Chapter 8: 7 Day War: Day 2: Dolor Milia

Part 2: Afternoon & Night

Eric knew that none of the older hunters would never believe him if he said his father was possessed by a demon and his desire to see his wife had been tapped into and enticed to do great evil. So he had to visit some of his friends in different occupations ,most who resided in the Adventurer’s guild. He enters from within the guild where he is greeted warmly by the busy atmosphere as people start preparing for something. 

“Yo Eric what brings you here?”

“Something important Cody”

“Like what?”

“Let’s go talk inside one of the guild rooms”

“Alright” 

Cody beckoned the other party members to drop in by so they could listen to what Eric had to say. It was to make sure that no one heard the information that he was going to give to them. Cody, Max, Arthur and Xavier were all here and waiting to hear what Eric had to say.

“So what’s with the serious face bud?”(Cody)

“I think my father is being possessed by a demon”

“What?”(Xavier)

“Clarify on that”

Arthur said with a concerned tone.

“Today when I was going to take some equipment in my house, I could hear Father speaking to a sinister like voice. It even offered to bring back my mother”

“Then he would refuse the demon and warn us all”(Max)

“You see that is where it gets weird, I think it hypnotized him to do its bidding because of his desire to see mother again”

“I see, and what will we do?”(Cody)

“Rather what are we allowed to do?”(Arthur)

Eric stared down at the table and with a solemn face, his gaze was cloudy yet it held determination.

“Could I ask one of you guys to go out and find out whether my father was previously an adventurer?”

“Sure” (Max)

Max walked out of the room with them talking about what to do when they get the chance.

“Even then we are not exactly allowed to go outside of the city unless if we were all hunters”(Xavier)

“I have got that covered, there is a secret underground tunnel that will aid us in getting out and getting in”

“Alright then, this will be hard but I am sure your old man isn’t much of a threat that we will need to use all our power”(Cody)

The door creaks and Max comes back with a pale face, it hadn’t been even an hour and he had been sweating hard.

“So who is Eric’s old man?”

“He was known as the Blood Soaked Sickles, hunting and killing monsters in the droves with ease using an array of weapons to fight the demons, at one point even a pair of sickles. Eric your old man was a fucking legend in the guild. The receptionist is an old hag who has been around when your parents were still lovers shouted at me to not call her old hag though.”

“…….please if we can snap him out of it then I hope we can do it”

“We’ll try”

They all got out of their guild room, locking as they did so. It was decided this was the way to go, they had to bring out their best weapons in order to fight Eric’s father.

“Alright we’ll be back here in an hour, you relax here Eric boy”

Cody said with a certainty walking away as he moved into the location where they kept their finest weapons. Eric heads inside giving the bartender money to buy himself a drink to wait as he began to think about the memories of his life.

“Hey you”

“……”

“Hey you over there”

“….”

“For fuck’s sake listen to what people have to say will ya?”

“Hey what the fuck?!”

The man before him had rough beard but not as long as his father’s, his blue eyes were weary and tired. He had blonde hair and wore fine clothing for a noble making Eric almost prostrate himself but he was waved away immediately before being put back into his seat.

“W-What do you want sir?”

“Simple, a way out of this city. I need to get out fast before night time.”

“W-What for?”

“Don’t ask questions, my name is Roswell by the way. Pleased to meet ya”

“How did you know of me?”

“I visited the slums and some guys told me you knew the city like the back of your hand so it was simple enough to figure that would mean to me”

“I see, what’s in it for me?”

“I would pay you 1000 gold, I placed the order with your little friends who went to get their equipment.”

“Alright then”

He at least needed some hard earned money to celebrate if they do won against the demon and it would make him relax for some years to come. 

☆

The sun was setting and quickly as well, the party had gathered up at the entrance of the guild hall.

“You’re the client who wants to escape the city huh?Cool, thanks”

“Shall we get moving?”

“Sure”

They headed towards the slums where the tunnel was located it was within an abandoned church under the pulpit. Eric flips a switch and they all find themselves inside of the tunnel.

“I never knew there was a mechanism like that in the church”

“Apparently I was told by father the church has a lot of escape routes for priests.”

“I see, the slimy bastards only think about themselves”

They lit a torch and began to walk deeper into the tunnel eventually reaching the outsider and into the forest, Roswell smiled and gave them the gold before departing.

“Easy money”

They placed the gold inside of a inventory ring and silently started to track Eric’s father. To know where they always were Eric’s father had given him a ring that would instinctively allow him to know of the surroundings his father was in. The night was finally setting in as it approached with the fall of the sun, the atmosphere that covered the trees and sky was like a single breath of an enormous creature wafting about a peculiar emotion that rang within the hearts of the adventurers and Eric himself. 

“So we shall attack everyone in our way and no one will stop us”

“Yes.”

“As for those insects watching us?”

“I’ll deal with them, I’ll make sure I meet me end of the bargain.”

“Alrighty then, I will be off then”

The conversation between two beings came to a halt, only the crickets and forest life were left to sing at the place.

“I know you’re there so come out. There’s nothing to worry about, yet.”

Eric’s father called out to him with a strange tone of voice, it was almost kind and gentle. Eric and the four adventurers came out, his father seemed different. He wore a dusty brown hat with a long coat of a similar color, he wore a strangely black shirt and and jeans that were made out of the rough hide of a monster that he knew was something dangerous, his medium sized beard made him easily recognizable. He carried no weapons with him despite carrying some in the morning, his green eyes were still tinged in the color of evil itself. It made everyone at the moment terrified of his presence in this dead forest. 

