《Kaul'n: Wielder of Time》


 Prologue

    "Run them down!" A thundering voice was heard as the sound of clopping was gradually getting louder.


    Screams of terror were heard all around, the scenes of a family''s house being burned down while fleeing villagers were seen running as their heads are being chopped off by passing cavalry. A bold figure, donned in a golden-plated armor, riding their steed with six legs, accompanied by a squad of cavalry that donned a black-plated armor, and engraved on their breastplate a mix between a lion and a horse holding a crown surveys the land as the bold figure removes his helmet and reveals a sinister grin as he looks around the horror befell on the village.


    "Slaughter them all" the bold figured says as the squad of cavalry rushes upfront following his command, leaving only screams being heard all over the darkness.


    "Stop!" Jon screams as he wakes up from the nightmare. "Stop the killing please!"


    Jon''s screams can be heard by all the villagers that live nearby the orphanage. Panic. Vernack, one of the orphanage''s caretakers, rushed into Jon''s room along with other caretakers that was woken up by Jon''s screaming.


    "Hey, Jon what happened?" Vernack softly says, as he calmly approaches Jon.


    "They are coming!" Jon looked at Vernack straight in the eye as tears are seen falling from his eyes. "Meadow Cross and all of us are going to die!"


    Shaken by Jon''s words, Vernack looks back to the other people inside the room, he sees the panic from the orphans and the worried look from the caretakers. He could also feel the annoyance that the neighbors probably exude after hearing Jon''s scream in the middle of the night.


    "Jon. no one is coming to kill us" Vernack said, caressing the back of his head while giving him the look of assurance.


    "No! It''s real, I just know it¡¯s real!" Jon pushes Vernack back and attempts to jumps off his bed attempting to run straight to the bedroom window.


    "Jon get back here!" Vernack barely grabbed on to Jon''s leg causing Jon to trip as he was about to jump hitting his head on the hard-wood floor.


    "Verna! Be careful with Jon!" A female caretaker rushes up to Jon and lifts him off the floor and placing him back to his bed. "He may be ten, but that does not mean you should be rough with him"


    "Then how else was I supposed to stop him from jumping from his bed huh?"


    "Enough you two!" An old caretaker steps in between the two and sits beside Jon, worry all over her face. "Please, calm the others now and usher them back to their quarters"


    "Yes grandmother" the two caretakers then ushered other children and caretakers out of the room and took care of the complaints of the neighbors that can be heard as a number of them came up to the doors of the orphanage.


    While everything outside the room was quiet, Jon''s room was still lit and sniffling could be heard from the inside.


    "But, grama Bliss it felt so real" Jon chokes on his words as visions from the nightmare still shook him.


    "All nightmares feel real, dear boy. These are things that cannot harm us because they are only our imagination." Bliss softly said, she continues to wipe the tears off of Jon while hugging him. "Although those were nightmares, always remember that your grandmother and all the other caretakers in this orphanage are here to protect you, we will never allow any of you to be harmed in any sort of way"


    Grandmother Bliss'' words warmed up Jon''s heart, feeling assured that the nightmare was never real and that he felt safe around his grandmother.


    "Grama, promise you will never leave us?" Jon said, looking at Bliss'' eye.


    "Oh dear, if even that old hunter that lives near the creek can live for over a hundred years and outlive numerous predators, compared to me that is chained to this orphanage with no predators on sight I will be able to live long enough for you to see you off your journey to wherever you go." Bliss happily said, embracing Jon tighter.


    Feeling assured by the grandmother''s words, he returned the embrace and went back to sleep after. However, his mind is still shaken by his nightmare which made it hard for him to go back to sleep. Bliss puts out the candle light and glances at Jon before leaving his room.


    ****


    At the break of dawn, as farmers and some others rose from their beds to prepare themselves to work back in their fields, a loguard rushes to the bell tower that would normally be rang by the village chief as a sign of a waking call to everyone in the village. The loguard rang the bell as fast as he could, as his face drenched in sweat and his complexion worsening by the moment.


    The village chief rushes out his home towards the bell tower, his clothes barely clung to him, it was evident that he dressed in a hurry.


    "Loguard Mane, what is the meaning of this?" Greylo, the village chief, approaches the loguard concern seen all over his face.


    "Get everyone out of here!" Mane calls out as he wheezes after every word. "The Supriars are coming!"


    Hearing the words of the loguard, murmurings were heard around the bell tower. Greylo looks around him and sees the panic in the eyes of his kinsmen.


    ''Did not the Supriars sign a treaty with Lord Cristos, why are their army here?" He mutters, as he stares blankly at the entrance of Meadow Cross.


    "Chief, what must we do?" A villager''s panicky voice was heard behind him.


    "Get every person in Meadow Cross to immediately cross the southern creek and head off to Baron Slies'' border castle!"


    The bell continued to be rang as the people of Meadow Cross hurriedly pack their things and hurtled towards the southern creek.


    ****


    In a distance from Meadow Cross on a hill, a hundred of cavalry whose breastplates have an engraved symbol of a mix between a lion and a horse holding a crown were slowly moving towards the village.


    "Lord Volux, Slies'' village is ahead." An officer donned in a black-plated armor moves beside an imposing figure in golden armorYou might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    "Tell the others that in a moment we will charge in." Confidence in his voice, Volux stares off at the escaping villagers heading to a nearby creek. "Do tell Yorum to take his men and slaughter the panicking ants"


    The officer bowed and shortly rushes back to the army, yelling out orders by the golden-plated Count.


    ****


    In the orphanage, the children were rushed out with their caretakers, some being carried and some on foot. Jon woke up to the sound of stomping and the constant ringing of the bell, he could feel the panic that the people inside the orphanage are feeling. He senses that in a few seconds someone will barge into his room so he immediately chased for the door.


    "Jon wake up we need to leave--" As Vernack just opened the door to his room he notices Jon on the floor. "Okay, what just happened?"


    "I was about to open the door." He replies as he slowly stands back up.


    "Oh, apologies for that. We need to hurry Jon, the neighboring kingdom is about to burn this village to the ground" Vernack helps Jon dust off and immediately grabs his wrist to bring him out of the orphanage.


    By the entrance of Meadow Cross the village chief is seen standing beside a squad of loguards and a gray horse. Jon remembers the nightmare he had a few hours ago he felt that this event is what happened in his nightmare.


    Seconds later, the sound of clopping is heard from a distance and the ground shook as if it was about to burst. Greylo and the loguards braced themselves seemingly prepared, but their complexion says otherwise.


    "Lord Supriar, the moment you step inside this village, I swear that your kingdom will suffer even more than your ancestors did hundreds of years ago!" Greylo yells the moment he sees the charging cavalry.


    "Charge!" Volux and his cavalry hastens in reply.


    "Chief Greylo, leave while you still can, we will hold them off." Loguard Mane said, giving Greylo the reins to his horse. "Leave and guide the others to Baron Slies"


    Greylo hesitates at first but as he sees the panic of his people he then takes the lead and immediately lead towards the southern creek.


    "Jon do not stop, we have to move fast!" Vernack once again grabs Jon''s wrist dragging him along with him.


    "Ahh--" Screams were heard by the southern creek as well as the sound of clopping was heard coming from the southern creek as well.


    Jon and Vernack stopped in their track as soon as they heard the cries. Bliss and the other caretakers halted as well, slowly moving backwards as they continue to hear screams getting louder as well as the sound of clopping.


    "Ramus, Nali, Mandi, Pylo, Verna, and Gless get the children and scatter, stay away from the open areas I tell you!" Bliss yells as she carries two baby orphans on her back. "We must reunite at the creek''s end southwest from here, you will know it is the end once you see a pond and nearby should be a small abandoned cave"


    Seeing the worried faces on her fellow caretakers, she groups them up and chants a simple magic that covers everyone in a thin sheet of an invisible barrier. Everyone was confused and hesitant at first, but seeing that their grandmother showed no distress they grabbed as much children as they can and ran off towards random directions, away from the sound of clopping.


    "Jon over here" Vernack tightly gripped Jon arm and carried another child with them, heading off towards the back of the orphanage which directly leads to the forest.


    When the three were about to reach the orphanage, a vision enters Jon''s mind hinting that if they went to the orphanage they will be blocked by one of the cavalry and kill them in an instant.


    "Verna, let us not go there!" Jon anxiously pulls Vernack''s arm toward a different direction, but Vernack was physically stronger as he was older than him by eight years. "We will die if we go there!"


    "They will not be able to find us there, trust me, I know a secret passage there" Vernack confidently said, although his head is clouded with a lot of negative thoughts he felt responsible if he were not able to even save these two children.


    The three entered the orphanage, thinking that they would be able to cover themselves from the sight of the pillagers. Although outside of the orphanage was chaotic with houses being burnt down and people being beheaded, inside the orphanage felt unusually calm as a bit of the rising sun peeks through the eastern windows.


    "Jon, stay close and never lift stand up, just crawl" Vernack said, crouching beside the walls they slowly move towards the back entrance of the orphanage.


    Moments later, halfway through the orphanage a bolt of fire forcibly broke through the western windows, setting fire to the wooden orphanage. Panic, the three rushed towards the back entrance and just as they were about to open the door they were pushed back by an explosion from the other side of the door.


    "Burn down this place as well!" An officer from the Supriars is seen outside the orphanage along with two subordinates that are constantly casting firebolts towards the orphanage.


    "Ugh--¡± Vernack struggles to move as one of the wooden beams toppled over him after the explosion.


    "Brim, are you okay?" He tries to move the child on the side of his chest, but to no response.


    Vernack placed his left hand by the neck of Brim to check for any pulse, but later on to only notice that he could not feel anything on his left arm. He then looked for Jon, last he remembered was Jon pulling his right arm moving him a bit to the right.


    "Jon, are you okay?" His breathy yet soft voice echoes around the burning orphanage. "Jon!"


    Vernack then hears loud thumping and metal clattering by the entrance of the orphanage. He sees a one of the cavalry men on foot entering the burning orphanage carrying along him a short sword surveying the orphanage.


    "I swear I heard a voice in here." The cavalryman mutters to himself, stays inside for a bit checking the rubbles for a certain amount of time. Suddenly he hears heavy breathing behind a broken wooden beam and sees Vernack in wheezing loudly. "Found the little bugger"


    Just as the cavalryman about to reach Vernack preparing himself to stab Vernack, a burning stick was thrown at the cavalryman''s helmet. The cavalryman snapped his neck towards the direction of the stick and glares at a small child, half of his right leg and his left shoulder seen with burn marks.


    "Tch. Children." The cavalryman runs towards Jon readying his blade to slice Jon in half.


    Almost as if knowing where the cavalryman will strike him, Jon easily dodges the attack and jumps out of the area where the cavalryman attempted to slice him.


    "Cunning" The cavalryman snaps his body racing towards Jon, but before he could even make another step the burning roof above him breaks off and collapse towards him. "Arghh--"


    While the cavalryman was struggling to push off the collapsed roof above him, Jon rushes beside Vernack and help him push the collapsed beam on him and Brim. After multiple tries and braving the heat of the flames, Jon and Vernack were able to move the collapsed beam enough for Vernack and Brim to get off the beam.


    "We... have to move fast" Jon said, exhaustion overcoming him because of the heat.


    Without hesitation, even though he could not feel anything from his left arm or even being able to check if Brim was okay, he carries the exhausted Jon on his right shoulder and charged towards the exit. As soon as Vernack reaches outside, he sees a warhorse with no rider waiting outside and immediately tries to steal it. Placing Brim and Jon''s body on the back of the horse, he attempts to ride the horse but luckily the horse did not throw them off.


    With little experience of riding horses, Vernack managed to lead the horse directly into the forest behind the orphanage.


    "Grama..." Countless thoughts ran on his mind, but he knew he had a responsibility and steered the warhorse to the direction of the creek''s end.


    ****


    An hour has passed since the pillage on Meadow Cross, the sun has rose luminating the land of Wesout, the peacefulness heard from the slow blowing wind, the flowing water along the creek, and the singing birds was calming for the exhausted Vernack. As he was leading the warhorse onwards, he could see a pond at the end of the forest.


    ''I am finally here!'' Vernack hastens the steed, though his complexion were pale his eyes brimming with excitement. ''Grama, brothers and sisters, I have finally arrived!''


    As he broke through the forest, the joy in his face gradually dissipated tightening his grip on the horse''s rein and slowly pulling it back. Tears fell on the side of his cheek, he felt all sorts of emotions; anger, grief, doubts and so on.


    On the opposite side of Vernack, a lot of dead bodies can be seen, heads chopped off, upper body separated to its lower body, and a thick blood trail from the inside of the cave leading towards the pond. He sees a floating head flowing towards him, and to his horror he pulled the reins of the warhorse and rushed into the bloody cave.


    The image of the beheaded person continued to flash in his mind, he did not want to believe in what he saw immediately, he wanted to believe that person is still alive inside the cave, he did not care if that person was unconscious, sick, injured or whatever, he only cared to see if she is still alive.


    Alas, the truth was far from his expectations, inside the cave he sees the piled dead bodies of many members from the orphanage, even the headless body of grandmother Bliss. Vernack stepped down from the warhorse and painfully approached the piled lifeless bodies of his once living family.


    Many emotions entered his mind, but on the outside it was blank. If eyes could speak, he could have spoken thousands of words, all in rage for the disrespect done onto his family. However, minutes later, he slowly stood up and checked on both Brim and Jon. With Jon he could still feel him breathing, but with Brim his body only felt cold.


    He slowly lifts Brim''s lifeless body and places it beside grandmother Bliss, then he went out of the cave and collected all of the dismembered bodies and gently placed it all beside the pile of dead bodies.


    ''O Great Ansi, lead their spirits to Solvana, your realm, in peace'' He knelt in front of the bodies of his family praying to the ruler of the spirits, Ansi. Moments later he collected dry leaves around the cave and placed some on top of the bodies and some in between the bodies and torched the dry leaves he has placed.


    He knew that the leaves were not enough to cremate all of them, but the grief in him overcame his sense of logic in that moment. As he pulls the reins of the horse towards the outside of the cave, he glances at the unconscious body of Jon, drank a bit of water from the bloodied pond and gave some to the unconscious child, and rode the horse directly south from the cave.


    ****


    Deep into the abyss of his dreams, Jon could see the passing of time and the number of wars that the land of Wesout will face in the years to come.


    "..." He tries to speak but nothing would come out of his mouth.


    Then a flash of light luminates the abyss and the last he sees is a distant figure, standing atop a mountain and staring into the horizon.

 Chapter 1: Pyrlord

    In the stillness of the night, chirping, croaking, hooting and howling of the wildlife fills the space in between the silence. Moonlight stretches over the land of Wesout, the clear skies reveal the three moons watching over Kaul''n and the infinite number of stars glistening around the vastness of the sky.


    "Where are we Verna?"  Jon said, awaking from his unconsciousness on the back of the warhorse. "Have we arrived Grama''s cave yet?"


    Silence. Jon looks at Vernack''s back; he notices the partially burnt tunic he was wearing revealing patches of burn marks on his back. Hearing Jon''s voice, Vernack tightly gripped on the horse reins and pulls it in an attempt to slow down the horse.


    Atop the horse, Vernack was deathly still, only allowing the late night wind to blow his faint green and black hair and brush-past the burn patches on his left arm. As if in deep thought, Vernack blankly stared off towards a distance feeling as if someone is choking him as he holds back the tears from showing.


    "Verna, where are--"


    "We will be resting here for tonight" Vernack speedily said, forcing his voice to sound as calm as he could.


    The two dismounted from the horse and set up camp with only a campfire as their light and the surrounding leaves as their bed. Foraging only a handful of berries nearby, Vernack gave all the berries to Jon as he makes a makeshift bandage by ripping some of his tunic and covering the burn on jon''s right leg.


    Again, silence. Nature''s ambience keeps the camp from being deathly silent, and as if nature''s call to sleep, a strong wind blows pass the camp killing the campfire and silencing the wildlife nearby.


    "Verna... just tell me what happened to grama" Jon soft voice seemed loud enough for the resting horse to be alert.


    "They... I..." Vernack chokes up as he remembers seeing the lifeless bodies of his family, he coughs as if trying to clear his throat. "They are--"


    When Vernack was about to finish his sentence, Jon suddenly embraces him and says nothing.


    "Ow! Jon my back has burns too, your hands are making it hurt" Caught off guard by the embrace, he immediately forgot what he wanted to say.


    "Grama and the others were found, were they not?" Ignoring his cries of pain, Jon''s muffled voice resonated on Vernack''s chest and brings him back to reality.


    "Yes..." Vernack replies as he returns Jon''s embrace even tighter, tears flow down his cheek.


    The two fell asleep as they wept that night, and as if feeling sorry for them the horse rose from his sleep and laid down beside them.


    ****


    Hours into their sleep, Vernack awakens to the sound of clopping. He hides Jon in a bush and checks their surroundings. Alerted by Vernack''s movement, the horse awoke from its sleep and being a trained and experienced horse by an elite horseman it crouched beside Vernack prepared for any situation.


    "Is it true that Lord Volux plans to pillage another village tonight?" One of the cavalryman on a brown steed suddenly asks out loud, thinking that no one would hear them.


    Although it was completely dark in the forest, the moonlight reflecting on the surface of the source''s plate-armor made it easier for Vernack to spot where the sound came from.


    "May Ansi guide their souls, but it is true." Another cavalryman on a black steed mournfully said.


    "I would rather be out here fighting against Slies'' patrolmen than taking innocent lives." The cavalryman on a brown steed spat.


    "Alas, Lord Volux is--" As one of the cavalryman was about to finish his sentence, a distant sound of a horn blowing was heard.


    Without any hesitation, the pair rode off directly to the sound of the horn. Although the cavalry was gathered near Vernack''s camp, because none of them carried any torches, the camp was never found.


    ''It looks like they are in a hurry, does not seem like to be searching for me though'' The cavalrymen passed by their location in a swift, only leaving their hoofprints behind.


    A few moments later after not hearing anymore unusual sounds, due to too much exhaustion, Vernack passes out beside the horse. The horse sees the sudden collapse of Vernack, it bites onto his right arm and drags him beside Jon.


    It surveys the area for a moment before going back to sleep beside the two.


    ****


    Morning came, the gentle breeze of the night has passed and the nocturnal wildlife enters their lethargic state leaving only the sound of the leaves rubbing against each other as morning wind blows past its branches. The first to rise from their sleep is the horse, seeing that the two are still asleep it leaves them for a bit.


    An hour later, the horse returned and still sees the two asleep. Worried that they might be dead, it licks Jon''s face and gently nudge Vernack using one of its front legs.


    "Give me another minute grama, please" Vernack said sluggishly, pushing the hoof of the horse away from him.


    "Ahh! Who is licking me?" Jon thrashed around accidentally hitting both Vernack and the horse.


    "Euh! Jon stop recklessly swaying your arms!" Vernack knocks Jon''s head immediately after getting hit in the gut by him.


    In response to Jon''s thrashing, the horse turns its back and used its hind leg to throw some dirt on Jon.


    "Ack! Stupid horse why did you have to that?" Jon retaliates by throwing back some bundled leaves beside him.


    Seeing that Jon is fine, Vernack could not help but smile. However, the horse throwing dirt at Jon was the most hilarious part.


    The morning for the three was joyous as if last night were only a dream, no, a nightmare that seemed too real for everyone. The three filled themselves with the berries around them and drank water from a river they passed along the way of their travel.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    Hours into their trek, Jon hears Vernack stomach grumble constantly the more they travel along the river.


    "Verna, if you are hungry, I can give you my berries?" Jon''s politeness warmed Vernack''s heart but he also knows that he needs to eat something eventually.


    "No need to worry about me, as you can see my muscles are healthy as always" He confidently presents his pecs and forces a smile.


    Jon heartily laughed at Verna, almost outbalancing himself from too much movement as he laughs but the horse could feel that Jon was moving too much so it did its best to not accidentally make Jon fall off.


    A minute later, Verna collapses and falls off the horse alarming both Jon and the horse. Panic, Jon immediately dismounted and checked on Vernack.


    "Verna... Verna stay with me!" Jon first slowly shakes Vernack then gradually increasing the strength of his shaking.


    Seeing that Vernack was unconscious and Jon panicking, it immediately forced Vernack on its back and let Jon ride him. It ran towards a random direction that Jon was not leading him too.


    "Bale! Where are you taking us?" He does his best pulling the horse''s rein towards a different direction, but because Jon has a frail body and the horse being trained for battle, Jon could not do anything to stop its movement.


    Bale, the horse, brush pass many bushes and tree branches, jumping over rocks and sliding down steep areas. Jon could only hold down Vernack''s body and close his eyes as dust get into his eye due to the speed of the horse while tightly gripping on to the reins.


    Suddenly the horse stops on its track, standing on the top of a hill it looked as if the horse was surveying the horizon. Jon notices that they have stopped and slowly opens his eyes, only to see a beautiful scenery. Trees of green, pink, orange, red, and yellow blend nicely under the sunlight, a mountain range barely seen from a great distance as its gray hue blends with a resting fog around it, and birds of different species moving to-and-fro over the lively forest.


    "Wow~" The beauty of nature eases Jon''s mind for a moment, but a second later he sees smoke from a distance and points at it. "Bale, over there nearby a river, if there is smoke there could also be people, at least that is what Ramus used to tell me."


    Seeing where Jon was pointing, Bale readies itself and looks at Jon as if telling him to hold tight.


    "I am ready Bale, ride on!" He once again held Vernack down and tightly gripped onto its reins.


    A second later, Bale suddenly jumps and lands on a steep ground, perfectly balancing itself enough to slide without budging the two children on its back.


    "Bale, you could at least slow down a bit!" Jon yelled out as he anxiously held Vernack¡¯s body down while Bale is doing a lot of jumping and galloping.


    After passing countless of rocks, bushes, and trees the horse gradually decreased its speed as soon as it got closer to the smoke. Suddenly halting about sixty meters away from the camp, it gets down on the dirt and let Jon and Vernack out of its back.


    "You are not coming with us Bale?" He looks at the horse in its eyes, showing a longing gesture although they have only been together for a day.


    The horse huffs at Jon in reply, standing back up and licking Jon and Vernack''s face.


    "I love you too Bale!" Jon laughs as he embraces the horse in return, only joy found all over his face, but seconds later his smile immediately turns to a frown and a drop of tear flows down his cheek. "I hope to see you again, Bale."


    Bale continued to lick both the children''s faces before slowly backing up. It faces in a direction opposite of the camp and readies itself to leave. It looks back at Jon and Vernack for a moment before it neighs and charged ahead the same direction they came from.


    Jon and Vernack were left alone, near the camp that they believe people are living in. The gentle wind brushes the skins of the two, and the sound of the leaves rubbing against each other as if they were dancing to the blow of the wind would occasionally break the silence.


    ****


    "Bah! Those stupid nobles always get on my nerves these days." A loud raspy voice is heard from inside a tent.


    "If ye had enough of them, then ye should take their prestige!" Another voice is heard inside the tent.


    Inside the tent, three figures sat apart from each other, a burly man sharpening his arrows, opposite from him is a scrawny man making a rope out of large dried leaves, and next to him is a muscular woman deskinning a deer-like animal with three eyes, six legs, crystal-like antlers, and its pelt colored in crimson red, a color that is unusual for many living beings in Kaul''n.


    "Ay! Enough of your bickering Balak, if those devil-like Supriars heard what you said, not even your balls would be left intact." An imposing figure wearing nothing but a ragged cloth to cover his genitals enters the tent. The imposing figure looked as if he almost died as his complexion was worse than what it originally could have been, his body cold and wet as water drops from his messy hair and scruffy beard.


    "Bah! Let those bandits with ''prestige'' come over. I would love to test out my arrows against their beloved ''crest-engraved steel breastplates'', their ''highest and strongest armor that even a firebolt cannot pierce''." Balak scoffs and spat on his arrowhead and polished it. "I bet I can pierce through their armor if I spat on it, those bastards would panic that the crest was dirtied by my--"


    Before he could finish his sentence, the muscular woman throws the tongue of the deer-like creature at his face. He looks back at the woman in disgust and just let the tongue slide off of him.


    "Hilarious, Kleo, absolutely hilarious." He monotonously said as he wipes the saliva residue on his face.


    "I could have thrown worse." Kleo howled as she instantly rips of the pelt of the deer-like creature. "And I did remember saying that to call me Lahar a fortnight ago."


    "Of course madam ''Lahar''." He scoffs as he attempts to bow like a servant.


    "Alright, shut it you two. You may be thirty now but your attitudes say you are five." The imposing figure''s throaty voice immediately silence the two. "Lutar, how long until those nobles pillage Meadow Cross?"


    The three looked at the scrawny man, waiting for a reply. Lutar stopped working the ropes and made a sharp whistle. Suddenly an indistinguishable colored bird, with three tails, naturally styled wings that form cloud-like designs, the beak longer than an index finger by three inches , and its eyes golden like the sun, enters the tent.


    "If I could remember correctly, that thing is called as ''Vena Hiders'' by the Elves?" The imposing figure said in awe by the beauty of the bird. "Although I have seen it more than a hundred times now, I am still in awe by the majesty of this bird."


    "Here in Wesout, Ryner''s species are called ''Three tails'', alas, Ryner''s kind have been hunted down and abused by many kingdoms that they are barely seen nowadays." Lutar feeds the bird a piece of leaf, a healthy-colored green leaf that came from the famous Alonian trees. As if talking to the bird, he spoke in the way that the sound the bird makes.


    "So, any reports?" Balak impatiently said.


    "Ryner said that the Supriars are being led by a golden-plated knight and heard that their next target is Baron Slies'' home, Meadow Cross. Lutar conveyed Ryner''s message deliberately as he pulls out a map from one of the barrels nearby, presented it and pointed to where the bird said will be the next attack. "The attack will be done tomorrow but no time of day was stated."


    The imposing figure approached the table to closely check on the locations that were mentioned. Silence. Lahar and Balak joined the imposing figure in looking at the map, while Lutar spoiled the bird with three more Alonian tree leaves.


    "It seems like, soon our services will be used by either the Supriars or the Cristos after the attack on that village." The imposing figure broke out into such boisterous laughter that the others could not help but join him as well.


    "Balak, call on the others, let them know about an upcoming event." He says after showing a sinister smile while he goes around the tent to dress in the scaled armor that he would usually wear. "If they refuse, let them be and come join with me quickly."


    "Yes Pyrlord, it will be done in haste." Taking his equipment, Balak immediately left the tent while covering his face with the skull of a Torbir, a bear that is twice the size of a polar bear and have wavy patterns around its body, resembling the movement of magic in its body.


    ****


    *Present day*


    "Pyrlord, word about the attack in Meadow Cross has been spread to nearby villages." One of the members of the camp enters the tent in haste.


    "Good, in a few days¡¯ time, either the Supriars or Cristos will hire mercenaries for the upcoming war." Pyrlord confidently said while looking over the map that showed the villages and castles in the territories of the Supriars and Cristos. "Also, send a message to Krampus that I will be needing his services in an upcoming war."


    "Chief, I believe that demon, Krampus, would not be accepting your request just like before." Lahar said as her silvery voice takes Pyrlord''s attention. "Based on his previous reactions, I do not think he would be willing to work with us, especially if we were to be under a mortal kingdom."


    "Lahar, I know what I am doing, of course I know he will not immediately accept my request." Pyrlord smirks as if he were expecting someone to mention that. "Tell him that I will pay in blood."


    Pyrlord''s method of payment to gain the services of Krampus and his goons left the others dumbfounded. Pyrlord only grinned when he saw the reactions of the people around him.


    Several villages have been marked with a flag by Lutar as he waits for more reports from Ryden. With nothing to do but wait. Lahar then prepared a meal for the whole camp to be able to eat.


    Suddenly, without Lutar calling for Ryden, the bird flew inside the tent to talk with Lutar about what it had found along the way. Pyrlord noticing the immediate return of the bird, he was also intrigued by whatever report the bird has in store for them.


    "Lutar, any reports?" Pyrlord moves closer to the bird and stares at it in hopes to understand what it was saying.


    Ryden weirded out by Pyrlord''s action, it moves closer to Lutar and hides behind his back. However, this did not stop Pyrlord from doing his best to be able to communicate with the ''three tails''.


    "Chief, Ryden said that on the way back here to rest for a bit, it saw two children, the two are only about thirty meters away from here. And the two seem like are suffering from dehydration" The pity in Lutar''s face says it all. "Maybe we should heal these kids and learn any information that we have about the world and last known locations of those murderers."


    After hearing about the situation of the two children, Pyrlord looked at Lahar and Balak for a moment.


    "Bring the children!" Pyrlord orders one of the members of the camp to meetup with the children outside his doors and bring them back to equally made


    ****


    "A little more Vernack, we will be there soon!" Jon slurs his words as exhaustion continues to overcome him.


    As Jon was to reach the perimeter of the camp, he was instantly met by one of the members of the camp.


    "Child, it seems like the Pyrlord took interest in you, and it seems like you are dehydrated based on yours and his dry lips." The random person then gives Jon a water canteen for him and Vernack to drink.


    Jon drank until halfway through leaving some for Vernack. However, seconds later Jon''s vision go blurry and his mind went numb as if he was getting consumed by darkness before he fell to the ground. Seeing that the child collapsed, the camp member instinctively caught his body and lifted Vernack on his left arm.


    The member immediately brings the two inside the tent and places them on top of a stack of hay inside the tent.


