27. Eleven Days
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Part 1 –

“Good! That’s the kind of strength I’d expect from the Exrenity!” Anoma praised Exrite’s efforts as she managed to shove herself free from their clash.

Exrite pointed his wooden sword at the luscious grass and expired his lungs with everything he had.

“It’s still not enough if I can’t beat you.” He lightly chuckled, catching his breath.

The man sweated buckets, drenched from head to toe as he bared many bruises and swollen cuts across his body. Over the course of a week and a half, he had toned his strength to the point where it nearly rivalled Anoma’s. The arduous training was almost a form of torture, particularly in the beginning.

His body was like stone, but he wasn’t any larger than before. So far, he made tremendous progress in gaining strength with the help of Anoma. His endurance only rose with time, and as of now, he could remain standing even after a lengthy seven hours of non-stop training.

However – that was only because of his absurd tolerance to pain, and maybe even because of the Eye of Hope.

His right eye held a strange glimmer; almost glowing like a fluorescent jewel. When Talia saw this, she promised to check the archives of the chapel during her return to Farshard. And when he asked Uru, she failed to recognise what was happening.

Exrite wasn’t as concerned about it as he would like to, since his main focus was primarily on gaining enough strength for the Commanders. Anything unsatisfactory would spell death for him, and any hope to handle that strange weapon.

He clearly remembered the dry explosion like it was yesterday. It was like a crossbow; but smaller and far more powerful than anything he could imagine. To shoot something as small as a pebble with such power without magic was a bewildering thought.

“Hello? Exrite? Fake Exrenity, wake up!” Anoma hit him with the tip of her wooden sword and pointed it at his face. “What are you doing drowsing out like that for? Keep your focus Exrite. You only have twelve days to go.”

The loud voice and the sudden force snapped him back into reality.

“Yeah, sorry-“

“If you’re sorry, then beat me for once!” She held the blade parallel with her body and glared at Exrite with a slightly irritated expression. “Come on! End this session with a win!”

Exrite didn’t know how to respond to that. Surely, she meant it, but her face said otherwise. Regardless of this however; he’d still give it his all to finally triumph over the Guild Master in duel.

She was actually at a disadvantage, since they were restricted to only using swords. But even so, this was Anoma; the one who sat at the pinnacle of all adventurers in Colight as far as the Guild registry was concerned.

As silence drew in, the two eagerly held their ground as they waited for the other to make the first strike. Then, when a fleeting breeze swept by –

Anoma’s sword nearly found itself inside of Exrite’s skull. The abrasion left a scorching sear across the side of his head as thrust himself onto the open woman. Before he could even land a strike, she grappled onto him and threw herself behind him, scoring yet another decisive pummel into his back.

“Stop fighting me like I’m a brick wall!” She cried and allowed him to turn her way with a small grimace.

“I’m really trying to keep up with you.” He lightly groaned.

“By charging into me? I’ll admit that it’d work in the right circumstance, but right now you’re up against me, Exrite. Don’t take me for a fool.”

She didn’t bother holding back against Exrite. The reason why he became so strong so quickly was because she sunk him straight into the deep end. The first day they fought, Exrite was left with broken limbs and snapped joints. It took an entire day for him to recover through both Talia and Inkshard’s help.

All it took was a single, unforeseen strike to take him down. She couldn’t blame him at the time, but she expected more from the person the Gods called the Exrenity.

It was a bit different now. Or rather – interestingly different. He could handle her blows well, even if she perfectly connected with him.

The unarmoured Anoma prepared herself as Exrite too held his ground. He had yet to land a decisive strike against her in all this time. Anyone watching the two would immediately recognise the stark difference in their skills, as Anoma stood with a refined stance while Exrite seemed sloppy and abstract.

“No one’s going to stand there and let you run into them, nor is everyone the same. Don’t try to match my pace. Try to outmatch it instead.” She slowly pointed her sword at him.

“…right… I’ll end up being on the defensive the entire time.” Exrite realised and brought his eyes to hers. “But even if you tell me that, I still don’t think I’ll be able to lead the fight.”

Anoma seemed a bit annoyed by his statement. Without any warning, she lunged at him with the intent to prove her point. But Exrite was ready for her. He clashed with her swipe, their head interlocked like their wooden swords in the middle of the grassy field.

They repeatedly traded blow after blow, moving quickly around the vast space like fleeting butterflies. For every hit Exrite barely managed to land, Anoma would return fifty more all perfectly across various parts of his body.

