PreCursive

Chapter 240 - Madman Interjection

In minutes, we had reached the shore of Goryuen, traveling in the wake of the two Solstice ships. There wasn’t a real dock constructed on the beach just yet, despite all the construction underway. Captain Satoru parked the Kaminari Maru not far from shore and then prepped one of the lifeboats to ferry us onto it.

Azarus, Liora, Renauld, Venix, and I all piled into the boat after taking the time to gear up below. It had been a few weeks since I had seen all of us decked out in full combat uniform. Last time had been during our Oni hunt.

Myself included.

I had thrown on the armor I had forged and hewn with Azarus’s help, once I’d started getting into fights again here in Kawamara. I didn’t have my Order of the Eclipsed Dawn armor anymore since I…well. I wasn’t really a member anymore, I don’t think. With the dissolution of the Nocturne Division, I had deliberately resigned my commission and intended to stick to that decision.

I may have been Grey’s official apprentice, but that didn’t obligate me to be a member of his paramilitary organization.

It’d taken me a while to realize that.

I’d turned it into the Order quartermaster before I had left Elderwyck. Which had left me high and dry without real protection.

With Azarus’s help, we’d designed something to my current tastes. While I wasn’t particularly interested in being an assassin anymore, I also wasn’t interested in becoming a full-on heavily armored knight. I still wanted the ability to be stealthy if I needed to be.

We had settled on a form of light interlocking armor plates over silk. I’d never worked with silk before stepping foot on Kawamara, and I’d found that the mystically treated version of it they had here was far superior to most leathers. And since I was so associated with Oninite in these isles, and had such easy access to it thanks to my supplier, I’d forged those plates from my rapidly becoming signature metal. The black and blue of the metal contrasted nicely with the red and black dyed silk of the under armor, if I said so myself. The armor was capped off with some sturdy knee-high plated boots, and some equally long, plated gloves. Partly to hide the length of my Primordium arm, honestly. A thick, dark blue hooded cloak completed the ensemble.

I was thankful for the cooling and heating enchantments that had been layered over that cloak, honestly. In the jungle heat that I was already feeling from Goryuen, I think I would have drowne din my own sweat without the cooling. I...didn't yet have the Enchanting ability to craft those arrays myself, so I had commissioned those from a local Hinagan man.

My supply pouch, complete with new Bond Breaker lay at the small of my back, while my extendable daggers lay in sheathes on either side of my waist. Terractus was just beneath the dagger on my left hip, the gold of its horns prominently visible. In my right hand, I carried the blackened staff I had inherited from Tlazo, with its gleaming amber crystal at the top, cradled in a basket of ebony wood.

I felt ready, no matter what we would encounter down on that beach.

Which…made me feel all the more foolish, when I was placed on rowing duty with Azarus. The two of us exchanged a look as we took an oar and got to work, our respective armors clanking with the repetitive motions. The rocking of the boat made his shield and hammer clang from the motions.

Venix, the prick, stood upon the bow of the tiny boat with his arms crossed while Liora and Renauld sat comfortably behind him. The Antium man looked like George Washington proudly braving the Delaware River with his white robe flapping the wind generated from my rowing.

Bella, meanwhile, turned around in her seat to smirk at me teasingly, very much aware of how tedious it was to power oars. She wasn’t the type of woman to take circumstances like this very seriously. I just glowered at the smug pirate for a moment, before shaking it off.

Now wasn’t the time. Not with the ‘welcoming committee’ I could see forming on the beach in front of us.

That was…a lot of Solstice classers.

Not all of them looked very friendly

The Lieutenant from earlier had reached the beach before we had and looked to be arguing with a group of other officers who had pushed their way through the watching crowd. If I had to guess from their dress, all of these guys were much higher up on the proverbial totem pole than the affable helmet head we had spoken to. Thankfully, none of them were as outright wary as some of the onlookers were. However, more than one considering frown was being sent our way across the beach, as our lifeboat slid up it to rest on the white sands.

By the time I had climbed out of the rowboat to step foot on Goryuen for the first time, the gathered officers were already approaching us. Venix stood waiting for them patiently, his arms still folded on his chest. The Gnolls and Bella had already joined him and were waiting for Azarus and I. I worked the tension out of my shoulders and then exchanged a nod with said dwarf, and jogged just in time for the Solstice officers to come to a halt before us.

They spoke first.

“Captain Wernstrom, Order of Solstice’s Flame,” The lead officer, a bald, middle-aged man with a truly impressive steel grey beard said in a clipped tone. “You are the delegation from the River Throne?”

I raised an eyebrow at the man. “Not…exactly,” I said when Venix didn’t immediately speak up.

The Captain switched his gaze over to me and frowned harder. “Be clear, man. Are you or aren’t you representatives of Kawamara?”

“We are scouts,” Venix finally said, drawing the attention of the officers. “Granted leave by the Emperor to search the Garden of Tatsugan for a specific purpose. We do not represent the throne.”

Wernstrom’s brow furrowed, but it was another officer who spoke first. “Who are you then? Why did you inform Lieutenant Salzen that you wished to speak to the Grandmaster?”

Venix took a deep breath then. “I,” He said almost proudly. “Am Venix, sworn sword of the Shadowed Sun.”

Oh man. That wasn’t going to go over well.

Sure enough, the mood around us immediately changed. Where before our group was merely being regarded with suspicion, that had changed.

Now there was a great deal of hostility in the air. No blades had been drawn yet, but there were certainly a number of hands resting on hilts now.

Captain Wernstrom narrowed his eyes at us, the numerous creases around them forming an imposing spiderweb of distrust. “What are a bunch of Eclipsed Dawn mutts doing all the way out here?”

Okay.

I know Venix had asked me to trust him, and let him handle this. But I think he needed a bit of…help, with the delicacies of negotiation.

I handed my staff off to Azarus and stepped forward, holding my hands palm flat before me. “Peace, Captain Wernstrom,” I said, in as disarming a tone as I could muster. “None of us here are direct members of the Order of the Eclipsed Dawn. Not any longer. We are here on private matters, and were quite surprised to see you and your compatriots on this…quite restricted island. As such, we merely thought to investigate the matter on behalf of our benefactors,” I stressed the word. “Among the Imperial court.”

To my surprise, someone unexpected pushed their way through the crowd. It wasn’t anyone I personally knew, but I hadn’t expected to see someone like them among the Solstice members.

It was a Kawamaran man around my own age, dressed in a similar manner to Venix. The man wore a green robe decorated with crimson spider-lilies, while underneath it I could see hardy leather armor. At his side, he carried a katana in much the same manner I had seen other samurai in Hinaga.

The man narrowed his black eyes at me, specifically, and pointed an accusing finger. “Prove it,” He said suspiciously. “If you are truly here by the grace of the court, you should have a permit.”

I nodded slowly at the man. “I do, in fact, have one. I even have it on me,” I said, reaching behind my back. The move caused the tension in the air to ratchet up sharply, making me freeze in place. I eyed the gathered classers warily. “Gentlemen, I need to retrieve the writ if I am to present it for inspection.”

The Captain and the samurai exchanged glances before Wernstrom nodded at me sharply. “Hurry up.”

I did as he asked, withdrawing the writ of permission that Masayuki had presented to me. Unfurling it, I held it out for the samurai. He strode up to me and veritably snatched the piece of parchment out of my hand and then back away.

The watching crowd held its breath while the samurai inspected the writ.

“Well, Kazuma?” Captain Wernstrom asked promptingly. “Is it a real document?”

After a moment, ‘Kazuma’ looked up from the document and gave the older man a reluctant nod. “Yes, Captain. This is a real writ of travel, issued by the Imperial court. You cannot truly forge the Emperor’s seal.”

“Well, well, well,” A strangely high-pitched, creaky voice called out causing the surrounding soldiers to still. In contrast, the officers jumped to attention, spinning in place to face the direction the voice had come from. “What do we have here, eh?”

In an oddly guilty manner, the crowd shifted out of the way to reveal the speaker, while Captain Wernstrom and the officers bowed their heads in respect. “Grandmaster Shacklock, sir.”

So.

This was Shacklock.

He…wasn’t what I had been expecting.

I hadn’t heard all that much about the man over the months, since we had first encountered the Order of Solstice’s Flame back at Helstein. The only thing I had ever learned about the man was that he and Grey had some form of mutual antipathy going on. In a moment of outright callousness, my mentor had told me once that he would probably celebrate if the man dropped dead. What…I had taken away from that was that the two of them had been bothering each other for a long, long time. Another of Herztal’s old monsters, in essence.

And he looked like a complete buffoon.

The Grandmaster of the Order of Solstice’s Flame looked like someone’s shlubby grandad. The man was short and slightly stooped over, holding himself up with a stout wooden cane hewn from what looked to be cherry wood. Visible blue veins stood out underneath his paper-thin skin as his boney hand clutched at the knob on his walking stick tightly. Despite his bent back, the man’s figure was actually whipcord thin and shockingly muscled despite his apparent advanced age.

Over which he was wearing what might be the loudest, most ridiculous coat I had ever seen. It was bright, bright orange, for one, with loud red, green, and even blue and yellow accents. The colors blended together in a near tye-dye manner, as if it was mimicking a social movement from decades in Earth’s past. It hung almost limply over the man’s bony shoulders, trailing in the white sand of the beach below. While that…thing he was wearing was downright hideous, the Herztalian officer’s uniform he was wearing underneath it was shocking mundane. The contrast between the two was so jarring that it took me a moment to notice the hat.

The cowboy hat.

The bright green, dyed leather cowboy hat, in a style that made me think the man was an old West cattle wrangler.

I…

They had those here? I had never seen them before! Not once!

I almost wanted to laugh hysterically at the man, before I caught sight of what was beneath that hat. I only barely registered the shock of bright white wispy hair that stuck out on either side of the hideous hat. Instead, it was Shacklock’s eyes that drew my own.

This man was insane.

Batshit, bugfuck, crazy.

The glint in his beady black eyes told that Grandmaster Shacklock had no regard for me, or anyone else for that matter. We were all just window dressing upon reality to this old monster, tools and toys to be played with and discarded at a whim. I’m not sure that even Nerexxa could have topped Shacklock in pure insanity.

Did he even see the same things the rest of the planet did? I…I couldn’t be sure.

And by the crooked grin on his thin lips, he knew that I knew that he knew that I knew….

I shuddered and broke the gaze with the enemy Grandmaster.

I think I had just seen something I wasn’t supposed to.

A barked laugh from in front of me made me look back at him. But this time, I was careful not to look the man in the eyes.

Shacklock was shaking his head. “Oh ho ho ho,” He said mockingly. “I know who this lot is. I’ve even crossed blades with one of ‘em!” He slapped his knee and laughed out loud, free and clear. “Venix, you old sack of bug guts, how are ya! Why, how long has it been?”

Venix wasn’t intimidated by the old man, even though I could tell the rest of my companions were at least a little fazed by him. “Not long enough, madman,” He said, unblinking. “I believe it was the battle of Ryesfeld.”

Shacklock nodded faux wisely, stroking the white stubble on his pointy chin. “Yeah, that’s right. Ryesfield. I remember now. I stuck ya like a hog and then kicked your carcass off my spear like it was said hogs shit. I left ya bleeding in that field, sure you were done for,” He laughed again, sweeping off his hat to waggle it at Venix mockingly, with the hand not on his cane. I was somehow unsurprised to see that the man’s only hair was the two tufts that stuck out from the sides of his head. The rest of the geriatrics chrome dome was so smooth it gleamed in the sun. “Boy was I surprised when I saw ya again in the capital.”

The Antium man was unmoved by the old man’s mocking. Instead, he just inclined his head. “Would that be the capital that you are now barred from, old monster?”

The smile on Shacklock’s face dimmed slightly. He snorted, putting his vomit-inducingly ugly hat back on his head. “Ain’t gotta piss on my parade like that,” He muttered grumpily, before sighing loudly. “Oh, what do you want? Why are you on my damn island?”

“Your island?” I muttered to myself.

Turns out, I wasn’t quiet enough. Shacklock’s beady little eyes zeroed in on me in a second. “You’re damn right my island!” He snapped, before taking a closer look at me. He tilted his head in thought, tapping his lips. “Say, you look familiar boy. Do I know you from somewhere? I kill your pa, perhaps?”

I tensed up a little at Shacklock’s regard. “No. I-”

I didn’t get the chance to speak any further. Shacklock’s eyes lit up, and he snapped his fingers. “I remember now! I saw a sketch of ya last year from a Loyalist profile!” He crowed, pointing a crooked finger at me. “You’re old Greycton’s newest little apprentice! The hell are ya doing here, boy?”

Something happened then that caused my blood to run cold. The maniac’s face abruptly went cold, as all emotion seemingly vanished from him. He eyed me in much the same way the lion does the gazelle.

“You lookin’ to die or somethin’?”

<<Chapter 239 | Table of Contents | Chapter 241>>

Chapter 239 - Flaming Parley

“The hell are they doin’ here?” Azarus asked aloud.

I shared a look with the rest of my companions before shaking my head and raising the far-eye again. After a moment of study, I frowned in confusion. “It…looks like they built a base?”

And they had.

The ‘island’ itself wasn’t as small as I had been expecting it to be. In my mind, on the way here, I had thought that it was just some small spit of land with an equally small mountain and some sparse jungle surrounding it, absolutely packed with Oni.

That wasn’t the case.

Goryuen might as well be another continent, from what I could see.

The horizon was dominated by dense, tall trees from which I could only see darkness within. The island itself was bearded by an endless stretch of the purest, whitest sandy beach that I had ever seen, on either Earth or Vereden. Just barely visible over the gargantuan treetops of the jungle that covered the island might have been the peaks of distant mountains. However, they were so far away, even through the far eye, that I could only make out a sliver of their pointed tips over the foliage. But in addition to all of that, was the feeling of Goryuen. The alien, sinister aura of the island itself…

Felt like it was watching us. I shivered at the near awareness I could sense in the Aether of Goryuen, even as far from the island as we were. It was like there were invisible eyes watching from somewhere just out of phase with reality, and they were not friendly. There was an indescribable feeling of disdain and hatred in that unseen gaze.

Whatever it was, it didn’t want us here.

That wasn’t even considering what the Solstice’s Flame guys were doing. Through the far eye that Bella had given me, I could see hundreds and hundreds of them scurrying about on the white sands of the beach. Dozens and dozens of orange and grey tents bearing their flaming spear and shield logo crouched upon the ivory banks like the shells of enormous crabs. Floating just offshore from the island were well over a dozen ships of all shapes and sizes, proudly flying the banner of their Order.

Some of those ships were much, much bigger than the Kaminari Maru. Hell, some of them were the largest ships I had ever seen period. These weren’t merchant vessels like what we were on.

These were warships.

I lowered the far-eye to shift my gaze over to Captain Satoru. I found the man looking as alarmed as I felt.

That is, nearly panicking.

I took a breath to calm myself and then spoke. “Can we run?” I asked him.

Bella answered for him. “Ain’t no use,” She said bluntly, shaking her head. “If we’ve seen them, they’ve seen us. Probably hours before we did anyway. And we wouldn’t be able ta run far in the first place. Those are some nasty lookin’ girls out there,” She said, in a half-admiring tone. “If I know my Herztalian naval doctrine right…”

The pirate captain didn’t get the chance to elaborate. The lookout up in the crow’s suddenly began to shout again, drawing everyone’s attention. The man was frantic, nearly screaming as he pointed off to the side.

Everyone followed his gesticulating, and when we did, moans of despair went up among the crew. I myself felt the bottom of my stomach drop out.

Not far from our position had been some jutting spires of rock off the shore of Goryuen. Initially, I had paid them no mind. You saw things like that all the time out on the seas of Vereden.

I wish I had paid them more attention, because two ships had appeared out from behind a collection of them. They had obviously been hiding behind those spits, predators lying in wait for their prey.

And these ships were on a direct intercept course with the Kaminari Maru, flying the colors of the Order of Solstice’s Flame.

“And there they are,” Bella said, waving a hand out at the approaching ships. “Two interceptor frigates, about the same size as me own ship.” She shook her head. “No way this tub is gonna outrun one o’ them.”

Captain Satoru shot Bella a dirty look, but still nodded. “The woman is unfortunately right,” Suddenly, the merchant Captain turned away from us to address his crew. “Men! Gather on deck and prepare to-!”

Venix reached out and clasped one enormous hand on the Captain's shoulder, cutting his words short. “No,” He said with finality, his eyes tracking the approaching ships. I was surprised at the calculating look I saw in those chitinous orbs.

“Venix?” I asked cautiously.

He looked away from the ships and down at the Captain, ignoring me. “You will all die if you try and fight,” He said, meeting Satoru’s eyes. “These people are known to us. They are a powerful renegade Sect. You must let us handle this matter.”

Sect? I’d never heard that term before.

Those words must have meant something to the Captain, because he slumped in Venix’s grasp. “I see,” He said quietly. Seeing that his words had been received, Venix withdrew his hand. I don’t think the Captain even noticed, as he turned to address his men again. “Men, gather upon the deck to…greet our oncoming guests. Perhaps…perhaps it will help to have tribute prepared?” He shook his head. “Furl the sails. They’ll do us no good.”

I blinked at near defeated tone in Satoru’s voice, as well as the morose air that came over the crew of the Kaminari Maru. Most of the seamen, Captain included, got to work bringing the ship to a halt.

Leaving me and my companions alone at the bow. I turned my gaze to Venix, tilting my head in thought. “What’s the play?” I said, after a moment.

Venix subtly shook his massive head, looking back at the Solstice ships. They weren’t far from us by now. More than in range for the bowmen I could see on their decks to pick us off one by one. Their weapons were drawn, but not raised. For now. “I ask that you extend your trust,” The Antium man said simply.

I gazed at him pensively for a moment, before cutting my eyes over to look at Azarus standing to my right. It was a bit embarrassing to admit, but I tended to trust my dwarven friend’s intuition about these matters more than I did my own. He…didn’t seem to be alarmed by Venix’s request. The former noble just had his arms crossed over his broad chest and was watching the oncoming ships with a steady gaze.

I looked back at Venix and nodded. “Alright,” I said finally. “We’ll do this your way.”

Something in Venix’s eyes glinted and he nodded at me. He stepped past us and over to the railing, where one of the Solstice ships was angling their broadside up to the Maru. The rest of our party followed in his wake, while the crew of the ship gathered upon the deck. I noticed that some of them were carrying either jingling sacks or even various trinkets. Captain Satoru was even among them, and oddly seemed content to stand back and let others dictate the fate of his ship. Strange behavior from a Captain, in my experience.

I crossed my arms as grappling hooks sailed over the space between the Maru and the lead Solstice ship. Across the gap I could see a number of what looked to be Solstice officers, clad in the same orange and grey armor that I had seen on the classers Nerexxa had ensorcelled. Even from a considerable distance away, I could tell these were guys you didn’t want to mess with. Once upon a time, I think I would have even been intimidated by their tall, well-armed figures.

Not anymore, though. I’d grown to the extent that I honestly thought I could take them, even without the backup of my friends.

Well.

If they weren’t outranging me on a ship, that is.

When the lead ship was close enough, two of the Solstice crewmen leveraged a long plank across the gap and dropped it. The sound of the wood clattering down onto the deck of the Kaminari Maru echoed out across the waters around us like a ringing gong.

Silence filled the air for a moment before the lead figure among the Solstice members pierced it.

“Ho there!” He called, his voice echoing out of the helmet he wore. I noticed that this man was wearing some officer's pips on the leather strap of his breastplate. He had to be an officer, but from the looks of it, not a very high one. “What brings you to these waters, friends?”

Oddly friendly greeting there, for a man who had just waylaid us.

I heard Captain Satoru splutter in indignation from behind us, but he didn’t speak up. I didn’t blame him.

Venix was unphased. “I must ask you the same question, Lieutenant,” He called back. “We have come to these waters by right of the River Throne. We bring with us a permit to step foot upon this isle. Can you and yours say the same?”

His words caused a stir among the Solstice members and a visible change in their demeanor. Resignation filled some of the bare faces I could see, but not the hopeless kind. There was a firmness to the set of their shoulders that spoke of their resilience. The lead officer, a Lieutenant apparently, was unmoved.

“I wouldn’t know, my good man!” He returned cheerfully. “That sounds like something most definitely above my pay grade! Do I have your permission to come aboard, so we can discuss this matter like the gentlemen we so clearly are?”

“You do not,” Venix replied immediately.

The subtle tension that had filled the air since the dropping of the plank ratcheted up a notch. I saw smirks and smiles vanish from the faces of number of opposing crewmen.

If I didn’t have a hold of my expression, I probably would have echoed that.

What were you playing at, Venix?

The Lieutenant was silent for a moment. “May I ask why?”

Venix stepped forward and onto the plank himself, causing Solstice hands to fly to weapons. He didn’t react at all, though. He merely stood upon the plank and did not proceed further. Somehow, I got the impression that he had met the Lieutenant’s eyes across the shortened distance. “Because you are exiles,” He said patiently. “The Order of Solstice’s Flame was stripped of their charter, in the aftermath of the Construct War. What guarantee do we have that a disgraced Martial Order shall adhere to the rules of parley?”

Huh.

That was news to me. I actually hadn’t heard anything about the fate of the Order of Solstices’s Flame. To be fair, it hadn’t been news I’d ever gone looking for. There was a ton of little details that had been coming out of Herztal about the aftermath of the war, and I didn’t really…care about all of them. What had happened to an opposing Order that I’d had a handful of encounters with hadn’t exactly topped my list.

Outright scowls crept onto lips across from us now, and I saw one Solstice member spit off to his side.

The Lieutenant put his hands on his hips then. “Well, then we appear to be at an impasse, my friend,” He said in an exasperated tone. “We can’t keep shouting across the drink at each other all day, now can we?”

“This is true,” Venix said, nodding. “In which case, I have a proposal.”

The Solstice Lieutenant looked around in a showy manner, before looking back at Venix. “Well? I’m all ears.”

“If you are here,” Venix said, ignoring the theatrics of the officer. “Then Grandmaster Shacklock must be on that beach. Escort us to the island so that we may treat with the man.”

Across the gap, the Lieutenant crossed his arms in thought, visibly eyeing Venix. “That sure is an idea,” He said doubtfully. “But there’s a problem with that, my friend. See, my orders are to politely discourage any ships from making berth at the island, other than our own. And you don’t look to be flying a flaming spear.”

Venix tilted his head at the officer. “This is true,” He said mildly. “But there are two things you are not considering. The first is that this is an officially chartered vessel of the Empire of Kawamara, carrying an imperially recognized scouting team. We are bound for that isle, and have full authority to step foot on it. I somehow doubt you have the same. It would be…unwise, to make further enemies of those whose land you squat upon.”

The Lieutenant was silent for a moment. “Not a bad argument,” He said eventually. “I’ll grant you that. But you said you had two reasons. What’s the second, my good man?”

Venix crossed all four of his arms, copying the officer. “Because the Grandmaster and I are acquainted,” He said. “He will want to see me.”

Abruptly, the Lieutenant sighed heavily. “Oh, this is too much of a headache,” He groaned, before waving a hand irritably. “The old man can handle this. You can have your audience, my friend. Just…just get off my plank, would you? We’ll escort you to shore.”

Venix inclined his head and stepped backward onto the deck of the Maru. Moments later, the plank was retracted.

I eyed Venix, as he turned to look at the gathered occupants of the ship. “Not…how I would have done things,” I said diplomatically. “A bit antagonistic.”

Azarus rubbed his chin next to me. “Ain’t ever met this Grandmaster,” He mused. “He a reasonable man?”

Strangely, Venix barked out a short laugh. “No,” He said, his amusement obvious in his voice. “He is not. But he will listen to me. You shall see. Captain Satoru, I suggest you remain on the ship while we negotiate with the Grandmaster.”

The Captain eyed Venix with irritation but nodded nonetheless. “As you say,” He said, before turning to his crew. In moments, he had them scurrying about to get the ship underway. As they were leaving, I caught sight of the Captain whispering with his first mate. He noticed my spying and shot me a narrowed glance, and hurried away himself.

I crossed my arms, standing with my companions as the sails unfurled once more only moments later, and the Kaminari Maru glided through the water once more, following the Solstice ships.

I guess I was about to meet Grandmaster Shacklock. Didn’t Grey hate him or something?

Seems I was going to find out why, soon.

<<Chapter 238 | Table of Contents | Chapter 240>>

Chapter 238 - Ritualism

I found the entire voyage aboard the Kaminari Maru to be…honestly kind of annoying. Most of the sailing that I had done in the past had been under the sails of the Thorny Reef. Some of my fondest, freest memories here on Vereden had been on that ship, simply standing at the railings and staring off into the distance. Some men found the endless blue horizon of the ocean to be daunting, that emptiness presenting a threat to their very souls.

Not me. I loved it.

Sailing upon the waves, especially aboard a pirate vessel, was something I enjoyed immensely. The sheer freedom of it all…the uncharted, unbound possibilities….

It called to something, deep within my soul.

But that was the thing, wasn’t it? I loved sailing with pirates.

Not, as it turned out, on merchant vessels. And not with a Kawamaran merchant, at that.

It was so stifling.

Normally, I could appreciate the very formal, rigid rules of Kawamaran society. Once you learned them, it helped to smooth almost every single interaction over. It was nearly ritualistic, honestly. If you acted properly, you could predict nearly every encounter you would have with a Kawamaran man or woman.

But that same ritualism ruined sailing for me.

The Captain of this vessel wouldn’t let me help out around the ship at all. I couldn’t help the deckhands swab, I couldn’t maintain the rigging, I couldn’t man the crow’s nest, hell! I couldn’t even volunteer in the galley.

For as enthusiastic as the man had been to accept us aboard his vessel, it was like he didn’t even want our group to step foot outside of our cabins. Captain Satoru had, in a very strained, very polite, and very Kawamaran manner, requested that we not interfere with the workings of his ship.

Those words were pretty much meant for Bella and I.

We were the only ones who were trying his patience. Azarus could take or leave the entire sailing experience, in the end. He had no problem pretty much snoozing the trip away in his bunk. Renauld, as I had learned months previously, wasn’t the only Gnoll who didn’t care much for the process either. Liora very pointedly had a tendency to stay out of sight during voyages like this one.

All the salt in the air didn’t agree with fur.

And Venix had parked himself in a cross-legged position near the stern of the ship, closed his eyes, and started meditating on that first day. I hadn’t even seen the Cultivating Antium so much as twitch an eyelid in the entire time we’d been sailing. He sure as hell hadn’t reacted when the Captain had tried to ask him to move.

Eventually, the man had just given up and instructed his crew to swab around the samurai.

Which left Bella and I.

We were restless.

Bella, I think, because sailing was her life. She’d spent decades upon the waves of Vereden, and had no intention of ever stopping. She lived and breathed the salt, and would die upon it one day, completely content and never once feeling that she had wasted her time among the living. As much as she respected the sovereignty of a Captain aboard their own vessel, she also wanted to keep busy and contribute in some way. I did too, honestly. I think the inaction the Captain was forcing into us made both of our skins itch.

And so, the two of us were leaning against the railing not far from the meditating form of Venix.

Sulking.

I sighed, gazing out at the horizon behind the Kaminari Maru, as we sailed towards Goryuen. It had been three days by now aboard this vessel, and hopefully, the trip would be over soon. We’d encountered enough fair winds that it was possible we would reach the isle quicker than expected, according to an antsy Bella. Said Pirate Captain was to my left with her back to the ocean, while I was looking out at it.

I broke the silence between us. “Is…this…” I said, gesturing to pretty much the entirety of the ship around us with my gloved prosthetic hand. “Common, with merchants?”

We knew each other well enough by now that Bella could guess what I meant.

She twitched one shoulder in response. “Sorta,” Bella muttered dourly. “It’s why I didn’t stick around, after I signed up with one of ‘em.”

I cut my gaze over to her in surprise, one eyebrow raised. “I thought you were pretty much raised by Cassandra? When did you ever have a chance to become a merchant?”

Bella crossed her arms and frowned. Not at me, or even the ship itself. I think it was just the past she was frowning at. “Well…,” She drawled. “Cass is real big on personal freedoms, as ye can imagine.”

I sure could.

“And so, when I came of age, she gave me a choice,” Bella continued. “I could sign up with Marrowmist, and try my best ta attract a crew. Or I could hitch a ride out with one of our suppliers, and try my hand on a ship that was on the right side of the law. This was after I’d done me years as a ship rat aboard Cass’s flagship.” She sighed, cutting her eyes over to me with a wry look. “I actually tried, ye know?”

I raised my other eyebrow to join its twin, and turned around to join Bella with her back to the sea. “No shit?”

Bella smirked and nodded. “Yup, and I lasted all o’ a month. Hated it. Too…stuffy, too hidebound fer my tastes. Not quite as bad as all o’ this,” She said, gesturing with one finger towards the Maru in much the same way I had. “But more than enough ta send me flyin’ back ta the Mists. ‘Honest’ work just weren’t fer me. At least…not if I weren’t at the helm. So I gathered me own crew, and struck out on me own.”

I snorted before nudging her with one elbow. “And now you and your crew are one of those crews on the right side of the law,” I said teasingly. “You’re under contract with Grey, now.”

To my surprise, Bella sighed at that and nodded. “Aye, fer at least another five years,” She said morosely. “That’s how long the damned exile is gonna last. But, Nate?” She turned to me with a serious look in her eyes then. “Once that’s up, I’m heading back to Marrowmist. It’s…it’s me home. And I don’t think I could live the rest of me life in the shippin’ business. It…ain’t just the sailin’ I love.”

Ah.

I see. I…couldn’t relate with that. I was a bit…uncomfortable, with the implications of piracy. I’d had no problems with the whole thing, while the entire southern half of the continent was embroiled in civil war. During it, most pirate crews had sided with the Uprising and turned their raiding upon the Loyalists, either under the banner of the Bluebacks or Freefief. But that was over, now.

While a ton of pirate crews had taken the chance to ‘go legit’, Marrowmist as the biggest hive of them had just barely eked out a stance of true neutrality. And with the war over, their normal activities would likely resume.

Marrowmist might have been the most civil of the pirate collectives, but…

They were still pirates.

And in piracy, innocents were sometimes caught in the crossfire.

In much the same way a young Bella had been.

I carefully kept the frown threatening to creep across my face at bay. In my mind, the end of Bella’s exile…it probably meant the end of whatever was growing between us. I had…problems with the practice of piracy. To me, it scourged people in much the same way that slavery did.

And I…doubted I would be able to sway Bella from the life she loved.

This relationship had a time limit to it.

I changed the subject before things could become awkward. “Speaking of the ‘life’,” I said, lowering my voice. “Are there any homegrown Kawamaran operations?”

Bella tilted her head up in thought. “Yeah,” She said quietly, after a moment. “But they ain’t got an enclave like us Herztals. And it’s generally harder fer them ta do it, out here. Not because of the Imps. It’s the monsters out here, keep piratin’ down.”

I furrowed my brow. “I thought sea monsters were relatively rare, out on the open waters?”

That was something I had learned during my time out on the ocean. Apparently, it wasn’t common for monsters to form in the lightless depths. Not impossible.

Just rare.

Something about the Aetheric properties of the ocean kept monsters from forming to the same degree that they did upon land. Most water-borne monsters tended to form along the shorelines and thus haunted them. Even the Frostbrine sea-spiders we’d encountered back in the caves under Caer Drarrow stalked the shores of the frozen north, instead of venturing far out to sea.

“Why…?”

My wordless question was answered by an unexpected source.

“It’s the Oni,” I heard a deep voice say from behind me and to my right. My eyebrows shot up, and I turned to face the speaker.

It was Venix. He had opened his eyes after days and days of deep meditation to fix me with a serious stare. “They do not need to breathe,” He said shortly. “And they are always venturing toward Goryuen, from all corners of the Empire. What that means is that the Oni simply walk along the ocean floor to the isle.”

I blinked at that, before a chill ran down my spine. The Oni walked to Goryuen? Like, along the sea floor?

I warily looked down at my feet to the deck of the ship below, as if I could look through them to the ocean bedrock below.

If Venix was right…there could be any number of Oni waiting below us right now.

When I look back up, I saw that Venix had a small, nearly infinitesimal smile on his chitinous face. He shook his head at me. “Do not worry,” He said. “The Oni travel routes to the Isle of the Dragon are well known to the Kawamaran merchant fleet.”

Bella pushed off of the railing to nod at him. “Which is why the Imps don’t let other ships navigate these waters,” She said wryly. “It’s a spider-web of Oni roads in all directions. If ye don’t know the right route ta take, ye’ll run right over one of them. Yer liable to have a great big brute zip outta the water then and club ya good. Lights out then, fer most merchant tubs out here.”

I furrowed my brow. “What about passage between the islands?” I asked, confused. “Or, hell. Even on approach to the islands. Are there Oni roads there? I don’t remember us taking any special routes.”

Venix shook his head, but it was Bella who answered. “Nah, the knowledge of the Oni roads between the isles is public knowledge,” She said. “Everyone knows how ta avoid ‘em. The Imps only keep knowledge about Goryuen secret, so no damn fool tries ta set foot on it.”

We were interrupted, then, by the sound of shouting from above. Looking up, I could see that the lookout in the crows next of the Kaminari Maru was yelling and waving his hands frantically. For a moment, his words didn’t reach me, over the roar of the waves around us. But I heard him, eventually.

“Captain! Captain!” The young man was shouting desperately. Across the deck from us, near the helm, Captain Satoru looked up in confusion.

“What is it?” He called up.

The young man took a deep breath. “Land!” He bellowed. “Land on the horizon!”

I felt a relieved smile start to edge its way onto my face at his words, if not his tone. It looks like this frustrating voyage would soon be over. That had to be Goryuen he was speaking about.

His next words wiped the smile from my countenance.

“Ships on the shore!” He continued, just as loudly. By this point, most of the deck had stopped their duties to watch the announcement. His words caused a wave of silence to roll through the sailors. “Flying unknown colors!”

I took a deep breath then before looking over at Bella. My friend and occasional lover had a confused frown on her face. “So much for secret routes.”

Bella shot me a dirty look but ignored my words otherwise. Instead, she hurried after Captain Satoru as he nearly tripped down the stairs to the bow of the ship. Venix rose from his cross-legged position to follow after, and I copied him. As we stepped onto the main deck, I saw Azarus poke his head out of the door that led to the cabins below. “What’s goin’ on?” He asked over all the raised voices.

I just shook my head at him. “I don’t know, but it’s probably trouble. Get the others.”

Azarus furrowed his brow, but nodded at me and retreated inside.

Meanwhile, I hurried to join the group at the bow. There, the Captain, his first mate, Bella, and Venix were peering over the horizon in one way or another. Both ship Captains had far-eyes out and were peering through them, while I saw a strange glint in Venix’s compound eyes as he squinted into the distance. After a moment, I heard Bella curse loudly, causing the first mate to eye her with disdain. She just ignored him and kept looking.

“I don’t recognize that banner,” I heard Captain Satoru say with a frown audible in his voice.

Bella lowered her far-eye to scowl over the horizon. “I do,” She said grumpily, as Venix seemed to spot the same thing they did. The Antium man let out a long, drawn out sigh as he folded his four arms into his sleeves. He almost seemed irritated.

As Azarus, Liora, and Renauld wandered up to join us, Bella shoved the far-eye into my chest. “Ye will too,” She said with a frown, nodding over the horizon.

I took the hint and raised the far-eye to take a look.

She was right.

I did recognize them.

“Shit,” I said, lowering the small telescope.

“That’s the Order of Solstice’s Flame.”

<<Chapter 237 | Table of Contents | Chapter 239>>

Chapter 237 - Storm's Embrace

Hours later, the two of us relaxed together under the sheets of her futon, exhausted after our…exertions.

Turns out, the same enhanced stamina that aided an Awakened in battle had benefits in other ‘areas’ as well.

That had been a fun and interesting discovery to make those weeks ago.

I accepted the pipe that Bella passed my way and took a long draw from it, letting the pipeweed fill my lungs. I let it out in a drawn-out, slow exhale, already feeling the mildly relaxing effects of the herb. In quiet moments spent relaxing with her in the past, I was surprised to discover that she was an occasional smoker. Not like Grey, who had a tendency to smoke like a chimney when he was stressed.

She had a preference for the finer stuff.

Speaking of…

I handed her back the pipe, and accepted the glass of what she called ‘rog’. Essentially, a higher-quality grog than what the rest of the crew drank. Funny enough, that actually stood for something, according to her.

Ransacked Ocean Gold.

I’d had a bit of a laugh about that with her in the past.

Once I’d taken a sip, I leaned back against the wall of the room and cradled the glass in my hand, letting my gaze drift over to Bella. Like me, she was naked from the waist up and resting against the wall, and I allowed myself to enjoy the sight of her for a moment as she took a draw from the pipe as well.

It had been…

Well, a long, long time since I’d had anything like this. Sylvia and I…we hadn’t progressed to this point. Partly, I think, because neither of us had been sure if it was even possible, for Humans and Sculpted. I had…always been curious, if Sculpted were…fully functional, in that way. But I had never asked, partly because Sylvia had been very self-conscious about the possibility.

And now that possibility had passed, and I was likely never going to find out.

I pushed those dark thoughts away and instead focused back on Bella. Said Captain noticed my stare and rolled her eyes tolerantly at me, but didn’t bother to cover herself back up. “What?” She asked slight amusement in her voice. “Ain’t like this is the first time ye’ve seen me like this.”

I shrugged, unapologetic. “Yeah, but it’s nice,” I said with a smirk, causing Bella to snort. After a moment, I sobered up though and decided to broach the subject that had been on my mind for weeks now. “I’m…surprised you wanted to do this again, Bella. Last time you were honestly pretty pissed off.”

The smirk on Bella’s face faded, and she looked away from me. “Yeah, well,” She said roughly. “I was…more pissed at meself, honestly. Don’t pretend all o’ that was planned, now.”

I nodded thoughtfully. She was right about that.

The last time Bella had been in port, the two of us had been invited to come along with an Oni Hunt. The others had been busy at the time, so we had accepted and traveled along with the same troop the rest of my companions had accompanied. It had ended up being both a good advancement opportunity and the right thing to do. It had gone surprisingly well, and when we had gotten back to Hinaga, the two of us had decided to celebrate privately.

With plenty of booze.

Lots and lots of booze.

Things had devolved from there.

The next morning, Bella had woken me up with how much she was surprisingly freaking out about it. Thankfully, there hadn’t been any accusations about anyone taking advantage of anyone else, but she had been distressed all the same. I’d been so hung over at the time that I had barely been able to get a word out before Bell had beat feet for the port, and in record time, was disappearing over the horizon aboard her ship.

At the time, I’d been wondering if I had destroyed one of my few, real friendships on Vereden with a drunken mistake. I hadn’t known what had caused Bella so much distress, and hadn’t been able to ask her. I’d been left with only questions after her rapid retreat. I couldn’t even tell the others why Bella was gone, leading to most of them just assuming we’d had a disagreement during the Hunt. I was pretty sure Liora had figured it out, though, if Bella hadn’t flat-out told her.

I’d caught the Gnoll woman giving me knowing looks a few times, over the last few weeks.

Silence descended between the two of us for a moment, before I broke it. “So.”

Bella’s eyes flickered my way, and she nodded slightly. “So.”

“So, what’s the problem?” I asked patiently. “Why did you disappear?”

Bella sighed and set her pipe bowl face down on a small plate next to the futon, extinguishing it. “Couple reasons, I guess,” She said tiredly. “One, I ain’t lookin’ fer a relationship, Nate. I’ve got enough on me plate as it is. I don’t need a man weighin’ me down like an anchor on top o’ all that. No offense.”

I shrugged one shoulder idly. “None taken. I’m not either. You know how my last relationship ended.”

I really, really wasn’t.

Bella smiled at me then, looking a bit relieved. “Good. But that ain’t all. I, uh. I felt like I took advantage of ye. Just a bit. Ye don’t exactly have an air of a,” She visibly groped for the right words momentarily. “Man with a girl in every port. And ye just had all that go down with Sylvia. Ye strike me as a bit…vulnerable, Nate.”

I rolled my eyes then, sitting up straighter. I took a moment to empty my glass of its rog, and handed it to back Bella. I spoke up as she refilled the glass and took a sip herself. “I’m not that fragile, Bella,” I said with a small smile. “Everything that happened with the war…I won’t pretend it didn’t take a toll. But these months have been good to me. Good for all of us, I think.”

Bella heaved a breath, nodding. “Yeah. With the fightin’ dyin’ down, I haven’t actually been doin’ too much raidin’ and pillagin’, ye know? The Bluebacks have pretty much taken over runnin’ the Royal Navy like they did before the war. Contracts fer those of us on the wrong side of the law are runnin’ out. Way they see it, if’n ye didn’t choose a side by now, ye don’t get a share of the profits. What that means fer me, though, is that I’ve been steppin’ into that legit shippin’ contract Whitegull promised me. After I…left…”

More like ran away, I didn’t say out loud.

I’d like my tongue to remain attached to my mouth, thanks.

“I took a trip down thattaways and checked in with ‘em,” She continued, before smirking. “I ain’t been let go, but I’m free ta act how I please fer now. Which brought me back up here. I…didn’t want nothin’ ta fester.”

I reached across the sheets covering our legs and grabbed her hand before meeting her eyes. “There’s nothing wrong here, Bella,” I said, trying to project confidence. “I was mostly just confused while you were gone. I have nothing wrong with us continuing the way we have been.”

Partly a lie.

I’d been pretty anxious our friendship was over too. But I didn’t need to say that.

“Alrigh’ then,” Bella breathed. “Glad we got tha’ settled. Nate…this is just a bit o’ fun between friends, yeah?” At my understanding nod, she continued. “Ain’t no reason ta bring emotions into it. And it ain’t anyone else's business but ours. So…let’s say we keep it goin’ that way, eh?” With those words, Bella set her drink down on the low table next to our futon, and turned to me with a raised eyebrow. I had to stifle a laugh when she shook her shoulders almost tauntingly but sat up from my reclining position anyway.

