailyn arched her eyebrows, and it was not only her, even her partner had a frown on her brows. While William looked oblivious. Well, I could not me him; mostly, people of the State of Victoria know about it. While our sorcerer is from Endus.


    "Are you talking about the blessing of the Winterheart Reindeer?" Noyar asked. "Like only a fateful one gets the blessing of the reindeer after he or she went through a lot of hardship in the stormy blizzard to get a look at the Winterheart Reindeer? That''s what on the children''s ybook to let them teach that hardship never fails. Are you hypothesising with just a tale?"


    William snickered out as if he had heard a good joke after a long time. Even if he didn¡¯t let out, he certainly believes I¡¯m the same foppish prince of the rumours.


    My aunt dismissed hisughter by showing an arm before looking at me. "You can continue."


    "Though the blessing of the Winterheart Reindeer might be false," I started slowly, sipping into the hot aromatic tea.


    I did not need to mention again how much I like the drinks and foods of this world, but now I sipped in just to look more causal. Also, the blessing of Winterheart Reindeer is not false, however, I was not sure even my aunt would believe me if I hypothesised on a children¡¯s book tale. That¡¯s why I needed to go in a different direction.


    "What if the warlock was hunting for the reindeer in an attempt to strengthen his dark arts? Winterheart Reindeer''s blessing might just be a children''s tale, but what if the reindeer can be used to catalyse some dark art?"


    Shailyn said nothing, but her brows were knitted together.


    "Are you seriously considering it?" Noyar asked her hesitantly. She was not scorning my hypothesis, but just asking, as she had little knowledge in this direction. "Would it really be possible?"


    "Faith has power," I answered in ce of my aunt. ¡°I¡¯m not particrly a religious person. Well, if I¡¯ve to be truthful, I¡¯m detached from theology, however, I do believe in Faith. A practitioner like us should know this, even if the subject is the stupidest thing in the world, but if enough people have faith in it, it can turn into reality."


    "Exactly," Shailyn approved. "This is what I feared the most. Do you know what is said in the children''s book? The blessed person became a magus instantly. Though it was outrageous, there was a possibility that it gave the potential to a person to be a magus or strengthen his talent."


    "And if one uses the reindeer to channel dark art, it would surely be far more devastating," Noyar concluded.


    "Yes," Shailyn nodded. "Though Rojar Iker is possibly trying to get more potential in his dark arts. Either way, it will be devastating eventually.


    "William, send someone to the state library as well as what is left of the magic archive. I want everything rted to Winterheart Reindeer and any possibilities it can be used in dark arts."


    "Yes,¡° William croaked, standing upright immediately. ¡°I will do it right away."


    "Make it quick. We have little time. We will have to leave for the mountains soon," Shailyn said and stood up as well. "I need to make a call to the academy to see if they have any information on this."


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 Chapter 59 39: The Changing World

    Q: What is the endlessness of Dominions?


    ? A: A dominion cannot be destroyed or reduced. It can only be passed on to the source, or to another individual.


    - - -


    Thick, sullen clouds were swirlingzily in the sky as the mid-sun peeked through it. Swift, stiff gusts of wind were blowing from the west, and unfortunately, we¡¯re on the other side of the starlight mountain range. There was no natural blockage of the icy wind from Frosnds for the people of Victoria. It was even more awful for me and my colleagues who are currently approaching the mountains.


    Other than the four of us, there were a dozen more warders and lesser spirit practitioners as well as two more knights on the duty. We have travelled to the foot with carriages, but now we have to move on foot before reaching the diverging point.


    The usual way to the mountain range was already sealed, and no normal civilian could enter and all those people who had entered before were ordered to leave.


    Noyar was talking to the people who were in charge of this area to know the current situation. While I was running my spirit energy frequently throughout the journey to drive out the cold. This was really unbearable for a normal person; fortunately, I was not.


    My aunt, who was the leader of this mission, divided the people into three groups to search the mountains for clues. She and Noyar were in charge of an entire region towards the Frosnds, while the two knights were on another side with a few warders and lesser talents. William, the young sorcerer, was in my group with a couple more warders. We¡¯re ounted for as a rtively remote ce in the middle.


    Ignoring me, my team should be the weakest of the three, the reason being I chose the middle of both areas where the others will be searching. Moreover, there was a camp of warders nearby. My aunt agreed immediately, thinking about my safety when I said I would take that direction with my misleading lie of searching for the herb I was looking for.


    I chose this direction not because I was fearful of the Dark Deer, but because in that very area was the sealed rift hidden where I had to venture to get the dominion; though that was about 30 hours away. I only wished for the appearance of the Dark Deer and the exact time to not converge.


    I walked towards my aunt, who was still reading through what she got about the Winterheart Reindeer from the archive. Honestly, I was not sure how things would work, like how the dark sorcerer would use the dark art to get the power from the reindeer. The book did not mention all the things. As far as I knew, it was something to do with the antlers of Winterheart Reindeer.


    There should be some dark arts to transfer the spiritual force with the help of the reindeer''s antlers. In the book, Edward actually did not let the leader of the Dark Deer have her way with the reindeer, and got the blessing in the process. However, it was a year earlier, and that female ultist was unlikely to exist.


    My pondering halted suddenly with a question. If we stop the Dark Deer now, then doesn''t that mean we will take away some potential from Elinor? The blessing was no joke. Edward got a boast in his strength to evenpete against a seasoned Magus in his second year at the academy.


    If it was some other person, even the other female leads or even Gareth Sholinar, I would not mind, because they were not as important to the story as Elinor. Without Elinor and her two unique abilities, ending the book would turn ten times more difficult.


    "What?" my aunt asked me, picking her head from the notes.


    I was actually there for a few seconds without opening my mouth, lost in my thoughts. "I''m in a pickle," I muttered. "Aunt, tell me what do I do if I see a few starving people, but the money I have with me is to treat someone special?"


    "What?" Shailyn asked, clearly not understanding the example I gave. The example was awful, and I knew it, but in that instant, it was all that I coulde up with.


    "Forget it," I said, muttering. "I will give food to the starving people first and try to earn more money for the treatment."


    "Starving? Treatment? What are you saying?" Shailyn asked, knitting her brows. "Did the cold get on your nerves?"


    "Nothing," I said and heard a familiar voice calling my name.


    "Oscar," a maiden with a white sweater on and a muffler on her neck shouted amongst a few warders, blocking her way. It was none other than Yeriel, and moreover, there were a few more people with her, it seemed.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "Do you know her?" Shailyn asked, raising an eyebrow.


    "Yes," I asked and led towards Yeriel. I wondered why she was here. She was supposed to be on her way back after healing her patients.


    As I looked at the other people with her, I kind of understood why she was here. The other person with her was actually in a Knight''s garb with a few warders and a sickdy with him, who has not stopped shuddering, even though she was covered by a fewyers of nket. Her face was pale and dry, as if she had not had water for a week.


    "Lord Kirien," Shailyn said,ing towards them. She saw the sickdy beside and understood why they were here. "May Ishar bless your spirit and your wife."


    "Lady Earther." Lord Kirien''s expression became a little better. "We have a situation. . . ."


    It turned out the person Yeriel came to heal was Lord Kirien''s wife and child. Both of them had caught the horrifying¡ªWinter''s decay¡ªa disease that mostly inflicts on the people of Victoria during winter or the adventures that leads expedition on Frosnds. Winter¡¯s Decay was fairly rare in normal times¡ªthis could only mean one thing: The world was changing fast.


    It was another cold reckoning for me. I have only two years or less, and in that time, the world would change even further. People with more potential had been born in this generation to shoulder the approaching cmity. Or how else would there be four people with the highest grade spirit affinity in the same year? Evidently, it was a sign of the approaching cmity.


    More powerful people who were closer to the realm alreadyprehend something of the approaching doom, or why else did the old dean leave with his trusted people to find something unreal? Why else was the emperor so rampant about uniting the maind? They all guessed something about the approaching doom.


    Coming back to the topic, this disease, Winter''s decay starts with a simple fever and chills, and gradually slows down the heart and lungs. Within a week or two, it could already disfunction most of the inner organs of the sick person. Moreover, a spirit practitioner was not safe from this disease, either. It could fall to anyone, however, for spiritual practitioners, it was slow but still mortal. If they do not take proper medication, their spirit force will freeze within the body, making it difficult to even lift a finger.


    With the appearance of Winter''s Decay, the appearance of the Winterheart Reindeer was not far away. They are all part of the pattern. I unconsciously looked towards Yeriel.


    In fact, Yeriel healed the child with the medication she had and a few other herbs that they bought. Unfortunately, there was only enough medication for one person. The wife of Lord Kirien had little time left, as she was inflicted first. She could pass away tonight without the proper medication.


    Lord Kirien failed to get hold of the herbs even using all his resources and connections. All the herbs and ingredients mostlye from the mountains, however, the mountain was sealed with some warlock running rampant there. In the end, he could only choose to take the healer and his sick wife with him to the mountain in search of the herbs.


    Now here they were, arguing with the warders and my aunt to let them in.


    "Lord Kirien, I don''t think you understand the current situation," Shailyn said. "This warlock is far more dangerous than we know, and if he seeds in his attempt, I don''t know how many of us could walk out of here. Just wait here at the foot of the mountain. We will send someone if we find the herbs you need."


    "That''s another reason for me to go there," the knight at the end of his prime said. "No offence, but your men will mostly be carrying out their jobs, and I could not leave at that. Moreover, if I go with you, it is another Knight in your ranks."


    Shailyn furrowed her brows and looked at the people with Lord Kirien. Her gaze stopped at Yeriel beforeing back to the Knight. "Can you decide for your men and the healer? Are they ready to go in when a dangerous Warlock is on the site?"


    Lord Kirien became silent and only looked at the healer. Even if all of his men go back, he would not mind, but he cannot cure his wife without the help of the healer.


    I shook my head, knowing exactly what Yeriel would say, and she didn¡¯t disappoint my expectation, nor of Lord Kiriens¡¯.


    "I am not leaving," Yeriel said, noticing the gazes on her. "A healer must always carry out her duty, no matter how dangerous the situation gets.¡±

 Chapter 60 40: Search (1)

    Q: What is Dominion domination?


    A: Among the simr kinds of dominion, if an individual gains higher mastery in that dominion, he/she can easily dominate others with lower mastery.


    - - -


    I felt some relief reaching the warders'' camp. Finding it was not that difficult with the help of the warders with us. There was not much light present with the dense trees as well as the swirling clouds blocking the sun. Perhaps the blizzard was not far away.


    On that note, there were far more people with me than I had assumed there would be. The other two teams that included my aunts and the two knights had diverged a couple of hours ago. Ignoring Yeriel, who I knew a little better, there was Lord Kirien with his wife with us as well, whose only goal was to cure his wife. Well, he did bring along a team of guards, there was that.


    Perhaps he would be a pleasant addition to our ranks if only he seeded in finding the herbs needed to cure the illness.


    The abode in the snow-fillednd was not big but two-storeyed. I eliminated the thought of having one room all by myself the moment Iid my eyes on the abode.


    Like I had thought, William and I got a small room on the first floor with two cramped beds side by side. There was no firece in the room, but fortunately, it had a working heater that ran even with an inconsiderable amount of diluted spirit fuel. Even with that, I brought out a small jar out of my baggage that contained honey from the hunter bee. Sliding open the cap, I ignored the deep sweet odour to gulp down quite a quantity of it.


    The overly sweet honey found its way down my throat to my stomach, and with a little swirl of the spirit force, I found it a lot warmer. Though I have a fire attributed spirit force, I need to take care of my body. This was going to be a fine piece of the story, and I need to be prepared for everything.


    "What is that?" William asked, eyes glued to the little container, nose sniffing the deep odour.


    "Honey,¡° I said, ¡°it can keep the body warm for some time. Do you want some?"


    William thought, then nodded, considering a noble like me would drink nothing cheap.


    I tossed him the small jar. "Just don''t drink everything."


    Even though the honey of Hunter bees could be useful in many areas, too much of its consumption might give drunkenness to even a spiritual practitioner with hallucinations and other side effects. Well, as a sorcerer, Wim should know that, but it¡¯s better to warn the fellow. Then I unbuckled the baggage from my back and crouched down to slide it under the bed, while keeping the other one with me. There were a few useful things in there, including the False-Ward, which would surely ask for many stares.


    "This is good stuff," the sorcerer said. ¡°I knew rich folks like you won¡¯t drink anything cheap. Even my spirit energy felt aggravated drinking this. This is how rich folk should be.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± I asked, turning my head. ¡°Rich and generous?¡±


    ¡°Exactly,¡± the sorcererughed, giving back the small container.


    I left the small jar in my pocket and got back to checking my stuff. I need to wear the prototype False-ward under my cloak before venturing out there. Even though the gear had terrible side effects with heating that I only heard and read, I still desired it badly.


    Ruthalynian crafters created this type of gear, keeping in mind, they would fight against the knights of the empire in the air. Though this prototype has a terrible problem with heating, it was still a fine asset. I reckoned I could fly around using it for about five minutes or so, before my body would turn into a hotdog sausage.


    As I was pondering on checking out the gear, I heard a little knock on the door.


    "Oscar," Yeriel''s voice came from outside the door.


    William beat me to open the door and the figure of Yeriel in a thick white sweater came into our vision.


    She peeked through the door and William to find me. "We are going to search for herbs. I was wondering if you would like toe?"<novelnext></novelnext>


    I thought for a second and said, "Sure, I wille. Just give me five minutes to prepare." Even if she did not ask, I still would have ventured outside in the cold. I need to do some searching on my own.


    "Lady Yeriel, will you mind if Ie along?" William said before Yeriel could return.


    "Sure," Yeriel said without minding. To her, the more people, the better it would be for her to find the herbs and material she would need to heal the sick. Moreover, William was her country folk, though the name sounded foreign. "You folks, prepare. I will wait with the others."


    Yeriel left, but William kept on staring at her disappearing figure.


    I could not help but smile. Man, she''s out of your league. Yeriel has a pleasant personality and is gentle in nature, not to mention her looks and attractiveness; a lot of the characters had a crush on her, that got her into a lot of trouble in few asions. Our mutual friend, Althan, was one such example.


    I wondered what that dude was doing. Well, I don¡¯t feel bad behaving him like that on the few asions we met, however, that fellow¡¯s family held the prominent position inmerce all over the empire. Sooner orter, I would need to have some dealings with them. Well, let¡¯s worry about itter, after I get what I need from here.


    "I have to change. Mind you, give me some space," I said to William, who still had his head stuck out of the door.


    "Sure," the sorcerer said, as he had nothing more to prepare. Getting his medium-sized bag on his back, he walked off in the direction Yeriel left.


    I closed the door and stripped off the cloak and all the leather jerkins I was wearing. Even with the heater running, I felt some chills in the cold, and it hadn¡¯t even gone all bad yet.


    With only the shorts and a simple vest in my body, I brought out the Ruthalynian prototype False-ward out of the bag. It was actually twice thicker than any ancient armament, however it weighed the same or less. All the weight it got was usually for the few vacuum-like stream releasers put in the suit. Six on the two legs¡ªfoot, knees and two just above the hips. Then there were four more on the elbows and back of the shoulders, as well as two bigger ones on both sides of the spine.


    Manipting all of this steam releaser, a knight could float in the air as well as move around. Though it was not as good as using the dominion of gravity to float around, it was still something of a wonder. Moreover, it came with its own perks as well. It actually did not run on the wearer''s own spirit force, but you needed a separate fuel channel for it, which is, of course, needed spirit stones to fuel in it. Meaning, it would relieve me from exhausting my spirit energy just to drift around.


    I pulled the zip from the front and back before running a little spirit force to eliminate any air from within. I have already borrowed 10 grams of spirit stones with a purity level over 30% from Dakota, though I reckon I will not need to use it all here.


    As for the price of the 10 grams of the spirit stones, it costs about a few hundred dynes, depending on the dealer, however, you can only get your hands on the stones with lesser purity. I was relieved that Dakota had it with her, or else I might have to bother my aunt again.


    "Let''s give it a try," I muttered and triggered the mechanics of the suit slowly, igniting a negligible amount of my spirit force to the core of the suit.


    A little amount of stream was released from all the dozen releasers, but it was far from carrying my weight. By manipting a few strands of my spirit force into the releaser on my back as well as on the legs, I increased the release of the steam.


    White gas was released with little of a noise as I floated a couple of feet in the air to move forward. The suit started to heat up as well, though it was marginal level with the weather I was in.


    I would need to practise with it for a few minutes to adapt to it and also I needed to check out my limit with these things. Dakota was sure I would only endure about five minutes, however, I¡¯m not sure how much she knows about my resilience towards the fire attribute.


    "Oscar," Yeriel''s voice called with the knocking. "Are you not done yet? We are about to leave."


    "In a minute," I said and dropped onto the floor. I wore the thick cloak above the gear, hiding most of its features. The helm of the suit was already broken, so I didn¡¯t need to worry about carrying it, though I wouldn¡¯t mind carrying one.


    For tonight, I have two primary goals: Giving a visit to the sealed rift and getting used to the suit. I have to keep an eye open for any supernatural activities as well.


    __________________________

 Chapter 61 40: Search (2)

    The mountain turned dark, yet we have not found all the ingredients that Yeriel would need to concoct the medication.


    Three moons peeking through the swirling clouds as I roamed around holding a luminescentmp in the swift icy wind. We had been searching for about four hours now and found many herbs. Many of them are expensive, however, most of them are for something else. Though there were useful herbs, we still needed to find a key ingredient before Yeriel could brew the medicine.


    More than half a dozen men were searching in this awful weather. Surely something useful wille up. The only question was, can Lord Kirien''s wife hold on for that long?


    I crept towards Yeriel, who was working through the ice to find anything useful. She should be the most tired person here. I, William and a few others already ate her brain to tell her to rest, however, a healer needs to continue her duty until the patient is safe. That''s what she quoted every time to everyone.


    I swore that something like this would kill her. Well, actually, it did. Shaking my head, I called, "Yeriel.¡±


    "By the name of Ishar," the Endus maiden said, not looking back. "If you tell me to get some rest now, I will fire you with the coldest water I can conjure."


    Even though this girl was shuddering in the cold, she kept on with the search.


    "No, I already gave up on that," I said, bringing out the small container of honey. "I just wanted to give you this."


    Yeriel didn¡¯t look back, as if didn¡¯t hear my voice. I had to poke her in the cap she wore to get her attention.


    "Take it. If you catch a cold, there will not be any healer to heal."


    Yeriel sighed as hot air drifted off from the gaps in her muffler. "Thank you," she said and took the honey. She only opened the head of the container and smelt it, and she knew this was something extraordinary. "This is Hunter Bee''s honey?"


    I nodded. "Don''t think too much, just take it. You can give me some dynes like the other time if you like," I said, remembering how she paid back for the food I brought her the very first day of my transmigration. " Or consider it a bribe for tutoring me. Just take care of yourself."


    "I hate you," Yeriel muttered and gulped a few drops of the honey. Her white cheeks, which were paled in the cold, turned a little red after she swirled her spirit energy. "You always poke me at my helplessness."


    "Then stop being helpless," I said.


    Surely, if she works herself better with her ability, she would be far better off than she is currently. This was more of a fault of the mindset she was brought up with. Indeed, she had to look at every step as not to offend any nobles. She was one girl long away from home. She might be fine with it with the identity of the honour student in the most prestigious academy, but what about her family?


    Moreover, the people of Endus are mostly earthly and conservative. They do care about money and everything else, but they are far more passivepared to Mahenarians. If Yeriel put her ability to good use in all directions¡ªshe was capable of¡ªshe would be in a far better state economically than she currently is.


    Though the academy sucks money equally from everyone to give them the vibe that the students owe nothing to the academy, the academy still gives them an opportunity to earn the money back through a lot of sources from part-time jobs to the tasks in the mission hall.


    Yeriel went back to her search, giving me a curt re. While I waited for anyone responsible toe, so that I could give Yeriel''s safety to him, before I went down with my business.


    "That''s a Goinkar tree," Yeriel said abruptly before moving first towards a towering tree. "It''s juice can be used in a lot of diseases."


    She almost fell off on her quick movement, but luckily, I was there to catch her arms before she could fall off. "It''s just a tree. It won''t run away."


    Yeriel thanked me and got there, this time more carefully. She brought out a small ss container from her handbag, and I helped her create a slight cut on the tree with a dagger.


    "Have you got any news from Yasmine?" Yeriel asked, collecting the green liquid into the container.


    "Yes," I said, looking at the juice pouring in drips. "She''s in the border, Haktshin Canyon, in the camp of Highprince Gareth Sholinar. Doing fine, I guess, but busy as hell."


    I actually got calls from her a couple of times. Even thoughmunication in the world could not bepared to earth, it''s still quite good for people with money and connection. There are somemunication devices in the academy that could transfer voice, though it would cost a lot of money to use it. She called there twice in thest two weeks and we talked for a few minutes.


    We both are equally busy with our stuff and using the devices does note open, so we only promised to talk once a week for a few minutes, though I always forget to tell her what I have in my mind. Evidently, I turn a little slow whenever I am with her.


    "She''s been working hard as amon soldier for a few weeks now," I said. "She told me if everything works well, she will give me some surprises within the next month." Though I knew what the surprise would be and did not wish her to give it to me.


    But wishes disappointed one almost all the time. She would surely get the position of the escort Knight of the princess if nothing goes wrong.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "Five months," I muttered as the time was cutting down. I unconsciously looked east from there, in the direction where the sealed rift should be.


    "Five months?" Yeriel asked, finished collecting the juice.


    "Nothing," I said and felt some disturbance iing. Perhaps someone from their team wasing, however, my right arm got to the hilt of the nail sword, and my spirit force stimted with a swirl as well.


    "Lady Yeriel, are you there?" the voice of Lord Kirien came loudly through the icy wind; escorting him was William. "I found what you need. I have the Ice-blood asparagus."


    Yeriel stood up immediately, and we saw a broad figured silhouetteing towards them, while a shorter one followed. I rxed.


    "Finally," Yeriel said, and we walked towards Lord Kirien.


    "Is that what you need?" the middle-aged Knight bought out a crystal red ss-like straw nt and showed it to her. Yeriel identified it carefully for a couple of seconds and nodded. "With this, we have everything.¡±


    ¡°I mentioned this already to Sir Kirien a dozen of times,¡° William cut in, smiling, ¡°but he won¡¯t believe me, spouting the healer would know best.¡±


    Lord Kirien¡¯s mood was a lot better getting the final ingredient, however, the haste was still there. ¡°Let¡¯s go back to the camp then.¡±


    Yeriel was about to agree, and I was about to decline when William beat us to it, nudging me on the shoulder.


    "Do you have the honey with you?¡± he asked. ¡°I¡¯m freezing up in this weather, and it looks like the blizzard would hit soon.¡±


    "You guys should leave first,¡± I told Yeriel first, bringing out the small ss container. Tossing it to William, I continued, ¡°I still have some business left here. Also, I will tell the others if I see them on the path that there''s no need to search more."


    Yeriel looked back at me and frowned. She remembered I was here to do a more serious mission than her job. ¡°Be Careful.¡±


    ¡°Thanks,¡± William said, taking the honey in moderation this time around. ¡°Lady Yeriel, Sir Kirien, you two should have this.¡±


    ¡°Thanks,¡° Yeriel declined politely, ¡°Oscar offered me just a few moments ago.¡±


    ¡°He did.¡± William gave me a look to return to the elderly knight. ¡°Sir, you should have it, it''s magical. Don¡¯t worry, Prince Oscar is rich and generous.¡±


    I coughed out at thatment. ¡®Isn¡¯t this how salesmen swindle money from me?'' Well, I do have a big container full of honey at the academy, so there¡¯s nothing to worry about.


    ¡°Lord Kirien, you should have it,¡± I said, nodding. ¡°The weather takes pity on nobody.¡± He should know that better than anyone else.


    ? ¡°Thanks, I guess,¡± Lord Kirien said, giving me a deep stare before taking the container from William.


    ¡°Be careful, Oscar,¡± Yeriel reminded me again, cupping her palms in a praying manner. ¡°Ishar is with you.¡±


    ¡°Thanks,¡± I said, not poking at her faith, as Yeriel said everything of good will. ¡°I¡¯ll take me a couple of hours or more. Don¡¯t worry about me.¡±


    Lord Kirien gave me back the containers as we parted. The three figures left quickly as I watched them go. Then my eyes went eastwards, and I activated the suit.


    Now it''s time to fly.


    - - -


    Hey, guys the book will go under paywall from tomorrow. I''ll write down a short note about it in the next chapter.

 Chapter 62 41: A Dreamer

    Q: Who''s behind the concept of Sleepless?


    A: 01010011 01100001 01101001 01100100 01100101 01110010 00100000 01001000 01100001 01101100 01101100 01100001 01101110


    - - -


    I stopped the urge to shout at the top of my lungs, flying side by side with tall trees. My leg almost hit the stem of a tree, but with a quick manoeuvre I managed to kick at the stem, safely escaping from another collision against the trees, however, the snow flung from the tree, and fell on my body in arge quantity. I did not mind that, as the suit was hotter than I could handle.


    And it needed to be mentioned that the urge to shout at the top of my lungs was out of fear, but excitement. I felt nothing like this before. Even though I collided with trees a few times in the dark and got hurt badly with the cold, I still was not done with flying.


    10 grams of spirit stone will keep me flying for about an hour like this, where I will not elerate much. If I wanted to use it properly with the best speed it could go, I would only get about 15 minutes of this stone. I am really burning money, but at least I''m enjoying it.


    I took five turns in two or three minutes and managed to get a better hold of the suit, though I still needed more training if I wanted to battle in the air wearing this. Luckily, there should not be much of a need for that on these asions.


    ording to my knowledge, there was no one in the Dark Deer who has the dominion of gravity or this type of suit from Ruthalyn, but I can''t be sure. That is a year after this when a lot of stuff will change. That was why I was still training in those fast motions.


    This was actually not hard for me, though I read in the books very few of the Ruthlynian soldiers could manage it this early. Perhaps Scars'' instinct was the reason. All I had to do was trigger the steam releaser with the strands of spirit force while manoeuvring the part of the body.


    Professor Club is a genius, though I can''t give all the credits to him for making this.


    I got all the capacities in two tries. The vacuums on the legs and arms were most important, while the bigger ones on the back, mostly used for linear movement. Motioning and manipting the arms and legs are necessary to change direction.


    However, this suit was far from being perfect, other than the awful side effect of heating up, it''s a little slow on the startup, too. I got to trigger a couple of seconds before the steam would be released. Considering the movements in the battle, that much time was a lot. Moreover, it could not lift me up more than fifty metres above the ground, which is about a lot lesspared to the newer version of the suits.


    The swift wind was blowing, far colder and heavier than before. I peeked at the twinkling moons over the clouds. It was still a couple of hours away from midnight, so I better check out the sealed rift now.


    With that thought, my body swiftly moved towards the middle ground in the east. It was between the middle of two mountains, with more trees in the downy path. I had already covered most of the distance flying down. Even though there was only the suit over my body, it was working as a good heater¡ªa little too good for my own good, perhaps.


    I got down on the snowy path as my feet stuck almost a foot in the snow as I went. I had memorised the map entirely, however, I could barely make anything in the dark. The little blue luminescentmp barely helped, anyway.


    I walked around for over half an hour and finally got the way towards the cave. Even though the sealed rift would open only when the five moons appear in the same sky, I still wanted to check it out. There were possibly other wild animals there, so I nned to clean it out today and look out for other things, so that I won''t have a problem tomorrow night. There¡¯s something else too I needed to check out.


    Tomorrow was the night of five moons. If the Winterheart Reindeer did note today, it will possiblye tomorrow, recalling in the book that it was a night of five moons as well. So, I better prepare everything. The least amount of time I would need to pick up the power, the better it would be for the mission.


    I have not remembered the description of the ce from the book entirely, but seeing countless boulders sticking together, I remembered a lot about this ce.


    I bound themp on my waist and brought out the nail sword. Infusing spirit force into it, I walked over the boulders. There were possible snakes or other reptiles living in the cave. Though they are not that dangerous, my inherited fear towards them made me cautious.


    There was another reason for me to be cautious. Edward actually did not find this ce, but he fell into the cavern when he was running away from the leader of the dark deer. That reminded me, there was an artifact there that helped him grow in strength. I should take it as well. Even though I will be taking away the fateful blessing of the reindeer from Elinor, I should give her other things to strengthen her spirit force.


    It should be near. I walked, keeping on the cautious steps. I seriously did not want to fall. Though considering the suit I''m wearing, I could help with some carelessness on my part.


    A swift icy wind blew then and with it came snowfall. I frowned and looked at the way the wind wasing. Looks like the blizzard was not far away.


    It took me another five minutes to find the entrance to the cavern. It was not actually open like how Edward fell into it, but closed with a few boulders.


    I looked around and, noticing no one was near; I moved to open the path to the cave, pushing away the boulders. With my strength, it did not turn out to be difficult, though I had to use all of it.


    The entrance of the dark, murky cave opened before me, and a few bats came out immediately, squeaking. I ducked instinctively and entered cautiously.


    The path was inclined for about fifty metres deep into the underground. I increased the burning of the luminescent stones and cautiously climbed down.


    I wondered how Edward saved himself from breaking any bones from falling from here. Right, there should be a small pond just below it. How could I forget about that important part?


    I knitted my brows and looked at the still water below, reflecting the blue light of mymp. That''s the way to the sealed space. In the deepest part of the pond was where the gate was, though I have no intention of going there now. It wouldn¡¯t budge, even if I used all my strength.


    Edward had the luck of the protagonist as he directly fell into the water and made his way into the sealed space from there.


    Other than the bats, I found no other wild animals so far, though I''m sure there should be some snakes or other reptiles.


    I moved out of the way of the pond to go in the other direction to find if there was anything. Surely, Edward did not have time to check out this cave entirely, and after he had taken the stuff from the sealed rift, it all copsed, eliminating all of his chances of searching for more.


    The cave was actually quite big, and as I walked, the fear of the unknown within me started to lessen. Other than being gloomy and a little murky, this ce was nothing, however I can''t say the same for the sealed rift.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Even though the cavern was huge, it did not take me more than a couple of minutes to get to a dead end. I was about to leave when something interesting held my eyes.


    There were actually some cave paintings on the wall, and there were many things written as well. I brought up themp close to it, and found what the painting suggested, though I reckoned it would take a normal person without knowledge a lot of time to figure it out.


    There were three separate paintings. The first was depicted as a person diving into a pond when there were five moons in the sky, though the way it was shown, only a person with much knowledge in the ancient signnguage would know. I barely figured it out, knowing I have to dive into a pond to get to the sealed rift.


    The second painting was of some demon which I could only describe with one word: bizarre. It''s huge and bizarre. I couldn''t even make heads from tails¡ªthat''s how bizarre it was, nor would themp light let me see it entirely at once.


    As for thest painting, it appeared to be a map. A frown appeared on my brows as I scanned it carefully. It seemed like the map of abyrinth, but what could¡¯ve suchplicated passages? The answer appeared at once.


    Stargrave.


    I let out a hot breath self-consciously and opened my handbag to bring out a pen and my notebook. Without a second to waste, I note down everything from head to tail. Stargrave, thebyrinth hidden in the Starfall mountain range. Other than the Ruins of Roshansar, Stargrave is the most significant sight.


    Completing copying the map, I tried to copy the painting of the bizarre demon, however, I failed royally. My drawing skills are awful as hell.


    Other than the painting, there was a lot of stuff written on the wall, but I could not make sense of them, however, I started to copy them as well. They were probably written in the old tongue of the second epoch.


    Though I did not know thenguage, I reckoned it''s something important. Any secrets of the second epoch are undoubtedly important. Even though I could not figure out what was written here, others could. This could possibly lead to something else or uncover some secret of the dominion.


    It took me over an hour to note down everything in the walls, from the map to the cave paintings. It wouldn¡¯t have taken that long, however, I triple checked everything just to be safe. However, when I stopped at the bottom of the writings, my eyes widened like saucers.


    I brought themp close to the endnote, to confirm I have not read it wrong. It was actually something I could understand. Maybe only I could in this realm.


    Ayaan List. They call me a hero, however, I call myself a Passenger, or a Dreamer, perhaps.


    ___________________


    AUTHOR''S NOTE:


    As everythinges to an end, the book will go under paywall from the next chapter. Now here are a few of my thoughts, you can decide to read or advance to read the next chapters. However, I would rmend to read.


    Till this mark, it''s about 110k+ words, however, it didn''t seem much have happened during this phase. Yes, the book starts slow, however, it will all be worth it. I have not wasted that many words on fillers. All the details there about the magic system will click together as the story progresses, and some of the tidbit information you ignored will hit you hard as a twist.


    As you can guess, Mystery is a huge factor for this series, I have some great twists prepared for it. However, the surprises of the magic system didn''t end there. Well, I haven''t gone to the good part yet. The book has three kinds of magic systems interlinked together, and most of it is well thought out.


    I won''t spoil anything about the magic systems, or anything else.


    As for world-building, go back to the end of Chapter 01: Scar, there''s a map in the paragraphment. It took me 4 hours just to draw that, yes, I ain''t good at drawing. The point is, the world ispact and well thought out, with different cultures and heritage in ce. It won''t be something original, as I very much have taken it from earth''s cultures, but we all like to read something familiar with a touch of unfamiliarity, isn''t that right?


    Nowes the character, Scar/Aaron, whoever, is not your chad, antihero mc, andcks many things, courage for example. However, he will grow throughout the story. Well, he will suffer in this arc and many other arcs toe. That''s a head¡¯s up.


    Lastly, my writing isn''t very good, but it''s not bad either. Hats off to Mysteries and kqwxz for fixing the typos and making it better.


    Here''s some info about PAYWALL:


    On average, this book takes 4 hours off every day. I know I''m slow, however, the point is, I can''t keep this up with my college and other stuff if this earns nothing. Well, many of you would think I''m just being greedy, (well, you''re right. I love money.), while many just don''t care, just wanted to read as many chapters as fast as you can.


    So the conclusion is, to keep investing 4 hours daily on average, I would need some result in the form of money. That''s why the paywall.


    There''s also the Privilege thing where I can put some advanced chapters for big rich readers to enjoy first. I know it''s expensive, however, its not necessary for everyone. However, you can''t stop your boundless curiosity, or fall into the cliffhanger trap, that''s where P A T R E O Nes in.


    You can read all the chapters in P A T R E O N (including the Privilege chapters) since this is under a non-exclusive contract. Moreover, P A T R E O N is a lot cheaper, and you can support the author directly.


    Join my D I S C O R D server if you have a some curiosity about this book, and want some people to talk too. You can find the link at the end of the synopsis. The codes in this site filter out any links, so I can''t put them in the chapters.


    P A T R E O N link: p.a.t.r.e.o.n/SILENT_NOVELS


    Cut out the (.) from the first part to get there

 Chapter 63 42: Enmity (1)

    Q: Why do most warlocks take ones with pure spirit energy to experiment on?


    A: Because pure spirit energy is easiest to corrupt. The more one practises spirit arts and experiences life, theplicated and harder it bes to corrupt them the way the warlock wants, so that''s why they prefer practitioners of younger age and with purer spirit energy.


    - - -


    It took me far longer than I had assumed to copy all the scripts written on the wall. Well, I first assumed it would be like regr writing, but when I started, I learned, it was a lot harder to copy anguage I don''t know. Moreover, I needed to be precise with each mark, or it might get confusing.


    I think it was not just the old tongue, but the ancient rune script. Or why else would it be thatplicated?


    I have copied everything, ignoring only the demon painting, however, my mind memorised some of its features, so I won¡¯t have a problem making it out if I see it with my own eyes. Though I was sure, I would do more of running than staring if I came across something like that. I have no recollection of it in the book. This was surely not something bogus. After all, it was left behind by one of the twelve heroes.


    After closing the entrance of the cave with the boulders, I strode on the way towards the camp, though those thoughts never left me. It took me a couple of hours longer than I¡¯d assumed. Yeriel would be worried sick.


    The outside was far colder than inside of the cavern, moreover, the swift icy wind and snowfall didn¡¯t make it easier. Shaking up a little, I ran my spirit energy and brought out the honey container again. The False-ward would be a lot more useful in giving me fast results, but it was unhealthy, and I needed to save as much of the fuel as I could. Instead, I took in an extra bit of the honey, swirling along the warm energy.


    However, even with the cold, I still could not get my head around what I encountered. The book didn¡¯t go deep into the topic of the twelve heroes, even though it was one of the most important subjects. However, it did mention that some of the heroes did something that could not be depicted them as heroes.


    Even on the endnote, Ayaan List mentioned he had not considered himself as a hero.


    A Dreamer?


    I took a mental note to research more on the twelve heroes and the twelve abilities more. The origin of these powers is still unknown, and I was not even sure of the exact twelve abilities. A couple of them didn¡¯t even make an appearance in thetest chapter of the book. Questions after questions.


    I could not help but shake my head. Surely, I won''t get an answer in my pondering, but only get more questions.


    Tap. Tap.


    Abruptly, my attention was caught on something. I seemed to hear some tapping noise. It was not snowfall, then . . .


    I was about to look around where it wasing from, and suddenly my instinct gave me goosebumps.


    Without considering a thing, I flung myself a couple of metres away, dropping my bag. The nail sword appeared on my arm. In the light of the blue, luminescentmp, I saw somethinging at me, whirling.


    Instinctively, I pulled a half-sh instantly at the iing . . . something. It hit right against my sword, however, it actually did not break from being sliced in half with the stroke of my sword, but whirled around the sword, entangling like an alive rope.


    An engulfing chain.


    My mind rang, and I tried to run the mes of purgatory to disable the chain before it could paralyse me from the sword. But my effort turned futile, and the engulfing chain sucked all the spirit force from the sword before disconnecting any usage of spirit force in the nail sword.


    That was not the only thing. The sword turned into a hundred kilograms within a second, and gravitational force pulled it downwards.


    The only way for me to remove the engulfing chain was from the outside, working on the anchor with spirit force, but it would take at least a minute or two; perhaps more, as I did not have any experience in it. However, whoever attacked certainly had other ns in ce, and would not give me that much time.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Surely, as I had guessed it, I sensed arrows and fast evocative spellsing at me from all directions. Balls of mes, stone splinters, ice and wind des. Holy hell, how many men are there?


    Are they from Dark Deer? I thought, but I did not have time to ponder. The only way for me to escape from here was to let go of the sword. And I did exactly that before triggering the steam releasers in the suit.


    Remember when I said this suit was an old prototype and needs at least a second or two to start up?


    "Damn it," I cursed, and coated my entire body with spirit energy. I lurched away, but still two-thirds of all the arrows and spells bombarded me at once.


    I have learned two things in that short, painful moment. The first was whoever was after me. They had encircled me in a nned assault. The other thing was that they might not be Dark Deer, as none of the spells that hit me had any rtion to dark arts. Well, I didn¡¯t have any encounter with dark arts other than that Ghoul, however, I¡¯m full of knowledge about them.


    However, that did not mean they went easy on me.


    Even with the spirit force coating on¡ªcoupling with the defence of the suit, they still hurt like hell. My coating of spirit force broke within a blink with the joint force of spell and arrows. The wind des hit me all over my body like someone was pounding with a stick on my bare body. A couple of the arrows even dug into my flesh, as I protected my head with my arms.


    Dakota would be pissed, however, that thought left the sooner the steam releaser startup. I forced everything off them, as my body lurched upwards ten metres in the instant.


    My eyes narrowed at the people hiding in the trees, and with a swift motion of my leg, I pulled myself right at one of them. I could feel something burning inside me. My body lurched swiftly and before any other attack couldnd on me, I manoeuvred my hands backwards and legs forwards to produce a heavy dropkick to the person hiding in the trees.


    The individual yelped in pain before falling from the trees, while I hurled away from the tree to another one on the adjacent right side. An arrow came at me again, but missed by a long shot.


    I ignored the dull feeling in my head as well as the heat the suit was producing to collide with the person who was aiming his arrow at me. I held back nothing.


    I did not let go of him, but shoved him against the trunk of the trees.


    "Bastard," the attacker grunted in pain and cursed. "Pass out already."


    I did not consider what that guy was saying, as my fist showered on his face, shattering his nose. The person groaned, shouting curses. From the figure and the voice of the one I was pounding against the tree, I could make out, he was not much older. In the dark, I could not see his face, but I was sure I was beating up a kid.


    Abruptly, a bolt of pain assaulted my brain, and I felt dizzy. The pain was consuming me, and I let go of the attacker as he fell off.


    I touched the side of my left chest and found something stuck there. A small bolt. Bloody hell, the arrows, they contained tranquillizer. And it appeared it was of some kind that rendered the usage of Spirit energy futile.


    ¡°Mother¡ª" I cursed, and pulled out the bolt. It was not just one that prated my flesh, while the other didn¡¯t stick, they did their job.


    I need to escape immediately. My mind rang with that thought only.


    I flew away from there immediately, but the tranquillizing drug was already in my system. I could not even go a couple of hundred metres before my body went limp as I collided against a tree fell down to the snow-fillednd.


    ____________________ _ _ _ _


    support me/ p.a.t.r.e.o.n/SILENT_NOVELS

 Chapter 64 42: Enmity (2)

    As midnight approached, the icy wind rose to a new height, bringing misery to the frostynd. Even inside the camp, with the heater working, Yeriel felt ufortable as she prepared the ingredients.


    ''I couldn''t even smell the ingredients with this cold,'' she mumbled. ''Will I be able to brew the potion currently with this state?''


    She had not caught a cold, but her head felt dizzy and heavy, and even keeping her eyelids open became a challenge. Before even brewing the meds for others, she had to take the meds for herself, though it was merely of any use. She could only manage it through the slightly soothing feeling the swirling spirit force brought her, though it was far more difficult for her to even revolve spirit force now.


    She didn¡¯t know if she had caught the decay too, though it could be her relentless working with no rest. She thought not. It was not like she had never worked this hard without resting, however, this time it was different. She¡¯d never worked this hard in such an extreme environment.


    ''The blizzard is on its way, and my channelling path has already started to freeze,'' she thought in her head. With such a situation, even a confident alchemist and chemist like her found it hard to do her job. Who could have thought the small, simple mission she took turned into something like this?


    Unconsciously, her eyes drifted off towards the sickdy sleeping on the small bed, wrapped in thick nkets, still shaking asionally. Looking at that, she forced her stubbornness. I willplete this brewing, she told herself.


    "Is something the matter, Lady Yeriel?" Lord Kirien asked, standing up from the bed where his wife was sleeping. A worry hit his face instantly when he looked at the situation with the healer. Yeriel might¡¯ve not noticed it, but her face was pale red, moisture wailed up on her cheeks. However, she didn¡¯t feel hot. The cold was just as unbearable. "What happened? Are you feeling alright?"


    "It''s alright," Yeriel lied. Lord Kirien was already worried sick about his wife. Her troubles will only worry him further, though it would mostly be because she was the healer, the one who would brew the medication and heal his wife. "The cold is just a little unbearable, that is."


    Lord Kirien''s brows were still knitted together. Certainly, the cold was terrible even for him, a citizen of Victoria, but it appeared there was something more. With his experience, it did not take him long to find it was not just the unbearable cold. He never felt like this before, even when he went to expeditation deeper into Frosnds. He feared it was something simr to Winter¡¯s decay, the same which his wife and child had caught, however, he was not ready to acknowledge it with his wife on the deathbed.


    Besides, he¡¯s a veteran knight. He could keep up with this terrible disease for longer, however, it wasn¡¯t the same for the Healer. Yeriel''s face was haggard, shaking ufortably now and then, eyes weary with unrest. Still, she has work to do. He felt guilty overworking thisss. She¡¯s just a couple of years older than his son, so young, yet so capable. He had taken half a dozen apothecaries and doctors before her, however, none of them could even get to the root of the disease. Such talented healers like her were extremely rare, and it was not just among pupils of the academy. He wouldn¡¯t want anything to happen to her, not after how she overworked sincest night to heal his son and keep his wife alive.


    "Let me raise the level on the heater," he said and walked towards the heater installed in the far corner of the small room. Though he knew little good it would do. The coldness already infected his channels, and so it seemed for her as well. The heater would do as good as a blind man could do when showing direction.


    Yeriel continued in her job. She had already crushed the ingredients, only the brewing was needed now¡ªthe toughest thing to do with her current state. She was igniting the burner to get ready for brewing when she felt a nket wrapping around her.


    It was Lord Kirien who collected the nket from the adjacent room. Indeed, the others were not avable now in the camp, so their stuff could be of use. "Thank you," she said curtly.


    ¡°The cold is unbearable," Lord Kirien muttered under his breath and went back near the bed again to look after his sick wife. Even he had to use his spirit energy, which was a lot hard to push, to keep himself warm.


    "I wondered, what''s taking them so long?" Yeriel mumbled. Oscar went to look for something, and that was hours ago. While she asked William, the young, talkative sorcerer to find him, had note back as well. ''Did something happen with their mission?'' she thought. ''It was supposedly a dangerous mission, but Oscar said this region is far safer. Still . . .¡¯


    Lord Kirien had no certain answer either. He could have gone to look, but with the situation with his wife, everything elseester. "They are probably on their way," he mumbled, though there was not much assurance in his voice. "I heard some nasty rumours about thed of Emberheart, but he certainly did not look bad. A little timid than the others of the same blood I have seen, but certainly a kid with a good head. You need not worry."


    Yeriel was about to nod when they heard a hard knock on the wooden door.


    "Perhaps they are back," Lord Kirien said and stood up. "I''ll check." The elderly knight had brought his sword with him, unsheathing before the door. Gripping the hilt hard, he asked, "Who is it?"


    "It''s me, cough! . . ." A familiar voice came from outside. "Cough! . . . William. The blizzard is here, open it quickly."


    Lord Kirien''s grip on the sword softened, hearing the familiar voice, though he was still far more vignt than he usually was. This was how the bad the time was. He checked the outside from the side hole, and finding nothing wrong or no one else, he slowly opened the door.


    The familiar face greeted him, and though the wind was blowing far worse with the snowfall, the youth still had the indistinguishable smile on his pale face. Moreover, he seemed to be in a terrible state, barely keeping himself straight.


    "Sorry for the dy," Lord Kirien said as the stormy, icy wind entered the camp. "Get in quickly."


    "I searched everywhere." William took slow steps to get in, working hard on his legs. "But . . . Cough! . . ."


    "What happened to you?" the elderly knight asked, and even Yeriel peeked at the neer with worried nces. Evidently, it was not just her or Lord Kirien who was bothered by the cold.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "Just a slight fever," William said with a fit of coughing. He finally entered, but his legs slipped and, with the terrible state he was in, he was about to knock down headfirst on the ground.


    Fortunately, there was Lord Kirien to catch him before he could knock himself down. "This doesn''t look like a small fever,d."


    "Because it isn''t." A twisted smile appeared on William''s lips and a sudden force loomed out of him, crushing towards the elderly knight.


    In the blink of moment, everything changed. The elderly knight was trampled instantly, and even with his experience, he could not amodate the berserk dark force.


    Lord Kirien flung away instantly, the dark force invading his body like the most potent poison. His body crashed against the sidewall, damaging the fine wood. The camp shook a little, and Lord Kirien tried to stand up, however, all his effort was futile as he fell over again. Blood gushed out from his nostrils, ears, and mouth. Not the usual scarlet blood, but pitch dark-scarlet.


    Yeriel screamed from the sides, still thinking of the dizziness ying tricks on her mind. "Why?" she screamed, trying to prepare for any spells. She had to push her spiritual energy to even budge a little. "Why are you doing this?"


    "Mydy." William looked at her with a gentleman''s smile. The icy wind kept oning, bringing the temperate further down. "I really did not want to do this¡ªespecially to you, but you know, we all have to do things we did not want to do."


    "You are a warlock," Yeriel said, finding the unnatural state Lord Kirien was in. She pushed harder, freeing her channel a little to shoot a beam of water¡ªeverything she could manage with her current state.


    Unfortunately, William did not even put a barrier, only stepped sideways to ignore her attack. "I''m impressed," he said with a startled eye. "You actually managed to cast a spell even after taking in the dose of Spirit Numbing drug."


    "Spirit Numbing Poison," Yeriel repeated. ¡°How did you?"


    Everything kind of makes sense now. So the numbing in her channelling system was not because of the cold, but because of the poison. What makes little sense is she had taken nothing from this guy, so how could he poison her?


    ¡°Well, of course, I didn¡¯t give you anything.¡° William only smiled as if he had yed a masterstroke. ¡°You¡¯ve to ask our mutual friend Oscar for that answer.¡±


    Yeriel¡¯s mind numbed with how forcefully she cast that useless spell, however, those words broke her even more. ¡®No, he¡¯s ying tricks,¡¯ she told herself. "Oscar would never do that."


    "Usually, I would love to talk, but I have an assignment to follow," the warlock said, approaching her. "How about I take you with me? We can talk all the way."


    Yeriel red at him, preparing for another spell, but it was almost impossible. Thest one she cast was barely possible, and now William caught her arm before she could even try anything.


    "Well, looks like we have to dy our conversation for a while," William said, and his dark spirit force invaded her system, crumbling her down.


    "You . . ." Yeriel was barely able to mutter. "You sealed my . . . channel."


    "It''s the only thing I can do, mydy," William then put his arms on her narrow waist before carrying her on his back. "You are certainly not just a helpless healer. Don''t worry though, I will take good care of you."


    Yeriel did not even have the strength to struggle and after her spirit force was sealed, she found all her mental fortitude was crumbling. There was nothing for her to stop the Spirit numbing poison now.


    "That went just as nned," William muttered and turned to see Lord Kiren standing, blood all over his nostrils, lips and ears, however, the veteran Knight was standing.


    "Let her go," the elderly knight said, unsheathing his sword. It needed not to mention he was not far away from dying, and doing troublesome things like standing up will only spur his death. "My wife needs her."


    "Old fool, I think it''s you who needs her more."


    ___________________

 Chapter 65 42: Enmity (3)

    My head hurt, and my body was freezing in the icy wind. It appeared snow was falling too, but it was not the type that will put a smile on your lips. Frigid cold snow hit my head and all over my body swift and cold, giving chills and shivers to my spine. It was no less than bone-chilling, however, that was because I could not channel my spirit energy.


    I tried everything to wake up, but my body, even my eyelids, felt heavy as hell. It appears there was no strength left in my body. Seriously, what kind of drug did they use? Purgatory had an inherited ability to cleanse poisonous aura, however, that ability was kind of limited.


    "Tenacious Bastard." I heard a voice of a guy with the swirling of a mad wind, tugging against my very bone, ignoring the suit or the flesh. "He''s getting consciousness so soon. Circle him quickly. It is time to greet our old friend."


    I felt a few figures moving in my surroundings as I barely managed to open my eyelids. In the small gaps of my eyelids, the first thing I saw was a smiling face. It took me a moment to recognise the figure with the fuzziness in my head, not to mention the dark and the blizzard going on.


    I tried to lift up from there but felt over a hundred kilogrammes all over my body. That was not all. My spirit force channels had been forcefully sealed as well as my limbs were bound together. It was all because of the engulfing chains wrapped around my limbs, waists, shoulders, even the neck. This bastard was not taking a chance. I could barely move my body, much less run away from here.


    The engulfing chains engulfs not only the spirit force, it creates a maic field surrounding the chains, making the captive feel he was under great physical stress and tension. Seriously, it was not the worst of Ruthalynian¡¯s creation, however, it was cruel enough with the toxic and extreme cold.


    "Oscar Emberheart," the youth told me from only a couple of strides away. "It appears you are not happy to see me here."


    "You did all this, Althan?" I snarled at the youth before me. It was none other than Althan Kimber, the one I have had a slight conflict with a couple of times. Once at the archive, when he was harassing Yeriel, and the other time was recently, and it could not even be called a conflict. There was also there when Althan tried to threaten Julies.


    Wasn''t this too big for him to do this to me? This bastard even bought an engulfing chain¡ªit was made in Ruthenian, and one needed not to guess how hard it was to get one in the empire. Moreover, un-licensed usage of this kind of chain was prohibited.


    "I, of course, was not good enough to do all this," Althan said and gestured with his arm to show his underlings surrounding me. "But with their help, it went down well, though you surprised me and got two of them. I never thought you would have something of Ruthalynian. Luckily, we managed to improvise our n."


    "Why did you do this?" I snarled at him again. The cold was far unbearable now, with my spirit force sealed. My cloak was already tattered, and the suit did little to ward off cold when it was not running. Even though I tried to calm, my voice came out harsh, full of rage. Being a captive was not making the situation any better. "Just because I embarrassed you in front of Yeriel? What did I do to you?"


    "It appeared you had already ruined your head with alcohol," Althan said, and came closer to me. He came right before me and crouched down, eyeing me. I could only see hatred in them, so much of it that it was unnatural. He snarled right at me, spitting on my face. "Have you forgotten how you had fucked up my elbow right in front of everyone?


    ¡°What did I do to you before that? I barely spoke a few words against that white-haired bitch. You did not even give me a face, even though I am a fucking prince, just like you. You beat me in front of hundreds, dislocated my elbow to give an example to others, so that they would stay quiet about you and that white-haired bitch.


    "Burn you, Oscar! You made a fuckingughingstock out of me in the academy, and you are fucking asking me what you did to me?"


    I did all that? My teeth gritted together, looking at the raging face of Althan, red with anger, spitting all over my face. And the worst thing about it was that I have done none of what he just said. I did hear Scar dislocated Althan''s arm, but in the book Althan had done nothing immediately, other than the rivalry between the two states, cancelling any trades and assistances.


    Even though the Princedom of Kimber was a little good at military achievements, they were freaking good atmerce. Even though he could do nothing to Scar promptly, they had hurt House Emberheart in the long run.


    But why now? Why now, when I am on an important mission? Did Althan n all this when I arrived in Victoria? Or is he just reaping a splendid opportunity here? Either way, I needed to evacuate from here, though nothing came to my mind. The engulfing wire made all my efforts futile.


    "What do you want with me?" I asked, eyeing straight into his eyes. Anger boiling inside me, however, I managed to contain it, regarding the situation. However, the same couldn¡¯t be said about Althan. He was literally fuming with rage. Strands of spiritual energy sparked around him, though Althan was too focused on me to notice.<novelnext></novelnext>


    His spiritual energy was behaving with sudden outbursts of emotions and anger. Whatever Scar did, that shouldn¡¯t be enough to make him this enraged, could it?!


    Althan kept eye contact for a couple of seconds and stood up. "Payback," he said and finally noticed the undtion of his spiritual energy and aura. ¡°I wanted to make aughingstock out of you, the same you did to me, however, you barely have any prestige left in the academy."


    Althan eyed a couple of underlings behind me as they approached me. They did not attack actually, but helped me stand up and kept me standing, pulling me by my underarms. So they were preparing the stage for Althan. I wondered what type of payment this bastard wanted from me. It wouldn¡¯t be that bloody, would¡ª


    And I got the answer promptly. A fist came right at my nose, crushing it in just one attempt. And with the cold, it hurt many times over. I screamed in pain, and Althan kept on punching my face. It was already bloody enough with just a couple of punches, but it turned worse with each punch, throbbing as I groaned, blood gushing out from it.


    I tried everything to run away, but the heavy chains, as well as the two underlings, kept my head straight, making it easy for that bastard to hit.


    I coughed, grounding my teeth. Sobs of pain escaped from my tightly pressed lips as I coughed blood out of my mouth and broken nostrils. Althan kept on punching me like a madman. The little control he gained of his emotion a moment ago, long vanished. When he was done, it was out of his physical limitation. However, he already shoved a couple of dozens of heavy punches at me, making my face worse than a sandbag. It was nothing but disgusting wet y pottery.


    However, I felt an enduring me burning inside me, cleansing the drug from my channel. That was not all. The me, the burning, the rage was rising with the agony I felt.


    A light whistle came from my broken nose as I breathed. Pain rose with each inhaling and exhaling. The two underlings were carrying me entirely now, as my legs gave away. The guy was beating me. Why would I make things easy for him? At least, I made it easy for my legs.


    Althan let out heavy breathing, still looking at me. The Magus Apprentice stood straight and looked at another one of the underlings. "Bring me the sword, Heath."


    It appeared he was not satisfied enough. I don¡¯t know why, but I felt no problem with my mental capability. Yes, Purgatory was cleansing the drug, but it should still dull my mental capacity to arge portion. Perhaps because of the pain. Burn him! It hurts!


    The underling did as he was told and brought the nail sword to his prince. Althan took the sword out of the sheath and looked at it peculiarly, as if did not like the shape. But I had more things to worry about than his likeness to my borrowed sword. What was this bastard nning? Murder? No, even if this guy has the balls of a dragon, he would not attempt that.


    I may be a rotten apple of Emberheart, however, I was still their apple. He would not like it very much if Althan crossed the line and Althan knows it too. He knows it, right?


    It appears my mind is not really working properly. Well, I think anyone bound like me, finding the capturer approaching with a sword will feel some paranoia.


    I know little about Highprince of me, however, he was once a doting father. Both the father and son pair went astray after the death of the most important woman of their life, however, that doesn''t mean, Lord Emberheart would be silent after his son''s death. The only child his dear wife left behind.


    _ _ _


    Next chapter: Blood on Arm

 Chapter 66 43: Blood On Arms (1)

    Q: How did Leahlyn Eather die?


    A: The specifics are unknown. She was on a trip to Manas along with her son, Scar, but an organised assault transpired on them, where Scar identally killed her.


    - - -


    "What are you intending, Althan?" I asked in a level tone. "Don¡¯t do something on the spur of the moment¡­ something you will regret." There are many ways to divine something, and Althan, as an apprentice, should know that, too.


    Althan smiled and sheathed the sword, but did not let go of it. He approached me again with my sheathed sword. Without warning, he shoved the sheathed sword into my gut, holding back nothing.


    I coughed out another chunk of blood as the cold snow hit my face¡ªnot the least bit soothing. The blizzard was rising every moment, but the noble son''s revenge worried me the most.


    Even if he didn¡¯t murder me, which I¡¯m certain he wouldn''t, will he leave me at the state to continue on with my tasks?


    Althan stopped attacking after thrusting the sword in my gut, and then his underlings let me fall face-first on the snow.


    Before, I could manage to bring out some strength, but now it''s almost impossible. If only I could have triggered the suit, but there were too many ifs in it.


    For a moment, I had thought Althan was done with his torture, but boy, I was wrong, and I learned it quite painfully. The noble son shoved his foot on my head while hammering the sheathed sword onto my back again and again, yelling like a madman.


    The cold snow helped me freeze the tearing wounds on my face. Some of it got into my mouth, but I had worse things to worry about.


    The prototype False-ward of Ruthalynian was thin, and it was damaged easily without the protection of spirit force, though my attention was only on the pain.


    I could not think of anything but the pain, however, I didn¡¯t draw back either. Tears came out of my eyes, and I shoved my face even further into the snow. The ember burned intensely, almost done detoxifying the drug, giving a surreal control of the primal force. However, the chains were still on me, limiting my options. I need to think of something quick, something clever.


    ? The pain in my face and back warmed my body, and suddenly I felt no more cold. The agony reached my bones; my blood was rushing in fury. The pain was still there, however, a rage took over it mostly. So, it was the dormant bloodline that was acting up as I experienced pain.


    The hammering on my back stopped, leaving me with an inmed back, throbbing in indignation. Still, my face hurts more than that. I wondered if I could stand up now. Not that I tried.


    If I did that, it would only be weing Althan to beat me more. I had already learned that the vengefulness of a noble was not something to be scoffed at, and challenging him would only make it more burdensome for me.


    Did I act like a fool? I wondered instead. Why did I treat Althan like he was a fool? Why did I think he couldn¡¯t harm me directly like this? Was it the knowledge that made me confident?


    How can I forget about the cruelty in the book? I have certainly becent with my growth and forgotten about the cruelty of Shrankor. The Empire, even though it stood proud with six princedoms in harmony on the outside, was entirely different on the inside.


    Each high prince may talk civilly to one another in public, but there was nothing else but loathing in their minds to one another. That was the only way the empire was standing. If even half of the six high houses worked together against the empire, it would have fallen years ago, but the cunning emperor found a way to fight the high princes among themselves, freeing the empire from that internal threat.


    I should have known and prepared for that. Even though nobles like Althan looked harmless from the outside, they were no less poisonous than snakes. And here I was, reaping what Scar had sowed. I can''t actually me Althan, but that does not mean I don''t hate him.


    "Now for my elbow," Althan said, exhaling out a deep breath. He shoved the sheathed sword right in the middle of my elbow and was about to twist my left arm against it, but then something happened that stopped him.


    No, I have done nothing yet, though I am still trying. It was actually a bombardment that came from the other side¡ªthe direction of the other peak, where my aunt and her partner were. Shailyn!


    "Bloody hell!," I screamed. "Althan, this is serious. Let me go. My aunt was there."


    The noble son did nothing, his gaze fixed on the direction of the bombardment.


    "There is a fucking warlock here," I screamed at him, however, that was not all that I did. "Let me go, you bastard."


    Althan did not, probably thinking I was only asking for an easy way out.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "Easy there," he said, and was about to twist my arm. "I will let you go after you have paid back enough."


    In pain, I snarled, "I''ll see that you do, BASTARD." Power surged through me, but I''ve to work fast, as it would onlyst for a brief moment.


    Grounding my teeth, I roared. The blood was already on my head, and there was no reason left in my mind after the torture and the bombardment. I tried to lunge up with my full power, and the agony only fuelled my conviction. But even with all that, it still wouldn''t be enough, so I helped Althan break my elbow. I tried to seize the sheathed Punisher, twisting my left arm around it.


    A cracking noise came before, and I lunged hard, twisting the sword in between my elbows.


    Althan''s knee, which was on my head, fell, and I seized the sword away from him, rolling on the snow. My right arm was already in no condition to hold onto something, but I still held onto it, before turning over to the other arm and unsheathing it. Still rolling.


    The underlingse at me, and a couple of them even threw spells of fireballs and stones at me. I ignored them and shoved the sword against the engulfing chain that was wrapped around my waist. But without spirit force, it won''t be able to cut it. Fortunately, I have a solution for it as well.


    In the sparing moment, I cut my palm, running it against the de and poured blood into the sword, trying to trigger Fury, one of the feature of the Punisher. I was not so sure if I could trigger fury, but with the potent rush of rage in my blood, I managed it fine.


    The nail sword zed in a crimson glow as it cut the chain, ignoring its engulfing property. It even damaged the suit in the way. I will take that as long as I can free myself.


    However, before I could cut off the anchor and free my spiritual energy, the stone splinters and balls of mes charged at me. I ignored all of them, rolling on the snow, as more than a couple stuck me. Their evocative spells were still not up to par, though it was far more painful in the cold.


    Not even a moment have passed. I kept on rolling to escape from a few of the spells, as my good arm was working to free me. Before I could stand upright, I jerked my good arm violently as the ming sword cut through the engulfing chain, flinging away the few that wereing my way in the glory of the ember.


    As the chains split, the engulfing ended. All the chains got loose, and with a jerk of my body they fell off me, as I felt a stream of freedom flow through me, and with the freedom came back my power.


    Power surged through my body, pushing away the momentum of weakness I felt. There were those throbbing agonies too, my back, elbow, and face were still aching from the pain Althan inflicted. but I ignored that. There was no weight on my body, nor was my spirit force sealed. I am free, finally.


    A part off me wanted to do the same to Althan. A part of me wanted to make sure Althan felt no less agony than I did. But that had to wait. Shailyn needs me now.


    The disturbance I felt before has not stopped yet. Though it was not like the first bombardment, the spirit force was whirling violently in that direction, undting the natural flow.


    The punisher still held onto its fury as I watched the few dashing at me, bearing their weapons. The archers among them shot the arrow, and so did the Lesser talents, who kept on showering their evocative spells. But all of them turned futile as I swung the Punisher in the arc of a full circle all around me. I failed to manoeuvre it in a proper stance, however, the result was the same.


    A full ring of fire formed as it flung away all the underlings and their leader.


    I looked in the direction of Althan, who was staring at me with utter horror on his exterior. My mind was still fuming with indignation, but boy I like that face. That utter shock, that horror. I couldn''t tell if my scowling face reminded him of his past trauma, but that doesn''t matter now. Althan can wait.


    I crept towards my belongings and collected my bag from the snowy ground, triggering the steam releaser in my back and on my lower body, elevating me a few metres into the air.


    The old false-ward seemed to be quite rigid after all the damage it had been inflicted on, but it was still working. Fortunately, it was still working.


    "It isn''t over." Leaving those words to Althan, I shot in among the tall trees.


    The Fury of the Punisher finally rested, and I felt an impaling weakness in my body as well as in spirit. Fury pulls power straight from the blood essence, the life root, and I pull more than I need with the sudden outburst of the dormant bloodline.


    ''Everything is alright. I''m in control.'' I did what I''m best at, which is, of course, pretension. ''Everything will be alright.''


    I tried hard not to think about the weakness, the aching face, and the anguish in the back. And then there was my broken elbow. It was actually easy to endure the pain as the enduring me was still burning in my blood. I could focus my attention on what''s important. Emberheart bloodline is about anger and pain, it''s about emotion. I burned the anger, the pain and focused on what''s important.


    It would pain me a lot if something happens to Shailyn and Noyar, and I don''t think I can stop that with the bloodline.


    - - -

 Chapter 67 43: Blood On Arms (2)

    The blizzard had not lessened by any means; it was bing more violent by the minute. Worse, I was moving against it, towards the source of the disturbance. Dark art is far more violent in nature and causes upheaval in the surrounding areas. So, I didn¡¯t have any trouble locating the directions.


    Still, it was half a dozen miles away, meaning things were going quite intensely there as well, though it could be the residual effect. I only wish Shailyn and her knight were alright. Nothing happened to them so early in the books, but my appearance changed the plotline here. I just hope it was not too much.


    Perhaps William and the other Warders were already there or on the way. Still, I have confidence in Shailyn''s ability to put up with it till then. Furthermore, she was not alone. I have battled Noyar, and she is a fine knight to have.