However, they weren’t quite like the places Exrite struck. She struck him by his left wrist, smashing limp as clenched his teeth in gruelling agony. But in that moment, he snuck a slash onto her shoulder. It didn’t hurt her at all. In fact, not even a stain was left on her leather tunic.

And then, she used the hilt to bash the side of his head. In return, he snuck another slash across the back of her boots while he was on the ground. Anoma stood over him and shoved the sword into the grass by his throat with an angered face.

“Do you have no fucking sense of self-preservation!? Can you flinch even a little or are you too much of a moron!?” She cried with nothing but irritation.

He simply laid there, mildly disorientated by the previous blow to the head. A soft sigh left him as he stared up at the sharpened brown eyes.

“I lost that a long time ago. Look, I know the way I fight is stupid – but it’s the only way I know how to fight face to face against something stronger than me.”

“Throwing yourself at me with the mindset of taking damage in order to inflict more onto me isn’t stupid – it’s suicidal!”

Exrite’s way of fighting wasn’t anything like anyone or she knew or heard of. He was like un undead – willing to take damage in an attempt to advance or strike an otherwise unreachable enemy. At first, she thought this was only because he was desperate to win.

But fast forward a week and a half later, and he still fought in a similar fashion.

Frankly, it pissed her off more than it should’ve. If it was anyone else, she wouldn’t have minded, but because he was the Exrenity and the Maiden of Time – she couldn’t help but to stab the sword near his throat again.

It meant that he had no idea just how valuable his life truly was.

He gulped with unshaken eyes.

“This is how struggle, Anoma. If I can’t win like this, then what other way is there?” He held dearly onto his own way of fighting.

It was like the time he fought Accacia. There was no other way of pulling through other than to recklessly charge her down. Even with the two arrows in him, he still persevered.

There was a similar situation in the case of the fight against Uru. There was absolutely no way of surviving other than to take damage from blowing up the orbs mid-air. The damage he inflicted was vastly disproportionate to what he received. He even ended up dying from it.

Therefore, the way he fought was like a double-edged sword. He couldn’t escape the repercussions. But with enough care, skill and experience – he would be able to drive the blade deeper into the opposition.

Needless to say, this would be in the situation where he was pitted against something impossible to fight head to head without any compromises.

“Value your life more, Exrenity. I know any warrior would fight to the end no matter what… But no one does so without flinching or fearing death. Not even myself.” She threw the blade away and replaced it with her boot. “I’m sure you’ve heard this a million times already, but I’ll say it anyway for your own sake – “

Anoma took in a deep breath of air.

“– Take – Fucking – Care of yourself. If anything, it’ll be your closest friends who’ll suffer just seeing you like that.”

“…yeah… I understand…” Exrite trailed off, feeling a weight drop onto his chest.

“At least sound like you do. Go get healed by the priestess. I’ll be expecting you in your prime tomorrow without that stupid mindset.” She slowly began her departure. “And also – “

She suddenly paused and touched the armpit that he sliced.

“– you’re quite cunning as always. Mind telling me why you went for my under arm instead of my chest or stomach?”

“We have these weird things called tendons there. You wouldn’t be able to use your arm when they’re completely severed. It's the easiest way of disabling an arm than going for the wrist or bones.” He calmly explained as she looked back at his broken wrist.

Using the same logic, she realised it could the same reason why he smacked a specific part of her boot.

Had this been a real fight – and everything prior was disregarded – Exrite would’ve come out victorious. She was certain of it. Even with his broken wrist and head injury, he would at least have full control of his own body.

“And where did you learn that from? A book, or from dissecting bodies?” She made a crude joke.

Exrite plopped his head onto the soft grass and smiled.

“Something like that.”

If it weren’t for the Eye of Hope’s warmth, he surely would’ve elapsed into a terrifying trance. Anoma wasn’t far off with her sarcastic remark. After all, Exrite learnt this from experience.

With the woman disappearing off into the distance, small patters approached him from behind. Soon, there was a sharp yell that sent a violent shiver down his spine.

“EXRITE!”

It was Inkshard, the one person he knew who would kill him for looking like a battered human dummy. He wryly smiled and waited for the girl’s eyes to meet with his as he prepared himself for the eternal earful.

* * *

The Capital was much the same, even eleven days after the news of war spread. It was inevitable, and there wasn’t a person who thought that war wasn’t a possibility from the beginning.

The Guild issued warnings about venturing off to the west, while the Institute of Magic received yet another heavy influx of adventurers as well as normal citizens. Patrols of any suspiscious activity around the perimeter of the Capital became a job listed under the Guild board, to which many partook in.