I could take a hint when it was almost literally shoved in my face.

I may not have actual Stamina anymore, but real stamina sure came back quickly for me these days.

…………………………………….

Bella and I didn’t come back down from her room until nightfall. By that time, the rest of our companions had returned from their own business for the day and joined us for dinner. Those of my friends who hadn’t seen Bella yet were surprised to see her. Surprised, but happy.

Well, but for the curious glances that bounced between her and I. But we were sitting next to each other at the table with no obvious discomfort, so I think the assumption was we had made up.

And we certainly had.

There were two standout examples from the others, though. Liora just gave the two of us a knowing look but didn’t say anything. Renauld, meanwhile, waggled his eyebrows at us and then tapped his nose, when I shot him a curious look of my own.

Ah.

That’s right.

Gnolls in general…they tended to have a stronger sense of smell than us Humies.

Bella shot him a blistering look, though, and he settled down.

We hadn’t talked about it during or after our…activities, but it turned out Liora had already informed Bella about the expedition to Goryuen.

“Yeah, I’m happy ta come along,” She said, accepting a platter of my local favorite.

Good old-fashioned chicken on a stick.

“Problem bein’,” Bella continued, loading her plate. “Is I can’t take ye lot there. Not cause I don’t want ta. But because only Imperial ships are allowed in those waters, even if ya got a permit.”

I finished chewing my own mouthful, swallowed, and spoke up. “So, we’ll have to charter a different ship then? Sad, I was looking forward to the trip there on the Reef.”

Bella rolled her eyes at my teasing tone, but nodded. “Yeah, shouldn’t be a problem. ‘Sides, it’ll be good fer the boys. They can hang out here and enjoy some shore leave while I’m out trompin’ through the jungle.”

Azarus looked up from his own meal long enough to shoot Bella an almost despairing look. “This place is a jungle?” He groaned aloud. “Gods damnit, I hate jungles.”

Venix took a sip from the cup of tea he held in between the palms of his uppermost arms, while his lower finished pouring a cup for Liora. “It’s not that bad,” He said mildly, nodding back to Liora as she dipped her head in thanks for the cup. After a moment though, he tilted his head in thought. "Besides the monsters, that is," He amended.

Renauld laughed, leaning back on his palms. “Yeah, but aren’t you from Indiqua?” He said with a smirk. “You know, the planet absolutely covered in deadly jungle that makes anything on Vereden look like a joke. You might have a bit of a skewed perception there, man.”

“I’m not a man,” Venix replied immediately without blinking.

I noticed he didn’t deny the words, though.

Guess I was going to be ‘trompin’ through the jungle’ soon, like Bella said.

Suits me.

My skills would blend in nice there, I feel.

………………………………………

Now that Bell had returned, we didn’t really need to stick around much longer. She had all the supplies she would need for her own back on the Thorny Reef. Meanwhile, the rest of us were more than ready to set out for Goryuen, and ultimately the metallic door that rested in the shadow of Mt. Gorenzan.

And Tatsugan.

In fact, I’d say that some of us were getting a bit antsy to go. I’d been practicing more with Azarus and Venix in the morning, as I tended to do when they were in town. The both of them had an eagerness to their strikes and blows that showed through to those in tune with their own.

You just…kind of picked up on this, with practice.

There was no point wasting time and putting it off. With Bella’s help, the two of us went down to the office of the Hinagan port authority, and tried to negotiate for an authorized ship that would take our party to the isle. They had been initially quite skeptical about our request, but settled down when I showed the permit allowing passage. I’d been a bit surprised at the near reverence that the bureaucrat had shown that permit, in fact.

That was, until he told me that the stamp on the bill came directly from the office of the Emperor himself.

I…hadn’t realized that the interest in this matter ran quite that high. Masahiro really did have friends in the highest places.

Within the day, the six people of our party had assembled on the ship that had been chartered for our use, paid for out of my own pocket. Apparently, the Captain of this ship, a merchant vessel named the Kaminari Maru, had outright jumped at the chance to embark on a mission authorized by the Emperor himself. He’d been downright welcoming to us as we boarded his ship. According to him, the journey to the isle would take us about four days, depending on how favorable the winds were.

Only an hour after stepping foot on the Kawamaran-styled merchant galleon, the sails emblazoned with stylized storm clouds unfurled, and we got underway.

Goryuen awaited.

<<Chapter 236 | Table of Contents | Chapter 238>>

Chapter 236 - Unburdened

Coughing, I sat up from the dirt as quickly as I could, if only to fix Venix with a gobsmacked look. “Excuse me?” I asked in complete disbelief.

The Antium man finished shrugging his robe back into place, from where it had fallen off his shoulders during our duel. He then crossed his arms and fixed me with an even stare, as the crowd in the background only started to react to Venix’s words.

Mostly in the shock that I echoed.

“I concede,” Venix repeated evenly, meeting my gaze. “You may now travel to Goryuen, and thus Mt. Gorenzan with my blessing. I shall even accompany you.”

I struggled back my feet, still gaping at the Antium man. “But…but…I lost?”

“No you didn’t,” Venix immediately replied.

I looked around desperately for a moment, meeting the gazes of some of the onlookers. They just shrugged at me. “Yes I did?”

Venix actually rolled his eyes then, something I had never seen before. “No, you did not,” He said patiently. “I conceded, and thus you have won the duel.”

His words were finally starting to penetrate the post-battle adrenaline I’d been swimming in, and when they did, my core ring pointed something out to me.

I picked up my fallen spear and retracted it, sheathing the dagger at the small of my back. As I did, I narrowed my eyes at the Antium samurai. “Was…this entire duel…just a way to get me to use Vis Exactoris Maledicta?”

I couldn’t keep either the suspicion, the indignation, or the irritation I felt out of my voice at that idea.

Venix just shrugged and didn’t answer me. Still, I caught the faintest trace of a smirk on his insectoid features.

I scowled at him in response.

So that had been his game. I’d thought it was odd that the normally agreeable Antium man had objected to the trip to the isle, despite the tragic story he told. It just wasn’t like him to stand in the way of advancement.

Venix sobered up, then, as the crowd began to whisper amongst themselves in excitement. I think the drama of it all enticed them more than the actual fight had. He met my eyes. “You were the only weak link, for an expedition to that hell,” He said seriously, causing me to straighten up in response. “The Dwarf and the female Gnoll can take care of themselves. They’re strong enough to brave Goryuen in a team, if only barely. The strength of the Healer is inconsequential. He can ply his skillset safely to the rear of us and remain protected while he does. But it was you,” He said, unfolding one hand to point at me. “That did not have the strength to keep up upon the Isle of the Dragon. Either in arm, or in will. That is, if you refused to use the power of your transformation Skill. But with it?” Venix shook his head. “You will not be a burden, even if it can only be maintained for short periods.”

My scowl faded and I looked away from him, as my companions came to stand with us. “You couldn’t have just told me that?” I grumbled, with only a small measure of heat.

“Nope,” Azarus said, smirking at me. “Ye’ve got a hard head, Nate. None ‘o us have been able ta get through ta ya, so Venix took it on himself.”

Liora laid a hand on my shoulder, drawing my gaze. There was a compassionate look in the amethyst eyes of the normally taciturn Gnoll. “It is a hard lesson to learn,” She said seriously. “That strength is merely strength. It does not matter the source that it comes from. Merely in how it is used. Remember that, Nathan.”

Renauld just shrugged at me when my gaze wandered over to him. “I just think it’s too cool to never use,” He admitted freely. “I mean, c’mon, man. You turn into some kind of…werebatlizard thing. That’s awesome.”

I gave him the stink eye, while Azarus actually nodded along seriously. Liora just rolled her eyes.

I don’t know what I was expecting. That was a very…Renauld thing to say.

Still, I sighed and nodded. “Alright, alright,” I said tiredly, even though it was barely after sunrise. “I get the point. I’ll…use it, even if I don’t want to. It’s useful, at the very least.”

“Good,” Venix cut in then, drawing our attention. There was a self-satisfied slant to his face. “Then if that is all, we can leave for the isle at the soonest opportunity.”

Liora interrupted, coughing lightly into her fist. “Ah…Sir Venix, we were also waiting for Captain Isabella to return,” She said politely, causing him to blink in surprise. “You were not the only one we wished to accompany us.”

“I…see,” Venix said slowly. “Well. I have no objections to the pirate woman coming along. She is strong and ruthless enough to survive the dangers of Goryuen.”

We all stood around in silence for a moment, I think mutually lost on how to proceed before Lady Saeko approached us.

She actually flicked a hand our way. “Shoo, shoo,” She said dismissively. “I’m not ungrateful for the bit of morning entertainment, but now my girls have to fix the yard. And we can’t do that if you five are just standing around awkwardly. I’m sure you all have better things to do.”

I looked over her shoulder then, to see a small army of the inn’s wait and cleaning staff standing around politely for us to leave. The all tended to be much more polite than the very forthwith Lady Saeko. The other guests had all filtered away by that point, and it was just us out here.

I flushed a little, straightened up, and then bowed to the proprietress. I noticed that all of my companions, including Renauld and Venix, copied me. “Apologies, Lady Saeko,” I murmured. “We’ll leave you be now.”

At that, the five of us left the yard to the staff, who swarmed over the gouges in the earth my duel with Venix had created.

…………………………….

Eventually, our group decided to give Bella a week to come back before we left on our expedition. If she didn’t come back before then, we would just set out and catch up with her after we came back.

I can’t deny being a bit relieved about it, after the…awkward way we had parted. Besides, it gave me some time to catch up on preparations for the trip, including the brewing I still needed to do. I essentially spent the next three days deep in a rented lab not far from the inn, cooking up enough potions and pills for everyone.

I finished up just in time.

Because on the fourth day, the Thorny Reef sailed into port.

………………………………

I didn’t know immediately, obviously. I’d just had another session with Elder Jinshin, and was walking back to the inn to rest up for the day. But the path that led back passed by the port of Hinaga, and I happened to cast my gaze over the sprawling complex from the upper tier of the city. I stopped in place when the familiar sight of the pirate ship greeted my eyes, far off down below me. I could see a number of people scurrying about in the distance, loading and unloading the ship. Bella had a tendency to accept cargo, legitimate or otherwise, on her voyages. The crew were probably hawking whatever they had in the hold in this port.

The sight of the Thorny Reef filled me with…mixed feelings. I almost, almost wanted to hop down a few levels and go greet the crew. I knew plenty of people who sailed with Bella by now, and was overall a welcomed sight among them.

But on the other, I could run into Bella. And that was…awkward.

Oh, screw it. She was probably already back at the inn, by now. The woman and most of her crew tended to hole up in the same inn we frequented, here in Hinaga.

I couldn’t put this off forever.

……………………………….

I was right, of course. In an almost mirror of the initial confrontation with Venix from the other day, Bella was catching up with Liora down in the dining room of the inn. It was about midday by now, and the two women were enjoying a cup of tea together. The two of them had hit up a surprisingly fast friendship, in the days after the tragedy at Elderwyck. I hadn’t initially realized quite how much they had in common at the time, but they sure had.

Honestly, I think Bella might be Liora’s closest friend, at this point.

I was happy for her.

Truly.

Said pirate Captain looked…good, honestly. She didn’t have to pretend to be ‘Captain Nicollette of the Coral Squall’, her Blueback cover persona, here in Hinaga. Kawamara was generally permissive of Herztalian pirates hawking their ill-gotten goods in their ports, as long as they weren’t ‘operating’ in their waters, so to speak. It was a point of contention between the two countries, as I understood it.

For being the only two large Human nations, there wasn’t much love lost between them.

As such, she was back in her old blue coat and black leathers, cutlass at her side. Her hat was resting on the table next to her cup, while her long, curly, salt-kissed raven hair hung around her sharp features.

Liora noticed me immediately, of course, and it only took Bella a moment to turn and follow her gaze.

The smile that had been on the pirate’s face immediately smoothed away at the sight of me, leaving only a blank expression behind. Somehow, that was more intimidating than a scowl would have been.

I internally cringed but didn’t allow it to show on my face or affect my stride. Instead, I just kept walking towards their table as nonchalantly as I could. “Liora, Bella,” I said, with a smile fixed on my face. “Good to see you’re back in tow-”

Bella interrupted me abruptly by shooting to her feet, almost rocketing up from the pillow she’d been sitting on. Around her thing form, I could see Liora trying and failing to suppress an amused smile on her vulpine features from around a teacup.

Eye to eye now with Bella, I saw her own blue eyes narrow at me. This time, I allowed a cringe to slip through my acting.

Abruptly, she raised her right arm, and I braced myself. I almost expected the woman to slap, or hell, even punch me. It wouldn’t be out of character, considering how we’d parted.

Instead, she seized me by the collar of my robe, and started bodily dragging me across the dining room, and up the stairs to the rooms above. I yelped like a struck dog, but didn’t try to stop her. If anything, I was relieved.

At least we weren’t going to have this conversation in public.

Behind me, I heard Liora speak, her words floating up to us as Bella dragged me up to the second floor. “Good luck,” She said, amusement thick in her tone.

Yeah, I’d probably need it.

Wait, she was talking to me…right?

Bella dragged me all the way to the room that was reserved for her use, yanking open the sliding door when we reached it. She all but tossed me inside once it was open, causing me to stagger through the opening. I caught my footing just in time to watch as the door slid closed with a click, and Bella thumbed an activation rune to an array I’d layered over the room at her request.

A silencing one.

I gulped when the woman narrowed her stormy blue eyes at me once again. Still silent, I held up my hands to ward her off, as the pirate stalked towards me. “Look, Bella,” I began, trying to speak calmly. “About last time-”

She interrupted me by placing one hand on my chest and shoving me. I let out an oof as I staggered backward, my back impacting the wall of the room. I didn’t get another chance to speak before Bella got up close and personal with me. I was struck silent, then, as only inches remained in between the two of us.

We were close enough that I could feel her breath on my lips.

After staring into my eyes for a silent moment, Bella let out a slight sigh. “Fuck it,” I thought I heard her murmur under her breath.

Before I could react, her hand shot up, grasped the back of my head, and pulled me forward.

Directly onto her lips.

Oh…

I see.

So she wasn’t mad, then.

I relaxed into the kiss with Bella, threading my arms around her waist as she did the same with her free hand.

Things…evolved from there.

………………………………

AN:

I’d like to make a statement. I do not care for harem romance, and I have no intention to ever write such a thing. No hate to you if you enjoy it. It’s just not my thing.

That’s not what’s happening here.

<<Chapter 235 | Table of Contents | Chapter 237>>

Chapter 235 - Clarity of Chitin

This wasn’t going well. The duel had only been underway for two minutes, so far, and I was already on the back foot.

After his little declaration, Venix had stopped playing with me. I got the impression he wasn’t bothering to hold back the strength in his blows as he sought to cow me. He wasn’t going full force, I think, but he was no longer holding back.

The results were predictable.

I was getting my ass handed to me.

I grit my teeth and dodged out of the way of his right blade, only to need to interpose Terractus in an immediate block on my left. The force of the blow from Venix’s left blade was enough to break my stance, sending me staggering in the dirt and dust of the inn’s practice yard. I didn’t even get the chance to recover my root before the Antium man was upon me again.

His chitinous, sandal-clad foot rocketed out into a front kick that hit me right in the face, blowing right through my defensive vines. The force was great enough that I felt my nose break and blood start to flow from it, even as I was sent flying backward in a flip. I grit my teeth in mid-air, and in a split second move, threw out a hand and cast out a Thorn Grapple.

The length of crimson thorn sailed straight at my assailant, as I touched down upon the earth below, not far from the ring of surrounding watchers. I hoped the unexpected move would be enough to surprise Venix, at the very least. At best, I wanted to rapidly re-engage with him.

It didn’t work.

Venix didn’t even blink before I saw him activate something of his own, holding up two fingers from his lower right arm in front of him. I didn’t know what it was, but a brief shimmer of steel erupted in front of him. My length of vine entered into it, and was immediately shredded.

Ah.

I…think that was a Cultivator Art, judging by the faint impression of Ki I could feel in the air. I didn’t see those often.

I took a deep breath and upped the ante myself. I had initially only activated Might of the Wyrdwood at only about fifteen percent strength. Not…because I didn’t want to be strong enough to stand toe to toe with Venix. Not at all.

But because the Skill was too strong for me to use comfortably.

In my testing, I’d discovered that the strength multiplication effect of the evolved Skill was far, far greater than Sylvan Vigor’s had been. To the point that I had felt severe soul strain bearing down on me when I had tried to use it at the same level. I had nearly passed out when I pushed the Skill to even forty percent. I’d felt the crystalline branches of my soul tree creak and groan from the strain, and had to hastily deactivate the Skill before I hurt it.

I think this was another case of my Virtues just not being high enough to support my Skills, in much the same way that I’d lost my middle ring.

But…I think I could push myself just a bit harder.

I carefully cranked up the Skill to twenty percent, as Venix dismissed his Art and advanced on me once more. Shuddering at the resulting rush of power that ran through me, I put the sensation aside and sprang forward, Terractus poised to my side in a chopping blow.

In the split second before impact, I saw Venix’s chitinous eyebrow raise in mild surprise.

Before he blocked the blow one handed with his left katana.

The next few moments were a dizzyingly fast whirlwind of exchanges between the two of us. Every time I tried to strike out against the Antium, he would block and then try and counterattack. Usually, with his other blade. With my enhancement Skill cranked up higher, I just barely had the ability to react to these blows in time.

Usually.

The impact of those blocks was still enough to send shockwaves through my entire body. Nevertheless, I grit my teeth and bore through it.

Something I noticed, though, was that he was no longer using either of his two lower arms. They were crossed together across his chest, unmoving in all of our exchanges.

The sight of them only made my frustration grow larger.

Was I not good enough, for Venix to even use all of his arms? It was the equivalent of fighting a Human with one arm tied behind his back, and yet still holding me off easily.

It made me want to be reckless.

I cranked Might of the Wyrdwood up another five percent, and felt my bones creak even more within my body.

If not for another reason.

My speed and strength increased even more, and my blows fell upon Venix with even more power.

He noticed.

Not enough to change the tide. But he noticed.

“A worthy effort,” Venix said evenly, blocking another strike from me with the ringing sound of clashing steel. He never relented, even as he spoke to me in the middle of battle. “You fight far above what your level would indicate, Hart. Your training has been paying off.”

I panted heavily, dodging and weaving and blocking desperately. “Thanks….I…think…” I managed to pant out.

Oddly, he stopped in his assault then, withdrawing his blades. I staggered backwards, feeling the strain of holding Wyrdwood at only one-fourth of its potential and gasping for breath. I don’t know why he had stopped, but I appreciated the breather, even through my frustration with him.

“Your form has not suffered, either, for your increased strength,” He continued, not responding to my words. “In fact, it has truly improved, since our coming to these isles. Tell me, have you achieved General Weapons Proficiency yet?”

I eyed Venix oddly, still panting, but eventually nodded. “I…have…”.

And I wasn’t lying.

I hadn’t neglected my weapons training and had stuck to the plan Baldric had laid out for me, all those months ago.

Spear, Longsword, Knife, Stave, Longbow, Shortbow, and Throwing.

I’d put in the time with both Azarus, and the local tutors within Hinaga, to level all of those Proficiencys to the max of seven. It had been a pain in the ass, but it had been worth it.

It had taken me three months of daily practice, to one degree or another, to finally achieve that.

Once the final one had been done, that being Throwing Proficiency, I’d gotten a pop-up on my Status about combining them. In an echo of how simple it had been to evolve Sylvan Vigor, all I’d had to do was select those seven Talent’s and hit confirm.

And so I’d finally achieved what Baldric had set out for me.

The resulting weapon sense that General Weapon Proficiency was…odd, to say the least. I now had an instinctive ability to handle weapon types I’d never even trained with. Not to a great degree, to be frank, but enough to fight. The first time I had picked up a fork, of all things, and sensed how to handle it in battle I had nearly choked on my dinner. However, even with all of that, I had noticed that I was still far better with the seven I had actually trained with. I suppose that might be why it mattered what seven Talent's you fed into the General Weapons Skill.

But I no longer had to level seven different Talent’s to get better with them. Just the one.

“An even worthier accomplishment,” Venix unexpectedly praised me, dipping his head briefly. I blinked in surprise, as he continued. “I have known warriors who have taken double or even triple the length of time to achieve such a thing. Talented ones, at that. To gain General Weapons Proficiency in only five months of dedicated practice towards that goal is impressive indeed.”

A brief murmur of agreement ran through the crowd, and I felt a flush of embarrassment run through me. I…wasn’t used to public praise, in this manner. It made me a bit… self-conscious.

Might have been a contributing factor to why I was so eager to get out of Herztal, now that I thought of it.

Venix’s posture unexpectedly hardened and he raised his right blade to point straight at me. “But you are still holding back,” He said, eyes narrowed. “Fight me at your full potential. Put that blade away. It is a side-arm for you, at best, and you have yet to unleash your true power. You know of what I speak.”

Another flare of anger ran through me at his words. Not…about Terractus. He was right about that. I might have trained enough with the longsword to be comfortable with it, but the blade wasn’t where I was more comfortable.

I sheathed it and reached behind me for one of my daggers. Drawing it, I thumbed the activation switch causing the hilt to expand, leaving me with the full length of one of my spears. Only the one, though.

At heart, I think I would always be a spearman.

But I didn’t mentally reach for the other thing he was talking about.

Venix scoffed across from me. “Cease your dithering!” He barked, suddenly furious in a way I had never seen from the samurai. The Antium exploded forward, faster than he had moved in the entire duel.

My eyes didn’t even have time to fully widen at the level he had just escalated to. I desperately managed to bring my spear up into a blocking position before both of his blades crashed down on it.

Despite the increased strength from Might of the Wyrdwood, I couldn’t withstand the force of it. Even my spear flexed from the collision, creaking ominously in a way I had never heard from my Oninite weaponry.

I lost my footing, crashing down to one knee. The sheer weight pressing down on me was enough that I think my kneecap outright flattened, nearly shattering.

The air in my lungs was driven out of me all at once as I desperately held on.

Leaning down towards me over our crossed weapons, Venix spoke. “Despite all your advancements,” He said in a low tone. “You cannot continue in this manner. You run from the curse that was inflicted on you, never allowing yourself to face it head-on. Even now, when it is the only thing that presents a path toward victory, you are hesitant. Do not be. You must seize this affliction by the throat and make it your own, or else you might as well give up now.”

I ground my teeth together both under the weight of Venix’s swords…

And his recriminations.

“It’s not that simple,” I hissed through a clenched jaw.

Venix pushed down harder, nearly sending me down flat on my back. “It is,” He insisted. “You may not have asked for or sought your curse, but it is yours now. It will be your willpower that earns you mastery of your fate, and your willpower alone. I pass these words down to you now, as they were to me.”

I swear I saw a faint white glow appear then, shining from behind the Antium man’s compound eyes.

“It is never over, while will remains,” Venix said, in the fiercest tone I’d ever heard from him. Conviction dripped from every word he spoke, and I somehow knew that these words rested at the core of who he was.

Something…something about what he said reached me then. I…

I…

Alright.

I briefly closed my eyes, before flaring them open wildly. I met Venix’s own slightly glowing eyes. “Fine then,” I snarled. “You want all of me?! Then here I come!”

Vis Maledicta Exactoris.

In an instant, a flash of pitch-black, corrosive mist swept over the entirety of my body. Venix had to leap back from it in order to keep from being scalded. While underneath it…

I changed.

I didn’t wait a moment to adapt to my newly monstrous form, after I had switched to monstrous Skill form I’d been cursed by Rhazal with.

Instead, I leapt out of the mist with a roar that echoed out of my changed, reptilian throat. I was propelled forward by my pair of batlike wings now growing out of my back, covered in jet-black scales. I spun my spear in my clawed hands rapidly enough that it sounded like the blades of a helicopter cutting the air, before the weapon crashed into Venix’s crossed katana’s.

This time, it was he who was knocked back from the force of the blow.

I was…a bit surprised by that, through the rage now coursing through my veins. I hadn’t thought my enhanced strength in this form was enough to stagger someone as strong as Venix was. But I retained just enough awareness to see that Might of the Wyrdwood was still active, the crimson vines crawling all over my reptilian scales. The Skills seemed to be working together.

But the drain on me was enormous. This strength…it might be enough to win me the duel, but I don’t think I could keep both Skills running for more than another thirty seconds at most.

I had to act fast.

Luckily, I had an idea.

Crouching, I flapped my wings downward as hard as I could, sending me skyrocketing into the air. I had never actually practiced flying in this form, considering my reluctance to use the Skill, so I was incredibly unsteady. But I wasn’t exactly trying to take a leisurely pleasure flight.

Instead, I wanted to dive.

At the apex of my leap, perhaps several hundred feet into the air, I angled myself downward to see the distant practice yard of the inn. Below me, I could see the watching patrons had leaped to their feet to point up at me in either amazement or fear. Among them, I could see my companions easily, thanks to my enhanced eyesight in this form.

Azarus and Liora were still sitting, drinking their tea, and looking unconcerned. Meanwhile, Renauld had joined the other patrons and was on his feet. Unlike them, he seemed to be whooping in excitement.

But it was Venix that caught my eye the most. The Antium samurai had regained his footing and was looking up at me. I thought I saw the barest trace of a smile cross his chitinous features before they firmed. He set his feet, and then oddly enough, sheathed his two katanas.

Instead of facing me with blade in hands, he instead opened wide all four arms, and across the distance between us, met my eyes.

The taunt that I could see in his set my blood alight.

I snarled, an entirely monstrous sound that echoed across the rooftops around us.

And folded my wings, falling into a dive directly at Venix, the point of my spear aimed straight at him.

It only took moments to reach Venix, and in the split second before my spear tore through him, he clapped all four of his hands together.

Directly onto the blade of my spear.

In an instant, I halted in midair, suspended by the point of my spear blade that Venix had impossibly caught.

Despite the severity of the situation, I couldn’t help but gape a mouthful of sharpened teeth at the maneuver.

Venix smirked at me.

And then twisted, still holding the blade of my spear, throwing me off to the side.

As I impacted the dirt of the yard, my grip on both Vis Maledicta Exactoris and Might of the Wyrdwood slipped. I reverted to my normal human(ish) self, lying motionless in the dirt at my own failure.

I closed my eyes in resignation, frustrated for…many reasons.

Before they flew back open wide in shock at the words that penetrated the dust cloud I lay in.

“I concede.”

<<Chapter 234 | Table of Contents | Chapter 236>>

Chapter 234 - Challenge at Dawn

I found Venix waiting for me exactly where he said he would. The inn had a small practice yard behind it. I’d even used it a few times for some basic practice, with or without my companions.

He was standing patiently in the middle of it, his four arms crossed and his eyes closed. It didn’t look like the Antium man had moved an inch in hours, with how still he was. I couldn’t even really see his chest rise and fall from breathing.

It was still dark out, as Tarus had yet to cross the horizon. But I could tell, just by the slightest fluctuations in environmental Aether, that he was coming soon.

Out here, it was packed with people who had come to watch the show. They lined both the deck that overlooked the small yard, as well as the balcony above, sitting cross-legged patiently while they were tended to by the staff. It looked to me like most of the residents and guests were taking this duel as morning entertainment.

That included my other companions.

The three of them were waiting just inside the building by the door leading outside. None of them spoke, seemingly unwilling to break the patient silence that filled the atmosphere. Azarus inspected my minimally equipped form and sounded a grunt that sounded vaguely approving, before he clapped my shoulder. Renauld, meanwhile, gave me an enthusiastic thumbs up.

Liora just rolled her eyes, but still gave me a nod in acknowledgment.

None of them attempted to stop me.

This, I think, was just part of Veredenese culture. In a society in which personal strength mattered so much, duels were a very accepted method of resolving conflict between people.

All of them moved to join the crowd, as I stepped off of the veranda and onto the dirt of the practice yard. As soon as my feet thumped onto the earth, Venix opened his eyes and fixed them on me. Slowly, his arms lowered from their crossed positions. One of his upper arms reached up and removed his hat, slinging it beyond me into the waiting crowd. I didn’t blink as the spinning bamboo hate whizzed past me, but I did hear it impact a palm.

“Alrigh’ then,” I heard Azarus say, nonplussed.

I just kept my eyes locked on Venix’s, as I slowly approached him. Eventually, I stopped about ten feet away from the Antium man.

The world was silent around us for a moment, the only sound that of bamboo chimes gently rattling in the wind.

Venix broke the silence first, in his usual manner.

“Mountains tremble still,

Beneath scales, old winds linger-

Turn back from the storm.”

A frown grew on my face, and I shook my head sharply. “No,” I said simply. “I will not. You, more than most, know what this chance means to me.”

Venix nodded then, and rested two of his hands on two of his four blades. I noticed that he wasn’t actually wearing all four of them at the moment, only the two that his chitinous hands rested on. A spike of irritation swept over me at the observation. Was I not good enough to face him, when the swordsman was using all of his blades? I squashed that thought, though. It was a useless thought.

Instead, I copied him, resting one hand on the hilt of Terractus. It wasn’t my preferred weapon, but I wanted to meet the Antium man in his own field of specialization.

Sword to sword.

“If you will not listen to pleas,” Venix said unexpectedly. “Then perhaps you will listen to reason. Gorenzan has taken the lives of warriors who are greater than the both of us. This includes my own former master.”

My brow furrowed at the unexpected segway, as I heard an almost excited murmur arise in the background.

“In much the same way that you were taken as apprentice by the Shadowed Sun,” He continued, causing anoth brief stir from the watching crowd. “I, too, was taken in by a much greater warrior, upon my coming to these isles. By a man of firm conviction and even greater might, known to this land as Gozen of the Twin Fangs.”

That caused a greater reaction from our onlookers. Outright whispers broke out all around us, as shock painted the faces of those I could see. Some of them outright bowed from their sitting positions, at the sound of that name.

I blinked, knocked out of my serious mien by that.

Venix didn’t stop speaking, unbothered by the reaction to his announcement. “I was freshly exiled to this planet, those decades ago, an asset unneeded by the Hive. Upon my arrival to Vereden within the walls of Elderwyck, I blindly stumbled onto the first boat that would take me. I ended up here, in Hinaga. On the rain slicked day of my arrival, my master saved me. I was ready to simply drown in the gutters of this city, before his outstretched hand found mine. I devoted myself to him, completely, from that moment on. I served him faithfully for many, many years, eventually finding worth in the blade he taught me.”

“And then I failed him, when he needed me most.”

The yard went silent, then.

Venix finally broke eye contact with me, looking up at the sky. The horizon was only just starting to shift colors, but the green period had yet to come.

“I served Gozen for over a decade, ever faithful. First as his student, and then as a full samurai, part of his cohort. And then the Imperial court called for a Ryūmetsu Matsuri. Tatsugan was on the brink of reaching his apex, and thus needed to be culled. My master immediately volunteered to be part of the force that would slay the wyrm, and I followed with him. I will not,” He said firmly, looking back down to pierce me with an unexpectedly fierce look. “Describe the battles that followed. I will not speak for my brothers that fell that day. To do so would dishonor them. I will say this. When the time came to slay Tatsugan, my master led the charge. I was injured by that time, and could not fight at his side. Shamefully, I could only watch as my master gave his life selflessly to slay the wyrm. I survived, my honor forever tainted by my inability to follow him into death’s embrace. Upon our return to Hinaga, I petitioned the Emperor for the right to follow him, so I may atone for my failure. I was denied.”

My mouth opened slightly in shock at his words. If…I understood him right, then Venix was saying he had wanted to…

I took a deep breath, suddenly finding it difficult to meet the stoic gaze of the Antium man.

Venix sighed heavily then. “I wandered for years after that, a ronin without a master to call my own. My blade had no will behind it, no cause to call its own. Until eventually, one day, I found myself back in Hinaga. I intended to petition the court once more, but there was a curious contingent being hosted as guests. The Academy of Mystic Arts had come calling, and Greycton of the Shadowed Sun was in attendance. He listened to my shameful plea to the Emperor, and interjected. He would take my life for his own, if I had no further use for it. If I could not muster the will to use my blade for the good of Kawamara, he told me, then it would serve all of Vereden instead. Lost, I saw my master within the Shadowed Sun, and took his hand in much the same manner. I have served him ever since.”

The practice yard grew silent, then, as Venix finished his speech. To my surprise, I thought I heard weeping from some of the onlookers in attendance. Risking a glance over my shoulder, I was surprised to see it was coming from the heckler from last night, the man Lady Saeko had called Yorinobu. Even the proprietress herself was dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief.

I took a deep breath then, and turned back around to meet the firm gaze of Venix. “I…see,” I said slowly.

“Perhaps,” Venix said, inclining his head. “Perhaps not. But do you see this? Why I do not wish for you to venture into that den of evil? My master was a near legendary figure in Kawamara, even before his feat in slaying Tatsugan. He neared Greycton’s own might, and was considered a possible candidate for Paragon. And yet, he fell before the wyrm all the same. The danger for us…it is simply too great. Turn back from this path, Nathaniel Hart.”

I was silent for a moment….

Before I firmly shook my head.

“My will has not changed,” I said with finality. “Nor have my intentions, despite the tragedies you speak of. I cannot be dissuaded. The wyrm is not at full strength, even if he has returned. The dangers are not too great for us to brave together. Come with us, Venix,” I said, extending one open hand to the samurai. “If you fear for our lives, then fight at our side. Together, we can overcome this.”

Venix gazed at my hand thoughtfully for a moment, and I momentarily thought I might have swayed him. Eventually, though, he slowly shook his chitinous head.

My heart sank, even though I was unsurprised.

“No,” He said with finality, as Tarus finally crested the horizon behind him. As the world was cast in emerald light, he shifted the hands resting on the pommels of his two swords to their hilts.

And tightened his grip, meeting my eyes.

“Ready yourself, Hart. We shall go to decisive victory.”

I took a deep breath and nodded sharply. I lowered my stance, gripping Terractus as the crowd seemingly held their breath, now that the duel was truly going to happen.

The world went quiet once more, as the green period of the Veredenese morning stretched on. Neither Venix or I moved an inch, nor did we draw our blades.

Slowly, the tint to the morning light began to fade, and as it did, I saw Venix’s hands tighten on the hilts of his weapon.

My eyes narrowed.

The light shifted, and warmth rolled over the land.

I immediately activated Might of the Wyrdwood, drew Terractus, gripped it in both hands, and sprang at Venix in one smooth motion. I cleared the distance in an instant thanks to the enhancement power of my evolved Skill.

The world felt like it had slowed around me, and through that enhanced perception, I thought I heard the audience gasp at the abrupt movement. It could have been that, or…

It could have been how I had started to glow a faint crimson, the light of innumerable phantasmal thorny vines crawling over my entire body. They curled and twined all over my body and robe in undulating waves, occasionally lashing out at the world.

This was the new, secondary effect of Might of the Wyrdwood. A form of active defense, beyond the increased efficiency of the strength the Skill gave me. I’d used it several times now, especially on the Oni Hunt I’d been on. Whenever a hit was directed against me, the vines would bunch up before the impact site to mitigate the hit. And it worked very well. I had gotten up close and personal with an Oni Prime on my hunt, and taken a direct haymaker from the furious monster.

The vines had stopped the hit cold, exploding deliberately on the impact. The creature had been so stunned by that I’d been able to lop his head off.

A far cry from the minimal damage reduction that Thorn Cloak gave me.

Hopefully, it would work well to stop Venix.

I’d find out soon.

Venix met my eyes placidly, in the split second before I reached him. I saw a slight twitch in his right shoulder.

Impact.

In an instant, Venix had drawn the katana on his left hip and interposed it between the two of us to block my blow. The collision of our blades produced a small shockwave that rolled out across the practice yard, kicking up dust and rattling the teacups of the onlookers. Our swords ground against each other for a moment, as I tried to push against his, leaning into the blow suspended in mid-air. Over the point of impact, I could see sparks begin to fly from the crush of our blades, but I paid it no mind.

Venix held me off with one arm along, our eyes locked the entire time.

The moment my feet touched down on the dirt below, I pivoted, lashing out with a scything kick from my right leg, trying to break his root.

He simply raised his lower left arm and blocked it, the impact of the limbs creating another shockwave.

It was a testament to either my growth, or the evolved strength of Might of the Wyrdwood that saw his retaliation.

Saw, but wasn’t able to react to.

Venix’s upper right arm lanced out in a straight punch aimed at my chest. The ethereal vines of my enhancement Skill swarmed in front of my to block it, but it didn’t matter. They exploded at the blow, but the blowback didn’t stop it completely.

His chitinous fist impacted my sternum, and I felt the bone flex.

I think it didn’t shatter only because the blow was mitigated.

Instead, I was blown backward myself. Luckily, I managed to find my bearing in midair, flipping to skid backward in the dirt. I panted in surging adrenaline from how close that was, my eyes wide.

I’d had a glimmer of hope that I might be able to get through this. After all, I had dueled Longstripe back in Elderwyck, and he had supposedly been around the same strength as Venix was. I had nearly eked out a win against the General when I was much weaker.

But that single exchange had robbed me of that notion.

I don’t know why the difference between the two of them was so stark, but I had no chance against Venix.

And yet…

Venix hadn’t moved from his position, even after striking me. It was out of character for him not to follow up like that, in my experience. Instead, he was looking at me thoughtfully. “You truly have grown, Hart,” He acknowledged, sounding almost proud. “You would have died from a blow like that, only months ago. Your dedication is admirable. However,” He said, slowly drawing the second blade on his right hip. “It will not be enough. Concede, and this can be over. There is no shame in submitting to a superior opponent.”

I ground my teeth at his words.

No.

I would feel shame.

I was not going to let this chance slip me by.

If the jaws of defeat were closing in on me, I was just going to have to find a way to pry them open.

I struggled to my feet, getting back into my sword stance, Terractus gripped in both hands. I didn’t say anything to the Antium man, simply meeting his gaze with a glare.

Venix gave a slight sigh and nodded. “I see. We are truly alike, Hart. We both need to learn the lesson…the hard way.” For the first time in the duel, Venix got into a stance himself.

And advanced on me.

...................................................

AN:

I was trying to hit a particular tone, here in this one. I wanted to evoke the feeling of a sudden, dramatic monologue that almost resembled something from a stage play. It, in a way, is meant to reflect the influence that Kawamara has had on Venix, even if he was born on Indiqua.

<<Chapter 233 | Table of Contents | Chapter 235>>

Chapter 233 - Rejection

“Excuse me?” I asked in disbelief.

And in growing annoyance.

“I forbid you or any of the others,” Venix continued, to the confusion of said others. “From traveling to Goryuen.”

A frown grew on my lips to match his own, and I stepped closer to the Antium man. I looked up and met his eyes, uncaring about the height difference. “Explain.”

“The isle is beyond you,” He said shortly. “To venture there is to court death. There is a reason I have yet to visit those shores since my return to the riverlands. I am uncertain if it is not beyond me.”

I took a deep breath to try and tamp down on my temper before I blew up on him. “That and the fact you need a writ of permission to visit the isle,” I said, some of my heat leaking into my voice despite my best efforts. “Which I have.”

“Inconsequential,” Venix said unflinchingly, unblinkingly. “I could obtain such a writ if I wished. That is not the point.”

Even through my own frustration, I was surprised to hear his own audible in his voice. It was rare for Venix to express his emotions in his speech like that.

That didn’t stop my frown from transforming into a scowl. I raised one hand and pointed at him. “Then what is your point? You were there when I discovered that bunker,” I said in frustration. “You know how important they are. How much they could tell me. I’m not going to let this opportunity pass me by. I’m not afraid of a little danger.”

Venix narrowed his eyes and opened his mouth to respond, but was cut off.

“If the gentlemen do not mind,” I heard a firm, feminine voice say. “They are disturbing the other guests.”

Knocked out of my annoyance, I blinked and turned to face the owner.

It was the proprietress of the inn, her arms crossed over her chest and an iron frown on her painted face. I almost cringed at the annoyance obvious in her eyes. Looking around, I found she was correct. Most of the other guests had paused in their own dinner to watch the confrontation between Venix and I. Some of their gazes were interested in the inadvertent show, while others just looked irritated.

“Don’t bother me none, Lady Saeko!” One rowdy patron called out drunkenly. “Ain’t every day you get to see two barbarians fight it out!”

“Silence, Yorinobu,” Saeko Umihara said unflinchingly, not even bothering to look at the heckler. “Else I call in your tab immediately.”

The man hastily sat down, properly chastised.

Meanwhile, Lady Saeko met first my eyes, and then Venix’s. “Sir Hart. Sir Venix. I ask that you take your disagreement either to a private room, or to the yard.”

I bowed my head to her in apology. “Of course, Lady Saeko. My apologies. Venix and I can take this to a back room, if one is available?” She nodded at me, but this time she was the one who was interrupted before she could speak.

“No.”

Her eyebrows shot up, and the entire room, me included, turned to look at Venix.

Said Antium’s arms were still crossed, and a stony look had overtaken his face. “There is nothing more to be said,” He said with finality. “You are not ready for Goryuen. I shall prove it to you. If you wish to venture to that accursed place, there is only one way I will let you.”

“You must best me in a duel.”

The dining room fell silent at that. Even Lady Saeko looked taken aback by that declaration, much less the gobsmacked looks on my companion's faces.

This was extremely out of character for the normally stoic swordsman.

“Venix, what…?” I asked in confusion. “You’re more than three times my level! That’s impossible!”

In the months since we’d reached Kawamara, I’d finally asked Venix what his level was. He’d barely blinked before answering me, uncaring about taboos involved in sharing one’s level.