    Cold icy snow hit my bloody face, bringing throbbing pain to the already sickening wounds. I regretted that the old false-ward did note with the helmet. The cold and the icy gale were another problem, but I did not need to worry about that in a couple of minutes.


    The prototype false-ward was no less than a rice cooker.


    The cold would be the least of my worries, I thought. I did not know the situation there, and worse, I was not in my prime state. I could ignore the pain in my face and back with the heightening rage and emotion, but the other arm was another case. It was broken and currently dysfunctional. Then there was the impaling weakness of using Fury.


    I think I can only keep on going on adrenaline, and when it clears, I will copse. No, not yet. I told myself and shot out of the thick trees.


    Flying is usually far easier in empty spaces, though the blizzard will disagree. The cold is currently not my problem. I could barely feel it in my face other than the pain. I was moving downwards as the thick trees came into my view again, as well as the disturbance. This was still a couple miles away from the first bombardment. As I was rushing into the thick trees filled with snow, I saw a few figuresing.


    The first was one person carrying another one, and behind them were four more figures, chasing in a mad dash.


    A knit appeared on my brows as I shot down, arching my legs in the back. I forced more steam out of the release as soon as I could make out who the first figures belonged to.


    It was Noyar, and on her back was my aunt. Shailyn was not unconscious, though, and even though she appeared haggard in the faint light, she seemed to be making an assault on the four of them, barely slowing them down.


    My eyes narrowed at the four behind them and found the most optimal opponent for me to do a sneak attack on. I found out rather quickly that it was the second one on their back. Forcing the mes of purgatory, my eyes locked on my opponent. The punisher instantly turned crimson, as if it were a burning magic rod, but it was far more lethal.


    I jerked my arm back in a throwing posture before firing the nail sword directly at my target, with no regard for anything. I don''t know how strong these four were, but since aunt and Noyar were running away from them, they probably were not humble rogues; I think. That''s why I needed to get every advantage I could have.


    The nail sword shot through the gale of wind and snowfall, unaffected and unrestricted. The Punisher pierced right into the chest of the man, flinging him a couple of strides away as his body fell on the snowynd.


    Now, I was the main interest, as all of them stopped and stared at me. I did not waste time, though, and neither did they. As that man I shot with the sword rolled on the snowynd, I shot for the man behind him and grappled him into a bear hug.


    The hug was far harder and more intimate than any I gave to Yasmine.


    I charged at him with the momentum, shoving my body violently against him, as both of us fell to the snowy ground. The momentum was too much for the inclinednd, as we rolled fast on the snow. Sometimes I was on top, and sometimes it was the corrupt warder, struggling to im the dominant hand. Too much love for my own good.


    The man did notck physical force and shoved with everything he had on my gut and chest. He even head-butted me once. It felt like hell in my already throbbing face. I feel like crying and I really might be crying.


    "Oscar." A voice shouted. It was from Shailyn.<novelnext></novelnext>


    I ground my teeth as crimson mes of purgatory formed in my hand. You see, I was not just getting beaten up there. Though I would like to inflict some physical pain on him, for my satisfaction, I have to make it do with the mes.


    My mind was already numbed with the pain, and I could not think straight other than with the thought of getting free from this man. With instinct, I pulled my good arm against the face of the man. My palm touched his face as I shoved all the crimson mes there.


    The man shrieked in agony, and I felt something soft on my index finger. Perhaps I stabbed one of his eyes¡ªI guess that settled the physical pain I wanted to inflict¡ªnot that I did it intentionally.


    I was freed from the wrestle as the shrieking man with the burned face let me go willingly. Perhaps he did not like me anymore.


    "Oscar."


    Gasps of breath and smoke escaped from my mouth as I used the stream releaser in my back to stand up. "Wait a minute. . . I''m. . . on my way," I could barely say with the throbbing in my facial muscles and heavy breathing.


    The man with the burned face was currently rolling in the snow, still screaming. He was lucky that there was nock of ice here, though little good that would do. I looked at the other one, the one to whom I had entrusted my sword. That man was on the ground as well, but he was not moving even a little.


    ''Did I kill him?'' That thought finally hit me as I raised my palm to call back the sword. Surpizingly, I felt nothing. Perhaps it was because my mind was high on adrenaline. Moreover, I have no time to ponder this thought.


    However, my sword did not even budge from the chest, through the calling of the sympathetic link. It shook only a little, and that was it. My affinity towards the Punisher seemed to be still weak. Not to mention, I still have not mastered the art, but that was another story.


    The remaining rogues started to flee after two of their men were down, leaving the two women free. As we were not giving chase, they carried the burned-face with them.


    ¡°Don¡¯t chase,¡± Shailynmanded.


    Shaking my head, I used the false-ward to get near the man¡ªthe one I shot the sword at. ''He died huh,'' I thought, gripping the hilt of the punisher. The eyes of the dead man were still wide open in horror. Even rogues like him, who killed plenty, feared death.


    Some physiological effect affected me then as I stared at the eyes of the dead man, the man I killed. I pulled the sword with my good arm and pushed down the undtion in my spirit, my emotions, for the time being.


    Blood still warmed, bobbled out as I pulled back the sword, some of it smeared on my palms as well. Staring at the stain on my palms, I learned I¡¯d failed to push the undtions down.


    ¡°First time?¡± Noyar said, cocking her head behind Shailyn''s shoulder.


    I said nothing, stood there nk like a stone statue. My lips quivered, and the rage in my pulses calmed down, as I felt a sudden sense of weakness. My legs gave way as I fell on my four limbs.


    A palm rested on my shoulder, stroking it. "It wasn¡¯t your fault," Shailyn said, as I looked back at her. I didn¡¯t know how I looked, but Shailyn¡¯s expression quivered looking at my face. "It wasn¡¯t your fault. It was an ident."


    _______________________

 Chapter 68 44: Culprit (1)

    Q: Who caused Yeriel¡¯s death?


    A: Lightless.


    - - -


    I kept myself awake even with the terrible weakness in my limp body and fuzzy mind, grounding my teeth. It wasn¡¯t this terrible even against that Ghoul, however, this time around the idental acting up of the bloodline pulled out everything it could from me, leaving a haggard, limp body.


    Well, the throbbing pain was of some use now. As my mind was busy registering it, I eliminated all the thoughts of what I did. I knew someday I would¡¯ve to do it, however, thinking of how easy it had been, taking a life, sickened me. It was likely because my mind was high on adrenaline, but I can¡¯t deny it was I who did it. Even if the individual was some rogue, criminal, and had done many evil deeds, I felt a horrible churning in my stomach.


    Shaking my head, I eliminated my thoughts on those lines yet again. My head was feverish, eyelids heavy, I was in no condition to even walk, so Noyar carried me along with her, while my aunt gave me worried nces from time to time on our way towards the Warders¡¯ camp. Even her face was pale, fortunately, I don¡¯t see any serious injuries outside, unlike Noyar.


    ¡°Shailyn,¡± I called, ¡°are you alright?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Shailyn answered with a sigh. ¡°Dark arts are a terrible deterrence against spirit energy. I need some rest and work out to get back to my natural form.¡±


    ¡°What happened?¡± I asked.


    ¡°We fell into a trap,¡± Shailyn said, sping her palm into a fist. Even admitting it was difficult for her. ¡°I hate to admit it, but it¡¯s my shortsightedness that caused it.¡±


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t your fault,¡± Noyar joined. Her voice was more haggard than Shailyn''s. ¡°How would we know they were ready for us with traps and organised assault? If you ask me, it''s your instinct that kept us alive against such an assault.¡±


    ¡°Still, I should¡¯ve known something like this would¡¯ve happened,¡± Shailyn said, gritting her teeth. ¡°I should¡¯ve known that they would be prepared for us. . . .¡±


    A frown appeared on my brows as I heard the entire story. Something must be really fishy if the two of them fell into traps this easily. After they fell into the trap, a dozen armed men, including the warlock Rojar Iker, assaulted them. Shailyn had a one-on-one battle with the warlock, while Noyar was alone against the many, protecting her. Naturally, even for a knight like Noyar, stopping over ten men was not a workable job.


    She failed to protect Shailyn; and to help her knight, Shailyn had to divide some of her attention to the others¡ªthat put her at a terrible disadvantage against the warlock. He assaulted her with a frightening deterrence of dark art, rendering almost half of her energy busy stopping it, making her no better than an average Magus.


    The only way she was not dead was because Rojar Iker was an affliction expert. Most of his spells need time to cause a terminal effect. At a disadvantage, they chose to withdraw. Noyar carried Shailyn on her back and rushed out from there, however, they group didn¡¯t let them go that easily. The group of rogues chased after them, and then they were there.


    ¡°Are you able to exorcise all the afflictions?¡± I couldn¡¯t help but ask. Despite those affliction spells are slow, they are far worse. Most of them invade the body, and rendered spirit energy usage useless, to depict terrible curses and diseases.


    ¡°I¡¯m alright,¡± Shailyn said, ¡°Or will be. Noyar will need some assistance. She got hit with a couple while withdrawing. I guess your friend could help her.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m alright,¡± Noyar said stubbornly, though her haggard voice told there were more than a couple of problems with her.


    ¡°I guess we all need help in some ces,¡± I muttered.


    I felt shame letting her carry me when she was in such a state, but it can¡¯t be help, I don¡¯t feel an ounce of strength in my body. Other than the beating I got from Althan, its punisher¡¯s ability Fury and the sudden acting up of the bloodline caused it, not to mention that I didn¡¯t sit still after freeing myself. I think I¡¯ll be able to use spirit energy soon, which would also relieve my pain and fatigue by some. I took the medicine I had with me, though nothing I had would be of much help to getting the physical form back within hours.


    Perhaps Yeriel would have something, I thought, damn, I said I would be back in a couple of hours, and it''s already double of that time and we would need half an hour or more to get there. She would be worried sick.


    ¡°Enough about us,¡± Shailyn said, looking worriedly at the mess of a face. ¡°What happened to you? Did the Dark Deer attack you too?¡±


    I shook my head with some shame. ¡°It¡¯s a stupid mistake on my part,¡± I said. ¡°I let myself get into a trap, but nothing serious, it isn¡¯t the Dark Deer.¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡°Nothing serious?¡± Shailyn said, leaning closer to touch my face as I grunted. ¡°Look at you. Your nose is broken, face swollen with blood patch marks, and your arm, it''s broken too. Whoever did this seems to have some blood-feud with you.¡±


    I let out a breath self-consciously. ¡°Nothing serious,¡± I said. Bloody hell, it hurts even just to converse. Fortunately, the slight whistling through my broken nostrils had stopped. ¡°I¡¯ll deal with this personally.¡± I tried to keep it at a level tone. ¡°We have more imminent danger at hand. Dark Deer is far more dangerous than the ones that beat me up.¡±


    ¡°So you will not tell me who did this to you?¡± Shailyn asked, eyes ring. Finding me looking away and silent, she said again, sighing, ¡°Knowing you it would be only a couple of things. Is it something shameful? Or you think you are good enough to deal with this alone?¡±


    I kept my silence.


    ¡°So it¡¯s a pride thing.¡± It seemed my silence was enough for Shailyn to make a judgement.


    Well, it¡¯s not just pride, I . . . we have more important things to take care of. Dark Deer and the dominion took priority over Althan and his gang. Moreover, I don¡¯t think that bastard would show me his face any time soon. Shaking my head of those thoughts, I brought out the container of the honey.


    ¡°And where did you get that False-ward?¡± Shailyn asked again, eyes piercingly at the suit I wore. ¡°You know you can get into trouble for that?¡±


    I sipped a couple of drops of the honey into my mouth and swirled spirit energy. A frown appeared on my brows.


    ¡°Are you listening?¡± Shailyn nudged me. ¡°Give me that honey. It¡¯s awful here.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s get to the camp first,¡± I said, jerking my head. ¡°I don¡¯t think this honey would have any use with this terrible cold, aunt.¡±


    The blizzard slowed down a little as we moved through the snow-filled inclinednd. After some time, I got off from Noyar¡¯s back, after I got some strength back in my body. Noyar was quite in a terrible state with her injuries and cold. Other than the afflictions, her right thigh held an injury. The wounds didn¡¯t close off yet, however, no blood bobbled out of there, though I can¡¯t say anything about the pain. It was likely prated through her light armour with a spear or simr weapon.


    There were some other scratches, while the muscles in her left shoulder seemed to get some tears in her battle. I noticed only because she was only nging me on her back with her right arm. Shailyn, on the other hand, seemed to have no injuries on the outside other than the fatigue seeming through her pale face and weary eyes. She was even struggling to move, though she neverined. As it was mentioned in the book, the residents of Victoria, all are fighters, especially the women.


    As the blizzard calmed down, we also slowed down a little, though haste could be seen in every one of our steps, since nobody can tell when the blizzard would strike again. It could be the next minute or the next hour.


    ¡°We are almost there,¡± I said, and a sudden gust of wind hit us. ¡°Looks like the blizzard would continue again.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s hurry for thest minute,¡± Shailyn said, and at that very moment, her legs stopped, eyes staring into the looming darkness in front of us. ¡°Someone approaching.¡±


    I frowned, but found nothing, however, my right palm held the hilt of Punisher, despite the exhaustion. Noyar did the same, alert, standing sideways as if to hide the wound on her thigh. Too many unexpected things happened today already, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if something else happened again. Moreover, Shailyn was a full-fledged Magus and was proficient in Spirit Cloud. If someone approaches, she would be the first to notice.


    ¡°It''s me,¡± a voice said, which didn¡¯te as familiar with the sound of wind rushing. It took a couple more seconds to finally see the approaching silhouette, a male of average height, however, the figure felt somewhat familiar. ¡°Thank Ishar, I finally found you.¡±


    ¡°William,¡± Shailyn called with uncertainty, ¡°is that you?¡±


    ¡°Daaryl¡¯s breath, who else would it be?¡± the young sorcerer came out, panting. His face looked quite haggard and weak as he peered at the three of us. However, the one thing that caught everyone¡¯s attention was the bandage on his left eye. ¡°I rushed the moment I felt the disturbance, but when I got there, it was toote. Bless the Almighty, you are alright."


    It seemed it was not just us, who were beaten. whoever it was, they yed a terrible game on William. Now, the only thing left is to get everything clear before nning for the worse.


    - - -

 Chapter 69 44: Culprit (2)

    William tilted his head, staring at the old knight with evident scorn in his eyes. Shaking his head slightly, he rested Yeriel on a corner rather softly, as if worried it would wake her up. Lord Kirien¡¯s wife was not that far away from him, actually, the sickdy was closer to him than the old knight, however, William tried nothing on her, since he could deal with this old fool easily.


    Why bother to y a dirty hand when you can win with a clean hand? Then again, his hands were not that clean. He had drugged the knight and Yeriel, and sneaked an attack to make him this weak. If he still needs to take that sickdy as hostage, he better give up on himself already.


    Lord Kirien was barely standing, taking a stance with his sword. He appeared to have one foot in the grave already, yet was still standing. His breathing was uneven, but he managed to organise himself pretty well, though his inside was in upheaval. That¡¯s what decades of service in Knightship do to one.


    "You could¡¯ve died in peace, or waited in ignorance for help to arrive," William said, "but no, you have to y the hero at your age, old fool."


    Lord Kirien said nothing and charged at the warlock, both palms gripped tight onto his sword, elbows bent. In response, William formed a head-sized ball of me, though it didn¡¯t ze in crimson, but in pitch ck.


    That only made the me more terrifying because the afflicted person had to deal with more than just the heat. With no qualms, William shot the ck fireball at the elderly knight, who was rushing at him.


    The dark fireball was about to strike Lord Kirien, however, with a sudden lurch defying gravity, the elderly Knight shot up in the air to charge at his target.


    William¡¯s eyes widened at the sudden revtion, but he managed to infuse some amount of spirit energy into his amulet to form an obsidian-like shield in time. The de shed against the shield as it shook violently, on the verge of shattering before William fuelled it with more energy. The swing was an all-out sh. Though itcked an element, it didn¡¯tck any power.


    Of course, Lord Kirien was already losing strength, which is why he would be much more callous, especially with surprise attacks. However, he failed to deliver any critical blows here and also revealed his Dominion of Gravity in the process.


    William didn¡¯t take any chances and shot another ck fireball at his opponent. Lord Kirien was at his hands'' distance. There was no way to dodge this, unless . . .


    A peculiar force hurled itself around Lord Kirien. It was not like any spirit art, but like a force of nature. The force hurled for a moment and then lurched against the ground; in the next moment, the elderly Knight was already in the air, shing against the hardwood ceiling.


    "I always hated these Dominions," William said, as if stating a fact, looking at the undignified elderly knight. "I practised for years, countless sleepless nights studying, even fell low to drop all self-esteem and begged to gain my strength. And you?"


    Dominion was the cheat that those users who don¡¯t have any proficiency in the high arts train in. They transport you to a secret facility where you are reborn as a capable practitioner after half an hour. William didn¡¯t know the actual process, but he was sure it can¡¯t be like the high arts, which required years of hard work. That was the gist of Dominion. You didn¡¯t need to study or work that hard at all. Furthermore, even using these dominions was easy. A fool could do it if he was given proper training afterwards.


    "This power," Lord Kirien said, his voice hoarse and fatigued, "all power,es with a price, with a duty. It hurts me to see how you failed to grasp it."


    "Now you will teach me about price and duty, old fool." William shouted, hurling the ck me again. "You have no idea how much or what I paid to get here."


    William shot the fire, this time not as a fireball, but as arge wave of ck fire. The elderly knight lurched his body to dodge and managed to get out safely, though some of the dark me burned into his light armour to invade his system. The mes ignored the armour, drilled into his skin, giving a chilly burning feeling.


    The breathing he was trying so hard to keep even, the energy he was drawing to keep the dominion of gravity in check, fled away from his grasp as Lord Kirien shed against a sidewall, rattling the camp violently.


    William was about to attack again, but the elderly knight lurched up from there at him, crashing in fiercely. The spell he was forming dissolved, however, yet again, he drew his energy into his amulet to protect himself, forming the shield. Lord Kirien was in no position to make any shes with the sword, but he had ns for something else entirely.


    With a hurl of his power, the dominion of gravity pushed against the earth as the two of them lurched up. William¡¯s shield collided against the hardwood roof, creating a hole in it as both of them lurched higher to collide against the final roof.


    Snow fell on them as the crack erged on the roof. William¡¯s shield dissolved after shaking violently as icy bone-chilling winds assaulted them as the snowfall crashed onto them.


    "Old fool, you¡¯re going to kill us both," William screamed at the elderly knight, who seemed to not hear him.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Lord Kirien carried him high in the air as the violent chilling wind pped heavily against their body. William was forming his ck me yet again, though only to threaten, however, Lord Kirien wasted no time, and jerked his body to fling away William from the hundred metres high. However, the old knight was in no better condition as his body followed suit.


    Despite his attempt to undermine the fall with dominion, Lord Kirien¡¯s body crashed against the roof, breaking the roof into the first floor. With a thud, he copsed on the first floor, but didn¡¯t have enough momentum to break another roof.


    While William fell in another direction in the snow, it¡¯s hard to guess who between the two had the worst fall.


    Lord Kirien coughed, and dark scarlet blood oozed out of his mouth again. He stood up, weighing himself with his sword, still coughing. He coughed out blood again and walked down the stairs, nging onto the wall. His entire body was jolting with pain, while the power inside his body. More than a half dozen of his bones shattered. The inconsiderable amount of freedom he got from ignoring everything was fleeting away.


    He came down to the ground floor, staggering to find the familiar room. The healer, Lady Yeriel, was still unconscious with a reddish pale face, and his wife, she was shaking just the same, wrapped in a nket.


    Staggering, the old knight reached for the healer, shaking her. ¡°Lady Yeriel,¡± he called,ying his palms on her shoulder to shake her. ¡°Please . . . please wake up, I need you, my wife needs . . .¡±


    A disturbance came behind him, and he spun to find the familiar figure of the Warlock. William didn¡¯t have his cheeky grin on his lips, nor was he organised like he presented himself. His sweater was torn, hair dishevelled, and was walking unevenly, protecting his left foot.


    Lord Kirien grunted silently, taking a stance again with his sword. Yeriel and his sick wife were behind him. Only then did he learn what kind of position he was in. If William attacks, he cannot dodge it, as it would likely hit one of the two.


    William jolted or acted as if he did. ¡°Peace, peace,¡± he said, holding both of his palms upwards. ¡°I came in peace.¡±


    ¡°What game are you trying to y?¡±


    "No game." The cheeky grin returned to his lips as William crept safely away from the knight, hands still held high. "I came up with a proposal." Seeing the old knight silent, he continued. "Lord Kirien, why are you here? Of course, it¡¯s to cure your wife, right? So why note to apromise here? "


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Lord Kirien said, eyes ring.


    "I''ll let you have Yeriel cure your wife first, and then we''ll both go our separate ways," William continued.


    "What do you want with Lady Yeriel?" Lord Kirien inquired, his grip on the hilt tightening. His stomach churned with hatred just thinking he considered this proposal.


    "She still has uses in my n," William said, "but that¡¯s not important to you. What is important to you is the life of your dear wife. So tell me, do we have a deal?"


    "Do you think I¡¯llpromise with you?" Lord Kirien shouted, standing a little more poise. "Especially to someone like you!"


    "Well, well, aren¡¯t you an Augur of Purity and Innocence?" William mocked, the scorn returning in his voice. ¡°Old fool, do you think I need topromise with you? You¡¯re waist deep in a grave. All I need is time. If it isn¡¯t because I¡¯m short on that, do you think I¡¯ll negotiate with you? To a noble of all people?"


    Lord Kirien went silent, his lips quivering. Even though he presented a strong front, he couldn¡¯t hide his state from the assant.


    "So what would it be, old fool?" William asked,ughing, "I can wait for some time to see you die, before taking her with me, however, I¡¯m promising you this: your dear wife will pay in full for your fault in wasting my precious time. Either way, it''s my win here."


    - - -

 Chapter 70 44: Culprit (3)

    Yeriel woke to find a smiling face greeting her. The moment her mind came to recognition, her body tried to jolt away, however, a powerful arm clung to her hard, rendering all her effort futile.


    ¡°Now that¡¯s just hurtful,¡± William said, biting his lower lip, showing a hurtful expression. ¡°All I did was drugged you a little. Trust me, I had no bad intention.¡±


    Yeriel didn¡¯t listen to him or just didn¡¯t care. She was about to cast a spell, only to notice her channels were still sealed. She couldn¡¯t even hold a trickle of spirit energy, much less cast a spell. However, there¡¯s still something she could try, all that matters were her willingness, or how effective it would be.


    ¡°So full of energy,¡± William said, letting go of her arm, as Yeriel jolted back against the wall, chest heaving up and down in panic. ¡°That¡¯s why I like you.¡±


    Yeriel calmed her breathing and looked around to find the familiar ce, though it was wrecked badly in the time she passed out. There were holes in the ceilings, spreading chilly air with snow into the room. The wooden walls were damaged with ck scarred burned marks in them. Even though the camp seemed to hold off for now, she was not sure how long it would stay that way.


    Then she noticed Lord Kirien, standing across from her with his sword at his side, eyes weary, face pale with blood leaking from his mouth and nostrils. Noticing her gaze, the elderly Knight looked away and didn¡¯t meet her gaze. However, Yeriel had a glimpse of his eyes. That look in his eyes told that he had failed, and something more. Guilt.


    Yeriel took a deep breath and found the sickdy on the bed to return to her capturer. ¡°What do you want with me?¡± she found herself asking.


    ¡°Straight to the point, I like you,¡± William said,ughing. ¡°What I want is to liberate you, but before that, you need toplete a task first.¡±


    ¡°Never,¡± Yeriel said at once, her voice particrly clear. ¡°I won¡¯t do any of your biddings.¡±


    ¡°Even when it¡¯s curing that poordy over there?¡±


    Yeriel¡¯s mouth hung open as she stared back and forth between the warlock and her patient. What kind of game he is ying, she thought. She couldn¡¯t make out anything from Lord Kirien¡¯s expression either, that the elderly knight was not particrly helpful for not meeting her eyes. What really happened after she passed out? Even though she had never encountered a warlock before, she had heard stories, and she was old enough to know a warlock like William rarely does anything without motives.


    William smirked. ¡°Why, you don¡¯t want to heal her?¡± he asked, still with his grin. ¡°Well, that would save a lot of my time. I¡¯ve taken an oath, but if the healer doesn¡¯t want to heal, it has nothing to do with me. Isn¡¯t that right, Lord Kirien?¡±


    The elderly Knight¡¯s face, which was pale red, turned grotesque, hearing William. ¡°Lady Yeriel,¡± he called, ¡°I . . .¡±


    ¡°Come on, let¡¯s leave this old pair of husband-wife to die,¡± William said, trying to pull Yeriel¡¯s arm yet again. ¡°We have a lot more important stuff to do.¡±


    Yeriel yelped again, trying hard to fend off William, however, her strength was minuscule with the weakness she was feeling to get her freedom.


    ¡°Lady Yeriel, please,¡± Lord Kirien called, bowing his head against the cold floor. ¡°Please save my wife, please . . .¡±


    ¡°Huh, look at this hypocrite,¡± the warlock mocked, his grip on Yeriel¡¯s arm softened. ¡°Face full of guilt and shame. I was right, I know a hypocrite when I see one. Lady Yeriel, how hard you worked to cure his family, yet so easily he gave up on you, on his duty, just to cure his wife. You would be better off leaving people like him, Lady Yeriel.¡±


    Getting her chance, Yeriel fended off William¡¯s arm. ¡°I will heal,¡± she said, jaw clenching hard.


    William¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Why?¡± he asked, ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear, the knight sold you out to cure his loved one?¡±


    Yeriel ignored his question and stared into his eyes. Her conviction strengthened. She didn¡¯t know what William¡¯s end game was, what he was intending to do with her after he finishes, why was he even trying hard to make sure she hates Lord Kirien, but for this particr moment, she didn¡¯t care. All she cared about was healing her patient.


    ¡°What did you agree upon?¡±


    William flinched and looked away from her stare. ¡°Well, I agreed to let you cure the poordy and would have nothing to do with her or Lord Kirien. In return, Lord Kirien won¡¯t fight me when I take you away. This old fool was quite through with his oath, didn¡¯t leave any hole for me to exploit. Well, either way, it¡¯s only you that I want. You¡¯re precious to me, to my n.¡±


    Yeriel felt sick in her stomach, but nodded with a masked expression. She knew about oaths; when two spirit practitioners took agreed on an oath, an ethereal binding was ced on their soul, and that binding stayed in ce for eternity or until the agreement is met. These oaths are only applicable to Spirit practitioners, and breaking the oaths would put the oathbreaker in a hazardous situation, as his spirit arts and energy wouldn¡¯t work as before and soon he would start to lose potential. That was why, in the academy, they were taught to take oaths seriously and take no oaths on a whim.


    ¡°I would need my channel free to concoct the cure,¡± she said with a straight face.


    ¡°Do you?¡± William said, tilting his head, ¡°Apologies, Precious, I won¡¯t do that. You''re still a threat.¡±


    Lord Kirien, who was feeling relief just now, grunted angrily. ¡°William, you promised . . .¡±


    ¡°Did I?¡± William snorted. ¡°Did I promise to free her? Besides, I don¡¯t think she needs her channels free to concoct a cure, and if it''s a dire necessity, I won¡¯t mind helping. I¡¯m quite a good chemist myself, though my calling was never healing, still, I would do my best. I¡¯ve taken oath after all.¡±


    Yeriel¡¯s lips quivered, finding thest hope dying. Well, anyway, even if she frees her channel, could she fight against a warlock? She only knew one or two self-preserving spells, which would never be enough.


    ¡°Fine,¡± she said and stood up, but her legs were weak and were about to fall when William caught her.<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡°Slow down, Precious.¡±


    Yeriel scowled at the warlock and fended his arm from her. She steadied herself and moved to organise her instruments again. Even though a fight between a Warlock and Knight transpired here, most of her instruments seemed in a fair state. As she organised her instruments, Lord Kirien thanked her and also apologised to her, over and over. She, of course, ignored him entirely, not to spite him. It''s just that her mind needed time to figure out everything of the ingredients and instruments she would need was alright.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright, Lord Kirien,¡± she said to the elderly knight finally, checking everything was alright. A few of the ss sks were shattered, but most of her stuff was alright. ¡°Thank me when I cure your wife.¡±


    ¡°Ishar bless you,¡± Lord Kirien said with teary eyes, head bowing low to the ground.


    - - -


    William snorted at the hypocrite. Did she not see the hypocrisy of these nobles? He questioned, eyes glued to the healer working. He would take no chances here. Yeriel was an aplished healer, also an excellent chemist and alchemist; she might be able to concoct something that would assist in her escape. Luckily, he had a good grasp on that subject and could make sure she concocts nothing but the cure.


    ¡°Manas help me,¡± the healer muttered, and busied herself in the task.


    Two individual eyes glued on her from the start, one with suspicions while the other was weary and worried.


    ¡°Can you hurry?¡± William said, only a quarter of an hourter.


    Yeriel lifted her head from stirring a solution in a sk. ¡°Help me,¡± she said, holding out a sk and a vial, containing a colourless solution and a blue liquid, respectively. ¡°You¡¯re skilled in Spirit Cloud? Make sure you saturated this solution well and don¡¯t even think about mixing something into it.¡±


    ¡°Yes, my Precious,¡± William gave her a brilliant smile, taking the sk and vial. As usual, Yeriel didn¡¯t reply to his flirtyment and returned to her task.


    Lord Kirien was about to argue about that. How could he let a warlock, whose transgressions were at fault for everything wrong, help? However, finding the stern stare from Yeriel, he kept his silence. It didn¡¯t appear he could do anything more, either.


    William stirred his spirit energy with a few strands of dark energy, however, he felt a surreal, suffocating feeling just showing the intention of doing something ill into the solution. He smiled and withdrew the dark energy to draw some pure energy to cast as an invisible cloud in the sk. He didn¡¯t really want to do anything to the solution. The sickdy lives or dies, it had nothing to do with him. He just likes to see how dominant the oath is.


    ¡°Lady Yeriel, why are you helping someone who sold you out?¡± William asked, while mixing the blue liquid into the colourless solution. Yeriel was not creating anything to assist her in escape, but it was the cure¡ªthat fascinates him. Wouldn¡¯t a normal person just spout in anger with such behaviour?


    Yeriel didn¡¯t reply, of course.


    ¡°If you stray away from your initial purpose, no one will me you, then why?¡±


    Yeriel lifted her head in his direction. ¡°You like to hear your voice all the time, isn¡¯t that right?¡±


    William raised an eyebrow, smiling. ¡®As a matter of fact, I do.'' That revtion only made him smile ear to ear.


    ¡°How about shut your mouth for the time, I¡¯m working?¡±


    Abruptly, a bombardment boomed as Yeriel stirred on her spot.


    ¡°What was that?¡± she asked, eyes drawn towards the way it came from.


    ¡°Looks like we have no time,¡± William said in the same tone, giving back the solution. ¡°Complete your concoction now.¡±


    Yeriel jolted, but took the solution. She ignored the worries she felt for Oscar and others and dropped three drips of liquid blood asparagus into the solution toplete the cure. White and red smoke came out in rings as her concoction finished in sess. The ingredients were just difficult to find, but the concocting was not that difficult. She had tried to waste as much time as she could, but in the end, no help came in.


    The bombardment only proved that William was more organised and thoughtful about this assault than she had assumed. She was sure by now that, like her, others were in trouble.


    Sighing, she moved to cure her patient.


    _ _ _


    This chapter is bing long, two more part left. Join the discord server if you''re interested in more stuff rted to this story.

 Chapter 71 44: Culprit (4)

    William became irritated, seeing Yeriel¡¯s loss at making Lord Kirien¡¯s wife swallow the cure. Her teeth were clenched so tight that if she tried, most of the solution would be wasted.


    ¡°Give me that,¡± William said, and literally seized the sk from her.


    Since the bombardment, he was a bit agitated. Despite him presenting the same collected self, he was really short on time. His associates had already made their move already on the information he had given them. Things would get a bitplicated from here, but again, didn¡¯t he act as a civilised sorcerer for this kind of opportunity?


    He did feel a little qualm betraying his colleagues whom he worked with for over a year, but he killed that promptly. The world is changing. You either join in the line, behind others or form a line for yourself. William always wanted to be thetter.


    Narrowing his eyes, he drew in the energy into the solution and let it flow ording to his will into the sickdy¡¯s mouth. It poured through the gaps in her teeth and into her throat all the way down to the stomach.


    ¡°We¡¯re done here,¡± he said, throwing away the sk after pouring everything into the sickdy.


    ¡°Lord Kirien,¡± Yeriel shouted immediately and was about to run at the old knight, but a tough arm caught her.


    William thought something was not right since he heard nothing from the old fool when they were curing his dear wife, but who knew he was already dead? Well, he did know the old knight was not in good condition and would likely die soon with no immediate care, but who knew it would be even before he saw his spouse cured?


    ¡®Well, I did drug him,'' William thought, ¡®and then infected his channels with dark affliction. It¡¯s a miracle that he stood so long. He was a good man for a hypocrite. I¡¯ve to give him that.¡¯


    ¡°Let me go,¡± Yeriel shouted, struggling to free herself. ¡°Lord Kirien, he needs my help.¡±


    William said nothing and moved towards where the old knight was sitting, eyes still wide and weary, but they looked lifeless. He didn¡¯t have to drag Yeriel, as the healer was already struggling to help the old fool. She was one light-blinded fool, and that¡¯s why he had need for her.


    ¡°I¡¯vepleted my oath,¡± William told the elderly knight, nudging him on the head.


    Lord Kirien didn¡¯t answer, his body dropped to the side as his lifeless eyes shook for thest time.


    ¡°He¡¯s beyond help, Precious,¡± William said, ¡°Let us withdraw.¡±


    ¡°No . . . no . . .¡± Yeriel said, her voice losing its strengthing as just a whisper. ¡°Let go of me. He needs help.¡¯


    William, obviously, didn¡¯tply with her request, dragged her out of the camp into a bone-chilling icy blizzard while Yeriel spout curses at him non-stop. To be honest, her vocabry was quite limited in this subject, still, William felt annoyed. Two of the three difficult tasks were almost done, he needed to prepare for the third, and in that he would need Yeriel¡¯s assistance, if she came willingly then the task was half done, however, he¡¯d failed to warp her mind, showing the hypocrisy to the noble she tried so hard to heal.


    ¡°Let go of me if you have any humanity left in you,¡± Yeriel shouted, tears dripping down her face as her feet dragged through the snow. ¡°You unholy, Light consume you. . . .¡±


    William stayed silent no more. With a sudden jerk of his arm, he threw the healer forward into the snow. Yeriel yelped, but William came straight in front of her face, his cold eyes staring at her unblinkingly, not a single sign of his grin present now. He held out his hand and touched her chin to make sure she would didn¡¯t look away.


    ¡°Precious, you have two options from here,¡± he said, voice as cold as the stiff wind. ¡°What I¡¯m going to do with you is something mortally dangerous. Either you give in to my demands, do as I say, and you will be able to keep your life and sanity. If you agree to this, I¡¯m willing to take another oath on this.¡±


    William looked at her as if wanting to gain an answer from her, but Yeriel¡¯s jaw was hard-clenched, struggling to free herself from his clutches. William was not joking there. His purpose was to gain strength, not just murder people on a whim. His other associates would disagreed, but William was unlike them.


    ¡°Or, you can struggle till the end,¡± William¡¯s voice grew colder, ¡°where you might keep your life, but I can¡¯t say the same about your sanity. Trust me, I would do it even if I¡¯ve to break you. It would pain me, but Precious, I would do it.¡±


    ¡°Inhuman,¡± Yeriel yelled, voice at the edge, ¡°Zashin burn you.¡±


    William shook his head. He was not getting through to her. Maybe she still held onto the hope that someone would save her. Let see how long it takes. He has an entire day, which should be enough to get what he wanted from her. If not, he would have to proceed without her willingness.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± he said and dragged Yeriel from there. And so, the warlock dragged the healer with him into the snow, leaving a dead Knight, and a sickdy, who might get cured of her disease, but would surely die of cold.


    Yeriel didn¡¯t make it easy for him, stayed there like a limp; William had to drag her entirely. The stiff, icy wind swirled, swaying her hair, and the muffler. Cold icy snow pped against her face, bringing pain, however, the impending doom should be far scarier to her.<novelnext></novelnext>


    William would¡¯ve feltpassion for her if he was younger, butpassion is irrelevant and illogical.


    Yeriel kept on screaming behind him, though her voice was fatigued, and with the blizzard wind swirling, not much of it came into his ears. He needed to be quick, he already wasted too much time. Yeriel was not making it easy; she was dragging her body in the other direction.


    ¡°Looks like I¡¯ve got to make you unconscious again and carry you all the way.¡± Shaking his head, William turned.


    Abruptly, something sharp shot at him at a tremendous speed. William didn¡¯t have enough time to form a shield, but he still drew energy into the amulet. The shield would be toote, so he tried to move away, jerking his head back, but all his effort rendered futile as it hit right into his right eye, digging into the eye socket.


    ¡°Burn you, woman!¡±


    William screamed at the top of his lungs. Although the short spike dug only one of his eyes, his vision darkened immediately, as William rolled to the ground, screaming in agony. The shield formed after the damage was done, still, William kept a part of his focus on supplying more energy to the shield. However, betraying his reasoning, no attack came after that.


    ¡°Curse you woman. Curse your Forefather.¡±


    He didn¡¯t know what happened. He had sealed Yeriel¡¯s channel properly. It would take her a dozen hours, if not a day, to unseal it on her own. How could she attack him? At the moment, William didn¡¯t care a till for the answer. All he wanted was for his pain to end. Gasping for breath, he pulled the spike out, though his vision was still dark, both eyelids tightly shut.


    The spike had dug through his right eyelid, while his left one closed on instinct along with it. Gritting his teeth, he pressed his palm against the right eye, while struggling to open the left eye. After a few failed attempts, William managed to open his teary left eye into the darkness. Only, after blinking half a dozen times, did his left eye adjust.


    Yeriel was nowhere to be seen. In his frantic agonising manner, the healer fled. Fortunately, she had left her trails in the snow, though he had to make sure if she left it as a false trail or not.


    Then he looked at the spike that blinded his good right eye. It was a ck hairpin. Now, it made some sense to him. This ck hairpin was a sympathetic item to her, but how could she manipte it without spirit energy?


    Communion takes little to a negligible amount of energy, however, it¡¯s impossible when your channels are sealed. Unless . . .


    ¡®Don¡¯t tell me she linked it to her before I sealed her channels and held onto it till now, even through her unconsciousness?¡¯ That thought chilled William. Now he was even suspecting his understanding of alchemy. She was literally drugged, and he had already checked the dose on Mrs Sonina, thendy.


    ? Shaking his head, William kept the hairpin in his pocket, before bringing bandages and medicine out of his handbag. Applying the medicine was not any bit easier. It hurt like hell, but Williampleted both medicine and bandaging roughly within a couple of minutes, gritting his teeth. He still had a lot of things left to do. Yeriel just made it messier.


    He had to move fast, the snowfall would destroy all the trails in a few minutes. The warlock moved swiftly. The blizzard was no less rming to him; he had to make sure his channels were not freezing, swirling energy all the way.


    "This girl can run,¡± William muttered, looking at the long trail, ¡°but luckily, it seems the weather is on my side.¡±


    The blizzard slowed down, and even the snowfall. Swift wind still blew, but that was a lot slower now. Ice didn¡¯t p against his face now as he proceeded swiftly down the trail, ignoring the pain in his eyes and head.


    Abruptly, William felt some disturbance. Someone wasing. Without thinking, he stopped and tried to hide though failed in the attempt. It''s vast whitend covered in snow. Only after a few seconds, did William find out it was not someone, but three,ing towards them, moreover, it appeared he was familiar with them.


    William¡¯s brain worked fast as he collected himself, making sure he had nothing on him that would be a giveaway to finally approach the group, concocting a n in his head.


    The first of the three William noticed was his boss, or old boss before he betrayed her. She seemed fine from the outside. He knew this witch was better than she let others think. Her knight seemed to get the worse end of them, with a severe wound on her right thigh and right shoulder slumped. She was trying to hide it, which gave it away to him.


    Andstly, the tall youth with red hair with a cut mark on his right eyebrow all the way to the scalp. His handsome face was an utter mess nose with a broken nose and blood patches. One of his arms seemed broken too, but more importantly, he was standing. Dear Lord, he was freaking standing.


    Now, William was sure, he needs to revise his alchemy study harder.


    _

 Chapter 72 44: Culprit (5)

    Even though William appeared to be casual, he couldn¡¯t hide the uneasiness in his behaviour.


    Well, as things progressed, he should have been more uneasy than casual. Why was he even trying to appear casual?


    There¡¯s something I need to make sure, before advancing further. Things hadn¡¯t gone this wrong so early in the event a year from now.


    Narrowing my eyes at the sorcerer, I walked a couple of steps forward, palms behind my back, gesturing to the others to stay put in their spot. I need to test something out, and to do that I would need both Shailyn¡¯s and Noyar¡¯s support. At least they did not disrupt me until I finished.


    William, who was checking out Noyar, returned his one-eyed gaze to me. There were some entricities in his eyes. Perhaps surprised at my state, but the light was too dim to make them out anything.


    ¡°What happened to your eye?¡± I asked.


    William stared for a few good seconds. My beat-up face might have confused him, but he seemed more confused by my lead. "It''s a long story," William said, shaking his head, "but it seemed like it wasn''t just me who got the short end of the warlock. What happened to your arm and that face?"


    I didn¡¯t answer and stared down at William for a good couple of seconds before I was interrupted.


    "Can you two stop?" Shailyn asked from behind. ¡°I can¡¯t hold off against the cold. Let¡¯s return to the camp first, before we¡¯ll have the time of our lives to discuss what happened to us."


    "Yes,¡° William said, ¡°even though the blizzard has stopped for now, the cold is unbearable. Lady Shailyn, you don¡¯t look good, perhaps . . ."


    I gestured again with my palms on my back to stay put. Shailyn didn¡¯t seem to be in her right mind to take my gesture seriously, considering she even noticed them, but her Knight Noyar had a better grasp of the situation. She kept Shailyn in ce while I advanced toplete myst test.


    William seemed to notice something as well. ¡°Unfortunately,¡± he continued, trying to draw attention elsewhere again, ¡°I don¡¯t think the camp would be a good option to return to."


    I bit my tongue. Shailyn, who listened a little to me and Noyar¡¯s caution, drew closer. "The camp?" she asked, with evident worry in her eyes. "What happened to it? What about Lord Kirien and the others?"


    ¡°Shailyn, calm down.¡± Noyar steadied her as much as she could.


    "There was an attack," William said, looking down. "I failed to stop them. I . . . I¡¯m sorry . . ."


    "Let''s go there first and¡ª" Shailyn said as she moved.


    She was about to move past, but I drew my good arm against her shoulder to stop her. She gave me a peculiar look, but I returned my attention to the sorcerer.


    "What happened to Young Lord Oscar?" William asked,ughing with a bitter tone. It appeared his injuries weren¡¯t letting him smile easily. "Why are you giving me those distrustful stares?"


    I looked William in the eyes for a moment before my shoulder slumped. "It¡¯s nothing. Sorry if I offended you. The night was long, and too many things went wrong," I said, shaking my head. I saw William rxing a bit. ¡°I think the cold got into my head with all the worries. By the way, how¡¯s Yeriel? "


    I didn¡¯t uphold, showing my genuine worries in front of him.


    "Yes, the cold is absolutely irresistible," William said, touching the side of his bad eye, ¡°as for Yeriel, she should be fine for the time being. She escaped when the warlock hit us. I¡¯m sorry I couldn¡¯t protect her."


    I bit my lips and shook my head. ¡°I¡¯m sure you did everything you could, William,¡° I said, and brought out the container of honey. "You don¡¯t look alright. Here, have some honey."


    Saying that, I tossed the container at William, making sure he couldn''t catch it, and it dropped a few steps ahead of him. "Oops, a poor toss. I¡¯m not really well."


    "Huh," Shailyn snorted from my side. ¡°When I asked for it, you didn¡¯t give it to me, but now you¡¯re giving it to him. Oscar, you¡¯re not fair."


    ¡®Aunt, what would take you to shut up?¡¯ I groaned inwardly, knowing that it wasn¡¯t her fault, however, my eyes were glued to William. His left eye fluttered uneasily, hearing Shailyn, while his body shook unconsciously.


    He was drawing in energy.


    "Come on, take it," I told the sorcerer. ¡°It¡¯s good stuff, and it isn¡¯t like someone would put some poison in it. I mean, someone needs to be a real miscreant to do something that sneaky and terrible."


    "What in Ishar¡¯s name are you talking about?" My aunt yelled, but I didn¡¯t listen to her this time around.


    The widened look in William¡¯s eye, and him trying to escape, were enough evidence.


    Gusts of stream released from behind me as my body lurched towards William, who was on his first step to escape. Within a moment, I was there, the Punisher held tight to my good arm while a transparent wall of shield formed before William.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Holding nothing back, I swung. A crimson fire burned in the nail sword the very instant as it prated the shield before my body collided against it, shattering it like clear ss. The shield dissolved into thin air, but my sword was still lit in the crimson glory of purgatory.


    I didn¡¯t attack William with the sword, though, as I needed a few answers from him, but I didn¡¯t hold back when my body collided against him, flinging him a few metres away.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± Shailyn yelled from behind.


    I didn¡¯t listen to her, and it seemed William was showing his true face as well, drawing in energy to form dark mes. But, before he could finish his spell, I shot again, taking full advantage of the false-ward to fling him away once more, jerking my head back and right leg forward for a flying kick.


    William appeared to be more resilient than the average Magus, but with the persistent kicks and sword swings without spirit energy, he sumbed. When I finished, he was still in better condition than I or anyone appeared to be.


    Well, I was too fatigued to use spirit energy, so my feet and bare sword did all the work. The result was just what I desired, and I have to thank the false-ward for that.


    It wouldn¡¯t be possible without that. It is only where it stands advantageous against the Dominion of Gravity. I only need a few strands of energy to manipte it.


    William didn¡¯t struggle more as my sword pointed right at his neck, while Shailyn and Noyar followed, jamming any route of escape for the warlock. Yes, Warlock. It appeared there was a warlock in our midst, hiding in our ranks.


    ¡°Aunt,¡± I called, my voice dry, ¡°Can you guess how you¡¯ve beenpromised?¡±


    The little luminescentmp didn¡¯t have enough light to see properly, but I could guess my aunt had an unsightly expression on her face, staring at William. It was as if something had broken inside her at this betrayal.


    ¡°Why?¡± she asked the warlock, sealing his channels first. ¡°Why did you do it? After a year of so persistent work, you . . . I trusted you. . . .¡°


    William stared at her for a few good seconds before looking away, not uttering a word.


    ¡°I had trusted you and brought you to this post . . . .¡± her voice quivered, lips shaking.


    Cursed warlock! She was truly vulnerable. Even though Shailyn seemed fine physically, I could make out she was anything but fine inside. Noyar was there to take care of her.


    "Now, will you tell me what happened to your eye?" I asked then, resting my sword in the scabbard. "Or is it also fake like yourself?"


    William said nothing and stared at me hatefully.


    ¡°How did you know?¡± Noyar asked me. Other than the revtion that their colleague, who has been with them for over a year, was a Warlock, she seemed shocked at my disy.


    I didn¡¯t answer first, but searched for the little container of honey. Finding it, I held it towards Noyar, giving William a gaze. "I think he mixed some kind of spirit-numbing drug into them. It''s likely when I first gave him the container. I was too busy doing other things to notice anything then, but after drinking that honey twice, I¡¯m sure something was wrong with it."


    I sighed. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. It seemed that my poor performance had dragged the team down, and who knows what he did in the camp?¡±


    Yeriel, is she alright? Oh holy hell, I gave this poison to her, didn¡¯t I? My stomach churned at the discovery. And there¡¯s also Lord Kirien. Now I know why William was so headstrong in getting everyone the honey.


    "How?" Noyar asked, examining the honey. She found nothing wrong with it from the outside. "I literally saw you taking the honey a few minutes ago. How are you fine? You even drew spirit energy to capture William."


    "The answer is with the Hunter bee¡¯s honey. Among many of its features, it¡¯s a very potent medicine to neutralise some poisons in particr." And more importantly, Purgatory burned most of the poison that infected my system. All it needed was a little time.


    First, I thought the dullness was because of the tranquillizers Althan and his buddies struck me with, but after I took the honey a few moments ago, I felt a jolting reaction from purgatory, burning the honey away. That was when I suspected William, as none other to whom I handed over this honey, would do that. However, I needed to make sure that''s why I looked for signs.


    I acted as if I was sure William was the culprit, and William fell for it and tried to escape. In the end, all yed well.


    "Enough of that. Let''s return. I¡¯m worried about others." I said, letting out a breath of worry.


    All yed well, after all the damage William caused.


    ________


    Next Chapter: The Damage Done

 Chapter 73 45: The Damage Done (1)

    Q: What''s buried in King Alberan''s biography?


    A: The Prophecies of Return.


    - - -


    The camp was in better shape than we had hoped, at least from the outside, with the door broken. Inside, we found two big holes in the ceilings, causing the temperature of the camp to be no better than outside.


    Splinters of wood spread around the room, as a thinyer of snow already covered the ground, and then we found the body.


    I gasped for breath. William didn¡¯t open his mouth once about what he did here, but I was prepared for anything. However, seeing the scene made me shiver. Oh, it isn¡¯t just the cold.


    Shailyn moved closer to the body, covered in ayer of snow, while I stayed behind, eyes drifting all around to find any clues. Noyar stayed with me, watching over the captive. There was some evidence of the battle that transpired before; the charred walls and the holes in the ceilings. The pungent smell of dark magic in the air¡ªwinter covered it most, but anyone with little keen senses could make out the wrongness.


    However, all in all, it didn¡¯t appear to be an all-out battle. That meant William likely assaulted the elderly knight in a sneak attack, ying ally. Well, after how he made him swallow poison, I expect nothing less from this warlock.


    ¡°He¡¯s dead,¡± Shailyn said, checking the heartbeat and then opening the eyelids. She shook her head, ring at William. ¡°An hour ago, at best.¡±


    My aunt bowed her head down, left palm bringing the right to sp together on her chest in prayer, and Noyar did the same, while I moved towards the middle of the room, where a few sks, a burner, and various ingredients were tossed around.


    They were Yeriel¡¯s stuff; however, the girl was nowhere to be found. But it seemed she managed to concoct her cure before William assaulted them.


    "Shailyn," I said, motioning to the sick woman in bed, wrapped in a nket. Even though she was probably cured of the Winter¡¯s Decay, she would die of the cold if she stayed here like this.


    Shailyn nodded and went to amodate Lord Kirien¡¯s wife while Noyar bound William to the side, searching for his possessions.


    "We can''t stay here much longer," I said, and they both acknowledged. Since William knew about this ce, other of his associates probably did too. They would probably attack here, searching for us or William.


    Without troubling others, I went upstairs to check the other rooms.


    My search was fruitless, as most rooms were the same as when we left. I collected my other bag that I had stuffed under the bed, as well as anything useful that could be found toe down.


    Shailyn studied the sickdy. ''Blood and ashes, she looks awful, and it isn¡¯t just because of her injuries and afflictions.¡¯ The betrayal and the deceased pinned her down even further. Meanwhile, Noyar hadid down everything she found off of William, and it seemed his eye was really blinded for good.


    I thought it would be fake since William didn¡¯t seem that discontent about it,st time we talked.


    Noyar removed the bandage to check before bandaging again. William grunted in agony while Noyar did that, which was, of course, a good thing. Since the warlock could feel pain, he would talk.


    Getting near them, I crouched down near the stuff Noyar brought out of the Warlock. First was the amulet; it¡¯s a simple artifact in the shape of a finger-sized figure bound to his bracelet¡ªcould create a shield around the possessor, providing enough spirit energy. It''s simple but effective, and it¡¯s quick too. Something like this must have cost a fortune.


    Next were two notebooks: one seemed for taking notes, and the other was stuffed with a lot of pages extracted from different books¡ªthose two would need deeper examination.


    There were a few vials of meds, drugs, and detoxifying potion, so he really came prepared to betray us. Why hadn''t I recognised him from the book?


    My wondering stopped as I held onto the next item. It¡¯s an iron spike like a hairpin, which could be dangerous enough to kill a normal person. However, against an adept practitioner, it''s like a child''s y.


    I stared back at William, who was also looking at me and at the spike. It would be a child''s y if the practitioner, who was prepared for it, but it seemed William was not as prepared and thought he won, but in the end, paid his right eye as a price.


    ¡°Do you know what it is?¡± Noyar asked, noticing me taking extra time on the hairpin.


    ¡°It¡¯s Yeriel¡¯s,¡± I answered truthfully, ¡°a sympathetic item. I think it¡¯s through this she managed to get away.¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    It seemed there was something that couldn¡¯t be changed. In the book, Yeriel identally blinded someone in self-defence with the hairpin, and here it''s likely a simr case.


    Sometimes, a small trick is all you need. Well, that was a pleasant revtion. Now I just have to find her before others can.


    ¡°I¡¯ve got to find Yeriel,¡± I said to others and myself, standing up, intending to leave.


    ¡°Slow down,¡± Shailyn said, approaching us. ¡°Look at your state; you¡¯re in no condition to do anything other than resting.¡±


    ¡°But Shailyn¡ª¡°


    ¡°No buts,¡± Shailyn said, even though she seemed weaker than I, her voice held authority. ¡°I know you¡¯re worried for your friend, but going alone in such a state would only cause disaster for us. Think logically for a second.¡±


    ¡°Aunt, I think I can do it,¡± I said, clenching my jaw.


    "Can you really?" Shailyn challenged, and then shoved me in the chest with a light push. I staggered on my back, but managed to stand back in time. Well, I did use the suit to assist me; however, the disy was enough.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never trained my physical body, nor used my full strength,¡± Shailyn said, sping on my shoulder, ¡°look at yourself, nephew. I¡¯ve failed toprehend the level of danger of this mission, and led so many of you into mortal danger. Manas help me, I¡¯ll be damned before I¡¯ll let you go on your own when you can¡¯t even stand up properly.¡±


    Shailyn then went silent, eyes darting towards the corpse of Lord Kirien. Her fingernails dug into her palm as she grunted in frustration.


    ¡®She thinks it¡¯s her fault,¡¯ I thought, and touched her on the shoulder with my good palm, sping. "It isn¡¯t your fault." I tried to console her. "Lord Kirien knew of the danger, but still chose toe along."


    As for the danger of this mission, even I, who have more knowledge, failed toprehend. A single, unknown piece put everything in disarray. If only I could see through William¡¯s mask earlier, but that was almost impossible. ''That guy deserves the name Oscar better than me. He got every one of us fooled.¡¯


    "Look at you two," Noyar said, staring at the two of us. "One consoling the other, while both headstrong, that it¡¯s their fault."


    ¡°Eh,¡± I uttered, as my mouth hung open, lost for words. Was I ming myself? Kind of, but I knew I couldn¡¯t see through Wim¡¯s mask. Perhaps it would be different if I didn¡¯t wander alone to search for the cavern and got beaten up so badly.


    ¡°What¡¯s done is done,¡± the Lady Knight said. ¡°We¡¯ve lost men, good honourable men.¡±


    William, who was silent all the time, snorted, with evident contempt in his eyes. I felt like smacking him in the face. Though so far we only found Lord Kirien¡¯s corpse, there were about a dozen warders with us. Who knew what he did with them?


    Noyar ignored the warlock. ¡°We had no way of knowing there was one rat among us. So, ming ourselves would do little good. What we needed to figure out was how to approach the situation from here."


    And I thought she''s a woman of few words. Well, she did spoke little, but when she did, she''s effective with her words.


    ¡°Noyar is right," Shailyn said, "We have to decide, and we have to decide fast. We all need rest, but this ce is not safe. We need to depart. However, finding any suitable spot in this weather would be very difficult. Even getting to the other camp would take half a dozen hours, at least in our best condition. We may even have to camp outside, but--"


    ¡°Aunt, I think I have a solution for that.¡±


    - - -


    Edited by Mysteries (yes, your truly handsome, dashing alpha male editor is back.)


    Proofread by kqwxz.


    Comment, review, vote.

 Chapter 74 45: The Damage Done (2)

    The single luminescencemp did its best to ward off the looming darkness as the three of us advanced into the cavern, holding two more individuals.


    ¡°Careful there,¡± I called, holding the chained warlock¡ªWilliam with my good arm, ¡°there¡¯s a pool here.¡±


    ¡°I think you made that clear a dozen times already,¡± Shailyn called. ¡°Honestly, what do you think that I can¡¯t take care . . . ahhhhh . . .¡±


    Ssh!


    ¡°Shailyn, are you alright?¡± I called, while steading on the inclined path using the False-ward¡ªwithout that, my situation would¡¯ve been no better than Shailyn, with one broken elbow.


    The luminescentmp on my waistcked the intensity to show more than a few metres across, although I can see a light in the water, with a figure, trying to swim to the surface, however, she was finding it hard with the thinyer of ice frozen on the surface of the water.


    My aunt screamed in an incoherent curse as an invisible force surged out of her body, shattering all theyers of ice into molten bits. It was not just the cold water that got her on the edge. I wasn''t even sure how frustrated she was feeling inside.


    ¡°The water¡¯s heavier than normal water,¡± Shailyn said, calming down, ¡°That¡¯s probably why it only froze in that thinyer, still chilling enough.¡± Her voice shook as she climbed up from the pool.


    ¡°What is this ce?¡± Noyar asked from behind. In her embrace was Lord Kirien¡¯s wife, wrapped in a nket.


    ¡°This is the ce I came here to look for,¡± I said and gestured to her. ¡°Come along.¡±


    I followed the path I went the first time, stumbling around. Without the false-ward, I would really be bathing in the cold water now, which, of course, didn¡¯t appear to be a pleasant aspect to think about. Moreover, I have to drag William along, who was chained and blindfolded. I had to mention that this warlock was not making anything easier.


    Covering the pool, the first thing I did was thrust him on the ground. We haven¡¯t even gone through questioning or any rough treatment, he would be thoroughly mistaken if he thought we would treat him softly. Well, let¡¯s drop that for a moment.


    Beside, Noyar left Mrs Kirien on the ground carefully to climb back up to bring our bags. I offered my assistance, but Lady Knight was adamant that she alone would suffice. And she did. She brought three bags, two bigger ones and one medium safely, without falling into the pool.


    ¡°Now where?¡± Shailyn asked, shuddering in her wet clothing.


    ¡°You need to change first, Shailyn,¡± Noyar told her. Shailyn didn¡¯tin in the slightest with thatment.


    ¡°This cavern is spacious enough,¡± I told them, showing a direction, ¡°Go that way, while I finish other tasks here.¡±


    Shailyn didn¡¯t dy further, took a bag and went in the direction I showed. Noyar thought for a moment and looked at me. I nodded at her, and she followed behind Shailyn.


    I sighed and advanced to chain William to an enormous boulder in the corner.


    ¡°How¡¯re you feeling, William?¡± I asked the blindfolded captive, who as usual didn¡¯t answer.


    I lost interest in that for now as a deep sense of exhaustion came upon me. I couldn¡¯t hold it anymore, all my willpower wasted away as I limped against the wall next to Mrs Kirien. Grunting, I brought a nket out of the bag and wrapped it around me.


    If I had let myself, I''d sleep like a baby now, but I tried to stay awake. Even though we got to safety, for now, others were not in such a good situation. Yeriel, the other warders, and there¡¯s that Althan and his group, though they probably escaped after I freed myself from him.


    Shailyn and Noyar didn¡¯t take as much time as I assumed they would. Shailyn was not in her Magus robe now, but a white sweater, matching gloves and cap, while Noyar finally showed some form of exhaustion, limping her bad leg. The knight had removed her breastte and guards, and in thin clothing, probably wanted to tend her wounds properly.


    And holy hell, she¡¯s in her underwear. Good light or not, I looked away from her sultry legs to her face, which showed no embarrassment. I think my haggard face showed more blush than her.


    I guess what they say about the Women of Victoria is true. Well, after all, it¡¯s a nation led by women, I can expect all these. Moreover, they were practitioners; situations like these were prettymon.


    ¡°Nephew,¡± Shailyn called, sitting next to me, ¡°Let me see your wounds.¡±


    ¡°I think your Knight needs care first,¡± I said, but Shailyn touched my messed up face with both of her palms. I grunted, clenching my jaw.


    ¡°Noyar can take care of herself for now,¡± Shailyn said, bringing out some cream ointments, ¡°but you aren¡¯t used to this.¡±


    I guess she was right, so I let her tend the wounds. Shailyn was a bit surprised to find the raw cuts and scratches on the outside had healed already, I answered her by mentioning I¡¯ll provide an exnation or disy soon. As for my back, she asked me to remove the suit, which I declined outright, showing the broken elbow.


    ¡°That is going to be a problem?¡± Shailyn said, looking at my bent left elbow. I hadn¡¯t moved it even a bit in the meantime. ¡°I have to pull it straight.¡±


    I withdrew instinctively, hearing her. It would hurt like hell if I let her even pull a little.


    ¡°Don¡¯t show me that pitiful gaze,¡± Shailyn said, ¡°I¡¯m doing this for your own good.¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    I clenched my jaw and finally nodded. ¡°Just do it fast,¡± I said, resting my bad arm on her, closing my eyelids tight.


    I waited for a couple of seconds, but nothing happened. ¡°Shailyn?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t do it,¡± the magus said, looking towards her partner. ¡°Noyar, you do it.¡±


    Noyar, who was tending the awful looking wound on her thigh, looked from Shailyn to my arm and stood up, approaching. I didn¡¯t look at her slender long legs, but her tight clothing showed a good portion of her cleavage. I didn¡¯t think she had them this big, though it''s likely because of her thin frame and slender body.


    Only after the second seconds passed did I find that I was staring at her chest. I coughed and looked away.


    Noyar crouched down where Shailyn was and took my bad arm. ¡°It¡¯s going to hurt,¡± she said, ¡°I¡¯ll count to three and¡ª¡±


    ¡°Just do it fast,¡± I told her. The anticipation was not any bit convenient for my already exhausted mind.


    ¡°Clench your jaw, sofnder, or you might bit your tongue,¡± Noyar joked. Making sure, both of us alright, she continued. ¡°Here we go, 1 . . . 2 . . .¡±


    Snap!


    ¡°Bloody hell!¡± I screamed in curses, the equivalent pain of when it was broken washed over me. However, I could endure it a lot better now after a few moments. ¡°You¡¯re supposed to count to three.¡±


    ¡°Does it make a difference?¡± Noyar asked with a straight face.


    I guess not. Bloody woman!


    ¡°That arm would take time,¡± Noyar said, binding a bandage from my neck to hang the bad arm. ¡°This would do for now.¡±


    ¡°A practitioner''s body is different from a normal person¡¯s,¡± Shailyn said, ¡°ignoring that arm and your broken nose, all will be healed within hours.¡±


    ¡°I think it would be sooner,¡± I said and took another sedative.


    Shailyn and Noyar sat next to each other. While the knight tended the awful wound on her thigh, my aunt checked her state. The afflictions grow worse with time. She didn¡¯t have the luxury to work on them in the meantime, it would be harder now.


    Well, it would¡¯ve been harder for her, if I was not here.


    ¡°What have you been afflicted with?¡± I asked, touching her palm with my good arm, drawing little of the mes of purgatory.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Shailyn asked as the mes invaded her channels. She tried to jolt away, however, finding it¡¯s a calming me bringing warmth, she rested. ¡°What is this?¡±


    ¡°Help,¡± I said, raising an eyebrow. ¡°I think they had a better name for it, Purgation.¡±


    ¡°How¡¯re you doing this?¡± Shailyn asked. Beside her, Noyar stared from the corner of her eyes. ¡°You¡¯ve grasped the Emberheart bloodline ability?¡±


    ¡°Something simr, but better.¡± I drew more of the purgation energy into her channel as much as I could hold on with my current state, which was not a lot. ¡°I¡¯m not very good at this. It¡¯s a very delicate task, while the nature of my energy is everything but delicate. Assist me if you can.¡±


    Shailyn nodded and drew her spirit along with mine. My control became a lot better with an adept magus helping.


    ¡°That¡¯s it,¡± I muttered, and found Shailyn¡¯s face a bit red, blushing as she looked away.


    Blood and ashes, how can I forget, mingling spirit energy is something very intimate and dangerous. Without a standard level of trust, it was never possible. I could guess why. I could feel the very spirit of Shailyn, her nature, her current emotions. It''s like she opened everything about herself to me. Well, not everything.


    In retrospect, she could feel my emotions, and nature as well. I wondered what she was feeling about me. That thought made me panic as my energy wandered off my grasp, however, Shailyn managed to calm it in time.


    ¡°Careful, nephew,¡± Shailyn said, biting her lower lip. ¡°It¡¯s just a medical process, don¡¯t think anything.¡±


    I nodded and concentrated. My mental strength had drained a lot with all the things I went through in thest few hours, however, I did my best to hide my insecurities and focused on the task at hand.


    Only after Shailyn led the purgation energy to the other side of her body, did I figure out what Shailyn was feeling.


    _ _ _

 Chapter 75 45: The Damage Done (3)

    Shailyn had been hit with two afflictions that had jammed her spirit channels, however, she could still use some part of her power, but only because she had cast aside those two afflictions on her right side, rendering half of her spirit channels busy dealing with them.


    Seriously, she¡¯s a genius. Not only did she neutralise the two afflictions there, she even cast aside the other ones on her right side, leaving her left side free to draw the other half of her spirit energy.


    I could barely even figure out how she had been walking straight. Other than those two, she was hit with some cold poison, a blood curse, and a neurotic affliction. This Rojar Iker seemed no joke, either. One needs to be quite capable to learn so many kinds of afflictions, which are, in the first ce, never easy to learn.


    I had been thinking Noyar was tough, but my aunt wasn''t that soft either. I could feel her resolution through the mingling of our spirit energies.