Some even took it upon themselves to reside in Fairant, for it’d be the first place that’d be struck by an army.

The state of the Capital aside –

Stowed within a rather secluded place of the towering castle, a brilliant flash of light engulfed the large chamber. The walls of the room were lined with countless bookshelves, and had a small desk shoved into the furthest wall. As the light dimmed, the seated figure let loose of a loud mumble.

“Sis, I’m trying to read here. Wait – where the hell was I?”

Khaos flickered through the book in search for the page he was previously on. With some effort, he eventually found it and sunk back into scanning it for any information regarding his race.

“My bad, my bad. I was just trying out something. You know, I didn’t think there’d be so much behind creating a spark of light.” Frosty spoke with some sarcasm, forming another orb of light in front of her.

“Spark?” Khaos whispered to himself and slowly shook his head.

That light couldn’t possibly only be a mere ‘spark’.

Over the past eleven days, Frosty had been working with the priestesses and partly Uru with refining her [Soul] magic. More specifically, she wanted to learn how to reduce the cost of mana for magic. While she used her own mana for her own [Body Strengthening] magic, she had to rely on the souls for any other magic, less she’d suffer a mana depletion.

Frosty – who was peculiarly careful with the souls she harvested – did not want to needlessly engulf them. She had a firm belief that they were the remainders of a person’s existence apart from their bodies. To her, it was worse than slaughtering many.

A body could always be mended, but never a soul. Once gone, it was gone for good.

“… it the same thing on every page.” Khaos complained and hastily replaced the book with a new one from a nearby pile. “How come no one has anything about us Frostbitten?”

“Don’t ask me. If Uru doesn’t know, then I doubt anyone else would.”

Frosty played with a small, pale ball of magic. She was trying to move one of the souls into the confined orb but to no avail.

“– Tsk. This is so stupid. I don’t get why I have to carry all these souls.” She growled and popped the orb.

Another brief flash of light cascaded the room as Khaos firmly his current page.

“Can you not sis? If you’re really concerned about it, then come help me.”

“We won’t find anything here, Khaos. Just wait till we make it to the Maiden of Wisdom.”

“Right, the Maiden of Wisdom… but c’mon sis, we’re not going to get there in a day or two. We might as well keep searching while we have time for it.” Khaos reasoning was sound, even for Frosty who couldn’t help but to agree with him.

However, she wanted the answers all at once. What she sought after was slightly different from what Khaos. She wanted to know what she truly was. Sure, she was a Frostbitten – but why could she harvest souls? And why did Khaos have such indomitable strength?

And above all; why did some souls ‘taste’ better than others?

It wasn’t something she wanted to know now of all times. She figured that by the time they’d reach the Maiden of Wishes, she’d be able to stomach the truth, no matter how grim it was.

Frosty and Khaos spent another few hours in the room with Inkshard occasionally coming to visit with some snacks or to help her out. Khaos didn’t move an inch, yet he ploughed through a couple plates of biscuits as if to urgently replenish his energy.

“All that because you’re actually using your brain?” Frosty joked, garnering a laugh from the giant man as he skimmed through countless pages and books.

“A man’s gotta eat to push through. Thanks again Inkshard.”

“It’s fine. So long as you’re not like Exrite, then I’ll help you in anyway I can.” The priestess assured with a somewhat tired voice.

“Did he come back looking like a dog’s chew toy?” Frosty muttered, expecting this was the case.

“What else? I don’t get why he has to do push himself against her majesty of all people. There shouldn’t be a reason to go through such harsh training with her.”

She had watched Exrite fall over and over ever since the start. As the main Priestess of Balance, it was her duty to watch over him for he was the Exrenity; the living Will of the Children of Balance. To see him beaten into a bloody pulp countless of times was distressing, especially for someone as volatile as the bearer of the Eye of Despair.

“… isn’t there another way to get stronger? I’m sure out Gods can – “

“Nope. Sorry Inkshard, but we’re not going back there to ask for any favours.” Frosty quickly interjected with a held-out hand. “We got fucked over by them in every way imaginable.”

“If it weren’t for Hope, we would’ve been dead by now. Sorry, but what Exrite’s doing is probably the best way of going about it.” Khaos seemed confident in his words regarding Exrite’s decision.

Frosty raised an eyebrow and folded her arms tightly by her bosom.

“Not the best if he keeps coming back with wounds all over.”

“Exactly! Exrite’s still too reckless! I even told him to stay put but he doesn’t listen!”