At the time, I’d been one hundred and twenty-four.

He’d been four hundred and fifty-seven.

That was at least two months ago. He had to have grown some since then, considering the amount of hunting he’d done.

I had little to no chance against someone that strong. Not unless I really wanted to kill them.

“My decision is final,” Venix said firmly. “Either defeat me, or I will do all in my power to prevent you from reaching the isle. If you wish to face me, I will await you in the yard at sunrise.” At that, the Antium man ignored any further words from anyone else, turned on his heel, and marched out of the dining room.

Azarus stood up to join me, as everyone else in the inn watched him walk up the stairs. “The hells has gotten into him?” He asked, baffled. “Ain’t ever seen the guy act like that.”

“Me neither,” I whispered, brow furrowing.

Renauld and Liora joined as well. “Are you going to do it, Nate?” The male Gnoll asked me, worry obvious in his tone. “I don’t think the big guy will mess you up too bad, but, uh. I’ll patch you up if he does.”

I snorted, uncrossing my arms. “Gee, thanks man,” I said sarcastically, before pausing for a moment. I eventually nodded. “But yes. I…think I’m going to try. This just means too much to me. I’ll…try and make Venix see sense in what is apparently the only way he understands. A duel.”

The same heckler from earlier called out across the dining room. “Nice! Guess we still get ta see the barbarians tear each other apart!” He cackled. “Good luck, little man!”

I felt my eyebrow twitch at the taunting, and then again when Liora fixed me with a deadpan look. “What he said,” She said dryly. “You’ll certainly need it.”

“Don’t I know it,” I said under my breath. I shook my head and turned to face Lady Saeko. “I apologize once more for the interruption, my lady. I’m afraid that we’ll require the usage of your practice yard on the morrow.”

To my surprise, the impeccably dressed woman rolled her eyes at me. “Apparently so. You’re lucky I’m so used to the banalities of men, Sir Hart. I only thought Sir Venix was above such things. Apparently, even insectoid men must peacock in such a manner. Off with you,” She said, waving a hand. “I must go and discipline another customer.” At that, she turned around to glare at the heckler with narrowed eyes.

He gulped.

…………………………………………..

I didn’t bother sleeping that night. It’s not like I needed it anymore.

And neither did I spend the entire nighttime fretting in anxiety about the duel that I had next to no chance in winning. Instead, I spent that time in meditation.

While I didn’t have a proper Magi meditation method locked for my use, I still had my old reliable in the form of Aetherial Melding. I drifted in a sea of unseen Aether, sitting still as the veritable heartbeat of Vereden pulsed all around me. This might not be useful for me, but it was still calming. Comforting, even.

This had only grown more curious, once I had Ascended into a full-on Magi.

Now, I pulsed back.

Not with Aether, though. With my Mana.

Intertwined waves of my own radiated from my being, visible only to me in this odd state of being. Twinned crimson and azure crashed into the pulses of emerald that suffused Vereden, unseen, only to be washed away. It was both beautiful and humbling.

It reminded me that, although I had finally become a proper Mage, I was still nothing but an ant in the face of an entire planet.

A thought had occurred to me, during one of these sessions. Ever since I had met Anima in the Concord, that strange Spirit realm that seemed to exist out of phase with that of the material, I had wondered. Was it her that was the origin point of these pulses? Did she have a physical existence here in the real world, somewhere deep beneath my feet? Did Anima live within the core of Vereden in some way? Because that’s always the direction I had assumed these pulses to come from. They radiated up from the ground, always originating beneath my feet.

I couldn’t know, and Elder Jinshin hadn’t either when I asked him. Even as familiar as he was with Anima, he knew nothing about it. Maybe Grey would, but I couldn’t ask him that now.

I suppose it was just as likely that Vereden itself was the origin.

While my outer ring was occupied with my somewhat useless drifting meditational thoughts, my surviving core ring was involved with something a bit more practical.

Key word was a bit.

It was examining my Status.

See, it had shifted in the months since my Ascension. Grey and everyone else hadn’t been kidding, when they said the first Breakpoint was when everything changed.

For one, it no longer tracked my Stamina at all. This was somewhat expected, as from what I understood, Stamina had just been a byproduct of my soul that was now being used in the production of Mana. Instead, it tracked my Mana now. Just…not in the way I had expected.

Name: Nathaniel Eugene Hart

Titles: Unbound Liberator, Calamity Slayer

Level: 131

Age: 25 Sol

Race: Human (Precursor)

Affinity: Terrestrial (Celestial)

Classes: Thornblade Acolyte (Uncommon)

Professions: Aetherial Melding

Health: 1330/1330

Mana: 98%

Vitality: 173

Strength: 100

Spirit: 60

Dexterity: 282

Perception: 173

Intelligence: 396

Wisdom: 396

Free Points: 0

Options: [Talent Page], [Skill Page], [Profession Page]

Damn thing tracked it as a percentage. The System was able to track my ‘Health’ as precisely as singular digits, but it couldn’t track my Mana that way? It was a bit frustrating, I had to admit. But it was a good reminded that the System kind of flailed about, when it came to supporting actual Magic. That’s the explanation I’d received in the first lecture I’d ever gotten from Grey, last year.

The System was broken, in a way. And it had never gotten the chance to be whole.

However, that’s not all that had changed, of course. Even beyond the addition of parenthesized Celetial to my affinity. I’d obviously grown in strength since I’d left Elderwyck. Before my Ascension Ritual, I’d been locked at level one hundred. And oddly enough, I had yet to gain my level one hundred class ability at the time. That had certainly changed, when I’d checked my Status after the entire affair had been over and done with. I’d immediately shot up to level one hundred and twenty-two, as those levels had been locked to me until I successfully became a Magi.

Rhazal had been worth quite a bit of level Aether.

I’d been bombarded with so many level-ups and Status indicators I hadn’t even been able to see at first.

A good problem to have.

Probably the most exciting one, though, had been my gift from the System for properly reaching level one hundred.

A Skill evolution.

Before I’d left, I’d asked Grey about it. According to him, every Awakened was guaranteed one of these by crashing through the Breakpoints that existed at the hundred intervals. With them, you could individually ‘ascend’ a particular Skill or Talent, evolving them into a more powerful form.

I had almost immediately wanted to use it on Ringed Mind. My hope had been that with an evolution, maybe whatever had been broken in the Talent would be fixed.

Grey had shot that idea down.

“I emphatically advise against that, Nathan,” My mentor had told me, back on the dock that we were preparing to depart Elderwyck from. “At your current level, your Status is likely struggling to support your mental Talent already. In fact, it’s my belief that is the reason it fractured in the way it did, when you saved my Sylvia. Your Intelligence is simply too low to support more than an additional branch of thought, and your middle ‘ring’ broke under the strain. If you evolved it further, the resulting evolved Talent might well break once more, without the Virtue backing to support it. Please, wait until you’ve at least broken through the second Breakpoint to consider evolving your mental Talent.”

I had, reluctantly, taken his advice.

Instead of evolving Ringed Mind, I had opted for my second most used ability. A Skill, this time.

Sylvan Vigor.

The entire process, which I had initiated on the ride to Kawamara, had been a bit underwhelming. I had simply selected the Skill from the drop-down menu that had been presented to me on my Status for the evolution, clicked Yes on the pop-up, and bam!

One new evolved Skill.

Sylvan Vigor had become Might of the Wyrdwood. It had even gone up in rarity from Superior to Rare.

But while the process of upgrading it had been underwhelming, the actual Skill was not.

I’d been pretty glad I had gone with that, in the end.

As for my other gains by gaining so many levels, they’d been pretty underwhelming. To my disappointment, I discovered that, after level one hundred, you no longer gained an alternating Skill and Talent every ten levels.

Instead, you got something every twenty. And since I was a Mage, the System had flagged me as such, and now I was going to be getting less Skills. At least that was what Elder Jinshin had kindly told me, during one of my lessons with the monk.

As such, I’d only gotten a single other ability after Ascending. That being a frustratingly out-of-reach Talent by the name of Arboreal Channeling. Channeling Talents were supposedly very common, and were meant to help you, well, channel your Mana. The System gave them out like candy, apparently, to newly Ascended classers. Both Cultivaors and Magi received similar abilities.

But I couldn’t take advantage of mine yet, because I didn’t have a proper meditation method for channeling my Mana.

Deeply frustrating.

Even though I had grown a whole nine levels during my time in Kawamara, to level one-hundred and thirty-one, I hadn’t gotten anything else in that time.

What I had…was going to have to be good enough for my duel.

I…

Well.

I suppose there was something else I could use. But I was reluctant to use it except in life-or-death situations.

But I guess I’d see how things went.

A subtle change in the Aether that suffused the air told me that it was nearly dawn. Nighttime had passed in the blink of an eye, as deep in my meditation as I’d been. I opened my eyes and got ready for the duel. I thought about putting on the armor I’d made for myself, but a headstrong part of me rebelled against the idea. I knew Venix wasn’t going to be wearing any, and I didn’t want to be shown up by the Antium man.

Any more than I was probably already going to be.

Damnit, I had my pride.

Instead, I just secured Terractus at my belt and my daggers at the small of my back and exited my room, a determined cast to my face.

I would not be denied my chance for more answers.

Time to do this.

<<Chapter 232 | Table of Contents | Chapter 234>>

Chapter 232 - Valley of Life

As I descended into the valley that held the temple, I was enveloped in a sense of peace. The entire area, from the carefully tended forest to the multiple ponds, exuded an atmosphere of harmony that permeated every inch of it. It was so tranquil in this small valley that it was actually home to a number of protected Kawamaran species, rare or otherwise.

Not far off of the cobblestone path that I was walking down, a small herd of alien looking deer grazed on a patch of grass. I say odd, because they were very obviously a kind of Mystic Beast. All of them, from the attentive stag that was even now tracking me with it’s eyes, to the small foal in the herd, seemed to be made from living glass. They were translucent all the way through, with visible crystalline organs pumping unseen blood, outlined in a faint azure glow. That same glow filled the eyes of the wary stag watching me, as he shook his impressive rack of antlers with a tinkling sound.

In my visits here, both the monk and Observe had told me that these were Looking-Glass Cervid. They’d been nearly hunted to extinction decades ago for their apparently edible ‘meat’, and had only survived due to the intervention of the Animan Temple. There were few of the odd deer still surviving out in the wilds, beyond this valley.

And those weren’t even the only Mystic Beasts here.

Overhead, I caught a brief glimpse of a lightning trail, as it zipped from one flowering tree to the other. I think it was only thanks to both my relatively high Perception score in combination with my altered eyes that I was able to see the creature that left it, from the speed it traveled. At first glance, it looked like a relatively innocuous hummingbird, covered from beak to tiny talons in yellow and black feathers. Only, it seemed to have the ability to manifest an electrical aura over its slight form, boosting its speed over tenfold. I’d never managed to catch one of these immobile long enough to Observe it, but the monk had told me they were named Zipper Birds. Also Mystically inclined, and also endangered.

And very much protected, within this valley. The Animan sect of the Spiritualist faith may be the smallest of the five, but it was still protected by the Imperial court. Every time I came here, I felt the familiar feeling of their agent’s watching eyes from somewhere in the distance.

But, speaking of the monk…

I finally reached the end of the path, where he was waiting for me, like every time I’d visited. I bowed at the waist to the older man sitting at a small tea table, laid out just before the steps that led into the small temple. “Elder Jinshin.”

I didn’t have to feign my respect for this man. He…he knew things, somehow. Things I had never told anyone. Things that I’m not sure even Anima could have told him.

And yet, he never used those against me.

He was very kind, like that.

Elder Jinshin inclined his head to me, his unbound, waist-length, pure-white hair shifting slightly with the movement. He lifted one hand obscured by the long sleeves of his emerald green robe, and gestured towards the cushion he had laid out across from him, set before the table. As I sat down on it gratefully and picked up the steaming cup of tea he had already set out for me, the Elder stroked his long, wispy beard with one hand and stared at me contemplatively.

Well, presumably, at least.

In all the time I had known the man, he had never once opened his eyes. I had, perhaps rudely, asked him once if he was blind. He had merely smiled and shook his head.

I hadn’t pried.

Elder Jinshin broke the silence first, never scared to do so. “Good evening, Nathaniel,” He said with a small smile on his aged features. “How fare you this day?”

“Well enough, Elder,” I said, dipping my head. I’m sure he could tell somehow, even with his eyes closed. He always could. Which was why I didn’t feel foolish, looking around the area we sat in. “Is it just us today? Is Sogen well?”

The Elder chuckled lightly before nodding. “It is indeed. My apprentice is otherwise occupied with duties in the court. You have me all to yourself. And…I suspect you need the assistance.” He said pointedly.

And there we had the reason the Animan faith had so little influence over Kawamara. The monks of the temple operated on a master and apprentice system. There was only ever one Elder, and one disciple. Understandably, this meant there was a hard limit to the number of people they could educate in either Magic or Cultivation. Not only that, but it was part of their tradition for one of them to always be a Mage and the other a Cultivator. I was lucky in that Elder Jinshin was a Magi and could instruct me, because his apprentice Sogen was a Cultivator. Said apprentice was younger than me, and always had a faintly puzzled look on his face whenever I had my lessons with the Elder. Possibly because of the subject material, or possibly because the Elder had taken me on at all. When I had wandered up to the temple months ago, not even searching for a teacher at the time, Elder Jinshin had outright volunteered himself on our first meeting. Puzzled, I had accepted, and then everything since they had seemed to proceed at his own pace.

I didn't mind. He was a good teacher.

I smiled a little sheepishly, picking up my tea and taking a sip. Perfect as always. Honestly, the Elder was a better brewer than most dedicated tea houses I’d been to across Hinaga. “Ah…perhaps,” I admitted, setting my cup down. “I’m preparing for an expedition into a very dangerous place.”

“Goryuen, yes,” The Elder said mildly, to my complete unsurprise. Either he’d picked up the news from the Court, or possibly from his own abilities. Whatever those may be. Either way, it didn’t matter. “I suspect you’ll find the trip most electrifying, my young friend. Most electrifying indeed.”

I rolled my eyes at the impenetrable joke as the Elder chuckled, not even bothering to ask for elaboration. This was just how the Elder was. He wouldn’t have answered anyway, just started rambling on about the shapes he’d seen in his morning eggs or something.

It made me wonder if he and Grey had attended the same class on being an inscrutable old man.

I changed the subject instead of trying. “I’ve been trying the meditation method you told me about Elder,” I said, grimacing. “But, uh. I…don’t think it’s for me.”

The Elder stroked his beard. “Ah, I see. Is it the incense, then? I told you that you might have difficulties with it.”

I dipped my head ruefully. “Yes, Elder. The incense…it just distracted me. It didn’t feel right. I couldn’t focus on my Mana with the smell in the air. I think I’m going to need something else.”

“Hmm, well. I did tell you that this form of mediation was unlikely to work with you, Nathaniel,” Elder Jinshin pointed out. He must have been able to tell I winced at the light rebuke, because he chuckled. “It’s nothing to worry about. As I've told you, the effectiveness of particular forms of mediation depends on the culture the Magi was born in. An incense method is very Kawamaran in form. It was a long shot if it would work with you. We’ll simply have to keep experimenting to find what works with your…particular cultural mentality.”

In other words, my Earth brain.

I sighed. This was the third type of mediation we’d worked on, trying to find something that fit me. Normally, finding a type of Mana meditation that fit a Magi was a simple process for initiates. As the Elder said, there were particular forms of it that seemed to fit a person depending on the culture they were from.

The problem was, I wasn’t from any of the Veredenese cultures that practiced Magic. We’d tried each of the common methods of Mana control, from each of those peoples. The Herztalians practiced a form of breath control they called ‘Air Circulation’ that involved rapidly breathing in and out eight times, holding for a minute, and then repeating. That was probably what Grey would have started me on.

That hadn’t worked.

The Velancians instead had a short, eight-word chant that they repeated over and over. The droning of it, on and on, apparently helped them to get in contact with their Mana.

That hadn’t worked for me either.

And now we’d exhausted the other common method on Vereden, incense meditation. That had just irritated both my nose, and my neighbors at the inn. I'd had to apologize to several of them from the couple of sessions I'd tried.

“We’ll just have to keep trying, Nathaniel,” The Elder said consolingly. “I’ll visit the Imperial archives later to see if we can find other methods. Perhaps there are records of how the other planets from the Age of the Gods practiced their own meditations.”

I grimaced. “Are there perhaps records pertaining to…other cultures?” I asked carefully, aware that our conversation was likely being watched by the guardians of this valley. “Maybe for individuals who are very far from home?”

The Imperial Court very likely knew I was a Precursor, but that didn’t mean I had to spell it out for them. If I didn’t display at least some form of guile and subtlety, I would develop a reputation as a barbarian. That would probably hurt my position.

The Elder knew anyway. It wasn’t that big of a secret anymore.

A small smile crossed Elder Jinshin’s lips, but he shook his head anyway. “I’m afraid not. No…alternative records such as that are anywhere within the Imperial archives. At least, nothing within what I or my student have access to. If it exists, it would have to be within the royal family’s personal library.”

Hmm…

That gave me an idea.

Later, though.

“As it is, we shall simply have to continue as we have been,” The Elder continued. “Your Mana is…odd, yes, but not unworkable. Speaking of, let us begin. We shall start with a brief review of last week’s success. As I recall you were…oddly enthusiastic about such a mundane Spell. Please, demonstrate it for me.”

I nodded at the Elder and closed my eyes, falling into a familiar form of mediation for me.

Familiar, but also only mildly helpful for my purposes.

After the extensive practice I’d been doing these past few months, it was easy for me to enter my soul space through the bypass that seemed to be built into Aetherial Melding. Once in there, I took a moment to gaze at the shining core of my Mana, suspended in the branches of my crystalline tree. It was both a mesmerizing and a frustrating sight, to watch the crimson thorns and the azure flames of the duality grinding and flow together endlessly.

Mesmerizing, because here in the core of my being the sensation of that core was so oddly comforting to me. It was like something had been missing my entire life had been awoken. This energy…this star…it completed me, in a way that only the greatest of poets could truly describe.

I sure as hell wasn’t one.

But it was also frustrating, because the oddity of having what I’d discovered was both two cores and one at the same time meant it was twice as difficult to use. The reason it was so important for a Magi to have a dedicated meditation method was because it helped access the Mana, directly from the core. A proper Magi, through meditation, was supposed to become so familiar with their core that it was indistinguishable from a physical limb. That way they could dip into their Mana whenever they wanted to, for whatever Spell they needed.

But because I had the dual-core, I couldn’t do that. Not easily, and not without some serious meditation. As it was, I was having to half-ass things through this method. Without a proper way to meditate that resonated with me, I wasn’t able to separate the two different kinds of Mana. And using Aetherial Melding, I was only able to observe my soul space, and the Mana that filled it. So what I was doing was essentially getting familiar with the mixed feeling of my Mana in the only way I knew how, and sort of…dragging it out using Aetherial Melding as a crutch.

According to the Elder, that shouldn’t be possible. But because it was for me, I was side-stepping the problem until a real solution could be found.

In the end, though, it meant it took me thirty minutes of careful concentration to drag out the smallest bit of mixed Mana and craft it into a Spell.

Worth it, though.

Once I had the Mana, I carefully shaped it into the thought-form I’d been instructed in last week. When the mixed Celestial and Terrestrial power had filled in that form, I triggered the spell.

Through my closed eyelids, I could see light bloom.

I grinned and opened my eyes, to see a ball of mixed blue and red light swirling in the center of my palm. It was nearly a copy of the star that bloomed in the space of my soul, only less detailed.

In the end, I had never ended up learning a light Skill.

Instead, I’d gone straight for a spell.

Honestly, I’d take it.

……………………………………………

Elder Jinshin and I practiced for another few hour or so, before the lesson ended. In that time, we tried some historical variations on the typical meditation methods, before giving up on that. Instead, the Elder took the time to lecture me on some Spell theory, as well as lay out the next Spell he intended to teach me.

Honestly, a small burst of wind didn’t sound that exciting, but I’m sure I’d find a use for it.

Maybe.

After saying goodbye to him, I decided to head back to the inn for dinner. It was getting pretty late after all my errands today, and I still had some potions to make before I called it a night.

Once there, I walked through the doors, only to be met with a pleasant surprise.

It looked like Venix had gotten back much earlier than any of us were expecting.

The Antium man looked like he had only gotten back in town hours ago, as he still had road dust visible on his white robe. He was sitting at our usual table with the rest of my companions, and it looked like he was deep in conversation with them.

Well.

They were with him, in actuality. Venix had his moments, but he wasn't typically very talkative.

Oddly, he had a frown growing on his insectoid features, that only looked to be growing at every word exiting Renauld’s mouth.

When I approached the table, Venix’s chitinous eyes locked onto me, and he stood up from the table. I thought he was going to greet me, so I gave him a slight smile to do the same. Only to be stopped by him raising one of his four arms, causing me to fix him with a raised eyebrow.

“It is my understanding that you intend to travel to Goryuen?” Venix asked bluntly.

I blinked, looking around him at Azarus. The dwarf shrugged in puzzlement, though, so I looked back at the Antium man. “Yes…?” I said slowly.

The frown on Venix’s face grew deeper, and he folded both sets of arms over his broad chest.

“I forbid it.”

<<Chapter 231 | Table of Contents | Chapter 233>>

Chapter 231 - Preparations and Waiting

I took the offered materials, of course.

What other choice did I have? It’s not like I was going to turn down the path to what I had actually been fine with visiting Kawamara for. I was…a little worried that my companions wouldn’t be interested in following me to Goryuen, but not that much. I had already spoken to everyone, including Venix and Bella before she had left, about how I was looking for more of the bunkers. Everyone had agreed to help me search for one, in one way or another.

That agreement hadn’t…quite involved following me into the heart of the most dangerous island in Kawamara. But it’s not like they were obliged to follow me. Lord Ashiwara had only told me that my companions were permitted to follow me there, not required. If I needed to, I would be fine with venturing onto the island by myself.

But, uh.

I really hoped they would come.

……………………………………………….

I needn’t have worried.

When I got back to the inn, I crashed in my room right away, without even looking over my new writ or the map. The next morning, I found my companions down in the dining room, sitting around the table that we normally did when everyone was in town. After greeting everyone, we all sat down to enjoy our breakfast together. It was only after Tarus had cleared the horizon and we were done that I brought up the potential expedition.

“Yeah, sure,” Azarus said immediately, not even looking up from his plate. It had taken the dwarf a while to get used to the lighter fare that the Kawamarans tended to eat for breakfast, as well as their utensils. He hadn’t been used to the largely pescatarian meals, accompanied by rice and soups. But eventually, even the fat-fingered dwarf had begun to enjoy it for what it was. “I’m up fer it.”

Liora nodded placidly my way, her mug of steaming green tea held closely to her lips. The Gnoll woman was, I’d found, even quieter in the mornings than she normally was.

Renauld seemed the most enthusiastic about the plan, surprisingly. His furry ears perked up, and he grinned at me with cheeks stuffed with rice. Hurriedly, he washed it down with his own tea and then nodded rapidly. “Hells yes, I’ll come. I already told you that I don’t want to leave just yet. This is just an excuse to keep kicking around Kawamara, as far as I’m concerned.”

I blinked slowly at the immediate agreement I’d received from my companions. A small smile grew on my face, even as I felt lighter from their friendship. “It’s not likely to be easy,” I said teasingly. “This place is supposed to be the most dangerous isle in the country.”

Azarus looked up then and shrugged. “What else is new?” He asked, almost sounding bored. “Ain’t like any of us are strangers to danger.”

Renauld looked like he wanted to cheer at the dwarf’s response, but wilted at the sharp look the proprietress sent him from across the dining room. Still, he rallied to hold out one furry palm for Azarus to slap.

Said dwarf didn’t even look like he noticed, causing the Gnoll man to droop again.

“If the region is such a danger,” Liora piped in unexpectedly, voice still roughened from sleep. “Then we should wait for our other companions to return. We shall need the might of Venix at the very least, if we are to brave this wilderness.”

I furrowed my brow, but it was Renauld who spoke first. He tapped his chin thoughtfully for a moment. “Yeah, that’s reasonable. But…where is Bella?” He asked aloud. “She’s not normally gone this long. Shouldn’t she have been back last week?”

I squirmed in my seat a little, hoping none of them noticed. But alas, nothing much escaped Liora. Her lips quirked slightly. “Perhaps you should ask Nathan that question,” She asked teasingly.

Renauld’s eyes locked on me, while Azarus looked up curiously from his meal. I shot Liora a dirty look which she ignored in favor of her tea. “Just a…small disagreement,” I said awkwardly. “Nothing to worry about. She’ll show up when she wants to. Anyway!” I said, desperately changing the subject. “I think Venix at the very least is getting back soon. We can make some plans to depart before then, but Liora’s right. We’ll need him.”

Azarus finally finished his oversized (dwarf-sized?) breakfast, and abruptly stood up from the floor table. At our curious looks, he shrugged. “I’m gonna go buy some more supplies,” He grunted. “Don’t need much, though. Ain’t like I’ve even unpacked from the hunt.”

A flash of guilt suddenly hit me, and I stood up to join him. “We can put this off for a while if you guys want,” I said just loud enough for my friends to hear. I didn’t want to bother any of the other patrons. “Azarus is right…you guys just got back. You deserve a bit of rest.”

I was a bit…surprised at he blank, non-understanding looks I was fixed with by all of them. Even the normally taciturn Liora looked puzzled.

Renauld tilted his head in his confusion. “I don’t get it,” He said bluntly, before looking over at Liora. She shrugged at his regard.

Meanwhile, realization flashed over Azarus’s bearded face. He rolled his eyes at me. “Well, this ain’t happened in a while,” He said, a bit exasperated. He shook his head before locking eyes with me. “Nate, don’t worry about it. This is one of those things ya don’t understand ‘cause you’re not from around here.”

I almost wanted to wince at the heavy emphasis he put on those words. As always, Azarus was probably the worst person I knew at subterfuge of any kind. But…I…

I think I understood what he meant.

Judging by the looks that graced Renauld’s and Liora’s faces, I think they did too.

Renauld chuckled and smirked at me. “Nate, if you have the chance to go out and get some levels? You always take it.”

“He is correct,” Liora said, nodding slightly. “While this ‘Goryuen’ might be dangerous, it presents an alluring opportunity. To deny such an opportunity…it is almost unthinkable in our society.”

“It doesn’t matter that we just got back,” Azarus said with finality. “If we can go, we go. It’s especially what yer supposed ta do when yer young. Which we are.”

He was right about that. I don’t think anyone at this table was over the age of like, twenty-eight at the latest.

Practically infants in the context of the extended life of Magi and Cultivators.

I relaxed and held up my hands in surrender. “Okay, okay,” I chuckled. “I get the point. You’re all raring and ready to go. I surrender.”

Azarus nodded at me, as the other two started to gather themselves as well. “Alright then. Venix shouldn’t be gone fer much longer, and when he gets back, we’ll hit the road. As fer Bella?” The dwarf rolled his eyes. “Who knows when that woman will get back. No reason ta wait up fer her.”

I nodded at that, a little relieved despite myself.

Sounded like a plan to me.

………………………………………………..

We split up after that, each of us with our own particular preparations that needed to be done for another expedition. While Azarus was correct in saying that Venix should be back ‘soon’, in reality that meant ‘anytime in the next week’. The contracts that the Antium man had been taking had him ranging far and wide across the breadth of the Kawamaran isles, and we had no way to track or contact him. I'd...had thoughts about recreating the coin messaging system of the Nocturne Division, and possibly even improving on it. But that wasn't going to happen anytime soon.

For myself, there were a couple of things I had to do. I was low on both potions and the herbs needed to brew them, so I needed to pick up some more. I’d used up the last of what I had on my trip with the Oni Hunters. I’d get started on those potions later tonight, when I intended to make enough for both myself and all of my companions.

I’d actually found Kawamaran Alchemy and herb lore to be refreshingly different. The disciplines that I’d learned under Grey had been distinctly Herztalian, and I was discovering that was only one facet of the art. Ingredients were different here, the methodology was different here, and even the attitude towards the process was different. Hell, even the end product was different.

Here, liquid potions weren’t quite as common as pills were. Bottled potions like what I was used to were considered an unfinished product. In the Kawamaran discipline, once you had brewed the actual potion itself, they used what they called a ‘pill furnace’ to condense and concentrate it down to a solid form. It was quite practical, really.

However, in my own practice, I’d found it wasn’t without its drawbacks.

What you gained in convenience and portability, you lost in effect. No matter how strong the base potion had been, the pill form would never be as potent as the liquid potion. The condensation process tended to essentially 'boil' off some of the component Aether of the desired effect. It was a trade-off, essentially.

While I didn’t need many of the actual techniques, I’d long since found I needed to translate them into usage with Aetherial Melding. Certain ingredients in certain quantities and at specific times still needed to be added to the astralized product in order to form the needed mix though. With a little experimentation, I’d discovered that I could replicate the condensing effect of a pill furnace in order to produce my own pills.

Thank God I'd done those experiments outside of the inn, in a rented Alchemy lab. Some of my failures had been...a bit explosive.

These days, I liked to bring a mix of both pills and liquids with me. I’d brew up plenty of both later that night.

It didn’t take me long to pick up everything I needed, which gave me plenty of time for my second errand of the day.

This one, I was looking forward to much more than the brewing.

Before long, I found myself standing at the open gates of a comparatively small temple, deep into the heart of Hinaga. They were set at the entrance into a meticulously tended garden valley, and painted in rich greens and natural golds. Far down in the path, I could see the nearly rustic temple itself, its meager three stories and simple shingled roofs a far cry from the other temples that dominated the skyline of Hinaga.

This was actually the smallest one here in the actual temple district of the city. Surrounding the humble gates of my destination were many temples that were much, much larger, and much, much grander than my destination. Their roofs and arches rose up to fill the skylines, each of them grander than the last, and each a representation of the Imperial court's favor. I’d been shocked to find that even the Gyreites had a temple here in Hinaga, constructed in a local style, but still in the same golden Rorician sandstone.

But that wasn’t where I’d come.

You see, I’d discovered something interesting about the religious beliefs of the Kawamarans. While they acknowledged the necessity of the Gyreites, they didn’t pray to the Gyre in much the way mainlanders did.

No, instead they revered the Great Spirits.

The same ones that had aided me against Rhazal.

And they were important.

You see, the Kawamarans didn’t have Grey’s big fancy school to teach their Classers how to become Magi and Cultivators. What they had were the temples. It was the monks of the Spirit temples that taught Magic and Cultivation to those who were interested. It wasn’t a perfect system, of course. There were only so many monks who were willing to teach prospective students, since it was still a religious calling. Formal education in those disciplines was thus rare in the populace, and those who were interested, instead joined the priesthood. What this led to was a disproportionate amount of Classers who leaned into their Status, only occasionally picking up Arts or Spells past the first breakpoint. They weren’t any less deadly for it, of course.

But it had led to an almost Primalist revival in the country, after those Soul warriors Ely had told me about from before the Initialization. The refinement of the Status, and the rejection of Mind and Body in favor of the Soul, was viewed as more ‘pure’.

Not me, though. I was all about learning some Magic.

Which had led me to this specific temple, in this small corner of the district.

This…was the temple to Anima, the least favored of the Great Spirits in Kawamaran society.

And where I had chosen to learn the basics of Magic.

Sorry, Grey.

I had just been too excited.

...............................................................

AN: Very much a transitional chapter. I don’t know why, but this one chapter fought me harder than I think anything has since I started writing Sins. I think it suffered for it, so I might go back and touch it up. Bit of an odd one to nearly stumble on.

Next chap will involve some actual Magic, as well as the return of Venix, and what he thinks of going to Goryuen.

He has a different opinion.

<<Chapter 230 | Table of Contents | Chapter 232>>

Chapter 230 - Tale of the Dragon

“This,” Masayuki said, drawing a circle around one area on a map he had pulled out from underneath the table. The tea tray had been set aside to make room for the large strip of parchment. “Is an area that is known as Goryuen.”

I leaned forward in order to inspect better what the Lord had indicated. His finger was pointing towards the third island to the southwest in the archipelago, away from the largest sub-continent that Hinaga lay on.

His finger was resting on a stylized mountain that lay in the exact center of that island. It looked to be shrouded in ominous-looking black and red clouds, from which peered glowing malevolent eyes.

I ratcheted down Language Adaptation for a moment. Goryuen seemed to translate roughly to ‘Garden of the Imperial Dragon’.

Ominous.

“This is, perhaps, one of the highest Aether concentration zones on Vereden,” Lord Ashiwara continued. “The entire island is essentially forbidden from settlement, considering just how dangerous it is. Monsters spawn there that are much, much more powerful than anything upon this Kawashima.”

That being the name of the sub-continent that we were on right now. My understanding was that Kawashima was the heart of the Kawamaran ‘Empire’. I don’t even know why it was an Empire. To my knowledge, the Kawamaran’s had no colonies anywhere else on Vereden, little significant diplomatic presence in either the Principality or the Kingdom, and were in fact somewhat subservient to Herztal.

“By Imperial Edict, none may venture onto Goryuen without permission,” Masayuki said, deflating my hopes. He must have noticed because the eccentric man gave me a playful smile, despite the serious air he had created. “Worry not. With my permission, I can easily secure a pass for you. If that is your wish.”

Hopes officially reinstated.

I smiled wryly at the other man. “I am indeed interested, Lord Ashiwara. Please, continue. You said what I seek lays at this mountain? This…Gorenzan?”

Masayuki nodded at me. “Yes, the heart of the island, and by far the most dangerous place upon it. Gorenzen is essentially the gathering place of the Oni Primes. As you likely know, Oni Primes are not intelligent per se, but they do possess a bestial instinct that resembles it. They gather there, under the watchful eye of the mountain’s lord, in order to establish dominance over each other. It’s…essentially nothing more than a monstrous pissing contest, to be frank. But it leaves the entire area highly dangerous to go anywhere near.”

Yeah, that sounded…bad. But something else he had said caught my attention.

“The ‘mountain’s lord’?” I asked, half curious, half dreading the answer.

Please don’t be another fucking Calamity. I only killed the last one because of a fluke, and a bunch of help from some very powerful beings.

Masahiro finally spoke up from where he had been sitting quietly, frowning at the map. “A persistent threat to the Empire that we’ve named Tatsugan,” He said dourly. “The beast appears to be immortal.”

I raised an eyebrow at that, looking over at Masayuki. He nodded at me sadly. “Quite regrettable. Tatsugan is what the System refers to as an ‘Oblivion Wyrm’. Not quite a true dragon, but close enough in appearance that the point is moot. Tatsugan has the potential to grow into a Calamity-”

Son of a bitch.

“-but we make sure that he does not,” Masayuki continued. “It takes the beast over a century in order to gather the strength to evolve in that manner. So, we cull him before can. You see, the Oni compete in his shadow because their competition fuels his growth. It’s a form of twisted reflection to how we Awoken grow in power. Before he can ascend into a true Calamity, the greatest warriors of Kawamara gather under the blessing of the Emperor to slay the monster.”

“That…” I said, a frown growing on my face. “That sounds out of my league, as much as I hate to say it.”

“Perhaps not, Sir Kuroshō,” Masahiro unexpectedly said, drawing my attention. “The last Ryūmetsu Matsuri was only twenty years ago, where Tatsugan was last slain.”

Masayuki nodded at his son, before turning back to me. “Yes, I remember it well. I wasn’t in attendance, being only about Masayuki’s age at the time. But we lost some storied warriors to the festival. The Empire simultaneously mourned and celebrated for weeks. Our intelligence of the island tells us that Tatsugan has returned to the mountain in his weakened form, but that the competition of the Oni has resumed in order to strengthen him. It’s why the Oni Hunters are so needed these days. Those defeated in the competition flee from Goryuen to plague the other islands.”

I tilted my head in thought after a moment, my brow furrowing. “Why…do you allow it?” I asked out loud, Masayuki’s own brow raising in question. “Why allow Tatsugan to continually accumulate power in this way? Why not establish a force on the island that just kills the wyrm whenever he returns, and deals with the Oni at the same time?”

Unexpectedly, Ashiwara’s face twisted sourly at my question. “A few reasons,” He sighed tiredly. “The first is that it’s been tried. Hundreds of years ago, our records tell us that the Emperor at the time, one Jinsoku the Prudent, raised a force to try and conquer the island. He succeeded for a time, and for decades his warriors fought. Every time Tatsugan returned, he was slain. And all Oni that gathered at the mountain were cut down with him. But it was all for naught, because it caused a disaster. Thirty years after Goryuen was conquered, a great wave exploded from the shores of the island, racing away it to wash over the others. This tsunami would come to be known as the Vengeance of the Dragon. Records tell us that the devastation was…catastrophic.”

“Dragon’s rage untamed,

By the sea, the islands weep-

Folly drowns the land.”

I jerked in place, almost instinctually looking around for Venix at the unprompted haiku. But no, it was just Masahiro, who looked to have been reciting something from memory. At my baffled look, the young man just gave me a forlorn smile. “From the collected works of Kaito the Sagacious, a popular poet from that era.”

“Investigations into the tragedy told us that we need Tatsugan to keep coming back,” Masayuki said, drawing my attention. “The creature is drawing Aether from something deep beneath the island, and it was from that source that the wave originated. He siphons just enough power from whatever is down there that it cannot devastate all of Kawamara in an endless procession of waves. Thus, the decision was made to just…leave him be. And then, when he has drawn just enough power to avert disaster, and before he can ascend into Calamity, we strike. We have repeated this cycle for… millennia.”

“That sounds…” I trailed off. I couldn’t even imagine living with something like that, constantly hanging over the fate of an entire nation.

“We do our duty,” Masahiro said firmly, straight-backed and proud. Masayuki laid one large hand over his sons and squeezed with a forlorn smile.

I looked away politely from their moment. It wasn’t my place to intrude, even if I was a guest.

Eventually, I heard Masayuki clear his throat, drawing my attention once more. The two nobles had returned to their previous positions as if nothing had happened at all. “Imperial records from that era tell us that a strange pair of doors were discovered at the base of Gorenzan, that no man could open,” Ashiwara the Elder continued, in an incongruously upbeat tone. “No Skill, nor Spell, nor blade of man could pierce their metallic surface. It came to be known as the ‘Yami-no-Koshi’ due to its impervious surface, and have never been opened. But not for lack of trying.”

Yeah, that sounded…familiar. The gates at the base of Hollow Hill had been impervious to harm as well, from what Grey had told me. He’d spent years trying everything he could to open them, to no avail. Only for me to waltz up, lay on hand on them, and poof!

Mysterious doors open.

It made me wonder how they, and that bunker, were going to be handled now that the war was over.

The point was, though, that I…might be able to do the same thing with this ‘Yami-no-Koshi’. Though, Language Adaptation helpfully told me that translated to roughly ‘The Gate of the Underworld’.

Joy.

Still…

One thing was bothering me.

I carefully laid my hands, palm flat down, on the table and met the knowing, calculating gaze of Lord Ashiwara. I made sure to very carefully cut my eyes over to Masahiro, in the least threatening manner I could.

Lord Ashiwara got the hint.

“Masahiro, if you could leave us for a moment?” He said, surprisingly firmly. The younger man jerked in place at the strength in his Father’s voice but dutifully did as asked. He picked up his new sword blade and backed up to the door, bowing respectfully as he did so. In moments, he was out of the room.

Silence descended on the two of us left. It felt like Masayuki was going to wait, patiently, for me to break it first.

Fine by me.

“Did you even need the sword?” I asked bluntly, my eyes locked on Masayuki’s own.

There was no reason to have given me so much information. Some of that sounded like it could have been public information.

Some of it decidedly not so.

The disclosure was suspicious.

The eccentric man smiled ever so slightly. “I could have presented my heir with any number of blades greater than what you created, Kuroshō. But the child has ever been enamored with Oninite, and it presented a convenient opportunity for the court to take your measure. So, no. No, I did not need the sword, Apprentice of the Shadowed Sun.”

Hmm.

Well, there was a confirmation for that suspicion.

I may not be part of the Nocturne Division anymore, but I still had my instincts. Almost immediately after I had stepped off of the Thorny Reef, I’d had the suspicion that I was under at least some level of surveillance. It hadn’t felt malicious, and I’d never noticed any kind of action being taken against me. But I had almost physically felt the eyes on me, those first few weeks here in Hinaga.

I’d even raised my suspicions with Liora, someone with far more experience in this field than me. She had calmly confirmed that there were Kawamaran operatives of some kind keeping an eye on us, but told me not to worry about it. The Empire had the right to keep an eye on foreign visitors, especially when they were as heavily armed and as powerful as our group was. So I hadn’t raised a stink about the surveillance and had tried to put it out of my mind. Eventually, the pressure of my watcher's eyes had eased, and I only occasionally felt it return. Presumably, I had been deemed a non-threat to the citizens of Hinaga, which was true.

Honestly, I hadn't care about it very much. I know I sure as hell would have kept an eye on someone as weird as I was.

I hadn’t been arrogant enough to think they were gone for good, though. Nor did I think they hadn’t figured out who I was. It’s not like I was running around using a false identity. Kuroshō was just a local title given to me.

I inclined my head to Lord Ashiwara. “Well, I’m here now,” I said impassively. “For what purpose did the court wish to take my measure?”

I don’t even know why I asked. I was pretty sure I had an idea already, after Masayuki’s entire explanation. Still, pretenses had to be maintained. It was the way of nobility, after all.

I was getting used to it.

A slight smile crossed Masayuki’s painted face before disappearing. “I have in my possession a pre-signed writ of permission to travel to Goryuen, for you and your companions. I also have a map to the center of the island which leads to Mt. Gorenzan. The ronin Venix, Azarus, formerly of House Savoy, Miss Liora Valen, Renauld of the People, and Captain Isabella Blue of the Thorny Reef are permitted to travel with you. But none others, including the Oni Hunter squad you and yours are acquainted with, may accompany you. If you wish, I can bestow both of these items to you, Sir Hart.”