    "Chief, what must we do with these two?" Lutar curious on why Pyrlord saved innocent children.


    "In my early years, I once was a refugee from the ravages of war, just like these two. It seems like nature wants me to redeem my losses." Pyrlord monotonously said. "Meaning, I will be taking in these children, as my apprentices from now on.

 Chapter 2: Movement of TIme

    *Five Years Later*


    From a distance, Pyrlord''s camp seemed peaceful, no sound of shouting nor hammering only silence. The midday sun shines even brighter, the scorching heat could even dry leather in a matter of minutes. Beside a river, sounds of metal clanging are heard along with the sound of water crashing against the rocks along it.


    "Many seasons of the North has passed and you are still recklessly swinging the blade without proper form." Pyrlord easily dodges Jon''s attempt at hitting him and striking him as he exposes his weakness throughout the session.


    Fwoop! The sound of an arrow being released was heard behind a tree. Sensing the arrow aimed at him, Pyrlord took advantage of the exposed Jon by striking his arm, disarming him, and grabbed him as a shield against the cotton-tipped arrow.


    *thud*


    "Ow... alright that is my lose." Jon groans pushing himself out of Pyrlord''s grasp.


    "My bad Jon!" Vernack calls from a distance as he approaches Jon and Pyrlord.


    "Verna, your shots are accurate but reminder when you are sure about your shot make sure that the enemy has not noticed you beforehand, especially in close combat because as you just saw earlier, Jon could have died by your hands." He sternly said. "On the contrary, Jon you seem to be too excited or seemingly on a rush to attack me that you tend to forget that the moment you swing, you are not able to move immediately."


    "Of course I get agitated, especially with all your comments hurting my ears." Jon murmured as he turns his back on Pyrlord.


    Pyrlord heartily laughed at Jon''s actions, grabbing him by the neck and roughhoused him.


    "You... bushy... old... man... get off me!" Jon struggles to remove the arm around him and resorts to flailing his arms around.


    "Who did you call bushy, huh?" He tightens his grip on Jon making it difficult for him to move.


    On the side, Vernack would only burst into an unrestrained laughter seeing the person that seemed like his younger brother to be roughhoused by a muscular man. Balak, Lahar, and Lutar snickered as they do their own thing on the other side.


    "Oi Verna! Come with me for a bit, let us hunt for more ''taldir''!" Balak calls out as he inspects his bow and arrows.


    "Are not the ''taldirs'' rare in this area, those six-legged, crystal-horned buck use magic to check its surroundings." Vernack complained as he thought about hunting the rare deer. "The last time we did it, the red bugger instantly noticed us as soon as we saw it and ran faster than it shat."


    "That is all because you lad listened not to me, a master hunter, but only listened to a bird whisperer!" He nagged as he muttered profanities against Lutar.


    "Well at least uncle Lutar taught me how to handle a bow, while you just nag at me for failing to take a proper form!" The two argued on as other members of the camp watch the two leave the camp with their bow and quiver on hand.


    ''They are slowly growing on each other.'' Lahar chuckled as she continues to chop firewood.


    The riverside was livelier than the crash of the river water, the simple life that the campers enjoyed made them feel close as if a family on a trip.


    Pyrlord finally loosens his grip on Jon and laid down on the rock bed. Huffing and puffing, Pyrlord once more let out a hearty laugh which made Jon laugh as well.


    "Chief, a letter from the Hammun Division." A low-ranking member of the camp approached Pyrlord presenting a rolled red paper, sealed with the symbol of a book below a shield.


    He took the letter in an instant and sat on a fallen log. He closed his eyes for a moment before finally removing the seal and read the contents of the letter.


    At first, he was confused on what he was reading, but the longer he read the letter the more his complexion worsened. If the scorching heat from the midday sun was enough to dry leather in minutes, the sweat that was escaping his face would be cold enough to freeze metal.


    "Chief, anything good?" Seeing the expression that their leader was making, Jon was made curious about the contents of the letter.


    "Jon, I need you to bring Balak and Lutar here right now." Pyrlord sternly said while he is still reading the letter. "Tell them this is urgent."


    "Right away!" Jon immediately asked two low-ranked members of the camp to call for Lutar while he ran towards the direction where Balak and Vernack went.


    "Anything going on Arguhn?" Noticing the rush that just happened and the expression that she saw from Pyrlord as she rested from wood chopping, Lahar approached him curiosity in mind.


    Without saying anything, Pyrlord looked at Lahar dead in the eye and gave her the red paper. Lahar reluctantly took the paper from him and read the contents. Just like Pyrlord, at first she was confused, then slowly her face went paler than a white stone the more she read the contents.


    "We must hurry and call Balak and Lutar!" She exclaimed as soon as she finished reading the letter.


    ****


    In a distant area, a village called Baritu was built inside the territory of the Dukedom of Cristos, it was built beside a lake and was purposely used to mine Behemite and Iron ores, and because it was a mining village it was an important asset for the Dukedom as it provided the them materials to forge weaponry so the Grand Duke, Prauli Cristos, sent veterans and expert fighters in his army to protect Baritu at all costs.


    However, the scene that Ryden sees is a ruined village filled with dead bodies, many villagers were stripped naked and beheaded while some were burnt alive. What was once a lively home for many families is now reduced to a graveyard with its bodies ten feet above ground. The mining area was caved in and many of the belongings could not be found.


    Wanting to get a closer look, Ryden flew towards the highest post within the village and surveys the area for a bit.


    Cheep Cheep. It continues to survey the surrounding area while blending the color of its feathers with the object its talons touch. It notices the direction where hoof prints and cartwheels were moving. As if knowing it has accomplished its mission it immediately flew back to the direction where it came from.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.


    ****


    Back on the camp, inside Pyrlord''s tent, the four important figures of the camp surround a red paper, their expressions show anger but their complexions paler than the midday clouds.


    "How could this happen without us knowing immediately?" Smashing an arrow tip into the red paper, Balak exclaimed. "Those traitorous Elturean bastards set us up to be haunted down by the Supriars and used a red letter as an apology for their two-faced fur asses!"


    "I knew it from the start, the mercenary alliance between the Hammun Division, Krampus'' Mus Den, Eyes of Alonia, and Pyrlord Brigade was a mistake!" Lahar exclaims as she slowly releases a terrifying aura causing other members of the camp nearby to suddenly shiver in fear as cold sweat falls from their head. "Ever since I first laid my eye on that orange-eyed Kanisi, I always felt that he had other reasons for accepting our alliance request, cunning fur ball!"


    "Arguhn, we are strong enough ourselves, why did we need to ally with another mercenary group?" Lutar finally raised his complaint after listening to the other two speak their mind. "Do ye not trust our strength?"


    Rubbing his hand over his forehead, wiping any sweat that were to drop on the table, Pyrlord sat down on his chair and sighed loudly.


    "No, I have never questioned the strength of our brigade ever since the first formation of this group, I had no doubts nor reluctance in choosing all of you as members of my brigade." Pyrlord explains as calm as he could, but the pounding in his head from the stress of the situation causes him to make short pauses as he spoke. "However, I requested an immediate alliance with the other neutral mercenaries outside the territory of the Supriars and Cristos so that we may be able to protect each other in case the Supriars or the Cristos chose to attack us instead of hiring us."


    "But after countless passage of the northern season, the Supriars nor the Cristos showed no sign of hiring neutral mercenaries." Lutar argued. "Two northern seasons ago, we should have broken off the alliance and stayed hidden until the Dukedom or the Kingdom finally took interest in hiring neutral mercenaries."


    "In the first place, why them?" Balak added. "Why did we have to ally with mercenary groups from other races and not our own?"


    "Balak, you may be knowledgeable about the way the wildlife, their lives and the seasons when bushes and trees bear fruit, but you are no master of it." Pyrlord sternly said. "These groups I have chosen specifically because they are masters of their craft, the Kanisis have great sense of smell and are able to move faster than us Mortals, though they may resemble a wolf but that is not where we should judge them."


    "Krampus, does not only have the best alchemical mastery in all of Wesout due to himself being a Winged Serpentine, but he also has a multitude of demonaics with a certain mastery of assassination and alike." Pyrlord added. "Lastly, the Grove Elves of the Eye of Alonia may not be great as warriors, but their special Bloodline Magic allows them to temporarily turn any trees into an obedient wood golem that is said to be able to withstand being burnt."


    The three went silent as Pyrlord explained more about his decisions and why he thought it was the best decision at that time. Only the sound of popping and crackling from a nearby torch filled the silence in the tent.


    The tense atmosphere within the tent could be felt by the other members of the camp, they felt as if they were being choked by the four people inside Pyrlord''s tent.


    ****


    "Hey Verna, what do you think chief and the others are angry about?" Jon whispers while he lays in his hammock.


    "Based on the mention of Krampus, I believe it is about the mercenary alliance from five northern seasons ago." Vernack replied as he yawns and slowly close his eyes.


    "Five northern seasons ago huh..." Jon gazes at Nerva, the third and farthest moon, recounting all that has happened since their arrival in the camp.


    ''I may have trained with chief Pyrlord for five northern seasons now, but I do not even feel strong yet.'' He thought to himself as he turns and lay on his left arm.


    ''Ever since then, I have not received any vision about the upcoming events, why is that so?'' Jon then look toward the dark forest in a distance from him. ''Must something tragic happen for any revelations to enter my head?''


    Without finding any clue about the trigger for his visions, Jon shuts his eyes and falls asleep after a day of training.


    ****


    Back inside the tent, the four had finally settled down but the red paper was nowhere to be seen.


    "This morning, we will have to tell the others of the alliance disbanding because of the Kanisi setting us all up." Pyrlord decreed as he prepares two red paper.


    "I bet the Elfins and the Demonaics already know of this report." Lahar could only sigh as their predicament worsens as time goes on.


    "It is better to inform them officially than letting them assume that we are colluding with the Kanisi." Lutar took the two red papers and burnt the tip of a Helen tree branch to be used for writing on the red paper.


    "Inform them that we are disbanding the mercenary alliance for two reasons." Pyrlord instructed Lutar. "First reason is that our alliance has been exposed and has informed the Supriars of our hideouts which the Kanisis gave this information to them in exchange for their eternal fealty towards the Supriars, and second reason is that our alliance has gone on too long with no avail from being hired by the Cristos nor the Supriars before we have received the information leak by the Kanisis."


    "May Ansi let those traitorous Kanisis suffer eternal punishment even in the Realm of the Dead." Balak grumbled as he tries not to break another arrow on his quiver.


    Once again silence, only the sound of wood scratching on a surface and the crackling of the torch flame can be heard inside the tent. As if recognizing the intensity of the situation, the usual gentle breeze of the night never came to cool the air in the camp, not even the swaying of leaves nor the sound of nocturnal wildlife can be heard around the camp.


    The moonlight from the three moons were slowly being covered by thick dark clouds and the heat of the night only grew intense.


    ****


    "Jon! Wake up!" Jon hears the panicked voice of Vernack. "They are here! Those murderers are here!"


    Jon tries to open his eyes or even move his body, but he could not move anything, even his fingers feeling as if he was paralyzed.


    In the darkness, Jon sees a distant glimmer as it slowly gets closer to him. Then suddenly a flash of light appears revealing for a brief moment the figures found in that distant glimmer. He sees the mix of a lion and a horse holding a crown engraved into their breastplate and a golden-plated armor.


    Then another flash of light appeared as he sees a cracked image of Pyrlord being split apart by two cavalrymen, one tied to his leg and the other on his right arm.


    Jon tries to scream but nothing would come out of his mouth, not even a breath of air. As more flashes of light are seen, the more horrifying the images were. He tries his best to force himself to move or wake up, but the more that he struggles, more scenes are shown to him even revealing scenes from the past where Meadow Cross was burned down and seeing the beheading of Grandmother Bliss in cave by the creek''s end.


    "Chief! Save me!" Jon sees Lahar struggling to fight against three cavalryman charging towards her and as one of the swords was about to stab into her head, the scene suddenly disappeared and only the sound of metal clanging was heard as it slowly fades out.


    Suddenly, Jon feels a drop of water in his head and rushed out of his hammock as he breathes heavily trying to take in a large amount of air the moment he breathes in. Jon rushed towards Vernack''s hammock and violently shakes his hammock trying to wake him up.


    "Verna! Verna! Verna!" Jon panics as rain starts to pour, his brown eyes flicker constantly changing from brown to olive green the more he violently shakes him.


    "Jon! Am awake!" Vernack roared as he pushed him away. "What in the taldir''s ass are you screaming about?"


    "They are coming Verna! The murderers of Meadow Cross are coming!" Jon looks at him dead in the eye constantly screaming and repeating what he was saying.


    Vernack was taken aback for a second before he suddenly remembered the last time Jon was in this state, the night before the ruin of Meadow Cross. However, he calmed himself down, remembering that the reason why Jon was like this was because of a nightmare.


    Jon''s scream awakens nearby members of the camp, alarmed by it and thinking that the camp was actually under attack. As they were readying their weaponries, a sound of rumbling along with the heavy downpour almost deafened Jon''s screaming.


    ****


    Ten minutes before the downpour.


    The sound of wood scratching on a surface and the crackling of the torch flame fills the tent.


    "Arguhn, here is the first letter, seal it immediately." Lutar rushes to write on the second red paper the decree that Pyrlord has declared regarding the mercenary alliance.


    While Lutar was writing on the second red paper, Ryden finally arrives from its mission to Baritu. The three focused on the red paper that was being written on by Lutar not even noticing the arrival of the ''three tails''.


    Squawk! The bird''s call alarmed the four and finally noticed Ryden on the table.


    "Oh... Ryden, anything to report?" Ryden hopped towards Lutar and told him everything that it could remember in the ruined village and the direction of the horse movements.


    As soon as he heard Ryden''s last report, Lutar loosens his grip on the Helen tree branch with his eyes visibly widening and cold sweat pouring from his head.


    *clatter*


    The sound of the stick rolling and hitting the rock bed grabbed everyone''s attention/


    "What is the matter Lutar? What did the bird say?" Balak gabbled and swallowed back his words soon after.


    Before Lutar uttered a word, the sound of water hitting the roof of the tent made out of hide and dry reeds.


    "Verna! Verna! Verna! They are coming!" Jon''s screams alerted the four that they instinctively stood from their seat in an instant.


    Then the drizzle turned to a downpour as everyone around the camp prepared for battle as they were alerted by Jon''s panic screaming.


    "What in the taldir''s piss is happening right now?" Balkan cursed as he sees Jon screaming but the downpour and the thunder rumbling made Jon''s scream almost unintelligible.


    "Jon is right... Ryden said the Supriars are coming." Lutar blankly stared at Jon that is screaming and being calmed by Vernack. "We need to get ready as well!"


    "Tell everyone to go to their positions and kill any light source to make it seem that we are asleep!" Pyrlord ordered one after the other as the downpour drenches him.


    Noticing that everyone was going to their positions and seeing that Jon is still in a panic, he grabs a dagger hidden in his hammock and sheathes it in Jon''s dagger hilt. He grabs Jon''s arm and drags him along to a safe placed for him to hide.


    At the same moment, the ground from the riverside of the camp shook but no one knew what it was as the downpour masks the sound of squelching and neighing from a distance. As the mercenaries in the camp were waiting for their arrival, multiple bolts of fire were being shot from the woods.


    However, the bolts of fire did not burn the wet camp grounds but instead of burning the camp, the Supriars had another plan.


    "Ahh! --" Cries of pain were heard around the border of the camp, the fire bolts were used as a bait to lure out enemies protecting the border.


    "Lord Volux, the time is ripe for annihilation!" One of the high-ranking officers in a black-plated armor cheered as he waves his sword.


    "''Pyrlord'' eh... quickly remove these dirt-grabbers! Do not allow them to lay even a speck of dirt on me." The cheers for Lord Volux rumbled along the border of the camp and everyone charged towards the camp.


    Volux grinned from cheek-to-cheek as he starts to hear screams of agony seconds later.

 Chapter 3: What came true

    A flash of light occassionally illuminates the camp and the heavy downpour drowns out all the noise coming from the camp.


    "Arguhn! If we do not do anything, all our men will not see a light of day!" Balkan pulls Pyrlord from his shoulder and glares at him, another flash of light reveals the tense expression that Pyrlord was making.


    "They are using magic, so should we." Pyrlord looks at Lutar and nods before turning his back on Balkan and release an intense aura all over the camp.


    Balkan grins and, under the flash of light, disappears with the wind. The intense wind from the storm that pass the camp was instantly blown away by another strong gust of wind.


    Woo! The gust of wind even blocked the bolts of fire into the camp.


    "Gah!" Seconds later the strong gust of wind pushed the cavalrymen off of their horses and some were impaled onto a tree by an arrow as soon as the wind passed them.


    The black-plated cavalrymen noticed the gust of wind reaching them and surrounded Volux with their shields up.


    "Crest wall!" One of the officers called out and suddenly a dark blue ray of light sprang out each of the shields of the cavalrymen and formed a transparent wall with the insignia of the Supriars in the middle of it.


    Crack! The gust of wind crashes against the transparent wall, but it was not strong enough to break the wall as the last of its strength barely pushes the cavalrymen backward.


    A moment after the passing wind, the officers let their guard down as they notice that the wind has passed.


    Boom! Lightning struck nearby the camp and the rain raged on after being pushed away by the gust of wind.


    "These bandits dare bare their fangs on me!" Volux cursed as he exudes a menacing aura that almost choked the officers around him. "Waste no more time, slaughter all these worms!"


    Volux raised an arm and focused his arm towards the camp as they ride towards it.


    "Mo hidis lo suparma inis!" The officers chant and seconds later a faint light exudes off the bodies of each officer and enters Volux.


    ****


    "Jon snap out of it, your vision came true so we must do something!" Vernack shook Jon trying to wake him up as Jon mutters intelligible words.


    The distressed expression of Jon worried Vernack as his mind flashbacks to the cold expression of the beheaded people in the creek''s end cave.


    ''I must do something, if not, I will not be able to forgive myself, but if I go...'' Vernack debated in his mind as he looks back into the dark forest and looks back at Jon''s worsening complexion, as bolts of fire would occasionally pass by.


    But as soon as Vernack was about to stand and run into battle, Jon''s hand suddenly grabbed onto his arm.


    "Verna, if you go, you die." His cold expression froze Vernack and he slowly faces back at Jon.


    "Do y-you not think I k-know that?" Vernack stutters as he tenses up and grabs his bow nearby.


    "You will die Verna, if you go." Jon repeats as he strengthens his grip on Jon''s arm.


    "Let go, Jon!" He pulls himself away from him but Jon''s grip only strengthened the more he resists.


    "No matter what you do Verna, the chief, Balak and the others will die!" Jon scowled and with all his strength pulled Vernack back to him.


    Shocked by Jon''s anger, Vernack paused for a moment looking at Jon''s shaking eyes masked in anger.


    "What do you have in mind then, oracle?" Vernack scoffed as he relaxed his body.


    "Any moment from now a lightning will strike near us, at that moment prepare to run towards chief''s tent." He loosens his grip and stands from his seat.


    Boom! Then just as Vernack was about to say something, a loud thunderclap was heard behind them which caught him off guard.


    "Quickly, to chief Pyrlord!" Jon hastily grabs Vernack''s wrist and ran towards Pyrlord''s tent under the heavy downpour.


    ****


    "Chief! Is the chief in here?" Jon yelled soon as he and Vernack entered the tent, but only to see Lutar and Lahar inside.


    "Jon, Verna, thank the spirits you are here. Hurry, Arguhn has instructed me to lead both of you out the camp." Lahar said, grabbing both Jon and Verna as soon as she saw them.


    Lutar was sat on the rock bed, cross-legged, as if medidating. Ryden stood in front of him as its body glow in different colors.


    "No, Lahar we need to help the chief!" Jon rebelled and pulled his hand away from her grasp. "Call the others to protect the chief!"


    Boom! Not even a moment later, an explosion was heard in the middle of the camp causing the tents and the trees nearby to break and pushing everyone in a distance away from the middle.


    "It is happening to fast, Lutar just do it!" Rising after the explosion, Lahar urged Lutar.


    "No! Lutar do--" In an instant without Jon finishing his sentence, a blinding light erupts in Lutar and Ryden''s bodies, illuminating the night as if it was day.


    Moments after the camp was covered in a blinding light, it waned, returning the camp back into darkness. However, a majestic being appeared in place of Ryden, its body twice the size of a mortal, its neck covered in mane and some of its hair flow down to its tails blending in the colors of red, blue, and yellow, its wings as if the extension of its mane, and its three tails conjure three elements; fire, ice, and electricity.


    Squaa! The large Ryden made one last cry as it flapped its mortal-sized wings and flew to the skies leaving a strong gust of wind where it left off.


    In the distance, Ryden attacked each cavalryman that it found with bolts of fire, shards of ice, and lightning bolts.


    "Ahh! Attack that flying cock!" One of the officers yelled while defending Volux.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    The cavalrymen returned fire with bolts of fire targetting the large Ryden, but countless bolts of fire barely touched Ryden''s mane and some were blown away by the gusts of wind produced by its flapping of wings.


    "Lahar, why did you let him continue?" Jon bawled seeing that Lutar passed out after transforming Ryden. "He could have not wasted a lot of his life had you not let him continue?"


    "What do you know Jon? Arguhn knew what he was doing when he instructed him to do this." She argued and grabbed Jon''s wrist again to leave immediately. "Verna, carry Lutar on your back, we must not waste more time here."


    Vernack nods and without hesitation hastily carried the scrawny middle-aged Lutar on his back and left towards the north of the camp towards the forest. However, halfway through the run, another explosion from the camp catches them off guard, blowing them away once again.


    "Stop! We need to help the chief!" Jon tries to head over the middle but Lahar grabbing onto his leg makes him struggle even more.


    ****


    Boom! Pyrlord punches the air causing another shockwave to the direction of Volux.


    Fwoosh! Before the shockwave reached Volux and his officers, it dissipated in an instant as if it were nothing.


    "Resistance is futile, Pyrlord!" In a distance, Volux guffawed as he and his officers urged their steeds faster. "Those Kanisis told me many things about you, one that includes your weak constitution."


    Pyrlord''s eyes widened and his mind in tatters, he glares at the distant golden-plated cavalryman and clenched his fist tighter.


    "Ho~" He relaxed himself then positions himself to control the flow of mana within him.


    "Ha~" As he exhales the second time the ground beneath him caved in, shaking the whole camp.


    "Yorum, Trable, stop him." Volux ordered, feeling the tense aura oozing out of Pyrlord.


    The two officers nodded and brandished their blade, glaring at the drenched man in front of them.


    "In supraium mo diset!" Suddenly their swords transformed into faint light that resemble a rope.


    They threw the light ropes toward Pyrlord as their eyes, seen between the eye holes of their helmet, focus on him without blinking.


    "Rah!" Before the two faint light ropes reach Pyrlord, the area around him exploded blowing the ropes away from him.


    The two jeered as they pulled their ropes back and tried to throw it again.


    "Wave!" Pyrlord drags his right foot on the mud and kicks towards them


    His kick caused the mud to rise from the ground and form a wave-like movement as if it were water. The farther it went, the faster it moved.


    "Disperse!" Seeing the mud wave, Volux immediately ordered and steered away from the incoming wave. "And use your brains in trying to hit him idiots!"


    "Balak, a chance, go!" After the cavalrymen were separated from each other, Pyrlord unsheathe his blade and in an instant vanished from his place.


    Fwoo! From the area where Pyrlord stood, an arrow was shot towards one of the officers. The arrow was moving at a speed faster than it should as it whistles the farther it went.


    "Guk--" The arrow pierced into the weak point of officer''s helmet directly entering their neck.


    "Some tricks." Yorum sneered and reverts the light rope back to his sword.


    Yorum raised his sword and under the heavy downpour, the rain shifted and meld into his blade. Moments later, he swung his sword towards Balak and a sharp wave exited the blade, slicing through bushes and trees as if it were paper.


    Balak sensed the incoming wave and lunged himself away from it before shooting another arrow directly at Yorum.


    Skaa! Before Balak could land on his feet, he hears Ryden''s cry. The moment he saw the large bird, his eyes widened and profanities were spat when he saw that Ryden was caught by the faint light ropes.


    "Where are you looking at archer?" A raspy voice was heard behind Balak, which made him lunge forward to evade the source''s attack.


    Yorum missed his attack, swinging into the distance leaving a sharp wave once again. As a response, Balak shot two arrows in an instant.


    Halfway in the air, Yorum swung his sword cutting the two arrows into four and breaking its momentum. He pulled on the reins of his horse and a faint light covered the horse as if it were its armor.


    Balak grimaced at the sight, he once more tries to grab another arrow from his quiver but nothing was left.


    "You are done now, archer!" Yorum urged his horse forward, ready to swing his blade.


    "Howl!" Balak roared and a faint gray light burst out of his body which caused the wind to blow forward violently.


    Yorum steered his horse and lifted shield, in an instant a dark blue ray of light projected from his shield and formed a transparent wall with an incomplete crest.


    Boom! The wall and the violent wind met and caused a loud explosion destroying the wall and the wind.


    "Tch." Yorum did not wait another second and charged forward while sending sharp waves towards Balak.


    Balak barely dodges each wave as some of it scratching his bulky body. He grimaced as the cavalryman was getting closer to him, the number of each sharp wave gradually increased.


    When Yorum was about ten meters away from Balak, he felt a sharp killing intent from his side. However, before he could even think about attack his sides he felt that his left abdomen was struck by a fist.


    Boo! Yorum was knocked out of his horse and was thrown back to the forest, he spat out blood in his helmet. Yorum''s body broke number of trees before settling on the fifth tree.


    "Balak, you sure are useless without your arrows!" Lahar laughed and approached him.


    "You should have left with the--" Before he could finish his sentence, a sword sliced through his body.


    "Balak!" Her eyes widened as she runs toward Balak, but a moment later she felt that she could not mover her body. "What is this?"


    Lahar struggles to move as if her body was a statue itself. Then in a distance in front of her, three cavalrymen suddenly appeared from the forest exiting out of a warped forest.


    ****


    "Let go Verna! We need to save the chief!" Jon flails around as Vernack carries Jon and Lutar on his shoulders.


    "Stop moving Jon! Like you said we would not be able to do anything no matter what we do!" Verna argued as he continues to trail far from the camp.


    Skaa! Ryden''s cries are heard from afar even with the storm masking the sounds in the camp. Hearing this, Verna halted for a moment before moving on. Jon constantly screaming in the forest were blocked by the storm, allowing Jon to safely escape the camp.


    ****


    "Pyrlord, do you think you can hold out for much longer with this?" Volux snickered as seen on his hand is the projection of Lahar and three cavalrymen charging at her.


    Pyrlord scowled and charged the mana within him.


    "Futile attempt!" Not giving him a second, Volux and two other cavalrymen charged at him swinging their swords, sending out sharp waves in each possible direction that he could escape from.


    Before any of the sharp waves touched Pyrlord, his body exploded, releasing a shockwave outward and pushing all the sharp waves back at them.


    "Halt!"  Volux raised his hand where the projection of Lahar is and a dark circle appeared out of nowhere.


    Then a massive invisible force collapses the shockwave and pushes Pyrlord into the ground.


    "You wield a forbidden magic Supriar!" Pyrlord exploded as he struggles to use mana within him to withstand the force.


    "The times have changed, the rules of the old cannot determine the present!" Volux proclaimed. "What once was forbidden will now be endured!"


    Boom! As Pyrlord was struggling to set himself free, Ryden sent out one last lightning bolt at Volux before being pulled down by multiple cavalrymen.


    Interfered by the lightning bolt, Pyrlord managed to escape his grasp and maximized the amount of mana he would produce from within him.


    "Bah! Damn bird, quickly cut off its he--" Before Volux could finish his sentence, a massive force struck him from the front which flung him and his steed into the distance.


    "Milord!" The two officers were caught off guard by the sudden event.


    Before they were even able to steer their steeds, another massive invisible force struck the two guards, hurling them the same distance as Volux was sent too.


    "Chief! Save me!" When Pyrlord was about to head towards Volux, he hears Lahar''s cry as she struggles to fight against three cavalrymen, where her arms are locked by a faint light rope, it seemed that the rope was weakening her.


    "You bastards!" He charged his feet and ejected some of the mana within him to lunge himself towards Lahar, but midway into the jump another massive force crashed onto him, which sent him back to the ground, still far from Lahar.


    "Rat! Prick! Cattle-fuck! You dare dirty me with your fecal foot!" Volux raged as he increases the number of dark circles on his hand, increasing the weight pushing down on Pyrlord. "You must die by suffocation as an apology for existing in front of me!"


    "Gaah!!" Pyrlord groaned as he forces more of his mana from within to push the invisible force out from his back.


    Struggling to free himself from Volux'' grasp, he could only barely see Lahar at a distance and the as the pressure increases the more the ground beneath him crumble.


    "Arguhn..." Lahar uses last of her energy to shout and save Pyrlord but only a soft sound came out of her mouth and her body starting to limp.


    Few seconds later, one of the cavalrymen chops Lahar''s head off after weakening her to this state. Her blood spurting out of her neck and her tired expression were what remained before it was separated from her body.


    The moment Pyrlord saw her head lobbed off from her body, his complexion turned pale as it could and his expression crumbling faster than his body exploding from the pressure above him. Countless thoughts ran in his mind but anger prevailed above all.