    The ideals of Victoria had been imprinted on her down to her very bones. The cold and awful weather made them tough, though her personality was never soft. However, there was a protective nature to it, like most women. She would do anything to protect her babes¡ªthat¡¯s what I learned.


    However, even with all that fortitude, she was not without ws. Shailyn just tried too hard. She thinks it¡¯s her fault that Lord Kirien died, and how she endangered me and others.


    William¡¯s betrayal hurt her more than she let on the outside. Well, she was the one that referred him to his post even though many called his traits obnoxious.


    ¡°This is going to be . . . painful,¡± I said, unsure if only painful was enough to describe what Shailyn would feel next. ¡°Do you¡ª¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡±


    Shailyn unsealed her right side channels as her body convulsed, her jaw clenched, eyes tearing up, shivering. Her focus wavered while I took the lead, steadying the chaotic flow. My purgation finally got in contact with the real afflictions she had been holding off so far.


    Finding so much of dark powers, even my touch of Purgation wavered as it got busy purging the dark force.


    It took a couple of seconds for Shailyn to get back to normal, even though she was finally feeling an arduous amount of pain on her right side. Her red eyes, even though teary, she never lost herself in the pain, and stayed calm the whole time, with jaw clenched. Her lips cracked into a tired smile as Noyar touched her other arm.


    I could feel Shailyn¡¯s suffering, though it didn¡¯t affect me. Her fingers dug into my palm as I tried to make it quick. The processsted for a couple of minutes before she stabilised, eyes weaker than before, leaning against her partner.


    ¡°You¡¯ve suffered a lot,¡± Noyar whispered into her ears. ¡°Now rest, you''ve earned it.¡±


    ¡°But¡ª¡° Shailyn muttered, but Noyar cut it, stroking her hair.


    ¡°Shailyn, you can be such a child sometimes,¡° she said, ¡°It¡¯s okay, I¡¯m here. Rest.¡±


    Shailyn did as her eyelids shut and her body went limp in Noyar¡¯sp. Her exhaustion was so strenuous that it didn¡¯t take long for her to fall asleep. Noyar continued to stroke her hair for a time beforeying her body, wrapping a nket.


    "You care a lot about her, don''t you?" I said, and finally saw some embarrassment on the knight¡¯s hard face.


    "It is as it should be," she added, after pausing for a while, ¡°Earther Family helped mine a lot, where my debt to Shailyn was not any less. She has saved my life on many asions, like today."


    ¡°As you saved her.¡± I paused for a second, thinking about my next words. Screw it. ¡°Curious, is it only because you feel indebted to her so you try so hard?¡±


    Noyar didn¡¯t argue or answered my question. There was a sense of wisdom in her that asked for others'' respect. Well, I do respect her, seeing how hard she tried, even with such terrible wounds.


    "You should also rest," she said finally, "I¡¯ll watch for the time being." Seeing me open my lips, she continued in a stern voice, "Don¡¯t argue. You have been through a lot and helped us a lot. Shailyn cares a whole lot about you and would be devastated if anything were to happen to you. So rest; you¡¯ll have more time to fightter. "


    "Yessir, knight-sir." I almost saluted. There was no chance of negotiation in her voice. ¡°But first, let me help you.¡±


    "No need. The afflictions I got hit with are normal. I can expel them myself." She seemed more troubled by letting me peek through her than curing the afflictions.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Well, after all, it''s a very intimate thing. Hell, I¡¯m not even sure I managed to hide my insecurities from Shailyn; showing another person any of that was a terrible idea. I guess it''s enough wizarding for today, and then my eyes fell on the angry looking wound on her thigh.


    Sighing, I drew the warm mes of purgatory. ¡°It isn¡¯t just purgation that I¡¯m capable of,¡± I said, drawing the me to the terrible wound on her thigh. ¡°I can do a little healing, too.¡±


    Noyar jolted away first, but I continued, giving no more exnation. When the me touched her wound, she whimpered almost in an audible voice, biting her lips. It''s not that the me was painful, but the wound was just too terrible. Just by touching the scarred thigh, I caused it.


    Huh, I came a long way from being a sick introvert to curing pretty women, touching their thighs.


    She stared into my eyes before watching the little crimson me wash over her wound. Her leg shook slightly from the pain as the me touched it. Dark scarlet blood oozed out, making around the wound less swollen.


    Noyar clenched her jaw. Still, some form of whimper escaped out of her mouth asionally, but nothing else. Heck, I might cry like a baby if got wounds like this.


    ¡°How can you act as if nothing happened to you?¡± I couldn¡¯t help but ask.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Noyar grunted, giving me a confused look.


    I gestured at the wound on her thigh. Bloody hell, it looked painful just to watch, yet she had carried someone with her all the time with that wound.


    "It¡¯s in the job description," Noyar said, his voice as low as a whisper, absent-mindedly watching the swaying crimson me. ¡°I can¡¯t say if I¡¯ve been through worse than this, though; but I¡¯ve been in simr situations a couple of times. Yes, it gives me experience in dealing with cases simr to this, but it never makes it easy. However, it¡¯s always good to know that someone is watching your back, and that someone is also depending on you. That keeps me standing, gives me strength."


    I nodded at her words. ¡°I literally cried,¡± I said, biting my lips, gesturing at the broken elbow. Well, I did most of the work in breaking the elbow, as I thought it was necessary at that time, but the tears were never under my control. ¡°Blood and ashes, I never thought it would be this agonising.¡±


    ¡°Yet you stood up,¡± Noyar said. ¡°That makes all the difference.¡± She paused for a moment. ¡°I heard the Old blood of Emberheart was always ready for a fight, but you seemed quite different.¡±


    ¡°Let me guess, you¡¯re disappointed?¡±


    Noyar shook her head, returning her gaze to me. ¡°Yes, you¡¯re more timid than what I¡¯ve heard from Shailyn, but I''m not disappointed. You didn¡¯t just fight, you thought. You didn¡¯t go out blindly, but took every step with deliberation. Shailyn may see you as a kid that she has to protect, which is likely developed with the rtionship she has with you. However, you¡¯re not a kid, nor need protection. At least not in that scope."


    ¡°What do you see in me, then?¡±


    Noyar became silent for a moment, staring into my eyes. ¡°I see a youth with too much power, too much potential, struggling, trying too hard to use his power for good, but afraid he will hurt someone.¡±


    I stared at those blue eyes of hers. There was some wisdom in them, and I could understand that she had gone through what I was feeling right now. The person I killed today, even though it was almost identally, it came too easily.


    I didn¡¯t like that feeling. I didn¡¯t like the blood on my arms, nor will I ever like in my life. It reminds me of . . .


    An impaling pain struck my head just as I had to clench my jaw. What is this?


    ¡°You need to rest. Don¡¯t worry about your friend," Noyar said, standing up. The wound on her leg has closed, and the me has purged most of the ailments in it, but she still needs a week or two to heal. "I¡¯ll look for her after some time."


    I tried to utter something, but in the end, ¡°Thank you,¡± was all I managed, before resting next to Shailyn.


    ___________


    Next Chapter: Interrogation

 Chapter 76 46: Interrogation (1)

    Q: How did Amara Sholinar learn the ancient runenguage?


    A: Supposedly, her mother taught her when she was a child.


    - - -


    The sleep was intoxicating, but I had to wake up, even though it was pulling me to its deepness, in its tranquillity. I thought about giving in and then Yeriel¡¯s image appeared in my mind, as well as the important stuff that I need to do, and then. I was wide awake.


    The dim luminescentmp was lit still, though the murkiness of the darkness was gone, reced by mild light. While a lot of my exhaustion washed away, the head felt heavy. Well, it was like you woke up from sleep and feel like you were still sleeping. Shaking my head violently, I adjusted my vision, and found Shailyn awoke before me, while the knight¡ªNoyar¡ªwas nowhere to be seen in the cavern.


    William¡¯s blindfold was off for now, as my aunt was questioning him, with one of William¡¯s notebooks on hand. However, it didn¡¯t seem the inquisition was going anywhere, with William being silent the entire time. Well, very few people are good with inquisitions and evidently, Shailyn was not one of those. Even though it seemed her fatigue was relieved a lot, and could control her emotion well, she still wasn¡¯t taking the betrayal well.


    ¡°Is William even your real name?¡± Shailyn asked, and as usual, the warlock remained silent. ¡°Come on, give me something. Don¡¯t make it harder than it already is. The next ones that interrogate you wouldn¡¯t be that civic.¡±


    Shailyn shook her head and turned over a few pages in the small notebook to open a particr page where some prettyplicated magic circles were drawn.


    ¡°Tell me about this ritual?¡± Shailyn asked. ¡°I can tell it''s something rted to the use of spirit beast as a medium to do something augment some spell or something evil.¡±


    William chuckled, shaking his head. ¡°You righteous fools,¡± he finally said something, ¡°it¡¯s always something evil when you don¡¯t understand it.¡±


    ¡°Is it not?¡± Shailyn asked with a level tone. ¡°Then why would you have to move in secrecy and kill innocent people?¡±


    ¡°Those people I killed, they are hardly innocent.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sure that is enough to relieve your conscious,¡± Shailyn said with a t look, but I could feel her frustration showing through her bodynguage. She¡¯s never really good at this, even though all magus are taught to stay calm against all danger.


    ¡°Here I thought there¡¯s no camaraderie among warlocks,¡± I said, lifting my body up.


    Some cracking noises came as I stretched a little,ing near Shailyn.


    ¡°What did they offer you?¡± I asked the warlock,ing face to face. ¡°It should be pretty special to betray this side. Or is it just you don¡¯t like goodpany?¡±


    William only stared at me, eyes full of hostility, however, he was not like a rabid beast that would bite the moment freed. William is a master nner; if he¡¯s silent now, then he probably has something to y. I need to figure out what. Sadly, my aunt won¡¯t let me do as I please.


    ¡°How¡¯re you feeling?¡± I returned to Shailyn.


    ¡°I¡¯m alright,¡± she said. ¡°Weird, what happened between you and Noyar? Before she went out to search, she told me I can depend on you?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s some wisdom in your Knight, Aunt,¡± I chuckled. ¡°Yes, you can depend on me.¡±


    Shailyn snorted, saying she would find out more when Noyar returns.


    ¡°The interrogation isn¡¯t going anywhere,¡± Imented, as Shailyn covered William with the blindfold and then put a bag on top of his head.


    ¡°Noyar tried before I woke up,¡± Shailyn said, shaking her head, ¡°though it¡¯s mostly fruitless. We¡¯re not particrly skilled at this.¡±


    ¡°I can see it.¡± Well, I¡¯m sure these two maidens only used words against William, trying to coax him with some pardon, however , the warlock still seemed to have something in his hand to give in early. Maybe I¡¯ll have to dirty my hand a bit at interrogation, not that I have any skills in it.


    But of many things, I read, listened, watched, many things and many of them included intimidation, interrogation, and many shady things that I would never like to try my hands on. Still, I would need to get some free time with this warlock to find out how any of those would be helpful.


    Shailyn let out a breath. ¡°So, about this cavern,¡± she continued, ¡°something feels off about it. Are you ready to talk about it?¡±


    I considered for a moment and then nodded. ¡°Aunt, there¡¯s something you need to see.¡±


    . . .


    Shailyn followed Oscar with a bit of difficulty walking evenly. Oscar was not running, just walking at a normal pace, holding the luminescentmp in hand, however, with his height close to two metres, following hisrge strides became a challenge to her.


    Shailyn would never admit it, though. Even though she purged all the afflictions with Oscar¡¯s help, the exhaustion remains. Fortunately, the ce Oscar was taking her didn¡¯t seem far.


    There¡¯s really something spooky about this ce. Even with her exhaustion, she could tell, just could not pinpoint.


    It took less than a minute for them to reach the end of the cavern as Oscar faltered before a wall, drawing most of the luminescentmp¡ªwhich was enough to enlighten around to a fair margin, though not bright enough to distinguish particr things.


    ¡°What do you want me to see?¡± She asked, finding nothing in particr around, and then she looked at where her nephew¡¯smp was pointing.


    The stonewall, it¡¯s full of carvings, and with a simple glimpse of it, she could make out it¡¯s something very interesting.<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡°Curious,¡± she said and moved forward, taking themp from him.


    The first that she came across were cave paintings, not particrly beautiful, however, they seemed like a puzzle to her, which would need more deliberation. Then there were bizarre faces, eloped together, making a tall, daunting, hideous figure. And thest one was the simplest of them all.


    It¡¯s someone moving from one ce to another at the Night of Brilliance. ¡®Hmm,¡¯ she thought, ¡®does this depict the lost magic of spatial transportation?¡¯


    Even though the high arts had achieved many things that ancient magus never even considered, they were still behind in many aspects. One of the prominent ones was spatial transportation. There was ancient texts that proved that magus could open a gate between two ces to transport on will, however, all knowledge on how they did it, was lost.


    ¡®The figure in the picture was moving from one circle to another, but the five moons,¡¯ she mused. ¡®Why are they there? Is it particrly because on nights of brilliance, using high art bes easier, and natural force bes a bit unstable?¡¯ Or was she missing something?


    ¡°Shailyn, can you make anything out of the text?¡± a voice said behind her and only then did she remember she came here with her nephew.


    ¡°Let me see.¡± She drew closer towards the writings, curious if there was anything left behind on the lost art of transportation.


    Shailyn had some expertise in old tongues as most of the high arts were recovered from there and they still practice them in that tongue. Perhaps she could gain something out of the text. However, her shoulder slumped down in resignation the moment she peered onto the text.


    ¡°This is the oldest text, runenguage,¡± she said, roughing her hair in frustration. ¡°I can¡¯t read it, and I¡¯m pretty sure there¡¯s no one else who could either. There are a few who research on Runenguage; however, I don¡¯t think they can recover it either. It would take decades before something gets discovered out of it.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Oscar. I¡¯m pretty useless here. Runenguage was another inheritance we lost in the fall. However, this is a fine discovery. I can¡¯t make the value out of it, but I¡¯m pretty sure many magi would be highly interested in it.¡±


    She turned towards her nephew to find him a bit disappointed, but he shook that off.


    ¡°There¡¯s something else other than the runenguage,¡± Oscar said. ¡°See if you can figure anything out.¡±


    ¡°Where?¡±


    ¡°Below.¡± Oscar came closer and showed her exactly where. There was something not in the Rune Language, nor in themon old tongue, which she could make out with ease. But that text, they seemed familiar.


    A knit appeared on her brows as Shailyn sat down on the cold ground, eyes glued to the text. ¡°Hold on, give me a pen and paper,¡± she said. ¡°I think I can make out something.¡±


    Oscar obeyed, bringing out a notepad and pen out of the side carry. Shailyn ran her arm to find the items on the second attempt as her eyes glued to the text. Oscar took themp from her and held it closer so that she wouldn¡¯t have much problem reading it.


    ¡° ¡®Nira shak¡¯nin amoi prana,¡¯ ¡± she muttered and started to write down what she was reading. ¡° ¡®Danashak¡¯el no kor . . .¡¯ ¡±


    Oscar waited for her to finish noticing down everything. It didn¡¯t take her long as there¡¯re only about a couple of paragraphs on theplicated old tongue.


    ¡°Any luck?¡±


    ¡°I can make out something, but to be urate I would need to check with some references, ¡± Shailyn said, showing the first lines of text. ¡°Here it means, ¡®Take mynd concealed under . . . light¡¯ no, not light; ¡®concealed under life.¡¯ Yes, it''s life. ¡®When night weakens the nd of space¡¯ or is it ¡®space ofnd¡¯ ? I¡¯m not sure. Then here, it is: ¡®Beware of destroying it, then you not be your, but his.¡¯ ¡±


    Her nephew said nothing, probably confused by what she tranted. Perhaps thinking his aunt was throwing nonsense at him.


    Shailyn was flustered. ¡°I¡¯m not very good at it,¡± she acknowledged. ¡°I¡¯m not even sure if any of it makes sense. I¡¯m sorry.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t be,¡± Oscar said, standing up. ¡°It''s better than nothing. You know, it could be some riddle.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Ancient Magus has their way with words.¡± Shailyn sighed. ¡°Honestly, I think I can do better than this . . .¡± She paused for a moment and looked at the text again. ¡°A riddle . . . mhh . . . It''s notnd, but the word ¡®Shak¡¯nin¡¯ could also mean ¡®my treasure¡¯, or ¡®my power¡¯, yes, something rted to power. ¡®Take my power concealed under life, when night or moons weaken the power of space.¡¯ Ahh, this could be a riddle.¡±


    Shailyn shot up immediately and moved to the image¡ªshe first thought was of spatial teleportation. ¡°Nephew, do you know, in some part of Shrankor, water is a depiction of life?¡± she asked, rubbing the carving. ¡°I think there¡¯s something under the water, but we could only grasp it at the night of brilliance.¡±


    Shailyn waited for a reply, or at least some excitement from Oscar¡¯s part, but found none. She spun and met his gaze, raising an eyebrow. ¡°You knew about it, didn¡¯t you?¡±


    _ _ _


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 Chapter 77 46: Interrogation (2)

    The only reason Noyar and Shailyn could go so long with the tremendous pain and fatigue was visualisation. It¡¯s the most fundamental technique all practitioners need to learn.


    I have progressed in it as well, but I¡¯m far from getting close to the level of the two of them who achieved unity and could ignore most of the pain, distractions, and steeled their mind duringbat.


    After leaving Shailyn to figure out anything of the texts, I steeled my mind, imagining burning mes. I put everything into the me, my emotions, insecurities, worries, as the fire burned them, leaving me empty of most of them.


    ¡°I¡¯m ready,¡± I muttered, pping my cheek lightly.


    Now, it¡¯s time for some serious questioning.


    When I reached the spot, William was not struggling in the slightest. He remained still, as if meditating. Clicking my tongue, I went straight to him, crouching down.


    ¡°I left Shailyn busy with something, so we¡¯ll have some time alone,¡± I said, removing the bag from his head. ¡°Are you going to keep quiet even now?¡±


    William stared at me for a good second before licking his lips. ¡°What makes you think you can open my mouth?¡± he said, eyes spiteful and full of contempt.


    I tilted my head, thinking. It seemed the imaginary mes couldn¡¯t burn all the emotions out, at least not the anger.


    ¡°Ahh, you don¡¯t look so good. Are you thirsty?¡± At that moment, I caught his head by the hair, and pulled it to the pond, jerking forward. ¡°Here, have some water.¡±


    It was over six hours since Shailyn shattered theyer of ice from the pool and that much time was enough to formyers of ice yet again and it seemed thick enough to endure the first assault. No matter, I pulled back William''s head and lurched again with even more momentum.


    Finally, the ice cracked, and with another strike, William eventually got a taste of the water. I pushed him down until all of his head was underwater and started counting inwardly.


    William, who kept his posture and decorum even after his capture, started to struggle like a fish out of water after only half a dozen seconds. It''s not just a breathing problem, the water was cold enough to cause a brain freeze as well.


    I thought about keeping at it counting to thirty, however, remembering what this warlock did, I counted till sixty. Well, I needed to get some answers from him, after all.


    William¡¯s chest heaved up and down like a frantic dog, which reminded me, this world doesn¡¯t have dogs. Well, Stonehounds are not dogs, nor do they be frantic like dogs.


    ¡°Are you ready to open your mouth yet?¡± I pulled the chain to make him upright, treating him no better than a stonehound. ¡°Be a good dear, and answer my question.¡±


    William still breathed unsteadily, eyes wavering at me. His head was swollen a bit, with a red patch¡ªgreat, I would have to listen to some lecture from Shailyn for that. Well, no matter, this goes well with Scar¡¯s original nature, and more importantly, I would need some answers.


    ¡°Why did you go after Yeriel?¡± I asked in a level tone. ¡°Don¡¯t try to deny it. You didn¡¯t try to kill her, but wanted to capture her, but eventually, she got the better of you with the sympathetic hairpin. Tell me what you wanted with her?¡±


    William stared at me, eyes fuming even though his body was shivering in the cold. ¡°She¡¯s precious,¡± he said finally.


    ¡°I know,¡± I said, pulling the chain closer, as William¡¯s head struggled to move upwards. ¡°That¡¯s why you need her. But what do you intend to do with her?¡±


    William didn¡¯t answer, gritting his teeth and remained still with his head peeking upwards ufortably. Not ufortably, this was utterly painful.


    ¡°It¡¯s something rted to the Winterheart Reindeer, right?¡± I asked, calcting with the knowledge I had from reading Forbidden Realms previously. I rested the chain as the Warlock fell on his back, groaning.


    ¡°Yeriel is precious, and I know why you say that. Her Spirit nature is the purest, with no coercion or entanglement. It''s almost impossible for someone like her to exist, and Human too.¡± William¡¯s eyes widened as I continued, ¡°The pure nature of her makes her an ideal ingredient for Dark arts, the most precious ingredient a warlock can hope for. You wanted to corrupt her and control her, didn¡¯t you?¡±


    William remained silent, but a lot more ufortable now, or it''s just the cold. Nope, definitely not just the cold.


    ¡°Is it something you came up with or something your associate, this Rojar Iker, knew about?¡± I asked again, paying close attention to William¡¯s eyes, and facial muscles.


    They were almost perfect with no sign of nervousness in them other than the wavering. There¡¯s no way for me to tell the difference. But I tried, nevertheless. It¡¯s not always a masterful lie or the truth, sometimes, just making the other party sure you know everything¡ªsome fabrication of the perception, does the trick. It did when I captured him¡ª


    ¡°William, William, you betrayed both sides, didn¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡ªand it did this time as well.


    I forced all of my stray thoughts that came with this revtion into the imaginary me in my mind, burning them. Pulling the chain with my good arm again, I brought William to my eye level.


    I got some form of confirmation of what I presumed, but all that was not enough. For starters, I . . . we have no clues where the rogue dark practitioners were hiding. With the mountain range so vast, not to mention in this weather, it''s almost impossible to search them out, especially when there¡¯s only about half a day left.


    And then there was Yeriel, I had a faint idea what William was trying to do with her, and it''s nothing but terrible.


    ¡°Listen, I¡¯ll wait ten seconds for you to open your mouth and be truthful about everything, or I¡¯ll purge you of all the dark power you''ve umted. Trust me on this, it wouldn¡¯t be everything but gentle as I did with Shailyn. Do you know what soul burn feels like?¡±


    I armed the chain in my palm with the mes of purgatory and protected it as well, so that it wouldn¡¯t melt away. The chains lit up in red, creating enough heat to make William scream. Burning scars appeared on his arms where the chain was bound together.


    ¡°Your time starts now.¡±


    ¡°Ten.¡±


    ¡°Nine.¡±


    ¡°. . .¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡°Four.¡±


    ¡°Three.¡±


    William was on the verge of breaking and at that very moment, a shout echoed from behind.


    ¡°Light, what are you doing?¡± Noyar shouted, resting her shawl.


    My shoulder slumped down as the fiery energy left the chains and William¡¯s body staggered to the ground. I only needed a minute more. Couldn¡¯t she have waited for that long? Then I noticed the nasty-looking scar on William¡¯s arms. Did I go a little overboard?


    Noyar didn¡¯t wait for my answer, she strode forward to check William. She checked the burn marks and wet hair and all things cleared to her.


    Making sure, it was only a flesh wound, she turned. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect this from you.¡±


    I dropped the act, shaking my head. The mes vanished from my mind, and the recognition of what I did struck me at once. Weirdly, I didn¡¯t feel much about it, which sickened me more.


    I just inflicted pain on someone else. Ignoring that person was a criminal, I had never done this before, and here I felt almost nothing, burning someone¡¯s hand.


    I unconsciously rubbed my hair, questioning what had happened to me. Sighing, I calmed down, bottling down everything about it.


    ¡°I may have overdone a little,¡± I muttered. This act of mine was almost befitting of my name. Well, I did get some conformation, so it was not a total loss. Ignoring my conscience, it''s some form of progress¡ªnot the type I would like, of course.


    ¡°A little?¡± Noyar questioned, voice high, eyes ring. ¡°Perhaps it''s what he deserves, but you¡¯re no executioner, not a torturer. Or are you trying to be one, Oscar Emberheart? You¡¯re not even a Knight or Magus, and even if you were, your duty only limits to capturing them, not to torture them.¡±


    I looked away from Noyar¡¯s gaze, with my introverted personality acting up.


    Noyar became silent for a moment and then continued again with a softer tone. ¡°Tell me, do you want to be burdened with hard decisions? Do you want to be the judge and decide who lives and who dies?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I said, sighing. But sometimes, we all had to do what we never like to do.


    ¡°You¡¯re still young. You don¡¯t understand what this does to you. For each of the scars you inflict on others, you inflicted them on yourself as well.¡°


    I unconsciously touched the scar on my forehead.


    ¡°If you go on like this, someday, you be something else, someone stranger, you never wanted to be.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± I said, head down, biting my lips, ¡°it''s just . . .¡±


    I¡¯m too damn frustrated with all the crap flying towards me. The unexpected attack from Althan for something I never did, and then, I killed someone, burned someone¡¯s face, and watched a good man die. Still, it''s no better to vent it on someone else, not even that someone was a criminal.


    ¡°I know you¡¯re frustrated after what you¡¯ve been through,¡± Noyar said, sping my shoulder. ¡°But don¡¯t let it im you. Don¡¯t let it make you something like him.¡±


    Noyar drew my attention towards William, who was looking at me scornfully. Certainly, I don¡¯t want to be like him, not even a bit. I was about to open my mouth, however, William beat me to it with a franticugh.


    ¡°Noyar, you can pity me?¡± William screamed,ughing as if all of his sanity was leaving him. ¡°You think you are all better than me? Fools, bloody, light-blinded fools! You have no idea what I have done to get here and I deserve to be here. I deserve to be more. It''s because of your bloody noble society that I had to take shortcuts.¡±


    William stopped, taking in air, but the look of pity still remained in Noyar¡¯s eyes, which irked the warlock even more.


    ¡°Woman, don¡¯t look at me with those eyes, I don¡¯t need your pity,¡± William bellowed again. ¡°I¡¯m sick of those bloody eyes, always telling me you¡¯re better than me. I don¡¯t need your pity. You think you''ve won already, heh . . . heh . . . heh. Save the dozen warders first, then you can think of getting through me.¡±


    The wretched warlock finally stopped, his chest still heaved up and down, inhaling and exhaling air. Well, well, he finally did crack.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening here?¡± Shailyn came in running, hearing the screams.


    ¡°The situation got moreplicated,¡± Noyar said, shaking her head. ¡°Come on, we need to get out.¡±


    ___________


    Next chapter: Hostage


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 Chapter 78 47: Hostages (1)

    Q: What is the dominion supposedly the hardest to master in your opinion?


    A: The Dominion of Transformation needs a lot of studying and training to master its function, still most of the practitioners failed to grasp its power. Still, there is a clear way for its training, but not for Dominion of Shift, Oscar had to grasp it on his own, and it was never easy when the primary function of the dominion was on astral projection.


    - - -


    Althan managed to find Zisk¡¯moon in the north sky, peeking through the clouds, while the other two only twinkled a little through the swirling clouds.


    After Oscar fled away, Althan tried to go after him and capture him again, but that flying abomination from Ruthalyn made it hazardous, not to mention in this blizzard. Even if he wanted to, Althan couldn¡¯t go after Oscar.


    Well, he did pay enough for what was due to Althan, however, thest-minute disy of hurling everyone of his underlings, including him in that fiery circle sword swing, left a foul taste in his stomach.


    Althan cursed at his underlings, screaming, imbecile, dimwit, dolt, fools¡ªeverything that came to his mind. Some of them even gave an unsatisfied look, led by Harth¡ªthey think it''s his fault that Oscar got away.


    ¡®Those imbeciles,¡¯ Althan thought, ¡®couldn¡¯t even keep a single squire, and they think it¡¯s my fault? That Harth, I need to show him his ce.¡¯


    Althan shook ufortably to stand up, stretching his body. Even with him revolving his spirit energy frequently against the cold, he couldn¡¯t manage to stay in proper form. Not to mention, drawing energy would exhaust his mental fortitude. It''s just bad on all sides. First Oscar got away, destroying expensive equipment, and there¡¯s no way for him to get it fixed without drawing attention. He even might get into trouble just possessing an item like that.


    Twelve hundred dynes wasted just like that, and he couldn¡¯t even get satisfaction beating up Oscar. ¡®These imbeciles. They had one job, eight men to keep one person at his ce, yet they screwed it all up. Bloody oafs, for a reason. I wondered if it¡¯s even practical to raise these oafs.¡¯


    The blizzard went down by a lot eventually, though the bad wind swirled mercilessly. Half of his men were setting up tents. Godly fools, what¡¯s taking them so long to set up some simple tents? Can¡¯t they be any less useless?


    They were behind the shade of the ridge covered in the snow, relieving them some of the wind. Harth, the Knight Squire, was watching over few, who were setting up the tents, while a couple of them were on the lookout.


    ¡°Harth,¡± Althan shouted, kicking the snow in frustration, ¡°what¡¯s taking so long?¡±


    Harth turned his head to look at him, but he didn¡¯te to him like a Stonehound, wiggling his tail as he used to be. ¡°The snow isn¡¯t making it easier,¡± the squire answered tly. ¡°It¡¯ll take some time, Master Althan.¡±


    ¡°More time?¡± Althan shouted again, still not moving towards them. ¡°Have you never set up a tent before?¡±


    ¡°We sure did,¡± Harth answered, ¡°but not in this bad weather. Wait for some time.¡±


    After Oscar got away, Althan wanted to give chase, but the frightening blizzard stopped them. Well, they did cover some distance first, but seeing no hope of finding that ming bastard, Althan finally gave up. At some point when the blizzard was in its full swing, he wanted to leave the mountains as soon as possible, abandoning his original mission which was to survey the Mountains to search for the sign of ice creature surge.


    Well, he wouldn¡¯t be abandoning it for good, this was kind of a big mission, the perfect thing to make some name, but who said he couldn¡¯te back again, not to mention this survey would take at least a couple of weeks to finish up. Only an idiot would keep going in such damnable weather.


    It took ten minutes more for one of the tents to be set up. Althan wasted no more breath outside, got inside among the stares of his underlings. Wrapping a nket around his body, he got busy igniting up a heatstone¡ªthe only one that he brought with him. It¡¯s a lot smaller than a heater and dangerous at times too.


    Heatstones are made up of fire crystal, which has the tendency to st off. Even though this one was made into something to only release heat, it could st off under some particr influence.


    Althan was just getting cosy when he heard a disturbance outside. It didn¡¯t take long for them to tuck on his tent. ¡®Damnable fools! What¡¯s this time?¡¯


    ¡°Master Althan, there¡¯s something you might want to see,¡± Harth¡¯s voice came with some uncertainty.


    Althan got up and came out wrapped with the nket around his body. ¡°I¡¯m telling you if this is something¡ª¡° Althan paused, peering at the neer, breathing uneasily, shivering in the cold. ¡°Yeriel?¡±


    The girl on the snow lifted her head and stared at the source of the voice. Her face was pale red with exhaustion, the sweater full of snow, even her hair was bound in a braid behind, they were full of snowkes. Two of his men stood beside her, uncertain what to do.


    ¡°Yeriel, what happened?¡± Althan called, stepping forward.


    ¡°I . . .¡± She tried to stand upright, but staggered to fall on her four limbs. ¡°Help! They . . .¡±


    ¡°What happened?¡± Althan calleding before her. ¡°We have nine men here. You don¡¯t need to worry. Just tell me what happened?¡±


    ¡°No, no . . . I have to get to Oscar.¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡®Ayaan curse you, Oscar,¡¯ Althan cursed in his head. He tried to pull her up and found no resistance from her, though her legs were still shaking. Gasps of white, smoky air came out of her mouth and nose. Touching her forehead, he found she was burning with fever. ¡°Tell me, what exactly happened?¡±


    ¡°Dead, they are dead,¡± Yeriel whispered.


    ¡°Dead? Who?¡±


    ¡°Warlock attack, I need to get to Oscar. I need to tell him about William.¡±


    ¡°Damnable Woman, speak clearly,¡± Althan shouted. Warlock? Is there really something like that? He recalled Oscar saying something like that too, but back then he thought it was just an excuse. And even if there¡¯s some warlock, what that has to do with Oscar, it¡¯s not like he canpete against a warlock in full force.


    ¡°I need to get to him,¡± Yeriel only whispered the same thing, almost in an inaudible voice.


    Althan grunted and supported her shuddering body, pulling his right arm over her back. ''Still Oscar, huh? Curse that bastard.¡¯ Coughing a bit, he looked at the two covering behind and then at Harth. ¡°Where did you find her?¡±


    Harth pointed at one of the youths in the back with a quiver and bow on his back. ¡°He noticed the disturbance first on watch duty,¡± he said. ¡°Only after seeing she¡¯s helpless, he called for others. What do we do with her?¡±


    Althan thought for a second. ¡°Send a couple of men to see if there¡¯s any truth in this warlock notion,¡± Althanmanded and looked at one of the lesser practitioners. ¡°Kian,e with me. I need you to see what¡¯s wrong with her.¡±


    Kian was a lesser practitioner, not even a healer, but he has some expertise in apothecary. From the way things went, even Althan could tell Yeriel was exhausted and catching fever in this situation was a pretty easy thing. Maybe some potions would help.


    ¡®You better be grateful to me after this,¡¯ he muttered, looking at her ce face, still whispering nonstop, as he got her towards the tent.


    Kian followed by asmanded, carrying his side to carry with him. Althanid Yeriel, getting into the tent, gesturing at Kian to do his thing. The lesser practitioner followed, nodding. He crouched down next to her to touch her forehead and ran his spirit energy to check on her. His expression stiffened immediately as he lifted his head to look at Althan.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Her channels,¡± Kian said, eyes widened, ¡°they are sealed.¡±


    ¡°Sealed? You mean someone forcefully did it?¡± Althan asked, mind calcting, ¡°With spirit energy?


    One needs to have a standard level of strength and an excellent hand of control to seal someone else¡¯s channels. Althan had not reached that level, and he doubted any of the students could achieve that. However, they all are taught how to free themselves from these seals.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Kian acknowledged. ¡°Something very peculiar about this sealing, though. It¡¯s a lot different from the usual way.¡±


    ¡°Let me see,¡± Althan said, and put his arm on Yeriel¡¯s forehead to check.


    Immediately, he felt some alien force resisting his interference. After a very careful examination, Althan found its very hard for the sealed person to be free from this alien energy, which might take days if not weeks, and in this condition of weather which also makes all usage of spirit energy difficult, it''s almost impossible for Yeriel to do anything about it.


    However, that was only limited to the sealed person, Althan could unseal the channels in a matter of a few minutes to a quarter of an hour or so. He needed to be careful only because he was not familiar with this way.


    ¡°I¡¯ll work on her channels,¡± Althan told Kian, ¡°Do something about her fever and exhaustion.¡±


    Kian followed and Althan got busy, saving the damsel in distress. However, he only got a hold of the foreign energy on her left side when the tent shook in an upheaval, angry wind rattling all over.


    Something was very wrong.


    Yeriel screamed, lurching her body upright, tossing away Althan¡¯s arm from her forehead. The wind rattled the tent, as waves of spiritual disturbance tainted the air.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± Kian bellowed, frightened.


    Althan¡¯s expression changed too, as he stood up before Yeriel could and got out. The blizzard hadn''te back, however, something else wasing.


    _ _ _

 Chapter 79 47: Hostages (2)

    Althan could feel the distance fighting while his underlings were running towards it. Looking around, Althan found Harth¡ªthe knight squire was just as lost as him, uncertain what to do, even though hemanded the others to charge at the disturbance.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening, Harth?¡± He screamed.


    The squire didn¡¯t answer, only nced at Althan before rushing¡ªnot in the direction of the fighting, but the opposite. Bloody heroes! he was abandoning them.


    ¡°Hey,¡± Althan bellowed from behind, ¡°Where are you going? Come back,e back?¡±


    ¡°Umm, Master Althan,¡± a voice called. Kian was standing behind now, barely keeping his expression steady. He¡¯s but a lesser practitioner who never came across situations like this. Just seeing his face, Althan questioned his old self about choosing this fellow. ¡°I think we should run too.¡±


    ¡°Will someone tell me what¡¯s happening here?¡± Althan bellowed again, clenching his jaw. Even a fool which Althan, of course, was not would understand what¡¯s going on here, but his mind was rejecting it persistently.


    ¡°Dark sorcerer,¡± Yeriel answered for him. In the sense of crisis, she regained a bit of lucidity of mind, or might be just her survival instinct. ¡°We need to get away. Run!¡±


    Her firm voice startled Althan, and he didn¡¯t just stand there watching. Althan ran after her. Kian, the lesser practitioner, followed.


    ¡°What are we up against?¡± he asked, running.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Yeriel answered, chest heaving up and down in exhaustion as she ran. The snowynd made it even harder to run steadily, but she managed, barely shuffling through them. ¡°I was with a knight; one among us betrayed us and killed the knight. He told me he had other associates. I know nothing more. I didn¡¯te here to find warlocks, that¡¯s Oscar¡¯s mission.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s that fellow again.¡± Althan groaned aloud. ¡°When will he leave me alone?¡±


    Yeriel didn¡¯t seem to hear hisint. ¡°He knows more about this and his aunt,¡± she told, not sure if it was to herself or to the other two as well. ¡°We have to find him first . . .¡±


    ¡°Hmm, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good idea,¡± Althan said, panting.


    He would eat shit before he asked for that bastard¡¯s help. Not to mention there was no certainty that the ming bastard would help him even if he could. Too much spection about this mess.


    However, Althan was sure Oscar would do ten times worse than what he did to him. He groaned, definitely not a pleasant thought to have while running away from dark sorcerers. ¡®Curse that bastard! Why is it that every time I¡¯m in trouble, it''s because of that ming bastard?!¡¯


    Abruptly, a scream of sheer panic and pain echoed out through the rattling, angry wind as Kian¡¯s figure flung away a dozen metres to collide against a pine tree. The lesser practitioner didn¡¯t even try to get up, stayed there like dead as loads of snow fell on him from the tree.


    Althan spun and found a huge mace lurching at his waist. If it connects, his very waist might turn into a broken mess. Panicked, he screamed. ¡°Trofas Safs.¡±


    Wisps of wind swirled around Althan, listening to his evocation, but the angry wind that surged throughout the mountain range made it harder to form the des of wind. Althan clenched his jaw and steeled his will, forcing it out.


    The transparent de of gale wind swelled at the rogue warder. Even though the spell lost its power, it should be enough to severely injure the warder if it connects, however, the scene that yed out was entirely different.


    The warder withdrew his back leg half step and steered his huge mace in a horrifying swing, dissolving the wind de like how water dissolved into vapour from volcanic heat. However, the time it brought was enough for Althan to sidestep, evading the blow.


    Taking advantage of the moment, he withdrew further. Looks like he only had to continue with Evocation, as the warder won¡¯t give any time to create any threatening spell circuit. ¡®Either way, I¡¯ll show you what fighting someone who knows his spells feels like.¡¯


    ¡°Trofas Kamaraz. Trofas Safs. Tofas Safs,¡± Althan bellowed again, as if the power of his spells were only limited by the capacity of his vocal cord. However, only screaming the spells in the old tongue was not enough. Althan had to put every ounce of his willpower into his imagination to form the spells.


    That was not all; he had to imagine ording to the flows of the angry wind, or his spell would dissolve even before forming. Luckily, his spells were not against the flow of the angry wind this time around.


    Gigantic waves of wind surrounded him, curling around him, elevating him a little. In a moment, it formed into a surging force like the current in the Avirin ocean and forced at the rogue warder, who had to ground his feet into the snowynd to not be flung away as the gust of wind was strong enough to toss him dozens of metres away.


    The warder barely managed to neutralise the mad wind, but the next two weaves of wind des shot at him, one aiming for his head, while the other one at his lower body. Gnashing his teeth, he titled his body sideways, and tried to dodge, but finding the transparent wind des curling towards him, he gave up resisting the gale.<novelnext></novelnext>


    The angry wind flung him a dozen metres away, however, the des were stilling at him. Twisting his body, he steered himself to lurch his mace, destroying the one that aimed for his head. While the other one struck his waist, disrupting the Armament. However, all his armament shattered when he knocked against the branch of a tree.


    ¡°How¡¯s that, you evil oaf head?¡± Althan shouted. ¡°Yeriel, did you see that?¡±


    ¡°I must admit that¡¯s quite some show for a pupil of the academy,¡± a voice said, but it was not Yeriel¡¯s voice. A heavy tone of a male. ¡°However, not impressed.¡±


    Althan spun and found a man in the middle of his prime standing, his heavy cloak swaying along with the angry wind. Yeriel was on the ground now, not moving even a bit, shuddering unnaturally. Her eyes¡ªthey were of utter horror now.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Althan asked, voice turned heavy. Even though he asked, he didn¡¯t wait for the answer, screaming again with, ¡°Trofas Safs.¡±


    The neer only stood there nonchntly and with a flick of his right palm, the wind de dissolved into nothingness.


    Althan¡¯s expression went astray, and he was about to spell out more, however, at the very next moment, he found no air in his mouth to make any noises other than incoherent groans.


    ¡°Here¡¯s a listen for you, young cub,¡± the hooded man said, ¡°Never go for a punch when some pinching could do the job.¡±


    Althan fell on the snow, struggling to even make out anything. The warlock released his technique as finally air came back to his mouth. The young prince groaned, stumbling on his four limbs. Coughing, he tried to speak again, ¡°Huelio ne--¡±


    However, he never managed toplete it as air escaped from his grasp yet again, and this time more vehemently, convoluting his body painfully. His face turned red, losing air, as he struggled to breathe.


    ¡°You should learn from your own failure,¡± the warlock said, though it didn¡¯t seem he was talking to Althan, who, of course, was not in any condition to listen to anything. The rogue warder came running towards him.


    ¡°You¡¯ve disappointed me again, Karol,¡± the dark sorcerer told the warder, who looked at him attentively, waiting for the nextmand. ¡°What do you have to say for your errors?¡±


    The warder remained silent for a moment, but remember, silence was never a good option against his master. ¡°I have no excuses, Master,¡± he spoke.


    ¡°No excuses, so you admit your fault,¡± Rojar Iker said, inattentively, looking at the three young cubs in three directions. ¡°That deserves a punishment, wouldn¡¯t you say, Karol?¡±


    Karol shuddered ufortably, not meeting the gaze of his master. ¡°Yes, master.¡±


    ¡°Sealed the channels of all of them and joined with others,¡± the warlock spoke. ¡°You¡¯ll be in charge of every one of the hostages. And listen to me carefully, if there¡¯s any mess up or even a ruckus, you¡¯ll be responsible for everything. I want no mistakes from here, or you might have to experience what Kenny did. Do you want that to happen, Karol?¡±


    ¡°No, master.¡± The rogue warder¡¯s expression paled even further.


    ¡°Good,¡± the warlock said, looking in the other direction, where the fights had already finished.


    Meanwhile, Karol sealed Althan¡¯s channels and bound him with chains. He came to the next person, the only female he encountered after the fight against the Arbiter and her Knight. He was about to seal her channel, but stopped.


    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±


    ¡°Master, her channels, they are already sealed.¡±


    ___________


    Next Chapter: Compulsion

 Chapter 80 48: Compulsion (1)

    Q: Who''s the most proficient in Spirit Cloud skill so far in the tale?


    A: Adarsh Starlight.


    - - -


    The sun has risen, however, the heavy cloud was still swirling all around the sky, keeping it difficult to cast the light on the snowynd. Along with the razzing heavy mist, it''s almost impossible to discern what time was it. Not to mention, I could barely make out Noyar¡¯s silhouette, and she was barely three strides away.


    Shailyn was beside me, the same as me, perplexed, not knowing what Noyar intended for us to see. William was with us too, and now a bit amodating after his outburst. Still, with the blindfold and bag over his head.


    Shailyn told me to leave him bound in the cavern, but I thought otherwise. That very cavern held the secret of one unknown Dominion, the only Dominion of astral projection, nheless; it would be a real problem if it goes to the wrong hand.


    That reminded me, I¡¯ve like half a day to fix everything to get that dominion. No pressure!


    ¡°So what happened?¡± Shailyn asked in a low tone, watching Noyar. Even though she arrivedte, she heard William¡¯s outburst, and saw the wrongness in the warlock, however, what worried her most was the broody mood of her partner, when Noyar answered to nothing, nor spoke much.


    ¡°I messed up a little,¡± I said, sighing, ¡°but thanks to Noyar, I didn¡¯t make it too much.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Shailyn picked up her pace, finding her good Knight¡¯s figure almost obscured in the mist, ¡°you¡¯re going to exin everything to me in details,ter.¡±


    I grunted in affirmation and moved. With William, my pace was slower, but since the warlock was amodating, I had no issue following through.


    All the ces in the mountain range seemed familiar, even though they were different. Well, with the mist obscuring our vision, making a distinction of thend covered in heavyyers of white snow was not a simple task.


    The ce Noyar led us to was not that far, it''s filled with tall pine trees, rows by rows, columns by columns. Some of them were even broken, unable to hold against the blizzardst night, yet the clouds were still gathering more. It would likely outburst at the right time, which was, of course, very much wrong, considering our situation.


    ¡°What¡¯s here?¡± Shailyn asked, as Noyar finally stopped before a tree.


    Walking further, I manage to see a figure tied up to a tree, unconscious. The figure didn¡¯t seem old,te teenage at best, of masculine build¡ªsomehow his figure felt familiar to me. I might have seen him before. With some consideration, I closed my eye for a moment and a grunt escaped from my mouth.


    ¡°I know him,¡± I said, letting out a self-conscious breath. If I¡¯m not wrong, his name is Harth, one of Althan¡¯s underling. And I¡¯m rarely wrong with my memory.


    ¡°You do?¡± Noyar asked, though she didn¡¯t seem interest for the answer all that much. Sliding her left palm into her pocket, she brought out a badge, the badge of the Starlight academy. ¡°I found this on him.¡±


    ¡°Real?¡± Shailyn asked. Finding her partner nodding, she asked again, ¡°Then why have you bound him like that?¡±


    ¡°Something¡¯s very wrong with him,¡± Noyar answered and moved towards Harth, gesturing us toe along. ¡°I found him lost, running with no mind. When I approached him, he screamed about Warlock, Dark magic and attacked me. . . .


    ¡°I even smelt an aura of dark magic on him. I tried to calm him down but failed. In the end, I could only tie him up, thinking you might be able to help.¡±


    Shailyn approached the body, crouching down next to him, running the basic Spirit cloud on him. I wondered when I¡¯ll be able to learn that, even though it¡¯s an auxiliary skill, it¡¯s useful in a hundred of asions, from healing,bat, trailing . . .


    The usage of the skill was simple in words, all one had to do was transmit enough energy in a form of invisible cloud, however, the skill didn¡¯t finish there, one need to put a lot of concentration on the cloud of spirit energy. When something gets in contact with the cloud, the practitioner could tell with closed eyes. I think I have enough perception to do this, all I needed was time.


    I looked towards Noyar instead. ¡°Have you found anything else?¡± I asked, mildly hopeful.


    Noyar shook her head. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I couldn¡¯t find your friend,¡± she said bluntly. ¡°I dide across a ce with signs of fighting, however.¡±


    I guess we have to try harder. Noyar didn¡¯t go to detail about her findings and I was about to ask her more, when¡ª


    Abruptly, Harth opened his eyelids and screamed at the top of his lungs. Shailyn withdrew immediately, sighing.


    ¡°He¡¯s under Compulsion,¡± Shailyn said, nodding to Noyar, meaning she did the right thing to bound him.


    ¡°Oh dear,¡± Noyar prayed, palms on her chest, ¡°Light.¡±


    Compulsion was one of the heinous arts that was banned by the academy. It directly broke the fourthw of magic, invading the mind of others. Not just it''s wrong for one to make others do their bidding: Compulsion was extremely hard to break without breaking the mind of thepelled individual.


    An extreme few people could even try it and maybe a handful of them do it without breaking the person¡¯s mind, however, it would leave a mark. It always leaves a mark. Still better than breaking the mind or staying with thepulsion.


    ¡°I know the basics of the basic healing spells, the bare minimum, to pass the test,¡± Shailyn said, admitting defeat. ¡°This is out of my league.¡±


    A few of the names came to my head, who could help here. Moira Elins Sholinar could do it. Elinor could do it too, even though she had zero healing abilities so far. And perhaps Yeriel could too, a future version of her a year from now, surely could.<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡®Wait, why haven¡¯t I think of this?¡¯ A light bulb clicked in my mind. ¡°Aunt, thepulsion, is it dark attributed?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Yes?¡± Shailyn nodded, but wasn¡¯t certain why I was asking that.


    Compulsion was something that could be done with pure spirit energy or the tainted spirit energy. Either way, the energy only needs topel the spirit, the soul of the individual, to get a hold of them. Some magus were even so frightening that they could make you do one thing, and you¡¯ll do it without even ever finding out.


    Fortunately, we¡¯re not dealing with a case like that.


    ¡°Hold onto him for a sec,¡± I told Noyar, handing her the blindfolded, chained warlock.


    ¡°Oscar, what are you intending?¡± Shailyn asked, and then her eyes widened, staring at my eyes. ¡°No, that¡¯s--¡±


    ¡°It''s apulsion through tainted spirit energy,¡± I said, lifting my right palm as the mes of purgation conjured out from there. ¡°My power is made for this.¡±


    I was not joking there.


    ¡°No,¡± Shailyn shouted still, stopping me by pulling my arm. ¡°You have no idea how many things could go wrong with this.¡±


    ¡°No, I know exactly what could go wrong with this.¡±


    ¡°And you¡¯re still going on with this?¡± Shailyn said, ring at me. ¡°Can you even handle it if something goes wrong?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I admitted, ¡°that is why you¡¯ll help me expel it.¡±


    It took me a minute more to make Shailyn agree with this, though she still grumbled. She was, of course, right, even a little deviation could put thepelled person at harm. However, I have confidence, after all, it''s not like some grand Magus who was an expert did thepulsion, affected Harth¡¯s mind.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m going on with this,¡± Shailyn said as both of us approached Harth, who passed out again. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll make way for you to deal with thepulsion. Remember to use a soft hand. Also, if you even have the slightest hint of something going wrong, give up.¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± I agreed and put my palm side by side of her on Harth¡¯s forehead. ¡°Let¡¯s start.¡±


    The process was a simple one. Shailyn did all the handwork, finding thepulsion, and made way for me, while I just drew the mes of purgation through that way, nice and slow.


    ¡°Ahhhh!¡± Harth screamed out again, struggling to get up, but I forced him down, sitting on top of him as he struggled like a fish out of water.


    ¡°Steady!¡±


    The process continued for five minutes as sweat beats started to appear on Shailyn¡¯s forehead even though it was cold out here, surrounded by snow and icy wind.


    ¡®Idiot!¡¯ I told myself inwardly. ''How can I not figure out she¡¯s not fully well, not at her full strength?!¡¯


    Even though I expelled Shailyn¡¯s afflictions, one side of her body, the channels were truly in terrible shape after all the torment she went through. Likepulsion, all dark art leaves behind the residue effect, not to mention it tormented her enough. She was standing¡ªthat was a miracle in itself.


    However, there¡¯s no stopping now, and I¡¯m sure Shailyn wouldn¡¯t want me to stop here. I knew her that much by now.


    The process continued, and we kept at it with all the concentration we could muster.


    ¡°We did it,¡± Shailyn said, resting her palm and all spiritual abilities, sweat dripped down from her face. ¡°We actually did it, Oscar.¡±


    Harth passed out again, finishing this round of screaming, but I think he would wake up soon. And yes, we managed fine, without damaging anything more that is not already damaged.


    - - -


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 Chapter 81 48: Compulsion (2)

    ¡°We did it,¡± Shailyn said.


    Harth passed out again, finishing another round of screaming, but I think he would wake up soon. And yes, we managed fine, without damaging anything more that is not already damaged.


    ¡°Only the tainted part,¡± I told her, standing up. ¡°The other part still remains, but it''s good enough for now. I think he has enough willpower to not bepelled now.¡±


    Shailyn nodded. ¡°That¡¯s some downright impressive power you have there,¡± she said. ¡°Maybe we should study itter.¡±


    ¡°Shailyn, you sounded just like Rosalyn.¡±


    We waited after that and just as I thought, Harth woke up after a few minutes, but this time he didn¡¯t start screaming, though still tied up with the pine tree. His cloudy eyes wavered and lucidity came back, eventually.


    ¡°Young man,¡± Shailyn called, ¡°some serious trouble you got yourself into for no reason at all.¡±


    Harth looked at her with confusion and a bit uncertainly, then he found me, standing next to her. The confused eyes widened in horror, and he screamed. Again!


    ¡°I didn¡¯t do it,¡± Harth screamed in a plea, looking towards me. ¡°It''s all Althan¡¯s n, it''s all his n. Please believe me. . . .¡±


    ¡°What is he talking about?¡± Noyar asked, confused by the outburst.


    ¡°Something not particrly important at the moment.¡± I sighed. Looks like Harth here doesn¡¯t hold that much loyalty to Althan. Well, I can¡¯t me him. Althan was a hard master to follow. I would be surprised if any one of them choose to follow him if they weren¡¯t under any circumstances.


    ¡°Whatever it is, make him shut up,¡± she grunted. Noyar probably hasn¡¯t slept all night, stayed awake on guard duty while the two of us slept like babes. Then she even went for investigation¡ªall of this with a wound that barely closed up.


    I nodded and stooped down to his eye level. ¡°Harth, was it?¡± I asked, ¡°Be a bigger man and shut up. Whatever beef I have with your master will be dealt withter, but first, we must deal with the more imminent matter. You have already encountered what we are dealing with, right?¡±


    ¡°I . . .¡±


    ¡°Of course, it isn¡¯t all your fault, so shut up, take a few breaths, calm down and tell us from the beginning. What happened? How it happened? And most importantly, where¡¯s your master and the others?¡±


    Harth nodded vigorously, more out of fear than understanding the situation. It was probably wrong to intimidate a patient whose mind went through some mess, but we didn¡¯t have a choice.


    ¡°You¡¯re quite good at intimidation, aren¡¯t you?¡± Shailyn whispered.


    ¡°It''s the eyes,¡± I said, grunting. These red pupils of mine were the root of making my situation difficult mostly when I go to make things better. Just staring at it, one could tell magic was real. Well, it was useful here, still, it would be a lot better if it came with an on-off switch.


    Harth told us everything from the beginning, well, not from the beginning, but middle¡ªI would say. After I ¡®fled¡¯--his word, from Althan and the gang, they gave up on capturing me again, and wanted to get away from the blizzard¡ªwhich turned out to be impossible, so they took the next best decision¡ªwhich was camping finding some rtively safe spot, ignoring every sign of dark magic they came across.


    They really are some retarded fool to not even give some heed to those signs. I mean Althan was their leader, I expected nothing less, still, he couldn¡¯t be this retarded.


    What¡¯s done is done. The important matter was what happened after that. Of course, the warlock and his associates attacked them. Only fools would leave something so easy that they can use.


    ¡°Things got a lot moreplicated now,¡± Shailyn muttered, clenching her fist. Shaking her head, she questioned, ¡°How many of you are there?¡±


    ¡°Nine counting me,¡± Harth answered. ¡°No, ten. We found another person before the attack. She was with us when the dark practitioners attacked us.¡±


    ¡°She?¡± I asked and after a little confirmation, I understood she was none other than Yeriel, and now, she very well be at the mercy of another warlock.


    ¡°Did any of them manage to get away?¡±


    ¡°I . . .¡± he swallowed a breath. ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡±


    ¡°Which lead me to assume how did you get away?¡± Shailyn touched her chin, musing.


    Harth turned silent.


    ¡°Perhaps a message,¡± Noyar said. ¡°Perhaps the warlock left him to show what he could do with the others.¡±


    I raised an eyebrow, and so did my aunt. This actually seemed feasible.<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡°So they sent one squire with heavypulsion as a message that they would not mind doing anything like that to the others?¡± Shailyn said, scratching her cap.


    An utter silence descended there. Everyone was thinking of any solution to this problem where Harth was staring at our faces as if wanting to know if his answer satisfied us.


    ¡°What do we do now?¡± I asked, looking at the two women.


    Shailyn exchanged nces with her partner as Noyar nodded. ¡°We will need help,¡± she said, ¡°I¡¯m not sure if they can send more in time, but first, we need to decide what to do with Lord Kirien¡¯s wife and him.¡± She pointed at Harth. ¡°We certainly cannot leave them anywhere in this weather, not to mention rogue practitioners running amok.¡±


    ¡°Nor can we give in to the Warlock¡¯s threat,¡± I said, and returned my gaze to the squire. ¡°Can he not bring Mrs Kirien out of here? There¡¯s still time, and I don¡¯t think the blizzard will go all out before the night of brilliance. He can get away with Mrs Kirien.¡±


    Shailyn considered for a second. ¡°No, it''s still too risky,¡± she said and deliberately looked at me. ¡°How about you join them? You have already done enough, and not to mention your mission was only to look for the warlock¡¯s trail, you¡¯ve overdone yourself here.¡±


    ¡°But we still don¡¯t know where they were hiding,¡± I said, clenching my jaws. ¡°Aunt, I won¡¯t go.¡±


    ¡°Oscar,¡± Shailyn came forward, furrowing her brows at me. ¡°Think for a moment, lives are at risk here. You can save two lives here.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I said outright. ¡°I won¡¯t go, not when my friend is in mortal danger.¡± And something more.


    However, Shailyn was in no mood to listen to me. Blood and ashes, she still thinks, I¡¯m in danger and can¡¯t handle myself. Ultimately, I looked towards the knight, asking for her help, gesturing with my eyes.


    However, Noyar actually ignored me at that moment. Hell, what went wrong? I remembered, she said some good words about my performancest night.


    ¡°Let me stay,¡± I said, gritting my teeth. ¡°I can help. Noyar, say something to her.¡±


    Noyar remained silent, as if the two women from Victoria had already gone through all this before and were only waiting for the right moment.


    Shailyn came before me, shaking her head. ¡°As the Arbiter ced by the Starlight Academy in this region, I¡¯m ordering you, Oscar Emberheart,¡± she said in a stern tone. ¡°You¡¯vepleted your mission very finely, so now, I¡¯m giving you the duty of keeping twowful citizens safe from the Warlock¡¯s grasp.¡±


    ¡°No, they will be safe without me,¡± I told her and looked towards Noyar. ¡°Bloody woman, tell her I can help.¡±


    Noyar remained silent the whole time, while Shailyn continued, ¡°I¡¯m ordering you, Squire,¡± she said sternly. ¡°This is from a higher order officer, not from your aunt. You can¡¯t disobey it without consequences.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t do this,¡± I muttered, ¡°Please don¡¯t do this.¡±


    Shailyn softened a little, touching my head, and rubbing my hair. ¡°It''s alright,¡± she said. ¡°I promise you, I won¡¯t let anything happen to your friend. You just have to trust me on this.¡±


    ¡°I can help,¡± I said firmly.


    ¡°You did help,¡± she said, ¡°but you¡¯re not alright right now. You need rest, and something less . . . frustrating.¡± she seemed to choose the word carefully, not to irk her nephew. ¡°You trust me, right?¡±


    I ultimately released a heavy breath and nodded.


    ¡°Good,¡± she said, ¡°You¡¯ll depart as soon as possible, and also, if you can alert the other warder camp at the foot of the mountain. I think you¡¯ll be able to get help in time with the False-ward. We would be depending on you.¡±


    I nodded. ¡°Aunt, I¡¯ll go, but I¡¯lle back the moment, I put them in someone else¡¯s hand.¡±


    ___________ _ _ _


    Next Chapter: The Night of Brilliance


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 Chapter 82 49: The Night Of Brilliance (1)

    Q: What kind of sacrifice is required to summon creatures from the other side?


    A: A beast which is supposedly widely considered as the embodiment of purity, such as Unicorn, Winterheart Reindeer, Pegasus.


    - - -


    The wind curled around me as I came down, air drifted off like smoke from my back. Not much of the juice was left in the suit afterst night¡¯s usage. I reckoned it wouldn¡¯t evenst a trip down, even when I use it the most efficient way. Not even halfway down.


    ¡°It would take about two hours to reach the camp,¡± I said,ing down. My eyes drifted upwards at the gathering clouds. ¡°Well, considering the blizzard didn¡¯t hit us by then.¡±


    Harth didn¡¯t meet my gaze like always. While Mrs Kirien was still unconscious, her condition seemed better than before.


    ¡®How easy it had been for her--¡¯ I stopped at those lines of thoughts, biting my lips. She didn¡¯t even know she lost her husband, did she?


    Perhaps she¡¯s the most helpless one among us. Oh dear, I know what it feels like, losing someone dear.


    Sighing, I push down all those thoughts. The sun went down, while Pra¡¯moon and Dai¡¯moon came in its ce, three more toe for the night or brilliance. It would take five or six hours for that. I should be able to go back by then, providing I got enough juice for the False-ward.


    ¡°Are you worried, mate?¡± I called Althan¡¯s underling, trying to be friendly.


    Harth had dark patches under his eyes, looked at me for a moment and looked away, still afraid as if I¡¯m going to burn him alive.


    ¡°You¡¯re aware of what happened to you, right?¡± I asked, to which Harth nodded with some hesitation. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, just don¡¯t give in. I know it''s still there, but all you have to do is, fight it.¡±


    Harth nodded, even though he appeared more frightened than before. Seriously, he was a ve by mind magic, even though for a short while how could he pull himself up from it?


    ¡°You should go on your own,¡± he said finally, after a lot of hesitation. ¡°I don¡¯t know if I¡¯m strong enough . . .¡±


    I frowned at his words. That was going to be a problem, not even believing in himself that he can win against apulsion that was already weakened. Personally, I have no experience with this, but I read in the book, a spirit practitioner was more resistant topulsion than a normal person, but why was Harth acting like a normal person?


    We eliminated most of thepulsion, nor was he underpulsion for that long.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be pessimistic, mate,¡± I said. Honestly, my way of being friendly with someone was just imitating Julies. ¡°Steel your heart and fight it. You know, external help is all good, but you got to have it in you. I know you have it in you, you just gotta believe it.¡±


    Harth¡¯s lips wavered. ¡°How can you believe in me so much,¡± he asked, ¡°when I can¡¯t even believe in myself?¡±


    ¡°You know, sometimes you just got to put up with it and believe you can do it,¡± I said and stood up. The wind rushed like always, blowing my cloak. ¡°Because the other option is just too much scary.¡±


    If Harth really gave in, he would be a dysfunctional mess even after all the proper healing was done. Nobody can save him then when he didn¡¯t even believe in himself.


    I turned towards him again. ¡°Act as if you can do it,¡± I advised. ¡°That¡¯s the first step.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll try,¡± Harth said, nodding heavily.


    Great, looks like I¡¯vee to some help. Now, I just hope I can make it in time.


    ¡°Alright, break is over. Let¡¯s hit the road again.¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    . . .


    Shailyn stared down from a high ridge, while the stiff wind pped against her face, chilling her body, though she didn¡¯t react. She was looking down as if wanting to see her nephew was safe along with the others.


    Now all she needed was to capture the warlock and rescue the students and warders. A tall order for two women, fortunately, help would arrive in time. At least the two knights who were in charge of the other region should have received Noyar¡¯s signal already, and if nothing goes wrong, they would arrive soon enough.


    She was not so optimistic about other help. The blizzard woulde back soon enough, and covering dozens of miles, not to mention climbing the mountain, was never an easy or short work.


    One of many things, William finally considered letting them show theyers of the warlock, though he hadn¡¯t opened up about what ritual they were preparing for. Whatever it was, Shailyn expected nothing good. Well, as long as it''s not some demon-summoning or tapping on the force of nature, she should be fine.


    ¡°We can¡¯t trust his words,¡± a voice said from behind, as her partner came, brooding.


    Noyar had been like that since the morning after she had discussed her n to send Oscar away and venturing the dangerousnd on their own. Noyar didn¡¯t like that n all that much, and her way of showing was that long, brooding and silent most of the time.


    ¡°We can never trust a Warlock¡¯s word,¡± Shailyn replied.


    ¡°But we don¡¯t have another option,¡± Noyar grunted. ¡°You will not wait for the others to arrive, are you?¡±


    Shailyn shook her head. ¡°We don¡¯t have time,¡± she said, ¡°trap or not, we can¡¯t wait for others to get here. In the end, we have to trust their judgement and approach on our own.¡±


    ¡°I suppose you¡¯ll make the right decision even when you can¡¯t go further.¡± She seemed so frustrated with that.


    Shailyn turned, and Noyar looked away. Shaking her head, the magus touched the knight¡¯s hands. They were warm, much warmer than her own. ¡°Lives at risk here, Noyar,¡± she said, biting her lips. ¡°More than we had assumed. We can¡¯t wait.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± the knight said, ¡°it¡¯s just . . .¡±


    ¡°I was right to send Oscar away,¡± Shailyn continued, firm in her words. ¡°I know you think he can take care of himself, and he probably can, but I can¡¯t risk it. His mental health is not stable. It may seem better than what I had seen all the time inst year, but it''s not really. He just became really good at hiding it.


    ¡°Along with what he went through in the mountains, I better not risk losing him again.¡±


    Noyar remained silent for a while and then nodded, staring into her eyes.


    ¡°Still going to brood all the time?¡± Shailyn sighed. ¡°You think I¡¯m thinking too much? Perhaps I¡¯m, I hope, I am, but you haven¡¯t seen him at his worst. After Eldest Sister¡¯s death, he went from his best to worst. He already came to torture William if he let his anger flow more, I didn¡¯t know . . .¡±


    She remembered how Oscar has been for thest one and half years. He had left everything from being a practitioner to all of his dreams, and she could not me him, as she didn¡¯t know what it feels like to cause someone¡¯s death, someone dear, nheless.


    The scene was still vivid in her eyes. After the incident, when she first saw his eyes, at the very moment, she knew he was dead inside.


    Because she knew, among the very few people, she knew.


    The rogue warderst night was not his first kill.


    ________


    Thank you,ment, vote and review to let me know your thoughts.