I nodded slowly to show my understanding. “And what does the Empire wish of me in return?”

“Nothing,” Masayuki answered. At my unimpressed look, the man chuckled lightly. “Nothing officially. The Imperial seat would never dare to imposition the household of Elys’s consort. However…we request that if you possess the means to open Yami-no-Koshi, you investigate the depths that must lay on the other side. And in your investigations, if you find the source empowering Tatsugan?”

The smile on Masayuki’s face vanished in an instant. In its place grew a scowl so fierce, it contradicted my view of the man.

“Destroy it.”

<<Chapter 229 | Table of Contents | Chapter 231>>

Chapter 229 - Lord of Reeds

According to the servant, Lord Ashiwara was only willing to give me the information that I wanted face-to-face. And only if I could present the sword that he had commissioned at the same time.

You know.

The one that I had already finished.

After the servant had bowed and scraped away from me upon delivery of his message, I immediately made a bee-line back towards my inn. Once there, I barely paid any attention to the young woman manning the welcoming desk as she bowed over it slightly in my direction. Instead, I marched my way up the stairs to my room and rifled through the pile of excess weaponry lying haphazardly in the corner until I found the require sword. I held it up to light to inspect it, in case it needed any last touches before I delivered it.

Ashiwara had commissioned a katana, like most of my customers. Seemed to be a bit of a theme here in Hinaga. But only the blade itself, without the accompanying hilt, or even any Enchanting done to it. That part, at least, I could understand. As miraculous as it was that I could work Oninite into weapons, I wasn’t versed in the Kawamaran people’s particular varieties of Enchanting. The only time I had tried to replicate some of it for a commission, that customer had gotten so offended that I think he wanted to challenge me to a duel.

I think he would have if Venix hadn’t been there at the time. The man had been suitably intimidated by my massive Antium companion, though, and had backed off after a truly impressive huffing and puffing session.

And then he'd tarred me with a reputation as a barbarously uncivilized Enchanter.

I didn’t try after that.

So Ashiwara’s commissioned blade was a merely thirty-ish inch long length of black and blue Oninite, emblazoned with my maker mark near the flat hilt section. Here in Kawamara, that was apparently a very important distinction that I had to include, as Venix had lectured me. It was styled in the form of a pictogram, representing a Spirit or animal that was particularly important to me.

Naturally, I had picked Fade.

My mark was that of a horned wolf viewed from the side, curled into a circle surrounding a single rune. In the language of the gods, that rune had a single meaning. Something that was…really more of a pun, than anything else.

Heart. The rune for the heart.

It was the little things in life, that kept you going.

Done with my inspection, I wrapped the blade in a length of oilcloth I had on a workbench and left for Ashiwara’s mansion.

I didn’t even think of waiting up for my friends, since this was the same inn we were all staying at.

I could handle this myself.

…………………………………………..

I didn’t want to handle this myself. I could have really used backup right about now.

I wasn’t in any danger or anything.

(Theoretically).

But gods, this was awkward.

I made good time to what was essentially the noble section of Hinaga. I was used to navigating these streets by now, considering how familiar I’d gotten with the area from my work. Hell, I even knew precisely where Lord Ashiwara’s manor was. Once I’d reached it, a different servant from usual had hurried me into a receiving room, leaving me with tea and the message that Lord Ashiwara would be with me soon.

They hadn’t been kidding, as only a few minutes later, ‘Lord’ Ashiwara had burst into the room enthusiastically, completely at odds with my previous interactions with the Hinagan royalty. He didn’t even bother to close the sliding door behind him.

Lord Ashiwara was…a bit of a shock.

You see, I had never actually met the man when I accepted this commission. He was apparently a very well respected, very in-demand Arist in Hinaga high society. His focus was apparently on a popular local form of theater in the country that I had yet to experience. Lord Ashiwara didn’t have the time to set commissions like his in person. Thus, the request had come in through an intermediary sent by the man.

Which was considered a bit…highly rude here. And even though I wasn’t actually Hinagan, I’d still been steeped in their crafting culture for long enough to pick up a few of their peculiarities.

Hey, I wasn’t perfect. I had my pride, and I had to maintain some level of face among the other crafters of this city.

The old bastards.

So I’d snubbed him for a few weeks, even though I’d finished the Oninite blank in like. A day.

I was…kinda wishing I’d actually taken the time to meet him first.

Lord Masayuki Ashiwara was a tall, lithe man.

Who wasn’t wearing a shirt.

Instead, he only had on what I understood were called hakama pants, colored in a bright yellow, as well as his wooden sandals. He was covered from head to toe in sweat, carrying what looked to be a battered wooden practice sword in one hand. Unlike most Kawamarans I’d met, his long, unbound hair wasn’t a shade of black or brown, instead looking to have been dyed a bright…yellow.

Not blonde.

Yellow.

Not only that, but the man was wearing full face paint. Red and black lines decorated his face, radiating out from his lips and eyes in whorls upon a flat white base. It looked to be pretty masterfully done, too. It was actually fairly striking, and reminded me quite a bit of the war paint that I’d see on Olgar back in Rhoscara. Softer, though, and not quite as angry.

It was helped along by the fact that Lord Ashiwara was beaming at me in unrestrained joy, his rich brown eyes alight in excitement.

“You must be Kuroshō!” Ashiwara veritably crowed at me, striding quickly into the room. Around his slender form, I could see a couple of exasperated servants waiting, kneeling just outside of the door frame. “I’ve so wanted to meet you!”

I froze in bafflement as the man pulled me to my feet then, astonished at his forwardness. The man set his practice sword down to place his hands on my shoulders and just looked at me for a moment. He had to noticeably look down in order to meet my gaze, as the man was quite a bit taller than I was. Frankly, I would put him somewhere in the upper six-foot range. Months ago, I probably would have squirmed under his playfully assessing gaze, but now?

I blinked at him in confusion.

Ashiwara beamed.

“Father, please,” I heard a new, exasperated voice say from the doorway. Ashiwara’s painted face affected a sheepish expression, and he let go of me to move away. When he did so, I was able to see the young man who had spoken.

I’m guessing this was the young man I had the sword for.

It was very easy to see the familial resemblance between the older and younger Lords Ashiwara. But while the elder seemed quite…eccentric, the new arrival was much more stolid. He was shorter, for one, without any of the colorful paint on his much plainer face. His hair was shorter, much like my own barely there fuzz, and his frame was quite stocky. But it was easy to see that he took his fitness quite seriously from the exposed flesh of the practice uniform he was wearing. The young man was also carrying a battered looking practice sword with him and covered in sweat, much like his Father. From what I understood, he had to be around sixteen or seventeen to be going on his first hunt soon.

I could see it.

My eyes flitted from one noble to the other for a moment. “If I’ve interrupted your practice, my lords,” I said slowly. “I can return in the morning.”

Please say yes. Ashiwara the Elder was creeping me out, from the intensity of the gaze he still had fixated on me.

“Nonsense,” Ashiwara the Elder said dismissively, dashing my hopes. “We were just about finished, weren’t we, Masahiro? Just a spot of late-night practice.”

The young man stepped inside the waiting room to stand next to Father, gracing me with an apologetic smile. “As you say, Father,” He dipped his head to the both of us briefly. “But…perhaps we didn’t need to rush here? We’re hardly presentable at the moment.”

Blinking, Ashiwara the Elder looked down at himself in puzzlement. A chagrined expression crossed his expression face. “Ah…you’re right. Please excuse us for a few more minutes, Kuroshō. We need to go and freshen up.” Before I could even speak, the Lord of the manor hurried out of the room as quickly as he had came, forgetting to take his practice blade with him. ‘Masahiro’ gave me another apologetic smile and bowed slightly before following after his Father, closing the sliding door behind him.

Leaving me alone once more.

I stood still for a moment after they had left. Eventually, I sighed and sat back down at the table, pouring myself a cup of tea from the set in the center.

Too bad this wasn’t the boozy kind.

I kinda wanted a drink after that encounter.

……………………………………………..

“I, am Lord Masayuki Ashiwara, Master of Ceremonies for His Radiance Emperor Seimei of the Kawatsuyo Dynasty,” The much more dressed Lord Ashiwara said to me, after perhaps fifteen minutes of waiting. Both the Lord of the manor and his son looked to have taken a quick bath before returning, dressed in yellow and green robes. They were sitting across from me now on the other side of the table. In between us sat a tray carrying a new pot of tea and the required cups.

As well as the still-wrapped sword blade I had come here to deliver.

I noticed that the younger Ashiwara couldn’t help but stare at it in curiosity, even as his Father introduced himself. But he snapped out of his interest long enough to smile at me in embarrassment. “Ah. And I am Masahiro Ashiwara, Heir of Clan Ashiwara. A pleasure to meet you, Sir Kuroshō.” He bowed slightly at the waist from his sitting position.

I returned it, making sure to dip my head slightly. “A pleasure to you both, my Lords,” I said smoothly, finally back on familiar grounds. “Thank you for inviting me into your lovely home. I am Nathaniel Hart, known as Kuroshō in these lands.”

Masayuki waved me off airily. “Oh, it’s not a problem, not a problem at all. Certainly not for such an interesting craftsman like yourself, Kuroshō,” He said with a wide smile on his curiously still-painted face. “I must say, you’ve been the talk of the town since your downright scandalous introduction to the higher markets.”

Scandalous? What was so scandalous about it? I’m…pretty sure I had never outright insulted anyone, nor had I set out to cause trouble.

You know.

Other than that one guy.

“It was thought that Oninite was a near-worthless metal,” Masahiro said, staring back down at the wrapped blade in renewed curiosity. “It’s not quite as powerful as materials such as Mithril or Lunar Basalt, and yet it’s so much harder to work with. I’ve heard some Swordsmiths describe it as overly stubborn and wrathful, much like its monstrous namesake. Most Grandmaster Smiths only ever work it to produce ceremonial pieces. Not the practical work that you produce, Kuroshō.”

Stubborn and wrathful, huh. I could see that. Oninite had a tendency to try and kick back with some of its stored natural Aether in the forging process. For a normal Smith, I could see how that would be a problem. But not me. I could just dissipate that Ather in the Melding process. Hell, I could use it as well. It acted as a near secondary fuel source.

“Nobody is quite sure how such a young Smith is managing it,” Masayuki interjected, the look in his eyes gaining a new, calculating glint. “Especially not when the crustiest of old fogies can’t manage quite what you can, Kuroshō. What possible forging method could you have learned on the mainland, hmm?”

I just met the man's eyes and smiled at him. “I was blessed with good teachers is all, my Lord,” I said calmly.

Silence between us, for a moment, as we very obviously took each other’s measure. The slight increase in tension in the room drew the attention of Masahiro, causing him to look up in confusion.

This man…he wasn’t quite as dim as his eccentric attitude and speech might indicate. I could tell.

Masayuki Ashiwara was as sharp as any blade. He would never have risen as high as he had if he wasn’t.

A small smile crossed his painted face, and he dipped his head in my direction with a slight smile. I gladly returned it, recognizing the acknowledgment as what it was.

Warrior to warrior.

Masayuki broke the near standoff by suddenly clapping his hands, causing his son to jump slightly. “Now!” He said loudly. “Enough with the formalities! I believe you had a reason for coming here, yes? Perhaps something to do with the offer I sent via my servant? And maybe to do with this blade, that I’ve been waiting so patiently on? Quite curious how quickly you produced it on short notice, hmm?” He said in a knowing, teasing voice.

I smirked ever so slightly, unashamed. I think we both knew what was going on, and I was glad to see that this Lord had an unexpected level of restraint and humility to recognize it as well.

I think I could grow to like Lord Masayuki Ashiwara.

“Hands move swifter with the right encouragement, my Lord,” I said smoothly. “As I’m sure you well know. If I may…?” I gestured towards the wrapped blade. At Lord Ashiwara’s nod, I picked up the wrapped blade and undid the twinc on the oilcloth, revealing it to the room. I couldn’t help a proud smile from crossing my lips at Masahiro’s hitched breath, as the light from the lanterns caused a blue shimmer to race down the black blade’s length.

Holding the blade in both hands, I presented it to the Elder Ashiwara almost ceremoniously, bowing my head slightly as I did so. He took it without a word, inspecting the blade curiously. “No tool marks at all,” Masayuki said almost wonderingly, twisting the length of Oninite back and forth. “It’s as if it was spun out of the Aether itself instead of being forged by the hands of man. I’ve only seen the like once before, and that was a gift to the Imperial line by the gods themselves. Astonishing.”

“Father, if I may?” Masahiro asked breathlessly. With a doting smile and a nod, Masayuki passed the blade to his son.

I have to say, I quite liked the look of wonder on the young man’s face as he looked down at the raw form of his new blade.

Masayuki seemed to as well, judging by the much warmer look that he was now fixing me with. “You’ve more than delivered on my commission, Kuroshō. And now it’s time for me to deliver on my payment. The requisite gold shall be delivered to your current domicile, but I don’t believe that’s what you’re most interested in, hmm?”

I dipped my head again with a small smile at the man’s teasing tone. “Lord Ashiwara is as wise as he is generous.”

Ashiwara nodded, as the smile on his face faded slightly. “I’m given to understand that you are searching for mysterious metallic doors, yes?” At my nod, the man unexpectedly sighed. “Then I can indeed help you. In my time in the Emperor's court, I have learned of one such place. What you seek lies in the shadow of one of the most dangerous areas in all of Kawamara.”

“Mt. Gorenzan.”

<<Chapter 228 | Table of Contents | Chapter 230>>

Chapter 228 - Tea Talk

“What, Alaric actually surrendered?” Renauld said, startled. After a moment, he smirked with a mouth full of sharp teeth. “Didn’t think the bastard would actually cave, with the way the siege has apparently been going.”

Liora, meanwhile, looked down at her own cup and stared into the green tea within thoughtfully. “The siege of Blutstein had been going on for well over a month by that point,” She mused. “It’s well possible that the usurper simply grew tired of the Uprising at his door.”

I shook my head, cutting through their words. “Oh, Alaric didn’t surrender. He apparently ‘killed himself out of shame’,” I said, holding my fingers and making air quotation marks. At the disbelieving of the table, I shook my head and shrugged. “That’s the news, at least. It came in on the ships only a few days after you left, and it’s been the talk of the town since then. 'King' Alaric committed suicide instead of surrendering, and then the Loyalists did it for him. The Uprising…won.”

“No godsdamned way he did it,” Azarus said bluntly. “That shite was stubborn even as a boy. No way do I buy he carked himself.”

I raised an eyebrow at the dwarf. “You actually met Alaric once? When? How?”

Azarus shrugged at me indifferently. “Eh, there was a bit meeting between the Principality and the Kingdom when I was a lad. Before me Da’ passed, and even before…Baldric hit the road,” He said carefully, eyes cutting Liora’s way. Months ago, the Gnoll woman would have stilled at the mention of the dwarf who had been her foster Father, motionless in her grief. But time had dulled her pain, and now she merely met his eyes unflinchingly. Azarus quirked his lips and looked away, meeting my eyes once again. “Man was a surly teenager back then, always sulking about and lookin’ down his nose at us. But he was stubborn as a mule. Ain’t no way he killed himself.”

“Well,” I drawled, leaning forward onto the table. “I’m inclined to agree. From what I understand, it was very abrupt. As you know, the Loyalists were facing a ton of pressure from both the other Houses, and the people. There were some very pointed,” I said, miming a stabbing motion with one hand. “Questions about how a Calamity appeared in the middle of Elderwyck. And about the rumors it showed up due to a Vampire.”

Renauld smirked at me. “And about how in the hells the Headmaster's new apprentice was able to kill both of them before level one hundred.”

I glowered back at him, only causing the Gnoll’s smirk to grow. He was right, of course. The incident with the crowd back in Elderwyck had turned out to be indicative of the entire Kingdom's apparent view towards me.

That of apparent hero worship.

I was being credited with both the slaying of Rhazal and Nerexxa. I don’t know how that had happened. My vote was on the leadership, possibly Woodrick, trying to juice my legend even more as part of a propaganda campaign. Initially there had been questions about where I was, back on the mainland, if I had been the one to slay two major threats like that.

But Grey had put a stop to that. He had spread word that I had suffered a lasting curse from Rhazal and needed time to recover from it in an undisclosed location. Which was…mostly true, and I didn’t blame him for doing that. It’s not like I was likely to ever recover from my new appearance.

I was…slowly getting used it.

Reluctantly.

“Anyway,” I said loudly. “So the Loyalists have surrendered and the war is officially over. The nobles were apparently quick to confirm Oskar as King-Elect. Last I heard they haven’t held a ceremony for him, but it’s apparently a done deal.”

Azarus leaned forward as well. “And Grey is okay with this?” He said doubtfully. “I mean, that’s great and all, but I was getting’ the impression he was so eager ta be doin’ all of this fer revenge. There were two more guys that were meant ta be behind the Loyalist, weren’t there?”

Renauld snapped his fingers, a decidedly odd sound from a furred hominid. “Oh yeah! Uh, weren’t they named something like…Ros-something and Vale?” At our stares, he shrugged. “I’ve never kept up with the nobs.”

“Rosberry and Valeard,” Liora interjected, exasperated, paying no mind to the triumphant finger Renauld shot her. “With the deaths of Graden and Olsen, they were the primary remaining backers of the Loyalists. Has word been said of their fate?”

“Yes for one, nothing for the other,” I said, nodding at Liora. “Valeard was apparently some big high general or something, right?” At Liora’s nod, I continued. “Well, he actually switched sides, apparently. After word of what reached Elderwyck reached him, he and his division surrendered to the Uprising rather than fight for the side that summoned tens of thousands of monsters. Last I heard, he still had his head, so…I’m guessing he didn’t have anything to do with Grey’s capture.”

“And Rosberry?” Liora asked with a raised eyebrow.

I shrugged at her. “Gone with the wind. Nobody can find hide or hair of the man. It’s like he vanished in the middle of the night. Nothing was reported missing from his estate in Blutstein. No signs of struggle. Hell, all of his wealth was still in his vaults as well. Just…poof!” I made a puffing motion with my hands. “Vanished.”

Azarus snorted in disgust, taking a big swig of his newly boozed up tea. “Pulled a Leonard then, did he?”

I pulled a face at his words, just as dissatisfied as he was.

Word had filtered out of Herztal and reached us not long after we had reached the shores of Kawamara.

Leonard Ashan, the former Warden of Caer Drarrow and the man who had imprisoned Renauld, had abandoned the Loyalist cause. The bastard had just outright vanished one day, after news of the events of Elderwyck had filtered out into the broader Kingdom. It had apparently been quite the blow to Loyalist morale at the time, and a contributing factor to their decision to retreat back to the high walls of Blutstein. There, I think, they had hoped to withstand a siege from the combined Armies of the Uprising. I had been told that those walls had never been breached in the thousands of years of Veredenese history. Not even back in the War in Heaven, nor the Initialization wars.

They hadn’t counted on their chosen King choosing to off himself, I guess.

The point being, Leonard was gone, and he had been the Loyalist's last great hope to counter Grey. Even if he had bested the former Lord Ashran before, when he was still weakened by his long gone slave brand.

But…

“It’s all over now,” I said, half in wonderment, half in exhaustion. “The war…is over.”

I’d had a week to process that, and it still hadn’t sunk in fully. It was looking like it hadn’t for the others as well , since each of my companions had their own reaction to the news that the civil war had been settled.

Azarus had the most muted reaction, with a small frown on his crimson-bearded face. He didn’t look displeased, so to speak. More…dissatisfied. I understood that, I think. The war seemed like it had ended not with a bang, but a whimper.

Real life wasn’t a storybook. Large scale conflicts so rarely ended with huge, epic confrontations between the 'Forces Of Good And Evil'. There hadn’t been some grand resolution where Grey and Oskar had stood over the defeated form of the Dread King Alaric and declared the Sculpted to be free. Instead, it had more likely been Grey consoling a young man about how his brother had chosen to end his life instead of face justice for his misdeeds.

Including the murder of their Father.

Even with as personally irritating as I found the King-Elect, I still felt bad for him. Alaric had still been blood to the former Prince, no matter what he had done. It…almost made me wonder how Isolde was handling things.

Liora was the only one of us that looked relieved in any way, shape, or form. A tenseness to her shoulders had eased, and the young Gnoll woman…relaxed in place. I had never realized before now, but I think Liora might be a bit of patriot, as odd as it was to consider that. Her entire family going back generations had been involved in the defense of Herztal, to the extent that they were the ones operating one of the largest clandestine organizations within its borders. She might have given up that life at the request of Baldric, but you needed strong feelings for a sense of generational duty like that. Almost peacefully, she reached down, picked her cup of tea back up, and sipped on it with a small smile on her face.

Renauld, though…

Renauld’s mood unexpectedly took a downturn. With a frown, he reached over and snatched the flask of liquor that Azarus had yet to put away, dumping what was left of it in his own cup. He ignored Azarus’s faint, mildly offended protestation and then slammed back his cup. The Gnoll shuddered as the booze slithered down his throat.

Exchanging a glance with Azarus, I cleared my throat. “Are you okay, Renauld? I…expected a better reaction than that.”

Renauld startled, almost as if he had forgotten that the rest of us were even here. “What? Oh. Uh…no, it’s great that the war is over. It’s just…it reminded me of something I need to do, now that it’s all settled. I was…I only…I enjoyed our time out here in Hinaga,” He paused for a moment. “A lot. I really did. And now…it’s probably all coming to an end..”

“The hells do you mean by that?” Azarus asked him, confused.

Renauld sighed, before limply gesturing my way with on hand. “Well, isn’t it obvious? With the war over, the Headmaster is going to want Nate back on the mainland. They probably want to shower him in medals or something.”

I blinked rapidly at the spotlight shifting my way. He…well.

He wasn’t wrong, per se.

Still, I shook my head. “I doubt that,” I said, causing Renauld to raise his eyebrow in question. “I told Grey that I only wanted to come back when the Academy was going to open again. He knows not to call for me before that. And, honestly? I don’t expect that to happen for a while yet. I mean, they just got out of a war. Surely…surely it takes more time to convene a school year for the Academy than a few weeks.”

I didn’t enjoy the note of doubt that snuck into my voice at that thought. Nor did I enjoy the doubtful looks that my companions exchanged.

I…didn’t want this to end either, I realized. The last few months spent here in Hinaga had been the most peaceful I had ever experienced on Vereden. I had grown very fond of everything to do with Kawamaran culture. I enjoyed the polite nature of the people, and the way they didn’t tend to stare at my cursed features for very long. I enjoyed the food, and the culture that seemed to grow around it. I enjoyed my business, in the way I was getting one over on old masters by undercutting the market on Oninite weaponry.

I enjoyed…the peace.

Before I’d gotten here, my entire year of life on Vereden had been nothing but battle after battle, in one way or another. I’d been running around with the shadow of something hovering over my head that entire time. Whether that had been the yoke of slavery quite literally around my throat, or the looming threat of the Loyalists…I had never known peace.

But I’d found it in Hinaga, and I was finding that I was reluctant to let it go.

Besides.

I had yet to accomplish the one, concrete goal that I’d set for myself, here in the Kawamaran Isles.

“I don’t know about that, Nate,” Azarus said dubiously. “Grey and that old harpy run a famously tight ship. I reckon they could get the school runnin’ for a semester right quick, without the war holdin’ ‘em down. From what I understand, they were the only faculty that were participatin’, as well. The rest of the Professors were holed up in that fortress, darin’ Alaric and his goons to come in and drag ‘em out. There’s a good reason the Loyalists never tried.”

“And it’s not just because they probably put up the shields, either,” Renauld said with a faint smirk. It died quickly, though.

Liora set her cup down on her plate with a definitive clink, drawing attention. “I sympathize, Nathan,” She said calmly. “But I would advise you to set your affairs in order. I, too, believe that the Grand Marshall shall soon call on us.”

I heaved a sigh and nodded after that, standing up from our table. “Yeah…alright,” I said tiredly, picking up my hat and putting it back on. “I’m going to settle up at the front desk. You guys…you can stay, if you’d like.” I barely heard their assent before turning around and walking up to what was really a bar.

It only took me a moment to pay for our drinks, and then I was out the door and into the evening air of Hinaga. The enchanted paper lanterns that hung on lines all up and down the street were only starting to come alive, as Tarus began his descent over the horizon. I was a bit startled, personally. I had no idea that the four of us had spent so long inside that tea house, considering it had been nearly lunchtime when we’d sat down.

I guess time flies when you’re having fun.

For some reason, that thought caused my mood to fall further, and I decided to just call it a night. Maybe some more calligraphy practice would distract me of our likely return to Herztal soon.

However, I didn’t make it more than five minutes down the road before I was interrupted by a familiar, irritating sight.

A servant dressed in green and yellow, once again bowing before me.

I felt my temper flare. “You had better not be here to bug me about Lord Ashiwara’s commission again,” I warned hotly. “I am not in the mood.”

The servant bowed deeper. “A thousand apologies, Kuroshō, but I am,” He said, straightening up. To my surprise, he raised a hand to interrupt the tirade I was about to unleash upon him. This was so out of character for every single servant I’d interacted with here in Hinaga that I actually stopped, if only in surprise. “Please, I implore you to listen. My master has instructed me to tell you that he will offer an additional payment for quicker delivery of the blade.”

I sighed, dragging a hand down my face. “I don’t need more gold,” I groaned. And I didn’t.

I’d made plenty from my other commissions.

Plenty.

The servant bowed again. “My master is aware,” He said. “And thus, he offers knowledge. It is his understanding that you are searching for word of odd metallic doors somewhere in the countryside? Perhaps located under hills and mountains?”

I stilled, as the ultimate decision I’d agreed to come to Kawamara was aired.

Bunkers.

I had never forgotten the map I had seen, in that strange, alien bunker underneath Hollow Hill all those months ago. And I had not forgotten that it had shown a still active bunker to be located somewhere in this chain of islands.

I had been asking around for months about it, here in Kawamara. And I’d never gotten a hint of acknowledgment about it.

Until now.

I slowly lowered my hand from my face and fixed the suddenly nervous servant with an intense stare.

“Tell me more.”

<<Chapter 227 | Table of Contents | Chapter 229>>

Chapter 227 - Reunion in Blossom

I couldn’t dawdle in the dining room forever, however. As much as I might have wished to, I had plans for the rest of the day. And while they didn’t involve any of my new hobbies, commercial or otherwise, I was still looking forward to it.

My friends were coming back from their hunt today, after all.

Well, they were supposed to, at least. The specific team of Oni Hunters they’d signed on to accompany had said they’d be back roughly a week after departing, and that week had passed. From my previous experience from my own expedition with this team, they were a bit of a stickler for things like timetables.

Tarus had fully cleared the horizon by the time I decided to leverage myself up from the table. The rest of the regular inn residents were only starting to appear in the dining room when I idled my way back up to my room to get ready. Once there, I dressed myself in a manner that wouldn’t mark me as a disrespectful foreign tourist. I was actually finding that I didn’t mind the local style of robes all that much. It reminded me of Venix and his own sense of style, which made sense considering how much time he’d spent in this country. But while his were white with pink cranes, I preferred black robes embroidered with golden branches.

Cinching my belt tighter, I eyed my personal weapon rack up on the wall of my room with pride. Once upon a time, all that I’d had to my name were the two daggers that I’d forged from Oninite back in Helstein. I still had them, of course, and I still enjoyed using them. In fact, I took them down from the rack and slid them into my wide cloth belt at the small of my back.

But that wasn’t all that I had these days.

Up there were two new additions to my repertoire.

My personal sword, and my bow.

While the local style seems to prefer curved swords such as Venix’s, I personally didn’t. I’d found that I still had a preference towards longswords, and had continued practicing with them. Thus, when I’d had the chance, I’d bought up a good amount of Oninite to forge one for my personal use as I had the Proficiency Talent at the time. And honestly, it just seemed like the style here in Kawamara to have a sword on you at all times. I noticed that people were just taken more seriously if they were visibly carrying one of their katanas on them.

Thus, my personal blade had been born.

It was a longsword, of course, but perhaps a bit shorter than the length of Grey’s own Stellarum. Double-edged and with an antlered motif at the crossguard, the hilt had been wrapped in a supple crimson leather. At the time of forging, I was a little lost as to what metal I should use to counterbalance the Oninite. I had eventually decided on going back to something I was familiar with using. I’d scoured the Hinagan marketplace for some of it and eventually found it.

Aetherically potent gold.

The hilt had been forged from the metal, and the blade itself had ended up with some small inclusions of it running down the length. The final product ended up looking quite striking. I…had wanted to name it, in the same way that Grey had named his own blade. After some deliberating, I had settled on something.

Thus, Terractus had been born.

I took the sheathed blade down from the wall, and slid it in my belt on my left hip. It rested comfortably there, quite literally made for me. I had no need for the bow I had made in much the same manner and from the same materials as Terractus, so I left it on the wall. But as I was leaving my room and slipping on the bamboo conical hat that seemed to be the style here in Hinaga, I did take the staff that had used to belong to Tlazo. I honestly thought of it as more mine these days, though.

I probably didn’t need it, but if nothing else, it worked as a fine walking stick.

Prepared, I left the inn, exchanging a nod with the sharp-eyed proprietress as I did so. The older woman returned the nod slightly, the expression on her elaborately painted face never moving an inch.

Stepping onto the busy streets of Hinaga, I was grateful for my hat as the spring sun was certainly shining brightly today. A delicate floral scent filled the air, as the many cherry blossom trees that lined the impeccably clean streets of Hinaga were in full bloom. Petals danced through the air as people went about their business, only casting the occasional glance my way, but not being overly rude about it. Another reason to be grateful for my hat, I suppose.

It helped to hide my ears.

Eventually, I successfully meandered my way to one of the side gates of the city, stopping only briefly along the way for a small local snack that I liked to call ‘chicken on a stick’. I’d developed a bit of a taste for the saucy strips of grilled bird in my time here.

Idly nibbling on my snack, I stayed out of the way as I came to a stop at the well-guarded entrance to the city. This wasn’t the main gate where merchants and traders came and went at all hours of the day, trundling along in their carts and wagons. This was the gate meant for adventurers, warriors, and hunters to come and go about their business. Here the guards and functionaries of the Hinagan bureaucracy inspected the kills and treasures that their martially inclined returned with.

And collected their due, of course.

It seemed like I had impeccable timing, as the large party of Oni Hunters that my friends had accompanied were just arriving at the same time I did. The massive armored cart they were using, almost reminiscent of the ironclads of the Uprising, was being inspected by the officials of Hinaga. Over a dozen massive warriors clad in black and blue layered armor stood stoically by as equally massive Hinaga soldiers clad in red and gold rifled through their trophies. I don’t think the Hunters even cared, as the vicious visage of their snarling masks simply stared straight ahead as the taxmen collected their due.

They were probably used it, by now.

Not so for my friends, it seems.

Well, at least one of them.

I had to stifle a laugh as I watched Renauld uselessly try and argue with one of the toll collectors as they took his bag away and started rifling through it right in front of him. The Gnoll was so agitated that he reached up and ripped his small little box hat right off his furry head and threw it into the dirt in frustration. The bureaucrat just ignored him as Renauld clutched at the hems of his locally styled Healers robe with an evil stare.

In contrast, neither Azarus or Liora seemed to care all that much, if probably for different reasons. My oldest friend here in Vereden just his shrugged his owned layered and lacquered armored shoulders and handed over his bag for inspection, likely uncaring about the tax. He’d always had a different frame of mind about wealth, ever since I’d known him. Probably because of his upbringing as a noble, even if he couldn’t claim that title anymore. However, he did look a bit tired standing there in his newest personally forged armor, styled in the same manner as the Hinagan’s, colored a solid steel grey. It must been a long, tough march, after an equally long, tough hunt.

I'd found that the Oni in these parts certainly lived up to their reputation.

I’m not sure what Liora thought the entire scene. It was always hard to tell considering her high mastery of her emotional state. She could have hated the inspection, but I found that unlikely. Not much seemed to bother the former infiltration specialist. She stood still as her own bag was taken from her, barely budging in her form-fitting fighting leathers. I’d offered to forge her whatever weapon she desired, but the Gnoll woman had declined. These days, she seemed to disdain using anything bladed, even the hooked dagger that she always kept on her. I believe she had truly abandoned her former life as an assassin, as Baldric had wished.

Good. That made two of us.

She was looking better these days, and not just because of the change in vocation. There hadn’t been the resources for it back in Elderwyck, so pretty much as soon as we had touched down here in Hinaga, she had sought out a Gyreite church to have the eye Nerexxa had stolen from her regenerated. No more eyepatch for her.

Now I didn’t feel bad about having my own eyesight returned to me.

As my friends were being fleeced, I tossed my now clean stick and wandered up to the squad of Hunters, making sure to clack my staff onto the cobblestone to announce my presence. I probably didn’t need to, considering the high perception that seemed inherent to these warriors, but it was polite. The mask of the Hunter that I knew to be this troop’s leader turned in my direction as I approached. “Kuroshō,” He acknowledged me with a slight dip of his head, the massive man’s deep voice echoing out of his mask.

I returned the nod respectfully. I had personally seen this man swing a battle-mace larger than I was to effortlessly pulverize the skull of an Oni with complete indifference. Frankly, I wondered if he might have been stronger than General Lonstripe had been. But of course I didn’t dare to Observe him.

That was an actual crime, here in Hinaga.

They took their politeness very seriously.

“Captain Takao,” I said with a small smile. “Did you have a productive hunt?”

The large man grunted in assent. “Two newborns, one elder,” He said in satisfaction, causing his fellows around him to nod along. “They shall not trouble the people any longer.”

“Good,” I said decisively. When I’d gone on my own hunt with Captain Takao’s squad, I’d seen firsthand just how vital their service was. A fully grown, Prime Oni was not something to disregard. An entire village had been blown down into smoldering cinders by the time we had tracked the creature down.

At that point, all we could do was provide vengeance to those poor people.

I’d found that being an Oni Hunter was clean work, all around. Little to no moral ambiguity to be found there.

As we’d been talking, I caught Azarus’s eyes from across the checkpoint. He quirked an eyebrow at me, visible underneath his helmet, causing me to shrug at him. He smirked, and then nudged Liora, which I doubted he’d needed to do. The former Agent had likely noticed me that instant I approached the gate. Still, she turned her head just enough to nod at me in acknowledgement.

Renauld was still too busy arguing uselessly to a functionary who had completely disregarded him to notice me.

I chuckled silently and leaned on my staff, settling in to wait on them.

It was nice to see my friends again.

…………………………………………………

Half an hour later, the four of us had retreated to a local tea house not far from the warrior's gate. This place was a popular location for those returning from the field, and thus, was a bit more rowdy than some of the other establishments I’d tried out here in Hinaga. As a result, it was mostly self-serve.

For obvious reasons.

I neatly side-stepped one warrior with a truly impressive beard as he stumbled around drunkenly, eventually falling flat on his face to the cheers of his compatriots. I kept the tray of refreshments I was carrying far away from the man as I threaded my way back to the table where my friends were.

It had been a bit of a surprise to find out that alcoholic tea of all things was popular with the Kawamarans. Honestly, it wasn’t as disgusting as it sounded.

I suspected a bit of Alchemical shenanigans were at play.

This was actually our third round of the day. It might have only been a week since the last time we’d seen each other, but it was still nice to chat and catch up over drinks and snacks. We’d already filled up, though, so it was just the tea for now.

I set the tray down on our table to a round of thanks from my compatriots, each of them pouring themselves a cup from the pot. I did the same as I sat down, not bothering to hide my amusement at the way Renauld was glowering down into his own cup.

“It couldn’t have been that bad,” I said to him teasingly. “The toll collectors would probably get shanked if they took too much.”

Renauld looked up from his cup to give me the evil eye. “It’s the damned principle of the thing,” He grumbled. “Whoever heard of a toll being paid in cores of all things? Just take your damn gold like a proper flatfoot!”

“How very Herztalian of you,” Liora said mildly, taking a small sip of her tea. I saw her withhold a small smirk as Renauld winced at the words, and sent the other Gnoll a wounded look in return.

Azarus rolled his eyes and gingerly took a sip from his own cup. He winced at the taste as I stifled a laugh. The dwarf wasn’t a huge fan of the local variety of tea, complaining that it was too weak for his tastes. He’d been whining about it ever since we’d landed on these shores. He deliberately set down his cup and then pulled out a flask, pouring a measure of something dark into it.

Guess I should have gotten him some of that boozy leaf juice, instead of the normal stuff.

When he was done, he looked over at me and cut through bickering from our Gnoll comrades. “So, what’s the news?” He said bluntly. “Anything from down south?”

My smile faded at the reminder as it grew quiet at the table. Guess it was finally time to break the jovial atmosphere. Too bad.

I'd enjoyed it while it lasted.

Renauld and Liora were listening with rapt attention now, because all of us had been involved in one way or another.

I took a deep breath and set my cup down, meeting their eyes. “Well,” I started with a humorless smirk.

“The war is over, now.”

 <<Chapter 226 | Table of Contents | Chapter 228>>

Chapter 226 - Green Reflection [Vol. 6 Start]

It was only by the flickering light of the lamp in my room that I could see at all.

But…that was fine, these days. Ever since my transformation at the tail end of the Elderwyck campaign, my eyes had been altered by the curse of the Rhazal the Harrower. They were more sensitive now, and it was far easier to see in low illumination. But as a consequence, they glowed ever so slightly through the dark of my study, though thankfully not enough to cast their own light.

I had actually grown to enjoy dimmer light, in those months since I and my compatriots had fled the Herztalian Civil War.

Thankfully, none of that prevented me from enjoying my newest hobby. With as stressed and fraught as I had been, just after we had landed on the shores of Kawamara, I’d needed something to distract myself. I hadn’t wanted to practice any of my martial skills or Skills, since they reminded me of the conflict I had gone so far to escape. At the time, I hadn’t wanted to learn any true Magic either, despite the fact I had just gone through my Ascension Ritual. As wondrous as I had found possessing my own decidedly odd Mana had proven itself to be, I knew…

Well.

I had just needed a break, that’s all.

That feeling towards Magic had faded with time, but I'd still picked up something new

And so I had learned calligraphy of all things.

I studied the small length of practice parchment in front of me thoughtfully for a moment, and the characters I had painstakingly inked onto its surface. After a moment, I clucked my tongue, shook my head, and set down the brush in my right hand. Picking up the piece of parchment and crumpling it up, I threw it over my shoulder carelessly to join the rest of my failures. I’d messed up a crucial brush stroke halfway through, and so I’d need to start over.

But that didn’t bother me.

Caligraphy was…calming.

While it was an art that was covered by the actual Profession of Artistry, I didn’t have that anymore. I had my Aetherial Melding, and I wasn’t using that in the slightest. I’m not sure I ever would have even thought twice about the art itself, if I had tried to use my Profession for it. To me, it would have…tainted the motions. At that point, I would have just been using the hobby for the Impact it would generate towards picking my next class.

I didn’t want that.

I wanted something I could just sit down and…do.

No expectations of advancement.

No progression towards a higher tier of power.

Just…relaxation.

And it had both worked, and continued to work for me.

I idly studied the collection of brushes, inks, and pens I had accrued in the four months since I had arrived in the Land of Rivers and made an entirely consequence free decision.

I do believe I would try the green ink I had picked up earlier today. I opened a lower drawer on my work desk and withdrew another sheet of parchment, picked up a pen this time, and broke the seal on the small jar of shining green ink. Dipping the pen inside, I made a test stroke.

“Hmm,” I muttered to myself softly in the quiet room, at the feeling of the ink. “A bit dry.”

I shrugged after a moment.

Eh, whatever. I’d try another pen on the next attempt.

I had plenty of time for experimentation.

At least…that’s what I thought.

A knock on the doorframe of my rented room caused me to make a small mistake in my penstroke, ending my current attempt early. I felt my eyebrow twitch slightly at the interruption, looking up from my desk to stare at my door.

I wasn’t expecting anyone tonight. I’d already had my dinner, and I wasn’t expecting any of my friends and compatriots at this late hour. I rarely saw Venix these days, considering how in demand he was from the local military forces. Even with as reduced in strength as he was from his extended coma, the Antium was still a high-level Cultivator. He had been taking quite a number of contracts directly from the military forces of Kawamara to cull Primes all across the isles. When he wasn’t busy with that, he was out challenging local swordmasters to duels to ‘hone his blade’, in his own words.

He even won some of those.

Sometimes.

Azarus, Liora, and Renauld should still be off with the Oni Hunters tracking down a new spawn of the little bastards. They’d offered a spot on the team to me, but I’d declined considering the…business I had these days. I didn’t want to abandon it in the cradle. Not with how proud I was of it.

And Bella?

Well…

My core ring sighed to itself at the thought of the pirate woman, even as my outer leveraged my body up to go and see who was at my door.

Bella came and went on her own time, considering her work with the Bluebacks. I hadn’t seen her in over a month now, ever since a particular…incident between us.

I smoothed down my plain evening robe and ran a self-conscious hand over the barely-there hair. Annoyingly, I’d found that after my transformation due to Vis Maledicta Exactoris, my hair grew in much, much slower than it used to. I’d expected to have a full head of hair by now, after it had been shaved for my Ascension Ritual.

But no. Irritatingly enough, I still looked like a brunette tennis ball.

I shook those thoughts off and reached out, sliding back the rice paper door that separated me from the rest of the high-class inn where I rented a semi-permanent room. On the other side of the door was a fairly…irritating sight.

A man dressed in servant robes belonging to a particular noble house, here in the capital city of Hinaga. The greens and yellows clashed horribly with the understated, earthen hues of the inn, but that wasn’t what was so irksome about them.