    ''Arguhn, we will follow you no matter what.'' A childlike voice echoed over his mind, he sees the faces of three children smiling in front of him.


    ''From this day onward, Arguhn Mesos will be named, Pyrlord, for his outstanding leadership against Pyrzug''s army that threatened Eastern Wesout!'' A thunderous yet humbling voice proclaimed as he sees the divinite-plated king dubbing him with a ceremonial sword and on its blade are engraved with countless stories before that time.


    ''A mercenary? Although I cannot see you fit as one, but if the hero of Grenhutr wishes it to be so, they may act as they wish. However, should you ever wish to return to my domain, you are free to do so as well.'' The humbling voice of the king echoed around the blurry hall that Pyrlord stood in.


    ''It has been fifteen northern seasons now and all we have been doing is do trivial work for the Supriars and the Bradins, when can we fight in the battlefields again!'' A raspy voice blurted as seconds later the sound of puking and laughter echoed on.


    ''Those damned Bradins! They think they can just blame us for the losses at Feather Cove! They did not even send reinforcements before we even went there!'' A throaty voice railed as he angrily chops off wood.


    ''One day, two boys will come to your camp suffering from their burns and exhaustion, take them in and you will be satisfied with your life.'' A mysterious figure sat in front of him inside his warping tent, the figure''s voice and deep gaze chilled Pyrlord but he did not believe in what the figure said immediately.


    ''Chief, you think I am ready for battle now?'' A voice of an excited child was heard beside him.


    ''It has only been two northern seasons since you have been here and you still cannot swing that sword properly, even a rodent can defeat you in mere seconds'' Pyrlord boisterous laugh echoed on the distance of his blurry mind.


    Seconds turned to minutes, and minutes felt like an eternity, Pyrlord''s restless struggle fumed Volux'' anger even more. Although he knows that the longer he uses this magic, the faster his mana will deplete.


    "Just die!" Volux exclaimed and the dark circles on his hand doubled in number.


    "I... will... come for... you... Sup--" Pyrlord stammered as his voice weakens the more he uses his mana to suppress the invisible force before he knocks himself out of exhaustion.


    Not noticing that Pyrlord was unconscious, Volux used the last of his strength to pound him using the invisible force on his hand.


    Boom! Splat! As soon as Pyrlord''s body was pounded, his body exploded into pieces and his blood splattering all over the camp, even some drops of it landing Volux armor.


    Skraa! Ryden screeched one last time when it saw Pyrlord''s body exploding before its head was lobbed off by one of the cavalryman''s sharp wave.


    ****


    From a far off distance, Vernack hears Ryden''s one last sharp cry before breaking into tears as he trailed forward without looking back. Jon knocked himself out of exhaustion after screaming and crying for the past hour.


    The storm raged on as the three moons hid behind the clouds and the nocturnal wildlife never made any hint of their sound as if they were mourning at the event that had happened that night.

 Chapter 4: Rising Power

    Squelching and crunching, the sound of mud and pebbles being stepped is heard in the middle of a forest. The storm has died off and the nocturnal wildlife seemed to sang the stillness of the night.


    Vernack huffs and puffs as beads of sweat and rain water drip from his drenched body. From a distance, he sees a small cave entrance beside an old tree with no leaves. For him it seemed that the small cave entrance was eerie yet his instincts tell him that nothing is inside.


    Getting exhausted after carrying two people both on his shoulders, Vernack mustered up his strength and trailed towards the small cave entrance. However, about twenty meters away from the cave entrance, he suddenly felt a chilling gaze from inside the cave.


    Without hesitation, Vernack dropped both Jon and Lutar''s unconscious body and drew his bow, his sights directly at the entrance of the cave.


    ''Please do not be a torbir.'' Vernack prays as the atmosphere grew tenser the longer the creature or being inside not leave the cave.


    Hoot! The sudden hooting caused him to flinch and look away at the cave for a second, but a second later when he faces the entrance of the cave, the chilling gaze vanished.


    Panic. He hastily stands beside the unconscious body of the two and surveys the area around him, ready to release the arrow the second he sees any sudden movements.


    Rustle! Vernack immediately releases the arrow at the direction of the bush that was moved. Thud! The arrow hit the dirt but no squeal nor cry of pain was heard when the arrow landed.


    ''Is it all in my head?'' Vernack started to lower his guard, doubting that the gaze and the rustling was caused by a creature out there to kill them.


    Moments after waiting for any sign of danger to show, he hangs the bow on his shoulder as if it were a sash and readied to carry the two back on his shoulders.


    When he was about to lift Lutar, he suddenly felt imminent danger from his back and jumped forward instantly. Raa! A thunderous roar was heard from behind him and a sharp claw ripped through multiple trees in front of him.


    "I should have not wished for it!" Jinxing himself, he uses the last bit of his energy to barely escape the sharp claws of the torbir.


    Barely being able to balance himself, Vernack instinctively dodged each swing the torbir made. If Balak were to see this, he would be impressed to see that Vernack is able to evade the torbir, not even harming him nor the two on his shoulders.


    The large bear recklessly swung its claws at Vernack, leaving behind chopped down trees, broken branches, and thrashed bushes. It gets increasingly frustrated the longer it takes for it to kill Vernack.


    ''How am I supposed to kill a magical bear?'' Perplexed by Balak''s story of how he managed to kill a torbir, Vernack''s curiosity rose by the minute.


    ''Bah! Torbirs are just bears with magic, they are no different from its normal bear counterparts.'' Balak said as he wipes the beer off his mouth. ''But since they are big and magical, between its belly and its lungs lay a small circle where its ''wavy tattoo'' starts, that is where you can hit if you want it to instantly die.''


    ''But between the belly and the lungs is only its spleen, would it not be better to hit it on the head?''


    ''Targeting the head does not change anything.'' Balak places a hand on Vernack''s shoulder. '' The small circle represents its ''mana heart'', it acts as its true heart since it is able to endure harsh environments because it uses mana.''


    Remembering what drunk Balak taught him while the torbir is in hot pursuit, countless thoughts were rushing in his mind. Thinking what he should do to hide Lutar and Jon while letting the furious bear only target him, he suddenly sees a faint light under a large tree. Without thinking twice, he sprints toward the faint light and jumping over fallen trees.


    Thump! Raa! The amount of trees being felled by the torbir increases as it claws its way through the forest. The ''wavy tattoo'' all over the body of the torbir glowed in a faint blue light and the claws of the large bear suddenly have a thin layer of blue light.


    Not noticing the changes on the bear, Vernack raced towards the faint light as buckets of sweat rolls down his face, his expression seemed calm but his mind in turmoil.


    Swoosh! A moment later a strange blue wave of light passed over his head. Thump! Wherever the wave of light passed the bushes and trees were instantly chopped down as if it were butter.


    Vernack''s complexion worsened the moment he saw the trees fall soon after the wave of light passed it.


    "Balak! You senile dog, you could have at least told me these fucking bears send sharp waves than just telling me that they were magical!" Shocked by the development of the situation, he cursed at the sky as he trips over a tree chopped by the torbir.


    Thump! The large steps of the torbir shakes the ground near Vernack the closer it got to him. Vernack hastily removed the bow from his shoulder and grab an arrow.


    ''This is bad!'' When Vernack tries to grab an arrow from his quiver, he felt nothing. Doubting his unlucky predicament, he checks his quiver on the side to make sure that he really did not have arrows anymore.


    His expression went dour when he finally realized that he lost all of his arrows. Under the moonlight, he hysterically searched the area around him hoping to at least see one arrow to use against the ferocious torbir.


    Raa! The menacing roar shook the forest, even the wolves and snakes nearby Vernack ran the moment they hear it. Overwhelmed by the roar, Vernack stopped dead on his search and laid on the ground as if instinctively playing dead.


    The instant he laid on the ground, he sees a trail of arrows in front of him. Ecstatic by the sight, he pushed himself off the ground and swiftly grabbed several arrows.


    Swoosh! Knowing that the torbir could send sharp waves from its claws, Vernack felt the imminent danger approaching him. He speedily lays on the ground and a second later a sharp wave of light barely trimmed off the ends of his hair.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    ''Wooh, that was close.'' He then draws his bow, now with an arrow in its string, and aims it towards the direction where the torbir was approaching him.


    Seconds later, the torbir enters Vernack''s line of sight. Its massive body was enough to push some of the trees away and its gaze dead set on Vernack.


    Fwoo! The moment he saw a glimpse of the torbir, he released an arrow directly at it, not minding what part of its body to hit. As soon he released the first one, he then drew another one and released it without thinking.


    Raa! One of the arrows penetrated the torbir''s thick skin causing the large bear to recklessly send out another sharp wave towards Vernack.


    Seeing that another wave of light was sent out, he took off from his position and lured the large bear away from Lutar and Jon. As he was trailing off, he would occasionally see an arrow or two from where the large bear broke through.


    Raa! Thump! The torbir turned around and ran towards Vernack''s direction, occasionally sending a sharp wave of light that would slow Vernack for a moment allowing it to catch up.


    Vernack''s mind raged with ideas on how to kill the bear but he slowly feels the exhaustion slowly overcoming him after constantly running from the torbir for an hour.


    "Damn it! I will face it head on then!" Vernack suddenly stops on his track and turns to face the large bear, ready to shoot all of his arrows against it.


    "Gahhh! Die fiend!" Second later, the moment he saw a glint of light coming from its eyes, he rapidly releases all of his arrows. However, the torbir''s wavy tattoo glowed once more and a thin sheet of blue light covers all over the large bear.


    When the arrows hit the thin layer of light it instantly broke into pieces. Vernack''s heart fell the moment he saw the arrows break without even harming the layer of light. Distraught, he falls to the ground and readied his death as he could only stare at the eyes of the torbir in fear.


    Raa! The torbir raised its claw and a thin blue light layers itself over its claw, then it starts to swing its claw against Vernack.


    In Vernack''s eyes, time seemed to move slow as memories of his past flashed at every moment the claw of the torbir moved.


    "Grama... Chief... I will be with you soon." Tears roll down his cheeks as in between the falling claws, the figures of Grandmother Bliss and Pyrlord stood beside a flash of light as if waiting for him to join them.


    Before the torbir could land a hit on him, a sound of clopping is heard from the right side of the large bear. In a sudden, a dark warhorse came out of the dark forest and jumped at the face of the torbir.


    Guh! The large bear bawled as the front hooves of the horse stomps on its face pushing it down on the ground. Neigh! The horse landed on the ground safely and hastily approached Vernack.


    One moment Vernack felt he was dead, the next he felt that something was licking his face. Curious, he opens one eye to see what is licking him only to see a familiar figure in front of him.


    His heart pounded and his expression lightened, he could not believe that the horse he stole five seasons ago, the horse who protected them dearly the moment they rode him was right in front of him.


    "Bale, you still live!" He tightly embraced the warhorse as tears of sorrow turn to tears of joy and chills turn to warmth. "Thank you for coming at the right moment Bale!"


    The horse licks his back and as it felt the fear in him to dissipate. Suddenly, the horse felt danger behind it, so it lifted Vernack from the ground using its neck while he still embraced him and raised its body to move Vernack on its back. Feeling that Vernack was on its back while tightly holding on to its neck, it immediately galloped away from the area.


    Swoosh! A second later a sharp wave of light appeared where Vernack and Bale were, leaving a three large claw marks on the ground.


    "Woah Bale, you could at least have given a sign that you were going to lift me!" He scolded the horse but his grin reached from cheek-to-cheek, despite being chased by a murderous bear, he felt ecstatic knowing that Bale is still alive and well.


    "Wait, Bale! We have to go back, Jon and Lutar are opposite from here and they are unconscious, we need to save them first." Vernack said, remembering the reason why he chased the torbir away.


    After hearing what he said, Bale suddenly made a sharp turn and galloped towards the torbir despite its instinct telling it to move in a different direction.


    "Bah! If only I had more arrows or at least saved one, I could try to shoot at it while riding you Bale!" Vernack sounded his regret, holding on to its neck.


    Neigh! Bale neighed as if responding to Vernack''s regret and looked back at him, its eye shining under the moonlight.


    As its eye reflected the moonlight, Vernack felt safe around the horse, as if the horse spoke some wisdom that made him feel warm and secured around it.


    Raa! The torbir was about ten meters in front of them and was ready to swing its claw again, when suddenly Bale made a sharp left turn, hiding itself under the torbir''s twice the human-sized foreleg.


    Noticing that the torbir was slow to turn its body, Bale hastened its pace and galloped onward to the trail that the torbir left behind, in order to backtrack jon and Lutar''s location.


    "Great job Bale!" Vernack joyfully said as he rubs Bale''s neck.


    Raa! The torbir''s anger only grew when the two would barely escape its grasp constantly. The marks on its body this time shone brightly, the light erupted from its body and dug underground.


    As Bale was galloping as fast it could, the ground beneath them started to shake and large cracks started to form. Feeling the ground shaking, Bale instinctively leaped forward and a second later, boom! A burst of light erupted from the position they were just on.


    "What the--" Before Jon could finish his sentence, Bale once more leapt forward and another burst of light erupted from the position they were previously on.


    "Balak! You never told me this fucking monster can make the ground explode!" He cursed at the sky once again as the ground behind them would erupt occasionally.


    Raa! Thump! The thunderous roar of the torbir echoed throughout the forest, and in response to its roar, wolves began to howl and other normal bears began to roar. The stillness of the night was broken by the deafening cries of the forest''s predators.


    The peaceful nocturnal wildlife instantly sheltered themselves the moment the thunderous roar was heard all over the forest. The first moon, Mus, seemed to shine bright in response to the cries of the wildlife and the body of the torbir erupted with light as the lights shift and twist, it seemed to form a distinguishable copy of itself.


    Not knowing what danger was occurring behind them, Vernack would continuously curse on Balak for not teaching him everything about the monstrosity that the torbirs are. However, he starts to feel familiarity to the broken trail in front of him, he felt that they were getting near to Jon and Lutar''s position.


    ****


    Raa! The thunderous roar echoed on further as the winds would direct the sound everywhere. A squad of lightly armored footmen, with one of them having a shield painted with the symbol of a deer with four hands holding a staff and at the top of the staff was a crown which meant they were under the Dukedom of Cristos, were patrolling around a castle when they suddenly hear the bone-chilling cry of the torbir.


    "By Ialonia! What waked this monster!" One of the footmen snapped his head towards the source of the noise.


    "That sounded close, better if we alarm the Baron." The footman with the shield nonchalantly said.


    "By the sound of that, must be the ''Guardian of Meyvil''s Domain'' that has guarded that forest for hundreds of seasons now." Another footmen wielding a military hammer surmised.


    "Well whatever it is, we have to alert the Baron and prepare for any horror that may come upon this castle." The footman with the shield left the group and walked towards the castle door.


    ****


    "Milord, it seemed the horrible sound came from the direction near that Slies'' castle resides." Trable, one of the officers of Volux Supriar''s cavalry, reported.


    "Their predicament does not concern us nor do I ever plan on heading towards that monster, let those Cristos tire from fighting that beast and we can swoop in later." Volux confidently said, but his hands gripping on the reins of his steed were shaking.


    "Splendid plan, milord!" Trable bowed and pulled the reins of his horse to not gallop beside their Count.


    ****


    "Faster Bale, this monster is only getting faster by the second!" Vernack could not help but scream as the number of light erupting from the ground doubled since a few minutes ago.


    Neigh! Bale once more leaped forward and while in mid-air it felt another imminent danger approaching from the side. Suddenly, light erupted out of thin air, directly hitting Bale and knocking both Vernack and the horse twenty-some meters.


    "Gah!" Vernack lands on the side of a tree as he spat out the last thing he ate a few hours ago.


    Beugh! The horse whimpers as it lands on a rock and barely cracking the rock. Bale struggles to stand as it sensed another light that would erupt from its side.


    Using almost all of its energy, it leaps towards Vernack and outbalances when it lands on the ground, lying beside the exhausted Vernack.


    ''Jon, Vernack, both of you from now on will learn how to store mana from within and be able to use it at times when you truly need it!'' Pyrlord''s voice echoed in Vernack''s mind.


    ''Although I may not be a mage, but many soldiers I have met have at least utilized mana in their own way, and the most effective utilization is by using it to boost one''s constitution and physical strength in times of trouble!" Pyrlord circled Jon and Vernack as he continues his lecture.


    ''As we have observed from the wildlife throughout the seasons, mana is basically one of the most important needs in surviving in the wild."


    ''But chief, I heard that we can only nurture our mana if we were born in existing mana fields, and I remember that Meadow Cross had no existing mana field.'' Vernack raised his concern with genuine curiosity.


    ''That is true, and that is why I chose this riverside as our training area from this day onwards, because for the next thousand seasons before the ''Great Earthquake'' this riverside will be constantly supplied with mana by the world itself. In here you and Jon will nurture your mana control.''


    ''Very good Vernack, I can sense that the mana inside of you is slowly forming, do not rush because if you rush, you will only destroy your chance in having a compact mana capacity.''


    ''In contrary, Jon! Are you being lazy or are you not controlling your mana, I cannot sense not even a hint of mana inside you!''


    ''I am doing my best chief! But nothing is happening the more I try to do it.'' Jon complains as he lays down on the rock bed.


    ''Child, it takes determination to control it, perfect mana control cannot be achieved in a day! Stand up and go hunt for food with Balak!''


    The voices from that time echoed in his head and slowly fades away as he feels the warmth inside his heart slowly spread all over his body.

 Chapter 5: The Master

    "Ugh..." Jon softly groans as he tries to turn his body around, feeling that the cold ground was uncomfortable to lay on.


    A moment later, he feels the ground softly shaking and the wind blowing harshly causing the leaves and branches to violently flail as it almost breaks off from the tree.


    He suddenly opened his eyes and got up from the ground. When the violent wind would brush past his skin he would also feel a sudden threat of death.


    Jon anxiously observe the area around him then finally noticing the trail of broken and fallen trees behind him. One leaving a straight trail to an unknown distance and another trail diagonal from the straight trail leading to a bright blue light shining from the horizon.


    "Vernack!" As if a thought rushed inside his mind, he immediately searched for Vernack around him, but he only found Lutar''s body.


    He then approaches Lutar and check if he was still alive. Moments later, Jon''s expression went dour as he could not feel the warmth on Lutar''s body nor any pulse when Jon checked on his wrist.


    Not believing his first thoughts, Jon shook Lutar''s lifeless body as his mind flitting with a thousand prayers to Nerrus hoping that the renowned "Vitality King" would be able to bring him back to life.


    ''Controlling mana does not only mean you can use it to only strengthen oneself.'' Pyrlord lectures as he watches Jon struggle to remove a stick impaled into the ground.


    ''Like how Lutar can communicate with Ryden and how I made the stick immovable, one can use mana in various ways.''


    ''Gah!'' Jon exerts all of his energy to remove the stick but a moment later trips himself and falls to the ground. ''I already told you, it is almost impossible for me to control mana, many moons have passed and you have seen that none of it moved inside of me!''


    ''Child, it is impossible that someone cannot control mana, in theory you are probably a child born without a mana soul but that is physically and magically impossible!'' He said, unperturbed by Jon falling to the ground.


    ''None that I have read in the library of Grenhutr spoke of individuals born without mana soul.'' Pyrlord recount his memories, scratching his head when nothing came up.


    ''Well whatever, I still have to teach you mana control as if the world is forcing me to do it.'' His voice slowly fades away as Jon struggling to pull the stick was last heard.


    After remembering that specific memory, Jon places his palm over Lutar''s chest and tries to feel the movement of mana within him. He tries to redirect the mana in him into Lutar but he could not feel anything pouring out of his hand.


    "Please, anything, save him!" Jon sobbed as he repeats the technique taught to him by Pyrlord when controlling mana.


    Raa! While Jon repeatedly attempts to pour his mana into Lutar''s mana soul, the intensity of the ground shaking slowly increased and a loud blood-curdling roar slowly fades in, halting his continuous attempts.


    Tears running down his face, he quickly turns to the direction of the roar and remembered that Vernack is not around them. He turns back to Lutar and made a short prayer to Ansi the ruler of Solvana, the realm of the dead.


    Wiping away his tears and barely covering Lutar with a patch of leaves and broken branches, he then slowly heads towards the origin of the roar. As he trails onward, in his mind Jon constantly cursed himself for not being able to do anything most of the time.


    Raa! The ground shook violently as another blood-curdling roar was heard from the horizon and a strong wind pushes Jon down to the ground. The moment he fell to the ground, his eyes shone in a faint green light and a scenario appears in his mind.


    He sees two torbirs, one that had its ''wavy tattoo'' while the other was only a blue light, and he sees Vernack and a dark muscular horse lying beside each other. Then a second after that a flash of light changes the scene, now the torbirs are about to strike at them and Vernack was struggling to stand.


    Soon after, the visions faded and the next thing he sees is the night sky and the branches of the trees harshly swaying.


    "Verna!" Sensing the danger of losing someone close to him, he jumps up from the ground and sprints towards the horizon.


    ****


    Raa! Vernack awakens from a loud roar of the torbir in front of him. He instinctively tries to move but he suddenly feels a sharp sting of pain below his back pulling him back to the tree behind him.


    A moment later he feels the warm sensation of mana spreading all over his body and the pain below his back was slowly relieved. Feeling energized, he rose from the ground and faced the torbir in front of him.


    "Come at me, beast." He taunts the torbir as he directs the mana within him towards his right arm.


    As if responding to his taunt, the torbir raises its arm and covers its whole body in a layer of blue light then attacks Vernack even faster than its previous attempts.


    Confident in the amount of mana he has in control, Vernack redirects some of the mana within him to his feet then quickly dodges the giant claws of the magical bear. However, as Vernack dodged the attack, the ground beneath him rumbled and light is seen escaping from the cracks of the ground.


    Sensing danger approaching beneath him, he once again directs some of his mana to his feet but instead of moving away from the torbir, he lunges himself towards it. Taking out the dagger from his hilt, he directs his mana to the dagger, imbuing it with his mana.


    The torbir''s eyes gleamed seeing that Vernack was about to attack it, it then poured out a bright blue light and injected it to the ground. A second later, when Vernack was about two meters away from the torbir, out of thin air light erupted from Vernack''s side and pushed him ten-some meters away from the torbir.


    "Gah!" Vernack spreads his mana all over his body but it did not lighten the damage from the fall.


    Rumble! As he was about to recover, the ground beneath him intensely shook and another bright light was seen through the cracks. Without thinking twice, he uses his mana and jump out of the way, but before he could jump, the sense of death rang in his mind.


    Behind him, the torbir viciously swiped at Vernack. Not able to dodge out of the way, Vernack uses his mana to strengthen his body and hoped that the mana fortifying him will help defend against the attacks surrounding him.


    Boom! Before the claws of the torbir reached him, the ground beneath him erupted and forcefully pushed Vernack into the air.


    ''How did Balak even kill this thing?'' Vernack wondered as he glares at the torbir mid-air.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    Raa! The torbir could not wait for him to land so it stood on its hind legs and attempted to furiously swipe at Vernack, sending out sharp waves of light. Feeling useless in mid-air, he imbues his dagger with his mana and attempted to block the torbir''s attacks.


    ''Lahar, can you teach me how to send sharp waves of mana like how chief does it?'' Vernack asks Lahar while she was tanning leather.


    ''I wish I could, but unlike Arguhn, I am no master of any weapon as only masters of wielding any weapon could imbue their mana into their weapon and releasing it as a mana wave.'' She replies.


    ''So, Balak can also send sharp mana waves?'' He asks as he sat on a wooden log beside her.


    ''Well, he can, but instead of using it to send waves of mana, he imbues his bowstring and arrow with his mana to make his shots move so fast that it blows its own wind.'' She stops tanning the leather and explained.


    ''H-how is that possible?'' He stammers as excitement shows on his face.


    ''Mana is versatile, it can be used in many ways than one, but to use it as such one needs to masterfully control their mana through years of practice and experimentation''


    ''Is it possible to shoot out bolts of mana, just like the knights that fired bolts of fire at my previous home?'' He asks after a moment of pondering.


    ''The Grand Magus of Wesout did say that mana is versatile, so that is likely possible.'' She chuckles as she returns to tanning the leather.


    ''You met the Grand Magus before?'' Surprised by hearing about the famous Grand Magus of Wesout, he almost yells out his question.


    ''We did; he was actually my--''


    ''Vernack! Stop yer chatting and help the others check the traps in the forest!'' Lutar yells out, cutting Lahar off from finishing her sentence.


    Vernack then directs more of his mana into the tip of the dagger and the tip shone in a bright green light as if charging a bolt of green fire.


    Boom! After charging a lot of mana into the tip of the dagger, he stops imbuing the dagger and the bright green light shot out of the dagger. Releasing the bolt of mana while in mid-air recoils him backwards.


    Crash! The bolt shot out by Vernack crashes against the mana wave of the torbir, then the two competing light dissipates in an instant.


    "I did it!" He yelled in excitement, then he moves the mana within him to his legs as he lands on the ground safely.


    Grr! Seeing that Vernack was unscathed, the torbir quickly swipes against him once again and light erupts out of the torbir''s body causing the ground to shake and the winds to blow viciously.


    Vernack once more charges the tip of the dagger with a green bright light and aims it directly at the torbir''s head. Before he could release the bolt of mana, a light suddenly erupts behind him and throws him towards the torbir.


    Without thinking twice, he instantly spreads all of his mana all over his body and endures the damage that he received. Although mana lessened his pain, but his body was covered in bruises and wounds some even opening the wounds from his burn scar.


    Not even a second later, being closer to the torbir allowed the magical bear to gain initiative to freely attack him with his back exposed for him. Sensing the imminent danger, Vernack directs his mana to his palm and charged it up, then a bright green light appeared from his palm.


    "Hope this works." He mutters to himself then he releases the bolt of mana to his side. Boom! The bolt of mana shot out of his palm and knocks him ten-some meters sideward, barely escaping the claws of the torbir.


    Not noticing that when he shot out the bolt of mana more of his wounds from his scar burns opened. He steadies himself back up and imbues his dagger with some of his mana again.


    "This getting tiresome now." He mutters, panting as blood trickles down his opened wounds.


    Grr! The torbir growls as it attempts to furiously swipe at Vernack, sending out sharp mana waves each swipe it makes.


    Vernack sees the incoming waves, so he boosts his legs with his mana again and evades the waves while hastily approaching the torbir. As his senses continue to sharpen while battling the magical bear, he feels that he is gradually losing stamina, sometimes he would lose his footing as he evades some of the mana waves from the torbir.


    About two meters between him and the torbir, his vision starts to blur and his strength would dwindle, he tries to direct his mana around his body but he could barely feel any more of his mana to move within him.


    When he was about to collapse, a burst of light erupts behind Vernack and knocks him toward the tree where he and Bale once were.


    "I... could not... even hurt it once..." Vernack tries to gather air as his body ached, struggling to even open his eyes.


    Raa! The torbir roared at the downed mortal in front of it, then out of the cracks of the ground a bright blue light escapes the ground and surfaced beside the torbir. The light beside it would shift and form some sort of shapes then eventually the blue light took form in the shape of the torbir beside it.


    Mustering up the last of his strength, Vernack forces himself to stand against the torbirs in front of him. He tightened his grip on the dagger feeling powerless against the monstrous figure that towers over him.


    "Take this you hunk of meat!" A pitchy voice yelled out as a rock struck the torbir''s back.


    Grr! The torbir quickly turned to its back and growls at Jon who was standing ten-some meters away from it. In response to the rock hitting it, the fake torbir beside the real one fades into the cracks of the ground.


    The ground around them shook as light escapes from the ground beneath Jon. As if knowing beforehand, Jon jumped backward and a second later light erupts from the ground then a claw swiped destroying the foliage around him.


    "Jon... W-what are you doing here?" Vernack tries to shout but without enough strength, his voice only seemed like a whisper.


    Raa! Annoyed, the real torbir charged at Jon as the ground around him would erupt as claws appears and attempts to attack him. As the fake torbir would swipe and stomp, sharp waves of mana would be shot aimlessly.


    Jon''s eyes would glow a dim green light every time he tries to evade each sharp mana waves. He jumps and rolls as the nature around him would be chopped down or broken as each attack of the torbir lands around him.


    "Here here glowing ghost!" Jon taunts the fake torbir as he slides down a steep land and sprints further.


    A quick vision appeared in his mind that a light would suddenly erupt in front of him, acting as soon he saw the vision, he jumped to his left which outbalanced him and instead he rolled down the steep land. A second later, light erupted from where he previously was, destroying the land behind him.


    "That was not part of the plan." Jon mutters to himself as he brushes the dirt off him, but a second later another light erupted in front of him and knocked him back to the steep land.


    "That... as well." He coughs as he struggles to stand back up.


    Raa! The ground shook around him and a loud threatening roar was heard behind him.


    "What else can I do?" After he managed to stand back up, he runs away from the incoming torbir as he wonders on about his ability than just seeing visions.


    ****


    "Halungr! Where are you?" A sweet voice echoed from within a cave and light would slowly fade in from the distance.


    "Halungr, if you were hungry you could have just called for me!" A moment later, a tall and slender figure appears wearing a long blue velvet robe and a ball of light following behind her.


    Silence. She grimaced as there was not an even a grumble was heard. As she trailed closer to the entrance of the cave she finally sees a broken trail of fallen logs and sliced foliage.