 Chapter 83 49: The Night Of Brilliance(3)

    Yeriel woke up again with a headache. Her vision wavered as she blinked multiple times, squinting her eyes. Her head was a bit dizzy, but the fever came down, however, she¡¯s not even in the faintest mood to celebrate.


    The reason being she was tied up in the corner of a dark room, arms behind her back with a dirty cloth against her mouth. She had the faint remembrance of waking up here before, but about what actually happened¡ªshe didn¡¯t remember much of it.


    The silver lining was that she was not alone. There were about a dozen more like her tied up all over in the cramping the small room, while a heatstone radiated warmed all around, though the icy wind never stopped giving her shivers, finding its way through the crumbling cottage.


    A couple of the rogue practitioners stood close to the heatstone, keeping their eyes open, even though all of them were tied with their channels sealed. Yeriel found nothing else to note other than them, and apart from a few familiar faces.


    ? Althan was across from her, seemed to be dozing off, but conscious, though his condition was no better. Kian was next to him, on his back, unconscious. Yeriel didn¡¯t know how long she was unconscious, but she was sure a day had passed already, yet there was no change in her channels. It was sealed just like before and if she try to even wield a bit of energy; she felt like her body was being ripped apart.


    Abruptly, the door of the small room opened and entered two individuals. She didn¡¯t remember any of them. Her memory of yesterday was hazy, not to mention she could barely see anything in the dark. All she remembered was after fleeing from William, Althan and his group found her, however, her trail brought another disaster to them.


    Perhaps they would¡¯ve been fine if she didn¡¯t find them. She let out a breath, thinking all this would be of no help.


    ¡°I heard there¡¯s one prince among us?¡± One of the dark-cloaked men asked. He¡¯s of tall stature and fine build asked, eyes staring at the two guards.


    However, before the two could answer, Althan lifted his head. His face was pale, but hope gleamed in his eyes, hearing someone asking for him.


    ¡°Ifs meee,¡± he said, groaning. He managed to produce a gap in the cloth to say that much.


    ¡°Let¡¯s hear what he has to say,¡± the man said, gesturing to free Althan¡¯s mouth.


    Althan didn¡¯t want for even a second. ¡°Let me go, or you¡¯ll have my father¡¯s wrath upon you.¡± He broke into a fit of coughing. ¡°It''s not toote. You can still undo--¡±


    ¡°That one is cute,¡± the dark-cloaked man said, gagging augh.


    Althan still muttered those words as if his head was not in the right ce. His tone wavered, sometimes high, sometimes as low to the point of inaudible. Seriously, what happened to him when she was unconscious? She didn¡¯t even remember much of the confrontation between Althan and the dark sorcerer, but she remembered Althan being overwhelmingly out-mastered with just a flick of a finger.


    ¡°You don¡¯t know my father,¡± Althan was still at it, not even noticing it was not working in the slightest. ¡°You want dynes, I can give it to you, so many that you¡¯ve never seen it together in one ce. Let me go, my father . . .¡±


    ¡°Unlock him,¡± the dark-cloaked man said. ¡°Rojar would like to have a talk with him.¡±


    Althan seemed finally heard the ¡®unlock¡¯ part as his head rose again, muttering. ¡°Yes,¡± he said, voice jittery, but relieved. ¡°Let me leave, and I¡¯ll reward you, make you . . .¡±


    He really thought they were letting him go. Was it just because of the sheltered life he had lived or because of what he went through? Perhaps both, Yeriel thought. She didn¡¯t have the slightest clue what she would do now, not that she was in any position to do anything other than groaning, but her mind jolted awoke at the next words of the dark practitioner.


    ¡°Also, bring the girl.¡± There¡¯s only one girl here tied up in the corner.


    The two in charge of guardsplied without question. Althan didn¡¯t resist in the slightest, while Yeriel groaned, screaming, though hardly any of it make out of its way thanks to the clothes tied up in her mouth. However, all her struggles made it clear to the rogue warders that she wanted nothing of what they were intending. But that didn¡¯t hold them back even a little.


    She was freed, at least, of the chains, though the cloth was still tied up to her mouth. Yeriel tried to struggle, but a touch of foreign spirit energy reached her channels at that moment, and she felt her soul severing again as she fell, groaning.


    ¡°We all like a good sport, but you should, at least, watch the environment.¡± The dark-cloaked man said and stooped to untie the clothes from her mouth. ¡°That should teach a lesson. Behave yourself when you''re in the presence of Master Rojar.¡±


    The dark practitioner stared right at her eyes as if piercing through her. Yeriel felt a sense of horror from those eyes and found herself nodding while her mind registered it after a few seconds. She had seen him before. It was he who trailed them first and battled Althan.


    ¡°Yeriel, don¡¯t worry,¡± Althan said as he walked next to her. He showed the chains bound in his arms as if telling them to unchain it, but seeing they were notpiling, he just snorted.


    ¡°Karol,¡± the dark-cloaked manmanded, ¡°Bring them.¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    The other dark cloaked figure next to them nodded, as he pushed the two captives from behind.


    The door was closed again after they left. Outside, Yeriel found two more guards, a scrawny red-faced man, and the other was a burly one; both standing tall, towering over with their weapons ready. They had helms on their heads, thick armour on their bodies, and appeared would charge at the battle with just a mention of it. They only gazed at her for a second as she looked away.


    ¡°Doug, Pitt,¡± the dark-cloaked figure said at the two guards. ¡°Be prepared for anything. We¡¯re at the final moment. Any errors here will gain dire consequences, and you two should be aware that your master is not a benevolent man.¡±


    Both the guards, Doug and Pitt, shook a little, while Pitt was the first to acknowledge. ¡°Yes, Sir Rial,¡± he said.


    The dark cloaked figure nodded at Pitt and looked at Doug, who followed in acknowledgement, though his voice was stiffer, perhaps of the cold and fear of anything going wrong. ¡°Yes, Sir Rial.¡±


    ¡®Sir Rial?¡¯ Yeriel wondered, ¡®is this person a knight? That would exin why everyone was so obedient to his orders, but why he¡¯s working for the dark sorcerer?¡¯ That was another question she might never get an answer to.


    ¡°Good,¡± Sir Rial said, not just at their words, but at their bodynguage too.


    Even though those two were towering over her with their tall stature, she could feel the uneasiness in their eyes, the fear. The consequences of failure might not be anything better than her future.


    Yeriel felt another push against her back. It was abrupt and with the side effect of the agonising severing pain remaining; she fell to the ground, yelping.


    ¡°Wretched girl,¡± the other warder shouted. If she was not wrong, his name was Karol. He pulled her by the hair, smacking her head as she groaned.


    ¡°Hey?¡± Althan shouted in protest, but only got a re from Karol, who made her stand up, pulling by the hair.


    Sir Rial arched his eyebrows at Karol, but didn¡¯t say anything, only gestured to follow.


    Karol followed, pushing them again as they moved towards where the warlock staying.


    . . .


    Noyar watched the rogue practitioner leave, bringing two kids along with them. She felt a terrible impulse to start her task now, but she brought it down. No, she couldn¡¯t do that, not now.


    She was currently dressed as one of the warders, impersonating¡ªDoug¡ªthe one she captured a couple of hours ago. While the helm hid much of her appearance, Shailyn''s facial altering illusions were nothing exceptional. She had to improvise with a pale red face, with the excuse that she fell headfirst.


    Luckily, her current partner, the big burly man Pitt, didn¡¯t like to talk all that much, providing her with fewer chances of giving away her identity.


    Her infiltration went well. She guarded thest two hours outside in the cold, doing what the original Doug was supposed to do. After Doug¡¯s quota on outside duty finished, someone else took his ce, and she was here for thest half an hour. Finally got to see what she was here for. Any mistake from here would not only hurt her direly, but also these kids would be at the worst end of the repercussions.


    So, she remained calm watching the rogue knight and warder taking two of the kids. She heard them talk from outside with her keen senses, and had no problem recognising Yeriel, even though she barely saw her yesterday.


    But what worried her more was what they intended to do with her. Oscar had told them everything he could make out of the situation, even though some of his implication was vague, but it was pretty clear that the warlock would try something with Yeriel¡ªperhaps as a sacrifice.


    And there was that prince from the House of Kimber. If anything goes wrong with him, they would have listened to a lot of questioning with heavy scrutiny.


    Noyar had to wait a little longer, a bit longer, for the Warlock to leave with his men in search of Winterheart Reindeer. Only then she would have a chance to free the others and getaway.


    She was in charge of rescuing the kids, while Shialyn would assault the other, rejoining with the other two Knights. That was their n. All she hopes, everything goes well. Too many things have gone wrong already.


    _ _ _

 Chapter 84 49: The Night Of Brilliance (3)

    Sa¡¯moon peeked through the swirling clouds on the southern horizon, while the gusts of wind blew unaffectedly, curling around the pine trees, swaying them, shaking them. A hazy atmosphere loomed in the surroundings as three figures crouched, hiding behind the pine trees.


    So far, they came across a couple of men on guard duty, proving William was not just ying them for fools. Now that they had to find out theyer of the dark practitioners, only the difficult duties were left.


    ¡°I did my part,¡± the warlock said, like a civil person. The scar on his arm hadn¡¯t healed, and from the looks of things, it would take some time. Months probably.


    William had not tried to scream or make his way out after Noyar freed his blindfold and chains on the legs. Well, even if he did scream, Shailyn already put an istion spell on their surroundings, he could do nothing wrong after all he did.


    ¡°Stay here,¡± Noyar whispered, even though the istion spell was in ce. ¡°I¡¯ll go probe them first.¡±


    Shailyn nodded. ¡°Be careful.¡± This was not the first time Noyar was doing this kind of dangerous spying, and she knew how to be careful, but Shailyn couldn¡¯t help it.


    With only a side carry and light armour on, thedy knight crept away. She went down, activating her Dominion of Seer now and then, scanning for any residue energy flow, or even the sign of any practitioner. She actually found plenty, though those were mashed together, inappropriate to make anything off.


    Since they came across two warders on guard duty on the way, theyer should be nearby, no doubt about it. The cold was jarring, even though she lived in Victoria all her life.


    After moving for a couple of minutes more, Noyar came across more of the signs, and finding theyer after that was pretty easy. It was actually an old, almost broken down cottage, surrounded with tents with a few guarding outside in this weather ¡ª she could only make out that from a couple of hundreds of metres away.


    If it wasn¡¯t for help from her dominion and the binocrs, even making that out would be utterly impossible in this hazy weather.


    Still, that was not enough. They already got their number, now need to figure out any unforeseen elements, the ways to rescue the hostages, and figure out anything about the ritual that William was not ready to speak about.


    Noyar waited, ignoring the cold and all other distractions like how a hunter waits for its prey, except she was only doing the scouting part. There was no way for her to approach the camp as half a dozen of them were on guarding duty. So waiting was all she could do. Unless . . .


    Noyar released a breath and crept away from the spot, as much careful she had been. She didn¡¯t return to Shailyn though, but moved in the opposite direction to the back of the cottage, going the long way.


    The weather dide in some help to her. In this hazy weather, tasks like scouting make it a lot easier, however, it would be even easier when the blizzard would hit again. No, Noyar couldn¡¯t wait for the blizzard to hit again, even though it seemed not that far away. All she needed was some heavy wind with the snowfall.


    She thought about returning, and telling Shailyn about her n, but thought against it. This round trip again would waste time, and who knew it might also give clues to her enemies. So, she waited.


    Noyar admitted to herself she would wait for half an hour, not even a second more. If an opportunity didn¡¯t present itself to her, then she had to open the opportunity herself. With this weather, Noyar wasn¡¯t so unlucky.


    A heavy, angry wind was already blowing. All she required was some snowfall, which did shower after a quarter of an hour. She waited a couple of minutes more for it to get heavier, and then moved, covering her head with the helm.


    She narrowed her eyes and united with the knight¡¯s breathing technique, imagining the free waves of water. All distractions left her entirely, and Noyar was prepared. She crept forward to the cottage, towards a certain man in particr, who seemed to be struggling in the wind and snow.


    No joke, even a trained Knight like her would struggle after a day''s work like this¡ªhowever, it made the job easier for her. So, she ain¡¯tining.


    She stopped twenty metres away from him, crouching down behind a tree. Keeping her eyes on the practitioner, she made a snowball. Her eyes darted at others, all busy in their job, and with the haze, it was almost impossible to pierce through a dozen metres way, unless they have a dominion like her¡ªwhich was of course a pipe dream for these rogue warders¡ªdominions were regted as the national treasure. If any knights went rogue and owned a dominion, he would be hunted down first, no matter where he hides.


    Wasting no more moment, Noyar infused some amount of energy into the snow, not strong enough to make any threat, but enough to ask for the warder¡¯s attention.


    She shot it right in the back of the head of the warder and withdrew from the spot, creeping away. The warder yelped, groaning. He brought out his sword that very moment, and looked around to find anything. Noyar seeded in withdrawing at that time.


    ¡°Does anyone notice anything out of ce?¡± he called, yelling.


    ¡°Nah,¡± One answered.


    ¡°My side is fine, too.¡±


    ¡°Something wrong, Doug?¡± the first one asked again, ¡°or the cold getting to you?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure,¡± Doug said, tiptoeing towards where the snowball came from.


    ¡°It''s bad weather to do guard duty,¡± another one on the north side yelled. ¡°At this rate, I might freeze to death before even gaining my prize.¡±


    ¡°It is what it is,¡± the first voice said again, ¡°you know, master.¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡°Almighty above,¡± the voice in the north said again, ¡°those hostages had it easier than us. Wouldn¡¯t you say?! they even found a heatstone among them, lucky little bastards!¡±


    Doug ignored all their bickering, as it was nothing new. He moved, the hilt gripped tightly with both of his palms, elbows bent. Just as he approached the pine tree, something hit against the back of his head, far more violently than before, however, before he could yelp for help, someone tackled him from behind.


    Doug fell to the snow, trying to scream when a palm shoved against his mouth while another arm strangled him. Whoever it was, he''s strong. When he came to manoeuvre his sword, though it didn''t get the elevation, he managed to draw it towards the unknown assant.


    However, before he could make it in time, a cold dagger shoved against his neck, just close enough to draw a slight cut and blood.


    "Make a move and I''ll pin it through in your throat," a voice whispered, and it was a woman''s voice. He could even feel the warm breath in his ears, though the words couldn''t be any bit colder.


    "Doug, what''s happening?" his associate called.


    "Say ''I''m alright, just tripped on the snow''," the woman said again, "try anything different, or even a panicked tone, you''ll find this dagger in your throat.''


    "I''m alright," Doug said, still a bit panicked, though that would suffice for now. He swallowed painstakingly and continued, "Just ripped on the snow."


    . . .


    The Blizzard was here, and Shailyn almost felt pity for William, not able to warm himself up with revolving spirit energy. Well, she was just doing fine with using spirit energy now and then. Still, the cold was getting irresistible.


    Noyar left more than half an hour ago, and there¡¯s still no sign of her. Shailyn had put wards in the surrounding, if anyone entered she would find out. If it was someone other than Noyar she would know, if it was Noyar she would know, however, no output from the wards made her equally worried as the cold.


    If she really got into trouble and was captured, she should have made a ruckus to let her know, but there was nothing either. Shailyn and Noyar battled against the warlock and his group, they were not really that strong to put down Noyar silently.


    Still, it''s the dark sorcerer she was talking about, anything that could happen.


    Shailyn didn¡¯t have to wait long, as soon she found a figureing towards them with a body on her shoulder. A rogue warder, now unconscious.


    Noyar nodded to her and dropped the figure before her. Shailyn waited for her partner to open her mouth, and when Noyar did, it was exactly what she expected.


    ¡°Help me, change into his clothes, and if you can, try some face and voice-altering spell on me.¡±


    _ _ _


    Shameless Pa treon plug.


    You can read all the chapters including the the privilege ones on Pa treon and help directly to the work.


    Noyar left more than half an hour ago, and there¡¯s still no sign of her. Shailyn had put wards in the surrounding, if anyone entered she would find out. If it was someone other than Noyar she would know, if it was Noyar she would know, however, no output from the wards made her equally worried as the cold.


    If she really got into trouble and was captured, she should have made a ruckus to let her know, but there was nothing either. Shailyn and Noyar battled against the warlock and his group, they were not really that strong to put down Noyar silently.


    Still, it''s the dark sorcerer she was talking about, anything that could happen.


    Shailyn didn¡¯t have to wait long, as soon she found a figureing towards them with a body on her shoulder. A rogue warder, now unconscious.


    Noyar nodded to her and dropped the figure before her. Shailyn waited for her partner to open her mouth, and when Noyar did, it was exactly what she expected.


    ¡°Help me, change into his clothes, and if you can, try some face and voice-altering spell on me.¡±


    _ _ _


    Shameless Pa treon plug.


    You can read all the chapters including the the privilege ones on Pa treon and help directly to the work.

 Chapter 85 49: The Night Of Brilliance(4)

    Rial opened the door for them to enter, while Yeriel tried herst bit of resistance from entering the room, but the hand jerked at her back heavily to shove her inside.


    She fell again, a couple of steps into the room. The floor was just as cold as the other room, perhaps more with no hearthstone. There was a heater in the middle of the room, next to the chairs, but she tried her everything to not look there. Just because a dark cloaked figure was sitting there. Other than that, there was another person, ady, behind the warlock, watching her, ring at her.


    Yeriel¡¯s heart skip a beat just getting the res from her, full of hatred and contempt, as if her bare existence offended thatdy. She stood up, not gazing in their direction.


    ¡°Karol,¡± the warlock called, ¡°you seemed to be on the edgetely.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m merely doing my duty, master,¡± Karol answered, trying to hide the uneasiness from his voice.


    ¡°You seemed to be only aware of one way to do your duty,¡± the warlock said, seeming disappointed. ¡°Very well, it would suffice now.¡± he waited for a moment and noticed the cuffs on the captives¡¯ arms. ¡°Why have you brought them chained? Unlock them. They are barely a threat when their channels are free. Now, they barely seem to be standing.¡±


    Karolplied with the orders, freed her arms and next Althan¡¯s, who seemed to regain more of his vigour and control, though all that was a mere pretence. She was not even sure if he was aware of it, or merely ying a fool.


    ¡°Go back, guard outside.¡±


    Karol bowed more attentively before withdrawing, leaving the two captives and a rogue knight inside.


    ¡°Now,¡± Rojar Iker said, tapping a finger on the arm of the chair. His eyes darted towards Althan, considering what to make of him. ¡°We are in the presence of royalty.¡±


    Althan stood upright, shaking dirt and ice from his dress. ¡°Look, Mister . . .¡± He paused, not knowing how to address the Warlock. Well, he was standing straight with what he went through in their first encounter was already startling enough. ¡°What¡¯s done is done. You can still choose the right decision.¡±


    ¡°And that would be?¡± Rojar Iker asked, amused. ¡°Your highness?¡±


    Althan prudently didn¡¯t stare at his eyes and continued. ¡°Of course, it''s to send us back,¡± he said, trying to radiate as much of the nobility through his bodynguage as he could. ¡°You know my family, they would not withhold in rewarding you, and even an order of pardon for all the wrong you¡¯ve done. What do you say? Isn¡¯t that generous?¡±


    ¡°Generous indeed,¡± the warlock agreed. ¡°Anything more than a couple of dynes is more than just generous in exchange for your sorry life.¡±


    ¡°You,¡± Althan¡¯s expression darkened, anger sipped out of his skin, however, he reeled in, at least for the moment.


    ¡°However,¡± the warlock continued, ¡°I¡¯m not who will decide the price of your sorry life. A pardon might be too big of a thing to ask, but I can get a pretty interesting thing in return. Useless you may be, you¡¯re a prince, nheless.¡±


    Althan calmed down a lot after hearing that. His shoulders slumped, but he held it back again¡ªthough that hardly anything the Warlock kept his attention on. Althan nothing but a harmless cub, perhaps only a chick, who posing as a cub.


    ¡°Say, Rial,¡± Rojar eyes darted towards the rogue Knight, who was pouring a drink for himself at his sides, holding a ss bottle. ¡°What do you think we can get in a change of his highness?¡±


    ¡°Kimbers has a lot of capital,¡° Rial said inattentively. ¡°The are not particrly gifted in Spirit arts, or have anything of magical value that would interest us if we seed here. You could have done better there if you captured the other prince.¡±


    Rojar shook his head. ¡°I guess we have to be content getting mundane articles.¡±


    ¡°I believe you¡¯re not very well amodated to since you¡¯re with us,¡± Rojar continued and turned to look at the youngdy behind him. ¡°This is Kiea, one of my apprentices, she will take care of your amodation from now on. What do you say, Kiea? Are you willing to serve his highness for the time he¡¯s with us?¡±


    Kiea snorted first at Althan, but her eyes darted back to Yeriel again with that hateful gaze. Seriously, this apprentice has something wrong with her head to hate someone just in their presence.<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡°Now,¡± Rojar finally returned to Yeriel, staring at her for several seconds. ¡°Yeriel Ruah, from what I¡¯ve learned; do you have a mentor?¡±


    Yeriel said nothing, but her eyes told everything. The horror, the disgust in them, couldn¡¯t be masked.


    The warlock clicked his tongue and stood up. He creptzily towards her and stood just a couple of feet before her. ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± he said, lifting an arm towards her face, but Yeriel shook it off the very moment. ¡°There¡¯s no need to be disgusted.¡±


    Royar Iker still tried and seeded. Yeriel found her arms stiff, not listening to her call in the slightest. It was as if they were paralysed. The warlock wiped off the bits of snow from her face, rubbing slowly.


    ¡°The problem with you all is that you¡¯re taught wrong at the academy. I can¡¯t deny it''s a fine institution, but it''s full of lies and deception. Tell me, Yeriel, how many of the Magus have shown an interest in teaching their secret arts to you? I reckon it''s more than half a dozen, right?¡±


    Yeriel said nothing, swaying away from the arm that wiped the snow from her face. This was the hand that caused so many heinous acts, she felt a sudden churn in her stomach from those cold, deadly palms. She hadn¡¯t had anything sincest night, but whatever inside was trying to find its way out of her throat. Yeriel held on, gnashing her teeth.


    ¡°Half a dozen Magi showing interest in you is nothing much, providing the potential you got, but tell me honestly, how many of them really would teach you some of their secrets without a price?¡± The warlock wetted his lips, finished cleaning her face. ¡°Actually, I¡¯m no different from them. You will only get the arts after decades of being an apprentice under someone in the academy. However, my way is different. I can teach you what they can, but they will not. I can teach you as good as them and even better at some arts. Just think about it for now.¡±


    Yeriel said nothing, clenching her jaws, and finding strength returning to her arms. She shook those foreign palms off, stepping back.


    ¡°You¡¯re done?¡± Rial asked, holding a ss of drink.


    Rojar Iker clicked his tongue with dissatisfaction, not at the Knight, but at Yeriel. ''It''s always easier to get what I want if they give it willingly,'' he muttered under his breath. "But eventually, I take it even if they don''t give it to me willingly. It''s just that it''s a long process."


    ¡°I can guess why all your apprentices grow so tired of you,¡± Rial said, drinking everything out of the ss. ¡°You¡¯re like a child, Rojar, always jump off towards new toys, even though you¡¯re not finished ying with the old ones.¡±


    The Warlock snorted and took a ss and let the Knight pour the drink from the bottle.


    ¡°What do you intend to do with your son?¡± Rial whispered, pouring the drink for the warlock.


    Rojar didn¡¯t seem even a bit of interest to answer. He drank the alcohol, and regarded its taste, before finally opening his mouth. ¡°You¡¯re right about me, old friend,¡± he said. ¡°I do jump off from one toy to another, however, I didn¡¯t do that with my son, and look at what I made of him . . .¡±


    ¡°Disappointed?¡± Rial regarded him, raising an eyebrow.


    Rojar shook his head. ¡°No, far from it,¡± he said, sighing. ¡°Now, I consider thinking, I don¡¯t understand him all that well that I told myself all the years.¡±


    ¡°Well, you can do whatever you want, but the question is what you¡¯re intending to do with him?¡±


    The warlock shook his head. ¡°It''s almost time,¡± he whispered, ¡°Four Moons already in the sky. I don¡¯t have the luxury of time to go after him, even if he¡¯s my son. Whatever he got himself into, he has to wait, wait until I finish here.¡±


    "I hope your son don''t mind waiting, holy hell, if we''rete perhaps we''ll never be able to get to him."


    _ _ _


    Vote stones and golden tickets for more.

 Chapter 86 49: The Night Of Brilliance(5)

    The blizzard came as it had promised, but Shailyn was a bit relieved at the appearance of the two knights. Noyar was in the middle of all danger with a dozen kids was in the mind. She would be a lot more relieved if other reinforcements could make their way sooner, but she knew it was a pipe dream.


    The only reason these two got in time was because one of them was the Dominion of Gravity, while taking another one was difficult, not just with this terrible weather. Still, he managed in time, though he was drained like a pressed sponge.


    Shailyn has known these two Knights well since she joined as the Arbiter in Victoria, 3 years back.


    ¡°Lady Shailyn, when do we move?¡± IIias, one of the knights, asked. He was anky Victorian man in his middle age, with pale white skin and dark ebony hair and a face full of beards.


    His partner Jon was a couple of strides away, resting with his back against a boulder. He¡¯s fair-skinned too, but not as pale, nor does he have the beard. He has a handsome face, a bit on the shorter and younger side. Perhaps a couple of years younger than her, at least.


    Shailyn knew both the Knights, Ilias and Jon pretty well, however, the seed of doubt William¡¯s betrayal had put into her head made it difficult for her to trust them. She knew its not practical to think like that, but she had to make it do with what she had. Still, knowing Ilias''s family lived in Victoria relieved her a lot.


    ¡°Lady Shailyn?¡± Ilias called, getting no answer from her.


    ¡°Hmm, yes.¡± she looked at him and then towards hispanion, resting against a ridge, while the wind curled around the circr weave she created, andstly at William, tied up to a tree. They were just adjacent to the broken camp. ¡°We¡¯ll leave as soon as possible, but before that, you should know something. . . .¡±


    Shailyn mentioned what they were up against. Her other encounter with the Warlock before helped her calcte his strength, however, she knew it wouldn¡¯t be even a bit easier, just because they have over a dozen hostages with them.


    The expression of the two knights stiffened drastically as they heard about the hostages and the story of William''s betrayal.


    ¡°I still can¡¯t believe it,¡± Ilias said, looking towards William. ¡°I actually brought him once to my house for dinner.¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± William said with a smirk, ¡°the food was great, just a bit on the spicier side. You wouldn¡¯t mind weing me again, do you, dear Ilias?¡±


    The Knight showed a sick expression, but refrained from getting into conversation with the dark sorcerer. Yes, that¡¯s what William was. Shailyn still couldn¡¯t acknowledge it. William was still the same, with all the smirks and yful tones. At least, on the outside. She had no clue if it was his real persona, but none can change what he did.


    Sighing, she got back to what was important. ¡°Ilias, you¡¯re with me,¡± she announced and looked towards the other knight. ¡°Jon, you¡¯ll go after Noyar. Help her free the hostages.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Lady Shailyn.¡± Both of the knights acknowledged, exchanging nces.


    ¡°No, that won¡¯t do.¡± Shailyn hesitated for a second. ¡°Ilias, Jon, I know you two since I joined as the arbiter, but too many things went wrong already. I want your word.¡±


    The knights exchanged nces again as Ilias opened his mouth, understanding what she was implying. ¡°I, Ilias Worthrite, give my words to assist Shaillyn Earther, an arbiter of the Order of Magi, in whatever way I can, while in return I¡¯ll ask for the same.¡±


    Meaning, if Shailyn followed her duty, Ilias would do as well. It was not that Ilias didn¡¯t trust her as she showed such uncertainty at the time, it''s just how oath works, and also, even if Ilias¡¯s position is lower than her, he¡¯s a knight, and has his honour, his pride.


    As in the old Knight¡¯s mandate, Thou will have honour serving others as long as others showeth honour in thee.


    Shailyn felt the weight of the oath pressed into her spirit. ¡°Thank you,¡± she told Ilias and returned her gaze to Jon.


    Jon followed with the oath. ¡°I, Jon Al¡¯born II, give my words to . . .¡±


    ¡°Thank you, both of you.¡± Then she followed, taking her oath, even though it''s merely a tradition now.


    As she took the oath, the weave of wind dissolved as angry, chilly winds surged at them, chilling their spines, and whistling in their ears.


    ¡°What do we do with him?¡± Ilias asked, pointing towards William tied up to the tree. He had to shout now to convey any message to others.


    Shailyn acted as if she didn¡¯t hear him and looked at the sky, four moons peeking through the swirling clouds, while the fifth one would appear within an hour or so, only so much time they have left with.


    ¡°Leave him,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯ve sealed his channels and weaved a spell on his chains. He or anyone else will find it particrly difficult freeing him in entire piece.¡±


    ¡°But leaving him in the blizzard?¡± Jon groaned.


    They all know what he meant. The weather was not merciful to anyone. William could die from freezing if he stayed in the blizzard for long. Even if he¡¯s a prisoner, a dark sorcerer, they couldn¡¯t judge his life and death. There are other people for that.<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡°Leave him,¡± Shailyn repeated.


    ¡°Seriously, Lady Shailyn,¡± William spoke up, ¡°you¡¯re being heartless here. Surely, you wouldn¡¯t leave me to die.¡±


    Shailyn turned towards him and walked a couple of steps. ¡°I¡¯ll free you when we return.¡±


    ¡°And if you don¡¯t?¡±


    ¡°You better hope we will, and that too soon.¡±


    . . .


    The juice in the false-ward emptied an hour ago, and I found it particrly difficult to move through a blizzard. Wind whistled against my ears as I turned my head to look at Harth behind me, carrying Mrs Kirien.


    Funny how I was working as a shield to block the angry gale to the person who helped in making a mess of my face and broke my elbow. Wait, I did most of the breaking elbow part. Still, I didn¡¯t know what to think of this.


    I¡¯m certainly not thinking of myself as the bigger man, or I thought of myself as one even before making this sacrifice. Well, what did it matter? Without me, Harth wouldn¡¯t make it, and it would have been a lot more difficult for me to reach the camp, carrying Mrs Kirien. So, we both are doing our best in our own way.


    Still, I¡¯m doing more.


    ¡®So, I did think myself of the bigger man,¡¯ I thought and looked up at the sky. I didn¡¯t know what to do with that revtion, especially in these circumstances. I could make out an overflow of light in four particr spots in the clouds, while thest one was not far away, it seemed.


    ¡°We¡¯ll get there soon,¡± I shouted as most of my voice was lost in the angry wind. But will I be able to get back in time?


    Yes, I trust Shailyn and Noyar, but they have a tall order and they were only two individuals. They couldn''t be everywhere.


    Sucking in a chilly breath, I increased my speed. The faster I reach the camp, the earlier I''ll be able to return.


    Ruffle snow pped against my face, while in the other ces it was not so ufortable since I was protected by the false-ward and the thick leather cloak. My left arm was still tied up to my chest, where the blood flow had clogged up, it seemed. Just a little more.


    After creeping further, I noticed some lights moving toward us. A couple of them, tingling in blue light¡ªluminescencemps¡ªmost likely.


    "Hey," I shouted, lifting my right arm. "We''re here!"


    Harth shouted too, and it seemed the watcher finally noticed us, running towards us. There were two of them who came at our signals. Both of them in thick, wintery clothes, from head to toe, goggles in their eyes.


    "Daaryl''s breath," one of them spoke up.


    "Yes, Daaryl''s damn, dirty breaths," I cursed back. "How far away is the camp from here? How many men are present now, and how many can be--"


    "Slow down,d," the other one said. He was a wizened man with a wrinkled face. "Let''s get to camp first, then you''ll tell us what went wrong."


    "I see," I said, letting out a breath. "So let''s move fast. We don''t have much time. Also, by any chance, do you guys have any spirit fuel leftovers?"


    Before the watcher could answer, a surge of wind with chilly snow hit us. I almost swayed away at its turn. Where, the younger man of the watcher duo was not so lucky, fell on the snow face first.


    I groaned and looked up at the sky. And then there were five.


    The Night of Brilliance was upon us.


    ________


    You can read all the chapters including the privilege ones in my Pa treon. Link at the end of the synopsis.

 Chapter 87 50: The Ritual (1)

    Q: What''s the best bet against the other power?


    A: All the Twelve powers that hadn''t been corrupted.


    - - -


    The horror of the situation chilled Yeriel more than the snowstorm and icy wind. From being an honour student in the most prestigious academy of the realm, she was now on the way of bing a sacrifice to some evil ritual.


    Was it for this day she left her home? Was it to be a sacrifice for a dark sorcerer? She travelled from Endus to Starlight City. Even all the fights she fought with her family to get to the academy seemed meaningless against her approaching doom.


    Yeriel considered crying, but what would that achieve? She tried to resist with all she had, however, that didn¡¯t stop them. They carried her through the storming weather to the area where they were supposed to hold the ritual. In a few hours, she would be no more, even though she heard all that nauseating talk from the warlock about power.


    There were nine of them, Althan and Yeriel only being the captive, while the Warlock Rojar Iker, his apprentice Kiea, and Rogue Knight Rial were in the forefront of the expedition. Four more underlings were in the back, and one of them was carrying her now. Yeriel had resisted before, but that only earned her the soul severing pain.


    Her body was limp now, mind numb from the cold and what she went through. She didn¡¯t know how long ago it was, but thest time she talked was with Althan, who supposedly gave her hope that he would make sure she¡¯s alright. It would¡¯ve been so great if she could trust her. Oh, almighty above, she cried inwardly. What did I do to suffer this?


    Perhaps it was a test. Perhaps Ishar has his ns for her. She only has to endure, endure until help arrives.


    . . .


    On the front, Althan was asking Kiea non-stop about what they were intending to do in such stormy weather, which seemed to annoy the warlock apprentice quite a lot. The Warlock and the Knight were busy leading, finding the right path that left him free to ask whatever he wanted without caring much.


    ¡°Is this how you treat royalty?¡± Althan asked, irritated, not getting his answers.


    ¡°Technically, I¡¯m not from the empire, so your position holds nothing to me,¡± Kiea said, eyes cold. Why had her master agreed to take this clown with them? And even if he did, why didn¡¯t just as a captive? Oh god, she was told to amodate him, as if she was not annoyed already.


    ¡°But you spoke Mahendi,¡± Althan argued, ¡°and it''s the empire ground.¡±


    ¡°So ording to you, nobody from outside can speak Mahendi.¡± Kiea replied in a level tone. ¡°Your highness, you have much to learn about the world. And this is not your empire¡¯s ground. Victoria was a nation, until your greedy emperor usurped it, like many others, taking advantage of the situations.¡± As Kiea spoke, her voice grew furious.


    ¡°Simply one does not stand in the Empire¡¯s way,¡± Althan said. ¡°Victoria weed the change and weed the empire¡¯s rule with both hands. They knew they would gain more from it, and they did.¡±


    ¡°If only rulers think like that,¡± she said, her voice growing a bit curious. ¡°Tell me, Prince of Thaylor, that throne, the one your father holds. Did it always belong to him?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Althan answered with much dignity. ¡°My father, Highprince Alvin Andre Kimber, won through his sheer hard work in war, trade, and lifelong service to the empire to coronate as the ruler of Thaylor. He has every right to be the ruler and--¡±


    ¡°The only reason he got the throne is because he¡¯s thepdog of the emperor,¡± Kiea snorted, eyes filled with contempt. ¡°The old king of Thaylor would¡¯ve never stood by empire¡¯s rule and got into a war that he could never win, while your father, he¡¯s but an opportunist. He yed the right piece at the right time, never understanding he¡¯s also but a chess piece of the emperor. A piece that could be tossed off easily when thepdog stops being docile.¡±


    ¡°How dare you?¡± Althan almost screamed. ¡°My father, he--¡±


    Kiea shook her head and with cast a Hush spell on Althan, to make him stop annoying her. There¡¯s no way for him to break out of the spell with his channels being sealed.


    Honestly, why did she turn out to argue with this . . . imbecile. He hadn¡¯t had the slightest clue about the situation. The only reason he¡¯s here is to y as a hostage.


    Almighty heroes! I wish I had other options. Perhaps William could,¡¯ she thought and shook her head. No, William was captured, and even if he''s not, he''s just too unpredictable, far more than his father. She didn¡¯t know him all too well, nor in contact with him that much. Thest time they talked, he hinted her something, but she gave no answer, knowing nothing of his original goal.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Althan struggled, gesturing at her like a dimwit to break off the spell.


    ¡°There¡¯s no point arguing with someone who doesn¡¯t understand how the world works,¡± she said and nced towards Yeirel at the back of a warder. ¡°I think your life will be easier if you remain in your fantasy. Gosh, I¡¯ve no idea how you turned out as a dimwit from such a scheming father.


    ¡°Also, do you want to know about what we''re intending to do with that girl of yours? It''s very simple actually, it''s just the same. What do powerful people do to weaker people to gain more strength? Do you know what it is?¡±


    She waited for an answer, and considered breaking the spell, but remember how stupid this prince actually was. Even if she broke the spell, he couldn¡¯t answer her, only spout nonsense.


    ¡°What master wants with her is extremely special,¡± she said, eyes drawn to the hateful girl again. ¡°She would be used as a medium for a ritual to draw force, and then master will siphon the power from her. Quite a tall order for a girl like her, wouldn¡¯t you say? Don¡¯t worry, she won¡¯t die. On the contrary of dying, this ritual holds an opportunity for her too, an opportunity she doesn¡¯t appreciate.¡± Her voice grew hateful, envious.


    Abruptly, she felt a presence next to her. ¡°So I see you¡¯re amodating Prince Althan well,¡± the Warlock came in next to her, considering her.


    He flicked his finger as the Hush spell broke, and Althan sighed, though didn¡¯t open his mouth in the presence of the warlock. However, he muttered something along the line of damnable witch before withdrawing back to the wretched girl.


    ¡°How far away are we, Master?¡± she asked and regarded the sky. There were four moons in the sky currently with a lot of time in hand, however, she was not sure if the main content was ready yet. Her master had only answered that vaguely, but she always assumed he had it arranged. Honestly, she didn¡¯t know how he managed all the contents of this ritual, but does it matter to her anymore?


    ¡°You have to do something about your temper,¡± her master said.


    Kiea clenched her palms. She abided by everything and even showed the proper respect, yet she was hearing this.


    ¡°I¡¯ve noticed the blood patches on the girl,¡± Rojar said, ncing back to where the supposed sacrifice was carried away.


    ¡°It''s only a littlepared to what you¡¯re intending to make of her,¡± Kiea said in a level tone. All because of that wretched girl.


    ¡°I suppose you¡¯re right.¡±


    Originally, it was supposed to be her who should be used as the sacrifice for this ritual. Well, not sacrifice, as long as she abided by rules, but the appearance of this hateful girl with pure, un-coerced energy threw away everything. She knew it was irresistible for a dark sorcerer to give away an opportunity like this.


    ¡°Master, I think she will fight back,¡± Kiea said, her level tone turning to almost pliable. ¡°She doesn¡¯t have enough willpower to hold against it. The power will break her, and she could . . .¡±


    ¡°Outburst?¡± Rojar regarded his apprentice. ¡°That could happen to you too, dear.¡±


    Kiea paused for a moment and decided to be honest. ¡°Master, I¡¯ve waited for this for years,¡± she said, swallowing ufortable breaths. This was not anything easy for her. ¡°Please, I can do better than her. I won¡¯t resist. I¡¯ll do everything you want of me, just give me a chance.¡±


    Yes, she really might give in, overlooking all her previous goals, as long as she gets what¡¯s promised.


    Rojar regarded her honest words. ¡°What I want of you is to stop with those thoughts,¡± he said sternly. ¡°You have no idea how overpowering the Other power is. It''s the most vtile. You say you won¡¯t resist, but would you be the same when you held onto that sheer amount of power? I¡¯ve considered everything, and I think she¡¯s the best bet. Yes, she would resist, but I¡¯ll get what I want. I always get what I want, eventually.¡±


    Kiea found herself lost of words. Yes, the thoughts of betraying have been on her mind since the beginning, but she had been honest now. Her master has treated her better than most of the animalistic people she met over the years, but none of the two were saints. She could and would betray him, provided with an adequate opportunity, as he would do the same. Well, he already did. This was the unspoken truth of their rtionships.


    ¡°Think of this as a relief that you¡¯re not the one to be sacrificed,¡± Rojar Iker said, eyes distant. ¡°You didn¡¯t have a clue what the other power does to one¡¯s soul, and you¡¯re never meant for a willing sacrifice.¡±

 Chapter 88 50: The Ritual (2)

    ¡°Sirius,¡± Rojar Iker called,ughing at a younger man, ¡°It''s finally time.¡±


    It seemed they have arrived. Yeriel found something amiss in her new environment. The wind didn¡¯t swirl around there, nor was snow falling. It seemed some magical fortification was in ce around there¡ªnot that distant, about twenty yards around them.


    Everything seemed prepared before they arrived there. A few were already present there, standing with luminescencemps in their hands. They weed the warlock and his associates as they talked for a short while and finally all their attention was drawn to her. Yeriel felt a sudden sense of panic. It was as if she was amb on the way to be butchered as they were essing her.


    Rojar Iker, the mastermind of all this, gestured to the underling that was carrying her as he brought her towards them. Yeriel could make out what they were saying now, while the underling put her down in the middle, which seemed to be carved as an altar. All snow was cleared out of the way as various geometrical patterns were carved in to make the entire ritual circle.


    There were six openings to the circle. She tried to interpret them to the best of her capability, however, thinking about her approaching doom, she couldn¡¯t make sense of it. Not to mention, this circle was something ancient, something out of her league¡ªshe even wondered if the warlock could even understand it.


    There was no shortage of people doing what¡¯s forbidden and don¡¯t understand it, yet they still do it just to gain some promised strength in exchange for everything.


    . . .


    ¡°Rojar,¡± Sirius, the one who seemed to be in charge of the other party, spoke, regarding Yeriel. ¡°Have you taken pity on your apprentice or just want to taste new flesh? Well, I can¡¯t me you, this girl you captured, she sure looked the type you want to put under--¡±


    ¡°You know, brother?¡± Rojar cut him off. ¡°You could have walked further in the path, however, this debauchery nature of yours cursed you whole. We are practitioners, all these earthly pleasures shouldn¡¯t affect us.¡±


    ¡°If you say so,¡± Sirius joked, grinning, ¡°Why don¡¯t you let me do the syphoning for you, then?¡±


    Rojar only stared at him coldly, while Rial withdrew,manding the underlings to their guarding post. The snowstorm couldn¡¯t find its way through the magical fortification, but it couldn¡¯t be the same for others¡ªthe ones after them. Even though there¡¯s a very faint chance of that with all the damage Rojar has done to them, Rial always tries to be through.


    ¡°Still so stern about everything, I was merely joking,¡± Sirius said and looked around, pping the warlock in the shoulder. ¡°Oi, Kiea, where¡¯s my nephew, by the way? He was not the type to miss out on chances like this.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s not here,¡± Kiea answered and finding Sirius giving her a meaningful look, she only shrugged.


    ¡°Let¡¯s proceed to more important business, shall we?¡± Rojar Iker said. ¡°Sirius, will you bring out what I asked of you?¡±


    Sirius nodded and withdrew, while the warlock transferred his gaze towards Yeriel again. ¡°Kiea, proceed to prepare the altar. I¡¯m sure you need no more instruction?¡±


    Kiea bit her lips and nodded.


    . . .


    The warlock readied to open his possessions. He approached Yeriel in the middle of the altar to stoop at her eye level. First, he brought out a small vial and gave it to her. ¡°Drink this.¡±


    ¡°What is in them?¡± Yeriel asked, not interested in drawing her palm to take it.


    ¡°Painkiller,¡± the Warlock said and proceeded to make sure she drank that. He caught her chin after all her struggle and poured down all the contents of the liquid in her mouth.


    Yeriel didn¡¯t have the strength to struggle more and with the foreign force pushing the chilling content into her mouth, she could do nothing against it other than swallowing it. A chilling current filled her head and throughout her body, Yeriel found a fresh surge of strength in her body, but the moment she tried to draw the energy into her channel, she felt the soul severing the pain again.


    ¡°This is not painkiller,¡± she muttered in between her groaning.


    The seal on her channels was lifted off, however, that imprint that caused that pain was still there. She knew it was not a soul severing pain, just her mind interpreting it as one, but that didn¡¯t make it even a bit easier. If she continued with that, it could very well break her mind, leaving a body hollow of intelligence.


    ¡°It is not,¡± the warlock admitted, ¡°but it will help you resist the pain. Don¡¯t try to do anything foolish. There¡¯s no way out. I already told you this ritual is not lethal to you as long as you abide by what I instructed you. Yeriel Ruah, you¡¯ll live, and might gain something from this. Don¡¯t try to challenge that.¡±


    Then, without any heads up, the Warlock cut her palm and collected the blood. Yeriel cried, but the warlock treated her as if nothing but some article to be used.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Kiea came back after that, bringing dozens of candles. She proceeded to light them up and let them at certain spots around the altar. While the Warlock was doing something with her blood. A blood curse, perhaps, for security. Really, she was already helpless to the core. What would a blood curse do to her other than killing her?


    Only after the warlock finished what he was doing, did she find out it was not a blood curse he was preparing, but something else. In his arms were two long antlers, smeared in her blood. Yeriel felt a sudden chill in her head. She didn¡¯t know why. Giving her ast look, the warlock cast an immobility spell on her that locked her in the very spot and withdrew.


    Yeriel wept, trying to struggle out of her spot. She tried to draw spirit energy again and groaned in the ever so familiar pain¡ªshe had gone through this a dozen times already, but still, she couldn¡¯t help it.


    ¡°You never learn, do you?¡± the witch said in a level tone, and perhaps this was the most neutral tone she had spoken to her so far. Kiea continued on igniting the candles circling her.


    Yeriel was not sure why, but this warlock apprentice hated her. She had roughed her up before, pping her face, punching her, saying mean things she couldn¡¯t interpret. Only at the appearance of Althan did she stop then.


    ¡°Please,¡± Yeriel begged, groaning, ¡°please tell me what you¡¯re doing with me. I¡¯ve never done anything to you . . . anything to . . . anyone . . . why . . .¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± the witch said. Her voice was not so hateful anymore, or was it she felt pity for her? No, that¡¯s not it, she just was just bizarre. ¡°Your sin is to be in the wrong ce at the wrong time.¡±


    ¡°All I ever wanted was to heal as many as I could.¡± Yeriel wept, looking up in the skies. Though the moons couldn¡¯t be seen properly with the clouds blocking the view, they couldn¡¯t really block all the light¡ªover-drafting on the clouds to cast on the snow fillednd in the snowstorm.


    ¡°You¡¯ll never be able to do that after this,¡± Kiea said, as if stating a fact. ¡°You might live, but you don¡¯t look the type who would want to after this.¡±


    ¡°Please . . .¡±


    ¡°Perhaps if you can endure all the awful things that would be done to you, you¡¯ll live, but that won¡¯t be you, would it?¡± Kiea hesitated for a second before continuing in a whisper, ¡°Or likely you¡¯ll try to destroy everything when you get the chance, and trust me, you¡¯ll get your chance. All matters if you¡¯re willing to destroy. There¡¯s a faint chance of that. My master won¡¯t let you have it, but for a fraction of a moment, you¡¯ll have the strength to do it. Tell me, Yeriel Ruah, will you do it?¡±


    Yeriel found herself lost of words. She didn¡¯t understand what she just heard now. ¡°Please,¡± she wept, ¡°I¡¯m a healer. I heal, not destroy . . .¡±


    ¡°Zashin burn you,¡± Kiea cursed at her, ¡°you¡¯re more annoying than that foppish prince of yours.¡± She continued to curse under her breath, muttered almost in an inaudible voice. ¡°But perhaps you¡¯ll understand after the awful deed done to you.¡±


    While Yeriel wept on the altar, Rojar Iker broke into an outburst after a long time.


    ¡°What¡¯s the meaning of this, Sirius,¡± he shouted, pointing towards a white cub.


    The white cub had short antlers on its head, eyes watery, but crystal clear, and looked like the next cutest thing. However, the warlock was furious the moment he gazed at it.


    ¡°Well, of course, your Winterheart Reindeer, Brother.¡± Sirius shrugged. ¡°After all the months of searching, I can sessfully found this.¡±


    ¡°Does it even have any magical power?¡± Rial asked, approaching them. His expression was not so bright, either.


    ¡°Well, you asked for a Winterheart Reindeer,¡± Sirius continued, ¡°I brought you, which is merely a cub. Or do you need an adult one for your ritual?¡±


    Rojar Iker red at his little brother, exhaling. Yes, in the ritual there¡¯s no mention of it the needed sacrifice to bean adult or, newborn, but even an apprentice in his first year would know, what kind of difference between an adult saint beast and a cub.


    ¡°Rojar,¡± Rial called, ¡°are we going with this?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± the warlock said. It''s toote to turn back now after all the preparation over the years. ¡°The ritual didn¡¯t draw power from the reindeer, it is merely the sacrifice, we have to see if a cub would suffice or not.¡±


    - - -


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 Chapter 89 50: The Ritual (3)

    Ilias came back from scouting, and his expression wasn¡¯t any bit better from what Shailyn could make out in the darkness.


    She gestured at him to follow as she moved, getting to a corner around the pine forest where she would have a less restriction on casting the weave to reduce the wind and snow storm again. Spells in themselves were against naturalws. They change, bend the naturalws of the world, but if you can work with nature, then do it, cause there you¡¯ll have less restriction to achieve the weave. And less restriction meant less energy wasted, and the longevity of the spell.


    ¡°What did you find?¡± She asked without wasting time,pleting the weave.


    Winds curled around them in a circle, and so was the heavy snowfall, magically reduced with the wind in the two metres radius circle they were in. Without it, making out any voice would be difficult in such a snowstorm. Ilias literally would have to yell to answer her.


    ¡°There were fourteen of them I found on the lookout,¡± he said. ¡°We can¡¯t sneak in without letting them know our arrival. From the looks of it, they didn¡¯t seem sloppy, though the snowstorm made their job difficult.¡±


    ¡°What of the others?¡± Shailyn asked. ¡°The warlock and his associates, who else is with him, and have you found what he¡¯s preparing?¡±


    Ilias shook his head. ¡°It seemed there¡¯s some fortification in ce, but I did make out they were going for some sacrificial ritual as you told before. At least half a dozen more should be inside it. Perhaps the rogue knight you mentioned is there, too. I didn¡¯t find him outside.¡±


    So about twenty of them, or more. They had less than that thest time she and Noyar encountered them, not to mention the warlock left behind some number with the hostages, and they put down half a dozen. So it''s most likely he had another team prepared. It would be even more troublesome than she had assumed, and perhaps would be almost impossible with just the two of them.


    ¡°We¡¯ll move as nned,¡± Shailynmanded. ¡°Bring their number down first before attacking the main hold.¡± She looked up at the skies. The fifth moon finally came out, though still behind the clouds, it didn¡¯t make any difference. ¡°Something terrible they are brewing. We can¡¯t make them proceed with it.¡±


    . . .


    Yeriel¡¯s mind was almost numb with the pain. She tried a couple more times to channel the spirit energy after her channels were freed, and in both of them, the pain was so much that she couldn¡¯tplete anything she tried.


    On the second time she figured out she was doing something wrong, she felt foolish now. Why was she trying to affect the outside when her first intention should be breaking the imprint that causes all the pain? Well, no one could me her with her condition and the situation she was in.


    Still, her first try at on the imprint was an utter failure. Certainly, the warlock wouldn¡¯t leave behind something that she could break easily and mess up, the ritual he was preparing for years. No, just getting her spirit to attack that imprint was painstakingly hard, it hurts even moreparing with the others time, but perhaps she had tried the dozen times like this she could have freed it already.


    But she didn¡¯t have a dozen chances any more, perhaps a couple of times more before her mind would give in. But it''s possible to break the imprint. She had to draw it delicately, with a softer hand. However, when attacking, she has to thrust it with full force. In one full sweep, she would have to break it, or she would the sacrifice.


    Unfortunately, it didn¡¯t seem like she had much time left. The warlock returned to the altar, behind him his apprentice and others followed. Dozens of candles lit circling her in a circr star pattern with six openings. There was some prudent smell in the air too. They had smeared some animal blood on the circle.


    ¡°We¡¯ll begin now,¡± Rojar Iker said, ¡°bring the sacrifice.¡±


    He didn¡¯t look back to see if they were doing what he asked or not, but moved towards Yeriel, who was still pinned down on the spot, holding a crown of antlers in his hand. Yeriel tried to lift her eyes struggling and found the warlock putting the hideous-looking crown made of deer antler on her head. He was not even a bit gentle about it, thrust it so that it would stick on her head throughout.


    ¡®Are they from winterheart reindeer?¡¯ she wondered, and found the rogue knight carrying a white cub, curling up into a small furry ball, though its eyes were teary, and mouth bound so that it couldn¡¯t cry. Its antler hadn¡¯t grown well, still they were half a foot long.


    Rial put the cub across from her in one of the six openings, while the Warlock cast a spell of immobility as well, so that it wouldn¡¯t run around and make a mess of the circle.


    Yeriel¡¯s mind was on the edge since yesterday, and it hadn¡¯t calmed after that. But now, it has almost reached the point of no return. She tried again, drawing slow, deliberate strands of spirit energy, condensing together to make a small sharp needle of spirit energy. Without looking back, she forced into the mind image, to the dark glowing imprint.


    Chilling pain assaulted her brain, and she groaned, feeling her mind breaking, her soul shivering, her spirit wavering. She closed her eyes and gritted her teeth against the impaling pain. It''s working; a little more. She had to hold on a little more and she could make it. Perhaps she won¡¯t be free from the clutches of the warlock, but she could damage the altar and buy time.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Buy time for what?


    The warlock had mentioned nobody¡¯sing for her and even if they came; he has everything ready. They can¡¯t save her, they would only get themselves involved in this.


    ¡®No,¡¯ Yeriel jerked awake with thoughts. Whatever it is, she couldn¡¯t let them do this terrible ritual that needs a sacrifice of one of the pure breed of saint beast. ¡®Oh Ishar, I can¡¯t let this happen.¡¯ Pain consumed her head, but she pushed. No, it was not just her spirit that wavering, the imprint too was shaking.


    She summoned all her willpower and went through. Her mind crashed, and so did the imprint. It broke and dissolved. For a moment, she was free, for a fraction of a second she was free.


    Then the weight of a familiar, yet terrible force of spirit pressed into her. ¡°I said, I always get what I want,¡± Rojar Iker said, lifting his head towards her. ¡°I forbade you to try anything foolish, but I seemed to have underestimated your foolishness. To break the imprint, you¡¯ve cursed yourself whole. Even I¡¯m not sure if you can make it with your sanity now.¡±


    ¡°Master, she cannot make it,¡± Kiea spoke from behind. ¡°She already copsed even before the ritual. Let me take her ce, let me--¡±


    ¡°Silence,¡± the warlock¡¯s voice chilled her. ¡°We¡¯ll begin now. Take your position.¡±


    They did. Half a dozen of the practitioners, including him, stood by the six openings. Prominent among them were the Rogue Knight Rial, Sirius¡ªthe warlock¡¯s brother, and Kiea¡ªthe warlock¡¯s apprentice.


    ¡°We¡¯re ready,¡± Rial announced, all their hands cupped together.


    The ritual was just too big. Opening a gateway through the spiritual realm takes a heavy toll on their mind, none of them have any experience in it. Even though Yeriel would be the one who would suffer the most as it would directly assault her, the six of them would need to work together to make sure the ritual isplete, and that¡¯s not a simple task, creating the gateway and keeping it open for a fraction.


    Rojar nodded, while Yeriel wept with the winterheart reindeer cub.


    ¡°Oh GREAT LORD OF THE DARK,¡± Rojar called, as five other minions followed in the echoes. ¡°I call you on my soul, I call you on the heart . . .¡±


    The warlock brought out a hand knife and cut across his palm. He smeared all the blood that came out on the altar. ¡°I call you with my blood, I call you with my Bone.¡± He tossed a piece of bone into the altar, smeared in his blood.


    The others didn¡¯t follow with their blood or bones, as Rojar was in the lead in the ritual.


    Though there¡¯s no wind inside the fortification, all of them felt the chill, in their soul, in their heart, in their blood and bones.


    ¡°OH GREAT FATHER OF DARKNESS, I CALL YOU FROM THE DARKNESS INTO THE WORLD OF DARKNESS. HEAR MY CALL, OH FATHER OF BLINDNESS, LET YOUR PRESENCE BE KNOWN AGAIN INTO THE WORLD OF MEN.¡±


    - - -


    How''s it?!


    The book reached 150k with this.

 Chapter 90 50: The Ritual (4)

    ¡°OH GREAT FATHER OF DARKNESS, I CALL YOU FROM THE DARKNESS INTO THE WORLD OF DARKNESS. HEAR MY CALL, OH FATHER OF BLINDNESS. LET YOUR PRESENCE BE KNOWN IN THE WORLD OF MEN AGAIN.¡±


    Kiea gritted her teeth. She felt the overwhelming heaviness pressed onto her soul, rendering her incapable of anything other than the scripts as if she had gobbled them down in the past and now just vomiting back. None of the others were in any bright condition, either.


    Yeriel, who had her eyes closed, wide awoke, however, they felt empty. Her eyes were widened, as veins in red pulsed through inhumanly, while her arms danced in the midair as if going through Raigarh Mortis. No, she was not dead, but suffering, and it''s only the beginning.


    The crown of antler on top of her head dug into her skull as she screamed, feeling the unendurable pain. Her head felt like shattering, while the foreign thing poked into it, as if trying to be a part of her.


    ¡°I call you upon thisnd,¡± Rojar Iker screamed, ¡°to touch to the world of men again. I call you on the sacrifice of the blood and soul of a pure saint beast . . .¡±


    ¡°I call you on the names of the old Lords.¡±


    ¡°Saider Al¡¯Rishim.¡±


    ¡°Saider Tu¡¯Muyka.¡±


    ¡°Saider Han.¡±


    ¡°Kamral Al¡¯Sudoi.¡±


    Others screamed in the background. ¡°We call you from the darkness into the darkness. Hear our call, oh Great lord of the Dark.¡±


    The very air above them vibrated, and stilled in the next moment. The process continued. Yes, it was working. They just needed to endure more, endure until the gate opens, and they will get everything they ever wanted.


    A little more pain, and they will get everything they ever wanted.


    Abruptly, the fortification shook, and the warlock¡¯s attention broke towards that.


    ¡°Looks like some pests found their way here,¡± he said, spatting.


    ¡°What do we do?¡± Rial asked.


    ¡°Continue,¡± the warlock replied, ¡°It''s but the most important part.¡±


    They nodded continuing on the ritual, ignoring their underlings mind be in great peril, trying to keep the fortification intact.


    ¡°Kiea Tosin calls you,¡± the warlock apprentice began, ¡°OH GREAT LORD OF THE DARK.¡±


    ¡°Sirius Iker calls you,¡± the warlock¡¯s brother called, ¡°Oh, GREAT FATHER OF SIGHTLESSNESS.¡±


    ¡°. . .¡±


    ¡°Rial Keir calls you,¡± the rogue knight screamed, ¡°OH, GREAT FATHER OF HATRED.¡±


    Now, it''s the Warlock¡¯s turn, he was about to begin when the fortification shattered, as chilly, angry wind and the fierce snowstorm found their way.


    ¡°I hope we aren¡¯t thatte,¡± the magus said as she came from behind another figure with a bastard sword.


    Only two of them.


    . . .


    Shailyn felt the wrongness in the wind, which told her to move fast. She crept on the snow fillednd, wary of the guards on the watch. She tasked them themselves with neutralising them first, before making way towards fortification.


    Ilias could do it by sneking in, going for one target after another, until their enemies find out the wrongness. However, Shailyn was not the sneaky type and even with all the disturbance from the snowstorm, she couldn¡¯t keep up being hidden. So she chose the violent path.<novelnext></novelnext>


    An arrow shot at her, glowing in the darkness, evading all the force of nature.


    ¡°Trofas Kamaraz.¡± Shailyn spoke as the wisp of wind hurled against the arrow, blowing it away. However, it wasn¡¯t the end, more arrows came one from the same direction, while another two from her left.


    Shailyn followed with the same spell, however, this time it was not a wisp of wind only against the path of the arrow. This spell connected with the other one, making her wind even more potent. She evaded the onesing from her left, ducking, while the gales of wind formed a shield surrounding her.


    Neutralising the arrows, she hurled the wind shooting at the target on her front, surging with the snowstorm. It was not tapping into the power of nature, just working with it.


    The archer, hiding in the pine tree, yelped as he fell. However, Shailyn had no time to celebrate on one victim as the arrows kept oning even though her ever swirling windshield blocked them all. Shailyn prepared her next move for them, not a chanting spell, but a proper magic circle, working on the foundation she prepared with evocation.


    Then came one from behind, sneaking one, providing her with an opportunity to showcase the might of theplicated spell created out of magic circuit and evocation. His attempt would¡¯ve been sessful if Shailyn had been sloppy with her Spirit Cloud ability. Unfortunately for the burly fellow, he was just pushing his luck.


    He was almost twice her size and used all his strength to swing his mace against her windshield, however, before even his weapon could contact the swirling wind, a gale of wind de rammed through his gut, prating through his light armour. The rogue practitioner wailed, blood oozed out smearing in the snow. Shailyn didn¡¯t hold back. She flicked her right arm as a strong gale rammed against him, flinging him away dozens of metres.


    The mace was tossed aside first, and then the rogue warder collided against a pine tree.


    The wind around Shailyn weakened, though they were still swirling, bending around her, protecting her, empowering her. Arrows shot at her from all around, armed with spirit energy. Some were even sneaky, however, against the spirit clouds that enveloped all five metres in her surroundings, all tricks rendered useless.


    Shailyn enforced more spirit wherever the attack hit, neutralising the damage to her windshield. The arrows from her right stopped for a while and as she guessed again, came a couple of fellows, sneaking in. while on from the right, the other one is still from behind, proving to for the real sneak attack. Unfortunately, they don¡¯t know, nothing in the five-metre radius was hidden from her.


    Among the three Earther sisters, the eldest Leahlyn was best at auxiliary service. From Divination, Enchantment, Transformation, Alchemy¡ªnone of the two couldpete against her. Rosalyn¡¯s talent was no less, either. She was quite close to getting into grandmaster realm, Leahlyn ever was when she was alive. However, Rosalyn¡¯s calling was knowledge. She was best in theory among the living Earther Bloodline, or perhaps among the best five on the maind. Be it Evocation, Communion, Thaumaturgy, Enchantment, Warding¡ªshe¡¯s a master in all of them.


    Andstly, the youngest, Shailyn, who was best at practical magic, the violent magic. At the age of 25 she acimed herself as the magus, and the very next year, she became the Arbiter of the Order of Magi, and chose to be stationed at her homnd. And now, she was twenty-nine, further improved and polished all her practical battle spells and skills.


    These rogue warders don¡¯t stand a chance, even when she¡¯s partially handicapped. She crept, levitating from the snow towards the one in the right, however, her attack went for the one behind instead, and in ast full sweep of the swirling wind around her, she tossed both of them in the air, twisting their body.


    Ilias came back in the meantime, though he hadn¡¯t managed to deal with the archers. Well, it took her less than half a minute to deal with 4 of the warders, so not much time had passed.


    ¡°Trofas Bra¡¯vin.¡± A short shield formed enough to block the arrow came that had any threat to her, while she evaded the others, levitating behind a tree.


    Shailyn caught her breathing, wheezing. She reinforced her mind, steeled her willpower, and came out of the tree. Arrows flying at the slightest change in her moment.


    ¡°Trofas Kamaraz,¡± she spoke in an almost inaudible voice, however, the effect was unimaginable.


    Horrifying gales of angry wind rattled at hermand, surging from the blizzard, while the snow made it even worse. The snow was not her spell, but it''s a nice addition she added to work with the wind. The angry wind carried the snow and hurled at her enemies, blowing away the enforced arrows as if broken kites in the sky.


    Her evocation was never this powerful, but the circumstances were different, she was growing the power of the storm, bending it to do her bidding. In a way, it''s also tapping into its power, however, it''s more from the outside. She was more like a bystander, just pushing the rolling boulder a little, changing its direction.


    Bodies hiding in the trees flung away, even the trees bent, their coned-top almost reaching for the earth. All the swirling wind worked and rammed against the spiritual fortification, shaking it, and reducing its effect.


    ¡°Ilias,¡± Shailyn called. ¡°You know what to do.¡±


    ¡°Yes, mydy.¡± The knight lunged at the fortification, the horrifying weave of wind empowering his momentum. Ilias bastards word turned heavier as he rammed against the weakening fortification running a full-sh.


    The Earth element gave the sword all the heaviness and when it rammed against the barrier of the fortification, it shattered like ss crumbing against stones.


    Shailyn¡¯s figure flew before him. ¡°I hope we aren¡¯t thatte.¡±


    _______


    Next Chapter: Young me

 Chapter 91 51: Crisis (1)

    Leaving the sickdy and Harth, I moved to secure some juice for the false-ward. Magically, it''s a stone crushed into bits of dust, though juice could be used as well.


    The warder camp at the foot of the mountain was a lotrger than the one that got destroyed in the mountain. It was more of a permanent facility than the other one. I hope I can get some spirit fuel here.


    With the blizzard going outside, most of the people were inside, while the luminescentmps enlightened the camp. I hadn¡¯t checked out this camp all that much before, so I only walked, following the light. Let¡¯s find who¡¯s in charge first. If I¡¯m not wrong, it''s a retired knight called Penron. I saw Shailyn talking with him before.


    Luckily, it seemed my appearance with the bad news had alerted the higher-ups avable now. Well, the people of Victoria were more attentive to their task and weren¡¯t sloppy. Still, it didn¡¯t seem I would get much help from here.


    As I walked, I found the old man¡ªthe one who brought us here, approaching, apanied by another one. A taller elderly man, with a less wrinkled face, and grey-white hair. It should be Lord Penron.