It was that I had already shooed this particular servant away, earlier in the day. They must have known how unwelcome I would have found the sight of them, because they were already bowing at the waist in apology.

I sighed, reaching up to massage my brow. “As I’ve already said,” I groaned. “The sword is not ready yet. Please inform Lord Ashiwara that, no matter how many times he pesters me, the forging process will not accelerate.”

The servant bowed deeper. “A thousand apologies, Kuroshō,” He murmured apologetically. “But my Lord is insistent. His firstborn son and heir leaves for his first hunt in a fortnight. The young master deserves nothing but the best, and you can provide it.”

I took a deep breath to try and tamp down on my frustration, because this guy didn’t deserve it. The busybody Lord I had taken a commission from did.

You see, there had been a problem with my decision to flee from the war. For the first time, I had been separated from the seemingly endless coin purse of my mentor, Headmaster Greycton of the Shadowed Sun. I could no longer depend on his financial assistance in…pretty much all things essentially. All the coin I had to my name was the backpay I’d gotten for my work as part of the clandestine Nocturne Division. And while that had been significant at the time, it’s not like it was infinite. I’d realized on the trip over the waves to Kawamara that the gold would run out eventually.

So, I’d hatched a plan to start slinging my talents as an artisan here in the capital city. The intention had pretty much to only do it as a side gig while I stuck to the original one of adventuring in the rolling hills and forests of the Land of Rivers with my friends. Once here, I’d discovered a pretty surprising thing.

The metal that comprised my own personal weapons, Oninite…wasn’t really used much. It was pretty common here in Kawamara, but it was notoriously difficult to work with. Piles and piles of the ore sat around in warehouses galore here in the city, entirely unused and unwanted by the locals. Pretty much only the best of the best smiths in the country were capable of working it into weaponry. But they tended to charge an arm, a leg, and a few other assorted body parts to do that.

I didn’t.

It was much easier for me to work the metal with my cheaty cheating cheater Profession than a good old-fashioned smith.

I’d capitalized on that, and started out by ‘flooding’ the market with a number of Oninite weapons to get my name out.

That had very rapidly caught the attention of Hinaga, and eventually the high houses of the nobility. From that, I’d been given the smith-name of ‘Kuroshō’ by the locals. When I tuned Language Adaptation down a bit for a direct translation, it seemed to mean something along the lines of ‘Black Artisan’.

Possibly a play on both my now signature metal, and the black trails of scales that lined my battle scars. A truly wonderful gift from the now-deceased Rhazal.

Bah.

I may not be as skilled as the master smiths of this country, but that didn’t matter when I was working with higher-quality material. Just the fact that I was offering cheap Oninite weaponry at all was enough to grant me both clout and a number of very lucrative contracts.

Like the one from Lord Ashiwara.

More than enough to both fund my lifestyle here in this inn, as well as my new hobby.

Well, hobbies.

“My answer remains the same,” I said tiredly. “The sword will be finished in a weeks time. If my knowledge of how time functions is still correct, then the sword will be ready for the young master’s hunt with time to spare. Good day, sir.”

The servant raised his head just enough from his bow to look at my face. I noticed that his eyes lingered on my ears, but not for an excessively rude amount. “But-!”

“I said good day, sir,” I said firmly, sliding the paper door closed deliberately. Any further protest from the servant was cut off, and thankfully, he took the hint. I heard the servant sigh wearily from outside the door and then shuffle away on sock-clad feet.

I let out a breath now that the interruption was done, rolling my shoulders as I did. They were a bit tense from hours of hunching over the small work desk I’d bought for myself with my smithing work. I eyed said desk for a moment before deciding to call it a night. The interruption had broken my flow, and I didn’t think I had it in me to get back into it.

Time for bed, I think.

As I shuffled my way over to the Kawamaran bedroll in my room, I let my eyes drift over to the opposite corner from my sleeping quarters.

The one filled with weaponry. Spears, and swords, and maces of all shapes and sizes lay carelessly piled on top of each other.

All of them made from the blue and black of Oninite.

It, uh. It didn’t take me long to actually forge a weapon from the metal, and so during my work sessions I tended to make…a number of them. In point of fact, Lord Ashiwara’s commission was actually finished and resting in that pile, no matter what I’d told the servant.

Somewhere.

I just hadn’t told the servant because his master was kind of a rude asshole.

They could wait for a few days.

Frankly, I only tended to take a long time on weapons that I personally forged for my own use these days.

And I had certainly made more than a few.

With that comforting thought, I slid into the bedroll and almost immediately felt myself start to drift off to sleep.

It was coming much easier for me, these days.

A little rest worked wonders.

…………………………………………

The next morning, I ventured down to breakfast before the break of dawn. Since my Ascension, I’d found that I needed even less time to get the equivalent of a full night’s rest. I’d been up late into the night working on my calligraphy before the interruption from Ashiwara’s servant. All told, I’d probably slept for only about four hours.

And yet I felt completely fine. Rested, even.

I returned the slight bow that the proprietress of the inn gave me as I reached the ground floor. At her wordless gesture, I sat down at one of the small, low tables in the dining area. I was the first one down here, considering the time, but that didn’t seem to stop the service here. I swear, they seemed to operate at all hours. Minutes later, one of the waitresses kneeled next to my table with a tray carrying my breakfast and a cup of steaming tea. She placed it in front of me and then backed away with a quiet bow.

I picked up my tea and leaned back on one hand, sipping at it as I looked out of the large, open sliding doors displaying the skyline of Hinaga. Just outside of them, I could see a slight hint of light on the horizon as Tarus began to peak over the horizon, casting a wave of emerald light over the spires and temples of the city.

I took a deep breath and smiled.

Yeah…

This had been a good decision.

<<Interlude 12 | Table of Contents | Chapter 227>>

Interlude 12 - You Will Know Good and Evil [Vol. 5 End]

The rats were arguing again.

They bickered back and forth uselessly from around the table set up in the throne room, mindless in their panic. Raised voices and screamed insults were abound in the air as the gathered noble men and women of the high house of Herztal gave voice to their panic. All the while, the most worthless of all sat on high in his gilded throne, clutching at the arms of his stolen seat in his own desperation. The fool’s dull green eyes bounced back and forth among his arguing subjects as he searched for a way out of his doom.

Leonard Ashran sat back in his own chair and idly sipped on a glass of substandard wine, watching the puppets dance.

And pondered.

This conflict was coming to an end, he felt. The news about what had happened up in Elderwyck had finally washed over the court. Sources in the city were saying that the apprentice of Grand Marshal Greycton of the Order of the Eclipsed Dawn had slain a Calamity. Many had been highly skeptical of this claim, considering their intelligence on the young man placed him at under level one hundred. The idea of someone who wasn’t even a proper Magi or Cultivator killing a Calamity of all things had been rightfully laughed at by the gathered fools.

That was until it was reported again.

And again.

And again.

The council had stopped laughing then.

Leonard cast his mind back to the confrontation in his long-lost prison. Had this apparent Calamity slayer been present back then? Yes, he eventually decided, he thought he had been. The boy had been wielding a dinky little spear and protecting Greycton’s get, feeling like he had been barely level sixty to his senses. Hah, well. It was likely the boy was beyond level one-hundred now, if he had actually killed something like that.

The former Warden of Caer-Drarrow raised his glass up in salute to the distant Calamity Slayer, ignoring the confused glances he received from nobles about him. They didn’t matter anyway.

Even as opposed as he was to the schoolteacher's little rebellion, he could still admire a near mythical feat like that.

Good show, Nathaniel Hart.

It…did put him in a little bit of a predicament, however.

He had been counting on the Calamity keeping Greycton and his Uprising busy for longer time, after all. Not for it to be slain almost immediately.

Leonard pursed his lips in irritation.

That worthless little bloodsucker had promised him that ‘the Mighty Rhazal’ was more than a match for the Shadowed Sun and his cohort. Apparently, the Chaospawn had overexaggerated the monstrosity’s abilities a tad.

What kind of Calamity was slain by someone that weak?

If she hadn’t already been killed by an unaligned Lich of all things, he would have hunted her down and ended his former ‘collaborator’ for the inconvenience.

Alas, he was going to have to adjust his plans, now that the Vampyr’s gambit had failed. He supposed he had expected a bit much from an old relic like that. Storybook reputations had a tendency to be overblown.

But she had seemed so competent when she had approached him, those years ago. He had just returned from his voyages abroad, and had grown increasingly disgusted with the state of Herztalian society. The introduction of those disgusting little abominations that called themselves ‘Sculpted’ had introduced unacceptable sloth into his homeland.

The people no longer had a need to struggle in a world where the toils of life were done by automatons. The farmer did not grow in strength from his tilling of the land. The craftsman did not hone his hedge at the practice of his craft. The soldier did not thrive in the clash with the monstrous.

Leonard had seen the Sculpted for what they were, long before the things had started talking back.

A curse upon the future of the human race.

At the time, he had been so disgusted he had pondered simply getting back on his ship and sailing back off into the sunset, never to return. Vereden might have been small, but a life at sea wouldn’t have been so bad. His voyages had introduced him to heretofore unknown tiny islands out on the ocean, absolutely filled to the brim with very strong monsters. More than strong enough to propel him all the way to Paragon.

It would have been a good, simple life.

But…

The bloodsucker had approached him, as he was silently bemoaning the state of his homeland in a dockside Elderwyckian bar. When the creature had revealed itself to him, he had nearly assaulted it immediately. Such a vicious relic from the past had no place in modern society, even with its degraded state. However, she had spoken of some…interesting ideas.

Very enticing ones.

For the foolish, of course. That creature had truly lost her edge if she thought she could get one over a scion of House Ashran.

But her presence did present another opportunity. One where he could shape the future of Herztal, and Vereden itself.

All he would have to do was outmaneuver the relic when the right time came. He wasn’t frightened by either her or her remnant goddess.

After all, how strong could a divinity possibly be, if they had been driven so completely from these shores? It’s not like anyone actually feared the Mad God these days, and he was still on Vereden in the first place.

And so he’d agreed, always intending to double-cross the beast at the right moment.

No doubt a duplicitous creature like this ‘Nerexxa’ had been intending the same thing.

The bitch.

Only she had bungled her part of the plan. She had completely failed to capitalize on the horde of generated monsters his modified Ward Stones had created. All they had done was create fodder to feed the footsoldiers of the Uprising.

Well, he supposed they had also displaced and possibly slaughtered hundreds of Herztalian citizens, but he considered that a benefit. The weak would either become the mighty, or they would be culled.

Leonard sighed, finished off his glass of wine, and stood up from his chair. At the movement, most of the arguing immediately stopped. Once, the attention would have brought a brief surge of pride. After all, the strong should be admired, and he was by far the strongest surviving asset that belonged to the Kingdom of Herztal.

But now all he felt was contempt. He brushed the peons off and started walking towards the exit of the throne room, letting his gaze idly brush over the emissary from the Principality as he moved. They had arrived the other day, but Leonard hadn’t given the stuntie much of a second thought. They were some knight under the umbrella of the Savoy of middling renown. Strong, but nothing compared to him.

Stonebreaker, he thought the knight’s name was.

“Stop!” Leonard heard from behind his back, ending all conversation in the hall. As much as he wished to leave, he still stopped at that voice, albeit reluctantly. With an annoyed sigh, Leonard turned in place to gaze at the owner in boredom.

His supposed ‘King’

Alaric of House Eisenherz.

The young man was looking a bit rough, these days. He wasn’t managing the stress of the civil war very well, especially now that his own faction was on the decline. His formally thick blond hair had thinned considerably from the pressure, and unsightly, premature wrinkles had sprouted on his forehead and around his thin lips. The ‘King’ had lost weight as well, looking almost sickly in comparison to his former knightly physique. Once upon a time, this man had been a somewhat respectable knight in service to old Otto, the former King.

Before Nerexxa had set her claws in him.

Now the puppet’s strings were cut, and he didn’t even know it. The influence had been impressively subtle, Leonard could admit that much. The creature had gotten very close to the usurper.

It was only a matter of time before some people made the connection to the Vampyr that had surfaced in Elderwyck…

And the young woman who occasionally appeared out of nowhere to cozy up to the former knight.

Leonard wondered if Alaric was starting to make the same connections.

Judging by the sweat on his brow, probably.

“Where are you going, Lord Ashran?” The ‘King’ asked in a high-pitched, stressed voice. “I did not give you leave to vacate the council.”

Leonard kept his face still, even as he wanted to sneer in disgust. Give him leave? He was hundreds of times this upstarts strength. In a just world, this upjumped peacock would have been begging for a chance to serve at his feet.

Alas, this was a slovenly world indeed.

“I suddenly recalled an urgent matter, my King,” Leonard replied in an even tone. When Alaric looked like he would protest again, the monster tamer made something up on the spot. “Research related to the defeat of Headmaster Greycton. I’m afraid it can’t wait.”

That was a blatant lie. Leonard liked to consider himself a pragmatist. He had already matched himself against that old monster and been found wanting, as much as he loathed the idea. There was no point in trying to duel the Shadowed Sun once more. It would likely be centuries before he could prove his superiority to the schoolteacher.

Alaric brightened up at the offered bait. He nodded grandly, as if Leonards's exit had been his intent all along. “Go, Lord Ashran. I would not keep you from your training.”

It was so, so difficult not to roll his eyes, but Leonard did so anyway. He nodded shortly at the fool and pivoted on his heel, striding out of the room. As he walked through the halls of the palace, Leonard felt a brief burst of regret at what he was going to be giving up shortly. He would miss the comforts of nobility.

But adversity bred strength, and the isles awaited him. Leopold could keep the Ashran Lordship, the great oaf.

It was time to vacate the shores of his homeland.

At least until he had become a Paragon.

Leonard picked up his pace at the pleasing thought.

…………………………………………………..

Once he had reached the Ashran family manor, he dismissed all of the servants for the day. They were confused, but by this point, used to his peculiarities and didn’t question his motives. Once they had vacated the premises, he got to work packing the things he would need on his journey out to sea. Alas, he could not take the entire Ashran family library with him, but there were certain tomes he absolutely could not live without.

Before he knew it, Leonard had filled several large crates with the equipment, supplies, and a certain amount of frivolities he would need on his long, self-imposed exile. Once done, he nodded to himself and ventured down into the basement for a gruesome, but necessary task.

After all, he couldn’t exactly bring along his experiments in monster breeding on his ship, could he?

They would all have to be culled. He couldn’t leave even the slightest hint as to the direction of his research. He would never know another moment’s peace if it was discovered he was trying to recreate the Lost’s experiments on Calamity creation.

The entire kingdom would likely be bent towards his capture and execution.

The regretful task of destroying his experiments only took him the barest few minutes, and when he had finished, Leonard helped himself to another parting bottle of wine in his large, expansive kitchen. He saluted the air with a glass full of a truly delectable Rosé. “Fair you well, my erstwhile children,” He said dramatically, before turning in the direction of the castle and sneering in its direction through the walls. “And good riddance to you, you sniveling little shit. You are unworthy of your throne, and thus my loyalty.”

Throwing aside all propriety, Leonard picked up the bottle and guzzled it down, throwing it into a corner once finished. As the bottle shattered into pieces and he opened his eyes once more, Leonard startled in place at what he found.

There was a dwarf sitting on the counter in front of him.

Leonard stared at the incongruous sight for a moment. “What…?” He breathed.

He may be a tad bit inebriated, but his magical senses were still unhindered.

Leonard hadn’t felt the dwarf arrive at all. It was as if he had simply appeared, from one moment to the next. After a moment of silent staring, he actually recognized the dwarf.

It was that knight from earlier, Stonebreaker.

Said knight leaned forward over his knees, bizarrely cupping his helmeted chin in one gauntleted chin to stare at him. “My my,” The dwarf said mildly. “What is this I see, but the Crowns last hope abandoning it? Are you perhaps preparing to flee, Lord Ashran?”

Leonard immediately leveled one open hand at the dwarf and loosed the strongest Spell he could at short notice. A mass of jagged blue crystal, taller than the dwarf, appeared in front of his palm and streaked through the air to spear at the intruder. The air howled from the sheer velocity of the missile.

The dwarf, almost boredly, raised one hand and caught it out of the air. He examined the crystal almost idly for a moment, as Leonard gaped in open-mouthed shock. “Who…” He breathed. “Who are you? You can’t simply be a minor knight. Not with that strength.”

Through the dwarf’s helmet, Leonard saw his jet black eyes flick up at him. Almost nonchalantly, he crushed the crystal spire in his mailed fist, sending a glittering cloud of dust floating to the floor of the kitchen. After a moment of contemplation, the dwarf reached up and removed his helmet, baring his face to the world.

Leonard felt the blood run out of his face at the sight. It had been a long time since he had seen this person, but he still recognized them. Years and years ago, he and Leopold had been in attendance, during a meeting between King Otto and the Dwarven Princes. This dwarf had been in attendance, nearly suffocating the court from his sheer presence alone.

“Anguis of Savoy…”

Prince Anguis, Lord of House Savoy. Chainmaker of the Principality.

The Serpent.

A small, thin smile touched the lips of the dwarf as he caught Leonard’s eyes. “I have a proposition for you, Lord Ashran,” The dwarf nearly purred. “Before you leave. Stay awhile and listen.”

Leonard steadied his breath, holding the gaze of the dwarf he knew was stronger than he was. Carefully, he copied the dwarf and hopped up onto the counter opposite of him, uncaring about the indignity of the maneuver.

None of that mattered now, in a negotiation of true power.

He nodded at the Prince, gesturing with an open hand. “Make your case, Serpent.”

The smile on Anguis’s lips…

Widened.

<<Chapter 225 | Table of Contents | Chapter 226>>

Chapter 225 - The Resolution of Heaven and Earth

“From the top, then,” Grey said solemnly, picking up the sack Honoka had given him earlier. Carefully, he withdrew seven items from within it, and set them on a small table next to the ritual area. One remained in his hand. “All things must align with your Terrestrial Affinity. For Northern Fire, we have a splinter of Emberwood. A hardy tree from the icy far north, unexpectedly tinged with fires of the volcanoes it grows upon.” Kneeling, Grey set the splinter of oddly bright orange wood down in the topmost circle.

Next, he picked up a chunk of a familiar black and blue metal. “For Southern Earth, we have a portion of unsmithed Oninite. You seem to have a liking for the metal, and it works well enough,” He said, laying the ore in the bottommost circle. Then, Grey picked up what looked to be a pearl, as well as a black and white feather. “A freshwater pearl from the heart of Lake Lubel for Eastern Water, and the feather of a bearded vulture for Western Air. That last one was a bit hard to decide on, as you recall,” He told me, as he laid the pearl in the rightmost circle and the feather in the leftmost.

Yeah, I remember. The only reason we had settled on that particular feather was because the bird itself had a tendency to roll around in red clay. Because of that, the Aetherial balance of the feather suited our needs for a slight 'Terrestrial' alignment.

Grey stepped back for a moment to inspect the circle, before nodding sharply. “Good, there’s the Prime Elements done. Now for the Secondary. For North-Eastern Light, we have Lumenstone. From experience, I can tell you the Hold Dwarves use it as a source of illumination,” He picked up a lump of jagged, yet almost completely translucent crystal. At his touch, it shone a brief, bright white, before dimming. He set that down in the circle between the splinter and the pearl, and then picked up a jagged length of what looked like jet-black glass. “Indiquan Warrior Obsidian, for South-Western Darkness. We’re lucky to be doing this in Elderwyck, as it would be difficult to find it anywhere else on Vereden. Luckily, it’s not hard to find in these markets, considering the nearness of Tlatec,” This he sat in between the feather and the Oninite, before picking up the final reagent.

A hunk of blue metal, very similar in shade to his own Stellarum. It gleamed in the low light of the abandoned church.

Grey inspected it thoughtfully, turning it back and forth in his palm. “Lunar Basalt. It’s a bit low quality,” He said, inspecting it closely. “But it will do. Even the weakest Lunar Basalt is matched by only the purest of Mithril. And you need it, as the counterweight to your own Terrestrial Affinity. This shall do, for the North-Western Celestial element. Now, notice how there is no circle for a South-Eastern Terrestrial reagent,” He said, nodding in that direction of the circles. I looked and saw that he was right, with the circles containing the pearl and the Oninite resting next to each other with no gap in between. “You are essentially acting at the Terrestrial anchor in this ritual. This is because of your own Affinity with the Element.”

I looked back up at him in thought. “You know,” I mused. “You’ve never talked about the Elements before. I don’t know anything about ‘Terrestrial’ Element, much less the rest of them. Why is that?”

Grey shrugged at me. “Because it’s not terribly important until you’re either a Magi or a Cultivator, that’s why,” He said patiently. “The most your Affinity does before then is decide the ‘flavor’ of Class that you receive at level ten. Yours is Terrestrial, as it says on your Status, and thus was expressed through your own particular thorns. Mine is Celestial, and thus I’ve always possessed Classes that allude to the heavens.”

I nodded slowly. “Then…would Sylvia’s be Light? And Azarus maybe Fire?”

Grey quirked an eyebrow. “Yes, my Sylvia’s Affinity is towards Light, and so she received a Light based illusionist Class. You’re mistaken about Azarus, however. He has an Earth Affinity. It is Honoka who has a Fire Affinity. You’ll learn much more about Affinities once attending the Academy. For now, all you need to know is their positions around the Grand Compass, and their relationships to their Subversions. In your case…Celestial,” He chuckled to himself. “I find it oddly appropriate that your Affinity is Terrestrial, in that way. But enough about the Elements. It’s time to begin, Nathan. Please begin meditating, and I’ll empower the array.”

I nodded at Grey and fully sat down in the circle, crossing my legs as I did so. Then…

I closed my eyes and focused inwards, falling into a very familiar meditative state. This was the same state that I always had to concentrate on, in order to use Aetherial Melding. But because of the Isolation Chamber, I wasn’t able to feel the pulse of Vereden’s Aether bouncing and flowing all around me. It was almost disturbing, but I dismissed such thoughts.

Soon, my mind was as calm as I could make it. I floated in a sea of nothingness for a moment, before I felt a tingle from all around me pass through the circle.

Grey had begun. The distinctive, silvery cool ‘flavor’ of his own Mana had activated the circles.

One by one, I felt them come alive, each of them shaded with the Element that they represented. To my senses, the Celestial Circle was the last of them to come alive, and when it did, something odd happened. I knew to expect it, but I still shivered at the sensation.

Each of them felt as if they had almost magnetized, latching on to something deep inside of myself. The feeling was a bit…unpleasant. It was as if multiple hooks had dug themselves deep into something inherent to myself, individually targeting specific things from different angles.

That had to be the anchors at work.

From what Grey had told me, each of the anchor points of the ritual would target Elementally charged Aether that had latched on to my Soul and infected my Mind. Then, they would drag it out of me in what was supposed to be a violent display, leaving only the Element that I was aligned with behind. That Terrestrially aligned Aether would then be ‘condensed’ inside of my mind and, in Grey’s words, ‘sparked’ into becoming Mana. From there, the Mana would propagate through the whole of my Mind and spirit, and from that point on, it would generate itself naturally.

It sounded like a bit of a…violent process, to be honest.

I grit my teeth as I felt the first portion of waste energy being wrenched from my being. It…well, it didn’t hurt quite as much as Grey had said it would. The sensation was more like a bee sting than a broken bone, like he had told me it might be.

The elementally charged Aether being extracted had to be of Earth, as I saw the silver of the circle in front of me shine briefly. With wary eyes, I watched as the chunk of Oninite…

Let out a brief puff of bright yellow dust, and then settled back down.

I blinked.

That hadn’t been as violent as I had thought it would be. Maybe this wouldn’t be that bad.

But Grey didn’t seem to be as relieved by that I was. He frowned at the hunk of Oninite for a moment, rubbing his chin. “Odd,” He said aloud. “I would have expected the reaction to be much more intense, for an initial draw like that.”

I flicked my eyes up to meet his, as the circle to my left lit up briefly and the pearl inside puffed out a weak mist. “Maybe I just didn’t have much Earth aligned Aether in my Soul? And…apparently Water Aether too?”

Grey’s brow furrowed. “I have never seen such a weak reaction in an Ascension ritual. The amount of Aether that accumulates as waste product in the Mind and Soul from simply living is miniscule, but it builds up over time. Quite a bit, I would say. This little amount….” He abruptly stopped talking, his lips parting in shock. “I…no…”

“Grey?” I asked, growing alarmed as I felt a burst of heat behind me from the Emberwood. “What’s going on?”

“I’m such a fool…” He breathed, tensing. “Aether builds up over time in the spirit. And you’ve only been here on Vereden for roughly a year. You’ve said your home world doesn’t possess Aether, and so your spirit hasn’t had the time to absorb enough waste Aether. Damn! We rushed into this without considering that.”

“Isn’t that a…good thing?” I said in trepidation. “The goal is spiritual purity, right? If I don’t have a ton of waste energy, then isn’t that a good thing?”

Grey ignored me, getting down on his knees next to the ritual circle and, for some reason, taking out a knife. “No,” He said grimly. “Because you likely don’t have enough Terrestrial Aether either, to catalyze the first spark of Mana. It’s possible the ritual will try and draw on your Soul itself to create that spark. Such a thing is likely to cripple you, in much the same way that it has done to Venix. But you don’t have the foundation he has to recover from that. It would ruin your prospects of advancement for life.”

“Oh,” I said weakly, tensing in the middle of the circle. I tried to move, only to freeze when Grey barked a command at me.

“Do not!” He said tensely, head whipping in my direction to fix me with an intense stare. “Move! You’ll start the reaction early!”

I froze in place, as I saw a brief flare of white light out of the corner of my eye from the Lumenstone.

Grey breathed deeply for a moment. “This is my fault,” He said lowly. “I grew complacent with the sheer number of times I’ve done this in the past. I did not consider how such a common ritual would change with your circumstances. And so I will fix it.” With that, he used the apparently powerful dagger clenched tightly in his right hand to slash at his left arm. A large, deep gash opened up on his pale flesh immediately. Strangely, the cut didn’t immediately start gushing blood, even though I thought I could see bone inside of it.

“Grey?!” I asked in shock, as he tossed the dagger behind him clenched down on the wound. Sluggishly, dark, dark blood welled up from it, which he dipped his fingers in. “What are you doing?!”

“Saving your life,” Grey said grimly, bending over to start sketching runes into a new circle that he drew in his own blood. This new circle was right outside the meeting point of the Earth and Water circles. “I will inject a portion of my own inherent Aether into the ritual, as a new counterweight. The rate will be low, considering it will need to go through a converter. I…some measure of Celestial Affinity bleed through will be inevitable, I’m afraid.” He looked up to give me a deeply apologetic look. “I’m sorry, Nathan. The intensity of my own energies is likely to taint yours. I…don’t know what will happen, but we have no choice. The alternative is unacceptable, and we simply can’t stop the ritual once it has begun.”

I took a deep breath to calm myself, once again missing my middle ring. After a moment, I looked up and nodded at Grey. “Do it.”

Grey returned my nod and finished scribing out his blood-based addendum to the Ascension ritual. He let his hand hover over the still-wet blood, and in the open space, a spark of black and silver Mana bloomed.

The bloody circle of runes glowed to life, and I swear I smelled a brief floral scent infiltrate the circle I sat in.

Next to the chunk of Oninite, the obsidian gleamed a weak, oddly black light before dimming. The Dark Aligned Aether in my soul must have been purified. The ritual was almost done.

Only the Air circle was left.

Grey grit his teeth from outside the circle. “Faster,” He whispered furiously, concentrating. The bloody circle glowed brighter, and I shivered as I actually felt the Aether he was injecting into my soul.

It felt…different from my own. Colder, somehow.

But as soon as that happened, the feather to my right floated up briefly on a weak breeze. When it touched back down onto the stone floor, I felt it.

A spark, originating somewhere deep inside of myself.

My eyes widened as I finally felt the pain that Grey had warned me about. It was like a fire had erupted into being, somewhere deep inside of myself. With the awareness I had of my own soul space, it felt like the crystalline tree of my soul had begun to burn in a raging, two-toned flame.

Some of that fire felt familiar, reminiscent of the bloody thorns that had defined my build. It spoke of the bones of the earth and of the life that dwelled upon it, raging with a ferocity born of instinct. It sang of the bloody struggle that all experienced, as they fought with primal instinct to survive. It whispered of the need to thrive.

But the other half was different. This fire was cold and dark. It felt nothing, and in its depths, eons stretched. It spoke of the vastness that stretched out into the depths of the void, of lightless depths that rang together in eternal concordance. It sang of the mysteries that lurked within the far corners of the cosmos, and of the fundamental, ordered dance that all must adhere to. It whispered of the need to understand.

Within me, that spark bloomed. From it, two separate waves of Mana raged and flowed, immediately filling the empty space of my soul.

One wave was a sinuous crimson and pulsed with the primality of life, thrumming through the space of my soul. Threaded through I could see countless thorny vines, layered over themselves in a twisting, writhing mass. This, I somehow knew, was my original Affinity. That which was Terrestrial to my being.

The other was blue. It flowed and wisped and twirled around the ferocity of the Terrestrial, flickering at the edges like a flame. Within its depths burned deeper pools of what seemed to be concentrated fire, and in those glowing pools I could see the cold, distant light of the stars.

This was new.

It had to be the Celestial that Grey had inadvertently introduced into me.

The flames that had engulfed my crystalline tree were doused in an instant, and the cracks that had formed its glasslike surface mended. New, blade-like leaves that had been scoured from its surface from my struggles instantly bloomed all along the branches.

Cradled in the crown of my tree’s upper branches, a star bloomed.

The core of it was reminiscent of the crimson of my thorns, flowing and grinding eternally against each other. And yet, they glowed almost plasmically with their own malevolent light. Surrounding it was the new Celestial flame of Grey's introduced affinity, which had somehow gained an identity of it's own. Floating over it's surface were those deeper pools of flame, displaying the distant lights of non-existent stars.

This...

This had to be the core of my Mana, cradled within my Mind. The font from which I would now and forever more craft my own Spells.

The pressure and pain that had engulfed my being lifted, and what was left in its wake…

Tears filled my eyes in wonder at the sensation, as I lifted eyes that saw beyond the mere physical. I was barely aware of Grey sitting back in relief at the success of his gambit, because I had discovered that Sylvia had been right, all those months ago.

You truly couldn’t describe what this was like, to someone who didn’t have it.

It was like coming home.

<<Chapter 224 | Table of Contents | Interlude 12>>

Chapter 224 - When I Get Back

I simply stared into Sylvia’s gemborn sapphire blue eyes for a moment, doing my best to hide my unease. I may have a maxed-out Acting Talent, but I couldn’t be sure I was able to fool her.

Sylvia had always been more perceptive than most gave her credit for.

“What did you want to know?” I finally asked quietly.

To my surprise, Sylvia began to fidget in place slightly, toying with the pommel of her sword. Her eyes cut away from me. “I…am given to understand that you are my father’s apprentice,” She said slowly. “And that you were instrumental in freeing him, and have been since that time. Not only that, but we were…partners for a time-”

I felt my heart stutter in my chest for a moment at those words.

Was she remembering?

“-in our work with the Nocturne Division,” Sylvia continued awkwardly. My hopes died a swift death. Thankfully, I don’t think she had noticed, with the way she wasn’t looking at me. “I…likely already thanked you for your liberation of father, but I wanted to do so again. It’s weighed on me that I cannot remember that.”

I sighed slightly. “You did thank me,” I said, my mind flashing back to the hug she had given me all those months ago. Even then, I think I might have had a small crush on the Sculpted woman. Sylvia had been a small source of comfort for me, in the latter half of my time in Addersfield. I had been so emotionally raw in those days that even the smallest source of distraction in the form of her lessons had a gigantic impact on me. I had so desperately needed any source of hope for the future, and her instruction in the path I had eventually come to hate had given it to me.

Even now, I was disturbed at the realization that I was feeling nearly as vulnerable now, as I was in those nightmare filled days long past.

There were some things strength simply couldn’t fix.

Sylvia finally turned to face me, and I think some of my unease must have finally occurred to her. “We were…close, weren’t we?” She nearly whispered.

I closed my eyes, unwilling to meet hers. I couldn’t bring myself to speak, and so I just nodded.

Silence descended on us for a moment, before she spoke again. “How…close, exactly?”

I opened my eyes, but didn’t look at her. “Very,” I said roughly.

Sylvia was smart. I had no doubt that she understood what that meant. “Oh,” She said, in a weak voice. “I…see.”

I finally turned to look at Sylvia at those words. It pained me to see how small the Sculpted woman looked then, with her arms wrapped tightly around herself. I so desperately wanted to be the one who could comfort her again and take her Mithril form in my arms, but…

I was nearly a stranger, now.

I took a deep breath. This had been coming since she had woken up, and it was time to stop running from it.

No matter how much it hurt.

Slowly, so as not to startle her, I approached Sylvia and gently pried one of her hands off her forearms. Meeting her eyes, I did my best to smile. “I’m sorry, Sylvia,” I said quietly. “You don’t deserve this, and I’m sorry that I failed you so deeply. If I had just been stronger, if I had just known how to treat you better…maybe you wouldn’t be suffering this way now.”

Sylvia’s eyes widened from the contact, a small amount of panic entering her eyes as she glanced down at my hand on hers. “I…” She tried to speak, but couldn’t force the words out.

“Maybe one day…we can be friends again,” I said softly. “But…I don’t know if it’ll be more than that. You, as much I care about you, aren’t the woman I fell in love with. As short as a year is…that history was important.” I said, taking a step back and feeling a weight lift off of my shoulders. Both the acknowledgment of that fact, and the small amount of relief that I could see in Sylvia’s eyes…

It hurt, of course. But maybe not as much as it had been.

Like the lancing of a boil, the pain first needed to be confronted, before it could heal.

Sylvia shuddered from my words and nodded jerkily. “I-I see,” She said, looking simultaneously dazed and comforted. If I knew Sylvia…

And I did.

After somehow finding out about how close we had been, she’d felt a pressure at the expectation of the relationship. She hadn’t known me, and even if she knew intellectually that she had no obligation to a stranger, I was still her father’s apprentice.

I had no desire to weigh on her mind as she worked to find herself once again.

“When I get back,” I said with a smile. “We should talk. Maybe spar. And see if we can get to know each other again, if only for Grey’s sake.”

Something about my words must have finally reassured Sylvia, because she gave me a tiny smile. “I would like that, Sir Hart.”

I made a show of wincing exaggeratedly. “Just Nathan, please.”

Her smile widened. “Nathan, then. It’s nice to meet you…Nathan,” She said, extending her left hand.

Something about that gesture…it puzzled me for a moment, before I realized what it was.

Sylvia was naturally right-handed. Why would she extend her left?

My heart picked up slightly at a possibility.

Sylvia, my Sylvia, had been strangely fond of my false left arm, whose foundations had been built on the study of her soul. Always when we had held hands, or merely when she sought comfort from me, it had been my left she had sought out. I think something about the similarity of the limb to her own had reassured her.

Maybe it was just hope…but if she wanted my left arm now….

Maybe something of her old self still resided inside of her.

My own smile widened as well, and I reached out and clasped her hand with my new Primordium one. I met her eyes.

Emerald on Sapphire.

“It’s nice to meet you too, Sylvia.”

……………………………………………

After our ‘introduction’, Sylvia nearly hurried out of Grey’s temporary office, looking deeply embarrassed. If she had lost all of the emotional growth of the last near year, I wasn’t surprised. Sylvia had been a bit…awkward, back then.

Well.

More than she had been, at least.

As for myself, I was feeling more at peace. Don’t get me wrong, I was still itching to get away from this city and the war in general. And it wasn’t like one small exchange had eased my burdens.

But I felt like at least one small thing was going to turn out alright.

Sylvia would be fine, eventually. She just needed to adapt to the world that had moved around her, in her lost memories.

And…I think I would be fine one day as well.

In time.

I left Grey’s office feeling buoyed for the first time in over a week to seek my mentor out. It was time to get this ritual underway, after all.

The sooner the better, I say.

Luckily, Grey had shown me the Isolation Chamber he had set up for our use yesterday. The manse, once upon a time, had contained a small Gyreite church inside of it. The former ruling house of Elderwyck had apparently been a bit religious, but unsurprisingly, Olsen hadn’t been. Neither he or the guard he had gifted the manse to had maintained the tiny room, with its single pane of dusty stained glass set above in the far wall.

Grey hadn’t even bothered to clean up the room when he set up the Isolation Chamber. The physical cleanliness didn’t matter for our purposes, only the spiritual. It made for an odd dichotomy as I entered the cluttered, dusty stone confines of the long-abandoned Church that nonetheless felt entirely Aetherically sterile.

Grey was here, as he had said he would be. My mentor was kneeling on the only patch of stone that had been swept clean of the dust, and only for the purposes of creating the needed circles.

I examined them as I stepped into the room. The physical shape of the new engraving on the floor was very different than what I had seen back in Silvercret. There, it had been of a large, golden, seven-armed spiral, the primary iconography of the Gyreites.

Here, it was of eight interlinked circles, cast in silver. They were arranged in a near circle themselves with seven of them surrounding the eighth in the center. I had found that a bit odd, actually. Eight was an uncommon number in Magic, I’d found. Nearly everything seemed to come in sets of seven, instead. But Grey had said this was how it needed to be, and it’s not like I knew any better.

My understanding was that I was meant to kneel in the center circle, while the other six would contain the necessary reagents for the ritual. Grey had carved into the stone of floor using some instrument, and then filled those grooves with molten, Mana-charged silver.

Apparently, he had melted down and charged the metal himself out of some silverware he had found in a dusty cabinet in the backroom of the church.

Every silver line of those circles was framed by tiny lines of inscribed runes. What I’d found a bit surprising about the runic structure of Magi Ascension rituals was that the syntax almost read like complete nonsense. Rather than the near conversational tone of traditional runic script, this was almost purely functional. Nonsense phrases like that were common, roughly translating into things like ‘Aether line down surround envelop totality reverse nothingness’, and that was only one example out of hundreds in the entire array. However, empowered by the array, I could feel that they were working, even though my understanding of the script told me they shouldn’t.

Guess I still had a bunch to learn about Magic.

Honestly, it was a bit exciting.

Grey looked up from his kneeling inspection of the circle as I entered the room. At the sight of me, the wrinkles on his brow deepened into a concerned look.

I smiled and shook my head at him, to his visible relief. “We’ll be fine, Grey,” I told him. “Don’t worry about it.”

My mentor sighed his relief, standing up from his crouch and dusting off his robes as he did so. “Very well. I trust you, Nathan,” He said with a small smile on his lips. Abruptly, he shook his head. “If that’s out of the way, then let us begin. You’ll have to strip down so we can begin the preparations for the ritual.” His smile shifted, taking on a mischievous tint. “I trust you’re prepared for the most harrowing of all trials?”

I rolled my eyes at him, but still ran a self-conscious hand through my shaggy brown hair. You see, during our preparations, Grey had told me about one little requirement to a Magi Ascension ritual.

You had to shave your head.

Although the mind wasn’t apparently bound to the head or brain like some thought, there was still a symbological linking to it. That apparently mattered for something like this. Part of the ritual involved shaving your head so it could be painted in similar runic scripts that would decorate the rest of my body. From what Grey had told me, the Cultivators didn’t have to do anything like this. I certainly hadn't seen Sylvia do something similar.

Lucky them. I was going to have to be bald for a few months.

Just like Grey.

Said older Magi ran an almost smug hand over his shiny, smooth, nearly gleaming skull. “Don’t worry, Nathan,” He said almost condescendingly. “There’s only a tiny chance your hair won’t grow back. Alas, I was one of the unfortunate few. I’ve been cursed with this smooth, perfectly spherical crown for centuries now. I’m sure it won’t happen to you too.”

I rolled my eyes at Grey, shrugging off my shirt. “Oh, give it a rest, old man,” I said, exasperated. “I’ve watched you shave that chrome-dome. Your hair still grows back just fine. You just like it that way.”

“Pure window dressing,” He lied shamelessly, not even blinking at the blatant falsehood. “A habit I developed to cope with my unfortunate reality.”

Neither of us could keep a straight face at that idea, and broke out into chuckles. After a moment we calmed down, and Grey smiled at me with a slightly relieved shade to the expression. “Come, Nathan,” He said eventually. “Sit in that chair, and I’ll get started on your hair.”

I nodded and did as he said once I was down to my small clothes, walking over to a small stool and sitting on it. After that, I heard Grey pick up the pair of shears he had brought with him and snip the air to test. Seconds later, my hair began to fall from all around me as Grey trimmed my hair far down enough that he could shave my head. I shivered once he did, feeling the sharp blade of his personal straight razor depriving me of my shaggy hair. I shivered again once he was done, at the feeling of air on my bare scalp.

A yelp escaped my lips when I felt Grey slap my head playfully, causing me to turn around and glare at him. He just smirked at me and nodded at the ritual circle. “Kneel in the center and I’ll get started on the runes.”

Snorting, I did as he asked, resting on my knees in the center. Not long after, Grey approached and picked up the brush resting in a nearby pot of prepared ink, and got to work. I fought down a laugh at the feeling of the bristles on my skin, especially on my newly bared scalp. I had always been a bit ticklish.

It took Grey nearly half an hour of careful painting to finish, and when he had, I looked down at myself. I nearly whistled at the density of runes now painting my flesh. They flowed across my skin in waves and circles, forming smooth patterns that almost blended into each other. I didn’t know Grey was capable of such artistry.

I was broken out of my inspection by the sound of Grey’s voice. “Now…” He said, unexpectedly solemn. “You’re ready. As I told you, Nathan, you’ll have to focus through the entire process. It might be a bit painful, but you need to endure it. The active part of the ritual will not take long, but it will be violent. Thankfully, the included shield mechanism in your circle will contain most of the unstable energies. Are you ready?”

I looked up and met my mentor's eyes. After taking a moment to squash any doubts, I nodded at him.