The argument regard Exrite’s dedication to getting stronger didn’t bloom any further. From here, it began to fizzle out as the room grew silent.

With the brushing sound of a turned page, Khaos spoke.

“This is Exrite we’re talking about. I trust him more than I can trust the next person beside me.”

“… no one’s beside you.” Inkshard wore an annoyed face.

“Yeah, ‘cause I don’t trust anyone more than him.”

“Then what about his health?”

“Frosty, I think you and I both know that what he’s going through now doesn’t compare to what happened to him back in Enthile.”

Khaos suddenly slammed the book shut and snatched another from the decreasing pile.

“I don’t like it either, but I just know that the path he chose was the right one.” He added and scoured the leathery book.

“Huh. Well, it’s not like we can go back anyway… and there’s only twelve days left till theycome back for us.” Frosty seemed to agree with Khaos.

The little priestess darted her eyes between the two before realising it was futile to further address Exrite’s recklessness in combat. However, this was because she didn’t understand that Exrite normally fought away from the foreground of a battle. He was their support from afar and the dark, his blade in the shape of tiny bolts and in some cases, a surprise backstab or ambush.

With an irritated sigh of defeat, the priestess pressed herself against a wooden shelf. Her face became riddled with thought before a painful grimace formed.

“The Commanders…” Nothing but spite left her lips.

* * *

Part 2 –

Mana overloads and depletions were almost one of the same thing, except one would rather the later, for it was a fate worse than death. This was the topic that came to surface during Exrite and Uru’s nightly meet with the old Headmaster of the Institute of Magic.

The domed architecture of the place they settled was nothing short of astounding. If one imagined the room of a grand wizard, this place would certainly come to mind. Cardinal’s quarters was also his home, bearing a mixture of magical and homely furnishings.

In one end, there was an open balcony that oversaw the entirety of the Institute of Magic, as well as the half-constructed airship.

The three say comfortably around a floating fire on humble, roughened chairs that seemed to be handcrafted by the old man, much like most of his furnishings.

“ – ensure to keep in mind the mana cost of a magic. At any point it costs more than the capacity itself, then you’re certain to undergo a mana overload. Any lower, and you’ll deplete your mana reserves.” He explained in a hoarse voice that encapsulated the essence of a ‘wise old man’.

“Precisely. I’m surprised you haven’t already experienced one, Exrite.” Uru added as she pointed her golden eyes at the man in question.

She thoroughly brought up the time where he utilised a [Third Tier] [Barrier] against her illusive Octanid in the perilous library. A barrier of that kind – in Exrite’s context – was rather impressive, but he would’ve suffered from a mana overload had he not used a magic circle.

Regarding that [Barrier], Exrite only just realised that it was impossible for such a thinly spread [Barrier] to hold back the giant spider.

“It should’ve dropped straight into the barrier, or at least shattered it.” Exrite admitted with a small sigh.

“It was an illusion as Uru said. The Demon caster perhaps didn’t know the qualities of the [Barrier] and wanted to sell the illusion of the Octanid.”

“Hmm. You can never tell what a Demon thinks.” The Succubus spoke with a mischievous tinge as she held a small grin.

Cardinal recognised Uru as only a ‘Dark Elf’ who aided Exrite and his companions in defeating the Demon of the Dwarven City. Of course, this was far from the truth. The lie was expertly woven by Demon herself, who also hid her mana reserves using some sort of concealment magic.

Detecting mana was easy, for there existed people who had natural abilities to sense it. Those without it could use an arguably weaker version called [Mana Gauge], which was strictly limited to a single individual or creature.

Cardinal did not have the natural gift, so when he used [Mana Gauge] on Uru; he only saw a powerful reserve that fell in line with what ancient texts and mythos spoke of the Dark Elves.

It was all false information, courtesy of Uru.

“– I suppose mana reserves won’t matter for a Maiden. With so much mana and energy, it’d be impossible to deplete yourself.” Cardinal spoke with a small hum at the end. “And I can’t see why you’d be concerned about an overload as a Maiden. But if it really does concern you, then take your time to learn the arts of magic.”

“He’s a juvenile Maiden, with little understanding of the inherent magic he possesses. No matter who it is, using magic wishfully costs more than someone who understands it.”

Uru protested with an air of superiority.

Exrite wanted to say something but refrained when he realised that it’d only bring about more confusion. Gaia told him herself about these risks, so hearing those contradictory words from Cardinal brought him to ponder on the reason.