    ¡°Lord Penron,¡± I greeted, bowing slightly. ¡°I assumed you heard the news?¡±


    The elderly man considered me for a moment and nodded. ¡°I¡¯ve already requested help from her majesty,¡± he said, ¡°now if you borate on the matter, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve missed a few points before.¡±


    I let out a breath and started again. I told the elderly knight about the threat, about the betrayal, about what we expect from this, and in the end, the elderly man only nodded. Well, they were surely not expecting something of the legends, a Winterheart reindeer and dark ritual¡ªsure that seemed like some fun story to read, however, even with his experience in the field, he shouldn¡¯t havee across that. Well, he didn¡¯tugh--that was a win.


    The world was changing. How do I express this to the old man? Typically, old men are the hardest to change, corresponding to the situation, because of the psychological effect. One simply couldn¡¯t abandon what he¡¯s familiar with in the face of something new.


    ¡°Lord Penron,¡± I called, ¡°do you have any spirit fuel left with over 20% purity rate?¡±


    The elderly man raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°Please,¡± I begged, ¡°I . . . we can¡¯t wait. Something big could go down now. Give me if you have any fuel, I¡¯ll pay backter.¡±


    . . .


    The warlock is gone with his entourage, and as Noyar promised Shailyn, she was about to start the rescue part. And she would do it right.


    Her partner in crime, or should be the only criminal, Pitt, still stood with that towering body as if there was no end to his endurance. However, Noyar knew that if she wanted, she could put him down easily, but best not to make any disturbance that would cause her mission to fail.


    So she yawned. ¡°Night¡¯s getting real strange, ain¡¯t that right, Pitt?¡± she asked. The spell was still working, considering she didn¡¯t use it much as it was almost impossible to mimic the real Doug, only through a brief examination. Noyar acted, her body ufortable, stretching her limbs. ¡°My bones got really stuffy in the cold. You''ve got some ale to share, mate?¡±


    Pitt grunted. ¡°No drinks,¡± he red at her, ¡°master¡¯smand.¡±


    ¡°Come on, mate,¡± Noyar continued, ¡°There ain¡¯t nobody to see. I¡¯ll only take a sip. I promise, swear on the old dead heroes.¡±


    The giant fellow looked at her, peering into her face. Did he catch up to something? Well, a burly fellow didn¡¯t necessarily mean a dimwit. Still, her acting wasn¡¯t that inconvincible, unless Doug and Pitt were close buddies. There was no way for her to know that.


    ¡°Ayaan¡¯s curses, mate,¡± she cursed at him, ring, ¡°if you ain¡¯t giving me, I¡¯ll take from others.¡±


    Saying that in a fit of anger, she tried to move away, but before she could do so, a hand caught her. Noyar¡¯s mind raced, and she was considering making her next move and was about to spin and twist that burly hand of Pitt when she heard his voice.


    ¡°Only one mouthful,¡± the burly man said, lifting his gourd to her.


    ¡°I only take a sip,¡± Noyar said, taking the gourd, ¡°swear on the dead heroes¡¯ graves.¡±


    The gourd was half full, and like she promised, she only took one sip. The Ale was of regr quantity, a bit stronger than what she usually likes, still, she had the urge to drink more, but she had given her words.


    ¡°Ahh, that put a fire in my chest,¡± she said exasperatingly and tossed the gourd at Pitt. ¡°Here, only one sip.¡±


    Her toss was off short by half the margin. It fell one stride from her and made a bit of thud, though almost inaudible with the blizzard on the going.


    ¡°Ops, my bad.¡±


    Pitt grunted, ring at her, and came forward to collect back his gourd, and Noyar did so too, though her intention was obviously not just collecting the gourd, nor anything pleasant.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Just as the burly fellow stopped down, Noyar caught his arm and twisted her body behind him while her other arm strangled his neck. Her legs nged, strangling too, pressing hard against his chest, trying to suck the living air out of him.


    Pitt groaned loudly, his other arm going for her head. Noyar pulled her head back, evading, while her elbow strangled harder, pushing him onto the cold ground. The burly fell in a loud thud and this time it was not so an inaudible voice.


    ¡°Is everything alright?¡± came a voice from inside the door they were guarding.


    Pitt groaned, gritting his teeth, his arm searching for ways to free himself. Atst, it didn¡¯t find her head, but seeding in getting hold of a few strands of her hair. He pulled them with no regard.


    Noyar didn¡¯t even grunt, gritting his teeth. This one was tougher than she gave him credit for. The burly man below her tried to twist his body, in order to gain advantage, and that was when she broke four of his ribs. She had enough.


    Cracking noises of bone breaking echoed in her ears as she pulled his head towards her. A couple of secondster, she finally got what she wanted.


    Pitt, unconscious, with a few ribs broken and the neck bones on the verge of breaking. If she had her way, she would¡¯ve made it painless, but cases went rarely that way.


    She let out a sigh, not sure how much damage she caused to this rogue warder. Yes, it was a rogue warder, and perhaps did many more awful things than her mind could think of, but that didn¡¯t mean she would have to go that way, too.


    Noyar always stays away from something violent unless it''s absolutely necessary. Well, she failed there miserably in thest two days, but what she could do pulled against overwhelming odds?


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± the guards inside asked again, voice more urgent this time, ¡°Doug, Pitt.¡±


    Noyar coughed to clear her voice and said, ¡°We¡¯re under attack. Get ready, we¡¯ll move the hostages as soon as possible.¡±


    . . .


    ¡°Spirit fuel is not something Victoria is rich off,¡± Penron said, peering into the suit I¡¯m wearing. He hadn¡¯t asked about from where I got something like that, maybe because of my identity or because he understood the imminent danger we¡¯re in. Whatever it was, I¡¯m grateful to him.


    False-ward was of Ruthalyn, a high functioning polymer suit, that only loses out to a Real Ward, whose form of creation was lost ages ago. That was one of the reasons Ruthalyn was still standing under the empire''s attack.


    I checked five small fragments of spirit stones, among the peculiar gazes of two elderly knights. Lord Penron brought it out of his own collection, and even with all that, there¡¯s less than 10 grams of spirit fuel with over 20% purity, while the rest were around 10% or even below.


    They had a lot of lesser spirit fuel, but they were useless to me. Though I could''ve made it work, purifying them, but that would take days.


    ¡°Gentlemen,¡± I called, getting ready to crush all of them through a purifier. It was almost like a coffer maker, though sturdier andrger. ¡°If you may prepare the team, we¡¯ll be leaving with.¡±


    I tried to say in a tone that wouldn''t soundmanding. Scar''s voice, whatever I say, came out somewhat forceful, but that''s not the way things work. Yes threats andmands were wee elsewhere, but not here. Well, as for the team, I will definitely overtake them if they had no Knights with Dominion of gravity in their rank, but any extra help would be worth it.


    ¡°There¡¯s only one among us who can arrive in time,¡± Penron said, ¡°and if the matter is as imminent as you made it out to be, I think it''s best to proceed with those who can fly first.¡±


    I nodded. ¡°Thank you,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯ll leave when I¡¯m done with this.¡±


    I started crushing the stone into pure dust and then into liquid, providing enough heat. I used my personal fire to do that. Even though I could¡¯ve purified them more with purgatory, it would take more time to do it in perfection. However, time was the variant we didn¡¯t have much of.


    So, I went with the crushing power of purgatory, providing it into the device. Within a couple of minutes the purification was done, not handsomely, but it would suffice in this situation.


    Lord Penrod watched me carefully while the other elderly person left when I was busy dealing with the purifier.


    ¡°Lord Penron, if you don¡¯t mind,¡± I said, showing the fuel tank on my back, near my waist. ¡°Give me a hand here.¡±


    The elderly knight nodded and was about to refill the fuel tank when the door of the chamber opened again.


    ¡°We have a problem,¡± the other elderly person came in. ¡°Young squire, the other squire you brought. He¡¯s nowhere to be seen.¡±

 Chapter 92 51: Crisis (2)

    Noyar stood upright straight, leaving Pitt¡¯s unconscious body at the side where it wouldn¡¯t get people¡¯s notice outright.


    ¡°Get ready, we¡¯ll move in a moment,¡± saying that to the guards inside, she crept away. There should be about half a dozen or more who she needed to put down, but she was not sure how many of that number were inside the cottage. Well, she would find out soon.


    ¡°We¡¯re under attack,¡± she shouted in that gruff voice, weapon ready in her hand. ¡°Everyone, get ready. We¡¯re under attack.¡±


    ¡°Hey, Doug,¡± a voice came from just the face of the cottage, ¡°what nonsense you¡¯re spouting?¡±


    ¡°It''s true,¡± she said, running towards him in desperate nature. There was one guard standing against the wooden wall. ¡°Where¡¯s the other? We need to be ready, Pitt, he¡¯s . . .¡±


    ¡°Pitt?¡± the guard asked, voice a bit alert now. ¡°What happened to him?¡±


    ¡°Come with me.¡±


    The rogue warder was still considering whether he should leave his post, but Noyar gave him no chance to ponder anymore. Just as she came two strides away from him, she thrust her sword at him. The warder was bewildered, and with his back against the wall, he couldn¡¯t even dodge. The cold de touched his neck, drawing a little amount of blood. A little more could turn the little into a lot.


    ¡°What¡¯s the meaning of this?¡± The warder shouted as if trying to alert his otherpanions.


    ¡°What does it look?¡± Noyar¡¯s eyes glowed as she found the warder drawing the power. ¡°One wrong move and your head is on the ground.¡±


    The warders eye widened in horror and the flow slowed down, though didn¡¯t rest.


    ¡°Don¡¯t resist. It won¡¯t go well for you.¡± Noyar came closer, her de still ng to his neck, while she drew her weaker arm towards his forehead.


    She drew in quite some quantity of power, proceeding to assault the warder¡¯s brain with it to make him unconscious, however, before she could do so, her danger sense rang out, as she spun, lurching her sword into a swing.


    A burly man sneaked behind her. While she was busy on the one before her, another one of theirpanions, crept behind her, trying to make a sneak attack. He was a head shorter than Pitt,ing at her with a sledgehammer, aiming for her head. Noyar couldn¡¯t see clearly in the dark, however, her dominion let her see the colourful flow of energy within the silhouette. Her swing connected, and the sword nged against the opponent¡¯s arm.


    The hammer fell on the ground with two arms¡ªcut below the elbows. Blood sprayed on the air, making the air pungent, as the burly man screamed. Within the moment of spar, Noyar hadn¡¯t held back, as the danger to her was too imminent.


    Blood smeared on her face, hands and upper body as she pulled a full-sh drawing in the force of the water. She utilised the Wavecutter of the Windstance, as the des of the water wave flung away the burly man. He collided against the wall, shaking the cottage, finally giving some sign that they were under attack.


    Noyar spun towards the other one, who almost dealt a vicious blow to her back, but she beats him to it with the residual force of Wavecutter, barely enough to make his stance waver.


    She sighed, knowing she didn¡¯t have chance to do it without bloodshed. She aimed for his right arm to make a feint and gutted her de into his stomach. The rogue warder got low, coughing out. She made ast lurch of foot against his head, finally making him unconscious, except that now blood flowing from his stomach.


    Noyar let out a breath and crept away. She rarely has an opportunity to get what she wanted without violence these days.


    Now she didn¡¯t have to scream ''we were under attack'' to get their attention. Still, she didn''te across rogue warders that easily. Were they all outside?


    As she crept, Noyar finally came across some disturbance. Not with her sight, but with the power of Dominion. She saw a very reserved flow of energy moving, dragging something. And it seemed she drew that person¡¯s attention, just as he drew hers.


    Noyar grunted, pulling another full-sh, this time not forceful, and sharp like the other, but more like a cannon of water, trying to fling away the warder.


    Her attack was aimed straight at him and with only five strides away, she rarely missed chances like this, however, what happened next startled her. Her opponent, give up on the body, and lurched above the wave of water, turning his body into a sharp twist. He flew, growing over the waves of attack toe at her.


    Noyar blocked the sword, however, the sheer force and momentum of her opponent came with something she hadn¡¯t anticipated. She fell on her back to the cold ground while the man on top of her.


    Her mind chilled, and she lurched her foot to attack.


    The man on top of her grunted. ¡°Noyar, I assumed,¡± he said.


    Noyar blinked. Though she didn¡¯t see his face in the dark, the voice seemed familiar, and how he manoeuvred his body. That reminded her of one person. ¡°Al¡¯born?¡± she asked, sighing in relief inwardly. ¡°You know, I don¡¯t really like your way of showing affection. Mind getting off me.¡±


    The knight did, giving her a chiding look. ¡°How many of them you put down?¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡°Three.¡±


    ¡°I got two on the way here.¡±


    Noyar stood up, giving a look to the body a few strides away. ¡°I¡¯ll go after the hostages. Deal with the rest.¡±


    Without waiting for Jon¡¯s approval on themand, she crept towards the way she came from.


    The door was still closed as she left it before, which was kind of weird. Shouldn¡¯t the two guards get out with the hostages in time?


    ¡°Are you guys ready?¡± Noyar asked, working her dominions to prate the wooden door. It was a difficult task as any kind of substance, especially solid, makes it harder, but she did find a few signs of life. ¡°Get ready, we¡¯ll leave.¡±


    Wiping the blood from her face, she turned to open the door, the dominion of the seer, active. And it turned out her decision to keep the dominion open was right, as on a sudden a body lurched at her the moment she opened the door, a sword prating her chest.


    Noyar withdrew a step instinctively, but there was no pain, nor was there any sword sticking out of her chest. However, she did find oneing to stick the sword into her chest. In a blink, that sword would prate her chest, if she does nothing.


    Noyar knew just what to do. She turned her body sideways and rammed her sword, filing away the other party¡¯s weapon, when something sharp shot at her again. She only saw a bit of a red bar of light. It was almost got into her chest too, but she moved away.


    Noyar blinked again the next moment. There were no red bars of light, or anything flying towards her. Something weird was going on, she thought, and then she saw the other guard shooting a projectile with red bars of light. It went straight to the path she saw first, and as she already strayed away from its path, it missed.


    The guard who shot that projectile at her had utter despair on his face. Noyar didn¡¯t have any idea what she did, but she was sure it had something to do with her dominion. However, as her mind was considering that, her body was already at work.


    Noyar flew to the opponent that was close to her, and lurched a heavy foot against his chest, manoeuvring her body in mid-air, she shot a wave of water cannon at the other one.


    Getting back on her knees, she looked around the room full of hostages, and sighed in relief. There were still a dozen of them, though barely a few of them were awake with everything going on. Seeing her do what she did, they started shouting.


    ¡°Help, please. I don¡¯t feel so good,¡± a younger male groaned, eyes wavering at her.


    ¡°They did something to us. Please help. I¡¯m dying.¡±


    ¡°Ahh, please, Oh Ishar, I¡¯ming to you,¡± another one said, and he seemed to have a seizure.


    The bit of relief she felt was washed away by the sound of despair from the hostages.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± she crept toward the one that seemed to be having a seizure. The moment she checked, she found more than a couple of things wrong with him. ¡°Oh, Manas protect them!¡±


    Jon Al¡¯born II came in the next moment, his face which was in the mask of fatigue and worry, darkened seeing the scene. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± he asked,ing into the room. He found the warder against the wall, awoke, and watching the scene. ¡°What did you do to them? Tell me.¡±


    Noyar, however, moved from one hostage to another, checking their pulses and flow of energy. ¡°They all are afflicted,¡± she said, slumping down to the next hostage. ¡°Horrible, this is so wrong!¡±


    She prayed, head bowing to the ground, not knowing how to solve the crisis. ¡°Oh Ishar, help them, give them strength. Manas preserve them.¡±


    Jon was now shaking the guard by the cor, gritting his teeth. ¡°Why?¡± he screamed. He hadn¡¯t checked like Noyar did, but the seizure of one almost on the verge of copse, to Noyar¡¯s prayer in utter despair, told him it was already out of their hand. He still couldn¡¯t ept it. ¡°Tell me how to fix it. Tell me, you bastard, Godforsaken fools.¡±


    ¡°They . . . they will . . . live,¡± said the guard through his shaking.


    _____


    Join Pa treon to read all the chapters including the 10 advanced chapters and support the work directly.


    Link in the synopsis.


    Sorry for the dys, the schedule would be sloppy for another week.

 Chapter 93 52: Young Flame (1)

    Q: Describe Young me.


    A: Young me is Unrestrained. It''s the easiest form of the me stance, yet the hardest to master. Young me deals mostly in sweeps and strokes, using the momentum of the body to push more strength out. There are many ways to use Young mes, though they mostly it was followed with elbows bent, hilt pointing upwards and then a shy broad stroke downwards, drawing spiritual energy wildly.


    - - -


    The snowstorm seemed to empower with the appearance of the fifth moon. Still, it was not as much at the foot of the mountain range. But I didn''t feel any bit fortunate for that.


    I waited for Lord Penron to finish dealing with the others as icy wind and snow pped my face. Turns out, the one with the Dominion of Gravity was none other than Lord Penron himself.


    The elderly man was not a resident of here, but employed by the empire after Victoria agreed to be a part of the Empire. There were a few others, too, but the Knights with dominion of Gravity, were employed elsewhere. Victoria was not really a big profitable ce to employ most of the empire''s assets on, after all.


    No joke, a force entirely made of people who can deal with aerial damage, that¡¯s something only Ruthalyn¡¯s aerial force could deal with after the invention of their magically crafted false-wards.


    On another note, Harth had fled from the camp after they all got busy dealing with all the attacks and everything. Seriously, teenagers, they seem to have the natural tendency to take the worst decision on a crisis. Yes, you¡¯ve been controlled by an evil warlock, yes you may have done some awful things, and couldn¡¯t trust yourself, but fleeing alone? Was that a solution in any way?


    Well, Harth looked pretty scared on the way as far as I remembered, but I thought he would stay put in one ce in his horror, or might get help from others, but no, he ran off like a typical teenager who thinks they can deal with everything.


    ¡®I was never like that,¡¯ I thought. Well, mostly because I never had much courage, and was almost alone my whole teenage years. Dad¡¯s health was always bad, mostly. I didn''t try extra hard, making it even more difficult for my mum, who had it even worse with her cancer. Well, most of my inte was pretty normal. After Mum''s death, Dad''s health got worse, and that was pretty much it.


    I just pretended everything would be alright and acted like a good boy.


    I sighed, looking at the swirling clouds in the sky, moons peeking through them. It wasn¡¯t even nine yet, nor was the weather at its worst. Still, many hours to go.


    ¡°Sorry about the dy,¡± Lord Penron came in running and said. ¡°You''re alright,d?"


    "Ah, yes, just thinking of the past," I answered. "How are things? if everything''s prepared?"


    "One team with the few capable men, including medics we got, will depart after us, while the other one will wait for the reinforcement from her Majesty.¡±


    I nodded and triggered the stream releaser of the False-ward. It''s time for us to depart then. ¡°How hard can you go, Lord Penron?¡±


    The elderly knight gave me a look. ¡°I¡¯m old, but not retired,¡± he said. ¡°I can still do better than that old scrap of tin.¡±


    ¡°I guess that would do, then let us depart,¡± I said and found the old man already in the air. Shaking my head, I followed, releasing a huge amount of stream from his back. Though with the terrible weather, it was not totally a deal breaker, but I couldn¡¯t be called stealthy either.


    ¡°By the way, it''s not tin," I said, joining next to elderly knight, "but a very specialised polymer with high resistance and power to absorb shock waves and disperse them evenly like an--¡±


    ¡°Ward,¡± the elderly knightpleted my sentence. He was wearing one such Ward himself. ¡°You seemed to know a lot about these suits.¡±


    The force of the wind multiplied a few times as we quickened our pace of flying. They were not just utterly ufortable, but quite painful. However, I didn¡¯t infuse energy to make it easier. I needed to save that for the confrontation. Who knows how much I would need it?


    ¡°Not nearly as much,¡± I said, ¡°but they are fascinating.¡±


    ¡°Damnable thing they are, took a dozen friends of mine,¡± Lord Penron said, voice sour. ¡°Not even half as good as an Original Ward, but when over a thousand troops march on wearing those abominations, even the finest knights of ours get nervous.¡±


    ¡°Lord Penron,¡± I called, ¡°You fought on war? I meant the real ones, not the hide-and-seek ys that''s going on now.¡±


    The elderly knight turned his head towards me. ¡°You¡¯re young,d,¡± he said, gasps of white smoke escaping from his mouth, ¡°all wars like hide-and-seek. Half of it is taking the advantageous ground, hiding and preparing for the worst¡ªand if we¡¯re failed to win this half, the other half almost lost. To answer your question, yes, I had fought in wars. Real wars.¡±


    ¡°What is it like?¡± I asked after considering for a moment.


    ¡°If you¡¯re thinking it''s all glorious, then you¡¯re wrong. Wars, or victories in war, are depicted as glorious. Ever wondered why? It''s just some form of constion, afort after all the horrible things the war has done to you, even in your victory.¡±


    _ _ _


    Jon returned to his senses after Noyar reminded him of the task at hand. Men, they can be so overdramatic at times, forgetting their duties, but on this asion, she couldn¡¯t me him. Even she herself got lost in the panic.


    These dozen people, including seven teenagers from the Starlight Academy, were left with terrible afflictions. If they were all normal people, more than half of them would be dead already even before the two of them could provide some form of help.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Noyar never thought the warlock would go this far. She guessed he was going all in now. That worried her further about Shailyn and others.


    Shaking those off, she got back to her job at hand, which was to help the afflicted individuals resist the foreign power in them. She got to the one that was having a seizure after unsealing everyone¡¯s channel, even if they were students or just warders, they had some form of resistance built in naturally with their daily spirit energy usage, and unsealing their channels would just give them the chance.


    Jon came back after tying up the two rogue warders in the far corner of the room. They were weeping now. ¡°The warlock didn¡¯t even let his minions off,¡± he said and joined in giving a hand to help the patient with the seizure.


    Noyar looked at them once more. They were weeping and seemed to be praying to Ishar. Noyar shook her head and got to her task. She infused her energy into the patients¡¯ channels, while Jon did the same. Both of them knew it was never going to be easy. If it were two or three patients, they could stop it with no problem, however, there were exactly fifteen of them, including the two rogue warders.


    Ishar help them all.


    They got to work. Exchanging a nce, the two of them divided the patient''s channels between themselves, and tried to force the affliction from spreading any more.


    ¡°They knew this would be done to them, you know,¡± Jon said, his voice crisp with resentment. He was never good at hiding or dealing with emotions.


    It took a couple of seconds for Noyar to figure out whom he was talking about. With everything that has been happening, it''s not her fault that her mind wasn¡¯t working properly.


    ¡°Yet they stille with the Warlock,¡± Jon continued, his strands of spiritual energy still working. He peeked at the rogue warders again. ¡°Oh, they are not praying to be saved, but to be forgiven for what they have done. They gave up on life already. . .¡±


    ¡°Jon, Jon,¡± Noyar called, pping him slightly on the cheek. ¡°I know this makes you ufortable.¡± She paused. Ufortable was just an understatement. Jon gets devastated on such asions. ¡°But you have to hold it together. These lives depend on us, on you.¡±


    The man nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll do my best.¡±


    Noyar sighed. She kept at blocking the afflictions, yet some part of it always found its way around to affect again, not to mention some of it already infected the blood cells and all over the body now. They can¡¯t stop that, a medical expert in healing needed for that. Noyar knew one that should be here with them now, but perhaps her conditions were even worsepared to them.


    The groans and calls for help in the surrounding didn¡¯t help a bit, but made him feel even more helpless. Only after a couple of minuteter she decided this boy was beyond her help, perhaps some healer could help him, but she was not one, nor Jon.


    ¡°What¡¯re you doing Noyar?¡± Jon asked, still working on that boy. ¡°His condition hasn¡¯t improved. At this rate, he would . . .¡±


    Noyar knew exactly what he meant to say next. She bit her lips and shook her head. Jon caught her hand, restitching her from going to the next hostage.


    ¡°Jon, please,¡± she pleaded. Not everyone was in such terrible state as this boy. She knew she could help them better.


    ¡°Look, he can still make it,¡± Jon said, ¡°we just have to try a bit harder.¡±


    Noyar looked at the face of the boy, barely sixteen or seventeen of age. His eyes were on her, pleading with tears filled them. His lips shaking in history as he tried to plead. ¡°Ple . . . ase


    Noyar looked away and steeled her heart. Tears filled in her eyes too, but she stood up from him. ¡®Oh, Ishar, forgive me," she said inwardly, ¡®I did all I could, but it wasn¡¯t enough. Let me save the ones that I still can.¡¯


    ¡°Noyar, please.¡±


    Noyar almost reached for the hands of the next hostage, but Jon¡¯s plea stopped her. She knew it was irrational to save everyone, as doing that might cost more lives, but there was still a tiniest part in her heart that wanted to save everyone. However, she couldn¡¯t be like Jon, so she sealed that part of her heart and emotions. ¡°Jon, I¡¯m sorr--¡± she stopped midway.


    Sealing. The sudden image of Shailyn came into her mind. Even though their afflictions were horrible, they can¡¯t bepared to Shailyn, who not only survived, but fought with it, just with her bare willpower. Perhaps that could work, with a little help. Perhaps she could buy him the time he would need. She thought and went back to the patient with the seizure.


    ¡°Jon, I don¡¯t know if this can work, but we have to try. It''s our only option.¡±


    __________________


    AUTHOR NOTE:


    This month''s updates got wacky after the first week, apologies for that. I wasted some time on another projectter to only find out I can''t work on two books together at the same time if I go like that. And then found out I had some assignments and other college stuff left to do.


    To make up for that, there will be more releases from next month. Also, thest few dropped in quality by some, I''ll fix them soon.


    Thanks for the support.

 Chapter 94 52: Young Flame (2)

    Althan expected to be many things in his life, a Grand Magus, a Highprince, and lead his family to greatness, but never a hostage. Ignoring the prospect of threats to his life, he just didn¡¯t like the prospect of getting held against his will.


    The force field shook with his heartbeat rising, as Althan looked at the ritual in the corner of his eyes. The air above the altar was warping crazily, twisting and turning into a ckness that gives chills to the heart of men.


    There were two guards on him, though all their attention was on whatever was going on in the ritual. They were fearful like him too, praying to Ishar, even unaware of what kind of abomination they were attempting. But the important thing was that they left him on his own, as if he would try nothing. Well, why wouldn¡¯t they? His channels have been shielded, he¡¯s nothing but amb to be butchered.


    Althan didn''t like the prospect either, but this went along with his n to get out of here. He needed to do it and do it fast. The force field would break, and they wille to save him, even if he failed, but he needed to do it alone. There''s something that only he can do . . .


    But what was that? Althan had no answer for that, though his willpower rose astronomically.


    Gritting his teeth, the young prince jabbed towards the guard on his right, before aiming for the firestone near them. His fist hit the face of the guard as he felt pain when it got in contact with the face of the guard. Well, his opponent was feeling more of it. That was a delight. The other one returned his attention to him instantly, and before Althan could get to the firestonemp, caught him by the legs.


    ¡°Get off me, you bloody oaf,¡± Althan shouted, running his leg wildly at his capturer. His hand was only about a few inches away from the firestone before he was dragged away.


    Althan was shouting in his rage when the force field broke entirely, which caught everyone''s attention. Getting that chance, Althan lunged forward and got a hold of his firestonemp. He wrapped it around his chest, feeling the ufortable heat. He was about to overload the device with the heat when he heard a voice, which chilled his mind yet again.


    ¡°So you''ve found your way in,¡± Rial said towards the two who came in after the bursting of the force field. The rogue knight took Althan¡¯s leg from the guard and held him upside down with one arm in the air, drawing his eyes at the trespasser.


    ¡°Let me go, bastard,¡± Althan screamed, struggling like a fish out of water. He was like a toddler held against his will.


    Rial might have the strength of a knight, but he couldn¡¯t keep Althan at his control with him struggling like that, so to make things easier for him, he rammed his knee into the stomach of the prince. The firestone that Althan struggled so much to collect fell on the snow, boiling the snow into water and then evaporating it almost instantly.


    The knight kicked at it to toss it aside a few metres away.


    ¡°Nobody likes an unruly child,¡± said the knight. ¡°do your best to be quiet, unless you wanted to die.¡±


    Shailyn¡¯s eyes darted from the altar to the rogue knight holding Althan hostage. Her brows joined in a frown as they came forward.


    ¡°Not another step, Arbiter,¡± said Rial. ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be a likeable oue for our prince here.¡±


    Shailyn stopped on her track, eyes drawing towards the horrifying undtion at the altar. Something terrible was brewing there. If it wasn''t stopped, perhaps every one of their life would be at stake.


    ¡°We don¡¯t negotiate with evil warlocks,¡± Ilias said, holding his bastard sword upwards, while his eyes glowed in the dark.


    ¡°So you¡¯ll give up on this innocent life?¡± The evil knight asked with a confidentugh.


    Ilias gritted his teeth and looked at his superior. Shailyn was about to open her lips to say something when a horrifying pressure dropped on her. No, not just on her, but on everyone else as well.


    The ckness enveloped over the altar as the horrifying undtions lessened by a lot. It was not serene either, but more like a ticking bomb. Who knew what would happen when it was set off?


    A smiled appeared on Rial¡¯s lips as he looked behind. Finally, Rojar seeded.


    It was as if a hole of ckness opened on top of the altar, but instead of sucking everything away, it poured down the ck, murky aura on the altar, stuffing it into the sacrifice and then to the medium. The girl screamed, her voice was horrifying, almost having no resemnce to the human voice. Her eyes opened wide and all the light from them was lost in the ckness.


    ¡°Oh, Ishar,¡± Shailyn prayed, and her arms waved, muttering the spells. She didn''t hold anything back. Now it''s bigger than just one life.


    Waves of mad wind swirled in the surrounding area, shing together to pound against the altar. The ck hole crashed almost instantly, though unsure if it was from her spell or something else.


    Figures fell surrounding the circle. It was unconcerned whether it was from Shailyn¡¯s spell or the exhaustion their minds went through for just opening a tiny crack to the other side. Whatever it was, they were down. Even the warlock, Rojar Iker, was down, struggling to get up on his knees. However, his lips held all theughter, blood oozing out from them.<novelnext></novelnext>


    The little winterheart reindeer screamed for onest time, breaking its restraint. Its eyes burned in red and ck before it fell lifeless there. Dead.


    ¡°The sacrifice had been met,¡± Rojar Iker said, and his eyes darted towards the girl on the altar, currently unconscious. Her clothes were all torn up into rags, barely holding on to her body, hair untangled like a wrenched.


    The warlock scrambled to move towards her when another wave of air attack approached them. His eyes glinted in fury as he called. ¡°Kiea, take care of my prize, while I take care of these righteous fools.¡± His voice was cold and crisp, and he didn¡¯t wait to see if his apprentice followed his order or not, moved towards the centre of the conflict.


    Kiea groaned, her body limping on the snow. Her mind was buzzing with madness as she tried to get up. At first, when the ritual began, she thought about abandoning it at the right time when everything would go wrong from there and fled. However, when the supposed right time came, she found she didn¡¯t have the much control of her body. All she could do was go along with the ritual.


    It was a horrifying feeling, as if the ritual wouldplete whether she wanted it or not. Finally, that ended, and Kiea got the control back over her body. Others there were still down, including Sirius¡ªher master''s brother, not even struggling a little.


    It wasforting.


    Breathing heavily for several seconds, she looked around to search for the situation. There were barely two of them that attacked, however, their number of underlings had downed to a few handfuls only. But with her master¡¯s presence, it would likely go in their favour, though she was unsure how long that would take.


    So Kiea advanced to do what she was asked to do, but was she doing it for her master? Even she was uncertain about that. Perhaps, if she had time, and figured out a way to suck out the power of that wretched girl, she would do it. She knew it wouldn¡¯t be easy, and anything she tried would be highly diabolic. But it would be worth a try.


    Kiea drew closer to Yeriel, unconscious on the floor. She checked her pulse and found it was weak, though a foreign berserk power was running wild in her body. Her eyes darted to the antler crown on Yeriel¡¯s head. She tried to unbuckle the crown, but found it hard as if the antlers had dug into her skull and be a part of her.


    Was that supposed to happen? Well, the only reason she was given the crown of the Winterheart Reindeer antlers was just to camouge her as a medium to draw the power when the otherworldly being tried to devour the sacrifice. Basically, it was a way to fool an evil god to give up a tiny part of His power.


    Yeriel groaned as a soft whimper escaped from her mouth from all the shaking Kiea did with the antlers, but she didn¡¯t wake up.


    The Warlock apprentice sighed in relief and was ready to carry her away when a side effect of wind spell hit her. She gritted her teeth and drew in her spiritual energy. She felt pain, but went along with it to redirect the waves of winding her way before carrying the prize.


    Kiea didn¡¯t have the power to carry Yeriel on her back no matter how important she was, so she just dragged her through the snow, not caring she was leaving ways for others to follow her. Well, if only it remains intact, with the confrontation between two powerful magi. Not to mention, there was nobody present to go after her.


    She moved, ignoring all the conflict. Luckily, there was none to keep track of her. Everyone was busy with the conflict. However, she found a figure running towards her. Kiea didn¡¯t recognise him at first and was about to attack when the individual turned on his track and ran like a madman. It was that waste of a prince¡ªseemed like he found freedom in the chaos.


    Good for him. Luckily, he didn¡¯t try to y the hero this time around. It would only cause his sorry life, that¡¯s all.


    After about two minutes, Kiea dragged Yeriel a couple of hundred metres away, though the undtion in the atmosphere was enough that even a normal person would notice. She stopped, returning her stare from the ce of conflict to the girl.


    She stooped and touched Yeriel in the chest, drawing her power to seal the channels again. However, the moment her energy made contact with the power, she felt a terrible chill in her spirit. It was an instant, and she felt the horrible power again, overpowering her, however, in the next moment, it filled her heart with ambition and greed.


    The thought of betraying her master was not just a design anymore. She touched the terrible power, and she wanted it. It was as simple as that.


    Her eyes shone as she proceeded to seal. However abruptly, her heart swelled and her mind was overwhelmed in agony. A hard hammer-like thing hit the back of her head, as she fell unconscious instantly.


    A figure came out of darkness as if he was ever hiding in there, a wooden mace in his hand.


    ¡°I¡¯ll make up for itter, Kiea,¡± Sirius muttered as he crouched down near Yeriel, ¡°but you can¡¯t expect me to give this up to you, not even to my brother.¡±


    ____


    The series will return to regr release rates from now on.

 Chapter 95 52: Young Flame (3)

    Shailyn flew on her left side, evading the dark me. Wisps of wind came from all directions and swirled around her to make an air shield, flinging away the arrow that was shot at her.


    The rogue knight shot at her, but Ilias intercepted him, swinging his bastard sword right at his bloody head. His sword was enforced with a full-sh. The de hardened, sharpened and turned heavier as it came for the rogue knight¡¯s head, but before it could make contact, all the power was reduced, and the swing almost turned into a bloody swing with no spiritual energy empowering it.


    Spiritual energy drifted in the air from the sword, dissolving from Ilias''s grasp. The swing slowed down too, as Rial dodged it effortlessly, thumping his sword at the lower body of Ilias. The sword prated through the light armour, drawing blood as Ilias withdrew.


    Ilias withdrew further while in the back the two magi had their battle. Enforcing more energy on the defence, Ilias looked at his opponent. ¡°Never thought of seeing a rogue knight of Ruthalyn here,¡± he said. ¡°I guess you fellows are not just fancy suits and armoury.¡±


    ¡°If I had my suit and armoury here,¡± Rial said, raising his long sword, ¡°your corpse would already be cold.¡±


    ¡°But you don¡¯t have your suit,¡± Ilias said as his eyes glowed out as the flow of energy became all too clear to him. ¡°Let¡¯s find out how good you are just with your Dominion then.¡±


    Ilias shot at him, drawing his sword from his right to downwards. He saw through what his opponent was going to do and feinted to go the other way around, drawing in his force to collide against the underarm of his opponent.


    However, his speed slowed down again, and so did channelling speed. Spirit force reduced from his move and dissolved in the air in a smokey aura of pale yellowish-green. His empowered sword turned into almost a normal attack with no supernatural force, and Rial just got a nick of time to raise his sword to block.


    Ilias''s eyes glinted as both swords shed, nging metallic noises. Even though Rial got the better of him, the rogue knight was weary until his Dominion of Seer was ongoing. Well, why wouldn¡¯t he be? Dominion of Seer had no attack force, however, the ability to see through the opponent¡¯s next move¡ªwas like gold in the right hand.


    Rial withdrew instantly, but Ilias chased after him, knowing what he was attempting. Ilias jabbed his sword at the lower body, but again, the Dominion of Reduction turned his attack into a normal attack. Rial failed to block it this time, though the blow didn''t draw any blood.


    ¡°You¡¯re good,¡± Rial said, withdrawing, ¡°but that woman I faced before was better. She got the speed, while you mostly brawl. And you''re aware of what happens when a simple spiritual force meets the Dominion of Reduction."


    ¡°Tell me that when I smash your head with my sword,¡± Ilias said, shing again. Like before, his power was reduced to a bare minimum, where he would barely be a threat to his opponent, but he was going to keep at it.


    Dominions are powerful, but one thing is sure, every one of them has weaknesses. Dominion of Reduction could break and reduce almost all the spiritual arts, and it was even easier if it''s just some simple force, but it draws in an overwhelming power from its user. There was even a theory that on each reduction, the user has to work with the exact or more spiritual force of the opponent¡¯s move, or it wouldn¡¯t work.


    So, what Ilias needed to do was waste time, and draw as much of his opponent as he could till he was entirely spent. This is going to be hard. Even though Ilias hadn¡¯t fought anyone with Dominion of Reduction, he knew it was going to be terribly hard.


    All his attacks would be powerless against this opponent, while he had to dodge all his opponent would throw at him. Luckily, he got the power to see through the opponent''s moves.


    While Ilias found a way out of his battle, Shailyn found an arrow sticking out on her back.


    She was fleeing now, flying out of the way.


    They haven¡¯t actually put down everyone of the underlings. As it turned out, the warlock had a reserved few ready with the Ruthalynian augmented bow and arrows that they have used so far. It was like a trap they set and Shailyn fell right into it.


    Well, what else could she do? With most of her focus and energy busy on the Warlock, she could barely redirect her spirit could on any sneak attack. However, the spirit cloud could only tell her about sneak attacks, but not the immensity of force behind them.


    Her air shield failed miserably to block the arrow. She was only alive because she strayed away from hitting any vital spot and the defence of the Magus robe, or else it would have pierced right through her.


    The arrow still stuck to her back, piercing through her fine magus robe as Shailyn drifted away. Her mind buzzed with an awful headache, reminding her that the arrowhead was probably stained with some afflictions. Poisons too, perhaps. She dozed herself with whatever antidote she had with her, though it couldn''t stop all the affiliations.


    Gritting her teeth, she hid in the trees, escaping from the arrows that were shot at her. She didn¡¯t know if all of them were magically engineered ones or not, but she was relieved to not find it out with another one sticking to her body.


    Rojar Iker walked in the snow, chasing after her. An unfathomable aura surrounded him as he gestured to his underlings to tell them to switch attacks.


    ¡°You have already failed, Arbiter,¡± he shouted. ¡°I have seeded in the ritual and have my prize. Nobody and definitely not you and your righteous fools can stop me.¡±


    He walked around, examining the residue Shailyn left behind. It didn¡¯t take much for him to find it. Now he just had to track her down. He gestured again to his underlings to point to his three o¡¯clock.


    However, abruptly, some cracking noises echoed as a burst of lightning charged at him from his three o¡¯clock. The warlock¡¯s mind rang as he formed a shield immediately, however, the lightning just burst through the shield to strike him, flinging him away. His body fell to the ground.


    Several seconds passed. The underlings all got worried when he stood up again, jerking his head around. His winter robe was all torn in the chest region while his skin looked charred. Rojar said nothing, but his eyes were glowing red now.


    ¡°What are you trying to aplish running around like this?¡± he shouted, creeping forward. ¡°Are you trying to buy more time for your other associates to arrive?¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    Rojar turned to his right and walked. Spiritual energy surrounding him danced, undting the mad wind and snowfall. ¡°However, I¡¯m unfortunate to tell you, no one¡¯s going toe for you.¡± He paused for a second, looking around while ready with his defence as well. ¡°They might be alive, but they won¡¯t have any time to return here. You know of the sweet children I took as hostages?


    ¡°Say, what will your partner do when she finds out all of them are afflicted with terrible curses and affiliation? Can she ignore all of them toe to your rescue? Nah, as far as I know, you fools, she will burn herself dry to save all of them.¡±


    Rojar spun abruptly, casting his ck mes into the pine tree in front of him.


    A silhouette shot from behind the tree, face to face with him as the tree burned, making the air pungent.


    ¡°I wondered how many she could save,¡± Rojar said again, ck me condensing in his arms. ¡°I didn¡¯t have enough time to work on them, but considering those children are just some clueless fool, I won¡¯t get my hopes up. Probably two or three, if she¡¯s lucky.¡±


    Shailyn gasped for breath as she stood, eyes ring dagger at the warlock. She wasn¡¯t waiting for Noyar toe. She came prepared knowing Noyar wouldn¡¯t be free to return and watch her back, however, just hearing those terrible things this man before her did, just to keep the rescuer busy, made her stomach churn and blood boil.


    ¡°You¡¯ll pay for it,¡± she said as waves of angry winds swirled around them. She attacked, but not at the Warlock.


    Well, not at first. Her raging wind drew the underlings hiding in the trees with the arrows, flinging them dozens of metres away. Well, she got two of them, not sure how many of them were there. She hoped the one with the magically engineered bow and arrows was gone. Next, she formed an air shield surrounding her as the ck me crashed against it. Shailyn willed the wind to empower the shield more, as the dark mes consumed the shield.


    Her numb mind hurt to keep the spell straight. The medicine barely took any effect, with the fact that she had already taken more of them beforeing here. She couldn¡¯t keep the Spirit cloud ability ongoing now, just the swirling air shield was her limit. Still, she willed a few wisps of air to charge, condensing into air des.


    Her mind was numb in the pain, and she couldn¡¯t even see clearly anymore. The force broke through her shield again, though didn¡¯t reach her, but it did weaken it. It wouldn¡¯t be long until it gets to her, either.


    Shailyn pped her cheek and kept herself awake. She forced her spirit cloud ability in front of her and found the Warlock was walking towards her. Gritting her teeth, she tried to redirect the raging wind of the storm to work for her, though she found it really hard to redirect the wind as if it was not listening to her at all. Even her shield unravelled, and the revolving wind slowed down.


    Shailyn was at her wit''s end when the shield dissolved entirely against the relentless ck mes of the warlock.


    ¡°Trofas Kamaraz.¡± No wind answered her call.


    ¡°Trofas Kamaraz,¡± she shouted again and this time a wisp of wind answered, swirling around her.


    The warlock chuckled, barely ten paces away. ¡°I guess this is the end for you.¡±


    Rojar Iker walked further as three more figures came out of the darkness. One behind him, a dozen paces away with the bow, and the other two behind her, blocking her way of escape, unsure if she even had the strength to escape.


    The warlock flicked his finger and didn¡¯t attack, but the archer behind him released the string of his bow as he was prepared for it for several seconds already.


    Shailyn¡¯s eyes widened in horror as she forced a wisp of wind to condense into a small shield on her chest, while also trying to stray away. She knew it wouldn''t be enough, but perhaps she could survive. But what after that?


    Shailyn¡¯s mind was buzzing with pain and horror, and for a split second, the snowstorm halted.


    It was as if the angry wind in the surroundings waspelled from their domination as a crimson fire drew over Shailyn. The warlock took a step back, and Shailyn found herself clinging against a hard chest as an arm wrapped around her waist, swinging her whole over one-eighty degrees.


    Her mind whirred at the sudden swing, and she could only see glorious crimson mes hurling into a ring, making a full circle of fire with their swing. The devastating mes deflected the arrow, pushing away all the raging wind and snowfall to charge at the warlock and the other two underlings.


    Rojar Iker prepared a shield the moment he saw the fiery silhouette flying towards them, but he was barely half a dozen paces away. The all-consuming me hurled against him, knocked out the shield and flung him away. The oue was the same for the other two underlings.


    Then the split second passed, the ring of fire dissolved, and the mad icy wind rushed in, however, Shailyn looked at the eyes of the youth, who was protecting her in his embrace, and felt all the warmth. It was all she needed now.


    ¡°Looks like I¡¯mte.¡±


    __________


    The climax of this arc has been going on for about a month already and mostly it''s my fault. I changed a lot of things, drew more characters and showed almost all the scenes, and most importantly, sucked at the updates.


    BTW, if you''re thinking it would end here . . . then you probably forgot the reason why Scar came to the mountain in the first ce. Still, it won''t be that long, I was supposed to end this arc 20k wc back. (Btw these extra words cost nothing extra)

 Chapter 96 52: Young Flame (4)

    The False-ward was burning my skin even with all the snowstorms and icy wind blowing. After about seven or eight minutes, when we barely covered half the distance, my endurance was at the short end. So, I infused spirit energy around my body to soothe the burning a little.


    However, the further I went, the further the heat rose. It melted away the thinyer of armament I formed to protect my skin. I needed to exert more energy just to keep myself going, which was a deal-breaker because I would need all the energy for this operation.


    After only a couple of minutes more, Lord Penron noticed my dilemma. He considered the situation for a moment and opened his mouth. ¡°Stop that old junk of tin,¡± he said, ¡°I¡¯ll carry you.¡±


    I shook my head, however. ¡°Lord Penron,¡± I said, ¡°I¡¯m d to hear the offer, but we can¡¯t dy any longer. I didn¡¯t know how far it had reached by now.¡±


    Well, I could endure the heat more, even if I had to grit my teeth to do it. Bits of snow struck against the suit, melting into droplets of water as it dripped down from the suit. I wondered how much hotter this suit would be if not for the snowstorm. I could literally fry on my chest, as for my back where the main mechanics of the suit were held, was even worse.


    ¡°Turn it off,¡± the elderly Knight repeated. ¡°Even if you reach in time, you will be in no condition to carry on. What¡¯s the advantage of that? Besides, do you think I¡¯m going at my top speed?¡±


    Lord Penron caught my right arm next and pulled me as his speed rose. It was not a lot higher, and after I decided to turn off the suit, it was somewhat slower than our previous speed.


    The suit was releasing heat still, snow melted, pping against it, as the temperature turned to normal in about a couple of minutes. I suppose I will reach our destination before the heat turns unbearable again if I start it off again.


    I was about to tell Lord Penron to let me go when a surge of undtion in the air and spiritual aura hit a dozen miles away. It was nothing like the bombardment of destructive dark spells, but entirely silent, however, it brought a chill down my spine. The utter silence didn¡¯t mean it was any less terrible. The silence of its doom ticked on my heart as I bit my lips. Looks like I¡¯mte.


    ¡°What kind of abomination is that?¡± The elderly Knight said, praying with his free hand.


    Still, the wrongness showed us the path to where we needed to get first. I was kind of hoping for any magical undtion, but not something like this, but this did the trick, but I hope it didn''t do anything more that couldn''t be undone.


    ¡°Lord Penron,¡± I called immediately, turning on the suit. ¡°Leave me. You can reach there faster.¡±


    The elderly knight considered for a moment and let him go, before departing towards the centre of all the undtions, rising further into the air. He rose fifty metres more and shot towards the source of the problem. I pulled everything off the suit too, but still couldn¡¯t catch up to him, nor went higher in the air. This was the limitation of the first prototype suit.


    The silent terror stopped within a couple of seconds and shes of the light cast there as I grew closer. It would take me six-seven minutes at the least to reach there, which was a lot of time for anything to go wrong. As if it hadn¡¯t gone wrong already.


    The silhouette of Lord Penron vanished from my sight already. Well, with the snowfall and swirling wind, it''s quite difficult to see anything within a dozen metres proximity. Still, with the destination at hand, I had no fear of getting lost. My only worry was the others. Shailyn, Noyar would be alright, but what about Yeriel? Could they save her in time? That hushed undtion of doom told otherwise, but . . . I can only hope at the moment.


    The painful few minutes passed, and I was only about a mile away from where the outer gate had been opened. My intention was to shoot there at once, however, I noticed a burst of lightning a few hundred metres adjacent to it. A tree was burning in ckish dark mes even in the snowstorm, which called for all my attention.


    Biting my lips, I shot there instead, the nail-sword ready on my good arm. I squinted my eyes, peering all over to find the sign of anyone there, surging my spirit energy inside the channels. I was prepared; the sword was ready, infused with spirit force, as I slowed down on the snowstorm.


    It didn¡¯t take long for me to find the wrongness there. In the middle of the icynd was a lone figure, surrounded by three more. My heartbeat rose, even though I couldn¡¯t make out whose figure was that. I pulled everything out of the steam releasers on my back, and lurched my head forward, augmenting the speed with the steam releasers from my legs too, as I shot downwards.


    Punisher in my arms glowed in red as a fiery red aura surged out of it. I was falling at a tremendous speed, however, I held the sword on my right side preparing for a broad sweep stroke, charging with mes of purgatory.


    With the speed I was going, I would definitely collide with the earth even if I saved the person. So I drew my broken arm wide. It pained me, but I still did it, releasing the steam releaser on it against the way I was going. That did the trick.<novelnext></novelnext>


    I caught the figure with that arm as I jerked my leg against the earth hard to make a rtively safending. I was too high with adrenaline to feel anything. Crimson mes of purgatory were released from the sword and with the help of the stremrser on my left arm, I swirled almost in a full circle with the figure in my embrace.


    A ring of firebusted at once, flinging away the three figures in the surroundings.


    Then I noticed the figure in my embrace. Shailyn limped on my chest. Her eyes were wavering, looking at me.


    ¡°Looks like I¡¯mte.¡±


    Before my aunt could open her lips, I shot again, as steam released outrageously from my back. I shot forward towards the leading man on the ground.


    I didn''t know if it was the infamous warlock or not, but I felt a serious danger from him. It was like the vampire I met a few weeks back was only a little underwhelming. That was enough to convince me. He was still down on the ground, and I wanted to keep it that way. This one was a heinous warlock with more than a couple of decades of expertise in the art. I had to make it quick if I had to win.


    Even though the warlock didn¡¯t have a footing on the earth, he was far from being helpless. Waves of ck mes surged out of his arm as he held it in front of him.


    I manoeuvred my leg to the right to stray away from the path of the mes, but the ck me turned too, twisting towards me as I approached the warlock.


    Fuck it, I told myself, and glided through the ck mes, swinging my sword as glorious crimson mes, ever so dominating, hurled out towards the warlock. The mes of purgatorybust through the dark mes, as if there was no contest between the two. However, I was not entirely free of the effect of the ck me, but I continued with what I needed to do.


    A shriek broke through the snowstorm, the hurling mad wind to get into my ears as the mes burned away the fine robes of the warlock to get into his skins and maybe more. Purgatory''s whole power was on purging evil, which may be rtive to the mortal view, however, this person before me was someone who just went through a sacrificial dark ritual. That was evil from all the scope of morality.


    The force of purgatory surged in me too, probably to purge out the affliction I had been hit with the ck mes. I was not done with the warlock when my mind rang again.


    ¡°Look out,¡± Shailyn screamed abruptly.


    A solitary figure, a few paces away, aimed his bow at me and released the string as an arrow lit in a blue glow shot at me.


    My mind chilled as my impulses controlled the body, lurching away from the warlock. The arrow missed just by a nick, fortunately; and I shot the nail-sword, shooting towards the archer, forgetting entirely what I did when I shot the sword like this previously.


    The archer missed his chance, but I did not. Darn it, I didn¡¯t miss it in the slightest.


    The nailsword hurled through the storm and prated the skull of the archer, not giving a second chance to try anything.


    The lifeless corpse fell on the coldnd, blood sshing all around.


    ____________

 Chapter 97 53: Winters Heart (1)

    Q: What caused the unnatural Icy Creature surge in Frosnd?


    A: The disappearance of the Saint Beast.


    - - -


    I sighed, looking at the dead archer. I pulled back the nail-sword from his skull, which oozed out more blood.


    Turning my head from the gore, I rushed towards Shailyn, who managed to stand up after all she had been through. The snowstorm seemed to calm down by a notch as the swirling clouds in the sky cleared out for the moons to radiate the night.


    Shailyn was pale, and I have no reason why she won¡¯t be. Even purgatory dealing with the afflictions that I¡¯d been hit with made me shudder, and she had nothing like that inborn capability to resist dark afflictions.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± I asked, touching her arm. Shailyn didn¡¯t resist as I infused the power of purgation into her channels, giving her a little relief, which I only could at the moment.


    ¡°I will be,¡± Shailyn said. Her eyes were towards the Warlock, bare with charred skin, unconscious in the snow. All his hair was burned, he looked unrecognisable with all that. ¡°Is he?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I answered, ¡°he¡¯s very much alive, but I don¡¯t think he will be capable of anything anytime soon.¡±


    The power of purgation purges all evil and corrupt things. So the fire I sted him with not only burned his skin, but incinerate his channels, leaving him a helpless mess, who will never get back at his strength even if he has the chance.


    ¡°Oscar, I¡¯m sorry,¡± she said next, touching my right palm. ¡°I tried, but I failed to save your friend.¡±


    My heart rang at once. ¡°What?¡± I asked. ¡°What happened to her?¡± Is she alive? That is what I would like to ask. My heart shuddered, waiting for her answer.


    ¡°They seeded in the ritual, it seemed,¡± Shailyn answered, biting her lips. She found the worries in my face and understood what I wanted to hear. ¡°She¡¯s alive, but I don¡¯t . . .¡±


    ¡°I need to go,¡± I said at once. "I need to find her."


    ¡°Yes,¡± Shailyn agreed, ¡°the underlings took her when we¡¯re fighting them. Find her. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be fine.¡±


    I nodded and left Shailyn with the unconscious warlock, flying away through the swift, icy wind.


    There was another fight going on where the ritual took ce, however, Lord Penron joined there, so I didn¡¯t need to be worried about that. I flew from there, remaining close to the ground, squinting all around to find many little details that I could find.


    The ritual finished no more than ten minutes or fewer, so they couldn¡¯t have taken her that far. With the moons radiating and the snowstorm slowing down, I didn''t have a problem with my sight.


    ¡°Yeriel,¡± I shouted. Even if my shout would alert the bad guys, I didn¡¯t care. If anything happens to Yeriel, that would be disastrous for the tale, not to mention she was the nicest of the people. I very much wouldn¡¯t like to see the same as in the original story.


    Abruptly, a spiritual undtion detonated. It was something silent and for only a nick of a moment, but I felt the terror as sweat dripped down from my face. It was a few hundred metres to my left, and I wanted to go there, but my instinct told me not to. Furthermore, it was screaming in my mind, telling me to leave, but Yeriel . . .


    Gritting my teeth, I flew at the top of my speed. It didn¡¯t take long for me to get there and the first thing I noticed was a half-naked corpse with torn clothing and scorched eye sockets. I sighed in relief to find it was a man with broad shoulders. Even in death, his face showed the horror he had seen. It was as if his very soul had been burned, though. Well, that¡¯s what happens most of the time with corpses with burned eyes.


    I left the body and found another two a dozen metres away. Getting near, I found Yeriel, more than just half-naked. She barely had any clothing on her. All her sweaters and clothing turned to rags, clinging on to her, still. However, what surprised me was the antler crown on her head with a mess of hair strands filled with snow. Then I looked at the other figure, unconscious in the snow.


    All of it clicked in my mind as I gritted my teeth. Enforcing spiritual energy all over my body, I stroked the antlers on Yeriel¡¯s head. It was, as I feared, those deer antlers had dug into her skull and be part of her.


    ¡°Oh, Yeriel,¡± I called, biting my lips. I stroked her cheek, rubbing off the snow from her face. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I couldn¡¯t make it in time.¡±


    My jaw clenched together and the veins in my temple pulsed through as I checked her state. Utter anger rose in my heart as the burning sensation pulsed through my channels. I never felt this anger before. She seemed fine from outside, sickly pale, but alive, and that was the only constion I had.


    Because even if she was alive, the one that would wake up would unlikely be her¡ªthe Yeriel I know


    No, it can¡¯t end like this. Perhaps she can pull through the corruption. The other-power that scavenged through her body, it changed her, corrupted her. That¡¯s how heinous the other-power was. Yes, Purgatory could undo what¡¯s done, but I¡¯m in no position to undo the corruption entirely, nor do I think I would seed even if I was a Grand Magus.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Still, I tried. Drawing in the power of purgation, I infused it into her, trying to undo what I knew was impossible.


    However, the moment my spirit energy touched her channels, my soul wavered, and my mind jolted in pain. My body was forced as an overwhelming force pressured on my soul,pelling me to remain still at the spot. The armament coating I formed broke and dissolved like it was never been there before.


    In each second, the pain rose to new heights. It was as if hot needs were digging through my soul, biting me. I tried my best to get away and managed to withdraw my hand from Yeriel.


    But then Yeriel woke up.


    My soul screamed at once as she looked into my eyes with those deadly red eyes. All the defence I was forming with the spirt force sundered like it was nothing. My spirit energy jammed inside my channels.


    Her red pupils, they were like mine, however, the sheer terror in them canpel one to freeze¡ªlike I was now.


    The angry wind rose, swirling around us as Yeriel looked at me with all the hate in her eyes.


    ¡°Yeriel,¡± I tried to scream, but all it came out in a low, pained voice, ¡°it''s me. Please.¡±


    There was no wavering in her eyes as if she didn¡¯t recognise the name, or me. Oh dear, did she forget all?


    Other than the sheer panic, I felt deep sorrow for her. ¡°Yeriel, look at me,¡± I said, gritting my teeth. ¡°You don¡¯t want to hurt me. Yeriel, you don¡¯t want to hurt anyone.¡±


    She looked at me, confusedly. The pressure on me dropped by a little.


    ¡°You heal,¡± I continued, ''cause I could only do that. ¡°Yeriel, I know they hurt you, but you¡¯re hurting yourself now. Please . . . can you hear me?¡±


    ¡°Os . . . scar,¡± she opened her lips and whispered.


    And then all the force sucked out magically as she fell unconscious again on myp.


    I wiped the sweat from my forehead and sucked a deep cold breath to calm down. I would most likely be dead if it was anyone else other than Yeriel now.


    Sighing, I carried her before giving the other figure a look. This one was unconscious with a bloody head, but not dead. Yeriel killed the other fellow, unknowing what she was doing, but this one somehow survived, however, I didn¡¯t recognise her to be one of us.


    So that meant she was an enemy.


    Sealing her channels didn¡¯t take long, as she was nothing but helpless. Now the question was, can I even fly, carrying two? It seemed unlikely, not to mention, that not much of the juice was left in the suit. Looks like I have toe back again.


    ¡®Yeriel first.¡¯ Deciding that I was about to leave when abruptly, my instinct tingled again as a horrifying cry assaulted my ears, eyes, mind, and everything else.


    No, it was not Yeriel, but the abomination approaching through the snowstorm.


    _ _ _


    You can read all the chapters in my Pa treon, which would help the continuation immensely. Thank you.


    Also, lets start a goal. If this book reaches top 100 in golden ticket ranking then 10 chapters per week.


    Simrly, Top 50 = 12 chapters per week.


    Top 25 = 14 chapters per week.

 Chapter 98 53: Winters Heart (2)

    The thing that was approaching was still a few kilometres away, however, its cry was resounding throughout the mountain range. I didn''t hear this cry before, but I knew exactly what it was and for that reason alone, I need to flee from here as soon as possible.


    Without wasting a moment, I turned on the suit and flew away, carrying Yeriel. There was another person alive here, but I didn¡¯t want to take chances after all the wrongs that had been done here.


    The battle was still going on near the altar. Even though they heard the cries, they were still at it. The rogue knight was alone. He was showing all his capabilities against the two knights. He might have won if Lord Penron didn¡¯t join when the other knight was almost at his limit. However, all of that hardly matters now.


    ¡°Lord Penron,¡± I called, ¡°We need to leave, now.¡±


    Ilias, the other knight, was blood ridden mostly on his lower body, though he was not that safe on the upper body, either. There were just too many cuts on his body, which was quite weird, because he would be dead already if even a couple of those got through.


    However, it seemed the rogue knight fought the way I did against Noyar¡ªwithout using spiritual force¡ªthat way¡ªall the cuts were not critical hits. Even though he was winning, he couldn¡¯t kill Ilias that easily. Still, he needed to be an excellent knight to win against someone with the dominion of Seer.


    Well, the way I saw him rendering the gravitational pulls of Lord Penron futile, I guess he was not totally without a weapon.


    The horrifying cry resounded again, stopping the knights for a second.


    ¡°What is this?¡± the elderly knight asked.


    ¡°I think we all know what this is,¡± I said, restarting the suit again. ¡°Come on, we need to leave.¡±


    I flew away again, giving the adult men to choose whatever they want. It wasn¡¯t even a couple of hundred metres when I found Shailyn again. She was looking towards the source of the cry, biting her lips. The warlock awoke by the time, though sitting on the snow, shuddering like a helpless kitten even with all the radiated from the device not far from him.


    ¡°Oscar,¡± Shailyn called as Inded before her.


    There was a redmp with her, radiating heat and light around her. Her eyes turned from my face to the figure I was carrying. She was about to draw her hand to touch Yeriel, but I forbade her, shaking my head. Who knows if Yeriel started doing that again or if Shailyn drew any spiritual power in her body?


    ¡°How¡¯s she?¡±


    ¡°Alive,¡± I answered. ¡°Listen, we need to get out. You''re hearing those cries, right? By the way, where¡¯s Noyar?¡±


    Shailyn nodded and was about to answer when the warlock with charred skin shrieked.


    ¡°You?¡± Rojar Iker shouted as his eyes were drawn towards Yeriel. ¡°No, you can¡¯t take her. She¡¯s mine. I made her. Give her to me. . . .¡± he tried to cast a spell, but shrieked in agony this time, incapable of even trickling a little fire.


    Still, it enraged me enough that I wouldn''t mind killing him on this spot. That''s how I was furious at him.


    Then the horrifying cry echoed again,ing from a lot closer. I shuddered, and so did the others. Shailyn and I exchanged nces. She collected the redmp and looked towards the warlock, who was still screaming. ¡°What about him?¡±


    I considered for a moment and then rammed my right foot against his head violently, flinging him a couple of metres away. I didn¡¯t use any supernatural powers, but my body was not soft either. The warlock went unconscious again, and I think this time he would stay that way, with his channels sealed and burned.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± I said and caught Shailyn with the other arm, which didn¡¯t let me have much of the grip, and Shailyn knew that, so she nged onto me tightly as we hovered in the air.


    As I feared, the suit didn¡¯t have much juice left, and with the weight it was carrying, it was a miracle that the old junk was running. However, I couldn¡¯t bring us more than ten feet in the air, nor was the speed anywhere close to the original speed. It was slower than almost four or five times.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Worse, I had to twist and turn through the trees to not collide with one. The stream releasers on the back were malfunctioning within a few seconds, emitting white smoke all over so much that Shailyn started coughing.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± she asked.


    I said nothing, not that I didn¡¯t have an answer, but I was too busy keeping my inertia steady. As the stream releaser was malfunctioning, my bnce was off by a lot. At this rate, hitting a tree was not the worst oue.


    ¡°Hold on tight,¡± I said, drawing whatever I could. There were a lot of trees ahead of us, and the way we were going, we would likely collide against one in a few seconds.


    ¡°Scar,¡± Shailyn called, her voice dry.


    ¡°I¡¯m working.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think whatever you¡¯re working is working,¡± Shailyn said warily. ¡°Slowdown, I might be able to help.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think the suit is in my control now,¡± I said as we drew closer to the truck of a pine tree. I tried everything with the suit, trying to release it from the releaser in my arms, or legs, but the bigger one in the back was pulling everything.


    ¡°Screw it,¡± I yelled, and drew spirit force to infuse all our body, empowering our defence. However, the fall didn¡¯te. Well, it didn¡¯te as I hoped for.


    Wisps of wind surged against us, slowing down our path as all the juice in my suit finished. And then we fell, first slowly and when about two metres down, the wind became useless. Still, with the snow, it didn¡¯t hurt that much. Well, it didn''t hurt me.


    ¡°Shailyn, are you alright?¡± I called.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be if you stop choking me.¡± she groaned.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± I apologised and pulled my body away from on top of her. She really had it rough with two bodies on top of her, though the fall was not from that high up. She gasped for breath, the moment I jerked away.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Noyar?¡± I asked again.


    ¡°She went to save the hostages,¡± Shailyn said, gasping as she sat upright.


    I stayed with my back against the snow, Yeriel on top of me. Gasps of air escaped from my mouth as I jerked my head around. If anyone told me, I would be doing stunts like these a couple of months ago, I would be rolling over andughing, literally.


    It''s strange how our world changes.


    The cry resounded again, and this time with other disturbances. Trees fell a few metres away from us, as my eyes darted toward there. It widened at the very moment.


    A beast over three metres all lunged in the air as the moons peeked through itsrge twisted antlers. The Winterheart Reindeer cried as the mad wind rushed towards Lord Penron who tried to fly away, carrying Ilias. The other knight was there too, however, he was in no good condition, his body hurled through the wind before colliding against a tree, just beside us.


    ¡°We are so screwed,¡± I muttered.


    . . .

 Chapter 99 53: Winters Heart (3)

    The snowstorm that calmed down before, followed with heavy showers of snow and wind with the grief of the Winterheart Reindeer. Mad winds swirled from all directions, twisting and turning all around, making the situation utterly chaotic.


    With Lord Penron drawing the beast''s attention from other things, we managed to rush away from there, however, we were not nearly safe.


    "We need to get away from here," I said, hiding against the prominent ridge with the other two. Yeriel was still unconscious, while my aunt was looking out at the chaos on the other side.


    This little task, which was about searching for the warlock''s trail, turned so big that a small elite squad of knights and a grand magus might not be enough.


    "What about them?" she said. "They can''t hold on for much longer."


    I became silent. Even if we were in our top condition, the best thing we could do against a saint beast was not enrage it, but since that already happened, it would be best to flee exchanging no more blows, which would aggravate it more.