Grey studied me seriously and then returned the gesture when he saw I was serious.

“Now…let us begin.”

<<Chapter 223 | Table of Contents | Chapter 225>>

Chapter 223 - Destination

“Venix?” I breathed in pure shock. “What are you…how are you…?”

Venix.

I…hadn’t seen him up and about in months. The last I had seen of the Antium, he had still been in a coma after the last ditch attack he had resorted to during the battle at Caer Drarrow.

When did he wake up?

“Oh, hey,” Renauld said behind me, sounding completely relaxed. “What are you doing here?” I whipped around to stare at the Gnoll in near accusation. He raised his hands defensively at my stare.

“You knew?” I said in exasperation. “When were you going to tell me that Venix was awake?”

“Hey, I only found out while you were in the countryside,” Renauld said, shrugging. “It just hadn’t come up yet.”

“Do not blame the healer, Hart,” Venix said from behind me, drawing my attention. When I looked back at the Antium samurai, I saw that he had removed his head, allowing his antennae to bob in the night air. “I have…intentionally kept myself out of sight.”

I blinked at that. Intentionally kept himself out of sight? Had he been trying to hide in Elderwyck?

What was that about?

I took a closer look at him, now that my shock was fading. Even in the dim light of the alleyway, I could see that the mighty warrior looked…different than I remembered him.

Diminished. Weaker.

He might still be as tall as ever, but he wasn’t quite as broad as he had been. I didn’t know how Antium physiology worked, but I suppose they had muscles just like the rest of us monkey-men.

Excuse me.

Monkey and fox men.

His muscles must have atrophied from disuse in his coma. Not only was he less physically imposing, but there was a dullness to his exposed chitin that hadn’t been there before the assault on Caer Drarrow. That dullness seemed to have transferred to himself as well, since Venix looked…

Tired, was the best word.

There was an exhaustion evident in both his posture and face that I had never seen before.

My brow creased in concern, meeting Venix’s eyes. “Are you alright?”

Venix…sighed, a new sound from the warrior. “I will be,” He said, a low, deep thrum obvious in his voice. “Eventually. But it shall take time before I recover from my…actions, and their results.”

I nodded slowly then. “Well, I…wish you a speedy recovery then,” I said, somewhat lamely. “What brings you here?”

Venix, as was typical of the Antium, was unfazed by my awkwardness. “You,” He said bluntly. “The Grey-Sworn has told me of your decision to exit this conflict. I wish to join you on your travels. On one condition.”

I tilted my head in bafflement before my eyes narrowed in suspicion. “Did Grey put you up to this?” I said in annoyance. “Everyone coming can take care of ourselves, you know. We don’t need a chaperone.”

To my surprise, Venix shook his head sharply. “No. My Sworn did not ask this of me. Rather, I asked his leave to accompany you,” He fell silent for a moment, before continuing almost reluctantly. “I am…diminished. My level has not fallen, but my overall strength has. Dramatically. I am not…worthy of serving as Yojimbo to Greycton of the Shadowed Sun. I shall travel the land, honing the edge of my blade until I am fit to return to his side,” One side of his chitinous lips rose in an almost self-deprecating smirk. “How fitting, then, that my Sworn’s own apprentice leaves on his own journey. I…request that I be allowed to travel with you.”

I breathed out then, my indignation falling away to be replaced with sympathetic understanding. I exchanged a glance with Renauld. The Gnoll man shrugged at me, all but saying he had no problem.

I…didn’t either, actually.

But first…

“I mean, I have no problem with that,” I said carefully, my eyes turning back to Venix. “But what was your ‘condition’?”

Venix nodded once more, a slight pleased cast to his features. “It is simple. I am given to understand that your cohort does not have a destination in mind. I ask that I am allowed to make my case as to a possible one.”

My eyebrows rose, before I motioned for him to keep going with one hand. “Sure, I don’t mind. Where were you wanting to go?”

A more genuine smile stole of over his lips then, as the Antium man relaxed slightly. “Kawamara,” He said in satisfaction. “The Land of Rivers. The birthplace of Lady Honoka, and the land that forged me into the warrior that I…was.”

I winced at the bitterness in his voice, but still…

That…that was a good idea.

I think?

I cupped my chin in one hand. “I…don’t know much about Kawamara,” I mused to myself.

Unexpectedly, it was Renauld who answered me. “It’s a chain of islands that lie some distance off the west coast of the continent,” He said, causing me to turn to him in surprise. The Gnoll was tapping his chin in thought. “Kind of in a north-western direction from Elderwyck itself. They’re human, but not aligned with the Kingdom of Herztal, which has historically pissed the Kingdom off. And…I mean, I say islands, but it’s really more a chain of small continents. They’re not even a fraction the size of the main one, but it’s still not very small. They can’t match either the Kingdom or the Principality in strength, but they’re not weak. My understanding is that they’ve got their own thing going on, for the most part.”

“And most importantly,” Venix interrupted. “They are entirely disconnected from the Herztalian Civil War. There are still…regional conflicts and disputes, but nothing to the extent of this one. If you wish to escape from the unrest on the main continent…there is nowhere better to go.”

I nodded slowly. “Well…other than beyond the northern mountains,” I pointed out tentatively. That…had been a thought kicking around in the back of my mind. I hadn’t forgotten the offer of that weird…snake spirit thing, about seeking him out for answers. I’d been reluctant about that, though, as it had seemed to be a bit of a gamble.

Venix didn’t even blink before answering me it came so swiftly. “I would not follow into that frozen hell,” He said bluntly. “My kind cannot function in that environment.”

“Yeah…” Renauld drawled. “I’m not sure I would go either. I can ‘function’,” He said with air quotes. “In snow that deep. But honestly, I don’t wanna. I like the idea of Kawamara better.”

This time, it was my turn to hold up my hands. “It was just an idea,” I said defensively. “And I wasn’t being serious about it.”

Much.

“I…think I’m fine with Kawamara,” I said, thinking out loud. “Yeah…yeah. As long as the others are okay with it, then…I guess we’re going to go to Kawamara.”

…………………………..

After that, we broke up for the night. Renauld was going to stay at the clinic and keep working as a Healer before we left, and Venix had wandered away without so much as a goodbye. I guess he was going to keep doing…whatever he was here in Elderwyck for.

It was nice to see that the Antium samurai hadn’t changed much in temperament from his extended coma.

Still just as enigmatic as ever.

As for myself, I headed back to the Reef. I didn’t really have anywhere else to go, to be frank. I probably could have bedded down in the guard headquarters, if I had asked Grey. He might have been happy to have me there.

But I didn't want to deal with the attention, so back my favorite pirate ship it was.

To my relief, the three people I had left behind were still lounging in the Captain’s quarters, if not a bit…drunker. When I broached the subject of possibly going to Kawamara for what was essentially becoming our ‘escape’ from Elderwyck, they didn’t have a problem with the destination. It was just another port to Bella, while Liora had just shrugged in languid apathy. I was getting the impression she had accepted my impression to accompany us more for the company itself than anything we intended to do.

However, even through his growing inebriation, Azarus had looked strangely excited at the idea of going to Kawamara. He was happy to explain why when I asked.

“Heard lots of stories about the place,” He mused over a glass of grog. By that point, he and Bella had mowed through all of her good booze and had needed to move on to the swill they brewed on board.

You know, the stuff we had tended to also use as deck cleaner, back on my old tenure on the Reef.

“I, uh, had an uncle once who told me some stories ‘bout the place,” Azarus said, eyes briefly flickering towards Liora. The Gnoll carefully didn’t react to the attention physically, but I still felt her own zero in on the dwarf. I was a bit surprised that Azarus knew about Liora’s relationship to Baldric, but I figured that Grey must have said something to him. “When I was a lad, at least. He told me all about some crazy duels that went on in that place when he was younger. It always sounded…magical.” There was a distant wistfulness in my friend's voice that I had never heard before.

I suppose even dwarves were nostalgic for their younger years sometimes.

So I ended up bunking down in the hold of the Reef, in a mirror of where I had stayed those months ago. I even managed to claim the same berth I had been using them then. One thing was different, though. Fade wasn’t here with me.

But I knew he was in good hands. Or, well.

Paws.

Good thing I was here too, because I didn’t want to deal with the attention that being among the soldiers and guards would bring, much less the refugees. At least among the pirates of the Reef I felt comfortable. None of them had so much as given me a side-eye for either my new looks or my exploits against Rhazal and Nerexxa, even though they had to know by now. I didn’t get any questions either.

God it was nice.

The solitude out in the countryside freeing Sculpted had been fulfilling, but I was still human damnit. We were social animals, and needed social contact in order to…well.

Heal, I guess.

Over the next few days, I would split my time either helping to prepare the Reef for departure with the rest of the crew, or preparing for my ritual with Grey. My mentor was looking increasingly frazzled from the pressures of the occupation, but he always made time for me. We were progressing pretty well, and I think the both of us were enjoying the time spent getting back to what might be the bedrock of our relationship.

Teacher and student.

It was…relaxing.

Still, all good things had to come to an end. Three days after we’d started our preparations for the Ascension Ritual, we finished drawing up the plans for my own personalized version of it.

Now it was time to assemble it.

One problem, though.

“We are, in fact, in the middle of a half-destroyed city,” Grey pointed out wryly, leaning back in his chair. “It might be a…touch difficult, to procure the materials we’ve lined out here.”

I flicked my eyes up from the sheaves of parchment rolled out on his desk, that we had spent days meticulously detailing out runic scripts on. I paused as his words penetrated. “Ah.”

“Indeed. Ah.”

The both of us sat in embarrassed silence for a moment, as the depths of just how much we’d jumped the gun settled us. I suppose it was…possible that we’d been so excited about the work of the Ritual that we’d…overlooked the practicals of it.

Grey gave me an almost pleading look after a moment. “Please don’t tell Honoka about this,” He nearly groaned. “I’m afraid I might never live it down.”

“Too late,” A smug, familiar voice sounded from behind my back as I heard the door open behind me. Grey slumped in place across from me. I twisted in my chair, an amused, embarrassed smile on my face as I prepared to greet the woman who was nominally my personal Healer. The smile froze on my face at the sight of her, because she wasn’t alone.

The still masked and leather-clad form of Sylvia was trailing behind her.

I kept my breath even as the two women who meant so much to Grey and I walked into the room.

“While you two were in here drafting, I saw to the materials you’d need,” Honoka continued smugly, not pausing in her stride as she carried a sack up to the desk. With a clang, she dropped the apparently hefty canvas bag on the desk. I winced at the noise it made. “You would be lost without me, old man.”

Grey gave the bag a blank look for a moment. “But…” He said slowly. “What do you know about Magi rituals…?”

Honoka rolled her eyes at him. “Don’t be a fool. I just snuck in and looked at your notes to learn what you needed,” She admitted shamelessly, nodding at the design for my ritual. “Everything should be in there.”

I remained silent while Honoka and Grey bantered, doing my best not to direct any attention at Sylvia. I noticed that she was doing the same thing, but I knew her tells in a way she no longer knew mine. I mentally shook off the pang that thought caused me.

Meanwhile, Grey had opened the bag and was rifling through it, muttering to himself. After a few minutes of looking, he looked up and gave Honoka a smile. “Thank you, old friend,” He said with a smile. “This is, indeed, all we need. I can get started on the circle at any time. I’ve already set up an Isolation Chamber in an unused room of the manse. Come along Nathan. I believe we can do this as soon as today.” With that, Grey picked up the sack and walked around the desk, giving his daughter a brief hug which she returned as he passed her.

I stood up as well with a thankful smile to Honoka. She returned it, a slightly melancholy tint to it. “Thanks, Honoka,” I said softly.

“Anytime, boy,” She returned, just as softly.

As I walked past her towards the door, following Grey, I was stopped by the sound of a voice that had yet to speak up yet.

“Wait,” I heard a soft, silvery voice say. Both Grey and I froze in place, dread growing in my breast.

That had been directed at me.

“Sir Hart, if you don’t mind,” Sylvia continued in a quiet tone. “I would like to speak to you for a moment. Alone.”

I met Grey’s eyes from his position in front of me, where he had turned around. Without a word, my mentor nodded over my shoulder at his daughter, and stepped through the door. Moments later, Honoka followed after him.

I was still frozen in place, terrified of even turning around.

“Please turn around, Sir Hart,” Sylvia said softly. I took a deep breath, gathered my courage, and did as she asked.

She’d taken off her mask. This…was the first time I’d seen her face…since I’d confessed to her unconscious form, before I left to face Rhazal.

God, I missed her.

She studied me for a minute. “There are some things I’d like to ask you. If you don’t mind.”

I nodded slowly at her, deeply missing my middle ring right about now. I licked my lips and finally spoke up.

“Go ahead.”

<<Chapter 222 | Table of Contents | Chapter 224>>

Chapter 222 - Offers

I nearly choked on my glass of water. “Excuse me?”

Bella didn’t raise her head from the lowered position she had it in. “I said I’m sorry, okay? I’m sorry I wasn’t here.”

Bella had led Liora and I to the command room of the Thorny Reef, completely unsurprised to see the two of us following her. There she had offered the two of us drinks. I had declined, since I’d already had enough booze for the day, but Liora had accepted. After that, Bella had transitioned into doing…this.

I…had never seen Bella like this. I didn’t know how to respond.

Luckily, and somewhat surprisingly, Liora did.

She sighed almost tiredly and set her drink down on the small table we were gathered around. “It’s not your fault, Captain Isabella,” Liora said quietly. “If anything, it’s mine. I was the one to advise your trips to and from the Bluebacks to Commander Hook. At the time, I thought the additional intelligence would prove useful to our efforts in our campaign. I believed…that an outside agency would have insights into the situation we would not,” She sighed bitterly and then drained her drink in one motion. When she was done, she stared down at her empty glass somberly. “Clearly, I was incorrect. None could predict the rise of Vampyr and an Ancient Calamity.”

Bella raised her head to stare at Liora for a moment. To my surprise, she reached across the table to grasp one of Liora’s hands and cradled it. I was just as surprised as Liora was at the gesture. I…didn’t know Bella was capable of such tenderness. “Ain’t none of this was your fault, girl,” She said in a low tone, her eyes briefly flickering my way before settling back on the Gnoll. “That…that’s somethin’ I’ve learned in this life. Ye can’t go around cursin’ the gods when the black hearted do what comes natural to ‘em. Ye’ll just go round and round in circles spewin’ bile and curses over yer fate. It ain’t good fer ye. It ain’t good fer yer soul. Ye gotta take it in…” Bella took a deep breath then, and both Liora and I almost unconsciously mirrored her. She then let out a long, slow, heavy breath. “And let it out. Let the bad flow over ye like a wave. This hurt…it’ll pass. In time.”

Liora slowly raised her other hand not in Bella’s grip and lay it over the pirate’s hand. She closed her eyes for a moment before speaking. “Thank you, Captain,” She said quietly.

The room itself descended into silence for a moment, in the wake of Bella’s surprisingly comforting speech. I know it was intended for Liora, but I’d caught the glance Bella had shot me midway through.

Part of that had been intended for me.

I let out a slow breath.

I hoped it would pass, Bella. I truly did.

Bella eventually broke the comforting quiet by releasing Liora’s hands, and sat back in her chair. The dark-haired woman looked a bit embarrassed. “Anyways, I just wanted ta apologize fer not being here, that’s all,” She said, clearing her throat almost uncomfortably. “It ain’t right that I wasn’t able ta fight at yer side, when I promised ta help ye here in the bay. If…there’s anythin’ I can do ta make it up to ye, I’ll do it. I swear.”

Liora frowned then, almost looking ready to protest, but I spoke up first.

I didn’t want to take advantage of her generosity, but I’d been waiting for an opportunity like this. I cleared my throat, drawing both women’s attention. “There…actually is something you can do, Bella,” I said, before meeting Liora’s slightly confused gaze. “For the both of us. I actually wanted to talk to both of you. You see…Azarus and I are bowing out of the war. We’re…done.”

Bella blinked rapidly, while Liora’s yellow eyes inspected me for a moment. “I was…surprised to hear that you were retiring as well,” She said slowly. “I did not think that the Grand Marshall would allow his apprentice to sit out the war, if only for the…optics. But in retrospect, he was surprisingly willing to accept my own retirement.”

I smiled at her. “Grey is more reasonable than people think he is. Like I said, I’m not stopping my apprenticeship with him. Just…pausing it. To that effect…” I turned back to meet the interested, and almost eager gaze of my pirate friend. “Bella, do you mind taking on a couple of passengers? Azarus and I are looking to get out of here, and I’d appreciate the ride.”

Bella smiled widely then and slapped her knee. “Hell, I don’t mind at all! It’ll be like old times, Hart. Don’t think ye’ll get out of ship duties, though,” She said, wagging a finger at me almost playfully. “I don’t put up with slackers on me old girl. Hope ye haven’t forgotten how ta swab a deck.”

I laughed slightly, before nodding. “That won’t be a problem,” I said before turning my head to look at Liora. The Gnoll woman had a slight smile on her lips, but I noticed it had a lonely tinge to it. I think she was feeling a bit left out.

Well, time to put a stop to that.

I reached over next to me and took her furry hand in mine, meeting her eyes as I did so. “Liora, come with us,” I said, trying to project my earnestness to the Gnoll woman. She blinked at me, while at the same time her ears flicked in surprise. “I don’t know if you had any plans after retiring…”

Judging by her momentary shifty look, I’m guessing she might not have.

Good. I was fine with helping her with that.

“We’ll sit out the war, doing our own thing,” I said, trying to smile through my own melancholy. “Maybe we’ll train, or try and learn some Magic on our own. Maybe kill a few hundred monsters. Maybe we’ll do a bit of exploring. Just…old-fashioned adventurer work. No moral ambiguity. No blades in the dark. No fucking Loyalists. Let the big-wigs handle Alaric and his corrupt nobles. It’s not our job anymore. We’ve done our part.”

The cabin descended into silence, as Liora studied me for a moment. For once, I don’t think someone was staring at my newly altered features. Instead, it felt like she was judging my sincerity. After a long moment, the Gnoll nodded slowly. “Yes…” She said quietly. “I think…I would like that. I will accompany you, H…Nathan. As long as Sir Azarus is fine with it.”

“Yeah, I am,” A deep, relaxed voice said from behind me. Neither Liora or I jumped at the sound of it, but I heard Bella curse and drop her glass. Letting go of Liora’s hand, I twisted in my chair to look behind me. I found the person I had felt through my blood sense enter the room a few minutes ago standing in the doorway.

Azarus, looking cleaned up from the last time I had seen him. He had changed out of his armor and into fairly standard-looking work clothes, and had his arms crossed comfortably over his broad chest. He nodded at me but was directly his amused gaze at the irritated captain standing from her seat to glower at him.

“Say somethin’ when you come inta a room, stuntie,” She growled at him, wiping down her booze-soaked clothes with a rag.

“Why don’t ya pay more attention, bilge-rat,” Azarus shot back at her, smirking.

I snorted and stood up from my own chair to greet my friend. “Now now, children,” I said, semi-mockingly. “Play nice. Bella’s agreed to take us on as passengers after all, out of the goodness of her own heart.”

Azarus nodded. “Yeah, I figured,” He shrugged. “Fine by me. It’s what I thought ya were doin’, when I found out ya were somewhere down at the docks. Ol’ Larry didn’t blink his eye when I asked around fer ya. Just told me ya were in here with the Captain.”

Liora spoke up then, with a surprising note of timidity in her voice. “Then…you are fine with my accompanying you and Nathan on your journey, Sir Azarus?”

‘Sir’ Azarus winced at her words. “Just…Azarus, please fer the love of the gods,” He said, pained. “I ain’t a noble anymore. But yeah, I’m okay with it. I don’t know ya, miss, but I trust Nate. If he trusts ya, then so do I.”

“Alright then,” Bella said with a grin, seeming to immediately forget her antipathy towards the dwarf. “If that’s settled, what are we waitin’ on? I can get us out o’ here tomorrow if I hafta.”

I winced then, my grin replaced by a sheepish look. “Ah…about that. It’s probably going to be about a week before we can get going. I have stuff to do here in town that kinda cropped up at the last minute.”

Azarus turned to me then with one raised, bushy red eyebrow. “First I’m hearin’ about this. I already talked ta Grey and explained me own reasonin’ fer leavin’. What’s keepin’ us in this shitehole?”

“Well, the fact that I need to undergo my Ascension Ritual, for one,” I said, causing a broad smile to break out on Azarus’s face. I grinned back at him. “Yeah, I reached one hundred. Grey offered to help me with it, and we’re going to put it together over the next few days and then go forward. Once we’re done, we can go. But…that’s not all. I still have someone else I want to talk to.” I walked over to the corner of the room where I had hung up my cloak, shrugging it on and picking up my staff as I did so. “In fact, since you’re caught up, I think I’ll go find him right now. He’s the last person I want to kind of recruit, and then we can talk about where we’re going.”

Bella cupped her chin then. “Yeah, that’s right,” She mused. “Ye haven’t even told me where ya want ta go in the first place.”

Liora studied me for a moment, before sitting back down in her own chair. There was a slight amused tint to her features as she picked up the bottle of liquor on the table and poured herself another glass. She spoke around the rim of said glass as she raised it to her vulpine lips. “I believe that’s because they don’t know where they want to go.”

I exchanged a glance with Azarus as I flipped my hood up over my head. Nearly simultaneously, we shrugged at each other.

Bella just laughed at us, as she joined Liora at the table.

Honestly, to me it didn’t matter where we went.

The freedom meant more.

…………………………………………

“I’m in,” Renauld said immediately, only moments after I had started speaking. I paused for a moment to blink at the Gnoll in surprise.

“I…didn’t even offer anything yet,” I said, deadpan.

It hadn’t taken me long to find the other Gnoll, after I had departed the Thorny Reef. All I’d had to do was retrace my steps to the makeshift clinic that I had woken up in a few days ago.

God, had it really only been a couple days since I’d woken up from my battle with Rhazal? So much had happened just today, and it was well past sunset by now. Even with the ravaged streets of Elderwyck being shrouded in darkness, they were still busy. Rescue and relief efforts couldn’t stop yet, even though it had been nearly a week since the Calamity had been slain. I sadly didn’t have much hope for the people who were still trapped beneath the rubble of that chaos, considering the length of time, but that didn’t matter.

They still deserved the dignity of a proper burial, freed from their stony tomb.

Renauld just grinned at me, unaware of the unexpectedly dark turn that my thoughts had drifted into. “You didn’t have to. I already heard through the ‘grapevine’,” He coughed into his fist, saying the name ‘Honoka’ under his breath before continuing smugly. “That you were getting out of here. I want in.”

I laughed softly at the other man, shaking my head softly. The two of us had retreated to the backroom of the clinic in order to not disturb the patients in the other room. Not many other Healers were still here in this small space, and those who were, were dead to the world, snoring away their exhaustion. Renauld and I were huddled closely together near a small flickering candle in a corner, whispering in order to not disturb them. I glanced around before jerking my head towards a door that led outside.

These people deserved their rest.

Once outside, I breathed in the crips winter air that still carried a tinge of the storm that was now passing. Honestly, I was surprised that the rains over the last few days hadn’t turned to snow, or slush, or even frozen over considering the winter weather from the last few weeks. I think we had hit an unexpected warm snap.

I shook thoughts of the weather off and turned to the Gnoll who had followed me outside. “Well, you’re right,” I nodded at him with a small smile. “I wanted to ask if you were interested in coming with the group I was putting together. A…number of us are done with the war, and just want to escape it. But as you said, you’re ‘in’.”

Renauld sighed in relief. “I sure am,” He said tiredly, running a hand through the shaggy fur on his head. “Don’t get me wrong, I like helping people. It's why I became a Healer. But it’s just…too much, man,” He said, giving me an almost pleading look, all but begging me to understand. “Too much has happened this year. I need a break, Nate. Between my time in the clink and my work with the Band. Then having to deal with all of this.” He shook his head. “Let’s get the hells out of here, man.”

I lay my hand on Renauld’s shoulder and met his eyes. “I understand. It’ll be about a week, but then we’re leaving. You have a spot on the Reef with us when we leave.”

Renauld pulled a face then. “Ugh, we’re leaving by sea? I thought I told you that the sea air doesn’t agree with fur.”

I laughed at his playfully downcast expression, and not surprisingly, Renauld followed after a moment.

Our brief moment of levity was interrupted by the sound of heavy footsteps from down the alley we were talking in. I stopped laughing with a frown and turned to face the source, only to stop in surprise.

Slowly walking through the darkened mist was an absolutely massive form. Whoever they were, they had to be over seven feet tall. I furrowed my brow in confusion and hesitation, tightening my grip on my staff.

Who was this?

I soon got my answer, as a voice I hadn’t heard in months echoed out of the darkness of the alley.

“The dead watch us still,

Rain cannot wash them away-

I feel their weight too.”

I gaped as a massive, insectoid form walked out of the mists, dressed in a familiar white robe emblazoned with pink cranes in flight. A large conical hat shrouded their face, but I recognized this person, if only because of the four curved blades that rested on either side of their hips. The Antium man used one of his four arms to raise the brim of his hat, exposing his compound eyes to the world.

Venix.

<<Chapter 221 | Table of Contents | Chapter 223>>

Chapter 221 - Last Meeting

Grey and I broke up for the day not long after that, since my mentor was still busy with everything involving the Elderwyck occupation. I got the impression that he really didn’t even have the time for the lesson he had given me.

He’d instead made time.

I appreciated that, I did. But that didn’t change my opinion about leaving. I just…I needed to go. It was like an itch in my skin that I wasn’t able to scratch. Every moment that I remained a part of this war, of this conflict…it grated on me.

But, probably not as quickly as Azarus and I had intended to. We had jumped the gun back in that wrecked tavern. We probably weren’t leaving anytime within the next week considering everything I had to do before we left. That wasn’t even taking in the prep Azarus might need to do on his own. I had people to see and rituals to undergo, after all. Speaking of, it was about time I sought out some of those people, who I knew would be at the meeting I’d been told about hours and hours ago.

Possibly the last gathering of the Nocturne Division.

I masked and hooded up, and then slipped out of a side window of the manse instead of the front door. I didn’t need the awe and worshipping looks I’d find in that direction.

………………………………..

It didn’t take me long to reach the docks. I was used to this city by now, as much as I was beginning to loathe it. When I reached the damaged warehouse that had been our meeting point, I found the dilapidated structure looking almost neat, compared to how it had looked before my little crusade against the surrounding plantations. It wasn’t repaired or anything, but the rubble had been cleared away and a few supporting beams had been erected to keep it from collapsing any further. At first I wondered why they had even bothered before I noticed that the Thorny Reef was still docked next to it. I suppose Bella needed a place to berth and this was as good a place as any.

When I touched down and started to approach the warehouse, one of the surviving members of the Division melted out of the shadows. I didn’t know who they were, considering they weren’t even bothering to wear a mask. The man inspected me for a moment before nodding. “Hangman. They’re inspecting you inside. You…don’t have to wear the mask if you don’t want to. We’ve all heard about your curse.”

Relief rolled over me at that. After a moment, I nodded at the unknown man and removed my mask and hood, revealing my mutated features to the world. “Thanks…” I trailed off for a moment.

He got the hint. “Cody, formerly Pincer,” He said with a wry smile.

Pincer. Not…sure I’d ever spoken with the man, but I think I’d seen him around.

I did my best to return his smile, but I felt it wither on the vine. Those came...harder for me, these days. “Nate. I…hope everyone hasn’t been waiting on me,” I said, a bit embarrassed at my tardiness. “I was busy for a while with…stuff…” I trailed off lamely. Said stuff involved getting momentarily shitfaced drunk and wallowing in my own despair, but I didn’t mention that.

Cody shook his head. “No, the meeting isn’t meant to start for a little bit more. Sparrow told us we’d make a decision when the sun set,” He said, nodding to the horizon. After my delightfully full day of misery, Tarus was only just starting to begin his descent. The light was barely starting to dim through the ever-present storm clouds. “Head on down to the basement. It’s where everyone left is gathering. I’ll be down in a bit.”

I nodded, and with a goodbye, walked past him and into the warehouse proper. Well, what remained of it.

My attention was continuously stolen by the numerous blood stains that littered the stone floor of the old fishery. I paused for a moment when I came upon the site where I knew I had fought General Longstripe at. There was a large, conspicuous blood stain on the stone that must have come from my attempted coup de grace. For a moment, I allowed myself to wonder what would have happened if I hadn’t failed in killing him then. If Baldric hadn’t been occupied with the mind-controlled General, would he have managed to kill Nerexxa before she could summon Rhazal?

I would never know, I suppose.

I shook off the useless thought and approached the basement, walking down the steps and into the command room.

There were distressingly few people down here, and all of them looked up at my entrance to stare at me. I returned the looks, taking a moment to count the number of people who had apparently survived the last week. Nearly everyone was sitting in a ring of chairs set out in the center of the room. I only barely registered the slouching form of Bella in the corner away from everyone else, puffing on a rolled cigarette and looking bored. She straightened up at my entrance, staring at me with a raised eyebrow, but I had other things on my mind.

Thirteen. Out of over fifty different Nocturne Division Agents that had been active in Elderwyck, only thirteen of us had survived. I didn’t count the still form of Sparrow behind the command desk in that number. He…hadn’t been here.

I let out a breath and fully descended the steps, meeting the gaze of those I knew personally as I did so. Liora was here, as expected, looking much more put together than the last time I saw her. The Gnoll woman wasn’t masked either, and seemed to be dressed nearly as an adventurer would be in leathers and chainmail. Strangely, I didn’t see Maria anywhere down here. Maybe she was the person we were waiting on to start the meeting? Guess I really wasn’t the last person to get here.

I finally got an answer as to where Sylvia was, as well. Turns out she had been here, all along. My former partner was wearing what looked to be a replica of her old combat leathers. I almost stopped for a moment at the sight of them, as I hadn’t seen that getup since Addersfield and our first lessons. The Sculpted woman was covered from head to toe in nondescript black leathers, with her face being covered with a non-Division leather mask like it had back then. I only knew it was Sylvia because I recognized the outfit.

I felt a pang of heartbreak at how she was looking at me. There was a note of wariness in her crystalline blue gaze that hadn’t been present earlier. It made me wonder what she had been told.

I wasn’t sure I wanted to know.

Sparrow, the only person in the room still in a Nocturne mask, looked from the book he had been reading in silence. He gave me a nod and spoke up in the quiet room. “Nathan,” He said calmly, shutting his book. “Good to see you. If you’ll take a seat, we’ll get started soo-”

Another set of footsteps behind me cut the man off, causing me and everyone else to look behind us. I turned just in time to watch as an oddly dressed Maria descended into the basement, completely uncaring about the odd looks she was getting. The woman looked to be dressed almost as a roving merchant would be, wearing hardy-looking travel clothes in muted colors. Slung over her back was a large pack that seemed to be stuffed to the gills, with a familiar bow strapped to the side of it. Atop her head was a wide-brimmed leather hat tilted at an almost jaunty angle.

Trailing behind her was a bemused-looking Cody.

Maria didn’t care about the looks she was getting. Instead, she just marched down in the room, and straight up to my still standing form. “Heard about some curious things happening out in the countryside,” She said with a smirk, shrugging her massive pack off her shoulders and tossing it against the wall. I winced at the clanging noise that erupted from the impact. “Didja get what you needed to done?”

I looked away from her pack to give my now former comrade a slight nod. Despite everything that had happened to me recently, I didn’t regret freeing the enslaved Sculpted in the area a single bit. “I did,” I said quietly, a slight twist to my lips. Maria’s smirk widened in response.

We were interrupted by the sound of a throat clearing behind us. When I turned, I saw a mildly impatient Sparrow waving to the gathered chairs. “Nathan, Maria, Cody,” He said dryly. “If you don’t mind, we all have places to be. Let’s get this done.”

Straightening up, the three of us who had been indicated nodded and sat down in the circle. When we were all seated, Sparrow stood up from the desk and joined us in the last remaining chair.

The circle was silent for a moment, before Sparrow reached up and removed his mask. An almost femininely mousy-looking face greeted the world, complete with a long brunette ponytail draping down a slender neck. I blinked at the sight of him.

Those were very… delicate-looking features, for such a deep-voiced man.

God I was glad I still had the physical control that my core ring gave me.

“We all know why we’re here,” Sparrow said in a grim tone. “The operational forces of the Nocturne Division have been all but wiped out from this campaign. A number of…highly unseen circumstances placed us-you,” He corrected himself, sounding almost bitter. “In the path of…horrors. I’m here to tell you that the leadership of the Order is…sympathetic.”

One of the other surviving Agent’s snorted. “Sure. And what the hells does that mean?”

Sparrow sighed. “It means that we’re done, honestly,” He said, reaching up to massage his forehead. “The Nocturne Division, in its current state, cannot function. While the logistical side of our organization survived, considering they were all back in Helstein during this, there are too few of the actual Agents left. As such, the Grand Marshall and Marshall are offering a number of choices to all surviving Division assets.”

I leaned forward at that, resting my forearms on my knees. Grey hadn’t mentioned any of this to me, despite the extended amount of time I’d spent with him.

“One,” Sparrow said. “You can choose to outright retire from both the Nocturne Division and the Order altogether. I know W-Maria in particular has chosen to go this route.” He said, nodding to her.

This caused a bit of a stir among gathered Agents, with some of them turning to stare at Maria. She just shrugged, uncaring about some of their accusing stares.

“Two,” Sparrow said loudly, drawing attention back to him. “Is that you can either choose to join the logistical arm of what remains of the Division, and retire from fieldwork. I know a number of you have the skills to be useful there. It’s going to be seeing some changes, though,” He shrugged. “It’s barely going to be the Division anymore, so the skullduggery is going to be essentially over. It’s being folded into the administration of the Order, and will be based out of the chapter house in Blutstein at the end of the war. It’s not a…bad life, per se. Safe, with a possible retirement.”

That…wasn’t for me. But I did see a few people nodding along with that.

“Third. You…can choose to join the regular forces of the Order,” Sparrow said doubtfully. “You would join as a Lieutenant, and would become a small squad commander. The option, at the very least, exists. It’s how you’re going to continue outright fighting for the Order, if that’s what you wish.”

I didn’t see much interest in that, with the notable exception of one person. Most of the members of the Nocturne Division had been part of the elite of the Order. Essentially on the track to being the true classsers, if not of a specific type.

Not many people wanted to voluntarily take a demotion.

“Fourth, if you can’t give up this life,” Sparrow continued. “You can choose to join up with the Bluebacks,” He nodded over at Bella, to my surprise. “I’ll let Captain Isabella talk more about it.”

Bella stood up from her chair then and stalked into the center of the chairs, unbothered by the stares of everyone else. “Ain’t much to it,” She said bluntly. “The Admirals always need more blades, and some of you lot are good at wet work. If ye ain’t interested in pushin’ paper, and want to shiv some more Loyalist dogs, then ye’ve got a place on the sea.” She turned on her heel then and stalked back to her chair, but not before stopping to give me an odd look. She mouthed the word ‘later’, causing me to nod in return.

I was already going to talk to you about something Bella. Don’t worry.

“I'm...personally going to be taking that option,” Sparrow said ruefully, shaking his head. “I failed you all, by not being here,” He held up his hand when some of the other Agents protested verbally. “I’ve already signed up. It’s done.”

Exchanging a glance with Liora from across the room, I spoke up. “I don’t know about anyone else, Sparrow,” I said out loud, drawing attention. “But…I don’t begrudge you. I wouldn’t wish the shit that went on in Elderwyck on my worst enemy.”

That was a lie.

I would have wished worse on Magnus, but that wasn’t the point.

Sparrow smiled wearily at me, as several other Agent’s nodded along. “That’s kind of you to say, Nathan. But my sense of duty will not allow me to do otherwise. And…call me Alex. Sparrow…that mask is being hung up. So!” He said, forcibly cheerful. “I’m afraid it’s time to make a decision, people. We’ll go around the circle, and I want you to say what your plans are. I’ll write them down, and deliver the decisions to the leadership. Maria, can you go first? Just for the record.”

Maria shrugged, not standing up from her chair. “I’m retiring, as you all know,” She said indifferently. “I’m heading south to try and find my family in Blutstein. I know!” She help up a hand, when some people protested at that. “I know that it’s going to be hard, and that it’s where the Loyalists are thickest. But I have to try, and I’m not letting anyone stop me.” She finished defiantly.

Ah.

Well, there went one of the people I was going to talk to. I originally had the idea of trying to convince the woman to join up with Azarus and I, but I had no plans to go south of all places.

I wanted to get away from the war, not further in.

“Good luck, Maria,” Liora spoke up for the first time. Her voice pierced through the protests, silencing them. When she saw that she had the attention of the room, Liora stood up. “I…am retiring as well.”

That seemed to shock most of the room, Alex included. I…wasn’t as surprised, considering Baldric’s last request.

“But…” Cody said in a confused tone. “The Division and the Order are practically in your blood?”

Liora snorted bitterly. “Yes, and where has that gotten us?” She said with a frown. “An early grave. No, let my line be done with it, and let the Division vanish into the wind.”

Alex coughed into his fist. “Ah…I see,” He said weakly, before shaking his head. “Then…Sylvia? I…know you don’t remember much about your role here, but I do need to know what you intend.”

The Sculpted woman stood up then. “I will be joining the regular Order forces,” She said simply. That…didn’t surprise me, thinking about it. It’s not like she was going to be leaving the organization that her father helped run.

Alex nodded then as Sylvia sat back down, as unsurprised as I was. “Very well. Next…Nathan,” He said, turning to look at me.

Along with everyone else. There were some very curious looks being thrown my way.

I stood up from my chair, indifferent to the attention. “I’ll be retiring as well,” I said with finality.

That shocked some people as well.

“But you were the one that killed the Calamity!” One Agent said in surprise. “The Order needs you!”

“And aren’t you the Grand Marshall’s apprentice?” Another asked in confusion. I saw Sylvia’s attention sharpen at that, as she took another look at me.

I felt a frown cross my lips.

Thanks, Woodrick. Thanks a lot.

“Yes, and that isn’t changing,” I said curtly. “But I’m done with the war. Too much has happened, and I need to process it.”

I was getting a bit tired of answering that, honestly. I'd be glad when this was all behind me.

I sat down then, deliberately cutting off any questions that could have been thrown my way. Conversation slowly started back up then, and I didn’t speak again while the rest of the Division was deciding their own fates.

It was only after the meeting was over that I stirred in my chair, standing up. I was intending to seek out Liora, but I was unsurprised to find the Gnoll woman already waiting on me near the stairs out. She jerked her head in the direction of Bella and joined the pirate as she stalked out of the basement with the others.

I followed them, aware of several eyes tracking me.

Including Sylvias.

I tried not to let it bother me.

<<Chapter 220 | Table of Contents | Chapter 222>>

Chapter 220 - A Long Overdue Talk

AN:

I think I've made a decision. Like most of you can probably guess, this book is winding to a close. It'll probably finish next week. Technically, it's still Book 4. As in, the one that directly follows the entire trek to and fight at Caer Drarrow.

That's over a hundred chapters ago. Way too long for an individual book, over 200k words.

Thus, I'm going to be splitting it into 2 books. The title I had in mind for it was originaly 'The Construct War'. Now, it's going to be split into 'The Construct War Part I' and 'The Construct War Part II'. Part I will end just after Nate, Sylvia, and Hook leave Tlazo's tomb and get into Elderwyck. I think it's fairly appropriate for Part II to concern everything that happens in the city.

That's all just a bit of housekeeping, so thank you for reading up to this point. I promise, I'm not anywhere close to being done with Sins. I have a lot left planned for this series.

With that, i'll let you get back to the wind down of Book 5 of Sins of the Forefathers, 'The Construct War Part II'.

................................................

I spoke first.

“We’re leaving,” I said bluntly, as Grey closed his eyes at my words. There was an almost defeated cast to his aged features. Meanwhile, Honoka let out a small, almost inaudible sigh. “Too much has happened too quickly, and neither Azarus or I can really take it anymore. This mess…this entire war….we gave it a shot. But it’s not our responsibility to clean it up. I'm sorry Grey, but we're done.”

Grey nodded slowly, still not speaking up from his silence.

Honoka was the one to break it. “You know where you’re going?” She asked shortly.

I shrugged at her. “Not yet,” I admitted. “We only just decided that we were done with it all. I have some ideas about what we could do, but nothing concrete. I need to talk to some people first.”

Grey finally opened his eyes to meet mine seriously. “Nathan, if this is about what happened to Sylvia, please understand. There is a chance that she could recover her memories of the last four months. A slim one, I’ll admit,” He amended quickly, at my raised eyebrows. “But it exists. The damage to her enchantment, and thus her soul, could mend with time. The impressions of those experiences could return to her. I’m…not sure it will happen in her case, but it’s possible.”

I absorbed that for a moment. Nevertheless, I shook my head, to Grey’s obvious disappointment. “That’s…great, honestly. I’m happy for her. You too, really,” I said, doing my best to smile at Grey. “But I think I still would have taken off either way. Too much has changed, Grey. I’m…not the same person I was, before I joined the Nocturne Division. A lot can happen in two months, and I need to come to terms with it. Away from the war.”

Grey absorbed that and then nodded slightly. “I understand, Nathan. Truly, I do. I…cannot say if it is possible to revert the physical changes wrought from your newest stolen Skill. But I believe you should try. With mastery over it, you might be capable of far more than you would believe.”

“I’ll…consider it,” I said reluctantly. I hadn’t tried to use Vis Maledicta Exactoris once since that first initial transformation. Honestly, I wasn’t sure I even wanted to. If I had my way, the Skill would rot in the depths of my Status for the rest of my life for what it had done to me. But the more practical side of myself said it might be worth experimenting with the Skill. Albeit, incredibly grudgingly.

Not anytime soon, though.