    The slender figure exits the cave and sees the large paw prints of Halungr and claw marks on the ground and on some of the thick trees around the path made caused by the torbir. She extends her hand and a violet magic circle appears out of her palm.


    "Halun Sirsi." She chants and a faint violet light poured out of the magic circle then her vision shifts and in front of her she sees Halungr the torbir furiously chasing a child along with its light-counterpart.


    "Aye Halungr, you were angered by some brat?" She chuckles as she watches Halungr destroying more of the forest. "These children are no harm; I will have to get you home now."


    Her vision returns to normal and the magic circle on her palm disappears. She gazes at the sky as the gentle wind of the night brushes past her skin and her robe lightly flowing along the wind.


    "Foot of the wind." She chants one more time, then a gray magic circle appears beneath her.


    When she took one step forward, at one second she was there but next only the gentle wind of the night was left on her position.


    ****


    "I have been running for half of my life now, yet this bear is still not tired!" Jon could not help but complain as he could not do anything other than easily dodge the most of its attacks due to his visions.


    Masked by the loud thumping and roaring of the torbir, a sound of clopping can be barely heard behind the torbir. Bale was galloping along the trail made by the magical bear and riding on its back was Vernack who barely could open his eye due to exhaustion.


    Light would occasionally erupt in front of Jon but he would roll and jump out of the way a moment before it hits him. Beads of sweat trickled down his head and his tunic was drenched in sweat, his confident expression could not be compared to his pale expression and the turmoil that his mind was in.


    "Bale, get the bear''s attention." Vernack whispers to the horse before succumbing to his exhaustion and falls asleep atop of Bale.


    Neigh! Bale seemed to nod in response as it hastens its gallop and moves closer behind the torbir. It followed the torbir for a few seconds before jumping on its back and gaining its attention in a split second.


    Raa! Feeling the horse atop its back, the torbir stops on its chase and tries to reach its back using its claw while flailing around recklessly.


    Not having any fingers to hold on to the torbir, as the torbir flailed around, Bale and Vernack were flung away and landing hard on the ground causing Bale to whine in pain.


    "Oi, bear! Why did you stop?" Jon returns to the torbir after noticing that both the fake and the real torbir stopped on their chase.


    Raa! The torbir looked back at Jon and attempts to attack him. Boom! Jon was preparing himself to block the attack but before he could prepare himself, the bear''s claw clashed against an invisible force in front of him.


    "Are ya alright child of unknown origins?" A silvery voice was heard in front of him. "Apologies for the rashness of my Halungr."


    Then the dust settled and there revealed a stunning slender figure that looked to be in her mid-20s, her palm glowing with a red magic circle blocking the large claws of Halungr.


    "Who are you?" Jon softly voices his question as he was enchanted by the person in front of him.


    "The name is Meyvil." She replies and wholesomely smiles.

 Chapter 6: Calm Night

    Silence. Jon was astonished by the power that the figure in front of him has shown. Singlehandedly blocked the large paw with a flick of her hand, Meyvil could not help but chuckle at the surprised expression Jon was making.


    Meyvil then turns towards Halungr the torbir and sighs at the sight of the angered. She lowers her hand and walks toward the bear, the violent gust of wind slowly died down the closer she is to Halungr.


    Seeing its master approach, its anger slowly cooled off and it bows down to its master. It softly grunts as Meyvil rubs its thick black fur on its paw, calming the torbir.


    "Halun, I told you before that before chasing out people, you must approach me first." Her voice as gentle as the breeze that brush past them while scolding Halungr.


    "Y-you know this m-monster?" Jon stammers as he hesitantly approaches Meyvil, anxiously hiding behind her.


    "Halungr is a peaceful torbir unlike other torbirs ya will meet in other parts of the world." She chuckles as Halungr rests its head on the ground allowing her to rub its face.


    "Verna!" Suddenly remembering that Vernack was behind Halungr while he was being chased, he searches for Vernack under the moonlight,


    Neigh! While Jon was searching for Vernack, Bale whined loudly as it saw him going off to a different direction where Vernack was.


    Jon immediately turned to the sound and ran towards it as fast as he could. Moments later, he finally sees a dark muscular warhorse struggling to move as a tree fell on it when it was flung away by Halungr.


    "Bale!" Jon hastily runs towards Bale and tries to lift the fallen tree off of it. "Stop squirming Bale, it will only get worse!"


    "Hm?" Curious by the loud cries, Meyvil searched for the boy she just met.


    After a minute, she found where Jon was, to only be inwardly saddened to see the suffering horse. Halungr followed behind her and also sees Jon struggling to lift the large tree over Bale.


    Without its master mentioning, and acting out of atonement of its rash behavior beforehand, Halungr extends one of its claws and pushes the large tree away from Bale.


    "Bale! Am here now no need to worry." Jon knelt beside the horse and hugs it as he tries to push move some mana within him into Bale, but to no avail.


    "Halun, help the horse." Meyvil commanded, feeling uncomfortable that she is not helping the child.


    Halungr immediately acted out her command by gently placing one of its claw on the body of the horse and its ''wavy tattoo'' all over its body glows in a faint blue light and injects its mana into Bale.


    Feeling a warm sensation in its heart, Bale huffs and puffs as mana enters it spreading all over its body. Then the injected mana raced towards Bale''s injured and wounded parts, slowly healing it and reconnecting the open wounds.


    "W-what is this?" Seeing the baffling phenomenon, Jon turned to Meyvil and the torbir.


    "One of the basics of healing magic is mana injection and that is what my Halun just did." She happily boasts her knowledge as she rubs Halungr''s fur again.


    "Mana injection?" Jon mutters to himself still astonished by how mana immediately closed Bale''s wounds.


    After all the pain that it felt was lost, Bale immediately stood up and urged Jon to follow it as it gallops toward where Vernack is. Passing through several fallen trees and smashed rocks, they finally see Vernack''s unconscious body resting behind a patch of tall grass.


    Jon rushed towards him and checks his pulse for any sign of life. A second later, he feels a faint pulse by Vernack''s neck but his body was as cold as the midnight breeze.


    "Lady Meyvil, c-can you help him as well?" He politely asks but stutters, anxious that she may not be able to help him.


    Without uttering a single word, Meyvil smiles and turns to Halungr as if signaling it to do something about it. Halungr then repeats what it did for Bale and injects mana directly into Vernack''s heart.


    Seconds ago Jon could only feel the faint pulse on Vernack''s neck and his body colder than the midnight breeze, now he feels Vernack''s body slowly becoming warm and his heart pulsing back to normal.


    "Although yer wounds have been healed, it does not grant you satiation and refill of blood." Meyvil said as she loomed behind Jon.


    "To atone for my lack of responsibility, I would like to invite you all into my domain to rest and satiate your personal needs." She then proposed.


    "We can enter your home?" He asks, hiding the excitement of resting under the roof of a powerful mage.


    "It is my wish." Her pleasant reply warms Jon''s heart.


    ''Maybe I can learn more about mana from her, especially that strange circles she used earlier!'' Jon inwardly said.


    As they were chatting, Vernack suddenly awakes and tightly grabs Jon''s wrist, his body emitting a dangerous aura of mana.


    "Woah, Verna! It is me, Jon!" Jon exclaimed trying to loosen Vernack''s grip.


    Sensing the deathly aura Vernack was exuding, Halungr imbues mana on its claws and prepares to attack Vernack the moment he acts up. In response to Halungr''s action, Bale immediately stood in between the magical bear and Vernack, ready to protect the two behind it with its life.


    "Halun stand down!" Her voice booming even causing the wind around the area to slightly blow violently.


    Hesitating for several seconds, Halungr pulled back its claws and reabsorbed its mana acting as if nothing happened. After Halungr restrained itself from attacking, Bale immediately approached Vernack and lick his face trying to make him calm.


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    "Vernack! Please calm down, the bear is no longer a threat!" Jon winced as he feels his hand almost snapping by the strength that Vernack was using.


    A few seconds later, Vernack slowly loosens his grip and the aura he exuded shortly dissipated, the faint glow in his eyes returned to normal.


    "What... just happened?" He fretted, seemingly confused at first.


    "Wait, the bear is behind you Jon!" After checking around them, he notices Halungr towering behind Jon and immediately stood up as a bright light charges up on his palm.


    "Verna! The bear is not a threat; you do not need to worry about it anymore." Jon worryingly said, trying to hold Vernack back from attacking Halungr.


    "He is right, my Halun would not dear to kill without my command." Meyvil stood in front of Halungr.


    "Who in the taldir''s ass are you, woman?" Vernack raised his palm towards Meyvil.


    Before she could even speak, Bale loomed beside Vernack and raised one of its foreleg and tries to push his arm down as if telling him not to fight.


    "Well is not the horse tactful." She jests.


    "The name is Meyvil, and this torbir behind me is one of the guardians of my domain, Halungr." She politely introduces themselves.


    "Based on the trail that my Halun has left outside my domain, it had thought the two of ya were out to kill me in my domain."


    "We were searching for a place to stay and then I found your cave thinking that none lived in it." He responded, slowly cooling himself down.


    "Had that torbir not chased us out, we would have been sheltered tonight, but nay, our lives had to be filled with the most unfortunate events all of the days"


    Meyvil did not speak but inwardly she felt pity in Vernack''s words, especially she noticed that his tone could not hide the sadness behind it.


    "You have no need to blame yerself for the unforgiving crisis ya are facing, it is rightfully my fault for the lack of responsibility and control with my guardians." She expressed as she slowly walks towards Vernack.


    "As atonement for the event tonight, I invite the three of ya to my home and get as much rest as all of ya need." Her pleasant yet affirming voice would give both Jon and Vernack a sudden sense of security.


    "Why should we trust you? For all we know you might target us while we are conked out." Although her pleasant voice felt securing and her invitation was tempting, Vernack could not help but feel suspicious by the sudden kindness they are receiving.


    Meyvil was taken aback by his question at first, but a second later she understood why they are so distrusting especially right after knowing that the torbir was under its control. She could also sense that they are vigilant because Jon and Vernack have probably lived a pitiful life based on his statement earlier.


    "I do not wish to hurt any of ya, had I thought of hurting ya, I could have done it here and now, no one lives around my domain for at least two massus and I can remove any trace of all this wreckage in an instant." She scoffed.


    "Massus?" Jon interjects, curious about the word.


    "Ah, by yer reaction it seems ya have not studied under any academe in Wesout." She quipped.


    "Just because we are unfortunate does not mean you can belittle us woman!" Vernack threatens her as his body faintly covers itself with white light.


    Vernack threatening her makes her pause for a bit before slapping herself in the face.


    Both Jon and Vernack were shocked by her doing and instantly felt guilty for threatening her.


    "Why did you do that?" Vernack was the first to voice his confusion.


    "I apologize for being rude, it has been several moons that I have not seen any other person but my guardians and the first I meet people again, I was rude." She softly spoke with regret in her tone.


    "Massus is a unit of measurement for distance used by mages in Spickloha Academia, the most prestigious institute in all of Wesout." Meyvil proudly said as one of her cheeks is swollen.


    Jon and Vernack stood there with blank expressions, unperturbed by her pride about an institution that they have never heard before. The silence between the three felt like an eternity and the proud expression Meyvil had made slowly slacked feeling the tense atmosphere between them.


    "Ya do know about Spickloha Academia, right? She questions as her eyes say that she is surprised by their reaction.


    "Never heard of that Academia in all of my days." Vernack replied, dumbfounded by her previous statement.


    "What is an ''Academia''? And why do mages go to them?" Jon inquired, still baffled by the idea that mages go to an ''Academia''.


    Meyvil was taken aback by their lack of knowledge of something that all of Wesout has recognized as the number one school for upcoming mages. Although she had seen how Vernack has controlled his mana earlier, her views about these two suddenly changed.


    "Well... we can talk about that back in my domain than out here in the wild." She said, feeling beat by the two boys in front of her.


    "Alright then." The two replied in unison. They gathered around Bale, preparing to ride on its back.


    "The two of ya can saddle on Halun, if you want." Meyvil suggests as she climbs Halungr''s back.


    The three immediately looked at each other a moment after she voiced her suggestion. Vernack looked as if it was not willing to stand on top of the bear that was about to kill them earlier, while Jon was astonished by her suggestion as excitement slowly spread all over his body.


    "Is the bear fine with us on it?" Vernack looks at Halungr, fear on his face.


    "My Halun could have mauled ya earlier if it does not heed my order, but it did not which only proves that my Halun will allow ya whenever I say so." She chuckles at the expression that Vernack was making.


    Vernack only smirked at her remark and urged Jon to hop on the large bear. Jon happily climbed on the back of the bear rubbing the thick fur of the torbir as he saddles himself on top of it.


    "Bale it would be better that you just tag along the bear since the bear is only large enough for three people to ride it." Vernack said, saddened that Bale cannot ride along them.


    Neigh! Bale responded as if it were glad that it did not have to ride Halungr, as its instincts tells it that it may die if it even tries to stay on top of it.


    "Onward Halun." Meyvil urges Halungr after she chortled at Bale''s response.


    ****


    "Milord! Two beeswax pillar candles have gone out since the loud roars and ground shaking." A knight, with a small crest of a deer with four hands holding a staff branded on his left breastplate, reports as he kneels before a figure wearing a blue surcoat and brown linen trousers under white stockings.


    "Aye, I have noticed that as well." The figure mutters to himself as he looks over the horizon atop a stone tower.


    "Order the army to slacken the tension inside but tell the patrols to send reports about the situation outside to you every now and then."  He adds as he walks back inside his castle.


    "As you wish milord!" The knight went down the tower then a distant yelling of commands was heard and moments later half of the footmen and archers outside returned to the barracks.


    The figure enters his abode and surveys around the dim-lit hall, moonlight barely shining through the merlots of his abode. He walks towards a stone stairs leading upwards and opens a large wooden door.


    "Milady, no need to hide anymore, the roars out in the forest has settled." His breathy voice echoes in the room filled with a number of knight statues whose eyes are glowing in red facing at the figure the moment he walked in.


    "Oh love, I had thought that Meyvil''s beast would terror our land as well." A middle-aged woman wearing a long blue chemise appears out of a hidden door behind one of the armored statues.


    The glowing eyes of the armored statues faded and their heads returning to facing forward than at the stout figure.


    "Meyvil''s beast probably had met a terrifying foe for it to rage for half the night, but it seems it had no plan to head towards us." The stout figure embraces and kisses the endearing woman in front of him.


    "Drakon, we must do something about Meyvil." The woman whispers to his ear.


    "I will send out Rolguard Clietus and his footmen to check on her domain." Drakon said in reply.


    A moment later, Drakon pulled away from his wife and hanged his surcoat and hidden breastplate on an armor stand by the bedside of the room.


    "Lady Ilune, shall we continue?" Drakon whispers to her ear as he pulls her in closer to him, touching her in places which excited the woman.


    "Rightfully so." She giggles and returns a kiss, and then they slowly removed their undergarments as they passionately touch each other.


    ****


    Half the time a pillar beeswax candle takes to melt later, Halungr and the people behind it has finally reached the cave entrance to Meyvil''s domain. The silence of the night broke as nocturnal wildlife began to become active after the rage of Halungr was lost.


    The people around it dismounted and entered the cave along with Bale, whom is hesitant in entering the cave as it feels imminent danger the closer it gets to the inner realm of the cave. At first the entrance into the cave seemed lifeless and ill-foreboding, but as soon as they take a step into the cave, a large number of them would light up on every step a person makes.


    "Follow me." Meyvil said not minding the fear Bale was showing inside the cave.


    The two followed her without hesitation, knowing that all cases are not as simple as they thought it was. She picks up her staff from one of the staff racks she had made then several orange magic circles atop the staff had appeared.


    When they have reached the ''living room'' of Meyvil''s abode, they were sat down by an invisible force trying to make any visitors come at peace.


    "So Meyvil about the ''Academia'' you have mentioned earlier." Jon asks without hesitation.


    "Indeed, so a few ''Lios'' ago the first Grand Magus of Wesout had appeared, Grand Magus Eorlu of Kingdom Domavan, he has had countless of research and theories that came to which lead the development of this world." She proudly said as she prepares a drink for the three of them.


    "Oh, wait, yes, before you can ask, Lios is another unit of measurement for the amount of time since the last ''Great Earthquake'' that happens every thousand northern seasons." She immediately adds.


    "Grand Magus Eorlu is the main reason why the magical development of Wesout was much more advanced than those from Easera and Altaway."

 Chapter 7: Restoration Phenomena

    The passage of time has drawn out the night''s battle, the nocturnal wildlife returned to roaming and preying in the night. The trail of fallen trees and rocks were slowly returning to what it once was as a shadowy figure floating in the night sky, covered in a long dark cloak flowing with the wind, extends a palm directly at the area where Halungr and Vernack had passed earlier that night.


    As everything was restored to its original position, the shadowy figure slowly disappears as the wind blows against them as if they were powder being blown away. No sound was made before, during, and after the forest was restored to its origin.


    No one saw what had happened nor felt the land being restored in a few minutes that night, only the nocturnal wildlife witnessed the magic that occurred that night.


    ****


    "So this Eorlu--" Vernack adlibbed when Meyvil suddenly cuts him in his thought.


    "Grand Magnus Eorlu, not just Eorlu, ya do not disrespect the first Grand Magus of Wesout with only his name!" She extolled on about the Grand Magus.


    "Yes, Grand Magus Eorlu." He clears his throat as he corrects himself.


    "So he was the reason that mages all over Wesout learned how to form a magic circle in order to conjure elemental magic from mana?" Vernack repeats Meyvil''s explanation earlier, getting the gist of all the things she had mentioned about Grand Magus Eorlu.


    Vernack and Meyvil conversed by the campfire as Jon soundly slept beside Bale. The sound of the fire crackling and the two conversing rang within Meyvil''s cave.


    "Yes! And Grand Magus Eorlu pioneered the ''Appraiser of the Existing Elements of this World'' or ''Aprexem'' for short that revolutionized the identification of the innate elemental affinity of each individual!" She proudly said as her voice echoes all over her cave, waking Halungr and Bale in their sleep.


    "Madam Meyvil can you please tone down your use of over complicated words and single it all out!"  He interjects, not being able to handle the information she was spouting.


    "Heh, it would better you hear more of it as each civilized person over the seasons have caught up to the linguistic capabilities of the mages in Spickloha Academia." She scoffs, getting some sort of reaction from Vernack.


    "Bah! They have lost their sense of survival and became used to the peaceful environment our ancestors have achieved." Vernack snorted, not giving in to her provocation.


    "Wow, what do ya know about our ancestors since you know so much?" She rose from her seat and walked toward a shelf filled with scrolls of paper.


    "I know as much as you would!" Challenged by her, Vernack also rose from his seat and walks beside her.


    Vernack looks around the shelf filled with scrolls but as he checks each scroll, there were symbols and words he could not understand. He turns to Meyvil, muttering words to herself as she checks each scroll with green circles on each corner of the scroll.


    "Oh, here!" She yells out, excitement on her voice, as she shows a scroll with complex writing.


    She turns to Vernack and notices that he was having a hard time understanding what was written on the scroll. She giggles at the confused expression that he was making.


    "Unable to comprehend the records of a mage?" She nudges him, almost unable to control her laughter.


    Not wanting to be defeated by her jesting, he snatches the scroll from her and tries to comprehend the writings on the scroll. Surprised by his sudden reaction at first but after a moment she could not help but let out an unrestrained laughter.


    "W-what are you laughing at?" He covers his face with the scroll away from Meyvil looking at him.


    "I can understand what is written here!" He nervously said as he presents the scroll on a stone table.


    "Alright, alright, what does it say then?" She said after composing herself.


    "I-it states that thousands of seasons ago t-there was a m-major bloodshed for the o-ownership of Ialonia!" At first he was soft spoken but as he went on his voice gradually increased and confidence booming all over his voice.


    Silence. Meyvil looked at Vernack in shock, because of this he had initially thought that he actually got the writings on the scroll right. His eyes shone brightly and released an unrestrained laughter of his own.


    "See! I know my stuff and I know how to read this gibberish of a scroll!" His laugh echoed all over the cave, awaking Bale and Halungr once more.


    "Ya got it all wrong!" After Vernack''s laughter settled, he hears Meyvil cackling and pointing at the scroll.


    "W-what do you mean?" Trying to remain confidence, Vernack lets out a stern voice but sweat would fall down from his face.


    "This scroll does not speak about the history of Ialonia, but it states about the time when the previous King of Tugal unintentionally shat himself while attending the dubbing of the First Prince as Warlord of Southern Tugal!" Her pitchy laughter echoed all over the cave and awakening some of the wildlife outside the cave.


    "What in the torbir''s breath is the point of this record about?" Vernack could not help but yell out his complaint, redirecting his embarrassment to the uselessness of the scroll.


    Meyvil''s laughter not only did not decrease in volume, but it rather strengthened which made her face all red as she tries to hold on to the stone table to not fall on the stone floor laughing.


    Dumbfounded by the turn of events, Vernack made an expression that could not be described and turned his back on Meyvil walking towards the cave entrance. He muttered profanities in all forms that he knew as he walked away from her, but as he walks away the echoes of her laughter would only make him even more frustrated than he was earlier.


    Moments later, he exited Meyvil''s domain, kicking on pebbles and spitting on the soil of the entrance, he would imagine that everything he had done that moment was as if he had killed her a thousand times over.


    Suddenly, as he was treading onward he bumps into a tree that was as two mortals thick and as tall the torbir he had met in the cave.


    "What the--" As he dusts himself, he finally notices that the trail of broken trees and the large paw prints of Halungr disappeared and all have seemed to return to what it was several hours ago.


    Not believing his sight at first, Vernack runs around the forest near the cave entrance to see if it the tree restored itself and to his surprise, all of the trees, shrubs, rocks, and soil seemed untouched. He tries to push a tree that he remembers was chopped off by Halungr, but his attempt only proved that everything has restored to its original state.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.


    "She did say she could restore everything if she wanted, but I was with her all night..." He pondered as he looked toward the cave entrance, he remembered that one side of the rock wall by the cave entrance had a large claw mark when they returned to the cave, but now it had disappeared.


    He hurries back into Meyvil''s cave, all thoughts of frustration and annoyance about her were lost in the moment as he enters the cave.


    "Meyvil!" He yelled out as he hastens his pace. Vernack''s voice echoes in the cave which alarmed Meyvil at first.


    However, she sensed that Vernack has returned to defend himself and double down from his embarrassment. She chuckles at the thought of every scenario of what he would have to say about himself.


    "Meyvil, did you..." A moment later, Vernack finally arrives to where everyone was, huffing and puffing as he tries to catch a breath after running all the way inside.


    "Did I what? Lie to ya about the scroll? Why would I lie about the content of the scroll?" Without letting him finish his sentence as he catches some air, she immediately voiced her rebuttal of what she believed he would say.


    Hearing her rebuttal, Vernack scowled as he finally composed himself. He glared at her for a second which released a small amount of threatening aura within him. However, a moment later he shook his head and returned to a proper state of mind.


    "I have no care about the scroll right now, but I do want to know if restoring the forest outside to what it was before was your doing?" His breathy voice resounded within the cave and his question caused Meyvil''s expression to slacken.


    "I have been inside my domain the whole night and ya have not seen me chant a magic circle to restore anything outside as of yet." Meyvil stopped what she was doing and walked passed Vernack, curious on what had occurred outside.


    "Alas, this may be also one yer ways of tricking me is it not?" Although she was truly intrigued by the event outside, she also thought of the possibility that he may be tricking her into embarrassment of believing him immediately.


    ''Why did I not think of that?'' Vernack sighs as he thought to himself, he felt that if the trail were untouched he would have not returned into the cave to trick her into embarrassment.


    He looks into her alluring eyes, sensing that she does want to go out and check but her pride tells her otherwise.


    "I promise, no tricks, no setbacks, no nothing, just look outside." He assures her as he leads her out of the cave.


    A few moments later, Meyvil was not merely surprised, but rather, she was stupefied by the forest outside her domain. Just like what Vernack did earlier, she went to a nearby tree where she remembered was felled by Halungr and attempts to push it.


    "How did this happen without me knowing?" She mutters as she softly chants and suddenly a white magic circle appeared on her palm.


    The magic circle released a faint white light that injected itself into the tree. Moments later, she removed her hand from the tree and looked around the environment, utterly stupefied by her findings.


    "What did you just do?" After a few moments of watching her do her magic, he finally let out his curiosity.


    "I used one of the complex spells taught in the Academia to check for any history of mana being used in an area, but it told me that no mana nor magic was used to restore the forest." She investigated more of her surroundings as she explains the magic that she just used.


    "If what you are saying is true, then this forest probably healed itself to its origin!" Vernack theorized as he reads more into the forest situation.


    Meyvil did not utter any word in reply to him, rather, she continued on her investigation on each place she marked by Halungr that she could remember. She scratches her head as none of her magic found any trace of the mana around the area being drained or filled.


    "This is not right, what sort of phenomena occurred that even my Halun did not notice!" She extends her arm and a softly chants something then another white magic circle appeared out of her hand.


    Several faint white light protruded out of the magic circle and moved around the area around them. However, instead of the faint light injecting into trees and the soil, it injects itself to a number of nocturnal wildlife that were moving around the cave entrance.


    The faint light seemed to do no harm to the birds and the insects that were minding their own business. She studied the movement of mana within the wildlife, even checking for any hint of their current or previous illness being healed or restored.


    Moments later, she pulled back all of the faint white light and was stupefied even further that not even within the wildlife mana was taken or filled.


    "This..." Her face showed neither fear nor anger, rather the shock on her face would slowly transition into excitement.


    "T-this is a phenomena surpassing even the legends!" She yells out in excitement.


    "How about using magic that will allow you to communicate with the wildlife or maybe read their memories?" Vernack interjected, not minding her excitement.


    Meyvil was taken aback by Vernack''s suggestion that her excitement about the phenomena extend towards the man in front of her that could not even read the scroll earlier.


    "Yer suggestion is right but sadly that is not where my expertise lays on." She happily explains as she approached Vernack.


    "In the Academia, I graduated as a Sorceress, meaning by expertise lays on offensive magic rather than forming connections with beasts and beings alike." She suddenly projects an emblem made out of different kinds of element out of her palm forming a shape of a flame and the flame is encircled by the different symbols of worldly elements, such as; fire, wind, water, and air.


    Vernack was astonished by the emblem that was projecting out of her palm, before he sees an ant-sized magic circle in the middle of her palm where the emblem is being projected. He could not believe that the magic circle could even be at the size of such.


    "Move on about me, ya know this restoration phenomenon surpasses the legend of Grand Magus Eorlu''s Light Disciple, Grand Magus Orias!" She urges Vernack back into the cave as she explains more.


    "A Light Disciple?" He voices his question as he follows behind her.


    "Yes, Grand Magus Orias was deemed as his ''Light Disciple'' as she was the first ever student of his that the Aprexem shone in the element of light." She continues.


    "How I wish Jon could have heard all of this." He muttered to himself.


    "Anyhow, Grand Magus Orias'' legend came forth when she used the element of light to restore the body parts of several thousands of men and women during the battle between the Abaklu stationed a hundred massus away from Northern Tugal."


    They reach the inner hall of the cave and she pulled out a scroll from one of the stone shelves she had that had green circles on each corner but the middle of the green circles are four yellow dots. She stretches the scroll over the stone table she had by the shelves, but the table was not long enough for the scroll to properly rest without falling to the ground.


    "Were not Abaklus stated as peaceful beings of the sea and are there to act as guardians for many sailors?" Vernack surmised, hinting some doubts by the story.


    "Although I have little knowledge about Abaklus, all I know that according to the legends the Abaklu from Northern Tugal was causing numerous fishermen to lose their lives as it was the one that would devour them before they even began to fish." Meyvil''s tone softened as she was uncertain if the Abaklu, whom had no name, was even an Abaklu or a Nalunhor, a spawn of Nerruso whom are apex predators of the sea.


    "Anyhow, the legend stated that Grand Magus Orias conjured a large scale magic that not only restored body parts, but the broken environment as well." She continued.


    "However, the phenomena today differed from the legend as Grand Magus Orias ''filled'' her mana into the environment, while the forest had none in its history." Meyvil would double-check the scroll finding any sort of hint that the Light Disciple did not ''fill in'' mana into the environment.


    Rather than being appalled by the phenomena today, Vernack was awestruck by the legend that the people of Tugal and a Grand Wizard fought against a possible Colossal Guardian of Nerrusol. None of what she had said at that moment entered his mind as he ponders on the possibility of a mortal killing the guide of the sea.


    As the two were searching more hints about the phenomena that had occurred earlier that day, hours has passed and the light of Ora, the sun, has slowly peaked over the horizon. The nocturnal wildlife would finish their nightly activities and burrow back into their shelters as diurnal wildlife awaken to satisfy their needs before the long night comes again.


    Jon rose from his slumber beside Bale, whom laid beside Halungr whose body is facing directly the stone wall of the cave. He looks around the cave but only sees the scrolls on the stone shelves were disorganized and several more scrolls were scattered on the stone floor.


    "What are these?" Jon attempts to read one of the scrolls, but he barely understood anything other than a few of familiar symbols he had seen from one of Grandmother Bliss'' old books.


    "What is the scroll saying about the King of Tugal?" Finally remembering what one of the symbols in the scroll meant, he tries to connect each familiar symbol he could remember but he could not get much anything about it.