    No joke, even a Grand Magus would be helpless against a saint beast in a one-on-one fight, not to mention there was no Grand Magus among us, and this was an enraged one.


    Well, Winterheart Reindeer was never known for its savagery. It''s a symbol of purity and good. We can only hope that it deals with its grief and calms down.


    "Can you even fight?" I broke the silence.


    "We can''t leave them like this," Shailyn muttered, sighing, "but we have nothing that could help. The best thing we can do is reach out to Noyar and Jon. Perhaps they can help in the rescue."


    "Alright, let''s do that," I said and looked towards Yeriel. As soon as they got out of this chaos, the better it will be for her and everyone else. "How far is that from here?"


    Shailyn bit her lips again. "It would take more than a couple of hours if we had to go on foot," she said, shaking her head, "and then there is this blizzard."


    Two hours? I don''t think Lord Penron could keep up more than a quarter of an hour, not to mention he has a burden on him already.


    "If only your suit was alright," Shailyn sighed.


    "The suit is alright, well, not in proper condition, but it can work, however, I don''t have," I paused as my eyes were drawn towards the fiery redmp at hand''s distance, ". . . fuel."


    I grabbed the heater-cummp as a frown appeared on my brows. "Is there a firestone inside it?" I couldn''t help but ask.


    Shailyn nodded. "I found it near the Altar," she said and found me turning off the device and then breaking it. "Oscar, what are you intending?"


    I broke the outeryer of the device as the inneryer appeared inscribed with some runic patterns. I went forward on breaking them too, until a few pieces of crimson stone appeared in my view. As I pulled them away from the broken device, they stop radiating heat and light. From fiery red, it turned into a scarlet, ck crystal.


    "You know fire stones are just another variant of spirit stone?" I said. "This could power the suit if I try."


    "Are you kidding?" Shailyn yelled. "This could st off the suit with you in it. You know how dangerous that is?"


    "It''s dangerous," I admitted, "but not nearly as much as you''re making it out to be. The most dangerous thing would be the heat melting the fabrics inside the suit, but I can protect that with my spirit force."


    I hope I was right. Well, there''s a faint chance of it sting off, but I can minimise that, using less of the power, as if that was even possible.


    "I need to crush them without igniting the fire spirit inside them," I said, "but I can''t do it."<novelnext></novelnext>


    Ignoring Purgatory my spirit energy might have some unknown effect that I would not like to see. It was a risky thing to do without a crusher. Well, if it was any normal spirit stone it would''ve been alright, but Firestones are highly unstable, and without some particr arrangement, they could st off right at our face. Well, the amount we have wouldn''t be enough to kill if we don''t stay in close proximity, but still . . .


    "I can do it," Shailyn said and stopped as if regretting the moment the words came out of her mouth.


    I handed her the pieces of firestone and started undoing my cloak. "Do it," I said as my eyes darted towards the saint beast. "Even if I can''t use it, it will be usefulter."


    Taking off the cloak, I covered Yeriel with it. It was a lotrger for her, reaching her toe, but I don''t think she wouldin. I wish she wouldin now.


    The knights were flying away from Winterheart Reindeer, though that was a pretty hard task with the snowstorm pulsing with the cries of the saint beast. The rogue knight was nowhere to be seen now¡ªshould be still unconscious or half-dead where we left him, while Lord Penron was trying to pull the beast elsewhere from where we were.


    I turned my attention to Shailyn. She had the firestones on her palm. They shook as a couple of them hovered in the air. They lit up a little less than how they were in the device, however, they started radiating heat. Instead of turning into small bits, one of them started to melt.


    Shailyn stopped. She tried again, but this time not so slowly. Bits of fire kes spread around the air as red sand dust fell on her palm before turning into a metallic ck colour.


    "It needs more physical distortion," Shailyn said as she collected the dust, which was more explosive than gunpowder.


    "Leave a couple of pieces intact," I told her. They could be useful in what firestone was best at.


    There were about twenty grams of dust in her palm. With her control over the spiritual energy, almost none of the dust was wasted.


    "Are you sure about this?" she asked.


    "Yes," I said. It was not like anyone hadn''t tried it before. Okay, let''s think about this as a fun experiment. Yes, that''s right, fun experiment, except that there''s a saint spirit beast at the level of demi-god rampaging a few hundred metres away.


    "Scar?" Shailyn called, finding me lost in thought.


    "Ah, yes," I said and turned, showing her the tank on my back. "Fill everything in there. No, wait doesn''t fill everything, just one third would do for now."


    "I don''t like doing this," Shailyn muttered, but she did follow through with it.


    "Trust me, it won''t blow up," I said, "and even if it does, I will be alright."


    "How can you be so sure?"


    Well, cause, I have a high tolerance to any fire on courtesy of purgatory. However, a st was another thing. I''ll have my best defence ready. Let''s just get it over with and hope it doesn''t st.


    "I''ll take one of these," I said and took one of the two intact fire stones. "You keep the other to yourself, just in case."


    I then drew some space between us. Well, about a dozen paces, just to be safe. Igniting the fabrics inside the suit, I called for a small amount of the firestone, however, there was nothing little on what happened next.


    . . .

 Chapter 100 53: Winters Heart (4)

    Hot air, with fiery light, rushed out from my back as I shot up instantly in the air. I heard Shailyn''s yell from below as I steadied my inertia using another steam releaser, which was now releasing hot, fiery smoke.


    f before I could endure the me after seven or eight-minute, I don''t think I can endure this after only a couple of minutes, and my heavily fire-resistant body.


    "I''m alright," I called,ing down a little. "Take care of Yeriel, now leave."


    After finished saying that, I shot again. Seriously, the speed was disastrous. It might be able to challenge a decent enough Knight with the Dominion of Gravity. However, I didn''t need the speed at the moment, but the stealth in which it failed miserably. I just hope with all the chaos the saint beast was busy causing it won''t have time to notice me.


    I moved through the trees and covered half a kilometre, where they would supposedly be in a few moments. Clinging onto a tree, I waited for them to arrive.


    Even though the reindeer was huge with over a metre long twisted antlers on top of its head, it was fast. Penron was barely keeping up, carrying another one. The snowstorm was restricting his speed. It hasn¡¯t been more than a couple of minutes, but he looked exhausted as hell.


    Gales of wind rose, surrounding the region, as I flew from one tree to another, trying to stay away from the beast. I think this was the most efficient way. The suit won¡¯t heat, and I won¡¯t be pulling much from the fire spirit stone.


    ¡°Lord Penron,¡± I called, sneaking from tree to tree. He hadn¡¯t heard me on the first try, so I called again.


    Penron turned around, and I was glowing like a living low-budget firework, so he didn''t have much problem finding me. I just hope, I didn''t end up like how a firework does.


    ¡°Lad, is that you?¡± the elderly knight said, from about a couple dozen metres away.


    ¡°Give me Ilias,¡± I said, shooting up where he could see me clearly. ¡°I¡¯ll take him to safety.¡±


    The elderly knight didn¡¯t ponder to agree with my offer. ¡°Here, I will toss him in the air, catch him,¡± he said, flying further from the beast. ¡°God, I¡¯m not missing my younger days.¡±


    Then he tossed Illias¡¯s body in the air and then pushed with his dominion, tossing him further up. Penron didn¡¯t stay there, but rushed at the Saint beast, so that it won¡¯t notice the exchange here, or would go for the easier target. Well, the Saint beast has better intelligence than that, but this one was enraged, so it worked, for better or worse.


    I ran the suit and shot up in the air to catch the knight. Ilias was unconscious, which made my job easier for now, but I would¡¯ve hoped this guy could still be in a workable position.


    Screw it.


    I flew away from there, leaving the elderly man with the enraged beast. I found Shailyn only about a few dozen metres away from where I left her. She was moving slowly, carrying Yeriel. Inded a few metres before her, dropping the body.


    ¡°Oh Ishar,¡¯ Shailyn said and ran towards me.


    I put down the knight and rubbed my forehead. All this flying and using energy non-stop for so long made my head hurt, but it was not nearly enough. Well, most of the good people were safe except the elderly knight, for now.


    I wanted to keep it that way, though if this beast didn''t stop rampaging, then perhaps not just a dozen lives wouldn''t be at stake, but thousands.


    ¡°A couple of helping hands here would be nice,¡± I muttered, panting.


    Abruptly, I spun, drawing the punisher.


    ¡°You asked for help? Here I am with that exact number.¡±


    A tall figure dropped before us with much more grace than me, though that was not his bestnding.


    ¡°If I knew, I would ask for more hands,¡± I said in a rxed tone, recognising the figure.


    ¡°Jon,¡± Shailyn called, ¡°where¡¯s Noyar?¡±


    The tall knight, Jon Al¡¯born II, looked at the two of us carefully and the two patients. His face was already weary, but it became even more troubling, finding the wrongness in the situation. ¡°She¡¯s with the hostages,¡± he said. ¡°The situation there is terrible.¡±


    ¡°More than here?¡± I asked.


    Jon turned towards me. ¡°Lives at risk on both sides,¡± he yapped, ¡°the stupidest thing I could do ispare which one is more terrible.¡±


    ¡°I understand,¡± I said, not minding. Jon was an uptight man, he had his reasons to be exasperated.


    ¡°How are the hostages?¡± Shailyn asked.


    ¡°Two dead,¡± he said, trying hard not to sound pained, ¡°but we controlled the situation the best we could.¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    Shailyn nodded and turned towards me. ¡°Listen, Oscar, those kids and warders. They would need you there,¡± she said. ¡°Rojar Iker, he said, he inflicted everyone there with his afflictions. They will need your help.¡±


    ¡°Damn,¡± I cursed. Only a rampaging saint beast was not enough.


    If what Shailyn said was right, I need to go there. Yes, life was at risk here, but more will die there, while I¡¯m not sure if I can do anything to the reindeer.


    ¡°I would go, but I don¡¯t know the way,¡± I said and turned towards Jon, who looked at us confusingly. I guessed Noyar said nothing about my special ability, or he forgot with everything going on.


    ¡°Emberhearts has the ability to purge dark afflictions.¡±


    That seemed reasonable enough for Jon. ¡°I¡¯ll take you with me,¡± he agreed.


    ¡°I can go on my own,¡± I said, ¡°but can you take the others with you? With the beast rampaging, anywhere in the mountain wouldn''t be safe, but the farther from here, the better it would be for everyone."


    ¡°I can only take two with me,¡± Jon said.


    ¡°That settles it, then.¡±


    ¡°Wait, are you going to leave Lord Penron here with the enraged saint beast?¡± Shailyn said.


    ¡°What?¡± Jon asked, but didn''t wait for the answer. He rose in the air to check. He went further toward the source of the disturbance to look.


    I looked at Shailyn, raising an eyebrow.


    ¡°Lord Penron is Jon¡¯s mentor,¡± she said. ¡°No, more than that. He¡¯s like a grandfather to him.¡±


    I let out a helpless breath after hearing that. Ruffling my hair, I waited.


    Shailyn came next to me with Yeriel on her back. She put my right palm in her arm as we waited.


    ¡°He¡¯s going toe back, right?¡± I couldn¡¯t help but ask after half a minute had passed.


    ¡°He will,¡± Shailyn said, though her voice seemed hopeful.


    After a few moments, Jon came back with a rigid face. ¡°Come on, we need to hurry,¡± he said and pulled Ilias on his back.


    I stared at the fellow nkly.


    ¡°I said, hurry,¡± Jon said again. "Sir will need my help soon."


    I nodded as Shailyn handed me Yeriel. I wrapped her against my chest¡ªon my back would be better, but with the prominent steam releaser there, it was not possible.


    Meanwhile, Jon pulled Shailyn by one arm as he rose.


    I followed suit immediately, leaving the chaos behind us, for the moment.


    _ _ _


    Read all the chapters, including the 15 advanced ones, in my PA TREON. It would be helpful for me to continue to tale. Also, you can ess another book of mine there.


    Golden ticket goal:


    TOP 100 = 10 chapters per week.


    TOP 50 = 12 CHAPTERS PER WEEK.


    TOP 25 = 14 CHAPTERS PER WEEK.

 Chapter 101 53: Winters Heart (5)

    Jon was an orphan. Well, he had a father. A warder who died in the line of duty, being a hero, when he was barely eight. He left nothing for Jon when he was gone. No home, no rtives, nothing but a legacy.


    Jon is that legacy now. His father left him the mantle, however, he was not who he was just for that. He has a teacher who took care of him, taught him how to be good, and that teacher was now risking his life to protect him and the others.


    ¡°Jon,¡± Noyar yelled behind him, ¡°don¡¯t just charge like a bullhead. Have you thought about what you¡¯re going to do getting there?¡±


    Shailyn was sitting on the side, peering at youths who had been inflicted with the afflictions. Oscar started working on the moment they reached here, without caring what the suit did to him to reach here. Well, he was the only one who could help here, and she knew he would pretty much me himself if they lost anyone just because he was not there in time.


    Two were already dead. The numbers would have been more if not for Noyar and Jon''s critical decision in the nick of time. They had sealed away the dark affliction to the non-critical parts of the patients¡ªalmost like what she did when she was inflicted with them.


    Sadly, even if they were practitioners, they were hardly at the level where they could barely save their lives. Some of them may never be practitioners again, some would lose a lot of their potential. Some of them may never be able to walk. Shailyn¡¯s eyes were drawn towards the one, Oscar cured first.


    He was alive, but his body was limp. ording to Noyar, he was the most critical of all, yet he made it, though his legs were in not so good condition. They were not sure if he would ever walk again.


    ¡°So, you¡¯re asking me to just sit here and wait?¡± Jon yelled at Noyar. ¡°You might be fine doing that, but I won¡¯t be.¡±


    ¡°I never said that,¡± Noyar said. "I''m asking you to consider the situation for a moment."


    ¡°What if it attacks the city?¡± Jon said, ¡°While one man alone is fighting against it, as we scrabble, will this stop that thing?¡±


    ¡°We need a n,¡± Noyar said, emphasising the word n.


    ¡°No, no n is going to work against it,¡± Jon said. ¡°All we have to do is keep it from reaching the city until reinforcement arrives from her majesty or the academy.¡±


    ¡°How long are you nning to keep it upied, then?¡± Noyar shroud for the first time. ¡°Five minutes, ten minutes? Will that be enough?¡±


    No, that won''t work. Her majesty could produce some force, but they won''t be able to stop the beast without coteral damage. As for the reinforcement from the academy? Even an Elite Knight with the dominion of gravity would take more than a couple of hours'' time to get here, and they would need an entire squad here to stop it, which would take more time.


    ¡°So I should leave an old man to die alone?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t say that,¡± Noyar said.


    ¡°Since when did you be a coward, Noyar?¡± Jon said and looked down immediately, regretting. He couldn¡¯t stare her in the eyes, but there was no going back now. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I shouldn¡¯t have said that. You know what? I think you should stay here. I''ll leave.¡±


    Jon was about to fly away, however, Noyar pulled him by the legs, stopping him from going further.


    ¡°Jon Al¡¯born the II,¡± she screamed, ¡°get your ass down here. You¡¯re not doing this alone. Do you think you¡¯ll be acimed as a hero, who died to save the city alone? You¡¯re a fool, Jon Al¡¯born, always has been. That¡¯s what''s good about you, but sometimes you can be a pain in the ass. You think everyone ever wanted you just to sacrifice yourself? Ever wondered what Lord Penron would think?¡±


    ¡°He would be proud,¡± Jon said, looking down as he turned off the dominion.


    ¡°Yes, he would be at your foolishness,¡± Noyar said slowly.


    Jon calmed down a little after hearing out Noyar, however, it was time for someone else to scream.


    ¡°For the sake of the dead heroes, can you guys shut the hell up?¡± Oscar shouted, going for his fifth patient. ¡°I don¡¯t know if you guys notice, but I¡¯m new to this. Healing takes concentration, which I¡¯m failing miserably with you guys screaming the hell out here.¡±


    Shailyn moved next to Oscar and touched him on the shoulder. His face was red now, all sweaty even in this weather. All of them were looking at him now with bewilderment.


    Then the horrifying cry resounded again, taking everyone¡¯s attention. Noyar stood and reached out for the window. She opened it as the chilly wind got inside the room. Her eyes glowed in blue as her face turned awful.


    ¡°It¡¯s going for the city now,¡± she said, biting her lips.


    Jon lifted his head and looked at her. He was almost crying, with half tears smeared in his eyes. ¡°You said about a n. Then tell me what I should do?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the wrong question,¡± Noyar said. ¡°It is: what should we do? We are together.¡± She stood together with Jon and looked toward her partner. ¡°Shailyn, you stay here while I and Jon will see the situations . . .¡±


    Before Shailyn could answer, Oscar opened his mouth. ¡°That¡¯s your big n?¡± he asked Noyar, not lifting his head. ¡°After all that shouting? Have you heard of yourself? ''We¡¯ll see the situation.'' It''s precisely what Jon said. You just used different words.¡±


    Noyar frowned, looking at me. ¡°You have a better option?¡±


    ¡°As a matter of fact, I do,¡± he finally lifted his head to look at her and everyone else. ¡°Do you remember the cavern I took you guys to yesterday?¡±


    Noyar nodded.


    ¡°What are you intending?¡± Shailyn asked, rising. She had a bad feeling about this.


    ¡°Well, it''s not really that much of a safe idea,¡± Oscar said, ¡°but it has the highest chance of sess.¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡°Stop being mysterious and get it out already,¡± Noyar grumbled, while Jon was disturbed, as always.


    ¡°We¡¯re going to trap the Saint beast,¡± he said. ¡°There¡¯s a spatial rift in that cavern. I want you to lure the beast there, but be careful there''s . . . .¡±


    Noyar and Jon left immediately after hearing out his n. Surprisingly both of them agreed after considering it for a little while. Trapping a saint beast, or even killing one, was a heinous thing to do, however, they were out of options now. They couldn''t just leave it to rampage on the city.


    Jon didn¡¯t have to carry Noyar as he did with the othersing here. He pushed Noyar with the dominion and followed behind to fly away. This was something they had practised many times before working in such conditions.


    Oscar moved to his next patient. There were still four of them left, two of them were the underlings of the warlock.


    ¡°Are you sure this n would work?¡± Shailyn asked.


    ¡°No,¡± Oscar answered, his voice still dry. ¡°But we always have to deal with uncertainty. If I knew, this simple mission turned out to be so big . . .¡± He paused.


    Shailyn waited, standing next to her, but no words came out of his mouth. ¡°There¡¯s something else you¡¯re not telling me,¡± she said. She waited, looking at how Oscar worked, getting all sweaty. ¡°Luring the beast into the rift is not your only n. You wanted to go there, help them do it, is that it?¡±


    Oscar didn¡¯t answer, but Shailyn knew she got that right.


    ¡°So, you¡¯re going to stop me from going there too?¡± Oscar lifted his head and looked at her incredulously.


    Shailyn found a lot of emotion in those eyes, but the most apparent one of them was anger. Anger at her, anger at himself, for not being there. And wasn¡¯t that her fault? She bit her lips, stooping down next to him.


    ¡°Scar,¡± she called, touching him on the shoulder. ¡°I didn¡¯t know. I thought I was doing it for the best.¡±


    Oscar shook his head. Wisps of me retracted into his palm as he moved to thest of the patients, ignoring the two rogue warders. ¡°You did it for me, I can understand that,¡± he said, as wisps of crimson mes with a bit of silver glow flowed through from his palm to the patient. ¡°You thought about my safety instead of trusting my abilities.¡±


    He lifted his head to stare into her eyes. ¡°Shailyn, aunt, with all my conduct before you send me away,¡± he said, ¡°did I show any incapability that would hinder you on this mission?¡±


    ¡°No, I . . .¡±


    ¡°Yes, I went a little crazy after I killed that man. I started interrogating William without any protocol and even went as far as torturing him for all the frustration I had with that incident.¡± Oscar¡¯s eyes were blurry with tear beads forming them, however, they glowed a little in red. ¡°Aunt, I know you want the best for me, but look at her.¡±


    Both of them stared Yeriel, who was unconscious at the side with beast antlers on her head. That was not all, she was radiating a wrong aura all the time after Oscar brought her back.


    ¡°Does she deserve this?¡±


    ¡°Nobody,¡± Shailyn said, wrapping her arms around his neck, ¡°nobody deserves that.¡±


    ¡°You know, she never learned any arts that would let her harm others without it being necessary to pass the test. Her family never wanted her toe to the academy, but she fought with them, travelled thousands of miles toe alone to a foreignnd, just to learn to heal.¡±


    Shailyn burst into tears as the dead face of Lord Kirien and the few warders she saw came into her mind.


    ¡°If only I was there,¡± Oscar sighed as the healing finished. He masked all the emotion then, as his face turned resolute.


    ¡°It''s not your fault,¡± Shailyn said. ¡°Stop ming yourself for everything.¡±


    ¡°I know it''s not all my fault,¡± Oscar said as he stood up. He went to collect his sword without healing the two rogue warders. ¡°But some are."


    "You are not going to heal them?" Shailyn asked, "I know they did terrible things, still . . ."


    "I think they will survive until Ie back, and besides, there are better people who would need my help more than them."


    ¡°But, what if something goes wrong?¡± Shailyn asked.


    ¡°You still don¡¯t trust me,¡± Oscar said and shook his head. ¡°Stay here with everyone else.¡±


    ¡°Oscar, stop,¡± Shailyn shouted. ¡°Take me with you. It''s a saint beast, for Ishar¡¯s sake.¡± she found there was no way for her to stop him now, but perhaps she could help toe with him. Yes, her condition was not right, but in desperate situations, ask for desperate measures.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I¡¯ve to disagree with you, aunt,¡± Oscar said as his suit warmed up, vibrating. ¡°You can write whatever you want in the report as the Arbiter, but you¡¯re noting with me.¡±


    Then red kes of fire and white smoke hurled out from his back as he shot away, opening the door.


    _______________


    Next Chapter: Disorder.

 Chapter 102 54: Chaos (1)

    Q: What causes a spatial rift?


    A: If, for some reason, the spatial nodes between physical and spiritual realms or even the cognitive realm destabilise, the aftereffect can turn up as a rift between spaces. It works as a portal to a whole different space whosews might differpletely from the regr physical realm.


    - - -


    Jon didn¡¯t find his mentor anywhere near the saint beast, but he hardly had time to search. There were two of them, but before them, there was one huge enraged saint beast rampaging.


    Jon couldn''t waste time searching for his mentor. Yes, the decision was hard, but this was what Lord Penron taught him. Gritting his teeth, he flew, pushing Noyar towards the rampaging saint beast.


    This was the first time both of them were seeing a saint beast. All of that was just tales from stories before this, but they couldn''t say they were all enthusiastic about this meeting.


    Agitated would be the right word to describe their feelings


    By the speed the beast was rampaging, it wouldn¡¯t take even a quarter of an hour to reach the foot of the mountain and from there another five to the train station. So only about twenty minutes for the chaos to spread, if they did nothing, or fail to do anything.


    ¡°The cavern is exactly the opposite direction,¡± Noyar shouted as her figure hurled through the angry wind. The force that was pushing her against the natural force of gravity reduced, but she didn¡¯t have to be worried. She skidded up again as Jon followed closely behind.


    ¡°How much distance do we have to lure it?¡± Jon asked, as he had never been in the cavern.


    ¡°More than fifty miles,¡± Noyar sighed. They would reach the reindeer in a minute now. She could feel her blood pressure soaring.


    ¡°Fifty miles,¡± Jon grunted loudly. ¡°This isn¡¯t going to be easy, but we have no other option. Even if we fail to trap it, we have to lure it away.¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡± Shailyn said, the sword gripped tight on her palms. ¡°Push me to its left.¡±


    She prepared her wind stance, hurling through the air. In one full stroke, she had to draw its attention, and she knew no better than to hit it with Wind Breaker, her most powerful attack.


    The beast rampaging didn¡¯t notice their approach. Its massive body rushed through the snow-fillednd as the wind cried.


    Jon pushed her right where she needed to be. Even though he was exhausted, moving around using his dominion of gravity, even carrying other people, he would not fail in critical tasks like this.


    Noyar hurled over the top of Winterheart Reindeer, swinging her sword with the full sh as the Wind Breaker charged with a tremendous water de, rushing to cut the beast in half.


    Perhaps that would happen if it was a normal spirit beast. Even though the Wind Breaker got through the wind, cutting through it, it couldn¡¯t even cut an inch in the back of the Saint Beast.


    However, it did manage to get the beast¡¯s attention. It cried as a suffocating force rushed out of it, flinging her away over the course of her fall. She couldn¡¯tnd safely, but she was safe, mostly. For now.


    Her attack barely scratched the reindeer, but it caught her attention. She seeded in catching its attention, but she didn¡¯t like what would get in return. Noyar couldn''t stand up yet, but the Reindeer almost got to her. She swallowed a breath, gripping her sword tight. ¡°Jon,¡± she screamed, ¡°are you there?¡±


    The only thing she heard were the cries of the beast and the angry wind swirling. She kicked up, sword ready to make a move. The beast was just about to reach her, and she swung with everything she had.


    In the very next moment, the massive beast flung a dozen metres away to her adjacent side on the left. No, it was not from her sword. She turned her head to find Jon standing in a pose, as if pushing air with his bare arms.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± he asked, flying to catch her as they both hovered in the air.


    ¡°Well,¡± Noyar opened her mouth, looking at the beast, rolling to stand up again. ¡°We manage to get its attention.¡±


    ¡°Now, it''s the hard part,¡± Jon said and tossed her in the air and then pushed her with the dominion of gravity.


    The very next moment, the beast lunged at him, roaring. Jon withdrew his arms and pushed with everything he got, but he was not going to fling away the beast this time. No, it was not that he didn¡¯t want, it''s just that he couldn¡¯t. With the sheer strength, the saint beast charged towards him, making the wind and spiritual aura undted, he knew there was no contest in a fair, one-on-one battle.


    But this was hardly a one-on-one battle. Getting nothing of the beast, Jon pushed against the earth and lurched up in the air. There was nothing in front of the beast now, it skidded to where Jon was and turned, and abruptly des of hard water ripped against its face.


    It roared as Noyar''s Wind Breaker ripped apart, distorting in the hurling wind.


    ¡°Noyar, let¡¯s go,¡± Jon shouted as Noyar started to run. She lunged in the air, getting a little momentum, and then Jon pushed her as they flew towards the direction of the rift.


    The beast cried behind them, its legs bolted, chasing after them.


    . . .


    Shailyn felt lost, sitting in the camp. A dozen unconscious bodiesy surrounding her, but her eyes kept staring outside through the window. She hadn¡¯t closed it after they were gone.<novelnext></novelnext>


    The afflictions inside her were not undone. It would take more than just a little channelling of the purgation energy to eliminate all of that which she faced in thest two nights. She could barely draw spirit force, and even the working of her physical organs grew limited.


    If she wanted, she could try one thing for thest, however, that¡¯s herst resort, which would dry up reaching the saint beast. She could only pray from here.


    Abruptly, she felt some undtion behind her and then some weeping. Turning her head, she found Oscar¡¯s friend¡ªYeriel¡ªawoke and weeping. Shailyn¡¯s mind chilled, finding the wrong air around her. There seemed to be a ckness looming around her, which unnerved her the most, even more than the beast''s antlers on her head.


    However, she had given her words to Oscar that she would save her, but she failed there. She couldn¡¯t hesitate now. ¡°Hey,¡± she called in a soft tone. ¡°Yeriel, how¡¯re you feeling?¡±


    Shailyn approached her, but the moment Yeriel looked at her, the surrounding darkness warped. It didn¡¯t reduce but grew in volume.


    ¡°Calm down,¡± Shailyn said, reaching for the girl, slowly. ¡°I¡¯m not going to hurt you. No one will.¡±


    ¡°You are?¡± Yeriel looked at her with teary, cloudy eyes. ¡°You¡¯re Oscar¡¯s aunt, Mistress Rosalyn¡¯s Sister?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Shailyn said, getting closer, but it appeared Yeriel wasn¡¯t hearing her.


    ¡°Oh, Ishar,¡± she wept, ¡°Oscar, where¡¯s he? What did I do to him?¡± She looked around the room to find a dozen unconscious figuresid, which frightened her even more as she screamed. ¡°Oh Ishar, what did I do to them?¡±


    The spiritual aura, even the spiritual nodes, warped with her cries as the surrounding darkness distorted to envelop her.


    ¡°Calm down.¡± Shailyn was not so soft anymore. She wrapped her arms around the poor girl, embracing her tightly. ¡°You didn¡¯t do any of this. You harmed no one. Oscar is fine. Calm down . . . It''s alright, they are alright.¡±


    The distortion was sorted out by a lot as Yeriel breathed against her chest, heaving up and down, weeping. Noyar rubbed her head on the back.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I couldn¡¯t get there in time,¡± Shailyn said softly. ¡°I know they did horrible things to you, but . . . you¡¯re alive, you are going to figure it out, we¡¯ll help you figure it out.¡±


    Yeriel stayed there for about a couple of minutes as Shailyn rubbed her hair. The horrifying cries resounded even in the camp as Yeriel jerked her head to look out the window.


    ¡°She''s weeping,¡± she said, looking, and got out of Shailyn¡¯s embrace. ¡°She lost her cub, the agony, the pain, she¡¯s hurting.¡±


    ¡°Yeriel?¡± Shailyn stood up to stand next to her.


    The girl with the Winterheart Reindeer antler crown on her head looked at her. ¡°Oscar,¡± she asked, ¡°is he there?¡±


    Shailyn bit her lips and nodded. ¡°The saint beast has been rampaging for some time now,¡± she said. ¡°They are stopping it from reaching the city.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Yeriel whispered as she moved before the door. ¡°No, no, no.¡±


    ¡°Yeriel,¡± Shailyn called, drawing her palm on her shoulder. ¡°Are you alright?¡±


    ¡°I need to go there,¡± Yeriel opened the door, ¡°She¡¯s hurting . . .¡±


    She walked out of the door and started running in the snow, only wearing the oversized cloak¡ªOscar dressed her in.


    ¡°Yeriel?¡± Shailyn shouted, chasing after her. ¡°Don¡¯t go.¡±


    She ran after the poor girl, but with her exhaustion and injuries, she couldn¡¯t reach the poor girl, who had just gone through a demonic transformation. However, Yeriel was not in her right mind. She was running without watching her steps. After going about a hundred metres, her steps fumbled as she fell.


    ¡°Yeriel, don¡¯t go.¡±


    Yeriel acted as if she didn¡¯t hear her, got up and started running again. She ran for several seconds, Shailyn still chasing after her in the swirling wind and snowfall. And then the wind rose further as she found Yeriel flying towards the centre of the conflict.


    ______________


    Goals: Top 100 Golden stone ranking = 10 chapters per week.


    Top 50 = 12 chapters.


    Top 25 = 14 chapters.


    You can read all the chapters in my PA TREON in including the privilege ones. The link is in the end of the synopsis.

 Chapter 103 54: Chaos (2)

    Jon flung away, breaking through a trunk of a tree and was about to collide with another when his legs lurched, as the knees bent to manoeuvre against the trunk of the tree. He stayed against the tree for a prolonged nick of the moment before his body was shot again towards the rampaging beast.


    Mad wind curled around him as Jon shot, swirling his magical energy to melt the ice from his skin. He found Noyar running, cutting through the angry wind the saint beast charged her with. However, even with all her attempts, the winterheart reindeer would collide against her within a couple of seconds.


    Jon rushed to the top of his dominion, pushing harder against the earth. He dropped just beside Noyar, who stood in sword stance, while the beast was only ten paces away. Jon redirected his anchor of the gravitational push. Instead of earth, he pushed against the three metres long humongous beast, but the problem was that he only managed to slow it down pouring everything out.


    So in the nick of moment, he jerked his right arm towards Noyar as she flung away, still in her stance. Jon tried to shoot in the air as well, but the beast didn¡¯t give him any time to do that. It roared as the heavy snowfall in the surrounding turned into sharp projectiles to shoot toward Jon.


    Jon gritted his teeth and reinforced more energy in his defence, still, the centre of the anchor was the beast. Sharp projectiles of icy hurled through the mad wind and struck his body, as if sharp nails were hammering against him. However, with the protection of spirit armament and the armour, he was fine. Mostly.


    However, even if he managed to be safe against the ice attack, how would he manage against the beast? The beast roared and charged.


    Jon leapt. He didn¡¯t know if he used gravity or just on his physical body, but he barely manage to get over the top of the beast, which was barely enough to dodge the attack.


    Jon was safe and his anchoring with the beast was still intact. Hovering in the air, Jon pushed forth again and this time it was a lot easier, as the direction of the push was the same as the beast was charging at. The humongous beast was flung away a dozen metres. It collided against trees, discing, breaking, uprooting them to a halt.


    Jon didn''t wait for the beast to stand back up, but looked for Noyar. He was pretty sure the Winterheart Reindeer would get up in no time.


    ¡°How much longer?¡± he asked, finding Noyar. He sprinted to her and caught her arm as the beast behind them rose up, roaring.


    ¡°We aren¡¯t even halfway there,¡± Noyar answered. The two of them rose in the air and flew towards the direction of the cavern.


    Jon grunted. It was about five minutes they were luring the beast, and they have already tried everything. After all, he had been through, he couldn¡¯t even pull half of his highest speed, but he didn¡¯t need to fly with the top speed either. He was luring the beast towards them, not fleeing from it. If somehow his speed was faster than the beast could chase after, it would likely go after the city again.


    Jon increased the pace they were going a little, trying to take a breather. Well, with the snow pping against his face, the wind curling around him, he would need more than that. This time he was not pushing Noyar separately, but carrying her, running on a single anchor.


    Dominion of Gravity was one dominion that could be usable for a prolonged period unlike most other dominions, though it mostly depends on the person. Some were just innate prodigies in it, like him.


    It was not that they just chose the dominion, but the other way around. If one doesn¡¯t have the innate spark, then he would get nothing out of the ritual other than misery.


    Noyar was on the lookout with her eyes glowing in a faint blue light. She could see through the spatial nodes in all the directions¡ªprobably something to do with the beast rampaging and the five moons radiating in the sky. She could see spiritual energy undting all over the mountain range, more so near the beast, it''s swirling all around the saint beast, which didn¡¯t seem to have any mood to stop its rampage.


    ¡°Jon,¡± Noyar said in a shaky voice, ¡°I think we have pissed it enough already. It wouldn¡¯t go anywhere without finishing us first.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a good thing,¡± Jon said, but his voice wasn¡¯t a bit happy.


    ¡°We¡¯re going to depart at our full speed then,¡± Noyar said, but her face turned pale, finding their top speed was only a tiny bit higher than what they were usually going at. And no way it was enough to get away from a rampaging saint beast.


    As both of them feared, the beast got on their trail and attacked with hundreds of icy spices. There were so many that they couldn¡¯t block against all, nor could Jon stop them with his gravity, because it would p his anchor, slowing down their pace. That would undermine everything and put the two of them to doom.


    If he was alone, that''s another story.


    So he remained high enough in the air where the beast couldn¡¯t reach leaping, but could assault with the ice attacks, which they were barely holding off. Each of the icy spikes was like bullets from firearms stabbing against their body. The armament coating was getting weak with each impact. No matter how much they were trying, it wasn¡¯t enough to stand against a saint beast¡¯s relentless attack.


    ¡°What are we going to do?¡± Noyar asked, biting her lips. ¡°Jon, drop me.¡±<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡°No¡± Jon answered without even considering it.


    ¡°I¡¯m not telling you to drop me before the beast,¡± she said, ¡°but somewhere safer, where it wouldn''t notice me. You can see it already. With me, you won''t be able to take it to the rift.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not possible,¡± Jon said. ¡°The only thing I can do is toss you in the other directions, but there¡¯s no guarantee it won¡¯t chase after you, and if it did, I don¡¯t know if I can get you back before it could.¡±


    ¡°I can take care of myself.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Jon said. ¡°Without something to distract it, it''s suicide. Besides, I don''t know where the rift is.¡±


    Noyar groaned as a spike struck the back of her skull, rendering her spirit defence useless. She infused more energy to protect herself to notice a single red light flying from far away. Even though it was not a critical blow, it stabbed with an impaling pain in her head.


    ¡°We got our distraction,¡± Noyar said. ¡°Be ready.¡±


    Jon turned his head to notice the light, too. ¡°Is that . . .?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± she answered without hesitation.


    ¡°Are you sure about this?¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡± This time, there was no hesitation either. ¡°It would take him half a minute at best to reach us.¡±


    ¡°Got it.¡± Now what Jon needed to do was be a distraction at the exact moment. Perhaps if this gives them an opportunity, they could take the beast to the rift with minimal damage.


    ¡°Are you ready?¡± Noyar asked.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± he said, ¡°Be prepared in 3 . . . 2 . . . 1 . . .¡±


    As Jon finished the countdown, he tossed Noyar to the right side and gripped his sword tight with his free arms. The beast went for Noyar, ignoring him totally even though he was closer to it. It knew dealing with him would be harder, so it picked on the easier target.


    ¡°Zashin burn it,¡± Jon swore, flying behind it at a swift speed. Well, Noyar wouldn¡¯t go that easily. She was already on the run the moment shended on the snow.


    However, with her speed in the damning weather, it would be no time before the beast would reach her. That¡¯s why he was here. Jon pushed with everything he got, not against the beast entirely, but just one leg in the back. It was tremendously hard to do something like that against a moving object, but Jon was not your average Knight.


    Even under all the fatigue and pressure, he seeded, making a jumble of the Winterheart Reindeer¡¯s strides. The saint beast fell head first on the snow, crying. Noyar withdrew further, and Jon was about to lurch up when a red light dropped on top of the fallen beast.


    ¡°Run!¡± A new, but familiar voice said, hovering in the air, as res of fire burst out of his back, lurching up upwards.


    BOOM!


    In the next very moment, whatever the neer threw at the beast, it burst right on top of it, warping noise and fiery disastrous spiritual disturbance in the five-metre radius.


    _ _ _

 Chapter 104 54: Chaos (3)

    That was one god of a beast. That was all on my mind when I bombed it. Oh yeah, I bombed it. Me - one; Santa¡¯s pet - zero. Yeah, me.


    However, I¡¯m not sure if I can keep up the lead until we reach the rift. Triggering the fierce suit, I flew away where Jon flung away from the st. But considering that guy was one elite knight, he should be fine. Well, he was jerking his head, thumping his palm against his ears. He¡¯s fine¡ªtake my word for it.


    ¡°Fly away, mate,¡± I shouted and lurched out of the way towards Noyar, who was peeking at us. I came down, manoeuvring the fire releasing steam releasers, and pulled Noyar from the snowy ground. Jon joined after a couple of seconds as we flew. Told you he¡¯s fine.


    ¡°Jon,¡± Noyar called, shouting, ¡°are you alright?¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Jon gave a look, showing he didn¡¯t understand, even though he was flying just next to us.


    He¡¯s fine! Well, the wind was there. Perhaps that caused his eardrums to malfunction. Totally not my fault. Well, maybe a little, but I got there at critical and saved him from a critical blow, so I could get some leverage here.


    As we flew a couple of hundred metres away from the beast, it finally stood up again and with the disturbance and fiery light I was ejecting, it had no problem chasing, either. I guess that would do, since it was our original goal.


    ¡°Oh Ishar,¡± Noyar swore at the next moment. ¡°You¡¯re burning.¡±


    Actually, it''s the suit that was overheating while I¡¯m experiencing most of its outbursts in an excruciating way. I didn¡¯t limit the spirit energy usage in any way. I¡¯m throwing whatever I can into the spirit coating around my skin and the suit. Yes, I had to use the skill in twoyers, to protect myself as well as the suit.


    Dakota would be pissed, but that''s the least of my worries now. Between a berserk saint beast and her, I would choose to go against her all the time.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need to engage it now,¡± I said, ¡°if it tries to go away--which seems unlike¡ªI can bomb it once more. Let¡¯s reach the cavern first.¡±


    Jon gave me a look as if asking why I was running around with explosiveponents in my hands. Noyar might be the same, but with me carrying her, I didn¡¯t manage to get a good look at her. Well, even with that, there was no reason to justify my reasons.


    They should be grateful to the noble soul who left out the firestone device in the mountains, except that whoever left it there might not be a noble soul, since most of the people were rogue practitioners. Still, I''m grateful for it.


    ¡°Anyway, you two look beaten down pretty badly,¡± I said, going in the direction of a more important topic. ¡°Can you even hold it anymore?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll manage,¡± Jon said, stealing a look behind at the beast approaching.


    Noyar only gave a snort. Perhaps that was enough to show her strength, but I think she was just tired to even open her mouth. Holy hell, even my head hurts terribly. And then there¡¯s Jon, who should only be going with adrenaline. If he stopped for some time, he probably would copse. Using any dominion was not something easy to do. He has been moving around hundreds of kilometres over thest few hours non-stop.


    However, the Winterheart reindeer couldn¡¯t care less about them and their misery. It proceeded with its relentless pursuit and caught up to us for a few minutes, trailing the lead I bought bombing it.


    Would it be possible to reach the rift, bombing it once more? I wondered and got the answer immediately. I feared it was impossible. A bomb and fleeing with our top speed, would buy for about two or three minutes, which was barely enough to go about five kilometres from our current state. If I had three more shots at bombing it, then it would be enough.


    ¡°It''sing again,¡± Jon said with a grunt. He prepared himself again.


    ¡°Here we go again,¡± I muttered and felt Noyar shuddering even though the suit was hot enough to harm her.


    The beast roared, and a mad wind warped together as if ying dubstep in my ears. Jon engaged first while I dropped Noyar a little further away.


    "Watch out for any openings." Saying that, I shot at the beast before she couldin, swinging the de in a full-sh to the beast head-on.


    That turns out to be a terrible decision. All the mes from my sh drifted away with just one cry from it. I couldn¡¯t advance further, even with pulling everything from the suit. Jon pushed the beast from behind and Noyar came in on top of me, somersaulting to deal a Wavebreaker against its face.


    The whole thing went for only a couple of seconds as I triggered the mechanics to shoot in the air and found Joning up carrying Noyar. We shot at our top speed with the few seconds we bought. However, the situation went just as terribly once again after a few seconds.<novelnext></novelnext>


    ¡°Looks like this is the only way,¡± Noyar muttered as Jon threw her behind the beast this time.


    I let out a gasp and followed. I didn¡¯t waste any energy on attacking head-on. Since I¡¯m the fastest among us four, I distracted it again, flying around it as the beast cried. Whenever it came close enough, I shot up in the air, though its ice attack pained me excruciatingly.


    When the beast came after me, Jon helped in the distraction, and when he failed too, Noyar dealt a few fast sweeps which barely did any damage other than pausing it. Well, it also enraged it more.


    Should I bomb it now? That seemed like the only thing left to do in these circumstances. While I was wondering about all that, Noyar yelped. The beast was dashing right at her, while Jon was flung away on the other side.


    Gritting my teeth, I flew away to catch onto the lone figure of Noyar. I managed to get in time, however, the beast didn¡¯t stop in its relentless pursuit. It leapt into the air and collided against my back, its sharp antlers dug through the fabrics of the suit into my flesh.


    God damn it, I will take a nice vacation after this. Even though this was supposed to be a vacation, a pleasant change of pace, except that I came across nothing pleasant about it.


    I yelped and lurched above in the air with Noyar. In hindsight of the pain, I failed to control the mechanics of the steam releaser, as soon, we fell on the top of a tree. We came down through the copsing branches, grunting and groaning.


    However, it seemed the beast hadn¡¯t had all his fun with us. It cried in a savage tone and chased after us.


    ¡°Oscar,¡± Noyar called, her voice shuddering beside me.


    ¡°On it,¡± I said and tried to work on the mechanics of the False-ward. Unfortunately, it was malfunctioning again.


    ¡°Oscar!¡±


    I growled and stood up with the nail-sword in my good hand, glowing in the red, fiery light. While I moved my other arm to collect the explosive contents. My eyes narrowed as I waited for the beast to approach. ''Come on,e on. I''ll fucking blow that head of yours now.''


    However, before the saint beast could reach us, a figure dropped from the sky. A slender figure with a roughly worn cloak. Her hair was dishevelled, with a crown of antler on her head.


    ¡°Yeriel, get away,¡± I screamed the moment I saw her.


    The girl in question didn¡¯t even look at me. She stood in the middle like a fool, peering at the three and a half metre-tall beast withpassion. I didn¡¯t know if my eyes were ying tricks or if the beast actually slowed down a little.


    ¡°Please,¡± Yeriel opened her mouth, ¡°you have to stop.¡±


    Yeah, it definitely slowed down. Now it''s more apparent.


    ¡°Please," Yeriel said, taking a step towards it as the cloak swayed violently in the wind. "I know you¡¯re hurting, but--¡±


    A loud cry of mourn resounded throughout the mountain range and the beast shot toward Yeriel, ignoring all her pleas. It roared horrifyingly, as if finally finding its child-killer. The beast collided against her, flinging away Yeriel like stray kites in a tempest.


    My eyes widened in terror as I swore, ¡°Darn it!.¡±


    _ _ _


    One more part in this chapter. It took a lot of time, apology for that.

 Chapter 105 54: Chaos (4)

    ¡°Yeriel!¡±


    The beast ignored us like we were never there and rushed towards where it threw away Yeriel. The air, that calmed down a few moments ago, warped in a mad rush again, as I gritted my teeth.


    There was no time. The suit started, taking its time, as I shot forth, however, I waste. Yeriel barely managed to stand after getting knocked down¡ªwhich was already surprising enough¡ªbut the beast knocked her out again, flinging her away from a dozen of metres.


    It didn¡¯t seem to be done with all the violence it inflicted on her. The three-and-a-half-metre-long berserk saint beast chased after her, ignoring the fly flying around it¡ªwhich was me, of course.


    I would be damned if I let it go on further. I brought forth all I have, as well as all the eleration I could get from the suit. With the humongous momentum I built, I charged, spirit force surging throughout my body¡ªall over the lower body, towards the hills of my feet.


    I screamed¡ªdidn¡¯t know if I was trying to get its attention, or just out of my mind. Well, probably thetter, but who cares?


    I skidded my head backwards and my legs forward as they rammed against the back foot of the berserk Saint beast. Even with everything I have, it was impossible for me to take it head-on, but I sufficed enough, well, only against one leg of it.


    The reindeer fell, screaming, toppling over the snow, but it wasn¡¯t over yet.


    ¡°Sorry, pal,¡± I screamed, ¡°there ain¡¯t no Christmas for you.¡±


    The nail sword twisted in my arm to form a reverse grip before it pierced the leg of the beast. It takes more than just raw power to deal damage to a beast that was born divine, but I managed with enough raw power.


    Burning kes hovered around as the fiery crimson metal prated the back of its leg. Crimson blood oozed out as the ember-bound sword went further. The beast cried, jerking its legs, and rolling on the ground. The ground felt like it was having a seizure as I held on. My sword barely reached the bone, and I was flung away with the lurch of the foot, finally.


    Yeriel stood up on the other side with a bloody face, though it was healing at a frightening pace. She eyed the beast and tilted her head to look at me. The beast didn¡¯t wait for long. Even though I inflicted a much more critical blow on its leg and made it bleed more than any of us ever managed, it still bolted towards Yeriel. Its back leg was limping a little.


    ¡°Yeriel. Run!¡± I shouted.


    However, the fool girl didn¡¯t listen. She stood there, biting her bloody lips. The horrifying beast was about to collide against her for the third time, but before it could reach two metres of her, it stopped.


    No, it didn¡¯t stop, but a sudden outburst of power from Yeriel stopped it. I could only wonder the sheer output of power that would need to render all the effort of a berserk saint beast futile.


    ¡°Please,¡± Yeriel said, ¡°stop it.¡±


    The beast wasn¡¯t listening to her at all. Well, that¡¯s normal. Just think for a second, if you find your cub missing and meet a person with its scent, not to mention wearing antlers on your head, of course, it would attack you.


    ¡°Oh, Ishar,¡± Noyar said as she dropped next to me, along with Jon. They certainly had no clue of what was happening before their eyes.


    I stood up and looked around to search for my sword. It wasn¡¯t stuck to the beast so, it should be nearby. I found it quite close to it. ¡°Come on,¡± I shouted, flying towards my sword. ¡°She won¡¯t be able to keep it at bay for long.¡±


    Like I assumed, Yeriel¡¯s shield broke, and she was flung away for the third time, though she was in a better state. She stopped supernaturally as her body stood upright before the beast could reach her.


    ¡°Yeriel,¡± I shouted at her again, rising twenty metres in the air. ¡°You can¡¯t stop it.¡±


    Yeriel said nothing and engaged with the mad beast again, ringing the same words again. I wasn¡¯t sure if she was in her right mind after all she went through, but I, myself, was far away from judging that. Still, one thing was for sure. If she kept on going like this, then it would be her who would go down.


    ¡°Yeriel, listen to me, please.¡±


    Whatever she was trying didn¡¯t work, and she was thrown away again. However, I was waiting for that. I caught her before she could fall and shot upwards, ignoring the horrifying cries of the beast. Yeriel struggled in my grasp as she groaned.


    ¡°Leave it,¡± I said. ¡°You can¡¯t stop it like that. Come with me, I have a better n.¡±


    Yeriel stared for a few seconds into my eyes and struggled out of my grasp. It was so swift and abrupt that I had no clue what she did, but she was flying next to me out of my grasp.


    I had no idea how she was doing this and all the other stuff. Well, I can tell how she was doing it, but I don¡¯t understand how she was doing it without learning those first. However, I asked no question, knowing that any question about that could lead her to a psychological epiphany, and she might lose all grasp on her abrupt power. As I feared, she was going on pure instinct. The intent behind all of this was from the Yeriel I knew, but it''s still instinctual.<novelnext></novelnext>


    Luckily, she didn¡¯t fly away to stop the beast. I sighed in relief inwardly and found Jon and Noyar.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± I said, looking warily at Yeriel. ¡°I don¡¯t think we have any need to catch its attention.¡±


    With me injuring the leg of the Winterheart Reindeer, it was a bit slower than before, which should have been enough for us to get the lead, but turns out not everyone was in our previous state. Well, I still had the fire spirit stone dust, which could buy in a couple of minutes, but there was no need for that. It might be usefulter, so I kept it.


    Yeriel and I had no problem taking the lead, however, Jon had to carry Noyar, making them the slowest of the group. Noyar didn¡¯t seem ready to leave everything to us, so she decided that Yeriel and I would take the beast to a roundabout way to reach the rift, while they would reach there in the meantime and prepare.


    That seemed like a feasible n, not to mention we had blocked the entrance to the cavern thest time. If they opened it beforehand, we could just jump inside without leaving a chance for the beast to take a bite at us.


    ¡°Alright,¡± I said, ¡°see you in a bit.¡± I turned to the left and took a peek at the beast chasing. It still had all its attention on Yeriel. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± I told Yeriel as she nodded. The beast chased after us like I assumed, ignoring the target which it could catch up to easily.


    I calcted how much time it would take for Jon and Noyar to reach the rift and decided how much time we would have to waste. The answer was almost double.


    I turned my head towards Yeriel next. Her face was bloodstained, but all the wounds she got from the beast had healed miraculously. However, what troubled me most were those empty, vacant eyes and the slight halo of darkness surrounding her. Well, it hadn¡¯t swallowed herpletely yet, that¡¯s a good thing, but . . .


    I had no clue what to think about it now. Yes, I could think of a couple of solutions, but none are possible anytime soon.


    ¡°Yeriel,¡± I called, not knowing what to do. ¡°How are you?¡±


    Yeriel gave me a look and kept her silence.


    ¡°It''s alright,¡± I said, biting my lips. ¡°We can undo what¡¯s done.¡±


    I didn¡¯t know if she didn¡¯t hear the wind rattling in our ears as well as the cries of the saint beast, or just ignored my words. This was troubling me greatly.


    After a couple more minutes, we raised our speed, understanding each other about what we were intending. The beast would chase after us, no matter what.


    When we reached the spot, Noyar and Jon barely started opening the entrance. Finding us, the Knight with Dominion of Gravity took the liberty to finish the job first. Jon hurled a gravitational push against the boulders, tossing them aside.


    The entrance of a looming cave appeared before their eyes, as they looked at one another and nodded. I dropped with Yeriel next to them the next moment. The cries of the beast told it was not that far away.


    ¡°Are you sure about this?¡± Noyar asked me.


    I thought for a second and shook my head.


    ¡°What?¡± Noyar grunted. ¡°You seemed pretty confident before.¡±


    ¡°At least it''s better than throwing meaningless assaults on the beast, hoping they would stop it,¡± Jon croaked. ¡°I would throw away my life a hundred times if there¡¯s a strong possibility of stopping a catastrophe like this.¡±


    Yeah, I get it, you¡¯re a hero. Letting out a breath, I said, ¡°Luckily, I¡¯m not suicidal as Jon.¡± I looked behind and couldn''t see the beast, though its screams were getting ever so clear. ¡°I might not be 100% sure about this, but I¡¯m pretty confident about this. Now, let¡¯s go. We¡¯ll discuss the n when we¡¯re inside. Noyar, you stay in the front. Your dominion might help us there in the navigation.¡±


    Noyar nodded and raised an eyebrow. ¡°Why do I feel you know what¡¯s inside the rift?¡±


    ¡°Because I knew exactly what¡¯s inside.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± Everyone looked at me incredulously as the beast''s roar resounded as it finally found us.


    ¡°Chaos.¡±


    _________________

 Chapter 106 55: Disorder (1)

    Q: How to survive in the Rift of Disorder?


    A: With the Rift of Disorder being an Astral Space, first, one should ignore many of the naturalws, like gravity, illumination, and physical or spiritual bodies. The natural order of things doesn¡¯t work ording to the natural order. Anyone without a fundamental understanding of Astral space will have a troublesome time adjusting to it at first.


    The biggest danger in the Rift of Disorder is not losing your life, but getting lost. As you¡¯re not physically present there, you won¡¯t need to eat, breathe, sleep, nor time is an issue. To survive in a ce like this and get out of there with an intact and working brain, you need to make sure you didn¡¯t get lost in there.


    Now, here¡¯s a beginner guide on what to look for. . . .


    Note: The confirmation on the guide is questionable, but I heard from a few who were with him in a rift of disorder and how he miraculously yed inside it as if it was his own backyard. This also provides evidence to the truthfulness of these notes.


    - - -


    "Whatever you do, absolutely, don''t wander off alone until I get--" Oscar''s voice was cut off as they dived into the water.


    Noyar was the first to get into the rift together with Jon. With a gravitational push, Jon broke the ice on the surface of the pool to dive into the cold water. As Oscar had told them, they have to go through the water until they find a halo of light, which came quite deep into the water, about a hundred metres deep.


    Noyar had been to rift before, a couple of times to be specific, she could call them experiences, but she couldn¡¯t call herself experienced with just that. Jon pushed through the forcefield, Noyar in his embrace as they entered the rift space.


    It was as if they were diving from one viscous medium to another freer medium.


    Both of them fell on their butt on a cold floor, devoid of water, air or any other element as far as they could find. Well, the spiritual energy here was so pure that it lets them suck it all in, closing their eyes. But their delight didn¡¯tst long, as a sudden chill consumed them the moment they looked around the space.


    ¡°What is the actual . . . ?¡± Jon¡¯s voice trailed off.


    Stairs. Too many freaking staircases. It started with dozens of them on the floor as they divided into hundreds and thousands, twisting, turning and coiling around the floor to make one giant wobbly piece. They went in all directions and one direction--if that makes sense. Wherever they went, Noyar felt like their direction was the same.


    Fine wooden staircases joined together, some divided into more staircases. Upside-down, sideways, zigzag, all kinds of patterns yed on the stairs, making the climb seem almost impossible. Noyar hadn¡¯t started the climb, and yet she already felt sick looking at them.


    That¡¯s what they see. That¡¯s not all, it appears, that they were hanging upside-down from the floor, or roof. Noyar felt like vomiting while Jon tried to skid around ying with his dominion of gravity as if trying to discern the scope of gravity here.


    ¡°This ce is wobbly,¡± he said as his legs lifted off from the upside-down floor. ¡°Gravity is also--¡±


    Jon¡¯s voice was cut off at the next moment, as his body went backwards to fall on the stairs on the right. It might have been possible to do that with his Dominion of Gravity, but the way he struggled made Noyar seem like that¡¯s not the case.


    ¡°Jon,¡± she called, ¡°Are you alright?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Jon said, standing up. ¡°The Gravity. Its . . .¡±


    He didn¡¯t find the words to describe it. Oh, by the way right now, he was standing to her 90% angle on the right, totally on a different scope of gravity.


    ¡°Wait, let mee back first.¡± Jon turned his dominion on and pushed backwards to move forward. He went to his left and fell on a different staircase, which seemed to be running on a different point of gravity as well. He did it a couple of times more to struggle his way back to the floor where Noyar was standing, or hanging, from his point of view.


    As Jon hovered on the space forward, the gravity of the floor pulled him towards it, while the other floor¡¯s gravity tuned weaker and so was his push as he fell on his butt. Again.


    ¡°Chaos,¡± Noyar muttered. That¡¯s what Oscar told them, and she felt it now.


    ¡°That was exactly the word to describe it,¡± Jon said as Noyar helped him out. ¡°Each of these staircases likely runs on a different point of gravity. So there were hundreds and thousands of staircases leading with different gravity, who knew where they should lead.¡±


    ¡°How in the world is this possible?¡± Noyar muttered as her eyes glowed in blue. She had turned on her dominion of Seer to do a further inspection of space.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not a magus,¡± Jon said, ¡°perhaps your partner could answer that. Man, this could be a paradise to train Dominion of Gravity.¡± Jon seemed a bit regretful about the notion of training in a ce like this.


    Noyar ignored his signs of disgruntlement and inspected the space with her dominion eyes. Even though these lots of stairs seemed to be made of fine wood at first, Noyar found out they were fake. Strong patterns of flow opened her eyes as she looked attentively. All the stairs were glowing with too much spiritual pattern, making her head spin the more she got to examine them.<novelnext></novelnext>


    It was like thousands of threads divided into thousands more and those divided into thousands more and intertwined to create these magnum staircases. However, getting nothing more, she had to stop her inspection, no matter how fascinating it came to her eyes. Then the realisation hit her.


    ¡°Noyar, our clothes,¡± Jon shouted. ¡°They were not wet.¡±


    Noyar raised an eyebrow and found that to be true, but she had other things to be worried about now. ¡°What¡¯re they doing?¡± she grumbled, looking around. ¡°It''s over a minute and only the two of us here.¡±


    Jon groaned at the realisation. The surroundings were so daunting and out of the natural scope that he forgot about time. However, now that they think about it, one minute was too much time. They and even the beast should have been here now, even with all the trouble.


    Could it be something unforeseen situation have urred? That came to Noyar¡¯s head first. She knew that some first have a different time flow to Shrankor, but still she couldn¡¯t ignore the possibility.


    ¡°We need to get to them,¡± Noyar said.


    ¡°Yeah, but how?¡±


    That¡¯s the question here. She couldn¡¯t find the forcefield wall that they went through to get inside. There were just too many things wrong here. It was as if she couldn¡¯t understand the gravity of their problem here.


    Noyar tuned on her Seer eyes again and inspected to find a way out. However, she found something else without even looking. As her eyes were about to be darted off the inspection, they paused on the figure of Jon. No, it had nothing to do with how his injuries seemed to have been healed or how handsome he looked, but the output of his flow pattern she got from him.


    Like the staircases, Jon was giving too much spiritual flow pattern than usual. It was as if the veil over her eyes had been lifted, and she awakened the True Sight--which was acimed as one of the highest order abilities of wizards.


    However, Noyar knew that was not right. She never practised any high arts, she was content with all the knight spiritual breathing scripture. So that could only mean that this rift space has changed her eyes or their body. Perhaps both.


    ¡°Noyar,¡± Jon called, getting the odd look from her. ¡°Is something wrong?¡±


    Noyar closed her eyes forcefully, though the blue halo still lingered for several seconds over her closed eyelids. After calming down, her power of dominion, she opened her eyes, feeling a bit dizzy in the head.


    ¡°It seemed we can¡¯t trust our Dominion here,¡± she said and sat down.


    Each moment they passed, they were bing more restless. Noyar was biting her lips to make them bloody while Jon proceeded to look for a way out. Naturally, he didn''t go further than where he couldn''t see Noyar on the floor, but that much wascking to figure out anything that he hadn''t already.


    Well, with all that travelling, he became somewhat familiar with how to work his dominion of gravity.


    ''My dominion might guide us here, that''s what Oscar said.'' Noyar was thinking too hard about that and trying with her dominion eyes to find anything that could provide a way, but so far all she got was a headache.


    Jon dropped on his butt for the fourth time. He stood up immediately, but didn''t go forward to scout more.


    "Noyar," Jon said, "I don''t think we can wait here further. The--"


    "Shh." Noyar silenced him and opened her dominion eyes at the floor, finding a wobbling structure of pattern there. Something was not right there. She had examined that before, it was not like that before, but now it was as if the string were untangling to open . . . a portal?


    Two figures came out of the wobbling portal and fell just like them on their butt.


    "Phew!" Sighed in relief one redhead young man. "Did you guys wait for long?"


    ____________


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 Chapter 107 55: Disorder (2)

    "Alright, we don''t have much time in hand," Oscar said, standing back up immediately. He looked around the space with a piercing gaze before starting to count the staircases. He stopped at a few of them as if calcting something.


    He gazed at every one of the staircases, but his eyes lingered on one of the ones that went deeper and downwards rather than the others. "That one," he said, and started running. He stopped finding others looking at him incredulously. "Come on, you need to trust me on this."


    Yeriel joined nonchntly with a t face. Noyar groaned a little before joining next, while Jon didn''t want to be left out, joined in the end. They were already here. It''s better to stick together even when you''re feeling lost. Besides, Oscar seemed and acted especially familiar with this ce somehow, so it could go well.


    "Now let''s discuss our n, shall we?" Oscar spoke as they ran, not looking back or down. They were upside down on the stairs¡ªunsure if climbing downwards or upwards¡ªlooking down would only make them nauseous.


    "As you two have been here for some time, I don''t know if you have noticed any oddities of this space yet. Like different points of gravity, or you bearing no physical injuries?"


    "We have seen a little more than that," Noyar answered.


    "But you haven''t seen enough," Oscar said. "Knights are not really familiar with the term Astral space." He paused and looked at the quiet girl. "Yeriel, you should know about it, right?"


    To his dismay, Oscar got no answer from Yeriel, which seemed to trouble him, though he got back to exining rather quickly.


    "An Astral space is, how do I exin this?" Oscar paused, though all their legs were running.


    Astral space, Noyar muttered inwardly. Yes, even though she hadn''t been schrly like most magi, she heard about it, it''s not that umon, but as far as she could tell, Astral ne was a ce of the spirit, of the dead, but . . . Could it be?


    Oscar turned to look at their wrongness in the faces and said, "No, don''t worry, we''re definitely not dead. This is definitely not Ishtar, nor the afterlife. You''re all alive, just not in your physical form."


    "What?" Jon croaked. "What does that mean?"


    "I''m exining just that, but I fear you don''t have the scope to understand, nor do I have the time to exin it. Besides, I don''t think you would believe it if I exined it. So, long story short, this is thend of spirit, soul, whatever you call it. It works on differentws than the physical bodies."


    Noyar understood what he was saying, but the more she thought about it, the more questions appeared on her mind. "Wait," she said hesitatingly. "If our spirit dies here, then our physical body dies too, and the other way around is true too, right?"


    "If your spirit dies, it''s game over, but the opposite is true too, but there are some exceptions, but none of us is the exception. So it would be great if none of us tries anything stupid."


    "Wait, if our physical body is not present there, how''s my Dominion of gravity working?" Jon couldn''t stop his curiosity from running out, beating Noyar to his question. As far as he can tell, gravity works on mass, on physical things, but they were not physical from what Oscar told them.<novelnext></novelnext>


    "Exceptions? What are you talking about?"


    "Stop questioning," Oscar grunted. "There is no Qna going on here." He paused and turned towards the floor, where every one of them dropped. He halted abruptly, looking at it with no nausea or other side effects. "But speaking of exceptions, it''s here."


    Noyar had trouble understanding what he was saying, but she knew it was not because of her troubling mind. However, she knew better not to question more on time like this.


    Just as Oscar finished speaking, what they were running from appeared on the upside-down floor, roaring. With more light present in the spacepared to the mountain, they could see it better. A three and a half feet metre tall beast of pure white. The long, elongated, and twisted antlers stood on its head, more to represent its beauty rather than just being a weapon of protection.


    A silver halo surrounded the body of the beast as it cried,ing into such a chaotic ce like this. It roared and found them rather quickly, though it hadn''t found the way to reach where they were now. Yes, the saint beast was intelligent, butpared to humans, it''s stillcking quite a lot. How would it feel to run upside down?


    It would have been fine if it had some familiarity in it, as beasts adapted to things like this better, not to mention a Winterheart Reindeer had some mystical power over spirituality, but this should be the first time for such a young saint beast like this. However, it would definitely find its way towards them, one way or another.


    "Hey, Pal," Oscar shouted, trying to catch its attention. "Come now. Christmas party is this way."


    They started running again, ignoring the beast''s roars. Oscar led them through the way, turning between different staircases, and changing their point of gravity. As they run, Noyar couldn''t help but question what Jon asked a few moments ago.


    "Alright, for the n," Oscar said, turning to peek at the beast. It was running on a different staircase now, definitely closer to them, but the staircase leads to a different destination in the short term. "As I was mentioning, different points of gravity. Each of the staircases runs on a different scope of gravity, or at least it looks that way. My n is simple: trap it right in the centre of all the gravitational force."


    "The centre of all gravity," Jon muttered. "That means you want to trap it in weightlessness?"


    "Yes, but not exactly." Even Oscar himself looked uncertain. "It would work, most likely. Even if it didn''t, we would have a way out."


    _ _ _


    I waited so long to write the sequence, and there''s still few more like this, though none woulde anytime soon. Sigh.