“However, there are…other matters to discuss, before you depart,” Grey said, doing his best to smile. “There are some congratulations in order. From what Honoka has told me, you’ve passed the level one-hundred mark, and thus are capable of your own Ascension Ritual. With that, you will finally be considered a true Mage.”

I blinked at that. I…guess that was true. I had been looking forward to that for so long, and yet my own Ascension Ritual had completely slipped my mind. To be fair, though, I’d been juggling a lot lately. “More than level one hundred,” I mused, leaning back in my chair. “I should actually have over twenty levels banked, from when I checked last. I…think they’re being held back by being locked at one-hundred right now. It reminds me of how I was locked at level ten before I could get my class, back in the day.”

“You are correct, yes,” Grey said with a nod. “The System will not allow you to move past level one-hundred before choosing your Path in finality. Twenty levels is…a bit much, but not totally unexpected, considering the amount of level Aether that slaying a Calamity must bring. Nathan,” He said, leaning forward in his chair. “Before you leave, allow me to assist you in your Ritual. Even if you wish to depart for a time, I still consider you my apprentice. It is my responsibility to facilitate such an important life step as an Ascension Ritual. And with yours completed, when you return, we can continue your education as a proper Magi,” Grey paused for a moment, before continuing almost uncertainly. “That is…if you intend to return…?”

I held up my hands and smiled at Grey. “Yeah. This isn’t forever. I just…I want…I need to step away from all of this for a time. Azarus and I are going to come back, Grey. We’ll try and keep in contact, so drop us a letter when the war is over and the Academy is open for business again. But in the meantime? Yeah…yeah, I’ll stick around for a few more days so we can do my Ritual. I’d like that.”

Grey sighed in relief at that. “Good. Then, we should get to work on designing it. It…might take more than a few days though,” He said, casting a despairing gaze at the piles of parchment littering his desk. “As you can imagine, the leadership is quite busy with the occupation and planning our next move. I’ll try and set aside time to research with you, but it will be…difficult. I assure you though, that we'll have enough time before the Uprising leaves Elderwyck. We can get started right now, I believe.” At that, Grey reached for a blank scroll and unrolled it before him, clearing a space for it as he did so. He looked back up at me with a smile. “Come, join me.”

I returned his smile and stood up from my chair. As I did so, Honoka walked past me towards the door with an acknowledging nod. She stopped, though, when I spoke up before she could exit the room. “Keep an eye on her for me,” I said simply.

Honoka nodded without turning to look at me. She didn’t even ask who I was talking about. We both knew which ‘she’ I meant. “Always. You didn’t even have to ask. I’ll…see you around, Hart.” With that, Honoka slipped out the door and closed it behind her.

Meanwhile, I turned around and dragged my chair to the other side of Grey’s desk and settled in for an almost nostalgic lesson from Grey. It had been a long time since we’d had a chance to do something like this.

“Now,” Grey started in a lecturing tone. “When designing a Mana based Ascension Ritual, one must begin with circles…”

……………………………..

Grey only had a few hours to work with me on my Ascension Ritual. In that time, I found the process…actually kind of fascinating. He taught me about the basics of what an Ascension Ritual actually was, and how it functioned to convert my Stamina into usable Mana.

Apparently, it was about purification and attunement.

Of…a sort.

My only experience with Ascension Rituals up to this point had been observing the effects of Sylvia’s. She had gone through a Cultivator Ritual though, and not the Magi Ritual that we were designing for my use.

Actually, I couldn’t imagine how confused poor Sylvia must be right now. She had gone through that ritual in the period of time she had lost, and now had no memories of something so important to her Path. It had to be incredibly jarring, and it made me wish I could comfort her. But I’m not sure she even knew I existed anymore. I didn’t have that right.

I didn’t ask Grey where she was right now. I’m not sure I could have resisted the urge to go and check up on her, essentially invading the privacy of someone who was now a stranger.

I forcibly pushed thoughts of Sylvia away to concentrate on Grey’s lecture.

Anyway, Sylvia’s Ritual had been a Cultivator one, thus had been about physical purification. But Magi Rituals were different.

Ours was about mental purification. Which confused me.

How do you purify a mind?

When I asked Grey that, he just smiled patiently at me.

“A common question,” He answered happily. “And I don’t mind explaining it.”

I mentally winced at the joke, but tried not to react otherwise. I didn’t begrudge Grey his little jests.

Grey continued.

“Consider this, Nathan,” Grey said in a lecturing tone. “What is a mind? We cannot touch it, and yet we all have one. We cannot see it, and yet it is always spinning in circles. It is the lens through which we view and perceive the world, and thus it must exist somehow. There must be something that indicates its existence somewhere. These were the questions that the very earliest philosopher Magi posed to each other.”

I frowned, drumming my fingers on the desk. “Well, the obvious answer is that it has to be something inherent to the soul,” I pointed out. “Maybe the mind is inside of it.”

“Exactly!” Grey crowed. “But also wrong!”

I blinked at the enthusiasm but didn’t interrupt Grey. He seemed like he was both on a roll, and enjoying himself immensely.

“The mind is separate from the soul!” Grey continued with an excited smile. “For all of its deep and complex mysteries, the earliest Magi were able to conclusively prove that the mind does not dwell within the soul. It is an existence separate from both the physical self, and the spiritual self. The mind does not reside in any part of the body, not in any organ. Certainly not the brain, despite what some believed in ages past. It cannot be found within the soul either, and thus the question was raised. Where is the mind? Care to take a guess?” He asked me teasingly.

I smirked back at him. “Is it the Concord?” I asked him.

One of Grey’s eyebrows went up, but he shook his head. “No, in fact, although that is a good guess. I have to say, your experiences within the Concord are certainly atypical. Alas that we do not have the time to expound on them,” He lamented. “But I digress. It is not the Concord. The mind lies…nowhere.”

I tilted my head. “Nowhere? As in…it doesn’t exist?”

Grey lifted a finger. “The mind simultaneous does and does not exist, it was discovered. It does not have an energy form that can be detected. It is an almost…diffuse cloud of consciousness that surrounds and nearly buffets the soul. That was the mistake that the early Magi philosophers made, you see,” He admitted, sounding almost envious. “They were so focused on looking inside of the soul that they didn’t think to look just outside of it. However, that’s not the important thing. What is important, is that the mind picks up ‘impurities’ from its proximity to the soul.”

“What kind of impurities?”

“The mind is not meant to naturally contain energies of its own, but it nevertheless accumulates them from existence,” Grey continued patiently. “Environmental Aether, rarely so pure as what you use through Aetherial Melding, is often contaminated from its surroundings. Almost…flavors, so to speak. Not only that, but simply existing in our society means you often come into contact with Mana and Ki not of your own. The process of attuning your mind to the processing of raw Aether into personal Mana means you must purge it of the energies already there. Thus, the largest and most dangerous part of a Magi Ascension Ritual is the purging of extraneous energies. It’s quite a show, as you’ll find out. You know, the writings from around the time of all these discoveries are quite extraordinary. You really must read them when you come attend the Academy, Nathan.”

“Sure, sounds good to me,” I said, interested. “I had no idea that being a Mage involved so much, well. Philosophy.” I laughed before a thought occurred to me. “Did your master teach you this when you were an apprentice with Raph-” I cut myself off when Grey’s expression abruptly darkened when I tried to speak that second name.

Grey glowered off into the distance, before switching his gaze to the staff I always carried with me now. Currently, it was leaning in a corner of the room next to the office door. If anything, his scowl only intensified at the sight of it.

I cleared my throat almost uncomfortably. “Ah…I’m guessing…he is a bit of a sore subject?”

Grey was silent for a moment. “You could say that,” He finally muttered darkly. “That absolute bastard…when he reforms I’m going to disperse him again. And when he comes back from that, I’ll do it again and again and again. Maybe after a dozen times I’ll finally be satisfied, for what he put us through by faking his final death.”

Well.

That sounded like a lot of ancient history. I was curious about it, but Grey was already looking touchy at just the mention of the Lich.

Actually…

Now that I thought about it, I was curious enough to risk his ire on one thing about Tlazo.

I cleared my throat, drawing Grey’s attention. “What’s the deal with the whole ‘Pigsnatcher’ thing?” I said bluntly. That was how Tlazo had said to positively identify himself to Grey the next time I saw him.

To my surprise, Grey actually gaped at me for a moment before pounding a fist down on the desk in sheer affront. “That asshole!” He said in astonishment, outright swearing for the first time since I’d known him. “He had the gall to mention that, out of everything? Gods, the nerve of that man!” My mentor heaved a few breaths in and out for a moment, before finally speaking up again. “It, well. It’s a reference to how our master taught us the Telekinesis spell. We were thrown into the proverbial deep end by…being instructed to catch very well-greased shaved pigs. It’s…quite difficult, I must say.”

I simply blinked at Grey in incomprehension for a moment, before his words penetrated. When they did, I choked on my own spit before bursting out laughing.

Hard.

Harder, in fact, than I think I had since I’d set foot on Vereden.

I…I just…

The mental image alone…

Meanwhile, Grey just grumbled, scowling off into the distance again. “He was better at it than I was, and he just kept on stealing my own pigs. Thus, ‘Pigsnatcher’. He always was a prick.”

I howled all the harder.

Gods, I’d needed this.

<<Chapter 219 | Table of Contents | Chapter 221>>

Chapter 219 - Outed

A frown crossed my lips, as I began to feel a sense of impending dread.

Meanwhile, Jason started ranting drunkenly at me. “I trusted you!” He screamed, swaying from his own inebriation and keeping an accusing finger pointed at me. “And all along you were one of THEM! Youuuu…you were one of those evil BASTARDS FUCKING EVERYTHING UP!”

Most of the aid workers in the surrounding area had stopped what they were doing to watch the confrontation at this point, and the shouting was drawing in even more people. A crowd was forming to watch. While not every look thrown my way was as accusing as Jason was being, there were some decidedly unfriendly ones in that mix.

“I let you into my HOME!” Jason bellowed, spit flying from his mouth. “And now it’s GONE! IT’S ALL YOUR FAULT!” At that, the proprietor of Jason’s Magical Brews staggered up to me with outstretched hands, as if to try and strangle me.

I frown crossed my lips as I caught and held them effortlessly. Jason had once told me he’d never been serious about his Status, and it showed. The man was pathetically weak in comparison to me. I didn’t even budge as I held the struggling man in my grip.

Still, I sighed. In a way…he was right. Nerexxa had only kicked off her plan after the arrival of the Division here in Elderwyck. Everything was still her fault, of course. But we had factored into that plan, and even if it was nonsensical, I felt a measure of guilt over it. “I’m sorry, Jason,” I said quietly enough that I wasn’t sure he heard me. But he did, and stopped his struggling long enough to glare at me with hate painted across his face. “I can talk to some people about finding you a place to stay, if you need one. And I have…a little money that you can take to build a new life.”

It was the best I could do for him, at this point.

But Jason didn’t want to hear it. The drunken man sneered at me. “I don’t want your PITY!” He shouted, before rearing back his head. He drove it forward in an attempt to headbutt me in the face, but it was easy enough for me to lean backward and dodge it.

That was a mistake.

It was only after I heard gasps from the surrounding crowd that I realized what had happened, in my evasion of the drunken headbutt.

My hood had fallen backward with the movement. My altered features, including my ears, had been exposed to the astonished eyes of the crowd.

I tensed up while Jason finally tired out in my arms. He stopped struggling and went limp in my grip, now sobbing loudly. I numbly let go of him, and he slumped to his knees and buried his face in his hands. Meanwhile, I started to hear whispers from the mob.

“Weren’t there rumors about an elf?” My new ears heard one man mutter to another. “Somethin’ about one freein’ all the Sculpted about the city?”

“An elf in the Order?” I heard another say.

Abruptly, one Uprising soldier shoved forward out of the mass and gaped at me for a moment, “Don't I know you? I swear I saw you in Helstein a few months back. You look a little different, but aren't you Sir Nathaniel Hart? I heard you were the one that killed the Calamity!"

My heart dropped into my stomach as the crowd went abruptly silent. Suddenly, everyone in the mob was looking at me with confused awe in their gazes. Slowly, I reached back and drew my hood up, but the damage had already been done.

Heartbreakingly, a dirty little girl stepped out of the crowd, escaping the grasp of his exhausted mother. “Is it true, mister Elf?” She asked innocently. “Did you kill the monster?”

“I…” I said aloud, paralyzed by the guileless curiosity in her young eyes. The rest of the crowd hung off my every word. “I…”

I couldn’t get a word out. Panic was welling up inside of me now, in a way I thought I’d gotten past. White noise filled my head as I groped for something, anything to say.

But then more fuel was thrown on the fire, from an unlikely source.

“I heard it was true,” A voice said unexpectedly, drawing mine and everyone else’s attention. An Order member stepped out of the crowd, and to my dismay, he was looking at me with near worship. “The higher-ups have been saying that it was a member of our Order that killed the Calamity. Supposedly, it was Headmaster Greycton’s apprentice who did it.”

What?

What the fuck? Who was saying that?! Had Woodrick or Leopold let that fact slip ‘accidentally’? Was I being used as a…PR campaign, or something?

Suddenly I was feeling much more sure of my decision to leave with Azarus.

“Are you him?” The Uprising soldier said breathlessly. “Sir…Hart?”

The eyes of the crowd swung my way once again, and I was disturbed by the level of awe now radiating from them. I took a step back almost instinctively from the attention before I bumped into something and felt a hand fall on my shoulder. I whipped around in panic, only to see that it was Azarus behind me. Said dwarf leaned in closely. “We should probably get out of here,” He whispered next to my long, hooded ear. “We don’t want this to turn into a riot. Pretty sure Grey is at the Guard Headquarters. Go on, get. I’ll meet ya there. I gotta find some things if we’re headin’ out.”

That knocked me out of my panic long enough to nod at him and start backing away from the crowd. Near worshipping gazes were being directed my way that were so disturbing that I felt my skin crawl from them. I had to get out of here.

And so I did.

Throwing out an arm, I cast Thorn Grapple at a nearby rooftop and reeled myself in. Once up there, I started sprinting and hopping my way towards the guard HQ.

Away from the reverent masses.

…………………………………..

The Uprising and the Order seemed to have taken over the guard headquarters, when I finally reached it. They were very clearly in charge of things now that they’d occupied the city. Honestly, it didn’t look like the Loyalists or the guards themselves were too bothered by it. Instead, they looked a bit relieved to be ordered around like they seemed to be.

However, one thing did bother me.

I was recognized.

Again.

Disturbingly, even though I was being careful to keep myself concealed, the Order and Army forces had zeroed in on me once I’d touched down in front of the HQ. They were quiet as they parted before my form, leaving a clear path through the former chaos of the refugee efforts. Some of those refugees were visibly confused at the deference that was being paid to me, only for some of the soldiers to lean down and whisper to them. When those people looked up at me again, awe was visible on their tired, dirt-streaked faces.

I grit my teeth at the attention, doing my best to hide how it bothered me. With my Acting level, it wasn’t that hard.

The soldiers guarding the door to the manse actually saluted me when I reached them. “Sir Hart,” one of them said respectfully. “How can we help you?”

I just looked at him for a moment, causing the soldier to fidget slightly from my attention.

‘Sir’ Hart.

I hadn’t been called something like that since Rhoscara. But I had been bullshitting about that then, and now…now I wasn’t too sure.

“I need to see the Grand Marshal,” I said finally.

The soldier saluted again. “Of course, Sir Hart. Private Maloney can take you to him. Maloney!” He barked at a nearby pimply-faced teenager of a soldier who had been not so subtly eavesdropping on the conversation.

‘Maloney’ straightened up and saluted sloppily. “R-right away, sir!” He said eagerly, before turning to face me with worshipful eyes. “This w-way, Sir Hart!” At that, the private jogged through the doors the guards had opened up for us, without even waiting for me.

I stifled a sigh and followed the kid through the opening, finding him waiting almost impatiently for me. He brightened up and then motioned for me to follow him.

It was damn busy in here, and as we walked through the halls of the manse to wherever Grey was hiding, people stopped to watch us.

Or rather, me.

Conversations stopped, and heads turned, leaving pockets of quiet that followed in my wake. Always, furious conversation erupted wherever I passed.

Just being here, I was disrupting operations through my presence alone. Even if people were just curious about who they had been told was the person to slay a Calamity, I felt like a liability.

I did my best to hurry the Private along.

Eventually, he led me to a small office near the top of the building, before departing.

Inside, I could hear low conversation, indicating that Grey wasn’t alone in there. I was…simultaneously relieved and disappointed that I couldn’t hear Sylvia in there.

Instead, there seemed to be three people in there that I could recognize easily enough, even though Lifeblood Sense told me there were four. Two were somewhat expected, while the other two weren’t. But I had wanted to see one of those other two before I left.

If only to tell the little shit what I thought of him.

I knocked on the door, causing the conversation to cease for a moment. “Enter,” I heard Grey say from within. I opened the door and stepped through, finding exactly who I had expected on the other side.

Grey was here, obviously. My mentor was sitting behind a desk absolutely stacked with various scrolls and reports, looking grateful for any kind of distraction. He looked relieved to see me. Honoka, too, because she was standing right behind Grey, with her arms crossed over her chest and looking as annoyed as ever.

She didn’t look relieved to see me.

Instead, she looked away in almost shame. I…didn’t want to unpack that right now, in front of the other people in the room.

Prince Oskar, and his asshole guard Augustine.

I hadn’t seen the knight at the meeting earlier, and that had made me wonder if the man had even survived the Breaks. But no, he was here now. Maybe the Prince, or rather, King-Elect, had just ditched his bodyguard earlier.

I wouldn’t put it past the kid.

I exchanged a nod with Grey as I stepped inside the room. “Nathan,” He said in a relieved tone, standing up from his chair. “I see Azarus found you. Are you…?” He trailed off.

I’m guessing he was about to ask if I was fine.

Not really.

Oh, whatever.

“Not really,” I said out loud, uncaring about the presence of the Prince. Grey winced, while the Prince just looked confused. Honoka still wouldn’t look at me. “But yeah, Azarus found me. We talked, and came to a decision. He sent me on ahead while he got some stuff together,” I took a deep breath. “I need to talk to you about something. But first…” I turned to the Prince and met his eyes. “I have something to say to you, your Highness.”

Prince Oskar winced. “Ah, if It’s about my earlier accusation, Sir Hart, I do apologize. I was merely concern-” He stopped in surprise when I held up a hand to cut him off. He was so shocked that it made me wonder if the kid had ever been interrupted like that in his life.

“I don’t care,” I said bluntly, causing Augustine to tense. I paid the attack dog no mind, and just kept my eyes trained on Oskar. “I’m going to be the bad guy here and say something that you need to hear, Prince Oskar. You need to get your shit together.”

The Prince’s lips parted as he blinked repeatedly. “I’m…sorry?”

“You’re not, and I don’t blame you for it,” I said unflinchingly. “I’m not sure if a royal like you has ever been told off in your life, so I’ll do it since everyone else has failed you. If you’re going to be the King of this fucked up country, you can’t be a kid anymore. I don’t know what kind of problem you have with me,” I said, causing Oskar to wince. “I don’t care if you jump to conclusions in my case. I can take it. But the people of Herztal don’t deserve that kind of carelessness. Not after being put through a civil war. If you’re going to be a King that can hold this country together when everything is said and done, you need to be more careful with what you say and do.”

Silence descended on the office for a moment, as all four occupants stared at me in shock at the way I’d just backtalked the boy who was going to be King. I stifled a smirk at how that little rant had made Honoka finally look at me, if only to gawk at my audacity.

Well, whatever. I didn’t have the instinctive deference that most Veredenese seemed to have for royalty.

My people had cast off the trappings of crowns and thrones centuries ago.

Augustine audibly growled at that, stepping forward with a tight hand gripping his sword. “You dare?”

I just met his helmeted eyes with a bored gaze, completely unfazed by the knight’s rage. It took more than the anger of a toady like him to intimidate me.

Still, he backed down when Oskar cleared his throat awkwardly. “Ah…I will…take your words under advisement?” He said almost meekly, not meeting my eyes. “I…thank you both for your candor, and for the mercy you showed to Isolde. Rest assured, she will…not be a problem in the future, as we have…reconciled our differences.”

“Good,” I nodded sharply, before turning away from him to look at Grey. “Then, if you don’t mind? Grey and I have business.”

Prince Oskar took a deep breath and nodded. “Yes, of course. I have just one more thing to say, before I leave. It is in regard to my…previous accusation, back in Helstein. There, I…informed you that impersonating a knight was illegal. However, that is…no longer an issue. Although a formal ceremony has not be held, I have decided that for your service here in her Elderwyck, you are to be knighted.”

I looked back at the Prince abruptly at that. “Is that why everyone has been calling me ‘Sir’ Hart. Were you the one to leak that I was the person who killed the Calamity?” I said, narrowing my eyes at Oskar.

Said Prince held up his hands almost defensively. “Ah, no. I believe the decision to inform the soldiery of that fact came from Commander Woodrick. I merely tacked something on to the announcement. I simply wanted to tell you that a ceremony for your knighting can come after the conclusion of the war. I will…leave to your business then, Sir Hart.” At that, Oskar shuffled backward out of the room, never taking his eyes off of me before he disappeared out of the door. Augustine followed after him after one last attempt at an intimidating stare, which I completely disregarded.

Leaving me alone with Grey and Honoka.

I took a deep breath before walking over and sitting in the chair before Grey’s desk and meeting his eyes. “We need to talk.”

Grey sighed, set his hands down flat on the desk, and nodded.

“Yes, I believe we do.”

<<Chapter 218 | Table of Contents | Chapter 220>>

Chapter 218 - Cessation

Eventually, I outright fled from the clinic, unwilling to be anywhere near where the apparently amnesiac Sylvia was. I didn’t know where I was going frankly. All I wanted was to be gone.

I found a place.

An abandoned bar.

Honestly, it was a wreck. Most of the furniture had been reduced to splinters, and there were more than a few splotches of dried blood littering the floorboards. I’m guessing the owners of this place were either dead or had more important things to worry about right now than how their business was nearly scrapped.

At least there weren’t any bodies in here. Guess the rescue crews had already passed through this area.

But the bar counter itself, and more importantly its stock of booze, seemed to have survived the chaos mostly intact. I’d gathered up whatever bottles I could find behind it, dragged a wobbly stool up to the claw-marked surface, and got to work.

Guzzling those bottles, I hadn’t moved from my shitty stool in hours. In that time, I had…plenty of thoughts, even though I was trying to drown them in an ocean of alcohol.

Dangerous ones.

Thoughts that made me wonder…

I was barely aware of the door to my hiding spot slamming open. I was drunk enough now that I didn’t give a shit if anyone found me here, pilfering booze from a disaster zone. I didn’t even bother to turn around to see who had discovered me. What were they going to do to me that was worse than had already been done?

Hard to top my recent hardships.

I heard heavy plated feet plod into the bar and then slam the door closed behind them, before approaching my hunched-over form. Only when the new arrival pulled up a nearby stool and sat to my left at the bar did I turn my head slightly, to see who they were.

Ah.

Normally, I would have been pretty happy to see them. It had been nearly two months since we’d last seen each other. The person sitting next to me was likely my oldest friend on Vereden, after all.

Azarus.

My dwarven friend was fully kitted out in his own personal plate armor, forged with his own hands and splattered with mud. To me, it looked like he had just come in from the road and hadn’t gotten a chance to clean up. For a moment, I wondered if Grey or someone else had sent the dwarf after me, after the disaster from earlier.

But I doubted it. He had probably gone looking for me entirely on my own.

Azarus looked pissed.

The dwarf was grinding his teeth and glaring out into space, looking more furious than I had seen from him since Addersfield. He had thrown down his carefully forged shield and hammer carelessly onto the splintered floorboards of the tavern, and looked ready to fight someone with his bare hands. Moments after sitting, he grabbed one of the bottles of liquor I had stolen, outright snapped off the glass head of it, and guzzled the entire thing down in seconds.

Even as pissed as I was, I still retained enough cognizance to be impressed by the feat. That much booze all at once would have probably killed me, back on Earth. I also…had enough thought left in my core ring to realize what this was probably about.

I turned away from Azarus to pick up my own bottle and take a swig. After setting it down, I finally spoke up. “Told you about Hook then?” I asked shortly.

Azarus sat in fuming silence for a moment before finally speaking up. “Yeah,” He said roughly.

It didn’t seem like he wanted to speak about it. That…was fine with me.

I could respect that.

Silence descended once more before my core ring nudged me about a promise I had made. I told it to shut the fuck up, but still begrudgingly did its bidding. Releasing my grip on my bottle, I reached under my armor at my neck and fished out the chain I found there. Slipping it over my neck, I handed the pendant I had been safekeeping over to Azarus.

For a moment, he didn’t even see my offering, with as absorbed in his drink as he was. But when he did, my red-haired friend grit his teeth once more. He numbly took the locket in one beefy hand and just stared down at it for a moment. “Ye fucking bastard,” He breathed. “How dare ye…”

I don't think he was speaking to me, to be honest.

Almost reluctantly, Azarus cracked open the locket to stare down at the contents for a moment. I was only able to catch a brief glimpse of the tiny portrait inside before Azarus roughly slammed the locket down on the bar.

The miniature painting had looked to be of an extended dwarven family, with almost all of them being red of hair.

There were more than a few children in it. I even thought I recognized some of them.

I looked away and sighed, returning to my own brooding.

Silence, as Azarus breathed heavily next to me. Eventually, he reached for another bottle.

Some time passed, with the two of us simply drinking to drown our own troubles. Azarus and I…we weren’t really the talking type.

But sometimes, some things needed to be said.

Surprisingly, Azarus was the one to break the silence. As we’d been systemically mowing through the bar’s stocks of liquor, he had calmed down some. “Sorry about Sylvia,” He said roughly, not turning to look at me.

I grunted. I was unsurprised that Grey had told the dwarf about what had happened to my…former girlfriend.

“What are ye goin’ to do about it?” Azarus continued awkwardly, making an attempt. I was, surprisingly, grateful. I knew he wasn’t the best at this kind of emotional stuff. Hell, I wasn’t either. I knew how hard it was for people like us.

Still, I took a deep breath before I answered him. “That’s the thing, isn’t it?” I said quietly, my gaze sharpening even through my inebriation. After the shock and horror of what had happened with Sylvia passed, something else had been left in its wake.

Indignation, and more than a bit of anger.

“Why…should I bother anymore?” I said aloud, voicing the thoughts that had been running through my mind.

Azarus finally turned to look at me in alarm at my words. “Nate…ye can’t mean-”

I slashed out with one hand, knocking one empty bottle off the counter top to shatter on the floor below. “No,” I said sharply. “No, I don’t want to…end things. I’m talking about all of this!” I nearly shouted, finally standing up from my stool and making a sweeping gesture at our surroundings. Azarus looked around in confusion for a moment at the decimated bar, but I wasn’t talking about that.

More…my whole fucking life.

“Why am I here Azarus?” I asked him, almost desperately. I continued before he could even try and answer the almost rhetorical question. “Why am I so deep in this fucking war?! WHY…” I screamed, tearing at my Order armor furiously and ripping off my breastplate. I threw it down onto the floorboards beneath me hard enough to crack them. “Was I a fucking assassin?! Why was I killing people?! Look at everything I’ve lost!” I said, holding up my arm desperately. “I’ve lost my arm! I almost lost an eye! I have brain damage! And…!” I reached up and tugged painfully at one of my elongated, sensitive ears. “I lost my fucking humanity! What more do I have to give?! Why am I even doing this anymore?!”

Silence descended on the bar, when I finished my ranting. Azarus stared at me for a moment before sliding off of his own stool. “Then stop,” He said bluntly. I blinked at his words, knocked out of my near hysteria. “If doin’ the work ye were in is makin’ ye miserable, then just drop it.”

My lips parted for a moment in shock as I considered them.

Just…stop.

I considered that for a moment.

Oh…oh that sounded…

Nice.

“What was I even doing?” I asked in a whisper. “Was…Rhazal rig-” I shook my head sharply, before starting to pace. Now I was just speaking my thoughts out loud, uncaring if Azarus heard them. There were few people I trusted more, after all. “No, he wasn’t. I do want to build a life on Vereden, I know I do. Just not this one. I refuse to be a blade in the dark anymore. I don’t want to treat life as casually as an assassin does.”

“Then let’s go,” Azarus spoke up behind me. I blinked rapidly and turned to face him. He shrugged at my regard. “Honestly Nate, I’m sick of this shit too. I ain’t got nothing against the Sculpted. They don’t deserve ta be slaves. But I’m sick of fightin’, and it's not like the Uprising is goin' ta lose after all this shit. They got the Loyalists held at the end of a blade. We can just…go. What’s stoppin’ us?”

I stared at him numbly for a moment. “But…Grey…” I said slowly. “We were going to join the Academy…?”

“No reason we still can’t,” Azarus said dismissively. “Ain’t like classes are goin’ ta start back up anytime soon. War’s still on, and when this shit is all over, it’ll take ‘em some time to start things back up. We can just bugger off till then.” At that, Azarus walked up to me and deliberately set his hands on my shoulders to stare into my eyes. It wasn’t that hard for the abnormally tall dwarf to do. “We don’t got ta fight this war. I sure as shit ain’t a Herztalian, and ye aren’t either. This mess ain’t our gods damned responsibility.”

“Where would we go…?” I trailed off, the thought of Azarus’s proposal meandering through my mind.

Azarus shrugged, stepping back. “I dunno. Wherever the hell we want to, I guess.”

I stood stock still for a moment. “Wherever we want to…” I breathed.

Somewhere I didn’t have to be an assassin. Somewhere I wasn’t getting ordered into war. Somewhere my friends and comrades weren’t getting murdered left and right.

Somewhere I didn’t have to see the stranger that now lived in my former love’s Mithril skin.

My eyes watered, but no tears ran down my cheeks as I let out a shuddering breath. “I like that idea, Azarus,” I said quietly. “I like it a lot…”

The two of us simply stood together as the very basic idea of a plan coalesced in our minds. The bar was silent, while out in the street, we heard the shouting and shuffling of feet as rescue efforts continued.

I nodded slowly. “Alright,” I said, just barely loud enough to be heard. “Alright. Let’s do this. I’m…done. Let someone else finish this war.” With those words, I felt an indescribable weight lift off of my shoulders as the decision was made.

Azarus let out a sigh of relief of his own. “Thank fuck,” He said, slumping slightly. “I gotta tell ya Nate, I was thinkin’ of just leavin’ on me own after talkin’ to ya. But,” He smiled slightly and slugged me on the shoulder. A few months ago, I probably would have staggered from the blow. Now, though, it just felt like a friendly punch. “I got me a travel buddy. It’ll be just like old times.”

I leaned back up against the bar for a moment in thought. “Maybe…” I said out loud. “More than just us. I…have an idea, but we’ll have to talk to some other people first,” I abruptly shook my head. “Grey comes first, though. We have to tell him we’re bowing out. He deserves…that much, at least.”

Azarus nodded seriously, before looking around the bar. “Let’s get goin’ then. I’ve only been in this city fer a day, and I’m already sick of it.”

I snorted, nodding. “You think you’re sick of it,” I muttered, as we picked up both of our discarded equipment. Azarus his shield and hammer, while I strapped my breastplate back on and picked up my staff. I only remember to slip my hood up over my head at the last minute, before we left. “You try operating here for weeks. I’m never coming back again.”

“Don’t blame ya,” Azarus said, as we walked up to the door that was barely hanging onto its hinges. He opened it and stepped through. “If I ever have ta-”

The dwarf was cut off by someone abruptly running into his chest. He stopped in place while I stepped out of the bar. I walked around him to see who had interrupted him, only to stop in place in shock.

I…recognized them.

It was Jason, the owner of the potion shop I had been working at as part of my cover here in Elderwyck. I was strangely happy to see the slight man. It was…nice to see that he had survived the fighting and the chaos.

Only…he didn’t look so good.

The slim bespectacled man was swaying on his feet, looking far drunker than either Azarus or I were. He wore dirty, ripped clothes and peered out at the world resentfully through glasses that only had a single cracked lens in them. He drunkenly stumbled away from Azarus, nearly falling over before I managed to catch him. He stared at the gloved hand that had grabbed him in incomprehension for a moment, before following it up to my face. He blinked one eye and then the other, before shitfaced recognition crossed his face. “Hans…?” He slurred. “Izzat you?”

I helped the other man to his feet and did my best to smile at him. “Yeah, Jason. It’s me. You…don’t look so good, man,” I looked up at Azarus before smiling regretfully at him. “Ah, I know this guy. Let me get him back home and then we’ll go do what we were talking about, okay?”

Azarus shrugged. “No problem. I can tag along fer now.”

When I looked back down at Jason, I was…somehow unsurprised to see that the man had started sobbing into his hands. “I don’t have a home anymore!” He cried drunkenly. “Those fuckin’ things wrecked the shop! I’m ruined!”

I sighed regretfully, before reaching down a hand to help him. Jason stared at it in incomprehension, before he followed it up to my…body for some reason? He stared at me, or more specifically my Order armor, before something unexpected happened.

A rictus of hate stole over his ragged features. The shopkeep snarled and knocked my hand away before staggering to his feet. “YOU!” He shouted, pointing an accusing finger at me. “YOU’RE ONE OF THOSE ORDER PEOPLE, AREN’T YOU!”

All around us, I could see his shouting was drawing attention. Rescue workers, guards, and soldiers stopped to watch the confrontation.

Not all of the looks on their faces were friendly, when they caught sight of me.

<<Chapter 217 | Table of Contents | Chapter 219>>

Chapter 217 - Revivification

After our emotional reunion in the middle of the Healer’s clinic, the meeting had adjourned. Woodrick and Leopold had left, leaving Grey, Honoka, and I alone with the comatose form of Sylvia, citing a need to oversee the occupation of Elderwyck. The actual Healer had rolled her eyes at us and left us alone without a word, while Sparrow...

Sparrow had pulled me aside as the meeting was breaking up.

“Come to the docks when you’re done,” He said in a low tone, resignation thick in his voice. “We’re meeting to decide the fate of the Division there. We…have permission from the Marshal to make the decision ourselves.”

Ah.

Well, as far as I was concerned, it was a foregone conclusion. But nevertheless, I nodded at the person who was very likely the most senior surviving member of the Nocturne Division. He returned the nod wearily before departing.

When we were alone, Honoka turned to Grey with trepidation on her aged face. “Well? How is she?”

I held my breath as I waited for an answer from Grey.

I didn’t quite get what I wanted.

Grey reached up to massage his forehead, letting out an explosive sigh as he did so. “It’s…hard to tell,” He said wearily, causing both Honoka and I to tense up. “Not in the sense that she’s in any further danger, no. I can say that Sylvia is not in any danger of dying. We have Nathan to thank for that.” He said with a grateful smile at me.

I let out a relieved sigh at that, grateful for at least one thing. “Then…I didn’t mess her up by patching up her wound with the gold?”

Grey immediately shook his head. “Oh no, not at all. If anything, the material was a deciding factor in shoring up her soul, so to speak. The Aetherically charged gold and Mithril of your…previous arm…” He said, trailing off for a moment and staring at my gloved new arm. He shook his head before continuing. “Had already been aligned, so to speak, to work well with Mithril. The combination acted as something of a supporting structure for her spirit, stabilizing both it and the Sculpted enchantment base that sustains her. She is in no…physical danger.”

“Then what’s the problem?” Honoka said with a frown. “I couldn’t find anything wrong with her during my examination.”

“The problem is…I’m not sure about her personality matrix,” Grey said uncertainly.

My brow furrowed for a moment, as I cast my mind back to our lessons about Sculpted construction and enchantment. I had learned quite a bit about how Sculpted worked when I was initially designing my replacement arm. Not as much as Grey, but enough that the words were familiar.

When I remembered what that was, my eyes shot open in dread. “You mean…” I breathed. “Her memories?”

Grey gave me a weak smile before nodding. “Yes, I’m afraid so,” He said sadly. “Even as quick as you were to save her life, Nathan, some injury was unavoidable. In this case, I detected some damage to that portion of her enchantment. It is my belief that Sylvia will have…lost some of herself to this wound.”

My face fell at the news, shocked into silence. Meanwhile, Honoka looked between the two of us wildly. “How much?!” She asked, helpless fury in her voice. “Is she even still going to be her?!”

I didn’t have an answer, simply looking at Grey helplessly.

Grey didn’t have an answer either. “I cannot say,” He said quietly. “You know as well as I do the complexities of the soul, Honoka. I cannot comprehend the enormity of it. Not even the gods could do that.”

Honoka deflated then, slumping back into her chair. “Then what do we do?”

“All we can do,” Grey answered, reaching across the table to lay a hand on hers. He squeezed her hand in his best attempt to reassure her. “Is wake her up and see what the damage is.”

I blinked at that. “Wake her up?” I said disbelievingly. “It can’t be that simple. She’s been out of it since the fight with Nerexxa.”

Grey turned a small smile my way. “That’s simply because you don’t know how to do so,” He said. “Sylvia is…not quite the same as all other Sculpted that exist. There are certain complexities, certain fail-safes to her enchantment that lie within her that were streamlined from those that came after. Remember, she was the first of her kind, and was initially naught but a ‘test-bed’, so to speak.” He paused for a second, before continuing. “Well, before she came to full sapience, that is.”

“Oh,” I said quietly, a little taken aback by how Grey was speaking of her. I…didn’t like being reminded that once upon a time, Sylvia had been little more than a lifeless doll.

It really was some kind of System born miracle that she was a person now.

“After she gained her soul,” Grey continued, oblivious to my unease. “I was extremely hesitant to try and alter the firmament that it relied upon. As such, when she has sustained damage to this extent, she requires my personal input to be roused to consciousness.”

“Then what are you waiting for?” Honoka said eagerly, leaning over the table. “Get on with it!”

“Very well,” Grey replied with a slight, standing up from the table. Honoka and I did the same, joining Grey as he walked back over to the medical cot that Sylvia was resting upon. The older woman and I stood back anxiously as Grey knelt back down and let one of his hands over only inches above Sylvia’s brow.

Grey took a deep breath, and then visibly concentrated on something. I felt a shift in the environmental Aether as the gravity of his own Mana interfered with it.

In the space between his hand and her forehead, I saw a small blue spark flash briefly into being.

Sylvia’s sapphire blue eyes immediately flashed open and her back rose off of the bed, arcing beneath her. She gasped an involuntary, rasping breath in a futile attempt to fill lungs that didn’t exist within her Mithril frame. After a moment, she flopped back onto the bed while her eyes remained open, staring almost unseeingly up at the roof of the clinic above.

I was frightened when I didn’t see any further movements from her at all, nor did I see a spark of true life in her gaze. Her eyes were shockingly dull, in an almost mockery of their normal brilliance. For a moment, I was terrifyingly reminded of how Porous Pete had looked all those months ago, under the effects of a slave brand.

Mindless, and empty.

“Hold,” Grey said sharply, knocking me out of my terror. I was confused for a moment, but he wasn’t speaking to me. Honoka had frozen in place at his command, looking like she had nearly lunged at Sylvia in her own panic. “Everything is as I suspected. The light of her consciousness is repairing the base of her enchantment, as it is meant to. In much the same way that we can recover from injuries, so to can a Sculpted recover from damage such as this."

Honoka slowly settled back down, as the two of us waited with bated breath for any sign that Sylvia was recovering. Meanwhile, Grey was watching her with a focus so intense that I could almost feel it.

Slowly, ever so slowly, I started to see life begin to creep back into Sylvia. It started with her body, which had grown almost rigid. She relaxed, untensing in a manner as if she had muscles under her Mithril skin. Her fingers began to twitch almost involuntarily, in an effort to clutch at something only she could see. And then…

Light bled back into her eyes, transforming the dullness of her gaze into a sharp brilliance.

Abruptly, Sylvia coughed, lunging upwards into a sitting position on her bed, hunched over her palms. “Wha…” She said roughly, in an extremely confused tone. Slowly, she looked up and around, blinking rapidly.

Oddly, her eyes flew open wide in deep shock when she saw Grey. A massive smile grew on her face, and she lunged for him. “Father!” She said joyfully nearly hanging off of his skinny frame. Confused but happy, I saw my mentor return the embrace readily, wrapping his arms around her. I relaxed next to Honoka in absolute relief, nearly slumping into her. She didn’t seem to care though, as the older woman had softened as well now that Sylvia was awake again.

Sylvia’s next words erased all of that.

“You’re free!” The Mithril Sculpted said in delight, leaning back to look Grey in his suddenly frozen stiff face. “Where were you?! The Order and I looked all over!”

Slowly, the smile that had been on my face fell away, to be replaced with something else.

Horror.

My lips parted in my shock, as I struggled to come to grips with what Sylvia’s words were telling me.

You’re free…

That…that implied…

Grey took a deep breath and grabbed one of Sylvia’s hands with both of his, cupping it between them. Sylvia looked confused for a moment, finally looking away from Grey for a moment to take in everyone else. She brightened at the sight of Honoka, but…

I felt a dagger of ice lodge itself in my heart at the confusion she looked at me with. I looked over at Honoka to my side with a helpless look, desperate for any kind of reassurance.

I found none. Honoka just looked alarmed herself.

Sylvia looked back at Grey when he spoke again. “Sylvia,” He said slowly. “I must ask…what is the last thing you remember?”

My…partner looked at him in deepening confusion. “What do I remember?” She asked him, blinking. “Ah…well. It’s…odd. Where am I?” She said, looking around. “Moments ago, I was speaking to Commander Hook about a personal mission to locate you. We were in our regional command center in Blutstein. I…don’t recognize this place, though.” Now Sylvia was starting to become concerned herself, now doubt influenced by the shock and horror on the faces she saw around her. “Father, what’s…happened?”