    As he tries to analyze the scroll about the previous King of Tugal, Vernack drowsily walks back in the cave while holding two rolled up scrolls under his armpit. He holds himself up by resting his back on the wall and drag along it.


    "Oh... Jon your finally awake!" Vernack paused as soon as he saw Jon reading one of the scrolls, his face shone in bright light as his drowsiness seemingly lost its hold of him in that instant.


    "Verna! What happened to you?" Surprised by Vernack''s predicament, Jon placed down the scroll he was attempting to read and checked on him.


    "No need to worry about me lad, can you hold these scrolls for me?" Vernack presents the two rolled scrolls to Jon, his face brimming with energy.


    "A-alright then." Jon hesitantly took the scrolls, confused by Vernack''s expression that he was making.


    "Well lad, you take care of her shit now, am knocking miself out." Immediately after Jon took the scrolls, Vernack ran off to the side and instantly slept on the stone floor.


    Jon wanted to say something at first but seeing that Vernack was excited to be able to snug himself to sleep, he did not voice his confusion nor complaint.


    Neigh! Vernack yelling out in joy awoke Bale whom was also surprised by the beast that slept beside it. Bale immediately ran behind Jon, trying to hide from the ferocious torbir that was chasing them to death just last night.


    "Bale, I told you before, need not worry nor fear the torbir, it is friendly." He tries to calm Bale by rubbing its neck and urges it to follow him as he returns the two scroll back to the stone-shelves.


    "Vernack! We are not done with the investigation yet, where are you hiding?" Jon hears Meyvil calling out to Vernack from the cave entrance.


    A few moments later, Meyvil arrives to see that Bale and Jon were awake and were standing beside the stone shelves. She paused to look at them for a few seconds, then after she moved on to search for Vernack.


    "Lady Meyvil and Verna sure are getting along." Jon chuckles as he voices his thought out loud.


    "Yer friend right here is helping me investigate the ''Restoration Phenomena'' that occurred last night on the forest without alarming me nor Halungr." Meyvil easily brushed off his remark as she nudges Vernack to awaken.


    "Lady Meyvil, I suggest not to wake him, how about I help you in his stead?" He happily offers his service as he knows how annoyed Vernack would get if he were to be forced to awaken.


    "Alright then, follow me, Jon." She immediately pulled back from Vernack and happily walked out of the cave.

 Chapter 8: A Mystery

    When Ora ascends the two moons by the world would hide behind the horizon leaving behind the third moon, Nerva, to bask under the presence of Ora far off its distance.


    Jon would remember the tales about the night and day told by Grandmother Bliss as he admires the light of the sun peeking over the horizon, leaving a stretch of golden and orange lights on the sluggish clouds.


    The sways of the leaves as the wind passes creates a moment of tranquility around the cave entrance. For just a moment, Jon was lost in the harmony of nature forgetting about the loss of his master and the nightmare that occurred five seasons ago.


    After taking in a breath of air, he returns to the reality of it all and walked behind Meyvil.


    "Wait, is this what you meant about the ''Restoration Phenomena'' last night?" As he surveyed the area, there he finally noticed that the trail of broken trees where they passed through last night were restored as if nothing had happened to them.


    "It certainly is Jon, help me investigate the surroundings now." Meyvil excitedly conjured two white magic circle that released a streak of faint light that scoured deeper into the forest and under the soils of the trees.


    Bale without making any sound tagged along Jon when they were attempting to study more about the phenomenon.


    "Um... Meyvil, can you not use that magic to communicate with the animals around here?" Jon spoke after moments of silence as if clearing the countless thoughts he had in his head.


    Meyvil chuckled at his question, remembering that Vernack asked the same question beforehand.


    "No, it is not within my abilities to form connections with the wildlife." She replied while she continued to stretch out the streak of faint light all over the surrounding environment.


    ''So a mage even at her level is unable to conjure every magic in the world?'' Jon was taken aback by her reply, his understanding of mages based on Grandmother Bliss'' and Lahar''s explanations and stories were limited.


    "If not so, how were you able to tame a torbir and trained it to that level? Is it not that in order to be able to bring any creature up to any point needs a strong connection?" After some thought, Jon finally voiced his question as if it were water rushing out of a dam after being blocked for a long time.


    Meyvil''s eyes widened as she hears the incredible insight of a boy whom had limited knowledge about mages that studied in any Academia. She thought that the two boys would be the same, having little understanding about the world since she believed that they were isolated from the rest of the world since their birth, however the boy behind her proved her otherwise.


    "Yes, it is completely logical that one must form a deep bond with any creature for it to be trained to Halungr''s level." She happily explains as she pulls back all of the streak of faint light back into her palm.


    "However, all that I own, Halungr and its siblings of different species, were gifted to me when they were still young by my grandfather whom was a Master Conjurer of Familiars."


    "Master Conjurer of Familiars?" Jon mutters to himself as he goes in deep thought.


    "All mages graduate in different schools, so my grandfather graduated as a Conjurer wherein they focus on forming connections with creatures of all kinds, the living and the dead." She answers Jon''s question as she sat down on a large stone resting beside a large tree, sweat falls down her velvety robe.


    "The connection between me and my Halun are of the same length as ya were to yer horse behind ya." Before Jon could speak any more questions, Meyvil continued her explanation expecting Jon to question more about Halungr.


    "I can sense the use of enchantment on the horse''s mind, but unlike the enchantment used by Conjurers, this one is connected to the heart and its mana soul which in the level of enchantment based on what I could remember this is the highest level making the enchantment permanent." She looks at the horse with a cold gaze making Bale shiver in fear as it sensed that it was like it was being read like a book.


    Jon was appalled by her statement. A magic at the highest level which was used on a horse that they met five years ago, this thought rang in Jon''s mind as his view on Bale changed at that moment.


    Feeling two different gazes at it, Bale cowers in embarrassment and clopped back inside the cave to escape the sight of the two mortals under the shade of the forest.


    "After looking at the mana soul between ya and yer friend, I have hypothesized that it was neither ya nor Vernack whom enchanted the horse." She rises from her seat and grabs one of Jon''s hand as she uses the magic she used to investigate the forest on him.


    Meyvil suddenly grabbing his hand startled Jon as he instinctively pushes her away from him. She falls back to the large stone, leaving a small rip on the back of her velvety robe.


    "Sorry madam!" Jon immediately helped her back up, feeling the guilt of suddenly pushing her away.


    "No need to apologize, my fault for suddenly grabbing yer hand." She dusts herself off and once more reaches out her hand.


    "Will ya allow me to investigate the history of yer mana soul?"


    Jon looked at Meyvil in confusion, thinking what could possibly she learn about his mana soul when even he could not feel the movement of mana within him.


    "W-why do you need to check my mana soul?" After a few moments, Jon finally spoke his confusion.


    "Well, I need to double-check if ya were the one who enchanted that horse since I could not sense mana within you last night." Meyvil''s friendly expression made Jon feel guiltier for pushing her.


    "A-alright." Jon extended his hand and allows her to user her magic on him, knowingly that she will not be able to find anything about his mana soul.


    Woo! She softly chants the magic then a white magic circle appears on Meyvil''s palm and a faint streak of light injects into Jon''s rough palm and moves along the movement of blood in his veins and arteries back to his heart.


    Jon feels the cold sensation of the faint white light entering and flowing along his arteries and as it scoured deep within him he suddenly feels his chest tightening and his eyes flashed in a bright green light for a moment.


    Boom! The magic scouring in his body met with a fierce invisible force and stretched out within him.


    Meyvil paled the moment she felt her formulated mana being attacked by this unknown force within the boy in front of her. She does her best to pull back all of her magic but the enigmatic power within him would pull the mana back with even greater force.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    Not able to think of any other method at that moment, Meyvil immediately cuts off the mana flowing out of her palm which disrupts the magic circle and stops the streak of light from being connected to his hand.


    The remaining formulated mana within Jon were immediately sucked in by the abyssal force within him and returned back into his heart. Soon after, his eyes flashed in green light and a moment later he was inside an abyss.


    Jon waved his arm around as he feels the cold familiar air in this abyss, he walks around the endless abyss and occasionally turn as if searching for something. A moment later, the horizon in front of him shone in a bright green light as it stretches out into the dark sky.


    Not wasting any moment later, he sprints towards the horizon but the longer he ran towards it, the farther the horizon seemed.


    "Supriar!" A voice bellowed from the horizon as the shout shakes the abyss.


    Balancing himself from the violent shaking of the abyss, Jon increases his pace as the mention of the person that razed his two homes peaked his curiosity.


    "Die by the hands of the dead!" As the voice howled towards him, the abyss shook violently again.


    The moment Jon was about to peek at the horizon near him, he smells a strong stench of blood. Jon winces the moment the scent reached him, slowing down his pace.


    A few moments later, he arrives at a hill filled with piles of dead bodies all over the hill and the field behind it. The impaled, beheaded, dismembered, and incinerated bodies were left to rot and consumed by vultures that scavenged around it.


    The grass and the surrounding leaves were painted in blood, the sky that stretched towards the infinite abyss reminisced the direness of the field as a storm was brewing towards it.


    Jon chilled at the sight and stumbles backward attempting to move away from the horrible hill filled with death. As Jon moved two steps backward he suddenly feels a cold liquid all over his palm.


    The moment he felt the cold liquid, his back chilled at the eerie sensation. He hesitantly rose his hand and look at it, then a moment later he finally sees his hand covered in blood.


    He turns his back to see where the blood originated from, then a moment later, he felt his heart sank as the scene before him was something he would never imagine to see even for a vision.


    Jon sees what seemed to be a sea of blood extending infinitely into the horizon and numerous decapitated heads flowing along the waves of the sea.


    He immediately jumps out of the flowing sea and tries to run in a different direction but he suddenly feels a cold sharp blade slowly puncture from his back into his left lung. Blood flowed out of his mouth and a sharp pain sensation stretched all over his body causing him to yowl.


    "You should have never tested my patience boy." A cold voice whispers from behind him as the sword was being forced in deeper.


    Jon used all of his strength to face the person behind him, but as soon as he turned he returned back into the abyss. Jon flails around as he struggled for breath, still thinking that he was being stabbed from behind.


    "What... fuck..." Jon tries to utter his thoughts but the shock overwhelms him only letting out a few breath as he spoke.


    His body was drenched in cold sweat as he checks on himself, feeling the parts of his body where the sword stabbed through. Jon let out a sigh when he felt no stab wounds nor any sign of blood on his body.


    Just when he thought that everything was clear, he sensed a deathly gaze directly above him. The moment he gazed above him, he suddenly feels someone grabbing his shoulders.


    "Jon!" Jon hears Meyvil''s voice calling out to him as he flashes back to reality.


    "Ah! Die! Die!" He pushes her back with all his might and would repeatedly bash Meyvil on the head as he believes he is still inside the abyss.


    "Wind Shot!" Without wasting another moment, Meyvil chanted one of her offensive magic then a gray magic circle appeared on the back of her hand and shot out a small invisible force that struck Jon''s chest forcing him off of her.


    Gah! Jon was flung back to the wall of the cave entrance as he yelped out in pain, knocking him out in an instant.


    "What happened to him?" Meyvil mutters to herself as she composes herself and checked on him.


    "And what in the world was that ''force'' within him?" She continued, then suddenly Bale arrived and saw that Jon was unconscious.


    "Horse, it was not my inten--" Before she could finish her sentence,


    ****


    Within the forest by Baron Slies'' castle a troop of cavalrymen are seen galloping along the dirt path directed towards a nearby village. When the troop reached a divided path, they immediately split and went on the two paths.


    Hyah! One of the cavalrymen who had no helmet on rushed his steed as his mind was clouded with anger.


    "Damn those Supriars to Solvana! The moment I see them I would do worse than killing them!" The cavalryman behind the one with no helmet suddenly broke the tense atmosphere and voiced their frustration.


    "As if poisoning the wells of several villages were not enough, they went on and even angered Lady Meyvil''s torbir at that!" Another cavalryman whose voice was muffled joined in his frustration.


    "Silence Nivar, Boyle! We have little knowledge of what angered her beast, we cannot completely blame all these on those literal demons." The cavalryman without a helmet, who seemed to be the captain of the troop, scolded his troop but his expression seemed to agree with their statement.


    "Lucky that we were not ravaged by her beast as well, if it did, I would have not been able to even save a child at that point." Boyle sighs as he could not argue with the statement of their captain.


    Half the time it took for a pillared beeswax candle to burn out, Rolguard Briham''s troop arrived at one of the villages near the border castle, Murky Wolf.


    To their surprise, they see that the people of the village are unharmed and are lively as ever. Some were seen butchering three large hogs, some were chopping firewood, and some doing their own business.


    Briham was both glad and confused by the boon that the village was in. What seemed to be imminent death from Halungr''s rage last night was falsified by the proof right in front of them.


    "This does not seem right." Nivar galloped beside Briham and voiced out the same confusion as their captain.


    "Gram, question Elder Polus about anything that weird that occurred here during Zakel''s light." Briham issued an order on one of the cavalrymen behind him, as the others stayed on the entrance of the village.


    Gram immediately executed his order and urged his steed inward. With what seemed to be an eternity as Gram was questioning not only the elder inside but the villagers as well, he returns confused.


    "Was it the Supriar?" Before Briham or Gram was able to utter any word, Boyle was the first to question about the situation.


    "Nay, they were not harmed by Lady Meyvil''s beast nor were they raided by the Supriars." He said while his expression was dour.


    "If it were not the Supriars, then it could have been even worse than we imagined." Briham replied as he pondered as well.


    The cavalrymen around him were visibly taken aback by his words, they never even thought about the level of threat what Halungr was fighting for the battle to rage on for more than one pillared beeswax candle.


    "That..." Nivar was rendered speechless by the thought that there was possibly an even greater threat by the border than the torbir owned by Meyvil.


    "Could the beast have fought one of the Ferrins?" Gram muttered as he gazes towards the mountain range near the Kingdom of Supriar''s border.


    "The Ferrins are things of myth and legends! Not even one in the Scrolls of Time in Duke Cristos library nor the Academia had mentioned the appearance of any Ferrin since the dawn of time!" Boyle immediately rebuked the thought of Ferrins existing even before the Scrolls of Time were written.


    "Boyle, myths and legends would have never existed if not even a part of it was witnessed by any living being in this damned world." Briham counters Boyle''s rebuttal as he feels a slight pain in his head just thinking about the possibility of a Ferrin disrupting Wesout''s peace.


    "Those stories could have been witnessed through the hallucinations formulated by the Demonaics, was it not stated that was used by them during the ''Great Mortal-Demonaic War'' thousands of Lios ago!" Boyle still could not accept the thought of Ferrins existing in Wesout, nor in any part of the world.


    The troop could only sigh in agreement to Boyle''s statement, there were tons of reasons they could make before even reaching the topic about Ferrins roaming around the world. They look at the horizon for a moment before Rolguard Briham leads the troop back to Baron Slies'' border castle.


    ****


    "So, Murky Wolf and Taldirion were left untouched by the rage of Meyvil''s beast?" Drakon sighs as he thinks about the variables of what could have caused something like this.


    "Aye milord! There is even a much more confusing report from the scouts." Rolguard Clietus knelt before Baron Slies in the Baron''s castle hall.


    "Speak of it Clietus, hide none from me." Drakon said as he thought of anymore occurrence that Clietus would mention.


    "The scouts joined with the graduates from ''Academia Us Valun'' found not even a trace of battle near Meyvil''s domain nor the areas around it as well." Clietus hesitated at first but soon after he mentions the report coming from the scouts.


    Crack! The moment Drakon heard that phrase ''no trace of battle'', he could not restrain himself as he breaks one of the arms of his throne. What was even more shocking was not even the mages were able to trace any hint of battle even with their high level knowledge of investigative magic.


    The aura Drakon was exuding made Clietus chilled, he felt that if he misspoke his head could be flying at any moment before he could defend himself.


    "Had they communicated with any of the wildlife that witnessed it?" Drakon composed himself as he exercises the presence of a true noble.


    "Erm... that... the conjurers stated that the memories of every wildlife that night were nothing but peaceful, as if nothing happened." Clietus said as he bowed deeper, hiding the embarrassment on his face.


    Contrary to what Rolguard Clietus believed, Drakon was not angered by the report, rather he was stupefied as his eyes widened and jaws are open. Drakon could not believe such a phenomenon could exist, so without any word he stood from his throne and gently tapped Clietus on the head.


    "Clietus, I will be writing a letter with the ''Seal of Heaven'', never let anyone know about this letter nor you should loss this letter, bring the letter to Grand Magus Alingoth as if your life depends on it!" Drakon''s command echoed on the empty hall of his castle.


    Rolguard Clietus felt his bone chilled the moment he learned about the severity of this phenomena.


    "Your will be done Lord Slies!" Clietus responded as he follows Drakon inside his study.

 Chapter 9: Torans Heart

    "Jon! Oi, Jon!" A panicky voice echoes within Jon''s consciousness, Ora''s light stretching on the blue sky and a blurry figure sat beside him shaking his body.


    Jon groans as his consciousness slowly returns, blinking his eyes repeatedly and trying to wipe his face from all the dirt and sweat on it.


    "Ack, that hurt." He attempts to raise himself but he suddenly feels as if the ground was pulling him back and plops back to the ground.


    Bale immediately pushed Meyvil away from Jon and nudged its snout on his head as soon as it saw him plopping back to the ground. It checks on each side of Jon to see if there were any other injury or wounds after plopping down.


    "Damn horse! Like I said, the lad struck me first!" Meyvil uses all of her strength and pushed Bale out of the way in return for pushing her away as well.


    "Come on, yer awake now, let us get you up." She stands from the hard ground and reaches out a hand, although a hint of fear is seen on her eyes as she remembers her mana being eaten by the abyss inside the boy in front of her.


    Jon extends out a hand and grips on her hand as he uses her hand to prop himself off the ground. He dusts his ragged tunic as soon as he got up, and like Meyvil a hint of fear can be seen on his eyes.


    "I... I am sorry for attacking you suddenly." After what seemed to be an eternity of awkward silence, Jon sees several bruises on Meyvil''s arm and face and felt the something as if something stabbed him in the heart.


    "I... I thought you were stabbing me from behind." He continued, the guilt in his voice even more prevalent than before.


    Once more, Meyvil''s thought about the two who went inside her domain had changed, from mockery to fascination to fear, she feels a non-existent danger the more she gets closer to these two.


    ''All beings in this world would have not reached this point had we not risked facing our fears!'' The fear hidden within her instantly vanished as she remembers the reason why she became a Sorcerer.


    All graduates of Sorcery were excellent researchers, although they mastered in magic meant to harm any other being, whether it was astral or a personification of mana, the magic formulated and experimented by Sorcerers were to search any sort of way to hurt anything that lives.


    However, the eyes of a researcher are not set in stone for only one thing but it is to uncover everything. From all sort of myths to any natural phenomena, a researcher is all about discovering the facts from these hidden gems.


    Without saying much, she grabs Jon on the wrist and drags him back inside the cave, forgetting about the ''Restoration Phenomenon''. Her eyes gleaming with excitement as if she had found a legendary species worth experimenting on.


    Thinking that Meyvil will hurt him again, Bale once more tries to push her away from him, but this time before it could touch Meyvil, she chants softly and a bright magic circle appears on Bale''s eyes. The magic circle flashed and disappeared a moment later, but Bale''s tenacity vanished and it seemed as if it has forgotten about Meyvil hurting Jon.


    "W-what did you do to Bale?" Jon was confused by her reaction beforehand, but what she did to the horse was more questionable to him.


    "A calming spell, no need to worry, it only lasts for a few moments." She nonchalantly replies as she focuses more on her thoughts about the abyss inside Jon.


    Several moments later, they arrive inside Meyvil''s domain, where Vernack and Halungr was happily resting, not knowing the activity that occurred outside. Meyvil loosens her grip on Jon and strode toward an empty wall with only stalactites on its ceiling.


    "Thine locks of plenty, thine path to secrecy, O Spirit of the Hidden, Let the hidden be of sight!" Meyvil loudly chants as she waves her hand on the stone wall.


    A moment later, the wall slightly shakes and a large brown magic circle appears on the stone wall, then each piece of the stone crumbles into nothingness without the cave violently shaking.


    As the wall was crumbling, a hint of another entrance can be seen through the dust cloud formed by the wall as it falls apart.


    Then, as the dust settles, what seemed to be a hallway that stretched infinitely is seen inside the new entrance, a limitless amount of floating dimly lit orb on each side for every fifth step, the ceiling as if it extends into the sky, and the wall and the floor turned into cobble. The entrance was large enough to fit three Halungr on its pathway.


    Jon marvels at the vastness of the new entrance and the floating orb of light which seemed to float on about at the same place.


    "Where does this lead to?" Still marveling at the entrance that appeared after Meyvil''s chanting, Jon asks excitedly without facing her.


    "It leads to somewhere bigger than this cave." Meyvil happily replied and lead Jon deep inside.


    Only the sound of them walking inside the cobble hall echoed within as they treaded deep into the dimly light hallway. Although the hallway seemed to stretch infinitely and they had been walking seemingly for an eternity, Jon never left a single drop of sweat nor he felt tired for walking this long.


    Moments later, Jon sees a hall from a distance and what seemed like the stars in the night sky as countless number of light orbs floated around within this hall.


    When they finally arrive at the hall Jon was bewildered at the sight, what he had imagined beforehand paled in comparison to what he was seeing now.


    The hall was tremendous than the height of the hallway''s ceiling, in here was different. What seemed to be the ceiling of the hall reminisced the sight of the cosmos, with the vastness of space being swallowed by an astronomical orb of light which made Jon look like an ant compared to it.


    It also had what seemed to be shelves stretching horizontally with no end at the sight of it, a table in the middle of the hall with stacks of scrolls and a stool, on the side was a table with a clear crystal ball, on the opposite side of the room was a rack of alchemical potions, and beside this rack was a shelf filled with various jars of body parts from different species in the world.


    What made Jon dumbfounded even further was that everything was made using crystal, the shelves, the table, the stool, the floor, everything! He has never seen such large amount of crystal and only to be used to be sat on?


    The light inside the cosmic-like hall was majestic as colors of different hues come here and there as the light from the star-like orb above them are refracted and dispersed by the crystals inside the tremendous hall.


    "How did you get this tremendous amount of crystals? Even that Oran-sized orb of light floating above us? What..." Jon rambled on onward while still marveling at every single thing at sight inside the hall.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.


    "This hall is called ''Toran''s Heart'', a world forged by the crystal-smiths of Grosvolk and Grand Magus Toran a few Lios after the end of the ''Great Mortal-Demonaic War''." Meyvil explains as she also marvels at the sight despite having seen this hall for a countless number of times now.


    "This was forged for the graduates of Sorcery, a world filled with infinite knowledge, a world where we can take and replace, a shared world for all Sorcerers!"


    "We may not see anyone now, but Toran''s Heart, just like the limitless stretch of the shelf before us, has an infinite amount of rooms which is conveniently made for Sorcerers to be able to do all our research in peace."


    "Although there had been no records of this happening, but it was said the Magus of Knowledge, Grand Magus Toran, stole High Prince Neimas of Grosvolk''s spirit and was used as the foundation of this world, since Torenn''s are said to have the most refined mana soul as seen above us now."


    "What?!" Jon could not restrain his shock anymore after hearing Meyvil''s explanation about the history of this magnificent hall.


    As Jon was looking around the hall, his gaze lands back to the entrance of the hall. He remembered that the hallway was longer that what he sees right now, he could clearly see the cave they were just in long ago.


    "Was the hallway always that short?" He points at the entrance, intrigued by the sight before him.


    "The hallway had always been short, only reason why it seemed longer than it is because a magical mechanism was used to trap trespassers in an infinite loop inside the hallway." She nonchalantly replies and rests her hand on Jon''s shoulder.


    "Come, I am eager to learn more about the abyss in ya" Her eyes gleamed in excitement as she thought of the numerous possibilities that caused the child before her to absorb any magic rather than letting it flow freely within the mana soul.


    "W-wait so even when I went in with you I was considered a trespasser?" Jon followed behind her eagerly as many more questions popped inside his brain.


    Meyvil chuckled and said no reply to Jon, she found it cute that he wanted to learn more about the secrets of all mages but she also knew there were limits to what she could say to anyone, even if they were someone close to her.


    The two stood around crystal table that had a clear crystal ball resting atop a ''five serpent head'' stand and three wings acting as its legs.


    "This crystal ball is called the Aprexem, the magical object that appraises yer affinity to any sort of worldly elements." Meyvil places her palm on the crystal ball.


    A few seconds later, the crystal ball faintly glowed in a gray light then intensity of the light slowly went brighter.


    "Gray light?" Jon was appalled by the result as he excitement would slowly appear on his eyes.


    "Gray light means Wind, thereby I am naturally a Wind Mage, but they also call me ''Sorceress of the Southern Wind'' since I was famous for using scalding wind magic to fight mages and monsters alike." Meyvil proudly said as she presented the Aprexem for Jon to use.


    Jon hastily places his hand on the crystal ball and anticipated for any light to appear. However, after more than a minute not even a hint of light appeared.


    He slowly removes his hand on the Aprexem, disappointment in his eyes. He thought that the Aprexem might be able to give him any hint about his mana but just like mana control, he felt useless once more.


    However, this did not disappoint Meyvil''s excitement nor her expectations, the moment she saw that there was not even a presence of mana within Jon she already knew that the Aprexem would show no result. Although she had known at first, as a researcher she had to check up on the facts first since this was a rare case for any individual all over the world.


    "No need to worry Jon, yer not the only who cannot possess mana nor conjure any magic, although there had only been five recorded cases of such but none had an abyss inside them." Meyvil uses her magic to move the infinite shelf as she searched for a specific scroll.


    "I am not alone?" Jon''s tone sounded as if he regained some sort of energy as he looks over at Meyvil scrolling through a million scrolls.


    "Well yer not, but the abyss in you is a special case which makes you different at the same time." Meyvil pulls out a scroll and presents it on one of her crystal work table.


    Jon saw few familiar symbols that he has seen from Grandmother Bliss'' old books and he sees that each corner of the scroll had a green square with one black dot in the middle.


    "Does this scroll talk about cases like mine?" Jon asks as he connects the familiar symbols from his memories.


    "Ya can read the symbols?" Meyvil was genuinely shocked by Jon as she notices as if he was reading the scroll.


    Jon shook his head in reply and gave up connecting the symbols from his memories. He had never thought that their eldest caretaker would have books written with similar symbols as these.


    "It sincerely seemed that you knew how to read the scrolls." She chuckled as she reads the content of the scroll.


    ''Lom, the 3rd child of Kyfer, Count of Beneben, committed suicide ten northern seasons after learning about her ''magically crippled'' since her birth. During the ten northern seasons she faced extreme mental battle or depression. Five northern seasons in, she was suddenly paralyzed while she was walking along the snowy garden of Benolis, graduates of Healing Magic even the Grand Wizard of Restoria could not heal her with any level of healing magic. However, as countless graduates of Healing Magic poured their mana into her, she finally regained her ability to move once more. The Grand Wizard of Restoria checked on her to only find out that nothing actually changed within her the moment she was healed, so the Grand Wizard passed on this result to the Sorcerer of Tri-Elemental Knowledge to research about this case. This rare case was studied upon by the school of Sorcery and Healing Magic all over the land of Easera until her death. As of this writing, no positive result was found even after opening her corpse and directly checking on the mana soul remains, she seemed to be the most normal mortal in all of the world who could not store any mana within her.''


    After reading the scroll, Meyvil could only feel pity for Lom, the first being recorded to be ''magically crippled''. Ever since then, this unknown disease was deemed incurable and named ''Lom''s Curse''.


    Four other similar cases were recorded as well, due to this knowledge being spread around the world, the four whom suffered this incurable magical disease were treated harshly by those around them, even their family.


    One of which was imprisoned and beaten down by a local lord in Abbatir, his parents left him to die as they were the one that sold him to the local lord for food. As if the death of the teen was not enough, his corpse was dragged along the desert of Abbatir and was used to feed the hounds of the local lord.


    Learning about these four cases, the Grand Magus of Eternal Sight consulted the Emperor of Xular and pleaded that any information about Lom''s Curse must forever be erased in the annals of history. To his surprise, the Emperor accepted the Grand Magus'' plea and decreed that all mages to use their magic to erase the memory about Lom''s Curse all over the world.


    The decree was quickly done by the graduates of each school, however the records about the five cursed children were kept by the Magus of Knowledge and hid it inside Toran''s Heart so that only Sorcerers were able to access it. It seemed the thirst for knowledge did not stop the Grand Magus from breaking the decree of the Mortal Overlord.


    "Jon, it seems that yer suffering one of the incurable disease known to the graduates of Restoria called ''Lom''s Curse." She turns to Jon, still pained from reading about Lom.


    Jon looked at her anxiously, the word ''curse'' made his complexion look as if his soul was sucked out of him. Although he was happy to hear that he was not alone, he was saddened to know that it is incurable.


    "However, like I said earlier, yer the first to have some sort of abyss within that would attack or forcefully absorb the mana entering yer body." She releases a small portion of her mana and moves it into Jon''s mana soul.


    As the mana moves inward Jon, Meyvil would follow its movement as it moved towards his heart where the mana soul is normally found. A moment later, she loses sight of the mana as an invisible force within Jon instantly absorbed the miniscule amount of mana.