    Support: pa treon/SILENT_NOVELS

 Chapter 108 55: Disorder (3)

    ?


    The simultaneous gravity shifts were not good for their head. They have shifted to different gravitational staircases dozens of times in thest five minutes. Even though Oscar mentioned they were separate from their physical body, that didn¡¯t change the fact that Noyar was feeling dizzy. It''s safe to say that others shared the same sentiments.


    Oscar himself was feeling that way at first, too, but he was holding himself better with each moment.


    ¡°Think you don¡¯t have a head,¡± Oscar said. ¡°That will make it better. All you''re feeling is highly psychological. You don''t have a physical body to feel physical pain here, but your mind was not used to having a no physical body, so it was mimicking all of these physical and physiological feelings.¡±


    Huh, sounds easy to say, but would she do that exactly? This ce doesn¡¯t make sense. It''s like a twisted and lonesome form of some nightmare that you would never want to trap into.


    "Think of a way to work around it."


    Noyar took Oscar''s advice, but she had no clue how to work around it. As he said it, her body was too familiar with having a physical form.


    ¡°Alright,¡± Oscar opened his mouth once again, taking a look at the beast chasing after them. ¡°It would take a couple more minutes for the beast to reach us.¡±


    ¡°And how far away are we from a ce with zero gravity?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re just halfway there,¡± Oscar sighed.


    ¡°Alright then, let¡¯s move faster, shall we?¡± Noyar shouted as she saw the beast leapt from one gravitational shift to another.


    It was learning from them, though they could only shift from one gravitational pull to another only when the staircases were divided into more staircases. Only Jon amongst them could do shifting without chasing the staircase on foot, and that too, using his dominion of gravity, but with just leaping, the beast was shifting from one gravitational ne to another.


    It could have done that before, but it was only learning that now. However, it was not so urate with its jumps, as it fell on a different staircase than it intended, pulled by that staircase''s gravity.


    But the most terrifying thing of all was that it wouldn¡¯t take it long to figure that out. It would eventually reach them in its relentless pursuit. Two minutester, Oscar said it.


    ¡°Whatever you do, don¡¯t engage in meaninglessbat with it,¡± Oscar said. ¡°The sess of us reaching there would mostly depend on you, Jon. Push it back with your dominion when it tries to jump into our staircase.¡±


    Jon nodded warily, stealing a nce at the beast¡ªtraversing through different gravitational nes. He really couldn¡¯t do it after all the exhaustion he had been through, but it might be possible to do it working with the other gravitational pull in the surroundings.


    The horrifyingly pissed Winterheart Reindeer was about to reach them in two minutes, more or less. They were running 270 degrees to its staircase now. It would take two leapt for it to reach their staircase.


    ¡°Jon, prepare yourself,¡± Noyar shouted.


    The broad-shouldered knight stood by on the way, amassing all his power to push at the right moment. The beast was sessful on its first leap. It raced to take the second one, roaring at them. Jon had enough time to prepare, but Noyar couldn¡¯t help but feel chills in the anticipation.


    The beast leapt from their right to traverse the gravitational pull. Jon shouted, raising his arms and lurching them forward, forcing them to fail in the leap. He did it right when the beast was free of the gravitational pull of the staircase it was in. So Jon forced it back three or four more staircases away before it was pulled by another staircase.


    ¡°That will buy a dozen seconds,¡± Oscar shouted from ahead. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    He was ahead of everyone. Behind him was Yeriel, followed by Noyar, andstly, it was Jon, who was running slower. They traverse another staircase shortly, and then another. Now they were finally on the right angle. Unfortunately, the dozen seconds passed, and the beast was on the trail again.


    Jon backed away to do his thing again, but this time it didn¡¯t go as it was nned. The beast roared, leaping at the sight of Jon. An outrageous amount of spiritual aura outburst of the beast, flinging away Jon half a dozen staircases away.


    ¡°Oh, Crap!¡±


    ¡°Jon!¡± Noyar shouted and was about to engage the beast, forgetting everything Oscar said about not doing.


    She encountered the attack of the beast as it rammed its head into her chest violently, throwing her away. She would have flung away only a couple of staircases, as the excruciating pain consumed her. This was the first time she took an attack head-on.


    The beast¡¯s next target was Yeriel, who stopped running, while Oscar did the same a dozen metres ahead of them.


    Yeriel and the Winterheart Reindeer battled under their outrageous spiritual pressure, while Oscar sprinted towards the conflict. The amount of spiritual energy here was different. It was a lot less they could control than the physical realm, not to mention none of them was that familiar with this ce. Luckily, Oscar didn¡¯t n on using spiritual energy or aura.


    He raised the Punisher and shot at the conflict, ignoring the spiritual pressure. Without a single ounce of fear, he thrust the sword into its neck as the beast cried as much in agony as in rage.


    The beast weakened, but Oscar wasn¡¯t done yet. He rammed his knees into its lower body while withdrawing the sword and thrusting again. He continued it half a dozen times before the long, elongated antlers prated through his chest.


    ¡°Oscar!¡± Yeriel, who was silent the whole time, shouted, rushing in a mad dash towards the conflict.


    Noyar was staring at the scene in terror, too far away to be any good.


    However, the assault taker didn¡¯t seem to share any of their sentiment. Oscar¡¯s eyes narrowed, and a smug smile appeared on his lips as he locked eyes with the beast, who was struggling in pain.


    ¡°Told you,¡± he said, ramming a fist at the monster as crimson mes lit out his arms, ¡°There¡¯s no Christmas for you.¡±


    Oscar rammed a couple more punches and knees before throwing the beast off the staircase.


    _ _ _


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 Chapter 109 55: Disorder (4)

    ?


    Noyar gasped, looking at Oscar¡¯s figure from afar. She turned towards where the beast fell¡ªit was quite low and still writhing with agony. A sword prating to the neck. That¡¯s a serious injury no matter how you look at it. Not to mention, Oscar rammed his sword more than half a dozen times.


    Still, there seemed to be something she was missing.


    ¡°It''s not dead,¡± Oscar spoke, "far from it, nor is it over yet.¡±


    "How are you doing fine after all that?"


    "Told you we''re separated from our physical bodies," Oscar said. "Our minds are only tricking us to feel them, but turns out I know a trick or two as well."


    He looked around to find the stairs as well as where everyone else was. There was still a distance to cover, different staircases to traverse¡ªthe beast won¡¯t be down for long. The faster they reach, the better they will be.


    ¡°Noyar, Jon,¡± he shouted and pointed towards a white nk-like ce which should be a floor upside-down, like the one they first dropped. ¡°That¡¯s our destination. Yes, it looks pretty close from here, but not exactly. Follow me together, or it would be hard for you to get there.¡±


    After that, he started running again, joining Yeriel. Oh, there was no blood on his chest, even though it was pierced through the beast¡¯s antler. She guessed it was one advantage of not having a physical body. However, what about the pain?


    Noyar was hit a moment ago, and she was still having trouble breathing. It was as if her whole body was shellshocked from the impact. Wait, she didn¡¯t have any physical form here, but she could feel something beating in her chest. Yes, theck of blood proved that she was separated from her physical body, however, what was beating in her chest then?


    Why did she feel such excruciating pain that made her head spin and stomach churn, that she couldn¡¯t even move for some time? Does the soul have a heart?


    Was that really what Oscar said about her mind not adjusting to the situation, mimicking the physical reactions? That seemed too far-fetched and convenient to believe, but she had no other exnation.


    Breathing in and out, or at least mimicking the feeling, Noyar moved. Her speed was barely anything better than walking while Oscar and Yeriel were running, changing staircases one after another. She followed with her eyes to where her staircase went, but even with the dominion eyes enabled, she couldn¡¯t make out if it led to where Oscar pointed before.


    Meaning, she would have to be together with Jon to change the staircase midway with his dominion of gravity. She sought to find Jon shifting through the staircases,ing for her. He had to cover a few more to get there, and the way it looks like, he doesn¡¯t look so good.


    She found it more when he came before her. In her dominion eyes, she saw more. Her dominion was working weirdly in this space. Before she saw Jon, she was thousands of threads dividing into thousands more intertwined together in a uniform organised flow, but now it was a lot different. The threads of flow around his body grew disorderly, and it was not stopping.


    Noyar didn¡¯t know what that meant, but it didn¡¯t look good to her. Was it because he was relentlessly using his dominion like crazy? Then she remembered unlike her or Oscar, Jon wasn¡¯t hit in a physical fashion. He was thrown with an outburst of spirit aura, that took dozens of staircases away that ran on different points of gravity.


    It would take a hell lot of spirit aura to do that, and when a spiritual aura hits a living thing, it leaves a mark. Noyar felt a chill in her mind. Spiritual aura, also known as soul aura¡ªit attacks directly the spirit.


    ¡°Noyar, Noyar,¡± Jon called repeatedly. ¡°Come out of it.¡±


    ¡°Ah, yes,¡± Noyar came out of her contemtion, and Jon caught her in his embrace.


    He pushed against the stair floor and shot up and then to another staircase while she stayed limp in his chest.


    ¡°You¡¯d been hit with soul aura.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Jon groaned, ¡°I can guess that.¡±


    ¡°You know what that means?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Jon answered as they crossed another staircase and started running. ¡°It means we¡¯re dead if it hits us with the soul aura. But luckily for us, it didn¡¯t seem all too familiar with attacking with soul aura. The attack that hit me was more like a shield than a sword, meaning it was doing it instinctually, on self-preservation.¡±


    ¡°But if it learns to wield it like a sword, we¡¯re done.¡±


    Just then, the roar of the saint beast resounded throughout the stair maze.


    ¡°Oh, dear lord,¡± Noyar groaned and looked behind to find the beast. It was running around as if nothing had happened. Physical wounds were non-existent here, but Noyar still felt the pain in her chest, and yet, this beast which got prated to its neck several times was leaping off through the gravitational pulls.


    ¡°We have to hurry. Let¡¯s go.¡±


    Meanwhile, Oscar and Yeriel almost reached the ce he told them to go. However, it appears the Winterheart reindeer would beat them to the chase. It was leaping so fast that Jon couldn''t challenge that, even with his dominion.


    Their lives meant nothing to it if they didn''t stand in its way, but they couldn''t leave, could they?


    The beast came out just before their eyes to shoot for the staircase they were aiming for. Jon let her go and pushed against the beast, trying to push it off from its mark. The beast was flying from upside down to downwards, while they were at the right angle, pretty close to shoving it off its way.


    Unfortunately, right at the moment, the gravitational push was about to hit the beast. An abrupt outburst of spirit aura nullified everything and shot them away, shattering through the staircase like clear ss.


    They fell from there and were pulled by another staircase to lie upside down.


    The Winterheart Reindeer flew towards the other two.


    ______________


    Next Chapter: Dominion.


    Have any idea what this dominion would be about or what it should be called. I gave too many hints already.

 Chapter 110 56: Dominion (1)

    ?


    Q: What is the way to destroy a rift space?


    A: Destroying or separating the Matrix core¡ªwhich is also known as the Reality core in some twisted form of rifts¡ªis the way to destroy a rift space.


    - - -


    Oscar sighed in relief, finding an empty fountain in the mid-air above the floor they were rushing towards. It was the only singrity in this twisted maze of a rift.


    Yeriel eyed the floor, however. This floor was oddly simr to the one they fell first, though there was a hole with a halo of light in the middle of it. It should be the portal out, but what interested them more were the other things tossed around the floor.


    Oddly enough, they found four unconscious human bodies, and also a three-and-a-half-metre-long beast lying on the floor surrounding the floor, too. Coming closer, they found the heart was breathing, even though the faces looked quite dead.


    ¡°Oh, we finally found our bodies,¡± Oscar said as a smile appeared on his lips. ¡°What do you say, Yeriel, want to y with a different body now?¡± He chuckled. ¡°You have four options: an uptight male knight, a strong woman in herte twenties, or an infuriatingly handsome youth with red hair. What do you say?


    "Well, I can understand if you want to stay put with the one you¡¯re born with. It''s pretty hard to abandon such a gorgeous face, after all.¡±


    Yeriel only gave him an incredulous look.


    ¡°I¡¯m just kidding,¡± Oscar said, chucking and advancing towards his own body. ¡°Even if you want a different body, it''s not possible to--¡± Withoutpleting his sentence, he jumped off into his body and then the body started to squirm on the floor for a few seconds. Oscar¡¯s eyes opened properly as he stared at her. ¡°--take someone else''s body like this.¡±


    He stood up, stretching his limbs to ensure everything was working properly. ¡°This is the first time for me to experience this--¡± he paused as if remembering something¡ª ¡°you know why it''s impossible? Your soul, body, and mind share a unique link. For that link alone, it''s almost impossible to upy someone else¡¯s body.¡±


    Yeriel said nothing like before, remained spotted there with a t look. She hadn¡¯t even joined with her physical body yet. Perhaps having second thoughts, finding the antlers on her head.


    ¡°We¡¯ll find a way,¡± Oscar said to her. ¡°You literally have no idea what''s possible in this vast cosmic universe.¡±


    That was quite puzzling since a soul body¡¯s first instinct of finding the physical body was to jump back into it. It was almost instinctual, like breathing. Oddly, Yeriel fought it back for some time, until she found it was only futile. She finally threw herself into her physical form.


    Oscar smiled, looking at her, and then his eyes darted towards the middle of all things, where a small empty fountain stood with nothing else. He held his hands out towards it as if catching it in his palm. ¡°It almost took everything out of me to reach here.¡±


    Then he got back to what¡¯s essential. Without wasting any more breath, he held onto two of the front legs of the soulless saint beast and dragged it towards a specific staircase. he could kill the physical body of the beast easily now, but that won''t stop the problem, will it? As its soul-body should be still wandering around only some time away from reaching here.


    The weight of the saint beast was definitely something that he could barely drag with his C-grade strength.


    The fountain was almost a hundred metres in the air, in the middle of all the staircases surrounding it. That was the spot of zero gravity. Dragging such weight on his back would take more than just a couple of minutes to reach the level of the fountain on the staircase. Unfortunately, the reality was even grimmer than that.


    Oscar hadn¡¯t covered ten steps, but his breathing got twisted as steam-like vapour oozed out of his face and body. There was spiritual energy in the space, but no air to breathe in. Gritting his teeth, he moved further as the stream thrusters behind him worked to make his job easier.


    It took a few moments for Yeriel to understand what was going on. The floor she was standing on seemed to support all their physical needs, but the same was not true for the staircases. It was seriously mind-bending and excruciating.


    Oscar seriously couldn¡¯t fly with over a ton of weight on his back. He barely reached halfway there on the stairs when they heard the roar of a berserk beast.


    Oscar clicked his tongue. "You couldn''t weight a few more moments, could you?" he said, gritting his teeth.


    Yeriel¡¯s mind chills and the suffocating power inside her¡ªwhich emptied in half after all the usage¡ªtwisted and churned. She should have been gratified that half of it was already lost, but the other half that remained was enough to forget about that. She just wanted to waste all of it as soon as possible.


    She unconsciously drew the heinous power, looking for the beast.


    ¡°Yeriel,¡± Oscar shouted at her. He left the beast¡¯s body and flew upward on the staircase. ¡°Jump in the portal.¡±


    She didn¡¯t. Rather than withdrawing, she climbed the stairs, running to help Oscar.


    ¡°Yeriel, listen to me. There¡¯s no need to fight it.¡±


    The beast appeared in the next moment. Oscar looked at it for once and ignored it, and the beast did the same. However, it didn¡¯t do the same to Yeriel. It cried in a raging outburst, finding her as the staircase surrounding it got wrecked. Its eyes never left Yeriel as it went for its physical body first. Whatever was left of the beast was just on an instinctual level.


    Yeriel tried to stop it from reaching its physical body, but she failed to do that. It didn¡¯t take more than a moment for it to lurch out, roaring at her. The outburst of soul aura around it seemed to have decreased for some reason. Perhaps because it was in physical form. Yeriel didn¡¯t know enough to draw a conclusion.


    However, only with spiritual energy, the beast could do anything that she could barely stop.


    Oscar reached the same level as the fountain in the staircase. He turned his head to look at Yeriel, who engaged with the beast in the battle, and returned to the bowl-like fountain again. Letting out a breath, he was charged with fiery steam releasing from his back.


    The leap was about a dozen metres, and after he covered eight metres, the gravitational pull decreased enough for him to get a hold of the fountain. Oscar floated in zero gravity, and there was no air to breathe in.


    He grimaced again without knowing it. Hanging on the fountain, he found a vial of viscous liquid and an all-white fist-sized sphere. The sphere seemed to be glowing with odd sparks of light. There seemed to be viscous liquid inside it, though it was not transparent like the liquid in the vial, but entirely white. While the other vial was twice the size.


    Without waiting for one more breath, Oscar shattered the all-white vial with spirit force. In the next moment, an all-blinding white light surged through the Rift of Disorder.


    Oscar screamed as the white light dug through his soul, pouring in the unfamiliar power as if creating a link with something broad, something vast.


    The process was definitely excruciating, enough to make even the bravest of men pass out.


    A few seconds passed, and the blinding white light cleared, with the unconscious body of a red-haired youth handing in zero gravity.

 Chapter 111 56: Dominion (2)

    ?


    That awful taint of spiritual energy was running out, and Yeriel barely managed to stop the beast after taking quite a beating.


    After she reunited with her physical self, she was bleeding now. Not just from the wound she got from the beast, but by just drawing out more power than she was capable of.


    Other than that, one side of the antlers on her head had broken in thebat¡ªYeriel had no idea what to think about that. Her mind had grown numb of all since they were dug into her head, but she was getting her sanity back the more the awful possessive power was drawing out of her.


    Perhaps there was still hope for her to go back, as Oscar said it. Perhaps she would turn normal after she wasted all this energy. No, she wanted this power. This power makes her awesome. Nobody can get away with doing bad things to her ever again. She would kill them if they did, like that man she killed.


    "No,¡± Yeriel yelled, "this isn¡¯t me.¡¯ She felt sick drawing the heinous power, but she had no other option. She had to stop the beast. Oscar had lost consciousness of doing whatever he was trying to do. Nor were there any signs of Noyar and Jon. She had to hold on to it until they came back.


    She and the beast stood ten paces away, with their spiritual aura colliding with one another. No one wanted to lose out even an inch. This was how their battle went so far, though she was thrown away more than a couple of times already. Her body wasn''t healing like before, it was not that fast when she remembered she healed broken limbs in a span of a few seconds after the beast collided with her in the mountain.


    Still, she couldn''t run away.


    * * *


    Noyar groaned, sitting up in the debris. There was a big hole in the staircase from where they fell. Her head felt numb with a buzzing cacophony. Though the ce was strangely silent. Blinking a few times, she looked around, only to find Jon unconscious a few paces away.


    She carried the waste of a body towards him and tried to wake him up. Calling his name didn¡¯t work. She checked with her dominion eyes to find his aura had be even more disoriented, dposing within him. He got hit by the soul aura head-on. Luckily, it was only for an instant, so he managed to keep his life.


    Biting her lips, she provided him with some spiritual energy. A few secondster, his body lurched up abruptly, with his chest heaving high.


    ¡°What?¡± he asked immediately. ¡°What happened?¡± Then he looked around to remember exactly what had happened.


    With Noyar helping him, he was able to stand up, but the moment he tried to work on the dominion of gravity, he barely managed to lift himself up about half a metre.


    ¡°Jon,¡± Noyar called, seeing what was happening to Jon through her Dominion Vision. His soul aura, those thousands upon thousands of threads, untangled at a frightening pace the moment he started using Dominion. ¡°Stop that. You¡¯re killing yourself.¡±


    ¡°But the kids.¡± He didn¡¯t rest for a while, but after finding his push was not enough to traverse the staircases.


    ¡°Stop all that and think for a second,¡± Noyar said as she walked upwards or downwards, whatever it seemed hanging from upside down. ¡°Oscar said it would be almost impossible for us to get there if we¡¯re not together.¡±


    Almost Impossible, but not entirely. He also mentioned that her dominion might help her in the way at first.


    Without further ado, she proceeded to inspect the staircases again, even though it made her head feel giddy. The stairs were still like that, processing in aplicated yet uniform flow, but when her eyes darted towards the broken structure on ount of the Winterheart Reindeer. She finally saw something new in the broken hole.


    It was something like the case with Jon, though one was alive, and the other was an inanimate object. No, they were not just inanimate objects; they were created through some special means. She was just about to get something out of nowhere. A blind light assaulted her eyes. Noyar¡¯s first instinct was to close her eyes, but she kept them open. Even though the light was blindingly intense, she could see through it. More importantly, the light was giving her familiar pulses.


    Moreover, it appeared her gamble paid off, as she saw the whole rift space in that split second. She saw everything. This ce was not really that broad, only the weird staircase maze made it so. When the light hit, all the staircases cleared off her vision. She could finally see where they were meant to be.


    Yeriel fought the beast alone, barely a couple of hundreds of metres away; their bodies lying on the floor, and the hole was their way out. But where¡¯s Oscar?


    Before she could find more, the light cleared, and she started running.


    ¡°Noyar,¡± Jon called from behind. ¡°Where are you going?¡±


    ¡°You didn¡¯t see?¡± She asked, not stopping in her run, as if fearing she would forget the way. ¡°Come on, follow me.¡±


    * * *


    My head felt heavy as I became conscious. My body felt heavy and powerless. What the fuck happened? Linking with a dominion, didn¡¯t make you think weak as far as I¡¯m concerned.


    Stillying on whatever I was, I opened my eyes to find there was not much light in the surroundings, but that was not of my worries. I needed to check if I seeded or not.


    Closing my eyes, I tried to feel the power of the Dominion inside me. Yeah, there seemed to be something new inside, a link to a source of infinite power, though only a little of the infinite power was meant to be drawn by mortals. Without further ado, I reached for the power, and in the next moment, my body lurched up in the air.


    ¡°What the hell?¡± I uttered in sheer bewilderment. What I¡¯m supposed to get was the Dominion rted to astral projection, but . . . but . . . this is good old gravity.


    However, it seemed I¡¯m not too good at controlling the power of the dominion, as my body fell again on an uneven ce with my head hitting something rough and hard. I was too powerless to even cry as burning indignation filled my head. Like, what the fuck went wrong? Only the empire has the ess to the Dominion of Gravity, but . . .


    Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! After all the hard work. From getting beaten by that bloody Althan, then getting betrayed, sessfully beating a warlock, to getting chased by a godly beast, all that was quite a tall order. Most practitioners didn¡¯te across all this their whole lives, yet all that happened in the span of two nights. I guess I would just wait for others to find me then. I''m damn sleepy now. Nighty night, Aaron.


    Just as I was lost in thoughts, something flew toward me. It was a humanoid silhouette, with a dark cape behind him. Lame, who wore a cape these days? Batman, is that you? No, you can¡¯t be thisme.


    The figure slowed down and halted just before me. ¡°Mat, you¡¯re alive,¡± said theme man. His voice was not of worry, but of mad glee. ¡°Guess I¡¯ll have thestugh, after all. I¡¯m going to suck you dry, Mat, to yourst breath. Who would''ve thought you''d have to see this day? You should have agreed with my offer, but . . . Oh well, I guess you wouldn''t care after some minute.¡±


    Mat, who¡¯s that? Care to borate, Mr Lame Capeman with a weird fetish?


    I mean, really, what the fuck is happening now?


    ¡®Poor Aaron, you have no idea of anything, do you?¡¯


    ¡®Hey, who¡¯s that?¡¯ I tried to jerk to find, but there was no one other than theme cape man, who was still spouting bullshit.


    ¡®Remember Aaron, where were you before this?¡¯ The voice clearly does not belong to the cape man.


    ¡®Who are you?¡¯ I asked, getting paranoid. ¡®How do you know me?¡¯


    ¡®Poor Aaron,¡¯ said the voice in a sarcastic pitying tone, ¡®you¡¯re so beaten up that you don¡¯t even recognise my voice.¡¯


    ¡°After the fall of your god,¡± the cape man didn¡¯t stop in announcing his nonsense. ¡°We¡¯ll build an eternal kingdom of the night. I fear you won¡¯t be there to see it happen. You must know how heartbroken I am for that, Mat?¡±


    ¡®This dude needs serious mental help,'' said the voice in my head again, and I kind of agree with that. ¡®And so do you, Aaron.¡¯


    ¡°That¡¯s it. Who the fuck are you?¡± I yelled in my paranoia.


    ¡®That¡¯s not important, is it Aaron?¡¯ the voice continued. ¡®Remember where you were before. You know it, Aaron. Remember what¡¯s important. Wake up, Aaron. Yeriel needs you.¡¯


    ¡®Yeriel,¡¯ that name felt strangely familiar to me. Then things got a little clearer in my head. I remember all the stuff. I need to wake up. Yeriel, she didn¡¯t run away.


    I jerked my arms around my body to find something useful, and then my stomach convulsed when my palm fell on my chest. There was a soft mound of meat there. No fucking way!


    ¡°Not again!¡± I muttered as my stomach twisted at the revtion.


    ¡°Searching for your Weapon, Mit?¡± the cape man said withughter.


    So he was not all crazy, after all. But he was the least of my worries now.


    I stopped feeling the breast, which was strangely on my chest, and found a hand knife.


    ¡°Congrats, Mat,¡± the cape man said, pping his palms. ¡°You found yourself a weapon. What are you going to do with it?¡±


    ¡°Fuck off, fuckface,¡± I shouted at him and jerked the dagger into my neck without a single hesitation.


    I died.


    And then, I woke up.

 Chapter 112 56: Dominion (3)

    ?


    I died. Again!


    And it appeared I was dying for real now. Seriously, I would never get used to this feeling. And you know who else was dying with me? Yeriel. She was busy losing against the beast. I mean, it''s a miracle she managed to keep her life so far.


    Waking up, I found myself hanging on zero air with my body going pretty blue with theck of air. The veins on my forehead popped as I likely unconsciously breathed spiritual energy instead of air on theck of it.


    That¡¯s seriously problematic, but let''s worry about thatter. Now let''s test out the Dominion, but first I¡¯ll take some eyedrops. Opening the other vial that I got here, I poured out a single drop of the translucent viscous water into my eyes, using my spiritual energy to pour it out. No more than a drop for each eye.


    If you ask me what this eyedrop does, I¡¯ll say it makes your eyes burn in the short term and in the long term it makes it more magical. It lets you see ghosts and many other things. A couple of drops of Moon water to see ghosts and other stuff. Some might call it a waste, but I would call it an investment for the future. Also, it nourishes the soul-body too, though I went for the eye route for now.


    Even though the Moon water couldn¡¯t make my eyes like Dominion of Seer, it''s pretty cool. As the burning cleared a little, my cognitive abilities rose to new heights. I think my perception would reach Grade - A in a week or two, but more importantly, now let''s end my business here.


    Yeah, let''s destroy this ce. Now that I take what I need, what''s the point of leaving it here? Other than the two treasures I already took, there was another priceless treasure here.


    I looked at the empty fountain and tilted my eyes. My eyes glowed red and the burning feeling returned as another silvery glow appeared around my pupil. I¡¯m not entirely prepared for this, but oh well, I haven¡¯t prepared to fight a saint beast, either, nor a warlock for all that matter.


    The fountain burst open the next moment and disintegrated into pure spiritual energy. In the middle of all things, I found the Reality core, which was keeping this ce intact for who knows how many centuries.


    Reality cores are like the magical thing that makes weird ces like this true. Without a Reality core to stabilise the ce, the realm would crumble in a matter of seconds. Well, everything is done, so I¡¯m going to destroy this ce. Hope the owner didn¡¯t be angry with this. I mean, creating a whole rift space with justplexity, with the power of dominion and other things, probably took a lot of time.


    Please, Lord Hero, I¡¯m not just being greedy, this is really necessary. I said inwardly, moving my arm carefully towards the true white reality core.


    ¡®Oh well, future hero,¡¯ also me, mimicking an aged voice in my head. ¡®You can take it. I left it for you to take it, after all.¡¯


    Well, if you say it like that. It makes me feel guilty. I really am a bit greedy. A reality core, who wouldn¡¯t get greedy? Anyway, thank you, Lord Hero. I''ll be eternally grateful to you.


    I caught the reality core and put it into my pocket with the Moonwater. Three priceless things in a single ce. I guess all that was done was not for nothing.


    Now it''s time to get out of the ce.


    * * *


    Meanwhile, things were getting quite rough for Yeriel.


    Veins popped out of her arms and blood oozed out, spraying the floor as Yeriel was flung away, the power inside her leaving out. She hit her head first on a staircase and almost lost it.


    The beast roared, finally getting what it wanted. Yeriel looked at it pitifully, blood and tearsing out of her eyes. She would lose her life soon enough. Her only constion was that they managed to save the city.


    The winterheart reindeer crept towards her on the staircase. Yeriel stared at her, unmoving. She was just too damn tired to move out of the way. She would just let the beast take her life. At least that could make her calm.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for your loss,¡± she said, and the beast stopped for a second.


    Did she listen to her and forgive her?


    The next moment, her misconception cleared as she heard the beast scream and then it moved back, but it didn¡¯t move at all.


    The stair steps, they moved backwards on their way, moving away taking the beast with them. Oscar flew up from somewhere. He looked quite bad, like a zombie with blue veins all over his face. He flew with the help of the suit and joined her.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± he said, wheezing. ¡°I didn¡¯t know it would take this long.¡±


    Yeriel didn¡¯t know what to say other than thank you, but the scream and outburst of the saint beast stopped her. The beast leapt off the stairs toe at them again. Oscar looked at it again, tilting his head. The ring of white light in his eyes pulsed through more than the staircase moved back further. Though it was not a permanent solution, it could buy a couple of seconds or more.


    ¡°Well, it''s time to leave,¡± he said and looked towards finding the unconscious body. ¡°They haven¡¯t returned yet. This ce is about to copse.¡± He rubbed his forehead and looked around. His eyes were as if they were looking through all the things here and found what he wanted to see. ¡°Oh, they areing. Yeriel, go near the portal. Get ready to jump.¡±


    ¡°Where are you going?¡± she asked.


    He smiled, perhaps at her question or just finding her talking again. ¡°I¡¯m going to make sure it stays right here after we escape.¡±


    Is that really necessary? She wanted to ask that, but she couldn''t. Even though the beast was wronged, they couldn''t let it rampage. In the end, it''s the sacrifice of one saint beast for thousands of lives.


    Yeriel moved near the bodies and cried, watching the battle.


    ______________


    There has been an inconsistency about the not having air to breathe. I''ll fix that in ater edit. Sorry about that.


    Join PA TREON to enjoy the story at a lower price. Thanks.

 Chapter 113 56: Dominion (4)

    ?


    ¡°This is,¡± Noyar muttered as she came running, ¡°this is the exact opposite side of the same floor we were dropped on first.¡±


    That kind of got on her nerves. After so much trouble and hardship, they had toe back to the other side of the same ce. Grunting, she looked around the shifting staircases. It appears they won¡¯tst very long. The ce was copsing.


    Oscar was battling the beast now, and by battling, she meant buying time. It appeared he somehow gained some control over space. He was throwing away the beast effortlessly, using the staircase it was standing on. Coupling with the floor still having gravity, the beast wasn¡¯t having any fun time.


    No matter how much distance the beast covered, Oscar manipted the space to throw it at the starting point.


    ¡°Our bodies,¡± Jon shouted, beside her. Noyar looked and found two unconscious bodies and an almost half-dead girl next to them. Without further ado, they ran to reunite with their physical self.


    Even though she never did it, she somehow instinctively knew what she had to do. She came before her body and jumped into it. It was like she was jumping into a pool, a pool only belongs to her. A couple of secondster, she was back into her physical self.


    She was about to sigh in relief when rattling pain and an implying headache assaulted her abruptly, convulsing her body from getting up. She guessed she was not really all that alright. Gritting her teeth, she looked toward Jon to find his situation was terribly serious.


    As if Jon wasn¡¯t injured enough, but now scars of cuts appear all over his body as if he went through thousands of sword moves undefended. That was not all. His veins broke, tearing the skin to spray blood into the air. If this goes on for even two minutes, there won¡¯t be much of him left behind.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± she questioned and found Yeriel, who should be a healer, looking at the scene with horrifying bewilderment in her eyes. Horrifying because of the sheer amount of injuries, and as for the bewilderment, she has seen nothing like this before.


    ¡°Let me see,¡± the Endus woman said, sitting back at him, even though she was just in a terrible state, though her state was the exact opposite of Jon. She was somehow healing at a frightening pace that was not right. Other than the broken antlers on her forehead, almost all things were healing up.


    Yeriel stabilised Jon¡¯s condition first. She didn¡¯t let any more blood out of the body, patched up everything from outside, creatingplicated magic circles, and then came the time of healing. However, the moment she tried to heal, her face darkened.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± Oscar jumped out of nowhere. He looked terrible, but more himself than anyone else.


    ¡°My healing,¡± Yeriel said with terror in her tone. ¡°I can¡¯t heal.¡±


    Oscar frowned, but there was another time to worry about thatter. Now Jon needs immediate help. He stooped low to touch Jon¡¯s body. ¡°He took soul injuries,¡± he said, letting out a breath, ¡°and now his body is reflecting those injuries. At this rate . . .¡± he trailed off to look towards Noyar. It appeared she had taken some hits too, but nothing serious like Jon on the verge of dying.


    The beast was roaring behind and approaching them through the falling staircases. Oscar took a look behind him and a soothing whitish me kindled around his palm.


    ¡°Is he going to,¡± Noyar¡¯s stomach convulsed just to ask the question, ¡°live?¡±


    ¡°If it was a minute before, I wouldn¡¯t have any way to deal with this,¡± he said, and stopped providing healing mes to the physical body, though the soothing me remained around him. ¡°But now, I might be able to fix him and I have something that would make him better than he was before.¡±


    He sped his fingers on the good arm and hit Jon on the forehead. Noyar didn¡¯t know what he was doing, but she found a white glow of aura around his palm, linking himself to Jon. Somehow, Noyar knew what that was. It was of the same aura as the blinding light, and now she found out why she felt familiar with it.


    ¡°A dominion,¡± she muttered with confusion in her eyes.


    ¡°Keen eyes,¡± Oscar said and dug something out of Jon¡¯s forehead. It was actually Jon¡¯s soul body, which was warping and convulsing, reducing at every moment.


    Yeriel and Noyar¡¯s eyes widened at the scene before them. Oscar appeared as if a different person.


    "A dominion of an unknown kind," Noyar muttered and examined what Oscar was doing.


    The whitish aura from Oscar¡¯s hand enveloped the soul body entirely, but it didn''t fix Jon or heal him. It slowed down the chaos in the soul body, but it would only slow down the process of deterioration.


    ¡°You know our predecessor had different names for this dominion,¡± Oscar said as he brought a small vial out of his belongings. He poured carefully only a single drop of liquid on Jon¡¯s soul body. ¡°Ages ago, they called it Dominion of Bnce or Order, because it helps in keeping the bnce between maternal, spiritual, dream and whatever other realms out there, centuries after that, they call it Dominion of Shift, as its main function is reduced to shift realms. Some called Dominion of Dimension. I guess that name was not all that bad, but it didn¡¯t do it justice.¡±


    He stood up and turned towards the beast, going round and round on the staircase, trying to break through everything. Well, it is the pace of the space was deteriorating; it didn¡¯t even need to break to be freed. Even with advanced cognitive abilities, it was impossible for Oscar to keep such aplex ce intact. He sure even a grand magus wouldn''t be of much help here, even if he was an expert in this.


    This ce was likely built by a Hero, and they were divinity at their peak. How can mere mortalspare to their abilities?


    ¡°It''s time to leave,¡± he said. ¡°Jump right now.¡±


    Yeriel gestured for Noyar to carry Jon out first. Even though his soul body was healing and looking all good with his physical injuries healing, he was still unconscious.


    Noyar nodded and carried Jon to jump into the portal.


    Yeriel waited there, looking at Oscar, stopping the beast from reaching there.


    ¡°Yeriel, jump,¡± he shouted, ¡°I¡¯m following right after.¡±


    "What about you?" Yeriel listened, standing just next to the portal.


    "I need to make sure it stays here until the ce copses."


    She jumped into the portal, biting her lips, while Oscar brought out thest piece of firestoneponents.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± he said, ¡°it''s nothing personal.¡± He knew none of the two parties were at fault. A saint beast was born and gained strength out of people¡¯s beliefs. A winter heart reindeer remains to protect the order of nature, but now he had to trap it here.


    Oscar pushed for thest time, as the remaining stairs twisted to trap the beast in an ever-twisting sphere, as it roared to break free. Lastly, he threw the firestone, providing enough energy that it would st. It would take him a couple of seconds to close off the portal before it copses on its own. He couldn¡¯t leave any chances out for the beast to get out after all.


    As the bombardment burst behind him, Oscar ran into the portal as the rift copsed behind him.


    _________


    Yeah, it''s oveeeerrrrr.

 Chapter 114 56: Dominion (5)

    ?


    I was too tired to worry about the chilly water, but my heart was racing at the speed of sound. I found Yeriel was just a few metres away, swimming up, and the same was true for the other two. Magically speaking, if it was before I wouldn¡¯t be able to see even past Yeriel who was barely ten paces away, much less the others.


    But after I took the Moonwater, the world changed. Or it was me who changed. Anyway, I have a new perspective of the world now. The moment I got out of the rift, I could feel the maternal world better. I could feel the spiritual sparks around me and delve further into my own power. There still seem to be some restrictions in ce that I couldn''t break free, only could barely feel with the power of dominion.


    Anyway, that''s not important now. All the problems were solved. Finally, I can rest.


    After climbing up to the surface of the water, I found the othersying half-dead on the cold earth. Well, I did the same just beside them, gasping.


    ¡°I . . . We saved a city,¡± I muttered. That earned a celebration, right?


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Noyar added. ¡°We definitely did it.¡±


    I was about to check everyone else, but then the ground shook, and I gulped, remembering that this cavern would copse with the rift space soon.


    ¡°Crap!¡± swore the Victorian woman. ¡°Ayaan curse us. What¡¯s now?¡± Even though she was swearing and felt the disturbance, she hadn¡¯t moved even a little.


    ¡°We should get out of here,¡± I said as the creaking noise increased. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    I tried to manoeuvre the suit to shoot out, but it was malfunctioning again, or perhaps there was not much fuel left. Well, I wouldn¡¯t be even surprised if all the stream thrusters melted away. I wasn''t in my right mind to protect them, after all, while also doing other crazy things. In the end, I had to use my two legs and carry my heavy body out of there. The others followed, but I found Yeriel, standing lost beside the pool as its surface undting.


    ¡°Yeriel?¡± I called.


    She just stood there as the stony walls and ceilings crumbled. I groaned and ran next to her. I nudged her strongly on the shoulder, only to see her drawing her arms towards the pool.


    Furthermore, I looked around to find some sparks of light glittering out of the undting water. A frown appeared on my brows as the light brightened to form a silvery silhouette of a Winterheart Reindeer as it flew towards us. Towards Yeriel, to be specific.


    My first reaction was to draw my sword, but Yeriel sped my fingers as the beast image stood before her. Yeriel drew her palm closer to its head and touched it. The beast cried and flew past us towards the exit. Its legs are getting blurry.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Yeriel said as she chased after the silvery silhouette.


    We exited after the blurry silhouette as it danced in the air. Noyar stopped with Jon''s unconscious body, leaning against her as she peered at the figure. The beast''s figure was turning to mist, getting bleak in the cloudy night. The clouds were clearing in the sky, and the glow of the moons could be seen through them. It climbed far into the air, dissolving, slowly reaching for the moons.


    I found Yeriel tearing, staring at the silhouette, but then something magical happened yet again. The broken antlers on top of her head. They turned to mist as well, drawn by the silvery figure to disappear into the night. That left Yeriel more humane than she had not been for some time. I''m sure she liked that more.


    ¡°Yeriel,¡± I called, and she cried harder.


    After several seconds, nothing was left of it.


    ¡°Did it,¡± Noyar asked hesitantly, ¡°die?¡±


    I shook my head ufortably. You can call it death if you want, however.


    Then the cavern copsed in whole, the entrance closing off to create a crater.


    ¡°It''s over,¡± I mumbled and sat down. ¡°How¡¯s Jon?¡±


    The uptight Knight was still unconscious, but I found a halo of light surrounding his body. Spiritual power undting around his body. Noyar sat down with the unconscious Jon on herp. Yeriel was thest one to sit. She was still watching the night sky.


    ¡°Better,¡± Noyar said. Her eyes glowed to see the changes as well. ¡°I¡¯m not sure what to call it, though. You can see it, right?¡±


    I nodded. ¡°His physical wounds would need further care,¡± I said. My dominion is still running. I haven¡¯t figured out how to close it yet, though I could tell it was running on standby, most likely. ¡°As for the spirit, I think he¡¯ll be better than before. He might be able to integrate his second Dominion easily after this.¡±


    Jon¡¯s situation could be called fortune from misfortune.


    ¡°What did you give to him back then?¡±


    ¡°A precious thing. I think you have dibs on a couple of drops in it as well,¡± I said, and brought out the small vial. ¡°Moon water. It¡¯s solidifying his soul body, strengthening it to the core. The next time he woke up, he would be much more powerful and probably could handle soul attack better.¡±


    Noyar swallowed a breath. ¡°Where are you getting so many precious things off?¡±


    I smiled while holding the vial. There were still fifteen drops left in it, and it would be useful to a few people. But both Yeriel, Noyar, and even my aunt deserve them after what they had been through.


    ¡°Anyway,¡± I said to Noyar. ¡°Do you want it now? Or perhaps after we get out of here.¡±


    Noyar shook her head. ¡°It would be a waste to use on myself,¡± she said. ¡°A Magus would go crazy if they even get a drop of it. Where I as a knight, it''s not much of a use.¡±


    I snorted. ¡°Do you know about the second awakening of Dominion?¡±


    Noyar raised an eyebrow. "You mean? Can it?"


    ¡°Noyar, how would you feel about seeing the future?¡±


    Noyar¡¯s eyes beamed with excitement, though she still seemed to have some second thoughts about taking it.


    ¡°Alright, two drops for you after we get out,¡± I said and then turned towards Yeriel, who was silent with her arms wrapped around her knees, looking down. I sighed without knowing.


    ¡°On the topic of Dominion,¡± Noyar said. ¡°You have an entirely new path of Dominion. Dominion of Shift or something you call it before.¡±


    ¡°That name doesn¡¯t do justice to it,¡± I said. ¡°Thankfully, I have a better name in mind. What do you think about Dominion of Disorder? Sounds cool, right?¡±


    ¡°It does, but didn''t you mention, it was a power that kept the bnce between realms or something?¡±


    ¡°So what?¡± I snorted. ¡°I¡¯m the owner of it, and I¡¯ll name it myself and besides, it''s not like the first time, someone named a Dominion the opposite it was used for.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°Dominion of Gravity, yet all the time it was used to nullify gravity.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s some weird reasoning, but I¡¯m d you gained something out of this disaster.¡±


    Oh Noyar, you have no idea what I gained. I was about to say that to her, but stopped looking at Yeriel. It''s not all about gaining. What Yeriel went through couldn¡¯t be undone. The people that died and crippled . . .


    ¡°Anyway, Noyar, I would be grateful if you keep silent about this Dominion until I announce it.¡±


    Noyar gave me a look and nodded.


    After two hellish nights, the disaster finally ended.


    ¡°Hey look up.¡±


    The clouds cleared in the sky and the star-filled sky unveiled itself with five moons together sharing the same sky. Two of them were full moons, and the other three were halves, but the sky looked strikingly beautiful with them.


    I don''t know when, but watching the sky I fell asleep, and I''m sure it''s not only me.


    * * *


    ¡°Wake up, wake up. It''s time to leave.¡±


    I groaned at the call, throwing away the palm and rubbing my cheek.


    ¡°Come on, Scar,¡± the voice called again.


    ¡°Five more minutes, Mum.¡±


    The palm on my cheek withdrew, and the voice didn¡¯t call again, but I felt the coldness on my back reducing as someone lifted my body in a warm embrace. I didn¡¯t feel much difort and went back to sleep again.


    The next time I woke up, it was already dawn. The sun rays cast through the window ss, enlightening the small room.


    ¡°You¡¯re awake,¡± a voice said.


    I blinked a couple of times, shading my eyes with my finger to find Shailyn sitting on a chair across from the small bed.


    ¡°Aunt,¡± I called and sat leaning against the hardwood. I found my left arm hanging on my chest, already stered while not wearing the false-ward with medicine applied all over my body, especially on my back. I swirled my spiritual power to refresh myself. ¡°How long was I asleep?¡±


    ¡°Not long enough,¡± she said and came near the bed to sit next to me. ¡°With your condition, I rmend you sleep all day. Your broken arm would¡¯ve healed within a week, but it would take more time now as you haven¡¯t left it rested all that much. I can¡¯t me you there. For a normal person, it would have taken months, but your friend seemed hopeful about you. As for other wounds, look at them yourself.¡±


    I did look at my chest. With brown ointment added to them, I couldn¡¯t see the condition, but I¡¯m sure I was burned well. Well, they would heal sooner than the arm, though leave scars for a month or two.


    I can only hope I¡¯ll be stronger next time.


    ______________________


    Well, next is the epilogue. That will wrap up the things for this volume.


    Join my PA TREON to read all the chapters including the advance ones and help the work directly.

 Chapter 115 Epilogue (1)

    ?


    William walked. Free. Unchained.


    Much of the night remained, but not much of the storm remained. The snow storm was still going with the strong cold wind blowing, though it wouldn''tst for long. The beast''s cries had stopped a few moments ago, giving him much freedom to move in the mountain. Winds curled against his body as if missing him with the wisps of waves surrounding his body. He was fully free, including his channels, to do whatever he wanted with his power.


    William still walked carefully, as if searching for something on the way. No, he was definitely not worried about those righteous fools toe in his way. Well, maybe a little, but he didn¡¯t care about it much now. Considering they would be worried about better things, it made his job easier.


    He found the corpse of his uncle a few minutes ago, lifeless and cold, and felt nothing. He found his father''s apprentice too, unconscious in the cold, but he didn''t care much for them.


    What he wanted to do was find his father and have a talk right at this moment. Maybe for thest time, or maybe not with the man called Rojar Iker, but it would definitely be hisst talk to the man he called father. It would not be wrong to say William was looking forward to it.


    He had already decided what to do with it him, but he wanted to see what kind of emotion wash through him when he do it. Well, it would depend on what kind of mood he would have when they talk. Would he change his mind? Unlikely, he wanted much to learn what he thinks of his father. What ce was he in his mind?


    A few minutester, William got what he wanted.


    He stooped next to the half-naked figure on the snow, half-burned, chained, broken and unconscious. There were multiple burnings that seemed to havee from different spells. He presumed the charred skin on the chest from a lightning spell, Shailyn''s speciality that she rarely uses until she is on the back foot. But others felt familiar to him, much like the burn in his arms. He raised an eyebrow. Some of the residual energy left in his body rendered his natural healing process of spiritual energy useless.


    William provided some amount of energy and warmed the body for it to get conscious. When the body shook, he finally greeted. ¡°Hello, Father.¡±


    The half-naked, chained body shook and squirmed to open his eyes. Rojar Iker barely had any of the glorious and frightening air around him that he always showcased to intimidate his minions, and even his close ones. He looked more human than William ever remembered, ever seen. His eyes narrowed as his father opened his eyelids.


    William¡¯s face lost all emotion, waiting for his father to recognise him and figure things out.


    ¡°William?¡± Rojar Iker called, his lips white with snow shaking.


    ¡°Ah, you must be wondering how I¡¯m here,¡± William said, a smile crossing his lips. ¡°That¡¯s the difference between us, father. You n the whole task first and then work around it to prepare the escape n. It wouldn¡¯t be wrong to say that your escape mostly depends on the sess of your task. While I, I prepare the escape n first.¡± he paused for a moment. ¡°You might¡¯ve said I always think of the failure of my n first, which doesn¡¯t really go well with your arrogance. But look whose n is paying off now?


    ¡°You finally hit an iron barrel, huh?¡±


    ¡°William,¡± his father repeated his name again. William was unsure if he understood what he said. ¡°William, you came at the right time. Free me. We have to go find that girl. I have seeded. All my hard work pa--¡±


    ¡°I almost felt sorry for you,¡± William cut him short, but still the smile lingered on his lips. ¡°But get this straight. Nothing you worked for so long, nothing of it left behind. The girl you mentioned is probably under the protection of more than a couple ofpetent magi and a lot of knights. Maybe her majesty will be there too in a while. Even at your peak, father¡ªwhich you''re definitely not now¡ªI¡¯m afraid you¡¯re notpetent enough to do any damage to her.¡±


    Williamughed. ¡°More importantly, you should be worried about how you leave this ce. Most of the people here on the Mountain were too heavily injured or too tired to take you, but they would being soon enough. I don¡¯t know, father, I¡¯m almost looking forward to how you escape. Perhaps, Father, you¡¯d show again why you¡¯re the father while I¡¯m just a helpless child.¡±


    ¡°William, William . . . We must get away,¡± he said. ¡°We must escape and regroup with--¡±


    ¡°Regroup?¡± William chuckled. ¡°I don¡¯t know if you have heard, but there¡¯s not much of a group left behind. Your apprentice Kiea had betrayed you, well, but if you¡¯re sure to regroup with her, all you have to do is crawl in that direction for an hour or more and when you find her. You might as well find Uncle Sirius¡¯s corpse there, who, as a matter of fact, betrayed you as well. That left only Rial. Thankfully, the fool takes the code of honour too seriously to even consider betraying. I wish you good luck finding him.¡±


    William stood up and brought out a small bottle of alcohol. He stared at it for a moment and sighed.


    ¡°William,¡± Rojar Iker groaned. ¡°You must take me with you. I¡¯m your father. I gave birth to you. You¡¯re my blood.¡±


    ¡°Come on, father. Don¡¯t get sentimental over a few drops of semen you wasted on a whorehouse. It''s beneath you.¡±


    ¡°William, don¡¯t leave. You¡¯re my blood. I taught you everything I know. You¡¯re my legacy.¡±


    William sighed without knowing. All theughter and smiles vanished from his lips at that very moment. ¡°I¡¯ll give you a chance,¡± he said, crouching down face to face with him. ¡°Your only chance. Father, do you remember how you started my training? Like you stranded me on one side of the ind with your other offspring, asking us to cross it within a specific time. We will do it the exact way. Well, I can¡¯t give you an ind,petition, or the amount of time you have given me, but the distance is a lot less, wouldn¡¯t you say? And you also know the secret passage.¡±


    He stood up again and tossed the bottle of wine before his father. ¡°I¡¯ll wait till the sunrise, at the foot of the mountain. You know the way.¡±


    ¡°William, don¡¯t do this. I¡¯m your father.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s much for you to learn from me. Turn back, take me with you. I can teach you more.¡±


    William, however, ignored all that and strode away through the snowynd.


    * * *


    Hours passed. William sat closed-eyed, almost in a meditative pose above a log of a huge tree, quite the opposite side of Victoria. He hadn¡¯t moved much sinceing here, and that was hours ago.


    Scenes of childhood ying inside his head. Scenes of how he survived alone in a wild jungle full of threats. He felt so aplished after he seeded and got praised by his father at that time.


    These scenes ying inside his head only made him more perplexed, but he remained silent and cold. He felt nothing of the past now. He left that behind when he tossed that bottle of wine at his living father. In Khasi heritage, it''s a tradition for the firstborn to offer his or her father alcohol upon death. Well, William might not be the firstborn¡ªthough unlikely anyone from his elder half-brother or sister alive or know about this man is their father¡ªnor was he dead, but the message was clear.


    Even if Rojar Iker managed toe here, or get away somewhere, somehow, he would save him, but that person wouldn¡¯t be his father.


    As the first rays of sun hit his eyelids as he opened them, he heard someoneing from behind.


    ¡°You¡¯re here,¡± he said and turned.


    ¡°Oh dear, you look awful,¡± said the neer. A youngdy in white winter clothing with a reddish glow on her fair skin. She had a perfect heart-shaped face, and full rosy lips that anyone would want to suck the living breath out of irrespective of gender. Her obsidian-coloured hair was let loose on her back and shoulders as her purple misty eyes stared at William as if watching her new toy. ¡°I presume you have failed.¡±


    William said nothing and withdrew from eye contact. Even for someone who has a stronger mental fortitude and ys with others'' minds, he felt intoxicated just by the look of her. The way she looked at him, the way she bit her lips as if wanting her¡ªthis was all too dangerous for her. Especially in his current state, where he was very exhausted and his mind perplexed¡ªthat sounds like a recipe to be eaten by a woman like her.


    ¡°You¡¯re still no fun, Will, dear,¡± the breathtakingly beautifuldy said. ¡°There¡¯s so much disturbance on the mountainst night. Care to exin where you went wrong?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s forter to discuss, Prisci,¡± William said, and wrapped his cloak around himself, wearing the hood on his head. ¡°I presume you won¡¯t get me out of here for nothing?¡±


    ¡°Oh dear Will, that¡¯s hurtful,¡± Prisci said, her mouth held in a pout that was too cute for most men to handle. ¡°Here I came in such bad weather, from such a long way and--¡±


    ¡°I found you a new toy for you,¡± William cut to the chase. ¡°He will be a great help to all the things you do and want to do.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m listening. . . .¡±


    William strode away from there with the first rays of sunlight along with her. He left behind his past there in the mountain without giving a second look.

 Chapter 116 Epilogue (2)

    ?


    After a couple of days passed, and much to my appreciation, I stopped feeling pain, sitting, sleeping, walking, or even doing anything.


    ¡°Yeriel,¡± I said, ¡°I think it''s enough.¡± I tried to move up from the seat, but a firm hand held me to the seat.


    ¡°Don¡¯t even think about moving a muscle,¡± Yeriel said. The arm was stronger than anything you would expect from a woman who did nothing more than meditation and yoga. I even wondered if she noticed that.


    "Fine,¡± I said instead. ¡°Do it faster. I''ve got somece to be.¡±


    I grunted, but didn¡¯t remind her of the changes in her body. The other power had left her body after she used all of it, but the ritual did something more to her body and soul. That won¡¯t go away just by spending the energy. Magically speaking, the other power tainted her soul, broadening it to a higher degree so that if Yeriel tried enough and wanted enough, she could be a Grand Magus in no time.


    By no time, I meant about a couple of years at least. Unfortunately, I don¡¯t think she had any intention of taking the power, especially when it has taken away something precious from her. The most precious thing she worked so hard for.


    Yes, after the incident, Yeriel found she was incapable of providing her spiritual energy as a price for healing. Well, she could still patch up wounds in them with spells, but they were not healing in any way. It was just a faster and more convenient process of what a surgeon could do with his instruments.


    So, simply, Yeriel couldn¡¯t restore wounds or injuries that she used to do, like to do, live and breathe to do.


    I kind of felt like I failed her as her warm palm touched my back, adding ointment. Yeriel worked in slow and soothing motion as if afraid to hurt me, which was not really a problem. Most of the pain went away after the first day, mostly.


    ¡°Yeriel,¡± I called hesitatingly. ¡°How are you feeling?¡±


    ¡°Better.¡± Her answer was one word. After all that went on, she didn¡¯t talk as much as she used to, more so on this topic. Most of the time, she got herself busy with work so that she didn¡¯t have to think about it.


    I guess denial is a way, but it''s only for the short term. After that came the other four stages: bargaining, anger, depression, and eptance. I don''t know if Yeriel coulde to thest step in her life, nor could she skip them as I do. Healing meant all the life to her.


    ¡°I¡¯ve talked to Jon, Noyar and my aunt,¡± I intoned. ¡°They won¡¯t report about this.¡± At least not so soon. But big issues like these need to be reported at some point if something goes wrong.


    As far as I¡¯m concerned, Noyar and Shailyn won¡¯t be a problem. They were more emotional people, passionate individuals. They feel they failed this poor girl, and so they would keep their silence on the dark ritual part for the time being until something goes wrong with Yeriel.


    The concern was about Jon. The thing with Jon Al¡¯born II was that he was too righteous for his own and sometimes everyone else¡¯s good. That fool would do the right thing even when his head was on the line¡ªI expected nothing less from him. Fortunately enough, he was not there when the dark ritual took ce.


    Even though he had seen those unnatural antlers on Yeriel''s head, he saw them vanishing into mists. So with a little more effective talking and a little ckmailing, saying how I saved his life, I managed to shut him up. Well, let¡¯s not call it ckmailing, that makes me a bad person for no reason at all. Let¡¯s just say I had leverage over him and used it effectively.


    Sometimes it''s just too easy to fool uptight, righteous people when they think you¡¯re the same.


    Anyway, the problem with the ritual on Yeriel was solved for now. Nobody would question her excessively about it, with just regr inquiries from the warder, the Victorian justice department and the academy. I guess she deserved peacetime.


    However, Yeriel didn¡¯t seem to care much about that as she only answered with a slow ¡°Mmm.¡±


    She moved in front of me and without looking into my eyes, especially overlooking them, she added the ointment. The front side was not that even burned, providing most of the steam thrusters were in the backs and on the limbs. But Yeriel worked like it was the most delicate of all things.


    After doing my chest, she moved to my right arm¡ªthe only arm without bandages.


    ¡°The medicines were doing fine,¡± I said. ¡°A few more weeks and they wouldn¡¯t even be a scar.¡±


    For a spiritual practitioner, most skin injuries were of slight consequences. After some time, they all heal and even the scars vanish over time. Though that would only be limited to the degree of the wound. Yes, I have burned my skin well, but there won¡¯t be a mark in a couple of months, I¡¯m sure of that.


    That reminded me of another scar. Unconsciously, I drew my arms from Yeriel as she almost finished and touched the scar on my forehead.


    My eyelids closed instantly, and a couple of images shed in my head in an instant too fast to make anything for most people, but I was not like most people. Ground dried with blood and then a woman, pale sword gutted to her chest, blood oozing out all over her side and . . . on my arms.


    Electricity chilled my mind, and I came out, gasping for breath.


    Yeriel touched my arm and shot me a worried look.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± I said and stood up. I spent a little energy drying up the ointment on my body before sliding on a shirt and then wrapping a shawl around my upper body to move out.


    * * *


    Yeriel didn¡¯t follow me to the warder¡¯s office. I walked in slow strides, watching the scenery in the surroundings. The sunset in about half an hour as the sky was drawn in a golden yellow glow. I halted on the bridge over the unfrozen river, Ikami, and looked to her source.


    The mountain was covered in white, only slightly greener as it went down. Just two days ago, I . . . we was running around on the snow like a bunch of crazy people while the city people slept in peace, mostly. Well, I could understand everyone¡¯s pain.


    Drawing a sigh, I moved towards the main warder¡¯s office of Victoria. A bunch of familiar faces greeted me on the way, most of them were there when everything was solved. Nodding to them, I went inside to find Noyar sitting in her office, reading files with her utmost attention.


    I knocked on the open door as she lifted her head. ¡°Come in.¡±


    ¡°Shailyn¡¯s not here?¡± I asked.


    Noyar shook her head. ¡°An arbiter had much to worry about after a job is done.¡±


    I nodded and got closer to take a seat. My aunt, Shailyn was in charge of this department. No, she was not employed by the Royal family of Victoria, or the empire, but the Starlight Academy, the Order of the Magi, to be exact.


    Other than taking care of warlocks and their schemes, and all sorts of twisted matters, she has to work as the mediator between the many forces. Oh dear, that must be exhausting.


    ¡°What you¡¯re reading?¡± I asked.


    Noyar answered by pushing the files to me. It was filled with the full report of the whole incident. My eyes moved from page to page before I rested the files.


    ¡°No news on William¡¯s trails?¡± I asked.


    Noyar shook her head. ¡°We have men employed every route where he could get away, but so far we have found no trails.¡±


    On that matter, no, we haven¡¯t got all the pieces of the puzzle together. One piece was still missing, which could be turned out as a pain in the ass in the long run. We have captured Rojar Iker, who was the mastermind of this event. We captured Rial, a rogue Ruthalynian knight, and Kiea, the warlock¡¯s apprentice.


    That actually came with quite a surprise after I figured out the piece. In the book, the leader of Dark Dear wasn¡¯t supposed to be Rojar Iker, but a woman. And after I read her statement, I figured out it was she, who was supposed to be in charge of everything.


    It was her. who was supposed to be in ce of Yeriel in the middle of the ritual. Zashin burn her, Just thinking about it makes me sure that it could be worse if it was her in ce of Yeriel.


    I think it was only because it''s Yeriel that she didn¡¯t use that power to do whatever she wanted.


    So the conclusion: The Warlock''s apprentice was the medium in the ritual, she got the power instead Yeriel in the original storyline and used it to kill her master, took control of the organisation, and she came a yearter again to harness that power again and got mugged by Edward.


    That¡¯s the only conclusion I coulde up with, considering how Yeriel came with the same antlers on her head and then the reindeer freed her from it. Luckily, this time around the warlock¡¯s apprentice got captured before she could do any damage.


    That left William.


    Who is he? Well, we found out he was the original son of Rojar Iker, but that didn¡¯t answer my question. The way he operates, he should be someone with a capital S in the original storyline, and more importantly, how the hell did he escape and remain hidden?


    I closed my eyes and remembered all the pieces. From the beginning, from that moment, Iid eyes on that mugger.


    It all clicked inside my head within a few seconds, and my face darkened.


    ¡°Holy hell!¡± I swore and looked and took back the file. ¡°It''s because of Harth. Rojar Iker wasn¡¯t a master in Neuromancy, but it''s William.¡±

 Chapter 117 Epilogue (3)

    ?


    Strolling in the office for a while, I went to the underground floor where the captives were held. Yup, they were all here. After all, hell broke loose, the warlock wasn¡¯t in any shape to try anything, his channels were burned from the power of purgatory, rendering him useless to draw a sparkle of power.


    Still, he was in the most secure cell along with the rogue knight Rial. There was only one path to the warlock remains: Execution. Yup, for what he did, there was no forgiveness for it and I felt no sympathy for him. For his arrogance and ambition, he put thousands of lives on the line. Not to mention the saint beast, which was not in anyone''s mind, he messed with the outer gates, that unstabilized dimension, magic and many things. There will be reparations for thatter.


    However, the same couldn¡¯t be said about the knight.


    Rial kept his life in the little encounter he had with the saint beast with Jon''s mentor Lord Penron, though he was hospitalised after being found freezing with wounds in the snow. Anyway, to the topic of Rial, he would likely keep his life all his life in prison. No, it had nothing to do with him being a lesser sinner, but it was because of the Dominion.


    Dominion of Reduction, the unique dominion owned by Ruthalyn. The Academy or the empire didn¡¯t have any way to steal the dominion away. If they kill the knight, it would return to the source and someone else would take its ce again.


    There were otherplications when it came to dominion, but that¡¯s not important now.


    I had no intention of meeting the warlock or the rogue knight, but a few warders. Two of them, I would need to check up on their afflictions. Well, I worked on their healing once, as I¡¯m the only one remaining who can purge the dark afflictions most effectively.


    During the chaos, I didn¡¯t have time or the intention of wasting time on healing two of them. But when the chaos was over, these two were too serious of a stage to be healed by any healer. Even though a few worked on them, they couldn¡¯tpletely purge the dark energy. So here I was.


    I stood before the cell, which was covered with a thinyer of aluminium or tin alloy. Noyar opened the cell for me and as we got inside, she closed it again. The two rogue warders with dark afflictions share a single cell for convenience¡¯s sake.


    ¡°Hello, fes,¡± I beamed, raising my right palm in cheer. ¡°I hope the suffering kept you alive. Sorry for all the dys. You should be aware, it hasn''t been easy on any of us either.¡±


    One of the two whimpered with consciousness, but the other one was groaning in a semi-conscious state. I guess what they say is right: There¡¯s no rest for the wicked.


    Without wasting time, I held onto the hand of the semi-conscious one and jerked to wake him up. ¡°Wakey, wakey, sunshine.¡±


    ¡°Ahem!¡± Noyar coughed from behind, but I just ignored her.


    As I transferred my power to the channels of the rogue warder . . . Correction: criminal¡ªawoke and looked at me with blurry eyes. The other one was also staring at me as if I was a lunatic.


    I kept the grin on my lips and did my job. I didn¡¯t know how I look, but I¡¯m pretty sure I¡¯m looking pretty crazy. ¡°Sorry for this behaviour,¡± I said, still giving the creepy smile, ¡°don¡¯t worry, though, this is not real. Just some safety precautions so that I don¡¯t unconsciously harm you somehow.¡±


    The two guys shuddered visibly and didn¡¯t have the gall to cross my eyes.


    ¡°Oscar,¡± Noyar called, her voice hesitant.


    I gave her a look, showing I¡¯m in full control. ¡°I hear you guys agreed to be afflicted,¡± I said. ¡°Care to exin why so much loyalty? I mean you two don¡¯t look like some cult member to me, nor that possessed or something?¡± I paused, reading their looks. ¡°That¡¯s not it.¡± I tilted my head. ¡°Family perhaps.¡±


    The criminal¡¯s eyes widened. Bullseye!


    ¡°So, the warlock was just holding you guys¡¯ family,¡± I asked, ¡°or It''s just about the money?¡±


    They didn¡¯t answer to my disappointment. I clicked my tongue and moved to the other criminal, finishing my healing. ¡°Looks like I won''t get any answer,¡± I said and continued the work.


    ¡°Joys Masters,¡± I called a name. One of Althan¡¯s underlings. Dead underling.¡°Came from an ordinary family. His father died in an unresolved supernatural ident, which drew Joys to be a knight squire in the first ce.


    ¡°Sherin Kay. He wanted to make sure his family lived well after the devastating storm destroyed their vige.


    ¡°Kanir Hisk. He, well, he doesn¡¯t have that poor background and probably lived his life infort, but that doesn¡¯t mean he deserved to die.¡±


    They looked down, their face ashen.


    I drew my words deliberately. ¡°I can throw half a dozen names and a few more who¡¯re not you two responsible for, at least not directly.¡± I let out a breath without knowing. ¡°Thirteen dead, including a knight, 8 warders, and the rest were just kids. If I put together their family members, it''s about 80 people''s lives were unsettled entirely by this event.