Then, he remembered.

The Domains.

“Well, that’s interesting. Is there a reason for that?” Cardinal asked with a curious voice.

“Ho? The greatest mage of the two kingdoms can’t figure it out?” Uru haughtily raised her chin.

“My knowledge only goes as far as Colight, I’m afraid. I’m curious about your knowledge from the Depths.”

Uru devilishly grinned as she glanced at Exrite for approval. With a small nod, she spoke again.

However, she refrained from explaining any further and simply folder her arms in silence.

“It’s better if you don’t know and stay in the dark.”

The Maidens in the eyes of nearly every race across Six Point were held as near omnipotent beings, and she didn’t want to sully their image. From a man like Cardinal who taught many thousands, the information of the Maidens and the truth of their Domains would spread like a plague.

It would both hurt the progress of spreading the Overlord of Desire’s name, as well as tarnish the awe every being had towards the Maidens.

“There’s a reason why our kind haven’t left the Depths to spread our valuable knowledge.”

“I see. Please excuse my curiosity. Perhaps I’ve finally started to grow senile.”

The lie was easily munched by the old man, who thought nothing of it. He believed that all of Exrite’s companions were of righteousness.

He couldn’t be more wrong.

Exrite discretely glared at Uru and wondered what went through her mind. She noticed of course, as the corners of her mouth steadily rose into a strange grin.

“Sorry about that.” He sincerely apologised.

“No, it’s quite fine young Exrite. Shall we return to our original topic for tonight?”

Cardinal didn’t seem to mind it one bit.

“Please.”

The man spoke more about mana overloads than mana depletion this time around. There was more to what met the eye with the phenomenon.

Because the magic casted was used more mana than one’s capacity allowed, it would devour their entire mana supply and energy, rendering them as mana-less husks of their former selves. This was of course, after they suffered through their lengthy death.

But what was rather surprising was they would become an Undead because of the absence of mana in their corporeal body. Normally, a dead body would retain its residual mana, hence why they’d become limeite over countless of years.

It was an incredibly rare occurrence, but Cardinal explained that it was rampant in the Boric Region and even parts of Endo. Naturally, Undead could multiply on their own, and very few could gain intelligence and – according to ancient recordings and mythos – could even regain memories from when they were once alive.

“We’ve heard some tales from the soldiers that they’ve encountered one or two Undead in Di-Lock territory.” Cardinal had a displeased face. “It’s hard to say whether it’s the work of overloads or necromancy.”

“So there’s a human out there who can create the Undead? How strange. I remember it being limited to only the Undead.”

Uru found herself intrigued with the information at hand. A thousand years ago, no other being could dream of creating the Undead.

“Can they control them as well?”

“I don’t see why they couldn’t. But it wouldn’t be feasible to command more than a handful. They wouldn’t be human otherwise.”

“Hmm… interesting.” Uru tapped the wooden armrest and hummed to herself something incomprehensible.

Exrite keenly listened to them for some time, often asking for clarity for anything he failed to understand. And when their session finished, Cardinal roamed the second-floor balcony of the spacious room.

“Come again tomorrow my friends. It’s been an honour serving you with my knowledge.

“It’s been our pleasure listening to you. Thank you, Cardinal.” Exrite waved at him before exiting his chambers.

“You have my thanks for teaching me a thing or two.” Uru didn’t turn to face him, yet her words were surprisingly sincere.

She disappeared through the large doors. Cardinal watched them slowly come to thunderous shut.

“ – Now, as for Di-Lock…” He turned to a bookshelf and pulled a ragged book.

He flickered through the pages before coming to an abrupt stop.

“No human should ever wield the power of the dead, for they will become the Undead.”

He recited like the wise old man he was.

* * *

Uru explained it all to him afterwards in detail, regarding why she kept Cardinal in the dark about the truth of the Domains. Exrite was left dumbfounded for a moment, but he eventually agreed with her sentiments.

While he didn’t like having to be held at such a high regard by others, it couldn’t be helped.

If people knew that Exrite – the Maiden of Time – was significantly weaker because she wasn’t within a Domain, then there’d be an onslaught of mercenaries among other folk after her. Maintaining the façade of strength wasn’t something he wanted, but it was necessary to keep others from thinking twice before scouring the lands for the newborn Maiden.

“I didn’t think about it that way…” He sighed and looked down at his palms. “Thank you, Uru.”

“You’re too complacent with these Humans. No information like that should ever leave your side, no matter how trustworthy they seem.” Uru scolded as she placed a firm hand against his neck.