    Accompanied by the abyss absorbing the mana, Jon''s olive-colored eyes would faintly glow in green light and his body would go stiff for a moment then back to normal.


    "I did not feel anything nor anything really happened, Lady Meyvil." Before Meyvil could ask a question, Jon seemed to have answered her question without any hesitation.


    "I have not asked yet anything Jon." She chuckles as she walks toward the shelf once more and pulled out a clean scroll below the shelf.


    She puts away the ''Lom''s Curse'' scroll and unfurls the new scroll on the crystal table. Meyvil takes a green square stamp from a crystal drawer and exposed the flat surface to a small fire she conjured.


    Meyvil then stamps each corner of the scroll and takes out a small yellow circular stick, burns the flat surface, and stamps four dots in the middle of each green square.


    "What are you doing Lady Meyvil?" Jon asks, he has seen a number of this stamps on each corner of the scroll but he did not understand what each of it meant.


    "Stamping the corners of the scroll determines what type of documentation someone is making, and what I am making is a recording of yer abyss and to find more about it later." She happily explains, it had been long since the last time she taught other students of Sorcery about the importance of each stamp.


    "A green colored stamp means it will be historical, maybe timely, maybe relevant at the moment, however it is not the same as a red or blue stamp which are at the levels of a higher degree of research."


    "When the shape of the stamp is square-like then it means it is research-based on experiments, a circular shape means it is historical, and a triangular shape means it is a census."


    "The number of dots inside the scroll determine the importance of the research, none being the least important and four dots being either controversial, serious, or a crucial piece of knowledge."


    "Now the color of the dots determine how useful it is to anyone, yellow being useful for future experiments, red being useful for learning about an art whether it be fighting or a hobby, blue being useful for the nobles and merchants, and black being forbidden to be known to others."


    Jon carefully listens to Meyvil''s teaching, as her pleasant voice allows him to understand her teaching easier. He remembers the different scrolls he read before Vernack interrupted him earlier, he read the ones with a green circle and four yellow dots in the middle.


    "Now Jon, tell me where are ya from?" Meyvil inquires as she takes out a black quill from her drawer and dips the tip with ink, preparing to write any useful information out of Jon.


    "I was an orphan from Meadow Cross, five northern seasons ago." He answers without any hesitation.


    The moment Meyvil heard that he was an orphan from Meadow Cross, she faced Jon as shock is clearly seen from her expression.


    "If yer an orphan from Meadow Cross, then ya must know Bliss the Prodigy of the Mind?" Meyvil almost jabbered her words as she almost ruined the clean scroll by letting go of the inked quill on her hand.

 Chapter 10: Then and Now

    The two looked at each other at what seemed to be for an eternity, one shocked by the history of orphanage''s caretaker, while the other was surprised to hear that someone is connected to the Prodigy of the Mind.


    The light of each other''s expression gleamed beneath their eyes as Jon was deeply astonished, he did not remember any sign of their old caretaker ever using magic even once inside the orphanage nor within the reaches of Meadow Cross.


    "Had I known ya were orphans from Meadow Cross, I could have treated all of ya some luxurious meal here in Wesout!" Meyvil grabbed Jon by the shoulders as her eyes would gradually widen the more she thought of them being the orphans of the Prodigy of the Mind.


    "Grama Bliss had that much significance for even us to be treated better than now?" Jon still could not get into his head that their caretaker was a mage with a title of "Prodigy" on her name.


    "All prodigies within the world of wizards and alchemists are more than significant, they are treated as the same level as a Grand Wizard whom is about to be bestowed upon the title of Grand Magus."


    "Although because of that, many are jealous of the privilege that a Prodigy have and some would even use underhanded methods to steal the mana soul of a Prodigy, basically killing them as well." Meyvil remembers the time when one of the newly announced Prodigies was murdered the night they were celebrating the appearance of a new Prodigy.


    "I cannot exclude myself in that statement as I for one was jealous as well, but never I had thought about stealing their mana soul for my own gain." She avowed the dislike of prodigies she hid within.


    Jon could not believe that the lady before him, a person of great power that even blocked the full force of a torbir with only a flick of her hand, would even harbor envy over a Prodigy. His understanding of Grandmother Bliss would change by the moment.


    "The Prodigy of the Mind could have been a Grand Wizard a long time ago had she not secluded herself without the help of a Sorcerer." Although Meyvil was envious towards all Prodigies, but towards Grandmother Bliss she only felt pity.


    "Did Lady Meyvil know of her personally?" Jon notices the change in expression the lady before him was making, sensing a hint of sadness in her soft tone.


    She smiles as she returns to look at Jon, the thought of the two boys being orphans reminded her of a distant past, a sweet yet bitter period of time of her life.


    ****


    It was noon, a time when Ora rose high in the sky and the third moon, Nerva, hid once more from sight. The winds blew gently along the coastline, behind the coast was a thriving city, filled with Mortals and Eltureans trying to make a living out of the coast.


    Raised high on each wooden posts of the cobble-gated city were the banner that represented the pride of Wesout, an embroidery of a golden deer with four hands holding a staff with a crown as its tip, the crest of the Dukedom of Cristos.


    A large harbor far out of the shallow coastline filled with vessels from all kinds of sizes, one that ventured out for fishing, while the other ventured out for transporting.


    Out in the horizon, a sight that could be barely seen even atop a lighthouse was an island. However, this was no ordinary island, it was two separate islands large enough to harbor thousands of Numages to study within the walls of Spickloha Academia.


    "Bliss, what is the reason for raising these street urchins whom have the weakest mana soul within them?" Within the city, a large wooden hall beside an inn filled with odds and ends, and dirty rags on the stone floor, a voice boomed all over the hall.


    The children of all sorts of ages hid behind a middle-aged woman, wearing a distinctive robe meant for students in Spickloha Academia and a palm-sized crest of the "Prodigy" was embroidered by the left bosom of her robe.


    "Headmaster, these children would have died of early age had they been left to starve to death!" Bliss replied, although she is able to put up a strong front, but within her there was fear.


    "As a ''Prodigy'', you must only focus on strengthening your mana control as befit of the title of a ''Grand Wizard''." The headmaster''s expression showed that he was about to burst in anger once more, but he held back as he looks at the anxious expression of the children behind Bliss.


    "Headmaster, I know I am a ''Prodigy'', but I was only a Numage who took care of these children before I was found to be a ''Prodigy'', I thought the Laws of Spickloha states that ''Prodigies are free to act as they will without any guidance, but not without the Grand Magus approval''?" She firms her gaze at the headmaster who was visibly taken aback by her remembering one of the policies meant for prodigies.


    After a moment, the headmaster only smirked in reply as he whispers to himself, when suddenly a brown magic circle appears below Bliss and all the children, then a large number of roots came out of the magic circle and grabbed on to each individual''s leg.


    "What is the meaning of this?" She grimaced as she tries to remove the roots grabbing her.


    "If you are going to waste your talent by raising rats on the streets, then I will gladly take your mana soul instead!" The headmaster extends his hand then a large blue hand jumps out of it and reaches out toward her heart.


    Bliss remembers one of her classes about mana souls explaining that any living being cannot live without their mana soul, as the mana soul is an extension of the heart. Once the mana soul is ripped apart from a living being, the heart instantly stops beating and they die at that moment.


    "Release." She mutters to herself then her body flashed in blinding light and repelled the large blue hand from touching her.


    "Reverse." She loudly chants as she extends her hand toward the headmaster, directing the magic she conjured.


    "Within the shell I am safe, within the rock I am strong, within the castle I am secured. Blinding Wall!" The headmaster quickly chants the moment he sees the ''Reverse'' spell directed at him.


    "I have read so much about you Bliss; all your spells are nothing to me!" Another brown magic circle above Bliss and the children then roots project out of the magic circle and tries to grab on to Bliss'' arms.


    The children''s deafening screams as they feel that the roots are pulling them down. Bliss then sends out her "Reverse" spell to the children the moment she looked back at them.


    The roots that were holding on to the children loosens its grip and instead attacked the headmaster.


    The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    "Mey, Lead the others out of here!" Bliss yells out towards the eldest girl in the group, one with a beautiful brown hair that seemed to be at the beginning of her teenage years, wearing a noble-like dress unlike the children around her.


    "Everyone, follow me!" Meyvil glances at Bliss for a moment before leading the others towards a secret passage underneath one of the dirty rags.


    "No witnesses shall be left alive! Earth Collapse!" Yelled out the headmaster, as the inn shook and the ceiling above the secret passage crumbles.


    Meyvil and the others barely escaped the ceiling crumbling on them, however, they were back inside the wooden hall. She looks at the predicament her Master was in, feeling utterly helpless.


    "Die for me ''Prodigy''! The headmaster maniacally laughed, sending out a large blue hand once more while the roots above and below Meyvil were holding onto her legs and arms.


    The blue hand finally enters between her bosom and reaches inward into her heart, Bliss feels the chilling touch of the hand spreading outward.


    Meyvil grimaced at the sight of her Master squirming with her dear life and her complexion getting paler by the second. She digs into her memories all sort of things she learned about the basics of magic.


    In a span of a second, she remembers the time when her grandfather was teaching her all about how mana can be converted into any element an individual want. Then she remembers Bliss teaching the street urchins about mana control.


    She combines these knowledge during this time, a situation where even a moment could change the course of the battle. She then extends her palm towards the headmaster and focuses the movement of mana within her.


    Meyvil feels a warm sensation flowing out from her heart and following the direction towards her palm.


    ''Wind'' Meyvil thought to herself, then suddenly a gray magic circle appears on her palm and shoots out a fist-sized ball of compacted air.


    "Wha-- Eugh!" Immersed in draining Bliss'' mana soul, the headmaster was caught off guard by the wind magic hitting him on the face directly.


    Due to this sudden disturbance, the large blue hand instantly dissipates and Bliss was released from the headmaster''s grasp. In addition to the dissipation, her mana soul rushed back in, giving her back the strength she had minutes earlier.


    "Headmaster this is too much! Reverse!" Cried out Bliss, as she directs her magic towards her spell above her.


    The moment she was loose from the roots'' grip, she charged towards the headmaster as she prepares a spell.


    "Impudent!" The headmaster mutters his chants then a rock figure bursts out of the ground beneath them.


    The rock figure formed the figure of a knight with it sword out ready to slash at a moment. Its eyes glowing in golden light as mana circulates within it.


    Bliss grimaced at the rock figure, she remembers the headmaster''s rock golems are unusual as they are almost invincible to all forms of attacks, whether it be physical or magical.


    Before she enters the range where the rock figure would attack, she immediately strafed sideward and directs her spell towards the headmaster again. However, before she was able to release her spell the ground beneath her bursts open as another rock figure appear, about to attack Bliss with its sharp sword.


    Not even a moment has passed when a wind spell struck on the craggy arm of the figure, allowing Bliss to have a moment to dodge the attack and released her spell towards the headmaster.


    "Mind Block!" A purple magic circle appears above the headmaster''s head and the headmaster suddenly froze while standing, the rock figures was able to slash before they crumbled, destroying the inside of the wooden hall also ripping apart her robe.


    "Master!" Meyvil immediately approached her master and covered her bareback by pulling her robe back together.


    "Mey, I am glad you are not hurt." Bliss soothing voice warms Meyvil''s heart as Bliss hugs her tight.


    "Master!" All the other children surrounded her as tears roll down their faces, thankful that their matronly master was not hurt nor killed.


    Overwhelmed by the children surrounding her, Bliss could only smile and embraced the group as she silently casts a calming spell on everyone.


    ****


    "And after that Bliss had to erase the headmaster''s memory of ever meeting her inside that hall, which was found out by the council a few moons later." Meyvil softly said, feeling her heart-wrench after recalling the day when Bliss was publicly reprimanded by the Court of High Magical Appeal.


    "But did she not defend herself? How could they reprimand Grama? Was there no evidence of her being hurt?" Jon could not find the justice from the outcome, thinking that the headmaster may have done something for it to influence the reprimanding of Grandmother Bliss.


    Meyvil could only sigh at how smart the child raised by the "Prodigy of the Mind" is, normally children or teenagers could not understand the laws of the world but the one before her seemed to understand that there was something done behind the scenes.


    "Yes, there were pieces of evidence that were in favor of Bliss, but because she erased the headmaster''s memory of that time, the council used that evidence to defeat her claims and pitted to her the case of ''Staging the Scene'' and ''Abuse of Power''." The more Meyvil recalls the news about the Council''s judgement, the more her anger rose against the injustice against her previous master.


    She took a glance at Jon and felt some sort of anger boiling within him, but his face showed none of it. She smirks and returns to recording about Jon''s special case of "Lom''s Curse".


    "Grama never told us about that." He looked as if he was deep in thought, staring blindly at the distance.


    "In one of her letters she sent me the day after she was casted out of the Academia and all other Academies around the world, she wrote that the night before the court appeal, she secretly met with the Grand Magus of Wesout, Alingoth, and gave almost all of her mana soul to him in exchange that when she would be banned to enter any Academia she would be given protection by the Grand Magus to never be found by all other mages around the world." Meyvil finishes her recording on the scroll and rolled the scroll.


    "The Council of High Magical Appeal were angered the moment they notice that most of Meyvil''s mana soul was taken by another mage, as they questioned more about whom she gave the rest of her mana soul to instead of the ''Power Abuse'' case. After a long argument with Meyvil, also angered by the fact they could not punish her with death as opposed by the Laws of Spickloha, she was casted out instead." She continues, as if expecting Jon asking more about Bliss past.


    "A northern season later, I received a letter from her, although no name or symbol was written on it, I knew her handwriting better than anyone else, she wrote last that she built an orphanage in Meadow Cross and enjoyed her new life there. And that was the last time I heard of her." She softly said, she chokes as she recalls Bliss death.


    Jon looks at her with sympathetic eyes as he recalls the time when Grandmother Bliss would tag along with the other orphans to play out in the village, sometimes teaching them how to read, and for infants she would tell them the tales about the stars and the moons.


    "Grama truly loved her life lady Meyvil." Jon places his hand on her hand and gave her an assured look.


    "If you were Grama''s apprentice, why did you not leave with her?" He politely asks.


    "Bliss left us without even telling us about it, when I learned that she was casted out it was already too late." She bitterly replied, but her eyes showed longingness.


    Jon smiles at first, but he suddenly remembers the fire brewing during dawn and the distant screams from all directions as the loguards were run down by Supriar''s cavalrymen.


    "Those Supriars will pay for taking Grama Bliss!" He says out loud, which caught Meyvil off guard.


    "I... I also learned about the destruction of Meadow Cross, but at that time, I was out in the continent of Diharta researching about the special Staurkrei ore which does not appear in other continents. When I returned to Wesout several moons later, that was when I heard that Meadow Cross and several other villages were pillaged by the Supriars." She feels her heart ache even more, the more she remembers what she has done in the past.


    "When I was about to leave the Academia to avenge Bliss, Grand Magus Alingoth stopped me on my track and advised me not to cause any problems for the Academia." She continues.


    "At first it was suspicious why he suddenly interfered, but when he explained to me the dangers of interfering with political affairs without guidance or worse, the dangers of aimlessly acting out of revenge, which would end up making me a national threat for all rulers in Wesout."


    Jon was taken aback when he heard that the Grand Magus was the one who personally stopped her from storming out of Academia.


    "So after I graduated, I brought along Halungr and their siblings with me and ventured around the world for five northern seasons, which lead me back to here, but the guilt of not being able to do anything for Bliss haunted me every night I live here by the border of Dukedom of Cristos." The light refracted from the crystal around them bounced back to her eyes and Jon then sees a tear slowly falling from her face.


    Without hesitation, Jon embraces Meyvil startling her. At first she tries to push him away but Jon never loosened his embrace, then the feeling inside overwhelmed her and she finally burst into tears as she returns an embrace to Jon.


    She feels the warmth of embracing Jon familiar, the warmth of her master that she resented for a long time until she passed away.


    Behind Jon, there stood an invisible figure that both Jon and Meyvil felt, the figure resembled the young Bliss smiling as she sees the two children she raised have finally met.


    "May he guide you on Jon, Verna, Mey." The invisible figure mouthed and as she approaches Jon and Meyvil for an embrace, she slowly dissipates and returns to Solvana.


    ****


    A few hours have passed, Ora still shone brightly as it does in the sky and Halungr is seen guarding the cave entrance into her domain. The wind gently blew along the trees, heading eastward, and the branches dancing along to the wind.


    However, Halungr''s eyes suddenly flashed in red as it feels the ground shaking as it uses its mana to check on what is causing the ground to shake.


    Grrr! It sees about twenty cavalrymen speedily approaching its master''s domain and immediately sends a part of its mana to Meyvil, alerting her of approaching intruders.


    A few moments later, Meyvil and Jon arrived at the entrance and at the same time the cavalrymen, with the crest of the Cristos on their breastplate, arrived at the same time.


    "Lady Meyvil, we have come by the order of Baron Slies and the permission by the Duke to question this lady about last night''s occurrence, cooperate or face yer downfall!" The knight captain brandished his sword, then the others followed as well.

 Chapter 11: To Meet Once Again

    "What sort of occurrence does the Baron suspect of this mere mage?" Meyvil slightly bows in response, gesturing Jon to bow as well.


    "Do not jest with me, mage, reports state that your beast rampaged around the forest last night." Scoffs the knight captain.


    "Oh dear, so the Baron accuse my Halun for disturbing everyone''s dreamy night?" She replied, still bowing down to the knight captain.


    The knight captain sheathes his blade and urges his steed closer to Meyvil. A moment later, he only finally noticed Jon behind her when he was close to her.


    "Mage, your beast disturbed the welfare of all the inhabitants by the border castle, this including the wildlife running amok and causing damages to the nearby villages." The knight captain sternly said, looking down on her atop his steed.


    "Do not toy with me mage, you can not hide the beast in your palms always, so dare tell me the cause of that beast''s frenzy that lasted for more than Zakel''s light!" The knight captain''s voice boomed all over the cave and the forest behind him as a strong gust of wind was formed by his voice.


    The knight captain''s booming voice resounded within Jon as he suddenly feels an overwhelming urge to obey the captain''s command. However, before Jon could say anything, Meyvil used a spell that made him temporarily mute.


    "Alright, yes, my Halun went on a frenzy last night and caused a great deal of damage within my domain, however this does not mean it went out and cause hysteria amongst other inhabitants as ya can evidently see before ya that the land is untouched." Meyvil seemingly conceded to the demand of the captain.


    "Aye, the forest is clear, but what caused the beast to shake the land?" The knight captain gestured one of the knights behind him to be their second ears.


    "I was working on some experimental spells, but I accidentally slipped one malignant spell that caused my Halun to go on a rampage within my domain, lucky enough I was able to block the exit but it took a long time to calm my Halun down." She explains carefully as she slowly raises her head.


    The captain examined the surroundings once more and returned to look at Meyvil, her long brown hair smooth and silky enough that made them want to touch it, her silver eyes felt cold yet soothing which confused the captain, and her features made the captain wish that many women looked like her.


    "What sort of ''experimental spell'' were you making mage?" asked the captain.


    "Well... it is something us Sorcerers keep a secret until it is complete, but it is a spell that makes the victim think they were an animal." She hides her face as she replied, not allowing the captain to see her smiling.


    The captain remembers one of the many rumors about the mages, and one of which is ''a Sorcerer will never share to just about anyone about their research''. Inside their behemite helm, the captain smiled, feeling that this mage actually trusts them.


    They glanced at Jon once again, curious as to when did this hermit of a mage take interest of raising an assistant.


    "This boy behind you, state his relation to you? The Duke last said that you like to be isolated, but this does not seem like it." asked the captain again, as the second ear shows interest in the question.


    "Sire may have answered in their mind what relation this child is with me, he is my apprentice and he is still new to magic, however, he was in no relation to causing my Halun to go on a rampage, it was clearly all my doing." She assured in reply.


    The captain was unsure whether what she has been saying true or not, but because Meyvil has some special decree from the Duke that does not allow anyone to enter the cave unless she says so, the knights would not be able to investigate the inside.


    "Are you not hiding anything more from us inside this cave, mage?" The knight captain asked one last time as he gestures the others to prepare to leave.


    "None of it sire." She humbly replied.


    The captain looked at her one more time, then a moment later the captain let out a sigh.


    "I will take your word for it, you mages and your experiments are always chaotic, I will let this pass, never cause anymore trouble for the inhabitants, if you please." The knights then returned to the track towards the border castle to report their brief investigation.


    As the knights ride off deeper into the woods, Meyvil removed the mute spell on Jon and sighs in relief.


    "I apologize for casting a spell on ya, that knight has the ability to overwhelm people and do their bidding as they please, which meant ya could have told them everything that had happened until now." She pats Jon on the head, happy that both of them were unharmed.


    "The fuck happened? I heard someone yelling out something and came here as fast as I could." Vernack huffs and puffs as Bale arrives right after he does.


    Jon and Meyvil looked at each other and let out an unrestrained laughter, making Vernack confused even further.


    "Go on back in, I will explain to ya!" She walked back inside the cave, everyone following behind her.


    ****


    "You were Grama''s apprentice this whole time?" Vernack yells out in shock, he could not believe it at first but the more Meyvil told her story, the more he would remember about Grandmother Bliss telling him and the other caretakers about the story of a mage who worked her way to becoming a powerful Sorceress.


    "And Grama was a Prodigy? I only knew that she was a mage when all of us were about to separate on heading towards Creek''s End, though I do not get what spell she casted on us." His expression saddened, remembering how Grandmother Bliss raised everyone in the orphanage, had most of her mana soul still retained, she could have wiped most of Supriar''s knights.


    The three sat silently opposite from each other, contemplating on the times they spent with Grandmother Bliss. For them, they imagined Grandmother Bliss planned all this out all along for the three of them to meet.


    "And Jon actually suffers from something called ''Lom''s Curse'', so many things happened while I was asleep huh?" Vernack softly muttered, sorting out all the information that he was told.


    "It is a lot to take in." Meyvil stokes the fire, as she cooks for their lunch.


    "But, I assume that the spell she placed on ya was related to that horse there, a spell that permanently controls a beast but that is all I know." She adds.


    Silence again. The sound of fire cackling and the ambience of the cave gave a cozy feeling for the three. They seemed to enjoy their company as they remind themselves that they were once under Grandmother Bliss'' wing.


    "So, what will the two of you be doing from now on?" She breaks the silence after a long while, passing on a plate filled with vegetable stew she made.


    "I want to avenge Grama and Chief at all costs!" Yelled out Jon as he jumps from his seat, startling everyone in the cave.


    "Yeah, we were taken in by Chief Pyrlord for five northern seasons, he and the others taught us all about the basics of fighting and mana control, but they never mentioned even once of magic circles." added Vernack, cooling the heat from his stew.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    Meyvil seemed unfazed by the mention of Grenhutr''s hero, but she is happy to hear that the two know at least how to defend themselves, if not, their bones would be suckled by Halungr by now.


    "That also explains why Jon could not do mana control, since he has ''Lom''s Curse'', funny how the Chief would beat the shit out of Jon thinking he was not practicing mana control." Vernack bursts out in laughter, glad that he was not the one that was cursed with no mana soul.


    Meyvil joined in the fun as the chaos between the three ensues from this day onward.


    ****


    *Fifteen Days Later*


    "Jon, Verna! I will be on my way now, see you when I see you again!" Meyvil and Halungr wave their hands in farewell, packed with all of the objects she used in her domain.


    "Do not forget to continue what I taught ya Verna, and take proper care of Jon!" She hops on to Halungr''s back and casts a spell on themselves, slowly disappearing bit by bit.


    Jon and Vernack happily waved their farewell as well, preparing to leave the domain and head out to the direction where they were suppose to go five northern seasons ago.


    "Come on, just as we planned with Meyvil, we have to first find a way to break your curse, Jon." Said Vernack, strapping on the things they will need for their journey.


    "Right!" Jon said in reply, as he checks on the makeshift saddle they made for Bale.


    "Feels alright, Bale?" He whispers to Bale, rubbing its neck.


    Neigh! Bale gleefully tests out their makeshift saddle by running around the cave entrance, after a while, Bale stops before Jon and sees that the saddle is still intact.


    "Alright then, let us head on out." Vernack leads the way into the forest, while Jon moves along behind him.


    ****


    As Oran''s light pass and gone, the two have travelled several Massus, meeting various kinds of wildlife to hone their skills and trade with passing villagers, asking for direction towards Baron Slies'' border castle.


    Although they were directly heading towards the border castle at first, but minor quests of their own forced them to detour almost always, which they see as a benefit for them.


    A few moons later, they finally arrive at the gate of the border castle, there was a significant amount of travelers, merchants, and refugees from the villages burnt down by the Supriars.


    "Blasted things, are inspecting people that hard for it to take this long!" One of the merchants wearing multiple crystal rings and a red necklace voiced out his complaint.


    "Aye, this is all because of those damned Supriars, continuously threatening the border to fuel a war, now every country is weary of a single spy coming from them!" A bald merchant wearing a brown robe said in reply.


    The two merchants chatted one another loud enough for even the guard''s above the high wall can hear them chatter. However, Jon and Vernack minded none of it.


    "But alas, it seems like Duke Cristos is avoiding the issues on his border, it almost seem like the Duke is doing this intentionally for something." The merchant with the red necklace loudly sighs out his opinion, and glances at the expression of the guards.


    Silence. The guards just continued their inspection and not even budge to the provocations of a simple merchant. The merchant''s expectations were not broken, he already had assumed that these guards know none of what is happening in the capital of Cristos.


    "I heard that the king of Leisos has better benefits for us traders and refugees than in the capital of Cristos, with five Massus of land free for the refugees to build their new homes safely inside Leisos." The other merchant said, getting the attention of some of the refugees.


    "Oi, is that true? Is Leisos willing to give us mere peasants a land?" A middle-aged man carrying his sleeping daughter on his arms was one of those that caught their attention.


    "Aye friend! Not only that, Leisos plans to give refugees the support they need for two northern seasons, whether it be wealth, shelter, food, knight and mage scholarships, and employment, the king Leisos has all that answered!" The bald merchant boasted on and on about Leisos that even the guards were annoyed by his repetitive praise.


    The refugees at that moment began to murmur to each other, the voices of the two merchants were clear enough for the people from the far back understand what they were trying to say. Many of them started to consider moving towards Leisos than inward to Cristos as they believed that the king of Leisos had plans for them.


    "Do not trust them! They are hired by the king of Leisos to lure all you inside his country then be used as slave labors for his own gain!" An elderly lady walks out of the gate wearing a red robe and golden neckline, angrily rebuking the merchants'' claims.


    "Oho, dear Minister of Foreign Affairs was here all along, please do not mind our tongues, we did not mean to be rude." The merchant with the red necklace bows before the Minister, hiding a chuckle as he does so.


    "Everyone, hear me! The Duke of Cristos has already prepared your necessary needs in the capital, this involves no tax for two northern seasons and the old bones like us gets to earn wages per season even after retirement!" The Minister of Foreign Affairs announced with all of her strength, then one of her assistants appear from inside the castle and calms the Minister.


    Once again, murmurs between refugees are heard, many showing conflicted expressions, choosing whether they travel another several moons to another country or enter the capital with lesser benefits that are believable for them.


    Jon and Vernack looked at each other, as if asking one another if any of them understood what they were talking about.


    "What does a Minister of Foreign Affairs do any way?" Asked Jon, scratching his head and feeling tired of waiting in the long line.


    "I know none of it, I only know that ''Ministers'' are some sort of important figures for a country." Vernack replied, puzzled by the state of the line not moving because of the merchants and the Minister arguing over citizens.


    "I wish Meyvil was here, she could have solved both their and our issues right now."


    "Yeah, if it was her, I would trust her with everything." Vernack said in reply.


    After what seemed to be an eternity, the two finally reached the guards. The spearmen postured themselves with a their chests puffed out, showing their discipline while the Minister is still present outside the gate.


    "Halt! State your business before entering the Realm of Cristos!" A large knight equipped with a full behemite-plated armor, questions the two.


    "Sire, the name is Vernack, and this beside me is my little brother, Jon. We wish to enter the Dukedom in order to train and fight against the Supriars before a war ensues." Vernack bowed as he articulates his introduction as taught by Meyvil.


    "Bah! You and that snot-nosed brat look like you have never even learned how to properly hunt a taldir, much more a Mortal?" The large knight let out a grand guffaw, his laughter as contagious as the common cold, soon after everyone around them started laughing.


    The crowd laughed at the two for what seemed like an eternity, then slowly dying down as nothing happened after the knight mocked them.


    "So you really wish to fight against the Supriars." The knight stares into Vernack''s eyes, he senses the will of this boy in front of him, and he feels a familiar feeling that he would only feel from those who seek revenge.


    "Have you killed someone yet, Vernack?" Asked the large knight.


    "No, but I have hunted countless magical beasts for the past few seasons, my arrow will pierce through the hearts of every beating Supriar." Vernack tries not to give in to his anger as he replied.


    "You, brat on the horse, while I sense that your brother here is worthy enough to fight against the Supriars, I do not sense that in you, it would be best to--" The knight was about to finish his sentence when he hears the Minister of Foreign Affairs.


    "Felguard Pylot, hurry up will ya! Stop chatting with them and finish your inspection!" Cried out the Minister of Foreign Affairs from the side.


    The knight loudly sighs and looked at the two once again, his iris suddenly formed a magic circle and his vision shifts, now he sees the as only lines, with each color representing what type of object he was looking at.