“Father please do not do this. Mother would not be proud of what you are going to do”

“You know, I loved your mother. She was my light in the dark storm, she was the love of my life and the very thing I needed for a long time.”

“I know that father but-“

“I have lived for a long time boy. Longer than yer, longer than anyone. In me blood is the blood of both an elf and a demon, I have seen the death of both the ones I love and care about. That is until yer mother came along and gave me meaning again. But then she died when yer was twelve, I didn’t want her to go just yet. I had still more to do with her. But then the demon gave me hope, I can take her back. She was not with the gods but with all along watching me and giving me strength when I didn’t have it. I am more alive than ever and I will not allow anyone to stop my plan. Sorry kiddo, nothing personal but all of your friends from the Adventurer’s Guild are going to die tonight, yer on the other hand will suffer a light punishment”

“Old man you are getting too ahead of yourself!”

“You think you can defeat the Silver Swords that easily don’t make me laugh!”

“We are a lot stronger than what you think we are!”

“C’mon let’s take you down and make you realize your grave mistake!”

“?!!”

For a moment he could see a bright sparkle in his father’s eyes as he swiftly moved towards where Cody was within the blink of an eye. Cody shocked by what he was seeing tries to unsheathe his sword has his head cut off in that same moment. His body is kicked away almost instantly, the party is all caught off guard by what Eric’s father did to Cody, the head rolls to Eric’s feet who meets eyes with Cody’s confused and frightened gaze. He glares at his father with a green glow surrounding his eyes, there was no empathy of what he had just done and he was more than willing enough to kill again. Max shoots several arrows at his father who dodges them and keeps making his way towards him in a rapid speed that gives a green afterglow making Max scream loudly as he saw the monster that was coming towards his way, his arms are cut off by the sickles in his father’s hands and blood sprays out onto the ground with him in pain howling as if being tortured from the pits of hell itself. 

“Shut yer whining”

A sickle slits his throat and he falls to the ground, Arthur roars as he runs towards his father with his shield up high and being given support by Xavier who is a thief by profession and tries to make himself a decoy but something unexpected happens as the father sees the sword that Cody had dropped beside him quickly picking it up and throwing it at Xavier who is unable to stop his momentum and gets his head pierced by the sword dropping to the ground. Arthur who had stopped because of the death of his friends resumes running towards Eric’s father who smiles as he picks up Max’s bow and some arrows shooting at his shield which breaks the more he shoots at it. He finally arrives at the murderer of his comrades only to face a boot to the shield which shatters into a million pieces, falling down to the ground without a shield but with a morning star in his hand however even that is broken by the sharp shooting of this insane man. 

“Yer all too fucking young and slow to match up with me”

The old man walks up to the frightened youth who is backing off before having his fingers cut off and a boot to the face as his skull is caved in by the strength of that kick. Eric was all alone, all his friends had died and none of them survived. He had even pissed himself to see his father in action.

“Awww cute ye messed up yer pants just like yer used to as a kid!HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!”

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!”

Eric runs towards his father as he laughs at his pathetic state but a loud bang hits his chest before he could get close enough and he falls back accompanied with a groan as he falls to the ground. He looks at his father with a confused gaze, in his hand is a weapon he doesn’t recognize and makes him bewildered.

“This is a weapon that was designed in the Empire, it’s called a hunting shotgun. The Empire created innovations in science whilst we hillbillies of the Kingdom still use swords and magic. The range is short but enough to keep one on their toes, I managed to make the bullets turn into some non lethal shit. This is how this fight goes boy. Land one hit on me boy, then I’ll reconsider. If ya don’t then ye are going to lose yer dominant arm. What do yer say sport?”

His father was excited as if he was treating him as an opponent and made him anxious, Eric got back up taking Cody’s sword out of Xavier’s head and points it at him. 

“That’s right boy, just like how I taught ya. Make a brave front!”

His father takes the two sickles and combines them together through magic making them into a huge sickle that makes Eric intensely afraid.

“Yer ready?Cuz ere I come!”

Eric saw his father’s image waver for a moment before moving out of the way to escape his death as the swing of a sickle is heard in the place he was. Eric then swings the sword at his father but the shotgun shoots at him making him dodge it once more leaving the sword behind. He takes his bow shooting at his father with the result being that they do not land at all as his father cuts them in half and before putting the shotgun to his back and catching the broken arrows and throwing them back at Eric who is dodging his own arrows. 

“On yer toes boy!”

He hears the sound of his father close to his ears and immediately dodges to his right side where the head of Cody was. This man was a monster in human’s skin and was loving every moment of this fight but he could see it in his eyes that his father had recognized his son as a worthy opponent, he tried to grab one of the daggers in his pouch but he was too late as his father had already arrived. Without even time to dodge Eric’s right arm was cut off with his face being grabbed as something was placed in his mouth as he was kicked away from his father who laughed hard. 

“Iz that it boy?!HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!But ya put up a good fight I’ll give yer that. Too bad ya too weak to defeat me. Give it up, the city shall fall under the demons tonight. And I shall regain my wife again”

Eric could barely hear what his father was saying near the end as he faded into unconsciousness. The man he was staring at was the true man that Eric never even knew about.