The Eye of Hope became warm again. He thought that where the Eye of Despair clouded his judgement in rage and distrust, the Eye of Hope would cause him to be more trusting and calmer.

But even so, he honestly didn’t believe that Cardinal would leak such a thing, even if there was an apparent risk. Compared to Anoma, the wise old man was gentle and understanding of Exrite’s weaknesses.

The man was as genuine as one could imagine, and he deeply regretted not being able to answer his one question.

“Just don’t push that onto me next time, unless you absolutely have to.” Exrite slowly spoke as they passed a small crowd.

They were on their way to the café, where they promised to meet up with Frosty, Khaos and Inkshard for dinner. The road became silent as they took a narrow path in between a few stone houses and stores. Here, it was far dimmer than the main roads.

The only source of light came from the moon above and their respective eyes.

And then, from the silence, Exrite suddenly spoke.

“You’re heading to the mountains, right?”

“Tonight. Why? Are you going to miss me?” She teased and slithered a finger across his lip. “I know what you want to say already. The Spirit will be spared if we do end up fighting. But remember that our goal is to protect your birthland.”

She suddenly stopped him in his tracks and stared into the man’s eyes. Only half of her face bathed in the moon’s pale light, while the other remained in perpetual darkness.

“That Spirit isn’t even a candle to my breath. Still, I’ll be careful there, so just focus on getting stronger. Trust me, Exrite. Trust me.”

He slowly pried her finger away from his mouth.

“I didn’t say I doubted you.”

“Then why’re you looking at me with such stern eyes?”

Her voice was unbearably tantalising. Exrite, for a moment, felt like he was being drawn into her eyes. The surge of lust was short lived however. Such an arbitrary thing was nothing of value for the man who only knew suffering in the last ten years.

But it didn’t mean that he couldn’t worry about others, even if it was someone like Uru.

“… do I need a reason to worry for a friend?”

Uru’s eyes broadened momentarily before becoming dangerous slits. The black coating of her conjunctiva returned as the golden pupil pierced into Exrite’s being. And then, a strange smile came across her face.

“You’re a strange one, Exrite.” She pleasantly hummed. “A friend you say? Or are you sure you’re not trying to keep your enemies close?”

“Not at all. We might’ve been enemies once, but we have a common goal now. We need you, and you need us to get anywhere.” Exrite’s warm smile brought her to softly sigh and gaze up into the cloudless sky.

“Precisely.”

While Exrite was uncertain of Uru’s true intentions of heading to the mountains, he had hope that she’ll come back in one piece. But for the woman herself, the future was already set in stone.

And as she sailed in the sea of thought, Exrite uttered something as he placed a warm hand onto her head.

“You’re a kind person, Uru. Good luck out there.”

It was incredibly perplexing, yet it brought her to smile from ear to ear. As he began to walk away with a small gesture of goodbye, she held her head up high and sighed.

“Really now, you’re the one who’s kind.”

Her voice was too low for him to hear, but he gently smiled regardless as he disappeared into the darkness.

And in his absence, the Succubus whistled and old song.

* * *

In the Great Plains of Colight, the clanks of metal against metal resounded. The grass squirmed beneath the many armoured feet. A band of fifty to a hundred soldiers marched across the plains.

They were an unorganised bunch, most being either hired arms or adventurers. Their goals mattered not, for they acted solely on the prospects of the sack of coins they’d receive at the end.

A single man commanded this army. Out of everyone, he was the only one fit to be called a proper soldier or knight. The armour he wore was of a crimson red, painted by the blood of his foes.

He rode on horseback, following his men from behind as another armoured aide rode beside him.

“Sir, can you really trust the words of that man?” His aide questioned.

The soldier’s face dangerously crumpled.

“Why not? Our job is to simply take control of the mountains and take whatever’s there to Palvel for him. How dare you question our mission!”

“But you saw that light – “

“What about it!? Just think about the coins! We can finally leave the shithole Palvel is and move closer to Di-Lock’s Capital!”

“Aye! We won’t have to deal with the famine any longer!” Another cried as many cheers followed.

“We just need bring this round thing to the mountains, wait a while and take whoever’s there with us. I heard the women adventures in those parts are quite the spectacle.” The commander slurped and dampened his cracked lips.

A bluish-pale orb sat on his free hand as he eagerly stared at the few mountains far ahead. The promises of their contractor drove them all into this job, which they foolishly deemed trivial.

After all, the Spirit of Balance resided there in wait for the Demon of Lust.

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