    Other than the obvious knives and bow that Jon and Vernack was carrying, he sees no other lines of red on their saddle bag nor on their woven sack bag.


    "Alright, the two of you can enter the Dukedom, but if I ever hear that the two of you engaged in a crime, you will face far worse than execution." The knight sternly said, releasing a dominating aura that made the people behind Jon shiver in fear.


    "Take this Vernack, show this emblem to a knight in the capital called Felguard Trinida, She will help you get in shape as an archer." As the two were about pass by him, the knight unmoved from his position, whispered to Vernack''s ears and placed an emblem into his woven sack bag.


    Vernack nodded in reply, and lead Bale along inside the castle. When they entered the castle walls, they see that there were more Rolguards and Felguards in here than peasants who would work on everyday tasks.


    Nearby one of the barracks reeked in human dung, while the opposite of that were a group of servants washing the dirty tunic of the guards using the unlimited flow of water casted by a graduate of a local Academia.


    The castle was in a sense "thriving" in knights and lower-ranked guards eager for a battle against the Supriars whom have harassed their home for a long time now.


    Some Rolguards looked impatient, their eyes seething in bloodlust as time passes without them being able to sever the heads of a confident Supriar riding atop their glorious steed.


    "Verna, I guess it was not only us whom have sought revege against the Supriars." Jon said in awe, looking around as he attempts to identify the motivation of others based on their expressions.


    "Let us go Jon, I will surely find a way to break your curse, that way we can finally fight together." The two rode onward and a few moments later passed through another gatehouse, directly leading towards the capital.


    Unlike the path whence they came in, the path towards the capital was built in patterned stone, surprising the two at the marvelous sight and length the road stretches.

 Chapter 12: A Hunt

    The two trek along the stretching stone road towards the capital of the Dukedom, looking over the sights to behold along the way. Trees of different hues of green, a river by the left stretching towards the opposite side of the country, and stone bridges wide enough for a wagon or two to pass built over the infinite river.


    The road was somewhat peaceful, neither predator nor peaceful wildlife stopped them on their track, rather they would occasionally meet a squadron of spearmen patrolling along the stone road, some checking on the people that entered or exit the country by the road.


    Although the two met no adversaries along the way, they did not forget to train their skills as they camp at night, one mastering their mana control and the other sword fighting against a tree where they would lay under for the night.


    Several moons have passed, Ora''s light has once more climbed the ladder of the day as Zakel and Mus cower behind the horizon, in fear of being engulfed under Ora''s gaze along the surface.


    The two reached a hill that sees over the capital as a side of it touches the rushing sea heading onto the sandy shores. They marvel at the amount of people that can be seen walking in and out the walls of the city, as farmers and traders awake a bit later than the patrolling guards along the edge of the city.


    "Halt!" As they were about to enter the premises of the capital, a Loguard yells out at the two who were about to enter through the city gates.


    "The two of ye are unfamiliar to my eyes, state yer purpose on entering the city walls?" Continued the Loguard, as he attempts to intimidate them by looking at them with his deathly eyes.


    Vernack walks forward, unfazed by the intimidation of the Loguard and returns a look towards his face.


    "Our purpose is to become a knight under Duke Cristos, who will fight against the Supriars." Replied Vernack, as he returns an intimidating aura, causing the Loguard to chill the moment his eyes land on Vernack''s gaze.


    Vernack takes out the crest given to him by Felguard Pylot a few moons ago when they were about to enter the premises of Baron Slies'' border castle. The Loguard was taken aback by Vernack''s action, but he investigates more on the crest that he showed to him.


    "Knight Pylot''s crest! That means yer recommended by the knight himself, excuse my authority, let me lead ye towards the barracks!" Realizing the meaning of the crest, the Loguard composes himself and guides the two onward.


    "Had ye showed Sir Pylot''s crest first, damned old me would have not questioned ye of any suspicion!" The Loguard said aloud, as he greets some of the commoners as they pass along the path.


    The two said nothing as they followed the Loguard, only chuckling at the ad libs of the Loguard and taking in the sight of the bustling city filled with people from different races. Elturean mercenaries guarding high-class merchants, a group of Grove Elfins settling themselves within the capital, and Mortals of different color and sizes just getting by the day within the capital.


    Half the time it took to boil a pot of water, the two finally arrived at the large barracks made for aspiring knights within the capital, the field around it filled with newly enlisted Loguards being trained under an imposing Mortal, his tunic seemed to almost rip if he tries to swing his arms, a bald head which exposed several wrinkles on his forehead.


    "If you want to become a knight, you better endure this routine daily! Building the body will help you endure even several arrows hitting your chest!" The imposing trainer lectures the newly enlisted Loguards, his gaze scanning over the lanky Mortals of different genders, sensing that only a few of the people from this batch would endure the training to become a knight.


    The newly enlisted Loguards, ran along the field, a large percent of them already tired after a few laps, but an outstanding few preserved as they showed determination to endure the pain of the training.


    "If ye wants to become a Felguard, ye will have to join in the ranks of the Loguards and endure this training daily, poor old me could not endure the training after a long time and was given the position of a city guard instead." The Loguard shook his head, as he sees the eyes of some of the new Loguards already showing signs of giving up in about a few days time.


    "If it is about daily exercises, then we can endure that, we have long been physically nourished so this will probably nothing." Vernack confidently said, shrugging off the attempt to intimidate people from ever enlisting into the army of Cristos.


    The Loguard only smirked at Vernack''s confidence, knowing that people only say such thing at the start and regret it later. The Loguard directed them towards the enlistment area and greeted his farewell to return to his duties as a city guard.


    The two walked towards the enlistment area and sees a large line of aspirants, people of different genders and sizes showing eagerness to become a knight as the tension between the Supriars and the Cristos only increased when more villages are raided and travelers along the Dukedom''s border are constantly threatened by the movement of the Supriars everyday.


    "Jon, I will go on ahead and enlist, why not both you and Bale look around for us to shelter tonight." Said Vernack, as he tightens the sack bag filled with his belongings and mentally prepares himself to wait on the long line of enlistment.


    Jon gently nods in reply and urges Bale back to the area filled with different inns and check for any vacant rooms for two.


    "Excuse me lady, which inn do you suggest two people should stay?" As Jon searches around the area, he would strike up conversations with the locals asking around for a highly suggested inn by the locals.


    "Oh dear, I do not go to inns much often, but lately I heard that The Shadow Rock have renovated their inn and are using some sort of new material to make their beds more comfortable than before, but the cost of living in there has been harsh for commoners ever since then." A middle-aged woman wearing a long brown wool dress replied to Jon while carrying a basket filled with several wheat bread.


    "I suggest The Rider''s Inn since the things they have in there are enough to satisfy commoners, some hearty food made by the chef, I favor that inn over the neighboring ones." Said another middle-aged man, with a brawny physique and scruffy beard, his eyes clearly showing him reminiscing the time he spent inside The Rider''s Inn.


    "Ah, I highly suggest Saddled Pub, they have their own stable where ye can let yer horse rest there for the time being, even have their own groomer for yer horse, pay them a full silver, yer horse would be as clean as a baby''s bottom!" A Theron vendor directs Jon towards a large wooden pub with a stable attached to its side, with a number of mounts stabled inside.


    After half a day of asking around the locals which inn they would suggest, Bale and Jon ended up resting along the edge of a fountain in the middle of the city.


    "Bale, I never knew just finding a place to lodge in is harder than just living out in the woods." Jon said aloud, wiping off the sweat from his face after a long search for a preferable place for the three of them.


    "Living in the--" Before Jon could finish his sentence, he hears a loud cry for help from his right side.


    He and Bale immediately turned to look and sees three scrawny Mortals wearing the same green bandana running from away from three different directions, each carrying different item stolen from a stall.


    Without thinking twice, Jon rides atop Bale and urges Bale to chase one of the green bandana thieves carrying a small golden statue of what seemed to be a dragon resting on a mountain.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    "Get out of the way!" The thief carrying the golden statue yells out as he pushes people away and zigzag into one of the alleyways of the city.


    "Excuse me, coming through, chasing a thief right now!" Jon and Bale struggle to chase the thief as locals were blocking the path without knowing that a thief passed by them.


    A few moments later, Jon arrives at the alleyway that lead to three passages, one ahead, two on both sides. Jon scratches his head as he tries to figure out where the thief would have went to.


    "Oi kid, get out of the way, it is our duty to chase those thieves!" A Loguard yelled out as two fellow Loguards tag along behind her, pushing Bale out of the way and ran towards the left passage.


    Seeing that the Loguards went left, Jon urges Bale straight ahead, towards a curving passage in front of them.


    Moments after, Jon sees the thief struggling to climb up one of their ropes used to escape from a chase as the golden statue was heavy enough to add to his weight, barely cutting the rope.


    "Stop right there thief!" Jon yells out and throws a dagger, accurately cutting the rope the thief was climbing on.


    Ga! The thief yelped out in pain and the golden statue dropping a short distance away from him. In response to Jon interfering his escape, the thief threw a dagger of his own towards Jon and lunges himself to take the golden statue again.


    Before Jon would move Bale, Bale instinctively dodged on its own and charged at the thief, knocking him down.


    "Stay down thief!" Jon hops off of Bale and unsheathes the short sword he carried since leaving Pyrlord''s camp, placing the sharp end of the blade right next to the thief''s neck.


    "Kid, you do not know what you are getting to by stopping me!" The thief curses at Jon, his expression showing fear, but not because of Jon holding his life.


    "I have no care whatsoever you may threaten me with, but you are a thief and a thief needs to face punishment, just like what my chief said before!" He brushes off the thief''s threat and waits for the Loguards to arrive.


    Half the time it took to boil water later, the same group of Loguards that Jon met beforehand appears while searching for the thief. Jon sat beside the thief while Bale placed most of its weight on one of its hooves, pushing down the thief.


    "Praise Ansi, you are finally here!" Jon immediately stood from his seat, looking tired of waiting for the guards to arrive.


    "Ye was able to catch the thief? Child of unknown origins, thank you for the cooperation!" The female Loguard walks up to Jon and slightly bows, she then gestures two of the Loguards behind her to take the thief to prison.


    "May I know the name of our cooperator?" The female Loguard politely asks as the two guards behind her act as the second ear in listening to Jon''s reply.


    "Jon, my name is Jon." He hesitates at first, but the look the guards were giving him pressured him enough to force him to say something.


    The three Loguards looked at each other for a moment and nodded in sync, as if they spoke to each other during the silence.


    "Well Jon, according to the law of the Dukedom, ye must come with us to reward ye for yer cooperation." Said one of the Loguards.


    Jon looked back at Bale as if questioning the horse if they should go or not, and in response Bale only stood beside Jon showing a sign of agreement to whatever he decides to do.


    "Alright then, but I would also like to ask for a place to lodge in for me and my... brother, we just came inside the capital as soon as Ora''s light rose." Jon hesitantly replied after a moment of thinking about what to say.


    The Loguards looked at each other and after a few moments nodded in reply, guiding Jon and the thief towards the capital''s prison.


    ****


    Ora''s light has finally reached its peak, the presence of Nerva is gone as only Ora is alone in the bright clear sky over the land of Wesout. The locals and the entering aspirants for the kingdom, some aspiring to become mages, have begun settling down for the day, as some eat inside pubs and others have taken their nap for the noon.


    Jon, along with Bale, returned to the enlistment area, carrying along with them a basket full of the needs of a commoner, two loaves of bread and two small waterskins filled with water. He sees Vernack sitting under the shade of a tree, resting his back on the tree trunk.


    "Verna, how did it go?" Asked Jon as he dismounts from Bale and sits opposite from him.


    "I have to wait for a while, the enlisters took a break for noon, did not meet any Felguard named Trinida though." Vernack sighs as he takes a loaf of bread and took a large bite.


    "You bought all these?" He continues as he searches more inside the basket and drank from one of the waterskins.


    "Nay, it was rewarded to me after I caught one of the thieves, also was sponsored a few moon''s worth of stay in The Shadow Rock Inn thanks to that." Jon boasts his accomplishment that morning, puffing his chest out and grinning about.


    "Bah! At least you had some fun time, does the inn have anywhere Bale can shelter in as well?" Vernack harshly munches on the loaf of bread as he concerns himself with Bale.


    "The locals said none of it, but we will find out later." Jon replies, as he cackles at Vernack being obvious with his envy.


    The two enjoyed their noon under the shade and later went to check on The Shadow Rock Inn. Surprisingly, the inn had a stable built for the mounts of each guest, well-made and filled with groomers of different age.


    Jon and Vernack set their things up inside a room sponsored by the Master of Capital Trials for cooperating in capturing one of the thieves. After settling their things inside their room, Vernack heads back to the enlistment area and waited for his turn to be tested.


    Jon stayed at the inn, as he lays himself on the bed with the new material rumored to be used by the inn. The bed was more comfortable than he had imagined, he felt like bliss as he reminisced the feeling of sleeping beside Halungr''s thick fur.


    After what seemed like forever, Jon dozed off on the bed and Ora''s shine slowly moves towards the horizon, with Mus peeking from the East.


    As Jon was immersed in his sleep, a faint streak of light crept in from the bottom of the bed, stretching itself towards Jon as if about to grab onto him.


    Boom! The moment the faint light touched Jon, the abyss inside Jon immediately moved itself towards the light and ate the movement of mana from within it, then inside Jon''s mind a bright green light flashed over the horizon.


    "Back inside this world again." Jon mutters to himself, as he runs toward the horizon, following the green light.


    "I have checked on them, a child and a boy barely growing a beard, they both looked a bit inexperienced, let Crow handle them." A hooded figure said, as they show a projection of the Jon and Vernack inside the inn.


    "Parse got caught by a fucking child, tell Headless to execute him immediately before he starts telling the Master of Capital Trials about our operations!" Another figure wearing a green bandana with gray lines on the its edge said, ordering one of the members that was listening to their conversation.


    "Crow, take this coin, use it to bribe the owner of the inn, they know what it means if they interfere with our operations." The figure wearing the green bandana takes out a green coin with a symbol of three daggers in the middle of it and gives it to another hooded figure.


    "Thy will be done." The hooded figure took the coin and with a flick of his sleeve he vanishes into thin air, his gravelly voice still echoing inside their secret meeting place.


    Along with the disappearance of the person named Crow, the visions stopped moving and forced Jon to awake from his slumber. A quick flash of green light appears from his eyes then instantly fades back to olive green.


    Jon immediately grabs his weapons and straps them along his waist. Ever since the attack on Pyrlord''s camp, Jon has started to believe in his visions without question, he understood that most of the visions would get are events that were soon to happen so he was prepared to go out and search for the people hunting them down.


    He immediately heads on to the private stable owned by the inn and saddles on Bale. They ride out towards the enlistment area, Jon felt the need to tell Vernack about his vision before acting out his impromptu plan to stop their hunters.


    ****


    "Verna, I have something to speak with you, it is urgent!" The moment Jon arrives the enlistment area, he immediately spots Vernack still far from the enlister and approached him without minding the gazes of the other people.


    Seeing that Jon was showing urgency, Vernack let go of the thought of it being something related to a fool''s errand and followed behind Jon towards the tree they rested on during noon.


    "Quickly, pray tell what has you in urgency?" Vernack impatiently asks, as he feels the gaze of the other aspirants watching the two of them.


    "A vision, I had a vision that the master of the thief I caught hired someone to take care of us." Understanding Vernack''s impatience, Jon straightforwardly informed him.


    Vernack eyes widened for a moment before he composed himself again.


    "At what time will our assassin take our lives?" He waits for Jon''s reply as he thinks of every scenario that could happen, they were never taught by any of Pyrlord''s company about defending against assassination attempts so Vernack had to make up scenarios on how he would defend the two of them.


    "I could not see what time of day it was, but I am sure that it will be between the rise of the two moons, Mus and Zakel, they believe that the man named ''Crow'' is enough to kill us." Replied Jon, as he recalls the image of each figure in his mind.


    "I have a plan, let us wait for the night and catch the rat the moment they least expect us to know." Vernack grins and returns back to the line for enlistment.

 Chapter 13: Niaulmori

    Time passed and Zakel''s light barely rising along with the first moon, Mus. It can be said that the night is young and the fire is still cool, as the nocturnal wildlife awaken to enact their lifestyle.


    Inside one of the rooms in The Shadow Rock Inn, a figure covered in a dark cloak, only revealing their cold gaze at the two boys sound asleep after a long day.


    The figure slowly pulls out a dagger from their waist and, under the moonlight entering through the window of the room, the dagger reflects the light of the two moons as a small magic circle appears on the blade of the dagger.


    As the figure draws closer to the sleeping individual, dark mist slowly flows out of the magic circle on the blade of the dagger as if the mist were covering the room attaching itself to the materials inside it.


    Fwoop! Before the figure made another step closer to the sleeping individual, he senses danger from his right side and immediately jumps out of the way, and the moment he moved out of the way an arrow strikes the area where he stood from a moment ago.


    Surprised for a moment, the figure scans around the room, checking the area where the arrow was shot from. However, not even a moment later, he senses danger once more from the same area the arrow was shot.


    Thud! He then attempts to step away from the danger but in a split second a short black dagger barely struck the figure''s shoulder and stabs into the wooden wall behind him.


    ''Who in the Ansi are these children?'' The figure was deeply surprised by the situation he was in; he had thought that the individuals he was going to assassinate were inexperienced but the truth could not be near to their initial findings.


    Fully understanding the situation, the moment he senses another danger coming his way, he would throw a hidden weapon of his own in return.


    "Give up assassin!" Yelled out Jon as he charged towards the figure, his sword pointing directly at the figure ready to thrust into his heart.


    Instead of deflecting his sword, the figure dodged sideward and makes an attempt to stab Jon on the side of his waist. However, before the tip of the dagger even scratches Jon''s clothing, an arrow stabs into the figure''s arm, which made him loosen his grip on his dagger.


    "Gah! This is too unexpected!" The figure tries to reach out with his left hand and grab his dagger, which was still exuding the unknown mist.


    ''How are these brats able to see through the Blind Eye spell!'' He inwardly complains, confused as to how people assumed to be inexperienced to use the spell at their advantage.


    "Hold on now, Crow." When the figure was about to touch his dagger, Jon stabs his sword into his leg as blood gushed out of his wound, using the sword to hold him down.


    The figure paled when Jon mentioned his name as if he had known him beforehand. Getting the wrong information about the two was one thing, but his name being exposed is a bigger issue.


    Only those in the higher echelon of their organization knows his name, although there are bits of information intentionally spread around about him but never was his name mentioned in any of it.


    ''I have to get out of here!'' Crow attempts to silently chant a spell, as his eyes tremble in fear, knowing that failing this simple of a job would tarnish his reputation within the organization.


    "What do you think you are doing Crow!" Without hesitation, Jon pulls out his sword from Crow''s leg and slices his left hand off as blood spills along the wooden floor of the room.


    Ah! Crow groans in pain as he struggles to gather some strength on his right arm to cover his left arm from bleeding out.


    Tap tap tap. Within the dark mist, Crow hears another person walking towards him, but the shock of losing a hand still overwhelmed him.


    "Kindly remove this mist, dear assassin." Vernack crouched beside him and whispered to his ears, his every word rang into Crow''s mind.


    "Just fucking kill me! You will not get anything from me!" Crow cried out as he laughed maniacally, he was confident enough that these brats would not know how interrogate someone even if they are willing to speak.


    Jon and Vernack looked at each other and grinned after hearing his response. As if the Blind Eye spell was nothing to them, Jon around the room and dragged a chair into the middle of it while Vernack lifted Crow on to the seat.


    "Time to practice what Mey taught me." Vernack closed in on Crow and placed his hand on Crow''s chopped of wrist, he closes his eyes and feels the movement of mana within him.


    Crow looked anxiously at Vernack, fearing what they might do to him as his complexion paled the more time his blood is spilling out of his wounds.


    Jon turns away from the two and walks toward the dagger dropped by the assassin. The moment Jon touched the dagger his eyes glowed in green and all he sees is the world filled with visions of different aspects of life.


    Mana from within the magic circle was constantly absorbed by the abyss inside Jon, which Jon finally understood how the phenomenon works after the amount of experiments he and Meyvil had done before they left her domain.


    The flashes of different stories in the near future pass through Jon''s mind, he has seen what tomorrow would be like for another person, he has also seen what a pig sees before it gets slaughtered by the butcher.


    For a boy of his age, they would normally break with the amount of deaths and agony that he sees in that moment, but the past few seasons for Jon had been more than enough for him to not be fazed by these scenes. Although he feels for each one of them, the loss of life or even seeing them take someone''s life, he nailed into his mind that these things are bound to happen and the least he could do is lengthen their agony.


    After what seemed to be an eternity, the dark magic circle on Crow''s dagger started to flicker, showing signs of mana being completely depleted. Crow grimaced at the sight of the magic circle on the blade flickering.


    He feared that once the spell is gone, not even escaping the room could save him, as the mist allows him to move within the darkness freely while the others lose all of their senses and stops any sound to leave within it.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.


    Crow''s sense of danger only grew by the moment, he does his best to hold back his urge to charge at Jon and stab him with the dagger Jon was holding. However, just when he thought that he was able to calm himself, Vernack made an error with the use of his mana causing Crow to feel an intense amount of pain on his arm.


    Gah! Reacting to the pain, Crow used all of his strength and pushed Vernack away as he charged at Jon whose back was turned exposed from all threats.


    "No you will not!" Caught off guard at first, Vernack immediately pulled out a dagger from his side and aimed it at his wounded leg.


    Thud! The dagger stabbed into Crow''s wounded leg, but he seemed unfazed by the dagger slowing him down and continued to charge at Jon. His eyes bloodshot on killing the boy that turned his back on him.


    "Die brat!" Crow then lunges himself towards Jon and tries to flail his weak right arm to stab Jon with the arrowhead piercing through his forearm.


    The moment Crow pushed Jon down using his body, Jon immediately tries to push off of him by using the dagger and stab it on his sides, since Jon was not facing towards him.


    But the primitive nature of mankind dwelled inside Crow, he releases his rage on Jon like a beast, slamming and scratching his right hand against Jon not minding the fact that he is constantly being stabbed by Jon.


    "Stand down beast!" Within the dark mist, Vernack once more aimed his bow at Crow and instead of making his mana move into his bow like he learned when he used mana to attack Halungr, he allows the mana within him to circulate and imagining that there was an invisible string connected to Crow and the arrow he was pulling.


    "Strings of fate, guide this arrow towards the target, let no obstacle hinder its flight. String Shot!" Vernack loudly chants and a gray magic circle suddenly appears at the tip of the arrowhead and within the mist a gray string of light stretches out of the magic circle and attaches itself to the back of Crow''s head.


    He releases the bowstring and along with it goes the arrow launched towards the maniacal assassin, and as the arrow moves through the air it followed the gray string of light while cutting through the wind.


    "Di--" Before Crow could finish another yell, Vernack''s arrow enters the back of his head and exits out of his forehead, blood gushing out along with the arrow as it stops when it stabs into the wooden wall.


    Blood splattered all over Jon and the area around him as Crow''s lifeless body topples on Jon. The gruesome sight of the bloodied assassin caused Vernack to choke a little as the dark mist starts to slowly fade.


    "We were lucky that you had another vision sometime before the attempt, I would have never been able to see through that spell if it were not your vision." Vernack pushes Crow''s corpse out of the way and helps Jon stand back up.


    As Vernack was helping him stand, he notices Jon''s iris was greener than before but he minded nothing more of it and focused on the corpse inside their room.


    "Check his corpse, none of the visions I saw earlier showed anyone related to them, but I do remember that they were given a coin of some sort." Jon''s demeanor seemed different for Vernack, he felt as if he was standing next to someone who has seen everything in life.


    Vernack and Jon immediately stripped the corpse of everything, not even a strand of hair escaped their search. Moments later, Jon finds the coin with three daggers engraved on it while Vernack finds a symbol branded on the lower back of the corpse.


    "Is the coin related to this brand?" Vernack points at the symbol on the corpse, they see that the symbol had two daggers stabbing into the eye sockets of each eye hole.


    Jon investigated the symbol and the coin further, showing genuine concern in finding out what these symbols mean. He observed that the two daggers on the symbol and the coin have the same shape and feature, the only symbol that differed in each is the symbol in between the daggers.


    Knock Knock! As Jon was investigating the symbols and Vernack cleaning the blood-splattered wall and floor, a sudden knock on their door was heard, the knocking had a certain pattern on it that made them ready their weapons.


    "M-mister, are y-you f-finished with y-your business?" A wobbly male voice stammered as he waits outside the door for any response.


    "I-if your f-finished, y-you may leave t-their bodies to me." continued the wobbly male voice.


    Clomp clomp. The anxious man outside hears heavy footsteps nearing the door, every step that was made he feels his body chill. As the owner of The Shadow Rock Inn, and a person who worked conscientiously, he had never thought that in any moment in his life would he work with this infamous organization.


    A few moments later, there was only silence, but the silence only worsened his complexion the longer it takes for the door to be opened. In his mind he has spoken numerous apologies to the victims that were sponsored by the Master of Capital Trials.


    Creak! Just when the owner was about to call out to Crow again, the door slowly opened and as moonlight enters into the hallway from the window of the room, the owner feels his heart tightening as fear starts to overwhelm him.


    "What--" To his stupefaction, when the door was fully open, instead of the assassin covered in clothing all over him leaving only his eyes, he sees the two victims alive and well and the corpse of the assassin he met earlier behind Vernack.


    "Old man Innkeeper, what is the meaning of this?" Vernack''s chilling gaze frightened the innkeeper, almost choking on the pressure exuded by Vernack on him.


    "Honorable guests, please forgive me!" The innkeeper dropped onto his knees and kowtowed towards the two victims whom he believed to be dead the moment he met Crow earlier that night.


    "I-I would have n-never done t-this if he did not use his influence on that organization as an excuse to disrupt my business!" He rambled onward as he lists all the things he has done in his life to prove that he was a good man.


    "Come inside and we will talk about it." Unperturbed by his rambling, Vernack''s chilling voice caused the innkeeper to immediately shut up and looked anxiously at Vernack.


    Sensing that Vernack did not want to repeat what he had to say, the innkeeper immediately entered their room and was sat on the chair where Crow was supposed to be healed by Vernack.


    "P-please, I will tell you everything about them, do not hurt me, I promise you will gain no benefits by killing me!" The innkeeper''s composure only worsened as he sees the lifeless body of Crow in front of him, thinking he will be next.


    "Enough, you will explain to us everything and you will not suffer the fate that your friend here has partaken." Vernack breaks off an arrowhead from his quiver and prepares to use it if the innkeeper does not speak everything he knows.


    Jon immediately showed the innkeeper the coin, which had three daggers engraved on it.


    "This... this is supposed to mean that the master of the Niaulmori, an organization that is infamous for sabotaging merchants and travelling commoners, most of the time they are just thugs but from what I heard from one of the guards under Marquis Braham Cristos that their second cousin, Count Mendel Cristos, frequents with this organization and have a very close relationship with the head of Niaulmori." The innkeeper composes himself first and calmly explains about the organization that were trying to assassinate them.


    "Although on the surface they are just an ordinary criminal organization, going out there stealing and killing people of all types and race, but with the help of a barrel filled with mead and a hearty meal made by my wife, one of the members of Niaulmori slipped his tongue and spoke loudly about how nobles from different countries in the land of Wesout have hired their services to make it look like that certain important figures were ambushed by bandits, hiding the fact that these ''bandits'' were hired by a jealous noble." He continued as he boasts about the effectivity of the alcohol made by a local brewery.


    "However, days after that, the intoxicated man who boasted about their organization disappeared within the city, so I believed that he was reported by someone and got killed by his own organization." The innkeeper shook his head, feeling a bit of pity for the man he met only one time.


    "That coin is special; as the dagger in the middle, according to the intoxicated man, signifies that the action is protected by Count Mendel Cristos, meaning if you are ever to be held in trial as a member of the Niaulmori, the Count will do his best to send a minister to get you out of the trial without it being illegal and be pardoned by the Master of Court Trials." He added.


    Jon and Vernack had pensive looks as they pondered about the information that was dumped on them by the innkeeper. Jon then looked at the symbol on the back of the corpse on the side of the room.


    "If the coin symbolized protection under a noble, then what does that symbol refer to?" Jon points at the symbol that was branded on the back of the corpse.


    "That... that was never mentioned by the intoxicated man I met a long time ago, but I can guess that it may be related to the mercenary group called Krampus'' Mus Den, that mercenary group had the same brand if I could vaguely remember." The innkeeper scratches his head as he tries to recollect all the symbols he has seen after all the amount of northern seasons has passed.


    Jon and Vernack''s eyes when they clearly heard a familiar name, a name that was part of the alliance made by their late master whom were preparing to be hired for the war between the Cristos and Supriars.


    "By the looks on your faces, you are familiar with the mercenary group formed by Demonaics of different species and the greatest alchemist known to Wesout, Krampus." The innkeeper said, after observing the change in their expression.


    "Aye, we are more familiar about them than knowing them personally." Vernack sighs as he imagines how this whole operation they interfered by killing Crow would be troublesome for them.


    "Tell me innkeeper, five northern seasons ago I heard that the mercenary alliance between Pyrlord, and the other mercenary groups found outside the border of this Dukedom was broken the day before Pyrlord was killed by the Supriars, were the other alliances included in that slaughter as well?" Vernack exuded an intimidating presence, causing the innkeeper to feel his heart stop for a moment as if Vernack was grabbing his heart.