    "I guess the warlock wouldn¡¯t recuperate their family, would he? Well, the warder¡¯s family would get something. That would barely be enough for their family for some years, as for the kids . . .¡±


    My voice trailed off. As far as I¡¯m concerned, their family would get nothing, no money, nor any recuperation. However, I wasn¡¯t totally sure, so I looked at Noyar.


    She frowned for a second and shook her head. My fist clenched tighter only to find out I was hurting the wounded man. I let go.


    I let go and stood up. ¡°I think Kimbers would give some form of recuperation, at least to give face, but . . .¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll look into the matter,¡± Noyar said quietly.


    I nodded to her and stood up, finishing the healing. ¡°Well, the purging is done, but unfortunately, I cannot say you two were free,¡± I said and gave a thoughtful look. ¡°The warlock is captured. How are you guys sure that your families were well-fed or not in any hostile environment?¡±


    The two criminals were lost for words, looking at each other with strange gazes. ¡°No, he gave his word. I¡¯m sure--¡±


    ¡°By he, I presume you¡¯re talking about Rojar Iker?¡± I asked, cutting him short. ¡°The infamous warlock who risked thousands of lives on his insanity?¡±


    Their faces darkened, and they looked down.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure if he remembers what kind of words he has given to you,¡± I said, ¡°especially not when his n went astray. But don¡¯t you worry my friend, I¡¯ll personally look into the matter. If they were in difficult situations, we¡¯ll make sure to take care of them and while we¡¯re at it, we¡¯ll make sure they know what exactly happened to their son, husband or father. You guys have kids, right? I wondered how they would feel to how they live infort.¡±


    I kind of feel like the devil is saying all this. I even felt Noyar¡¯s eerie gaze, staring at me intensely. I ignored it, for now, looking at the difort, remorse, and agony on their faces. For all that matter, I felt not even a single bit offort or glee doing this. But . . . I wondered why I did this.


    ¡°Please, my lord,¡± screamed out the criminal, lunging to wrap his arms around my legs. I dodged by withdrawing a step. But the captive didn¡¯t stop. ¡°I¡¯m begging you. Please! Kika, my boy, he¡¯s only twelve, he wouldn¡¯t be able to live with himself if . . . if you do this to him.¡±


    ¡°My lord, please take my life, treat me as your ve, or beat me every day, but please . . . My father . . . he would starve to death before he would take the money. I¡¯m begging you, please curse me with the evillest curse, but leave them out of it.¡±


    ¡°So they talk, huh,¡± I muttered. ¡°I guess you guys should have thought about all this before joining the warlock.¡±


    ¡°We didn¡¯t know,¡± they shouted after me, but I ignored them and got out with Noyar.


    They didn¡¯t stop begging, and I fear they won¡¯t anytime soon, or any other when someonees to see them.


    I wondered if I did the right thing.


    I could still feel Noyar¡¯s intense stare at me. Her mouth hung open as if lost for words. She really hadn¡¯t expected something like this from me, well nor did I. The sudden sh of anger, that . . . I had no intention of starting something like this, but the moment I started talking the names of the dead appeared in my mind. Curse you, eidetic memory.


    I fear I''ll never forget their names and faces all my life with this cursed memory of mine. They would remain with me until it was my time.


    After covering some distance, I couldn¡¯t endure her stare anymore and gave her a scowl. ¡°Something you wanted to ask me?¡±


    ¡°What you did there,¡± she started quietly, ¡°was rather cruel.¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± I admitted in a shaky voice.


    ¡°Will you--¡±


    ¡°Oh dear lord, no,¡± I said without even her finishing it. ¡°I admit I have my faults, but I¡¯m not a psychopath, Noyar.¡±


    Noyar sighed in relief, hearing that as we walked out of the prison dungeon. ¡°So, you won¡¯t go to their family and tell the evil deed of their . . .¡±


    ¡°Nah,¡± I said, ¡°but they don¡¯t know that, do they?¡±


    ¡°This is . . . certainly . . .¡± her voice trailed.


    Perhaps the word she was looking for was Evil.


    ¡°I wondered if this was the right thing to do,¡± I muttered, giving the prison ast look.


    ¡°That you have to ask your conscience.¡±

 Chapter 118 Epilogue (4)

    ?


    The sky was clear and blue,cking all the clouds of that night. The sun beamed in its splendour and the Victorian train station was as busy as always. People who hadn¡¯t the slightest clue that their life was at state a few nights before wandered around creating a cacophony on their way.


    The train horn echoed, and white smoke was released from on top. Peopleing in and out of thepartment. Vendors shouted in their sales pitch, trying to sell their articles to the passengers.


    On the first-sspartment, Althan satfortably alone,cking all the groves and swag he came with his minion. He looked around now and then as if sneaking out, hiding something under his skin.


    Then someone popped out beside him out of nowhere and Althan¡¯s eyes widened as he leapt up in horror.


    Oh, you must be wondering who¡¯s the person that could make Althan react like this. Well, it was exactly, your friendly neighbourhood trynabe wizard: Me.


    ¡°My man, Althan,¡± I said with a big smile on my lips. ¡°Where were you leaving so soon?¡±


    ¡°Oscar!¡± Althan¡¯s voice shuddered, and he bit his lips. Then he threw away the horror and an angry scowl appeared on his face, because it''s always better to be angry than fearful. ¡°What are you doing here?¡±


    I tilted my head at him, growling at him. I thought for a second, raised my right arm and pped him right on his cheek. The p was strong enough to leave five red finger marks on his cheek and the boy even creased on the seat like how trained dogs do after a strong berate.


    ¡°You? You? YOU?¡± Althan stuttered, sping his red cheek with his palm.


    ¡°Yes, me,¡± I said, showing the palm again, leaning forward. ¡°Me. ME.¡±


    Althan moaned like a little girl. He became so impassive from my eyes and how threatening I looked, he ceased into the seat as if trying to disappear into them.


    I controlled my rage, in case my newfound abilities wandered out of me. As I mentioned earlier, trynabe magus.


    Althan was silent, but not the other passengers. They started making cacophony, gossiping about what they had just seen. I halted for a moment and brought out a badge out of my suit to show it to them. I didn¡¯t wait for them to see it clearly, but only enough for them to see the frame of Starlight academy.


    ¡°Sorry for the disturbance,dies,¡± I said with a faint apology. ¡°Official business going on here.¡±


    The crowd silenced, though they didn¡¯t stop staring or peeking at us. I still heard gigles of a couple of girls. I wish it doesn''t look like two handsome dudes having a lover''s quarrel in public. My stomach lurched. I guess that¡¯s enough. I slumped down to the seat next to Althan, giving a grin to Althan.


    ¡°Why are you leaving before the official investigation hasn''t finished yet?¡± I asked, the grin vanishing as a coldness returned to my eyes.


    ¡°I . . . I will . . .¡±


    I guessed he wanted to say he will do whatever he wants to do. That¡¯s the main problem here. I found a sheer surge of anger inside me. I wanted to thrash him again. Should I take him to an empty alleyway and beat the crap out of him? I wanted to do exactly that, ignoring how much he tortured me. He ignored proper protocol and trespassed on the mountain with the other kids.


    Result: Half of his underlings died, the other half-crippled and heavily injured, and one missing¡ªthe reason I¡¯m here.


    I let out a breath and gritted my teeth. ¡°You have any idea where Harth is, do you?¡± I asked.


    Althan shook his head instantly. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± he said. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I didn¡¯t want to do anything to you. It''s his idea, it''s his fault. Please don¡¯t beat me, I . . .¡±


    ¡°You didn¡¯t have the slightest clue of what you did, did you?¡± I snarled at him. I shook him by the cor and dragged him out of thepartment.


    ¡°What? What are you doing?¡± Althan shouted. ¡°You can¡¯t do this. Bastard, you can¡¯t do this. I¡¯m a prince, for Ishar¡¯s sake. God damn it, Oscar. My father won¡¯t let you do this.¡±


    ¡°Aye, aye, your highness,¡± I answered with clear mocking in my tone.


    Althan continued to shout as I dragged him out of the station. ¡°You will go nowhere before the investigation finishes, will you, your highness?¡±


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t me,¡± Althan almost wept as he shouted, ¡°it''s Harth. It''s all his n. He tranced me to beat you up. He nned everything. He took advantage of the hatred I had for you and . . . and did all this.¡±


    I frowned at what Althan says seemed quite agreeable, but I don¡¯t follow that it was all Harth¡¯s n. It seemed too convenient. One evil wizardpelled one of the good prince¡¯s minions to do evil and coerce the good prince to beat me up. I¡¯ll eat a rat''s tail before I believe it.


    Yes, there might be coercion and truth in Althan¡¯s statement, but that¡¯s as much true as free will. God giveth free will and mortal coerce that free will to do evil.


    Well, Althan couldn¡¯t be considered as evil, at least not now. I think I know the right word for him: Stupid. I know another stupid person¡ªRojar Iker¡ªbut he wasn''t just stupid, but he was evil. That foolish man! He thought about duping the caged God and taking the power for himself. It was meant to fail the moment he nned it.


    Mortals simply cannot control a storm, a force of nature.


    "Well, God may help us purge evil, but there¡¯s no cure for stupidity." I hope not to be one in theing stormy days.


    _ _ _


    As the Moons weaken the closed gates, draw the territory/prize (dominion) concealed under light. Shatter it if pleases, but beware of breaking and giving in to Him.


    ¡ª Except from the notes of the Promised one.


    Tranted by Amara Sholinar, Order of the Magi, Monarch.


    End of the Volume.


    _____________________


    Heyo fes, the volume finally ended after so many days, contributing to my cripplingziness and anxiety.


    So far, I''m content with what I wrote, though improvement can be made. Oh holy hell, sted heroes, a lot of improvement can be made. There were some descriptions, improvements in dialogues, in some showing and characterisation. Maybe when I release the book as Ebook, yeah perhaps.


    That would seriously take time, nor do I have any intention of doing it until this series continues further. Anyway, thanks to all the readership.


    Here''s something interesting I wanted to do, I''ll ask two questions and you guys can answer them in thement, and after a week or two we''ll get the answer.


    Q.1: Who''s or are your favourite characters in this volume?


    My answer is, of course, Aaron (well, he''s the mc for all that matters), and William (He didn''t have much part, but I think he owns whenever hees to pages.).


    Q.2: Your favourite or most memorable scene of this volume.


    For me, hmm, when Oscar draws the sword in Young me. (Beating the reindeer bare-handed inside the rift had promised too, but I think It didn''t work that well.)


    Anyway, goodnight.

 Chapter 119 01: Into The Dark (1)

    ?


    Volume Two: Sunbreak


    Q: Why are Energy or Emotion Vampires not hunted by the Starlight Council?


    A: They didn''t need to break the secondw of Magic to live.


    - - -


    Zane rushed inside the looming darkness of the cavern. Day or night, it doesn¡¯t matter, darkness reigned here all the time. Zane was the second time here. The first time, it was him pursuing a group of thugs, but the second time, the role was reversed. Now he was being pursued by the group he was chasing before.


    He pushed against the lean figure with the dominion of gravity, skidding him away against the rough walls. It crashed against the rough wall, but he ignored it altogether and rushed out.


    ¡®sted Heroes,¡¯ Zane thought as his figure lunged through the uneven, rockynds. Well, it was not his fault. He just went on a mission which seemed pretty simple on the outside, but who could have known he was chasing after a bunch of bloodsuckers? He should have known better about identifying their pale skin and lean figures, though that''s not always the way to distinguish.


    It wouldn¡¯t be much of a problem if there were only one or two, but not only there were four of those bloodsuckers in the group, one of them was a spellcaster. That changed many things. Vampires were naturally better physically, agiler, and could take beating far better than any human could. They were monsters, after all. Why wouldn¡¯t they be better atbat than humans?


    However, even with that Zane could manage to escape, unfortunately, the spellcaster made his chances almost empty the more time passes. There was only one way remaining, and that was by escaping out of this looming cavern to the outside where the sun should have risen already.


    Powerful as they may be, they were not without weakness. Most vampires grow weaker in sunlight. Their supernatural abilities were mostly rendered futile, leaving them almost a mortal foil of a body. Even the spellcaster would be a little better than a normal human. That was their curse of existence for all the sins they were born with.


    That was what Zane aimed for. If he was anywhere, he wouldn¡¯t have a problem using his dominion. He will be out there in no time. Sadly, he couldn¡¯t manipte gravity well enough to move around in such a narrow space like this. He tried before and only got his head banged against the rocky walls. There was no helping it. He was new to the dominion. Sprinting was the only way, though he had to leap every second step.


    Suddenly, Zane¡¯s supernatural senses tingled, and without a second thought, he pushed against the earth below his foot, and lurched up. Zane hadn¡¯t managed to neutralise another headbang when a bombardment followed where he was just a moment ago, shattering the uneven rocky path.


    The spellcaster was just on his trail. ¡®ming bloodsuckers,¡¯ swore Zane as he pushed against the shards of stones which were created by the bombardment. Zane not only managed to escape from the stone shards, he redirected toward the bloodsuckers on his trail.


    He didn¡¯t wait to see the result, redirected his anchor of gravity at an acute angle and flew away. He got down before he could injure himself hitting against the ceiling or walls. Daggers appeared on his palms as he prepared forbat.


    Two silhouettes chased after from both sides, with machetes and daggers in their arms. The narrow tunnel of the cavern couldn¡¯t let them use broader weapons like a spear. Sword was still usable, but Zane followed with his daggers.


    In abat position where one was battling against more than two opponents, it was always best to take charge of the battle as soon as possible and then direct it. Zane tried the same. He chose the opponenting from his left, redirected his anchor at the figure, and pulled. Moments passed as both of their figures shot at one another, pulled by an invisible force.


    The bloodsucker saw him using the dominion of gravity before, but he wasn¡¯t prepared for it as Zane did. His arms moved with the swift jab of the dagger into his chest. The bloodsucker yelped in agony, but Zane wasn¡¯t finished. He twisted the dagger, pulled it back, and hacked the other one into the vampire¡¯s neck.


    Zane finished pushing the figure away with gravity while the other one almost caught up to him. He wasn¡¯t ready for that. He ducked down to dodge the blowing towards his upper body and pushed against the earth to buy some distance between them.


    However, before he could deal with that one, a wave of concentrated fire shot at him. The temperature of the me was well over a thousand degrees Celsius. Even with all his defence and armour, Zane would be no more if he got hit by it. He manoeuvred the dominion of gravity to lurch out of the way at thest moment as the liquid fire molten the rocky terrain into smouldering embers.


    The pyromancer caught up with her buddies, standing just beside the one Zane almost killed just a moment ago. Well, it would take more than a couple of jabs to kill a vampire, after all, even though his blows were at critical spots.


    ¡°Human spawn,¡± the sorcerer swore threateningly. ¡°You¡¯ll pay the price for your insolence.¡±


    Zane¡¯s head bumped against the wall, breaking the spirit armament there. He gritted his teeth, reinforced the defence again, and came down slowly. ¡°Sorry,¡± he shouted back, ¡°I''m neck-down in debt to pay anything.¡±


    Two others of the spellcasterpanion joined on her back, looking at him ferociously with their elongated teeth. Zane¡¯s mind was running on calction. Three against one, with one of the three being a spellcaster. Dealing with her would be the hardest. Even though thedy vampire wasn¡¯t anythingpared to a real magus, she knew a couple of tricks.


    She was a master pyromancer, could knock good punches with fire spells, and her defence wasn¡¯tpromised either with another vampire always standing near her all-time. Unlike human practitioners, vampires have a better constitution and instinct, which puts her still in the mid-range without pyromancy.


    Her intervention in this conflict would limit his escape option. He had to find a way to deal with her and that too, as soon as possible.


    _ _ _

 Chapter 120 01: Into The Dark (2)

    ?


    ¡°Looks like I missed by a little,¡± Zane barked, finding the bloodsucker still alive even after taking a dagger to the neck. Burn those monsters and their super regenerative abilities. Even though he felt down inside, he didn''t show it outside. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t miss the second time.¡±


    ¡°It''s been two weeks days,¡± said the pyromancer in a slow, condescending tone. ¡°Two weeks since you stomped on our pride. Two days since--¡±


    ¡°Pride?¡± Zane cut her short with a burst of wickedughter. Well, at least it appeared wicked to them. ¡°Since when did monster have pride?¡± As he continued, a deep-rooted hatred poured into his words.


    Yes, he hated them to the core, but that didn¡¯t mean he would shoot at them at first encounter. Zane took a breather, wasting empty words with the bloodsuckers. They might be doing the same, but with them holding the advantage, he didn¡¯t mind it that much. He took a heavy breath, eyes darting at his adversaries as well as the surrounding, peering to find anything he could use.


    The problem was that the narrow tunnel of the cavern was too damn dark, as if the darkness stood still, waiting to consume all the light you poured into it. That¡¯s not natural. The bloodsuckers they were doing something here, and he was just on the point of finding that out. Unfortunately, it was they that found him first. Well, it was not it''s all for nought, but it certainly would be if he didn''t manage to keep his life.


    Still, he would need to bring back words to the empire, to the Academy, and more importantly, he had to keep his life, get back in one piece. There was still too much for him to do. The face of his snotty little sister appeared in his mind. He couldn''t possibly leave her on her own, could he?


    Zane resolved his mind and stirred the power inside him. The vampires noticed that. It was all too easy for them. They could even hear his heart pound, his blood racing¡ªenough giveaway that he was trying something.


    ¡°Hey, shitheads,¡± he called. His body lurched up instantly, and he pounced on his enemies. ¡°Stop me!¡± His voice was all the smirk and confidence. It was his challenge to these creatures . . . these monsters in human skin who gued the society, feast on the blood and flesh of children and innocents.


    Zane was strong up front. Confidence lingered in his moves, but inside, he knew how insecure he was. But his enemies didn¡¯t need to know that.


    Zane was merely halfway there when the spellcaster sizzled red-hot fire at him. Zane was waiting for that exactly. He abandoned his anchor at the very moment and made a new anchor. The spellcaster. She barely found that something was wrong when a storming force thumped against his body like a lone sledgehammer pitting an anvil.


    Her face broke into a terror of cry as she was flung away to collide against the cave wall.


    Zane knew he wouldn¡¯t get many chances, and he would have to make the count as soon as possible even if he had to exchange blow for blow. Red hot fire sizzled his way. Even though he managed to fling away the pyromancer, her attack wasn¡¯t stopped. Luckily, she hadn¡¯t managed to bring out all her power. And with the enchanted cloak on his body, he might just make it with minimal damage.


    The pungent reek of his burning hair entered his nose, but he ignored it to emerge from the open fire. The two other vampires were already out of the way, but they couldn¡¯t take away the wounded one. Hey helpless on the floor, eyes shuttering in terror as the figure emerged out of the sizzling fire towards him with a wicked smile.


    Zane didn¡¯t give him time to scream. His dagger shot away from his palm and prated the head of the helpless vampire, digging all the way to where it matters. Mattered enough to kill a false immortal.


    ¡°Told you," Zane crackled, "I¡¯ll be through next time.¡±


    Thedy vampire, now had a hideous look on her face, shrilled, ¡°TOPAS, NO!¡±


    Zane didn¡¯t wait for their mourning to pass. He ran like hell like his life depended on it. Well, as a matter of fact, it did. The mourning of a few bloodsuckers didn¡¯t even mean a single penny to him. Monsters as they may be, they had some familial bond. At least some of them do. While the pyromancer mourned in indecision, herpanion trailed Zane, firing the guns they had with them, though little good they did. Zane''s enchanted cloak took all the damage.


    Zane¡¯s feet were dull inside his heavy boots, but they didn¡¯t stop. The tunnel grew narrower, which was troublesome to using any gravitational force, but reliving to his mental sense. That meant he was in the right direction, and salvation wasn¡¯t that far away.


    Zane swore that if he got away with his life this time around, he would never go alone into missions like these. Hell, if he wouldn¡¯t even have that sted bastard and that foul-mouthed baldie.


    Looks like the sorceress had some emotional entanglement with the bloodsucker he just killed, making her stop there. That¡¯s really rare to see in vampires, but it worked fine in his case. The fewer opponents he had, the less trouble he would get getting out. One almost got close enough to deal a blow, but he was prepared for it.


    Zane turned his anchor to him and pushed with all the gravitational force he could muster. Both of their bodies jerked away in the opposite direction, the vampire more than him, as he got a few metres closer to his way out. The other one shot bullets at him, finding him getting away. Zane hid his head as his enchanted cloak did its work, though the bullets thumped against his body quite painfully. The mission turns out to be more than what he could pay for. It is going to cost a lot to fix his stuff.


    Anyway, he was off. Zane turned to look at the face of the bloodsucker for thest time and pushed against the heavy boulder, blocking his way. A small gap appeared, which turned out enough for him to slide out to safety.


    ¡°God damn it!¡± Zane swore the very moment he got out. "You can''t really be serious."


    The reason for his outburst was that it was still dark, the sun hadn¡¯t risen yet. The only thing that could salvage his situation. As a rebellious mist drifted in thend, obscuring his vision enough that he had trouble finding the right route, not that he would be able to get away easily.


    Shaking his head in despair, Zane rushed out, as disruptive spell work formed behind him. The heavy boulder that closed off the entrance to the underground world shattered into thousands of shards of stones as fiery hot liquid mes sizzled out of the cave.


    sted heroes! Zane felt like the whole world wanted him to die. He staggered his exhausted body with all his might, only to hear a few footsteps behind him, spreading out to encircle him.


    "You," a voice said in all its coldness one could master. Zane turned to find the vampire sorceress standing with her eyes glowing in malevolent, blood smeared on her face. Mist warped around her as spiritual energy undted with her seeping out anger.


    The two others stood on his left and right, blocking his way. Zane shook his head as if they could block his way. "See you around, sucker."


    Dominion of Gravity stirred inside him as he pushed against the earth to lurch up in the air as the vampires punched towards him. Now, Zane was too exhausted to even muster half of his speed, but all he could be enough to get from their trails. Or at least, buy time until the sunes on.


    "You''re not escaping now," screamed the pyromancer. A spear of fire formed over her head and shot at him. Zane dodged that, as he was always perfective of the spellcaster''s attack. But it appeared she was in no mood to stop now.


    Zane manoeuvred his anchor at an acute angle to fly away, knowing these vampires wouldn''t let him to that easily since once they got hold of him. Though the mist created obscurity in his sight, enough for him to lose the way, it still helped him hide his tracks. Still, keeping the dominion running for long was a challenge for him. He needed to take a brother soon, or he might fall right into the vampire''s grasp.


    Thinking that Zane created a few false tracks over a couple of kilometres to fly out of their way to take shelter against a ridge, panting frantically. His chest heaved up and down as he looked towards the southern sky, wasting to see any sign of sunrise.


    With the mist obscuring his vision, he could make out nothing. Zane groaned and stayed limp against the rocky ridge, hoping the vampires would never find him. But he was still not without options. Yes, it would cost him a lot, but outside the dark cavern, he had ways to deal with the vampire.


    Zane has already taken healing potions twice in thest couple of days to have one now. It could seriously strain his body and leave him paralysed or with long-term consequences. But if they must, he might take them with him as well.


    _ _ _


    Another entry for this opener of volume two. Sorry for the dys.


    Also shameless shoutout for PA TREON.


    If you want to read advance chapters before anyone else and that too at a low cost then join on my PA TREON. LINK in the end of synopsis.

 Chapter 121 01: Into The Dark (3)

    ?


    ¡°I swear, I felt some disturbance in this direction,¡± Julies said, peering around, though the obscurity provided by the wilful mist made it harder to see even past five metres.


    ¡°It could be some wild animal,¡± Eran said, behind the baldie.


    Both of them were in enchanted adventurer wear, from leather jerkins, mountain boots, and enchanted cloaks to the weapons they were carrying. Julies had a dozen daggers on his body, along with a quick bow and quiver full of arrows. Where Eran, the burly one contrasting to Julies'' skinny figure, was carrying a spear. Apart from that, both of the two were carrying a .44 revolver, not enough to kill any powerful spirit beast, but it could scare them away easily.


    Other than the burly dark man, there were two other mercenary men with pale faces and cut marks all over their bodies. They stayed in a half-conscious state, eyes impassive like fools as if all strength had been drawn out of their body, leaving one a hollowed shell. It wouldn''t be wrong to say they had been through shit in thest couple of days to look this bad.


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± Julies said, though the frown remained on his brows. He was almost sure he felt some dark energy undting, but if it couldn¡¯t be found, then they had to get on with their task. ¡°I wanted nothin'' wrong in this operation, but if it couldn¡¯t be helped, then . . .¡±


    ¡°Nothing wrong?¡± Eran repeated the word while giving a re at Julies. ¡°This n of yours is wrong, to begin with. If boss learns about this, you know he wouldn¡¯t going to like this.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m aware,¡± Julies said, ¡°but do you have any better idea?¡±


    ¡°Kish¡¯s Mercy, Juls,¡± Eran sighed. ¡°You know you can get expelled from the academy if anything goes wrong, and that¡¯s the best-case scenario. Compulsion is an offensive crime directly breaking the thirdw of magic. You¡¯ll be thrown in prison if they find out.¡±


    ¡°It''s ain''tpulsion,¡± Julies grunted as they strode, the two mercenary men following impassively. ¡°At least not the corrupting type.¡±


    ¡°If only there¡¯s a thing like that,¡± Eran said.


    The matters were like this: Before this boss left for Victoria, he gave them a task. Their task was to get to the root of all the disappearances of young children. Toplete that task, the two of them scurried all over the outskirts of starlight city, Manas, and even part of Endus to finally find some leads. But all of them ended with some small fry mercenaries. After lots of interrogations, all paths ended with: they didn¡¯t know shits.


    All they did was kidnap the children, move them to another¡¯s hand and those guys move them elsewhere, and so on, creating arge chain of events under the noses of all legal authorities. Well, there were some developments they had found in the past few months. Many of these mercenaries with such business found death, which stopped their advances in the surrounding areas of Starlight city, however, it was never stopped in the other regions. Not even nearly enough to stop.


    Even though these killings were brought to light, the legal authorities weren¡¯t still sure who was doing it. Perhaps someone on the other end is trying to keep their secret safe, or some rivalry between the vampire houses. Things are very hairy here, much more than Julies knew, but they can¡¯t let go of this, since bloodsuckers were rted to this. They were the very gue of society, that needed to be eradicated as soon as possible. Julies thought. Well, maybe not every one of them, but the number would definitely be on the higher end.


    ¡°This is going to work,¡± Julies said and moved towards the captives again. He had enchanted them before, well, a couple of times, but to have a surety of sess, he needed to once again. His Enchantment worked like charm, and like a charm, it has some shorings. In substantial amount of time, the effect wore off on its own, quite quickly for practitioners proportional to their spiritual and mental fortitude, but to some spiritually weak or even non-practitioners it would work for a couple of days without rest.


    Julies always thought of temporary shoring as a blessing, knowing full well what a fullpulsion could do to a man¡¯s mind, and even to a caster. Still, Julies always used it as ast resort. Well, he did thin out the line more nowadays, but like he had other options. The days were changing.


    Under the watchful gazes of Eran, Julies removed the thick-framed goggles, and he was a different person entirely. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me, Eran,¡± hemanded, well, yeah, his voice changed too. There was a slight vibe ofption in it. Well, not the real deal, but enough for Eran to look away.


    Sighing at the look of his friend, Juiles attended to the two captives. Now, he needed to be very careful with this, since it was the third time he was going with the enchantment within thest twenty-four hours. Even though these two were no better than human garbage, who sell innocent kids to fatten themselves, he couldn''t just break their mind while doing it. Even though he said otherwise to Eran, it was very much possible, too easy fro him to do it he wanted, easier than making them do what he wanted for all that matter.


    But Julies couldn''t do that. Ignoring everything about the nature of these garbage beings,pulsion was morally wrong, and what he was doing to them could coerce his head as well. These things were just toomon to happen in the long run.


    If you be ever dependent on this ability, for even minor inconvenience, then you''re on the path of no return. Fortunately, Julies was far from that. Well, lets;''s get this over with.


    ¡°You will tell me your name,¡± Julies asked, eyes staring nkly at the two human garbage.


    ¡°Ada Kision.¡±


    ¡°Thom Iarin.¡±


    Both of their voice was subservient, eyes shuddering in daunting fear. They had been defiant before, well, at the first time, but once they gave in, there was no turning back.


    ¡°Tell me what I am to you,¡± Julies asked.


    ¡°Master.¡±


    ¡°Master.¡±


    ¡°And what is your duty?¡±


    ¡°Obey master¡¯s everymand.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± Julies felt a lurching draw at her pool of spirit power, sucking in like a starving sponge. ¡°Now let¡¯s go over our game n for thest time. . . .¡±


    Eran sighed, watching the development in weakness. He couldn¡¯t do anything, even though unsure it was harming both parties. Compulsion was hardly good anything to the victim, but it was not so enduring for the caster as well. It twisted the head of the caster, the more he used it, the more he got intoxicated at the drunk fervour of power and domination.


    Eran didn¡¯t like to see magic envement first-hand, so he crept into the obscurity of the mist. Since it would take Julies to go over the instruction a while, he might as well scout around, though they have done that before already. Well, Juiles was so sure about the undtion of energy flow a few minutes ago, maybe he would check on that.


    At this hour of the day, anything would¡ªeven wild animals¡ªwould like to venture outside, not to mention this area was eerily vacant with stuffy air. Well, if vampires ran their ck business around this area, there¡¯s no reason not to be this eerie. Now all they had left to do was contact the vampire under the pretext of being mercenaries, followed by understanding the scale of their operations, gaining their trust and finally eradicating it from the root. Well, to do that, they would likely need more help from the academy, but as far as they were concerned, there were several people who wouldn¡¯t mind cleaning some filth.


    The sun rose, almost infrared through the obscurity, as wilful mist churned a little faster, struggling against the rising light. Still, the projected light wasn¡¯t enough. He could barely see a few metres ahead, and that was with his keen senses. If it were normal folk, he would have lost within the first two minutes.


    Eran kept on marking the way with his boot, while also he had a general idea of which direction he was turning. However, he finally noticed the thing Julies implied, he could barely believe his senses.


    He wasn''t even a couple of hundred metres away, as the mist churned with intensity as beaming fire scorched through a few dozen metres ahead of him. Eran''s mind chilled, and he withdrew without thinking, however, his leg stopped finding a figure flying by in the air, the opposite direction of his.


    A knight? He wondered. Even though he couldn''t see clearly, he was pretty sure that the silhouette was of a knight, using the dominion of Gravity, well unless he had other ways to do the same, though that''s hardly avable in the empire. But since it was a dominion of gravity, that means it was a human, a knight, since power like dominions were heavily guarded, and also the old sinners were forsaken to tough the power.


    The party chasing after him were . . . seemed to be vampires. Quick, he needed to alert Julies and see what they could do to help this knight. Eran turned and rushed only to find Juiles running in his direction, his purple misty eyes still open, peering all around as if they could pierce the obscurity of the mist.


    "Bloodsuckers?" he asked, turning his head to not look at Eran.


    "Yes."


    "Told you," Juiles said, and moved. "Stay on my back, with my eyes open, I can deliver more than you can imagine."


    Eran abided without any issues as Julies led him through the rocky terrain, paying full attention to the batter going on between the vampire and the knight. On second thought, they shouldn''t need to worry about that. The sun was rising, and the vampires would be powerless in time. However, the next word from Julies mouth alerted him once again.


    "That''s Zane," Julies said, louder than he intended. "What the hell is he doing here."

 Chapter 122 Republish

    ?


    Chapter One: Forgive me, Mother


    Q: What is the Night of Brilliance?


    A: The night when all the five moons share the same sky.


    - - -


    Am I dying? Again?


    I stopped the urge to vomit and gulped down whatever was trying to find its way through my throat. I thought I seeded, but the dizziness in my head overwhelmed me as I puked. Something¡¯s not right.


    I had no idea how much time passed. Where were we before this? An impaling pain hit me as I tried to remember . . . Something¡¯s wrong. Focus! Focus! This never happens to me. I never have a problem remembering stuff. It''s almost a miracle for me to forget anything, but . . .


    Several seconds passed, and I finally mustered the minimal mental capacity to carry out the thought process rather than the mindless rambling. It was still nighttime, and I wasn¡¯t alone. My senses came back, at least some of them, and the pain assaulted my nerves exponentially.


    My feet shuffled across the earth as I felt a force shouldering me, dragging me somewhere. Someone was dragging me on the shoulder.


    "Pull yourself together, Scar," croaked a voice, probably having trouble dragging us.


    I tried to mutter something, but ended up groaning. I tried harder, but failed. In the end, the dizziness in my head imed it, and I lost consciousness.


    I did not know how much time it took for me to wake up, but by the time I woke up, my head was still dizzy, though far better than before. The smell of alcohol was oozing out of me, and I found myself lying in a warm bed. Weird, I thought. I remember the fight and then . . .


    Then my eyes widened. I looked at my palms, sped them together and went as far as pinching my cheek. This wasn¡¯t a dream, was it?


    This is me! The headache was too excruciating for me to conclude anything. I felt sore in my throat. Water, I need water.


    With that thought, I rose, though I had to lean against the wall immediately to keep on standing. All my bones and muscles felt sore. I leaned against the wall to calm my nerves first.


    I looked around the small room to search for a general direction. I needed water. There was no water on the side table near the bed. The room appeared foreign to me, and so did all the things. It was a small room with a bed, though the way it was held did not appear to be a home where people stayed every day.


    Dry wood burned soothingly in the firece, warming the dim room a little. Even though everything was well-ced where it should have been, I felt difort looking at it. The chilly atmosphere, coupled with the foreign room, weren¡¯t the only reason for my difort. Breathing heavily, a couple of times, I walked in search of water.


    Creeping against the wall, I managed to find the washroom. As soon as I stepped inside, I drew my head to the sink and let the cold water run through my hair. The cold water gave me a surreal peace of mind, and I drank the water to satisfy my sore throat. The water tasted a little sweet and satisfying.


    The dizziness soothed too as I slowly drew my face towards a mirror. The face that showed up in the mirror was a youth towering over two metres height,nky and pale-faced. An angr, handsome face with mboyant red hair¡ªthey were all familiar to me. Even the distant eyes with a little tint of redness¡ªwhich in a way proves magic is real¡ªweren¡¯t alien to me, nor was the mark on the right eyebrow all the way to the end of the forehead.


    Scar? I called in my head. Hey, buddy, are you there? Come on, mate. Aren¡¯t you going to take control?


    No reply. That worried me for an instance, but I felt relief finding no voices in my head.


    I stayed looking in the mirror for some time, as my senses cleared up. Memories readjusted, and so did my sanity. I waited until I was certain there was no one else in my head. I was as certain as I could be that Scar wasn¡¯t there. It was both painful and liberating.


    It had been over eighteen years. Eighteen years since I was transmigrated into this world. For eighteen years, I was trapped inside this body. Eighteen years of powerlessness to do anything against all the wrong decisions Scar made. Eighteen years with all the pain and . . . No, the pain wasn¡¯t there for all the time.


    That was why it was painful and liberating. Liberating because it seemed I was finally out of my imprisonment, and painful . . . because of Scar. for thest eighteen years, I was like an echo in his body. I lived through everything he had lived through. I felt everything he felt; all the pain, anger, hatred, sorrow, joy, and helplessness.


    [Synchronisation ended.] A transparent text appeared before my eyes, and my facial expression changed.


    [Preparing the Status window.]


    Then arger transparent window appeared on my retina, reminding me of the source of all this.


    _____________


    Name: Arskar Emberborn


    Title: Knight Squire. He Who Touched Death. The Chosen One.


    Skills and Attributes:


    [Purgatory (Unawakened)] [Spirit Body: F] [Spirit Power: C] [Fire Elemental Force: D+] [Charisma: D] [Cognition: C] [Eidetic Imagery: ?]


    [Swordsmanship: ?] [Close Quarter Combat: ?] [Spiritual Maniption: ?] [Spirit Armament: ?]


    Dominions: None.


    ______________


    "Does that mean," I muttered, ¡°I would control the body for now?¡±


    There was no confirmation, but then again, what¡¯s the point of all this if I was just a helpless spectator incapable of doing anything?


    It had been eighteen years since I was transmigrated into this world, Shrankor. I had no recollection of dying. Then again, death can be silent.


    Forbidden Realms, a tabletop RPG that I grew up ying with my mom, while she was busy dying. I remember, I used to love this game as much as I loved my mum, however, I know it was all because of the time I shared with my mum ying this game in her dying years. That was almost three decades ago.


    This world was almost exactly that with all the lore and history, story and characters, monsters and myths. At first, when I found out all that, I was lost for some time, and then I thought I deserved all the familial love my new mum, dad, and siblings were giving me, ignorant to the fact that I was but a parasite living in another''s body.

 Chapter 119 01: Into the Dark (1)

    <h4>Chapter 119 Chapter 01: Into the Dark (1)</h4>


    Volume Two: Sunbreak


    Q: Why are Energy or Emotion Vampires not hunted by the Starlight Council?


    A: They didn''t need to break the secondw of Magic to live.


    - - -


    Zane rushed inside the looming darkness of the cavern. Day or night, it doesn¡¯t matter, darkness reigned here all the time. Zane was the second time here. The first time, it was him pursuing a group of thugs, but the second time, the role was reversed. Now he was being pursued by the group he was chasing before.


    He pushed against the lean figure with the dominion of gravity, skidding him away against the rough walls. It crashed against the rough wall, but he ignored it altogether and rushed out.


    ¡®sted Heroes,¡¯ Zane thought as his figure lunged through the uneven, rockynds. Well, it was not his fault. He just went on a mission which seemed pretty simple on the outside, but who could have known he was chasing after a bunch of bloodsuckers? He should have known better about identifying their pale skin and lean figures, though that''s not always the way to distinguish.


    It wouldn¡¯t be much of a problem if there were only one or two, but not only there were four of those bloodsuckers in the group, one of them was a spellcaster. That changed many things. Vampires were naturally better physically, agiler, and could take beating far better than any human could. They were monsters, after all. Why wouldn¡¯t they be better atbat than humans?


    However, even with that Zane could manage to escape, unfortunately, the spellcaster made his chances almost empty the more time passes. There was only one way remaining, and that was by escaping out of this looming cavern to the outside where the sun should have risen already.


    Powerful as they may be, they were not without weakness. Most vampires grow weaker in sunlight. Their supernatural abilities were mostly rendered futile, leaving them almost a mortal foil of a body. Even the spellcaster would be a little better than a normal human. That was their curse of existence for all the sins they were born with.


    That was what Zane aimed for. If he was anywhere, he wouldn¡¯t have a problem using his dominion. He will be out there in no time. Sadly, he couldn¡¯t manipte gravity well enough to move around in such a narrow space like this. He tried before and only got his head banged against the rocky walls. There was no helping it. He was new to the dominion. Sprinting was the only way, though he had to leap every second step.


    Suddenly, Zane¡¯s supernatural senses tingled, and without a second thought, he pushed against the earth below his foot, and lurched up. Zane hadn¡¯t managed to neutralise another headbang when a bombardment followed where he was just a moment ago, shattering the uneven rocky path.


    The spellcaster was just on his trail. ¡®ming bloodsuckers,¡¯ swore Zane as he pushed against the shards of stones which were created by the bombardment. Zane not only managed to escape from the stone shards, he redirected toward the bloodsuckers on his trail.


    He didn¡¯t wait to see the result, redirected his anchor of gravity at an acute angle and flew away. He got down before he could injure himself hitting against the ceiling or walls. Daggers appeared on his palms as he prepared forbat.


    Two silhouettes chased after from both sides, with machetes and daggers in their arms. The narrow tunnel of the cavern couldn¡¯t let them use broader weapons like a spear. Sword was still usable, but Zane followed with his daggers.


    In abat position where one was battling against more than two opponents, it was always best to take charge of the battle as soon as possible and then direct it. Zane tried the same. He chose the opponenting from his left, redirected his anchor at the figure, and pulled. Moments passed as both of their figures shot at one another, pulled by an invisible force.


    The bloodsucker saw him using the dominion of gravity before, but he wasn¡¯t prepared for it as Zane did. His arms moved with the swift jab of the dagger into his chest. The bloodsucker yelped in agony, but Zane wasn¡¯t finished. He twisted the dagger, pulled it back, and hacked the other one into the vampire¡¯s neck.


    Zane finished pushing the figure away with gravity while the other one almost caught up to him. He wasn¡¯t ready for that. He ducked down to dodge the blowing towards his upper body and pushed against the earth to buy some distance between them.


    However, before he could deal with that one, a wave of concentrated fire shot at him. The temperature of the me was well over a thousand degrees Celsius. Even with all his defence and armour, Zane would be no more if he got hit by it. He manoeuvred the dominion of gravity to lurch out of the way at thest moment as the liquid fire molten the rocky terrain into smouldering embers.


    The pyromancer caught up with her buddies, standing just beside the one Zane almost killed just a moment ago. Well, it would take more than a couple of jabs to kill a vampire, after all, even though his blows were at critical spots.


    ¡°Human spawn,¡± the sorcerer swore threateningly. ¡°You¡¯ll pay the price for your insolence.¡±


    Zane¡¯s head bumped against the wall, breaking the spirit armament there. He gritted his teeth, reinforced the defence again, and came down slowly. ¡°Sorry,¡± he shouted back, ¡°I''m neck-down in debt to pay anything.¡±


    Two others of the spellcasterpanion joined on her back, looking at him ferociously with their elongated teeth. Zane¡¯s mind was running on calction. Three against one, with one of the three being a spellcaster. Dealing with her would be the hardest. Even though thedy vampire wasn¡¯t anythingpared to a real magus, she knew a couple of tricks.


    She was a master pyromancer, could knock good punches with fire spells, and her defence wasn¡¯tpromised either with another vampire always standing near her all-time. Unlike human practitioners, vampires have a better constitution and instinct, which puts her still in the mid-range without pyromancy.


    Her intervention in this conflict would limit his escape option. He had to find a way to deal with her and that too, as soon as possible.


    _ _ _

 Chapter 120 01: Into the Dark (2)

    <h4>Chapter 120 Chapter 01: Into the Dark (2)</h4>


    ¡°Looks like I missed by a little,¡± Zane barked, finding the bloodsucker still alive even after taking a dagger to the neck. Burn those monsters and their super regenerative abilities. Even though he felt down inside, he didn''t show it outside. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t miss the second time.¡±


    ¡°It''s been two weeks days,¡± said the pyromancer in a slow, condescending tone. ¡°Two weeks since you stomped on our pride. Two days since--¡±


    ¡°Pride?¡± Zane cut her short with a burst of wickedughter. Well, at least it appeared wicked to them. ¡°Since when did monster have pride?¡± As he continued, a deep-rooted hatred poured into his words.


    Yes, he hated them to the core, but that didn¡¯t mean he would shoot at them at first encounter. Zane took a breather, wasting empty words with the bloodsuckers. They might be doing the same, but with them holding the advantage, he didn¡¯t mind it that much. He took a heavy breath, eyes darting at his adversaries as well as the surrounding, peering to find anything he could use.


    The problem was that the narrow tunnel of the cavern was too damn dark, as if the darkness stood still, waiting to consume all the light you poured into it. That¡¯s not natural. The bloodsuckers they were doing something here, and he was just on the point of finding that out. Unfortunately, it was they that found him first. Well, it was not it''s all for nought, but it certainly would be if he didn''t manage to keep his life.


    Still, he would need to bring back words to the empire, to the Academy, and more importantly, he had to keep his life, get back in one piece. There was still too much for him to do. The face of his snotty little sister appeared in his mind. He couldn''t possibly leave her on her own, could he?


    Zane resolved his mind and stirred the power inside him. The vampires noticed that. It was all too easy for them. They could even hear his heart pound, his blood racing¡ªenough giveaway that he was trying something.


    ¡°Hey, shitheads,¡± he called. His body lurched up instantly, and he pounced on his enemies. ¡°Stop me!¡± His voice was all the smirk and confidence. It was his challenge to these creatures . . . these monsters in human skin who gued the society, feast on the blood and flesh of children and innocents.


    Zane was strong up front. Confidence lingered in his moves, but inside, he knew how insecure he was. But his enemies didn¡¯t need to know that.


    Zane was merely halfway there when the spellcaster sizzled red-hot fire at him. Zane was waiting for that exactly. He abandoned his anchor at the very moment and made a new anchor. The spellcaster. She barely found that something was wrong when a storming force thumped against his body like a lone sledgehammer pitting an anvil.


    Her face broke into a terror of cry as she was flung away to collide against the cave wall.


    Zane knew he wouldn¡¯t get many chances, and he would have to make the count as soon as possible even if he had to exchange blow for blow. Red hot fire sizzled his way. Even though he managed to fling away the pyromancer, her attack wasn¡¯t stopped. Luckily, she hadn¡¯t managed to bring out all her power. And with the enchanted cloak on his body, he might just make it with minimal damage.


    The pungent reek of his burning hair entered his nose, but he ignored it to emerge from the open fire. The two other vampires were already out of the way, but they couldn¡¯t take away the wounded one. Hey helpless on the floor, eyes shuttering in terror as the figure emerged out of the sizzling fire towards him with a wicked smile.


    Zane didn¡¯t give him time to scream. His dagger shot away from his palm and prated the head of the helpless vampire, digging all the way to where it matters. Mattered enough to kill a false immortal.


    ¡°Told you," Zane crackled, "I¡¯ll be through next time.¡±


    Thedy vampire, now had a hideous look on her face, shrilled, ¡°TOPAS, NO!¡±


    Zane didn¡¯t wait for their mourning to pass. He ran like hell like his life depended on it. Well, as a matter of fact, it did. The mourning of a few bloodsuckers didn¡¯t even mean a single penny to him. Monsters as they may be, they had some familial bond. At least some of them do. While the pyromancer mourned in indecision, herpanion trailed Zane, firing the guns they had with them, though little good they did. Zane''s enchanted cloak took all the damage.


    Zane¡¯s feet were dull inside his heavy boots, but they didn¡¯t stop. The tunnel grew narrower, which was troublesome to using any gravitational force, but reliving to his mental sense. That meant he was in the right direction, and salvation wasn¡¯t that far away.


    Zane swore that if he got away with his life this time around, he would never go alone into missions like these. Hell, if he wouldn¡¯t even have that sted bastard and that foul-mouthed baldie.


    Looks like the sorceress had some emotional entanglement with the bloodsucker he just killed, making her stop there. That¡¯s really rare to see in vampires, but it worked fine in his case. The fewer opponents he had, the less trouble he would get getting out. One almost got close enough to deal a blow, but he was prepared for it.


    Zane turned his anchor to him and pushed with all the gravitational force he could muster. Both of their bodies jerked away in the opposite direction, the vampire more than him, as he got a few metres closer to his way out. The other one shot bullets at him, finding him getting away. Zane hid his head as his enchanted cloak did its work, though the bullets thumped against his body quite painfully. The mission turns out to be more than what he could pay for. It is going to cost a lot to fix his stuff.


    Anyway, he was off. Zane turned to look at the face of the bloodsucker for thest time and pushed against the heavy boulder, blocking his way. A small gap appeared, which turned out enough for him to slide out to safety.


    ¡°God damn it!¡± Zane swore the very moment he got out. "You can''t really be serious."


    The reason for his outburst was that it was still dark, the sun hadn¡¯t risen yet. The only thing that could salvage his situation. As a rebellious mist drifted in thend, obscuring his vision enough that he had trouble finding the right route, not that he would be able to get away easily.


    Shaking his head in despair, Zane rushed out, as disruptive spell work formed behind him. The heavy boulder that closed off the entrance to the underground world shattered into thousands of shards of stones as fiery hot liquid mes sizzled out of the cave.


    sted heroes! Zane felt like the whole world wanted him to die. He staggered his exhausted body with all his might, only to hear a few footsteps behind him, spreading out to encircle him.


    "You," a voice said in all its coldness one could master. Zane turned to find the vampire sorceress standing with her eyes glowing in malevolent, blood smeared on her face. Mist warped around her as spiritual energy undted with her seeping out anger.


    The two others stood on his left and right, blocking his way. Zane shook his head as if they could block his way. "See you around, sucker."


    Dominion of Gravity stirred inside him as he pushed against the earth to lurch up in the air as the vampires punched towards him. Now, Zane was too exhausted to even muster half of his speed, but all he could be enough to get from their trails. Or at least, buy time until the sunes on.


    "You''re not escaping now," screamed the pyromancer. A spear of fire formed over her head and shot at him. Zane dodged that, as he was always perfective of the spellcaster''s attack. But it appeared she was in no mood to stop now.


    Zane manoeuvred his anchor at an acute angle to fly away, knowing these vampires wouldn''t let him to that easily since once they got hold of him. Though the mist created obscurity in his sight, enough for him to lose the way, it still helped him hide his tracks. Still, keeping the dominion running for long was a challenge for him. He needed to take a brother soon, or he might fall right into the vampire''s grasp.


    Thinking that Zane created a few false tracks over a couple of kilometres to fly out of their way to take shelter against a ridge, panting frantically. His chest heaved up and down as he looked towards the southern sky, wasting to see any sign of sunrise.


    With the mist obscuring his vision, he could make out nothing. Zane groaned and stayed limp against the rocky ridge, hoping the vampires would never find him. But he was still not without options. Yes, it would cost him a lot, but outside the dark cavern, he had ways to deal with the vampire.


    Zane has already taken healing potions twice in thest couple of days to have one now. It could seriously strain his body and leave him paralysed or with long-term consequences. But if they must, he might take them with him as well.


    _ _ _


    Another entry for this opener of volume two. Sorry for the dys.


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 Chapter 121 01: Into the Dark (3)

    <h4>Chapter 121 Chapter 01: Into the Dark (3)</h4>


    ¡°I swear, I felt some disturbance in this direction,¡± Julies said, peering around, though the obscurity provided by the wilful mist made it harder to see even past five metres.


    ¡°It could be some wild animal,¡± Eran said, behind the baldie.


    Both of them were in enchanted adventurer wear, from leather jerkins, mountain boots, and enchanted cloaks to the weapons they were carrying. Julies had a dozen daggers on his body, along with a quick bow and quiver full of arrows. Where Eran, the burly one contrasting to Julies'' skinny figure, was carrying a spear. Apart from that, both of the two were carrying a .44 revolver, not enough to kill any powerful spirit beast, but it could scare them away easily.


    Other than the burly dark man, there were two other mercenary men with pale faces and cut marks all over their bodies. They stayed in a half-conscious state, eyes impassive like fools as if all strength had been drawn out of their body, leaving one a hollowed shell. It wouldn''t be wrong to say they had been through shit in thest couple of days to look this bad.


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± Julies said, though the frown remained on his brows. He was almost sure he felt some dark energy undting, but if it couldn¡¯t be found, then they had to get on with their task. ¡°I wanted nothin'' wrong in this operation, but if it couldn¡¯t be helped, then . . .¡±


    ¡°Nothing wrong?¡± Eran repeated the word while giving a re at Julies. ¡°This n of yours is wrong, to begin with. If boss learns about this, you know he wouldn¡¯t going to like this.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m aware,¡± Julies said, ¡°but do you have any better idea?¡±


    ¡°Kish¡¯s Mercy, Juls,¡± Eran sighed. ¡°You know you can get expelled from the academy if anything goes wrong, and that¡¯s the best-case scenario. Compulsion is an offensive crime directly breaking the thirdw of magic. You¡¯ll be thrown in prison if they find out.¡±


    ¡°It''s ain''tpulsion,¡± Julies grunted as they strode, the two mercenary men following impassively. ¡°At least not the corrupting type.¡±


    ¡°If only there¡¯s a thing like that,¡± Eran said.


    The matters were like this: Before this boss left for Victoria, he gave them a task. Their task was to get to the root of all the disappearances of young children. Toplete that task, the two of them scurried all over the outskirts of starlight city, Manas, and even part of Endus to finally find some leads. But all of them ended with some small fry mercenaries. After lots of interrogations, all paths ended with: they didn¡¯t know shits.


    All they did was kidnap the children, move them to another¡¯s hand and those guys move them elsewhere, and so on, creating arge chain of events under the noses of all legal authorities. Well, there were some developments they had found in the past few months. Many of these mercenaries with such business found death, which stopped their advances in the surrounding areas of Starlight city, however, it was never stopped in the other regions. Not even nearly enough to stop.


    Even though these killings were brought to light, the legal authorities weren¡¯t still sure who was doing it. Perhaps someone on the other end is trying to keep their secret safe, or some rivalry between the vampire houses. Things are very hairy here, much more than Julies knew, but they can¡¯t let go of this, since bloodsuckers were rted to this. They were the very gue of society, that needed to be eradicated as soon as possible. Julies thought. Well, maybe not every one of them, but the number would definitely be on the higher end.


    ¡°This is going to work,¡± Julies said and moved towards the captives again. He had enchanted them before, well, a couple of times, but to have a surety of sess, he needed to once again. His Enchantment worked like charm, and like a charm, it has some shorings. In substantial amount of time, the effect wore off on its own, quite quickly for practitioners proportional to their spiritual and mental fortitude, but to some spiritually weak or even non-practitioners it would work for a couple of days without rest.


    Julies always thought of temporary shoring as a blessing, knowing full well what a fullpulsion could do to a man¡¯s mind, and even to a caster. Still, Julies always used it as ast resort. Well, he did thin out the line more nowadays, but like he had other options. The days were changing.


    Under the watchful gazes of Eran, Julies removed the thick-framed goggles, and he was a different person entirely. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me, Eran,¡± hemanded, well, yeah, his voice changed too. There was a slight vibe ofption in it. Well, not the real deal, but enough for Eran to look away.


    Sighing at the look of his friend, Juiles attended to the two captives. Now, he needed to be very careful with this, since it was the third time he was going with the enchantment within thest twenty-four hours. Even though these two were no better than human garbage, who sell innocent kids to fatten themselves, he couldn''t just break their mind while doing it. Even though he said otherwise to Eran, it was very much possible, too easy fro him to do it he wanted, easier than making them do what he wanted for all that matter.


    But Julies couldn''t do that. Ignoring everything about the nature of these garbage beings,pulsion was morally wrong, and what he was doing to them could coerce his head as well. These things were just toomon to happen in the long run.


    If you be ever dependent on this ability, for even minor inconvenience, then you''re on the path of no return. Fortunately, Julies was far from that. Well, lets;''s get this over with.


    ¡°You will tell me your name,¡± Julies asked, eyes staring nkly at the two human garbage.


    ¡°Ada Kision.¡±


    ¡°Thom Iarin.¡±


    Both of their voice was subservient, eyes shuddering in daunting fear. They had been defiant before, well, at the first time, but once they gave in, there was no turning back.


    ¡°Tell me what I am to you,¡± Julies asked.


    ¡°Master.¡±


    ¡°Master.¡±


    ¡°And what is your duty?¡±


    ¡°Obey master¡¯s everymand.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± Julies felt a lurching draw at her pool of spirit power, sucking in like a starving sponge. ¡°Now let¡¯s go over our game n for thest time. . . .¡±


    Eran sighed, watching the development in weakness. He couldn¡¯t do anything, even though unsure it was harming both parties. Compulsion was hardly good anything to the victim, but it was not so enduring for the caster as well. It twisted the head of the caster, the more he used it, the more he got intoxicated at the drunk fervour of power and domination.


    Eran didn¡¯t like to see magic envement first-hand, so he crept into the obscurity of the mist. Since it would take Julies to go over the instruction a while, he might as well scout around, though they have done that before already. Well, Juiles was so sure about the undtion of energy flow a few minutes ago, maybe he would check on that.


    At this hour of the day, anything would¡ªeven wild animals¡ªwould like to venture outside, not to mention this area was eerily vacant with stuffy air. Well, if vampires ran their ck business around this area, there¡¯s no reason not to be this eerie. Now all they had left to do was contact the vampire under the pretext of being mercenaries, followed by understanding the scale of their operations, gaining their trust and finally eradicating it from the root. Well, to do that, they would likely need more help from the academy, but as far as they were concerned, there were several people who wouldn¡¯t mind cleaning some filth.


    The sun rose, almost infrared through the obscurity, as wilful mist churned a little faster, struggling against the rising light. Still, the projected light wasn¡¯t enough. He could barely see a few metres ahead, and that was with his keen senses. If it were normal folk, he would have lost within the first two minutes.


    Eran kept on marking the way with his boot, while also he had a general idea of which direction he was turning. However, he finally noticed the thing Julies implied, he could barely believe his senses.


    He wasn''t even a couple of hundred metres away, as the mist churned with intensity as beaming fire scorched through a few dozen metres ahead of him. Eran''s mind chilled, and he withdrew without thinking, however, his leg stopped finding a figure flying by in the air, the opposite direction of his.


    A knight? He wondered. Even though he couldn''t see clearly, he was pretty sure that the silhouette was of a knight, using the dominion of Gravity, well unless he had other ways to do the same, though that''s hardly avable in the empire. But since it was a dominion of gravity, that means it was a human, a knight, since power like dominions were heavily guarded, and also the old sinners were forsaken to tough the power.


    The party chasing after him were . . . seemed to be vampires. Quick, he needed to alert Julies and see what they could do to help this knight. Eran turned and rushed only to find Juiles running in his direction, his purple misty eyes still open, peering all around as if they could pierce the obscurity of the mist.


    "Bloodsuckers?" he asked, turning his head to not look at Eran.


    "Yes."


    "Told you," Juiles said, and moved. "Stay on my back, with my eyes open, I can deliver more than you can imagine."


    Eran abided without any issues as Julies led him through the rocky terrain, paying full attention to the batter going on between the vampire and the knight. On second thought, they shouldn''t need to worry about that. The sun was rising, and the vampires would be powerless in time. However, the next word from Julies mouth alerted him once again.


    "That''s Zane," Julies said, louder than he intended. "What the hell is he doing here."

 Chapter 114 56: Dominion (5)

    I was too tired to worry about the chilly water, but my heart was racing at the speed of sound. I found Yeriel was just a few metres away, swimming up, and the same was true for the other two. Magically speaking, if it was before I wouldn¡¯t be able to see even past Yeriel who was barely ten paces away, much less the others.


    But after I took the Moonwater, the world changed. Or it was me who changed. Anyway, I have a new perspective of the world now. The moment I got out of the rift, I could feel the maternal world better. I could feel the spiritual sparks around me and delve further into my own power. There still seem to be some restrictions in ce that I couldn''t break free, only could barely feel with the power of dominion.


    Anyway, that''s not important now. All the problems were solved. Finally, I can rest.


    After climbing up to the surface of the water, I found the othersying half-dead on the cold earth. Well, I did the same just beside them, gasping.


    ¡°I . . . We saved a city,¡± I muttered. That earned a celebration, right?


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Noyar added. ¡°We definitely did it.¡±


    I was about to check everyone else, but then the ground shook, and I gulped, remembering that this cavern would copse with the rift space soon.


    ¡°Crap!¡± swore the Victorian woman. ¡°Ayaan curse us. What¡¯s now?¡± Even though she was swearing and felt the disturbance, she hadn¡¯t moved even a little.


    ¡°We should get out of here,¡± I said as the creaking noise increased. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    I tried to manoeuvre the suit to shoot out, but it was malfunctioning again, or perhaps there was not much fuel left. Well, I wouldn¡¯t be even surprised if all the stream thrusters melted away. I wasn''t in my right mind to protect them, after all, while also doing other crazy things. In the end, I had to use my two legs and carry my heavy body out of there. The others followed, but I found Yeriel, standing lost beside the pool as its surface undting.


    ¡°Yeriel?¡± I called.


    She just stood there as the stony walls and ceilings crumbled. I groaned and ran next to her. I nudged her strongly on the shoulder, only to see her drawing her arms towards the pool.


    Furthermore, I looked around to find some sparks of light glittering out of the undting water. A frown appeared on my brows as the light brightened to form a silvery silhouette of a Winterheart Reindeer as it flew towards us. Towards Yeriel, to be specific.


    My first reaction was to draw my sword, but Yeriel sped my fingers as the beast image stood before her. Yeriel drew her palm closer to its head and touched it. The beast cried and flew past us towards the exit. Its legs are getting blurry.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Yeriel said as she chased after the silvery silhouette.


    We exited after the blurry silhouette as it danced in the air. Noyar stopped with Jon''s unconscious body, leaning against her as she peered at the figure. The beast''s figure was turning to mist, getting bleak in the cloudy night. The clouds were clearing in the sky, and the glow of the moons could be seen through them. It climbed far into the air, dissolving, slowly reaching for the moons.


    I found Yeriel tearing, staring at the silhouette, but then something magical happened yet again. The broken antlers on top of her head. They turned to mist as well, drawn by the silvery figure to disappear into the night. That left Yeriel more humane than she had not been for some time. I''m sure she liked that more.


    ¡°Yeriel,¡± I called, and she cried harder.


    After several seconds, nothing was left of it.


    ¡°Did it,¡± Noyar asked hesitantly, ¡°die?¡±


    I shook my head ufortably. You can call it death if you want, however.


    Then the cavern copsed in whole, the entrance closing off to create a crater.


    ¡°It''s over,¡± I mumbled and sat down. ¡°How¡¯s Jon?¡±


    The uptight Knight was still unconscious, but I found a halo of light surrounding his body. Spiritual power undting around his body. Noyar sat down with the unconscious Jon on herp. Yeriel was thest one to sit. She was still watching the night sky.


    ¡°Better,¡± Noyar said. Her eyes glowed to see the changes as well. ¡°I¡¯m not sure what to call it, though. You can see it, right?¡±


    I nodded. ¡°His physical wounds would need further care,¡± I said. My dominion is still running. I haven¡¯t figured out how to close it yet, though I could tell it was running on standby, most likely. ¡°As for the spirit, I think he¡¯ll be better than before. He might be able to integrate his second Dominion easily after this.¡±


    Jon¡¯s situation could be called fortune from misfortune.


    ¡°What did you give to him back then?¡±


    ¡°A precious thing. I think you have dibs on a couple of drops in it as well,¡± I said, and brought out the small vial. ¡°Moon water. It¡¯s solidifying his soul body, strengthening it to the core. The next time he woke up, he would be much more powerful and probably could handle soul attack better.¡±


    Noyar swallowed a breath. ¡°Where are you getting so many precious things off?¡±


    I smiled while holding the vial. There were still fifteen drops left in it, and it would be useful to a few people. But both Yeriel, Noyar, and even my aunt deserve them after what they had been through.


    ¡°Anyway,¡± I said to Noyar. ¡°Do you want it now? Or perhaps after we get out of here.¡±


    Noyar shook her head. ¡°It would be a waste to use on myself,¡± she said. ¡°A Magus would go crazy if they even get a drop of it. Where I as a knight, it''s not much of a use.¡±


    I snorted. ¡°Do you know about the second awakening of Dominion?¡±


    Noyar raised an eyebrow. "You mean? Can it?"


    ¡°Noyar, how would you feel about seeing the future?¡±


    Noyar¡¯s eyes beamed with excitement, though she still seemed to have some second thoughts about taking it.


    ¡°Alright, two drops for you after we get out,¡± I said and then turned towards Yeriel, who was silent with her arms wrapped around her knees, looking down. I sighed without knowing.


    ¡°On the topic of Dominion,¡± Noyar said. ¡°You have an entirely new path of Dominion. Dominion of Shift or something you call it before.¡±


    ¡°That name doesn¡¯t do justice to it,¡± I said. ¡°Thankfully, I have a better name in mind. What do you think about Dominion of Disorder? Sounds cool, right?¡±


    ¡°It does, but didn''t you mention, it was a power that kept the bnce between realms or something?¡±


    ¡°So what?¡± I snorted. ¡°I¡¯m the owner of it, and I¡¯ll name it myself and besides, it''s not like the first time, someone named a Dominion the opposite it was used for.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°Dominion of Gravity, yet all the time it was used to nullify gravity.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s some weird reasoning, but I¡¯m d you gained something out of this disaster.¡±


    Oh Noyar, you have no idea what I gained. I was about to say that to her, but stopped looking at Yeriel. It''s not all about gaining. What Yeriel went through couldn¡¯t be undone. The people that died and crippled . . .


    ¡°Anyway, Noyar, I would be grateful if you keep silent about this Dominion until I announce it.¡±


    Noyar gave me a look and nodded.


    After two hellish nights, the disaster finally ended.


    ¡°Hey look up.¡±


    The clouds cleared in the sky and the star-filled sky unveiled itself with five moons together sharing the same sky. Two of them were full moons, and the other three were halves, but the sky looked strikingly beautiful with them.


    I don''t know when, but watching the sky I fell asleep, and I''m sure it''s not only me.


    * * *


    ¡°Wake up, wake up. It''s time to leave.¡±


    I groaned at the call, throwing away the palm and rubbing my cheek.


    ¡°Come on, Scar,¡± the voice called again.


    ¡°Five more minutes, Mum.¡±


    The palm on my cheek withdrew, and the voice didn¡¯t call again, but I felt the coldness on my back reducing as someone lifted my body in a warm embrace. I didn¡¯t feel much difort and went back to sleep again.


    The next time I woke up, it was already dawn. The sun rays cast through the window ss, enlightening the small room.


    ¡°You¡¯re awake,¡± a voice said.


    I blinked a couple of times, shading my eyes with my finger to find Shailyn sitting on a chair across from the small bed.


    ¡°Aunt,¡± I called and sat leaning against the hardwood. I found my left arm hanging on my chest, already stered while not wearing the false-ward with medicine applied all over my body, especially on my back. I swirled my spiritual power to refresh myself. ¡°How long was I asleep?¡±


    ¡°Not long enough,¡± she said and came near the bed to sit next to me. ¡°With your condition, I rmend you sleep all day. Your broken arm would¡¯ve healed within a week, but it would take more time now as you haven¡¯t left it rested all that much. I can¡¯t me you there. For a normal person, it would have taken months, but your friend seemed hopeful about you. As for other wounds, look at them yourself.¡±


    I did look at my chest. With brown ointment added to them, I couldn¡¯t see the condition, but I¡¯m sure I was burned well. Well, they would heal sooner than the arm, though leave scars for a month or two.


    I can only hope I¡¯ll be stronger next time.


    ______________________


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