    "From what I heard, the Elfins were the only one that fought to their last stand against the Supriars, I have no information about the other mercenary groups!" He exclaimed as he tries to breathe in air, feeling choked by Vernack''s presence.

 Chapter 14: Brothers

    The sky was dark as so was the mood within The Shadow Rock Inn, although taverns and inns alike brightly lit the silent streets, the clouds above covered the moons dimming the city of its natural light.


    Vernack stood on the balcony of the Inn, staring into the distance as if deep in thought. Alone with only an oil lamp and a cup of mead atop the wooden table beside him, his eyes slightly trembling as he repeats the words of the Innkeeper in his mind.


    ''The Elfins were the only one that fought to their last...'' The voice echoes onward within Vernack as images of the people in Pyrlord''s camp flash as it repeats.


    Anger and regret, every scene in his mind made him feel each detail and meaning of the two words. Had he perfected Mana Control earlier in his life he believed that he could have changed the outcome of the battle whether it was worth his life or not,


    ''Those mischievous Kanisis and Demoniacs, if I ever see your heads still attached to your shoulders, I will make you suffer more than what you have done to us!'' He inwardly spat his frustrations as his eyes gleamed in blue light, his mana turning into a torrent the more he realizes his anger against the traitors of their once all-powerful chief.


    He tightly grips on the wooden post he was leaning on and as mana surges all over his body cracks on the wooden post would slowly stretch outward the more he his mana surges into his hand. A bead of tear rolls down his cheek as he feels his cheeks tire out after holding all of the sorrow within him.


    Tap tap tap. He hears footsteps from inside the inn slowly fading in, he then wipes the tear away and takes a deep breath before taking the cup of mead and chugging it all in an instant.


    "The room has been dealt with by the Innkeeper''s wife, we can return now." Jon muttered as he entered the balcony, holding a cup of water given to him by the Innkeeper''s wife.


    "Of Co-- Mhm... Of course." Replied Vernack, as he cleared his throat after he choked on his words trying to hold back his tears.


    Jon finished his cup and stood beside Vernack staring at the dark horizon. The silence between the two was nerving yet calming as the two are reminded that they have only themselves from now on, and Meyvil whom they can only hold dear as she was once the apprentice of their mother a long time ago.


    "I... I want to... I want to kill them all by my own hand." Jon struggles to complete his sentence as his throat chokes up while holding back his rage.


    As Jon uttered the words Vernack felt within him, he looks at Jon with assurance, feeling that this moment to them is only a revelation that they will force to happen no matter the cost. Although Grandmother Bliss has once told them that ''revenge is the pinnacle of anger and prosperity is the pinnacle of joy, when one dwells further into anger, one usually forgets the reasoning for the anger, and when one dwells further into joy, one usually forgets the makers of their joy'', Vernack could not help but feel the need to enact revenge for all those whom have suffered the blade of a Mortal with no remorse.


    "They will never see the light of day, this day onwards. Neither a grain of sand nor trickle of water will stagger our force, together may Ora shine our path and Ansi be our guide to their death!" Vernack sternly said without hesitance nor weakness only his will to defy their predicament marveled over the sensation of powerlessness.


    The might of two overpowers the might of one, but the might of one, when perfectly executed, can topple any might of any number. The two orphans of Meadow Cross did not represent as two different minds and bodies, but after the numerous tragedies they have experienced, they now represent one mind and two bodies, a stronger bond formed at that very moment.


    "On the next break of Ora, we must investigate more about Niaulmori and the appearance of that demonaic, Krampus." Vernack continue to sternly speak, taking another glimpse at Jon as if waiting for a nod of agreement.


    Jon nodded in reply and walked back inside the inn, while Vernack continued to stay out on the balcony, pondering in what could be the best movement for their situation.


    ****


    "Crow was killed?" The figure wearing a green bandana raised his tone as he listens to the report by the hooded figure beside him.


    The hooded figure nodded in response not uttering anymore words, sensing the killing intent exuding from the man before him. He knows how the man before him acts when plans do not go his way, worse he could do is kill the person that reported the failure right after he hears it.


    "Mori, I suggest that we lay low for now, those boys are rather insignificant to the true task at hand." The hooded figure said, trying to redirect the leader''s thoughts from the failed assassination attempt.


    Just after he uttered the last of his suggestion, Mori instantly raised his head and looked at the ceiling of the room, which startled the hooded figure thinking the leader was about to kill him in that instant.


    "Do not let any word about this attempt get out, not even Count Mendel must hear about this, do you understand?" Mori slowly turns to look at the hooded figure as his chilling gaze pierces into the hooded figure and made his blood cool instantly.


    "Not even a leaf will hear about this, if ever the word reaches the Count or the Master of Court Trials, this mage will surrender his life as your scapegoat!" The hooded figure professed his utmost loyalty to the man before him, kneeling to show a sign of sincerity.


    "Go! Clean the blunder that you have made."


    The hooded figure then immediately left the hall and yells out orders to the other members of Niaulmori. Mori stands alone inside his hall, only the flickering and crackling of torch fire resounded within the hall.


    After a few moments, when all was quiet outside the hall, Mori then pulls out a rolled letter from the hidden compartment inside his dagger''s hilt and reads the content of the letter.


    ''When the time comes, this letter will prove useful!'' He then rolls the letter back into the hidden compartment of his dagger''s hilt.


    ****


    Time passed quickly as Ora once peeks over the eastern horizon and the third moon raised high above the land of Wesout watching over the people as they awaken and go about their day.


    "Got a good night''s rest young lad?" The innkeeper greets Vernack as soon as he saw him walking down the stairs.


    Vernack slightly nodded in response and walked past the innkeeper without uttering a word about the event last night.


    This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    "Head on over to the kitchen, mi wife is cooking breakfast for you and your brother in return for allowing the attempt to occur last night." The innkeeper added, genuine remorse in his tone as he reminds himself what could have happened if these boys were his actual children that he allowed to be murdered under his home.


    "I will tell my brother about it then." Vernack lowly said and faces the innkeeper with a smile, although he still has not gotten over the fact that the innkeeper contributed to the assassination attempt on them but after hearing his plea that night, he understood that he was innocent and only done it out of fear that Count Mendel would uses his noble power to destroy more than his livelihood if word gets out.


    Shortly thereafter, Jon and Vernack sat inside the kitchen of The Shadow Rock Inn eating the vegetable stew made by the innkeeper''s wife and a newly baked rye bread bought from a local bakery.


    "So, where should I start the search?" Jon asks as he munches on the rye bread dipped in the vegetable stew.


    "Well we are fairly new here, best choice would be asking the innkeeper for directions or most likely search around alleyways." Replied Vernack, his mind in turmoil as he thinks of a plan for him to do while training in the barracks of the capital.


    Vernack has still yet to meet the Felguard Trinida that Felguard Pylot mentioned, if this person could truly somehow help him with his skills, he will find this person all over the capital even if it hinders his training as a Felguard aspirant.


    Growing his strength and mastering to control mana faster are his goals in order for him to avenge the death of all those whom suffered the unreasonable slaughter of families who were only living an honest life.


    Why did these people have to be slaughtered in a gruesome way? Why do people far from the capital have to suffer the provocations of war before it was declared? After numerous villages and mining camps were burnt down, where were the lords that owned those lands? Where were their "heart for the people'' when they needed the most?


    From all the murmurs and conversations, most of their reasoning for joining the Cristos are related to avenging their families or friends from afar, some even joined because they felt useless sitting in their homes as they only hear from travelers the tragedy occurring on the border of the capital.


    He also heard that only few of the nobles volunteered in taking in the survivors from the different villages and mining camps that were raided and pillaged by the Supriars, leaving not even a delicate newborn alive. Although he could not clearly remember each of the nobles that immediately made a move to help the victims, but few of them he was familiar with; Marquis Braham Cristos and Grand Duke Prauli Cristos.


    "Sirs are still hungry?" The innkeeper''s wife politely asks, preparing to take their wooden bowls and fill it with more of the vegetable stew she had made from a large pot.


    "Nay, I have to eat less, do not want to be imbalanced while I train because of my full stomach right?" Vernack chuckles, he then chugs the last of his water from his cup and returned to their room to pack all of his necessary equipment.


    "I want seconds madam!" As soon Vernack left the kitchen, Jon happily yelled out and reached out his bowl for the innkeeper''s wife to fill with more stew.


    Some time has passed and Vernack has already left for the barracks. Before they slept last night Vernack told Jon that he would be staying in the Barracks for the duration of the training as per commanded by the enlister and was agreed upon by Vernack by signing the contract made by the renowned Martial Lord, Count Xander Kelus.


    The Martial Lord was once only a knight of the capital, "Felguard Xander" he was called, an imposing and awe-inspiring figure that could shake the course on the battlefield. They say that his eyes have never lied to him once, the moment he sees an individual and has taken interest in his potential growth, not even the military instructors would question his prediction as of all the times he has seen potential on a person, in the future they would become great generals on the battlefield and the Martial Lord as their commander.


    He gained the title of "Martial Lord" after the Southwest expedition towards the fortress built by one of the hideous species of the Luk''Ag-uerans, man-eating ogres. Normally, mortals at the level of a high-ranking knight would overpower ogres whichever part of the world they have spawned.


    However, the chief of the fortress differed from all other ogres, as it fiercely trained its whole life to be a masterful Luk''Itfis (Warlord of the Axe), proudly reaching the 6th step towards Luk''tar (War God) which is a feat that most of the Luk''Ag-uerans reach in their warmongering lifetime, Warchief Mabakul.


    Felguard Xander led the siege against the staunch fortress of the Warchief that rested about a hundred Massus away from the border of the Dukedom. The fierce battle between the Warchief and the Martial Lord went on for several days after being in a continuous stalemate day by day.


    However, on the fifth day of the battle, the Warchief clearly showed signs of impatience as he abandoned the throne of the fortress and led the charge of his remaining several hundred soldiers against the offensive forces of Felguard Xander, thinking that the mortal commander would be tired after several days of continuous and unprolific battle.


    The case of Felguard Xander tiring out in the battlefield was far from the guesses that the Warchief had thought. The moment that the Warchief and his men reached half a Massus away from the Martial Lord''s army, the Martial Lord strode his steed forward and mana suddenly surges into his sword, but unlike the mana formed by Vernack when he fought Halungr this mana was condensed into the blade and an unfamiliar power dwells within the Martial Lord.


    Following behind the Martial Lord, the hundred cavalrymen soared in their strength as mana from each cavalryman connected with each other. The moment that the Warchief and the Martial Lord clashed a resounding boom shook the battlefield and the wind to harshly blow all over the land, causing the clouds to part only leaving a clear sky.


    The 6th step of Luk''tar represented the individual''s mastery of "sharpness", as engraved on the stone tablets explaining each step towards Luk''tar, sharpness defines the ability to even cleave the stars in the midnight sky. A power that defines the individual''s potential as a War General for the Luk''Ag-uerans.


    Despite the years of training by Mabakul to reach even the power to slice mountains like paper, but the trump card used by the Martial Lord overpowered the Warchief. Easily defeating the Warchief in one charge and capturing the fortress on the Southwest which led the Dukedom of Cristos to safely pass along the Southwest without worrying about the Luk''Ag-uerans ambushing the merchants and travelers.


    This incredible feat that only a number of knights could achieve in their lifetime within the capital granted Felguard Xander the title and position of Martial Lord of the Capital, giving him the right to command the different armies within the capital if need be, and he was dubbed the surname of "Kelus" by the Grand Duke which means "fearless" in the tongue of the native people of Wesout.


    ****


    Jon, riding his muscular steed, wandered around the Underhall District which was directed to him by the innkeeper in search for clues and whereabouts of the Niaulmori hideout. The Underhall district normally would be bustling with people at noon towards the night, as described by the innkeeper, this district is also referred to as the "entertainment complex" of the city.


    However, Ora''s light has barely shone over the streets of the capital and local stores and arena are still closed with only a few people wandering the streets of the Underhall District, some to prepare for the activities at noon and some just passing by to reach the Western Gate between the Underhall District and the Nadsora District that leads to the harbor where they export or import resources traded from different kingdoms. In addition, this harbor also ships aspiring mages to the island where Spickloha Academia is found.


    In this early in the morning, the Dukedom decreed a law that requires the streets of every district must be maintained cleaned daily by a new organization under the jurisdiction of the Minister of Health, that must be done between the first shine of Ora''s light and when the Worker''s bell is rang.


    Jon sees the street sweepers hired by the Minister of Health and some store owners volunteering in the daily district cleaning as per suggested by the Minister of Health to "keep the citizens safe from unknown diseases".


    He does not find any of the activities at this time to be unusual, but he remembers the innkeeper mentioning that there are rumors that some scouts of the Niaulmori would send reports to their leader around this time of the morning. Nevertheless, rumors are only rumors, they are baseless and can possibly be manipulated by the source themselves, probably even spreading the rumor themselves in order to mislead those whom wish to root them out.


    Sometime later, the Worker''s bell has finally been rung and all the street cleaners finished their jobs and moved towards the outskirts of the capital to throw and burn the wastes they have gathered. But after all that time Jon found not even a hint of suspicious activities between the alleyways nor from the passing birds.


    "Oi you there dear boy! I remember you, were you not the one that helped retrieve my stolen goods?" An old but joyful voice was heard as Jon passed by an old merchant cleaning his store.


    Jon immediately turned to look and remembered that this was the merchant that actually paid for his and Vernack''s lodging in The Shadow Rock Inn.


    "Sir Merchant! Thank you for sponsoring my stay here in the capital!" Jon happily replied, his genuine smile makes the heart of the merchant melt.


    "Ah please, this merchant''s name is Lohan Haringold from the land of Diharta in Burigram." Lohan reached out his hand for a handshake, returning a smile as well.


    They share a few pleasantries as Jon uses a rope to tie Bale''s reins to a pole meant to hold horses outside Lohan''s store and entered his store.


    "What are you up to early in this morning lad?" Lohan asks as he pours Jon a cup of herbal tea he has been brewing for the morning.


    "Ah, just looking around the city and familiarizing the areas, maybe me and my brother will be living here for a while." He nonchalantly replied and sips on the herbal tea.


    Lohan glances at Jon and a moment later he smiles as if knowing what Jon was thinking. The child before him is someone experienced at sword fighting, but unlike veterans this boy could not truly hide his intention.


    Furthermore, the intuition of a merchant can almost always tell the truth from lies, Lohan can tell that the child is hiding his true intention of looking around the city alone, especially this early in the morning.


    "Try looking at the sceneries between Garna District and Shukrog District, there is one scenery where one might find satisfaction." Lohan sat opposite of him and sipped on the herbal tea he poured himself.


    "I have traveled to-and-fro, from Wesout and Diharta and lived in this city for multiple seasons now, the sceneries are always clear by the port and the opposite of it are always ''interesting''." He continued.


    Hearing these words from Lohan, Jon immediately stood from his seat, his eyes wide in shock, thinking as if the merchant read his mind.


    "I have to go immediately Sir Lohan, thank you for the tea!" Jon rushed out of the store and instead of loosening the rope on Bale, he cuts it off and rides Bale towards the Shukrog District.


    "Mori, you have messed with the wrong person." Lohan muttered to himself and smiles as he looks at the ripped rope outside his store.

 Chapter 15: Surrounded

    Commoners of different ages awoke from their slumber moments after the Worker''s bell have been rung, and a few moments later another bell was rung from the center of the capital.


    Dong! The sound of the large bell resonated all over the city districts, awaking even nearby wildlife that just started hibernating within their shelter.


    In the Capital Center, there hangs a large golden bell, large enough to cover two caravans. Inscribed on the bell are the words ''Duke''s Watch Bell'', symbolizing the announcement of the shift of guards for the day.


    As the capital slowly rose from their slumber, a sound of a horse speedily galloping along the streets of the Skalt District intrigues the locals as they rushed out of their rooms or open their wooden shutters and look for the person responsible for the horse rushing this early in the morning.


    "Oi! why the rush?" One local yells out from his room, their eyes still adjusting to the morning light and bits of crust below their eyes.


    Atop the dark muscular steed, Jon was unperturbed by the yelling and scolding of the locals. His mind set on finding the group that sent someone to assassinate them in the middle of the night.


    He passes various structures and landmarks in the capital, buildings that are built from materials locally made by the locals. One landmark in particular had a tall bronze statue of a bloodied spearman thrusting the spear end into the soil as the banner of the Cristos, attached to the other end of the spear, flows along the wind.


    Beside the tall bronze statue is a stone stele with only five words on it, ''To Rise from its Betrayal'', the words carry a somber yet patriotic feeling for the people living within the Dukedom. Although if the Dukedom is compared to neighboring countries in the land of Wesout, it can be considered as the youngest country formed all over Wesout.


    The Grand Duke toppled numerous difficulties that have gone his way, conquering the lands of what was once an empire of another kingdom, using all kinds of method to take the throne of the capital, and unifying the south after the Southern Empire struggled without their sovereign. Decades has passed and the Dukedom has been too peaceful for so long that attack of the Supriars on its border caused a wave of emotion by the people to once again show the might of the Dukedom that fought against the numerous small, yet, powerful countries able to hinder the Grand Duke''s conquest.


    Jon has passed through all the landmarks found beside the main street of the capital, brushing over waking locals and marching guards as Ora''s light creep further into the depths of the capital. Distant sounds of birds chirping and roosters crowing as if alarming the people all over the land of Wesout about the time of day.


    Sometime later, Jon arrives at the main street that split the Garna and Shukrog District, at this time of the day there were tourists and some locals coming out of the public houses preparing to go on about their day. On one corner of the main street a wooden sign hanging from a post welcoming any individual that enter this street and below the sign two large words were carved on the sign, ''Windsor Side''.


    Without wasting anymore time Jon immediately looked around the buildings and alleyways by the Windsor Side and while he scoured every nook and cranny by the street, he does not notice a tall man wearing only common clothes following some distance behind him. As Jon goes further into the Windsor Side, the amount of people stalking him from the street and some from the rooftops of each building only increased.


    "Third Brother, why is it that we need three divisions to kill this child?" A short man wearing common clothes with a green headscarf, only allowing his eyes to be seen, whispers to a lean figure beside him.


    The "Third Brother" looked at the man that asked that question, his gaze making the short man immediately escape his gaze on the lean figure as he feels the sharp gaze from the direction of the lean figure.


    "We cannot question the task given to us by the Night Mage, if assassinating an infant requires even the whole of the organization, we must do so effectively." The cold yet silent voice made the short man felt as if he was being chocked by an invisible hand.


    He clearly remembers how ruthless the Third Brother is no matter the occasion, he would usually only speak lesser-to-no words with anyone whom tried to converse with him. Only the Night Mage and the Scugia Duke were able to speak to the Third Brother without fear of them annoying him.


    Favored and promoted by the Scugia Duke after a long secret selection training by the Niaulmori, the Third Brother would always finish his task effectively without a trace making a name for himself within their organization. The Third Brother was one of the many orphans brought in by the Scugia Duke decades ago, a meek and innocent child he was a long time ago but after seasons of training and completing arduous tasks that had most of the orphans he worked with died along the way.


    Being one of the few captains of the Zakelforge First Division, he was one of few of the hundreds of orphans that prevailed the decade long training and rightfully gained the position of a captain and the title of ''Third Brother'', removing his commoner name and forgetting his life before the training.


    The short man went silent as he senses if he utters any more word, the child would not be the only victim of their assassination after the task has been done.


    The Zakelforge First, Third, and Fourth Division continued to tag behind Jon, waiting for the exact moment he enters a marked alleyway where guards and locals do not normally pass.


    Sometime later, as Jon enters an alleyway towards the Garna District two thugs wearing a green headscarf, their gaze seething with intent to kill, brandished their weapon as they surround Jon in the alleyway.


    "You have messed with the wrong organization boy." Jon hears a guttural voice few steps behind him, sensing a piercing gaze on him.


    He calmly looks around him and sees fifteen-some thugs of different shape and sizes, all wearing green headscarves covering most of their faces but Jon only needs to see their eyes to know that he would not leave this alleyway without anyone of them dying.


    ''This is bad.'' He inwardly thought, although his face looked unperturbed by the amount of thugs at present but within him he knows that he cannot handle these amount of people realistically, most he could take out is only a five of them.


    However, after being trained by the Pyrlord and his other mercenary companions for over five Northern season he could instinctively sense that all of the thugs are not normal.


    Absolute silence! Jon thought of every possibility at that moment where he and Bale could at least leave with little-to-no wounds on them but each thug around him had their own way of fighting as he notices more of the weapons that each of them have on hand.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    After what seem like an eternity, a short burst of cold wind brushes through the alleyway and as if the wind was a sign, one thug from each side lunged towards Jon. They ready their short blades and blunt weapons to hit both Jon and the horse at the same time.


    Neigh! As the thugs reached a certain distance, Bale immediately stood on its hind legs as its dark mane flow along the air then charged towards the thug in front of them.


    Jon in an instant unsheathes his blade from the horse scabbard, that was made for them by the innkeeper of the Shadow Rocks Inn as a sign of atonement for allowing the assassins to enter their room. He sees that the thug in front of him wielded an assegai, a short spear that was used by some of Pyrlord''s mercenary companions.


    After numerous mock battles with the mercenary companions, Jon has a basic understanding on how different types of weapon work and the short spear he sees in front of him puts him in a disadvantageous position, where the thug could just stab Bale and create an opening for the other thugs to slice and stab him immediately.


    Although Jon is fully aware that allowing Bale to charge towards the short spear wielder is complete idiocrasy, but any other attempt would leave him worse than losing an arm or a leg.


    "Fool!" The thug cried out, his gaze bloodshot at the horse''s neck as he readies to thrust the spear directly at it.


    Just when the thug was about to stab into Bale''s neck, Bale suddenly made a reversal when it was about three steps away from the thug wielding the short spear and charged towards another thug wielding daggers on both hands, ready to slice into the horse''s backside.


    This caught the thugs in surprise, however Jon was still surrounded by them which cleared their thought of them failing in an instant. Two of the thugs above Jon threw their chained weapons towards Jon and Bale as several thugs from the rooftops threw sharp needles above them.


    Every second at that moment felt like an eternity for Jon, his mind in turmoil after thinking of different attempts to free themselves from this grave predicament.


    "Faster Bale!" Jon cried out as he readies to attack the dual-wielding thug before them.


    Bale leapt directly towards the thug that lunged himself towards them. This caught the thug off guard as he braces himself from impact, his dagger pointing directly towards the throat of the horse.


    Thud! Bale slammed onto the thug as it used its forelegs to push them down, fracturing the thug''s ribs. The other thugs grimaced seeing one of their division members toppled by a child''s warhorse, their killing intent only increasing but under the orders of the ZakelForge Task Division Leader they were not to recklessly attack in order for the task to be effectively done.


    Neigh! As Bale was about to make another leap towards the exit one of the chained weapons thrown by the thugs on the rooftop stabs into Bale''s backside, causing the horse to lift its forelegs again in pain.


    "Mongrels!" Jon easily sliced through the thin chains attached to the blade that stabbed into Bale''s left thigh, the sword he wielded was finely forged by Lahar two Northern seasons ago, a behemite-forged sword.


    "Get him ya slops!" A muscular thug, wielding a steel short glaive, yelled out as two scrawny thugs in front of him wielding assegais extends their short spear, ready to receive the full weight of the leaping horse.


    Jon in response unsheathes one of his hidden daggers and threw towards one of the scrawny thugs. Ack! Jon throwing the dagger was done hastily that the scrawny thug was not able to dodge the flying dagger and groaned in pain.


    Taking advantage of the disturbed thug, Bale lands on top of the injured thug and continues to charge towards the exit, not minding the excruciating pain it feels from its thigh the more it pushes itself to charge onward.


    The thug beside the injured thug immediately attempted to stab into Bale''s right flank, but to his delay in action, Jon moved faster than him as he lops the short spear into half and barely slicing through the thug''s chest.


    "Useless bunch!" The muscular thug slams his foot on the ground and raises his steel glaive over his head and prepares to slice both Jon and Bale in one attack.


    Four steps away from the muscular thug, Bale used all of its strength once more to make another leap towards the exit. Jon prepares to swing his sword in an attempt to block the glaive that reflected the morning light, but a second later another chained weapon of the thugs grabbed onto his behemite sword catching him off guard.


    "Die brat!" Under his headscarf he grins as he swings the glaive downward, the glaive seemingly carrying the world as it cuts through the air.


    Jon scowls as he struggles to free his blade from the chain and holding on to his steed''s reins. After what seemed to be an eternity and a moment, as soon as Bale''s front hooves touched the ground it pushed itself back from the ground, barely allowing the glaive to slice Bale''s skull open.


    "Nice dodge Bale!" As Bale pushed itself off from the ground again the chain wrapped tight on Jon''s blade loosened and took this opportunity to twist his sword and slice the chain wrapped around it.


    The muscular thug''s glaive digging into the hard ground leaving a meter-long crack. Seeing the thug''s glaive stuck in the ground, Jon urges Bale to charge into the thug again and raise his sword aiming at the nape of the thug.


    However, Bale suddenly senses danger if it gets into a certain distance around the muscular thug but it was too late, the moment Jon and Bale enter the area of danger the muscular thug suddenly boomed in strength as he lifts the steel glaive from the ground and swings it to Bale''s right flank, moving at a faster speed than he previously was.


    Surprised by the sudden lapse of the muscular thug, Jon quickly swings his sword in an attempt to block the hastened attack by the glaive-wielding thug.


    Clang! Two blades collide as sparks of light fly out of the collision, the weight of the glaive overpowered Jon''s awkward position pushing him back without much resistance. Using the weight of the glaive, Jon attempts to divert the swing downwards and momentarily kick the thug on the head.


    "Pitiful! Struggling to only a brat." Jon feels a cold breeze brushing past his nape and continues his swing towards his back but he does not feel his blade slicing through a body.


    As Bale makes another step towards the exit a tall hooded man appears from its side and kicks Bale on the side, pushing both the horse and the child onto the stone wall on the left of them.


    Geugh! Bale cries out in pain as its whole body smashes into the stone wall, leaving a four-meter-wide crack.


    The tall hooded man takes out a strange black dagger, covered in magic circle-like symbols and some unfamiliar letters, and gives no time for Jon to recover as he suddenly appears beside Jon and attempts to stab through his skull.


    Jon barely saved himself from death as he manages to move his right shoulder in the way of the attack. The Third Brother scowled, disappointed that he missed the vital point of the child but a second later he composes himself.


    "Shadows of Zakel, strike thee and cover thee in deathly shroud. Abyssal Pulse." The Third Brother chants and suddenly the symbols on the strange dagger glowed in a faint white light and from the guard of the dagger, black blood traces along the symbols on the dagger as it finds its way into Jon''s body.


    Jon grimaced as he tries to moves his body but it was as if the strange dagger has paralyzed his whole body, struggling to breathe and not being able to utter a word. A moment later, the black blood enters Jon''s body and he suddenly feels excruciating pain all over his body, as if he was being ripped apart and being constantly stabbed on every part of his body.


    Jon wants to scream but the paralyzing effect of the dagger hinders him from doing anything. The Third Brother then takes out another dagger from his side with the same strange symbols from his dagger that was on Jon''s shoulder.


    The Third Brother immediately stabs Bale where its heart is near, not allowing any possibility of the horse to do anything to save both itself and its rider. However, as he was about to even touch Bale''s hide an invisible hand grabs onto his neck and flings him back to the opposite stone wall.


    Boom! The Third Brother was not the only one that was flung away but every member of the Zakelforge divisions was flung back to the opposite side of the alleyway. Not even one of them were able to see who was attacking them nor were they prepared to escape the invisible hand that grabbed them from everywhere.


    Few moments later a large group of Rolguards came running into the alleyway and apprehend each thug that was struggling to move after being flung into the stone wall. Behind the Rolguards was an imposing figure wearing a white armor atop a majestic golden-maned muscular warhorse radiating an immense pressure just from their presence alone.


    "Martial Master, the child''s condition is worsening by the moment." A knight wearing a black-plated armor approaches the imposing figure carrying Jon on his arms, the dagger still attached to his right shoulder.


    "The child fought well, quickly take him to the Royal Cleric, he must not die." Each word of the imposing figure seemed to carry tons of weight as he looks at Jon in awe, although they were late to arrive he was able to see from afar how brave this child was against the large number of thugs assigned to kill him.


    ''Had that Dihartan merchant named Lohan not report of this event, this prodigy''s tale could have ended here.'' The Martial Master stares into the group of knights hastily carrying Jon to the Royal Cleric''s hospice.


    After what seemed to be an eternity, a Rolguard Captain kneels before the Martial Master ready to report about the situation.


    "Martial Master, thirty-two of the Zakelforge Division thugs were successfully captured but five division captains could not be found, it seems like they sent the hardened thugs just for this child, I do not understand why they had this big operation for only one child." The Rolguard Captain bowing his head anxiously reports before the Martial Master, feeling an immense pressure just being near him.


    The Martial Master only nodded in response and urged his intimidating steed towards the Third Brother and orders one of the Rolguards to give him the strange dagger he wielded.


    "Yn obdul exis, akos ymis. Language of the Demonaics." The Martial Master reads the symbols and letters written on the blade of the dagger and creases his brow as he gazes at the Third Brother.