Grey slowly closed his eyes for a moment before taking a deep breath. He opened them once more and then did his best to project a comforting smile to his daughter. “You…were injured, my dear,” He said, audibly pained. Sylvia blinked rapidly at his words, looking down at herself. She was visibly taken aback by the sight of the gold on her torso, her mouth falling open in shock. Meanwhile, Grey continued speaking. “I’ve been free from my captors for…some time now. I believe you might have lost…time yourself.”

Sylvia raised her head to look at Grey. “Oh,” She whispered. “How…how long?”

Grey let out a heavy breath. “Four months,” He said heavily. “I was freed from my bondage over four months ago now. You...might have possibly lost some more than that, considering when that...assignment was issued.”

I was frozen, now, unwilling to acknowledge the truth that was unfolding before my eyes. I wouldn’t believe it until I heard the words from her own lips.

But I was afraid to catch her attention.

Honoka moved forward now, finally willing to take her own chance. “Sylvia…” She said in a fragile tone. “You do still remember me…right?”

Sylvia sat bolt upright then, knocked out of her own shock. “Of course I do!” She said desperately, clutching at Honoka’s hands. “I could never forget you, Lady Honoka!”

I saw Honoka slump in relief before leaning forward to wrap Sylvia in a hug.

I didn’t miss the almost guilty look that Honoka snuck my way, before burying her face in Sylvia’s neck. Over Honoka’s shoulder, I saw Sylvia look over the other woman’s.

Right at me.

“I’m sorry…” She said apologetically. “I’m…not sure who you are?”

I felt a shudder run through my soul at her words, as she kept talking.

“Are you perhaps…a comrade?” Sylvia continued, her eyes lingering on my Order armor. I saw her blink rapidly at the sight of my elongated ears, but she didn’t comment on them. “In the Order maybe? I…apologize if I’ve forgotten you.”

Honoka didn’t look at me, but Grey did. There was an impossible sadness for me evident in his gaze, but he didn’t speak up. I think…he didn’t know what to say.

Glacially, I reached down for the mask that I had stowed in my pouch earlier. I brought it up to adhere to my face and raised my hood. At the sight of the completed Nocturne Division regalia, Sylvia visibly brightened up in her own conclusion. “Yes,” I said slowly, fighting with myself harder than I ever had to keep my voice steady. “I was here…on behalf of the Division. I was…ordered…” I choked on the words, before forcing them out. “To witness your revival by the…Headmaster. I’ll…show myself out…now.”

At that, I turned in place and began to shuffle towards the door, moving in a haze that threatened to consume me. My steps stuttered, though, when I heard Sylvia speak up behind me.

“Please give my regards to Commander Hook,” She said almost absentmindedly, bringing me to a momentary halt. I nodded without speaking or turning to face her and then slipped outside the door.

Numb, I stood just outside in the alleyway as white noise began to drown out the world around me.

A drop of water hit my hood, piercing through my devastation. I slowly raised my face in time to watch as the heavens began to weep down onto me.

Eventually, I wasn’t able to tell if the droplets that coated my face came from the sky.

Or me.

....................................................

AN:

This one might be a bit...controversial. But it wasn't done off the cuff, and I didn't do it lightly. I know amnesia, even partial amnesia, is a bit of a tired trope at times. However, I was planning on something like this for...months, honestly. Probably from the moment that Nate and Sylvia first got together I was intending for something like this to happen.

It's not because I regret them becoming involved or something. I don't even neccessarily think they rushed into the relationship. This is meant to be a further character defining moment for Nate, and it genuinely might be his breaking point for a time. Nate is going to be a different person after this, just as much as he is from everything else that's happened.

It might seem like I've been really shitting on Nate recently, and there's a bit of truth to that statement. But honestly, I'm pretty much done with that for now. I'm a tad tired of it myself, even if I'd been planning this for a while. This was the last blow, and now everything that comes from recent developments will play out.

Besides.

It's not like theres no hope.

<<Chapter 216 | Table of Contents | Chapter 218>>

Chapter 216 - A Grey Reunion

I clambered up the old, ancient tree I had picked out for my purpose with ease. Once I had reached the apex, shrouded in my Thorn Cloak, I took out the far-eye I had received from Maria in her 'care-package'. Extending it, I looked out in the direction of Elderwyck proper.

While I had been busy overnight, the Army of the Uprising had arrived.

The massed troops of the rebellion were picking through the ruins of the Stacks and dismantling it, to my surprise. From what I could see, there wasn’t much resistance from the few remaining residents of the shanty-town. In those remains, the Army was rapidly setting up an encampment. Among those soldiers, I was easily able to make out the black and silver of the Order of the Eclipsed Dawn.

They stood out pretty well.

The Army was also flooding into the city itself, in staggering numbers. That was a bit of a relief, to be honest. The beleaguered people of Elderwyck needed the help, and I was happy that the remaining Loyalist forces weren’t trying to raise a stink over the Uprising presence.

I sighed at the sight of them, a bit conflicted. I knew what I should be doing now, but I was reluctant to do so. If I wanted to keep my word to Liora, it was time for me to rendezvous with the rest of the Order forces.

I was just…reluctant to do so.

It was pretty obvious why.

But goddamnit, I wanted to be there when Sylvia woke up. I didn’t know how long it would take Grey to fix or heal her or whatever, but I needed to head in now if that was going to happen.

Fuck it. Man up, Hart.

I slapped my cheeks, shook my head, and then hopped down from the top of the tree. I had grown strong enough that I barely felt the impact as I landed in a crouch on the forest floor. I barely wasted a minute before sprinting back to my campsite to collect the horses.

I wasn’t going to leave them behind, after all.

………………………………………….

I was fully armored, masked, and hooded as I rode Marquis up to the checkpoint the Order had set up at the main gate into Elderwyck. Behind me on leads trotted the contrastingly small and large forms of Charlie and Poppy.

I was a bit confused at the reaction I was getting from the Uprising forces as I rode through them.

They were acting in near awe at my presence, gawking and pointing my way.

I had no idea why. The only identifying mark I had on me was my mask. It wasn’t even painted, as Maria had given me a blank that I hadn’t bothered to decorate. The persona of Hangman was dead, as far as I was concerned.

But the Uprising forces didn’t seem to care about that. They parted before me unquestioningly, clearing a path to trot down. The oddity didn’t even change once I reached the gate and encountered Order members. They just saluted immediately and waved me through the checkpoint without even asking me to confirm my identity.

Seemed a bit sloppy to me. I mean, what if I had taken this gear from the body of a dead man?

I shook my head slightly at the thought. Momentarily, I stopped at the stable the Order had commandeered near the gate. There, I dropped off my horses and prepared to leave, fully intending to keep a better eye on them now that they were inside the city walls. When I turned around, though, I stopped in place.

Across the street was the form of someone I hadn’t seen in quite a while. I…should have expected they would seek me out, but the thought hadn’t even crossed my mind.

Sparrow.

The cloaked Nocturne Division Agent was standing across the thoroughfare crowded with soldiers. He had a large red-feathered hawk sitting on his right shoulder, and they were both staring straight at me, eerily still.

Ah.

Time to report in.

I crossed the street, weaving in between soldiers as I did so, to come to a rest before the senior Agent.

We were silent for a moment, simply taking in the sight of each other.

Sparrow eventually jerked his head in a motion for me to follow him. I did so quietly.

He never spoke a word to me.

The avian themed Agent guided me for longer than I was expecting, in total silence. We wound our way through a myriad of back alleys for minutes, before eventually coming to a stop at a familiar location. It was…probably the last existing safe house the Division had in Elderwyck.

A healer’s clinic in the poorer area of the city. This…was where we had taken Baldric, after his injury in the mausoleum.

Sparrow led me inside, and there I encountered a surprise.

There were some very unexpected people inside the small clinic, beyond the older, chain-smoking older woman of a Healer that owned the place. Said Healer was off to the side, puffing on her pipe and watching the people who had commandeered her workplace with a glower on her aged features.

Because the leadership was here.

Prince Oskar was sitting uncomfortably at a small table in the center of the clinic, while the massively crimson armored form of Leopold sat stone-faced next to him with his arms folded. Surprisingly, Woodrick was here as well, the charismatic wooden Sculpted looking completely at ease around the round table. Honoka was here as well, dressed in her own Healer’s robes and looking a bit exhausted.

Leaning against the far wall I spotted Liora, but it was the last two people that caught my attention.

Grey…

And Sylvia.

My mentor was crouched next to a bed where his daughter was resting upon, holding out a glowing hand above her. Stellarum and Elarux lay discarded upon the floor next to him, as he visibly concentrated on the Sculpted woman.

He didn’t turn to look at me when I entered the room.

But everyone else sure as hell did. Once upon a time, I would have fidgeted under the attention of all these powerful people.

Now, I just met their gazes unflinchingly.

After Rhazal and Nerexxa, it would take more than social pressure to cause me to flinch again.

I stepped into the room, removing my mask as did so. At the same time, I lowered my hood, causing Oskar to hiss at the sight of my ears. I let my glowing eyes rest on him for a minute, before visibly dismissing the Prince. Instead, I met the gazes of the two men at the table that I was likely here to brief on…everything.

Leopold, and Woodrick.

“Marshal. Commander,” I said, nodding to them. I know my actual position within the Order was nebulous since I had been assigned to the Nocturne Division. But I still stood at attention nonetheless, under their assessing eyes.

Leopold nodded at me in acknowledgment, while Woodrick was the one to actually speak. “Nathan,” He said, a small smile crossing his wooden lips. “Take a seat. There’s no need for formalities at this time. Honoka,” He said, nodding to the white-haired woman. “Has filled us in on the broad strokes of what happened here in Elderwyck. But we need to hear it from someone who was on the ground, and was apparently instrumental to ending the threat of the…well. The Calamity.”

I didn’t blame him for the note of disbelief in his voice. Hell, if I had been told someone of my strength had killed a super-monster, I wouldn’t have believed them either.

I nodded shallowly and approached the table, pulling out a chair and sitting in it. I very carefully set both of my hands on the table face down to indicate I wasn't a threat.

I had now idea how I was perceived after my changes. This would be a good chance to prove I hadn't been changed mentally, even if I had been physically.

Grey still hadn’t looked up from his intense inspection of Sylvia. I’m not sure the man was even aware that I was here.

I tore my gaze away from him to look back at the two leaders of the Uprising. “And Hook isn’t around anymore to ask for his account,” I said, unflinchingly. Leopold closed his eyes briefly at my words, while Woodrick’s face affected a pained nature. “As you will. This is an account of the Elderwyckian campaign as best as I can recollect it, from the start of our infiltration to the eventual siege of the city by 'divine' forces.”

And so I spoke to the table about everything I had seen and done. I went into much more detail than I had with Honoka, doing my best to retain my composure through the more difficult moments. Each of the people in the room, including the focused Grey, and Sparrow who had followed me into the room and leaned against the wall, all had their own particular reactions to my words.

Leopold, for example, audibly growled whenever I spoke about the actions of General Longstripe. He sounded very strongly like a furious lion when he did so.

Woodrick almost seemed weary whenever the massacres that had been caused by Nerexxa were elaborated upon. For all of his charisma, I had always found that the Sculpted man had a surprising well of empathy within his constructed frame.

Prince Oskar, well.

He had a particular explosive reaction, to my surprise.

When I spoke about SED and their involvement in the campaign, he very suddenly started paying rapt attention, to my surprise. Surely someone had told him about their involvement?

Did he…not know about Isolde?

When I actually named ‘Number 33’ in our confrontation with SED in that garden, he jumped to his feet and slammed his hands onto the table with wild eyes. “Did you kill her, Hart?!” He said furiously. “Did you kill my sister?”!

The room fell silent at the accusation, as I felt a scowl grow on my face. More spurious accusations from this…child.

Was this really the person we were propping up to take the crown?

I met Honoka’s eyes before I answered him, my eyebrow raised. I had told her about Isolde before I left, I know I had. To the best of my knowledge, the presumed ‘Princess’ was very politely locked up in a secure ambassadors room at the Elderwyckian guard headquarters.

A guilty expression crossed Honoka’s face, as she winced.

Ah.

That told me all I needed to know.

I looked away from her to meet the eyes of the Prince. “I did not kill the Princess Isolde, no,” I said evenly, causing the boy to take a deep breath. “With the death of the SED forces from Nerexxa’s puppet Order, she even assisted us against the vampire. To the best of my knowledge, she’s being guarded in a secure position at the headquarters of the Elderwyckian guard-”

Prince Oskar didn’t wait for me to finish speaking, nor did he apologize for his accusation. Instead, he immediately raced out of the room, barging past Sparrow as he did so.

I rolled my eyes at the emotional reaction from the Prince, as a brief awkward silence descended upon the room after his outburst.

Leopold broke it, uncaring. “I’m particularly troubled by the presence of forces from the Order of Solstice’s Flame,” He rumbled with a frown, starting to drum his crimson armored fingers on the table. The loud rhythmic thump echoed through the room. “For all of our differences, it’s unlike Grand Marshall Shacklock to support such a vile cause as this ‘Nerexxa’s.”

“To be fair, Marshall,” I said, inclining my head to the enormous man. “Nerexxa outright admitted to having ensorcelled the Solstice classers. It’s…possible that their Order was entirely unaware of ‘Rhiannon’s’ true nature. He could have simply been providing forces to a functionary that was supposedly under the direct employ of Duke Olsen.”

“Gods, I hope so,” Woodrick breathed. “Maybe now that a near mastermind has been unveiled behind the war, we can bring this entire travesty to an end.”

“I wouldn’t count on it,” A weary voice broke in, its owner speaking for the first time.

Grey.

He stood up from his position crouched over Sylvia, cracking his back with a groan as he did so. When he turned around to face us, I was shocked at the weariness I could see on his face. Despite my fears, he met my eyes from across the room with no hesitation.

A small smile crossed his wrinkled lips, as I almost instinctually rose from my chair at his regard.

“Grey…I…”

Words failed me. How did I possibly explain my failure to protect the girl we both cared about? I hadn’t forgotten Honoka’s accusations. Over the last few days, I had been dreading the possibility that my mentor would echo her recriminations. I…don’t know what I would do, if Grey tossed me aside for my failure. I had trouble keeping my own on his black and silver eyes.

I needn’t have worried.

Before I could say anything else, Grey crossed the room swiftly in broad strides. I was shocked when the older man wrapped me in a massive, full hug, right there in the middle of the room and before the eyes of everyone else.

He didn’t care a bit.

Grey let out a shuddering sigh in my ear, for the first time since I’d met him sounding near tears. “Thank you, Nathan. Thank you for saving her life…”

Very real tears of my own welled up in my eyes as I returned the hug, leaning nearly my full weight against Grey’s comparatively smaller form.

Grey didn’t blame me.

God…

Thank you.

<<Chapter 215 | Table of Contents | Chapter 217>>

Chapter 215 - Brooding

“YOU CAN’T DO THIS TO ME!” The plantation owner screamed at me from his bound position in the dirt. He was an older man, strangely overweight in comparison to most of the Veredenese I had met. His formerly well-kept grey hair was wild and hanging over his reddened face as he struggled against the ropes I’d bound him with.

And I was currently in the process of freeing all of the Sculpted he had bound with slave bonds.

How the Herztalian upper class had convinced themselves it was okay to enslave the Sculpted, when the institution itself was outlawed, I would never know.

That was nobility for you, I guess.

I only spared the slaver a single disinterested glance before I got back to work. Gently, I lowered my Bond Breaker down onto the exposed back of the female stone Sculpted that was anxiously waiting for her turn. Luckily, this one wasn't one of the near zombies that sometimes occurred with Sculpted slaves, like I had seen with Pete back in Marrowmist. All around me were over a dozen different Sculpted of all different compositions, watching with still disbelieving eyes as I broke the unbreakable.

They were, all of them, free now. This was the last Sculpted I had to free at this particular location.

I exerted the tiniest amount of pressure at the point of contact, and the sharpened prongs of the Breaker pierced the Sculpted’s rocky exterior. She shuddered from the sensation, and those shudders only increased when I depressed the activation rune on my creation.

Below me on her back, her slave brand shone briefly with Aetherial light, and then vanished forever. When it was gone, I stepped back from the Sculpted woman as she rose up from her kneeling position in the dirt of the farm unsteadily. Her fellow former slaves rushed to support her.

I glanced over them briefly, gave the distracted and celebratory Sculpted a nod of acknowledgment, and turned to leave.

I had other plantations to get to, after all.

However, I was stopped by the sound of a voice. I normally wouldn’t care about what they had to say, but the particular words halted me in my tracks.

“Y-you….damned ELF!” The slaver sobbed to himself, catching the attention of the now freed Sculpted. “YOU’VE RUINED ME! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO FEED MY FAMILY NOW!?”

I spared said family a brief glance, as I felt irritation well up inside of me. They were watching the proceedings with frightened eyes from the doorway of the farmhouse that rested on this plantation. An older teenage boy was standing protectively in front of his mother and two twin younger sisters, all of them well dressed, and all of them obviously…well-fed, let’s say.

I don’t even know why. It’s not like I had threatened them.

Oh, fuck it. I couldn’t pretend I didn’t know.

It was because of my growing reputation, here on the outskirts of Elderwyck. I had been doing this for four days now, and that was more than enough time for word to spread about the ‘Elf’ that was freeing slaves in the area. And naturally, because I was supposedly an ‘Elf’, I was doing it by slaughtering all of the masters and doing unspeakable things to their corpses.

I resented the implication. I hadn’t killed a single person in my personal campaign against the slave owners of the Duchy of Elderwyck. Maybe a bit of…roughing up, but no life’s blood had been spilled.

Honoka had been irritatingly prescient about how my new features would be received by the populace. It was doubly irksome because nobody had actually seen said ears during my campaign. I had never let down my hood or removed my mask at any of the near dozen locations I’d hit over the last few days. You could only really see the impression of longer ears under said hood, and apparently that was enough for the Herztalians.

I was finding that cultural fear of the Elvish was pretty common among the populace.

To my dismay, that had even extended to the Sculpted.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw many of the former slaves I had just freed suddenly become wary at the words of their ‘master’.

I’d only been like this for a few days, and I was already sick of it.

I turned away from the sobbing slaver in the dirt without a word and prepared to leave. He didn’t deserve my acknowledgment. As I walked away into the nearby forest, however, more words reached me from the last Sculpted I had free.

“Thank you…” I heard the stone woman say in a near whisper.

I smiled slightly, not pausing in my stride. I normally wouldn’t have heard that, but my new ears were good for something at least. They seemed to have boosted my Perception to a degree.

They let me know that at least one of them was still grateful.

I disappeared into the forest to plan my next move.

……………………………..

A few hours later, night had fallen upon the Duchy of Elderwyck. And I…

Was holed up in front of a small tent, looted from a plantation I had raided.

I honestly didn’t feel bad about it at all. Rhazal’s assault on the city of Elderwyck itself hadn’t lasted long enough to spread across the countryside to a huge degree, and thus it had been…mostly spared the depredations of the Revenants.

With my activities, it hadn’t been hard at all to keep myself supplied and 'housed', so to speak.

I poked at the campfire I had set up in the familiar clearing I had chosen, sending a shower of sparks up into the sky to join the rising smoke. As they did so, I glanced around where I had chosen to hole up while I waited for the Army of the Uprising to reach the region.

I’d ended up where it had all began, here in Elderwyck. The meeting point that Baldric and Liora had arranged for themselves before infiltration. The barn that the Gnoll woman had fought off an assault from SED forces.

Well, former barn.

Baldric had burned it down, after all.

There wasn’t much left of the structure, at this point. His deliberate arson had reduced the battle site to little more than a few charred standing timbers, poking out of a section of scorched grass and earth. It had been a few weeks by now, so there was already starting to be indications of new growth in the patch. Of the previous battle Liora had fought here, there were no more traces.

Which had been the entire point, I supposed.

And…I was brooding again.

Damnit.

It’s not like I was alone here, either. I had more than enough responsibilities at my new camp to keep me occupied.

Speaking of…

I heaved myself to my feet with a tired grunt, and approached the group of horses hitched to a nearby tree, carrying an ‘acquired’ sack of oats and a brush. Their ears flicked in my direction, but they knew me.

“And how are you today, Marquis?” I murmured to the black-coated equine, holding out a handful of oats for him.

The horse that the Thunderheart tribe had gifted to me just snorted at my words. Still, he accepted the offering with no complaint, munching on the oats placidly. While he did so, I did some basic care on the animal, brushing his coat out and inspecting him for any issues. When I was done with him, I moved on to the other two horses. Charlie, the large draught horse meant for Sylvia, gave me no problems at all. Meanwhile, the pony that had previously belonged to Baldric, Poppy…

Well, she was a biter. I swear the little shit tried to take a few fingers along with the oats I gave her. Still, I cared for her just as well as I did the others. I wouldn’t hold her ornery nature against her.

When I was done, I stepped back and considered the three beasts of burden. I was…glad, that I had thought to retrieve them upon escaping the city. They had been left with a stablemaster back in the Stacks before we had slipped our way into Elderwyck, and it had been hard to slip back out to check on them during our campaign. I’d worried about them, but there had been little I could do.

I had been right to be worried, it turned out. I had no idea how the stablemaster had treated the horses in life, but he was…very likely dead by now.

Along with most of the Stacks.

When I had moved through that area, it had been mostly a ghost town. There had only been a few frightened faces that peaked through ramshackle shanty-town, when before they had been downright bursting with refugees. Most of the occupants had been lured into Nerexxa’s trap to be used as sacrifices for her ritual to awaken Rhazal, and those that had been left? Well, it seemed like the Revenants had mowed through a good number of them.

Most of the Stacks was little better than splinters at this point.

A sad, tragic end to a cornucopia of already tragic stories.

Thankfully, the stable itself had still be standing, even if it had been abandoned. The horses inside, including my three rescues, had been weak and starving at that point, locked up in their stalls as they had been. I’d put off my plans to free the Sculpted in the countryside by nearly half a day just feeding and watering those horses, before ultimately setting them loose.

Maybe they’d have a better life, out in the grasslands. I sure as hell couldn’t care for all of them.

But I had taken these three with me. Even if Sylvia was too comatose to care for Charlie, and Baldric was…well.

Dead.

It was still the right thing to do.

I kept my breath even as I stood there watching the grazing horses. I didn’t even turn my head before I called out into the air of the clearing. “You can come out now,” I said aloud, my tone calm and unbothered. “I know it’s you, Liora.”

Silence, for a moment, before I heard a pair of padded feet impact the grass behind me. I didn’t flinch, even with as close as she had been to me.

I’d known my comrade had been watching me for a while now.

After all the times I had been surprised lately and paid the price for it, I was keeping a closer watch on Lifeblood Sense. The slow pounding of her heart had alerted me to her presence, even when I had no other indication as to it.

“You’ve gotten better at that,” The Gnoll woman said quietly from behind me. I hummed in acknowledgment as she moved up to stand next to me, but didn’t say anything. I glanced at her from the corner of my eye, only mildly surprised to see that although Liora had been sneaking around, she wasn’t in Nocturne gear. I hadn’t forgotten Baldric’s final request to her, after all.

I don’t think she had, either.

We stood there in silence for a moment, simply watching the horses mill about in the light cast by my campfire. I didn’t have much to say, but I eventually became aware of Liora’s attention lingering on me.

She was…just looking at me in silence.

I didn’t blame her. It’s not like I was wearing my hood and mask at my own campsite after all.

What would be the point?

“A final gift…” I said roughly, glowering out at the horizon about the tree line. Elys was obscured by clouds tonight, and I was only slightly able to see her waning crescent form through the haze. “From Rhazal.”

“Yes, I heard,” Liora answered, to my surprise. Her lips quirked mirthlessly at my attention. “I made contact with the remaining Division members. Wisp informed me of your…affliction,” She sighed and changed the subject. “Do you require assistance in your task?”

I’m glad we weren’t pretending she didn’t know exactly what I was doing out here. Still, I shook my head. “No…I can handle this,” I said, and then chuckled lowly. “It’s not like a bunch of weak slave drivers can match me. What guards I’ve encountered…well. Let’s just say they haven’t been a problem.”

Liora nodded shallowly. “There are rumors in the city now, about the Elf that’s going around and freeing the Sculpted,” She said, to my frustration.

“An Elf, huh,” I sighed. I changed the subject. “Has the Army been sighted?”

Liora took the change in topics with good faith. She was smart enough to see I didn’t want to talk about it. “Yes, it has,” She nodded. “They should arrive by tomorrow. I thought to come and fetch you from your…task.”

I shook my head. “I’m not done. I…there are only a few more plantations left in the area. Once they’ve all been liberated I’ll…” I fell silent, before speaking hesitantly. “Has there been any change with Sylvia?”

Liora silently shook her head.

“Alright,” I breathed. “Grey can handle it then. He has his task and I…I have mine. I’ll…check in when I’m done. I doubt the Army is going anywhere soon.”

“You would be surprised,” Liora muttered lowly, to my own surprise. When I turned to her with a raised eyebrow, she shook her head. “Simply some unsubstantiated rumors I’ve heard. Don’t take too long, Hart. The war isn’t over, just because of a risen and defeated Calamity. It might accelerate faster than you think.”

With that, Liora abruptly took her exit, as I had long noticed was a habit with her. The Gnoll woman simply walked into the woods and vanished from sight. Moments later, I felt her heartbeat fade into the distance.

I ground my teeth in frustration for a moment at Liora’s suspicions, before turning away from the horses. I strode up to my campsite and started to kit myself out once more.

If I didn’t have much time to finish my self-imposed assignment, then I needed to get back to work.

A night assault would probably work just as well.

<<Chapter 214 | Table of Contents | Chapter 216>>

Chapter 214 - Lost and Alone

It wasn’t hard for me to sneak away from the guard headquarters. Not with my experience, and with my now…former position within the Nocturne Division. All the guards and soldiers were too busy dealing with refugees to even try to search for me.

Once I was a good enough distance away, I lingered in a rubble-strewn alley that existed between two buildings that had collapsed in on themselves. I don’t know how long I stood limply in that alleyway, with no relevant thoughts in my mind at all, slowly getting soaked by the rainclouds that had moved back in on Elderwyck. But eventually, something caught my attention. A light, back in the direction of the manse.

I lifted my head just in time to watch as a figure in a white robe took off into the sky, born aloft by two burning, firey wings. Dully, I watched as what could only be Honoka flapped away from the city, no doubt to seek out Grey and tell him about…everything.

When she had disappeared from my sight, I finally stirred from my near stupor. Watching her go, a thought entered my mind.

Where was I going to go? I suppose I could just hide out in the flat that Sylvia and I had been using as our cover, but that felt wrong to me. I don’t even know if it had survived all the chaos, and frankly, I wasn’t inclined to go and find out.

It would feel empty without her.

Besides, I couldn’t just sit around and do nothing for the city, while it had been violated so thoroughly by Rhazal and his Revenants. I wasn’t that callous.

I…had the glimmer of an idea about what I could do though, and it would even involve doing something I had long wanted to as well. But I’d be taking advantage of the chaos to do so. I weighed the idea for a few minutes in my head, before ultimately deciding to go for it.

First, though, I’d need supplies. I…had something to do, at the prime place to get them anyway. Might as well kill two birds with one stone.

Decision made, I strapped my new staff to my back with a raggedy length of torn-off cloth from my clothes.

And set out for the docks.

……………………………………….

I didn’t enjoy discovering that the docks seemed to have been hit harder than even the bulk of the city had been. Most of the buildings and warehouses had been ravaged by the hordes of Revenants, and it was rare to find any of them that hadn’t been damaged in some way. In retrospect, it even made a twisted kind of sense.

Of course Rhazal had instructed his bestial children to flood this area. After all, it was one of the places people had likely fled to, seeking a way out of Elderwyck. The sea was dangerous, but not more than a Revenant that was going to tear your throat out.

Sadly, I don’t think many had got out that way, judging by the bodies I saw all around me.

I sighed, and continued my trek through the ruins of the docks.

Eventualy, I came upon my destination, only to be conflicted by what I found. It seemed like I wasn’t the only person who had the idea I did.

The former dockside headquarters of the Nocturne Division here in Elderwyck was swarming with familiar figures. I was surprised by both groups, to be honest. I hadn’t expected either of them, if for different reasons.

The first thing that caught my attention was a familiar ship, docked at the ruins of our warehouse.

The Thorny Reef.

Bella was back.

I was…almost glad to see them. In retrospect, I’m not sure if any of the pirate crew would have survived the assault on the warehouse. At the time, I had wished they had been there with us, if only for the reinforcements. But now, they had dodged everything that had gone down in Elderwyck and arrived just in time for a bleak task.

They were picking through the half-collapsed warehouse, and digging out the bodies.

My now-deceased comrades were being carried by grim sailors back to the Reef itself, presumably to be laid down in the cargo area. Loyalist bodies, on the other hand, were being dumped into a pile by the front of the building. I struggled to feel any sympathy for those who had killed my compatriots.

However, the second group filled me with relief.

Not everyone from the Division had been killed, up at the palace.

They weren’t all wearing their masks, but they were wearing their Order armor. There weren’t many of them, to be truthful. I only spotted about four armor-clad forms assisting the pirates in extricating our deceased comrades from the ruins, but even that was more than I had been expecting. I was just glad anyone but Dusk, Sylvia and I had survived Nerexxa’s trap.

They presented a problem, however. I had been hoping to scavenge some supplies from headquarters for the task I’d decided upon. But how could I present myself to them? I’d…changed, since anyone had last seen me. I didn’t have my mask, either. It must have been lost somewhere in all the fighting. I was lucky that I still had my weapons on me, both my daggers and my new staff. I had lost my tool pouch with my mask, so I didn’t even have a Bond Breaker on me, much less any of my potions. I only had on the gifted clothes Renauld had given me upon awakening.

I felt incredibly naked right now.

And a naked man like me, couldn’t verify my identity.

I sighed and prepared to leave. I’d just have to find and scavenge the materials I needed for my task somewhere else.

Something stopped me, however.

Mainly, the dagger that had found my throat.

I stilled as I became aware of someone at my back. My pulse picked up as I cursed myself for my inattention, wallowing in my own misery as I had been. I sensed someone lean in closer to my still head, still hooded from my conjured Thorn Cloak.

“Well, well, well,” I heard a familiar female voice whisper playfully in my ear. “I only know one man who has thorns as red as these. And here I thought he was dead.”

I let a sigh of combined relief and frustration exit my mouth as I relaxed. I hadn’t been sure if she had survived the chaos, with the wound she had taken. But it was nice to hear her voice. A small smile crossed my lips, despite everything.

“Not quite,” I said out loud, as the blade was removed from my throat. “It was…pretty close, though.”

My ambusher stepped from behind me and into the dim light filtering in through the mouth of the alley we were in.

Wisp, as I’d suspected.

The senior Agent had been injured before the fighting at the warehouse had even begun, in an ambush by the now defunct SED forces. Crook, rest her soul, had carried her away to be looked after by a friendly Healer here in the city. She still looked a bit rough, with visible bandages poking through around the edges of the Order armor she had strapped on. Even now I could see that it sat roughly on her frame, from the pinched expression on her unmasked face.

But she was alive, and doing her best to smile at me.

I returned it as best I could with my hood still up. Thankfully, the bottom half of my face was exposed enough for the gesture to transmit. When Wisp extended her arm, I gratefully took it and grasped her forearm in a warriors greeting.

“I’m glad to see you pulled through, Wisp,” I said quietly.

Wisp nodded at me. “Same to you, Hangman. I…couldn’t make it to the fight at the palace, but…” She trailed off. There was a reluctance to her voice that told me enough.

I shook my head. “It’s a good thing you weren’t, don’t worry about it.”

Wisp sighed in slight relief. “Thanks. Some of the others, well. They don’t think the same. Speaking of…” She made a show of looking around in slight hope. “Do you know where Crook…?”

My face fell, and even with my hood up, Wisp was able to catch my meaning.

“Oh.” She said quietly.

“Her body…I’m not sure where it is,” I admitted. “It might be at the guard headquarters, since Dusk took…someone else there recently. But you’ll have to ask her, if you find her.”

Wisp nodded. “I’ll do that. But what about you?” She said with forced cheerfulness. “What are you doing skulking about in an alley with a Skill up? The war might as well be over now, and we have things to do.”

I looked away from her. “I need supplies for my own task,” I said shortly. “I…was going to get from the ruins, but I didn’t want to interrupt you guys.” I was quiet for a moment. “And…I…I wasn’t sure how to…approach everyone. I picked up a…curse from the Calamity, Wisp. I don’t look like…me.” Saying that was far more difficult than I expected. To the extent I practically had to force the words out.

Wisps brow furrowed at my words, and she ducked down to try and look up my hood. I shied away from the movement, retreating further into the darkness of the alleyway.

Slowly, Wisp straightened up to look at me thoughtfully. “Alright,” She said after a moment. “I can get some stuff for you, if you’d like. I don’t mind.”

I was startled at the offer. “I…thank you, Wisp,” I said, touched. “You don’t have to do that, if it’s a problem.”

She shook her head. “I don’t care even if it is,” She said bluntly. “I’m retiring after all this shit anyway. We may not have known each other long, but you were a decent sort to me. I can fetch some supplies for you.”

I nodded and then told the woman what I had been after. She nodded back and then departed, leaving me alone in the alleyway.

After about fifteen minutes of waiting, Wisp returned carrying a small sack for me. Over her shoulder, I could see curious crew and Nocturne members craning their necks to see what she was up to.

I made sure to stay in the darkness.

Wisp handed me the sack, and I looked inside of it for a moment before nodding. “Thank you, Wisp. I appreciate it.”

“Maria,” I heard the other woman say unexpectedly. Looking up, I say a wry smile on her lips. “My name is Maria. Maria Rellani.”

I nodded slowly, before extending my arm once more in farewell. “And I’m Nathan Hart,” I said, doing my best to smile at the exchange. “Nice to meet you. And…I’ll see you around.”

“Maybe,” Maria said, nodding. “Maybe you will. See you around…Hart.”

At that, the other woman spun on one heel and prepared to leave the alleyway. I stopped her at the last moment, though.

“If you see Bella,” I said quietly. “Tell her…tell her Nate sends his regards.”

I saw Maria’s head nod slightly after a moment before the woman left the alleyway for good to rejoin the recovery efforts. When I was finally alone, I sighed again and slunk back off down the alley, slinging my pack of supplies over my shoulder to join my staff.

…………………………………

After leaving the docks district, I found an abandoned house to get my work done. It wasn’t hard, considering just how many of them there were. Once there, I got to work forging the item that I needed for my task, from the junk weapons I’d asked Wi-Maria to grab for me.

A new Bond Breaker.

It wouldn’t be as good as my old ones, considering it was made from the daggers and spearheads of Loyalist ground-pounder weapons. But it would do, and it didn’t take me long to forge one with Aetherial Melding. I’d progressed far enough in my usage of the Profession now that I could simulate the spark I needed to shape metal without the use of a forge. I felt a pang of nostalgia for the ‘grill’ Azarus had made for me months ago for that purpose, but shook it off. That had just been a crutch.

I was so familiar with this design by now that I could make a Bond Breaker in my sleep.

When I was done, I inspected the near forearm-sized bident with a critical eye. I clucked my tongue at it, considering the quality of the materials, but it was functional after I inserted the tiny monster core I’d requested. I slipped it into the sack from Maria, and removed the fresh armor, clothes, cloak, and blank mask she had put inside.

It was…nice to be back in full Nocturne regalia.

Even if the Division was dead.

Fully kitted out, I took a deep breath and nodded.

You see, I had never forgotten about the Sculpted near ‘slaves’ that operated the farms in the vicinity of Elderwyck. I had just put them out of my mind for the duration of the operation against the city. I’d had assurances from Hook that when it was all over, I could go ham on my slave freeing.

Well.

The operation was over, and I had at least four days before the Army reached the city. Nobody was going to stop me now. Honoka had said to lay low, but…

I liked this idea better.

It was time to get to work.

<<Chapter 213 | Table of Contents | Chapter 215>>

Chapter 213 - Vis Maledicta Exactoris

As corrosive murk started to thread its way through the entirety of my being, I began to feel something else. Something much more immediate, and much more distressing in the moment.

My body began to change rapidly.

Inside of me, I felt it as my bones began to shift, cracking and extending and fusing and growing. Even though I was hunched over, I knew that I was growing taller and wider. Through hazy, distressed eyes, I watched as my very flesh began to bubble and shift. To my panic, scales began to form from the hardening mass of my formerly smooth skin, shifting in color to a deep, dark black as they did so. Startlingly, my Primorium arm was shifting in the same manner as my flesh was, changing in shape with the rest of me. But instead of black scales, they were the same pure-white and rainbow of the Spirit-shaped metal. The tips of both my hands and feet sprouted talons, long enough that they ripped straight through my already constrained boots. Scales began to grow up from my neck to cover my cheeks, and then the rest of my face. I frantically tried to scratch them off with my new talons, but all I accomplished was carving bloody furrows that closed almost as soon as I inflicted them on myself. I felt it as my ears began to grow much larger and longer, morphing even further as they were covered in those same scales. My eyesight very briefly went out, only heightening my panic before it returned. When it did, I only half-noticed that it was much sharper than it used to be, allowing me to see the individual grains of wood in the wall easily.

But whatever was happening to me wasn’t over.

I arced my back and screamed through changing vocal cords as I felt two protrusions erupt from behind me in a shower of gore. I…could control them as if they were extensions of my being no different from my arms and legs. Disbelievingly, unwilling to comprehend what my core ring was telling me, I maneuvered them in front of me.

Wings.

I had grown two large, bat-like wings.

I gazed at them in horror, because I recognized these wings. I…recognized all of the features that I had just spontaneously manifested. Unwilling to believe it, I looked around wildly before catching sight of a nearby vanity mirror on the wall, only barely aware of how wary Honoka had grown at my transformation. I rushed at it faster than I had ever moved before, creating a small gust of wind from my near teleportation. Gazing into the mirror, a profound sense of despair welled up inside of me as I clutched the edges of the vanity, cracking it.

Looking back at me from a shattered surface was a face akin to Rhazal's. I could only barely make out traces of my own features, under the scales and monstrous protrusions I'd grown.

The Godbound’s last curse on me…was to become him.

I staggered back from the mirror, clutching at my head and digging my new talons into my own skull as tears of anguish welled up in my eyes.

I slumped to my knees and screamed.

What emerged from my throat wasn’t the voice of a man.

It was that of a monster, warbling and screeching into the confines of the room. No doubt the entire manor could hear my howls.

The change to something as fundamental to me as my voice only added to my despair. I hunched over, burying my beastly visage into my scaled hands, and began to sob.

I don’t know how long I knelt there, inconsolable in my own sorrow. But gradually, I felt small, nearly imperceptible footsteps begin to approach me. Panicked, I whipped my head up, expecting to see the drawn blade of Honoka, ready to end the life of the newborn demon before her.

Instead, I found her outstretched hand hovering just over my shoulder, inches from touching my scales. Through watery eyes, I didn’t find hatred or judgment on the older woman’s face.

Rather, there was only concern and compassion to be found on her aged features.

Her hand finished its journey, coming to a rest on my scaled shoulder. Even through my new natural-born armor, I still felt the warmth of it.

“Hart…” I heard her say, through hearing that was far more keen than it used to be. “Is that still…you?”

I reached up and clutched at her offered hand, grasping desperately for any lifeline that I could. “I…I…I t-think so?” I stuttered out, in a voice only slightly reminiscent of my previous one. There were undertones to it, now, both physical and spiritual. The physical was what I expected from monstrous vocal cords, simultaneously the screech of the bat and the growl of the reptile. But there was something more to it now, something familiar.

Although it wasn’t as strong, there was an element of soul speech to my voice now. I could feel it as something about my words reached across the Aetherial distance between Honoka and I, and conveyed my exact meaning to her.

No doubt filled with all of my panic, fear, and desperation.

Honoka winced above me. Though, I don’t know if it was from my new voice or the feeling of my scales under her hand. Still, that didn’t stop her. “Hart,” She said firmly, reaching up to grab my chin with her other hand. She deliberately turned my head upwards to look her in the eye. “I need you to focus, now. This has to be a Skill of some kind. The System doesn’t permit racial changes, and I doubt it would start now. Not for a Precursor, and sure as hell not at the whims of a Calamity. You need to examine your Status closely, and we can go from there. This might be reversible.”

I latched onto the lifeline Honoka had thrown me, an indescribable feeling of relief welling up inside of me. I nodded vigorously as I frantically called up Hidden Amidst the Spheres once more, hope held close to my heart.

God, please…please. Please don’t let me be stuck as a monster.

I don’t know if I could take it.

My Status appeared once more in my minds eye, suspended in place from where I had abruptly abandoned it in my despair.

You have gained 31 levels!

You are now level 100 (122)!

You have gained the title, Calamity Slayer.

Calamity Slayer grants +50 in all Virtues.

You have 90 (310) unspent Virtue points.

Level 100 Class Ability inherited.

You have gained the Skill, Vis Maledicta Exactoris.

Would you like to review your Status?

Y/N

I frantically scanned the dialogue box in my minds eye, before settling on the last line before the review prompt.

Vis Maledicta Exactoris.

That had to be it. That had to be the Skill that had transformed me in this way.

Desperate, I shut my eyes and tried to search within myself for it. Sometimes it was easy to mentally reach for Skills, and sometimes it wasn’t. I almost had to familiarize myself with the mental triggers of newer ones before they became easy to use. I prayed that I could find the one for this new transformative ability.

There!

That was it. I was absolutely certain of it.

Floating in the recesses of my soul was a new Skill. It felt nearly…malicious, to my senses. In my minds eye, the representation of it looked distressingly similar to one of the Revenants that Rhazal had loosed upon the city. It was leashed to the greater part of my sou-treel by a thick chain of familiar-looking murk, so similar to that which the now deceased Godbound had layered over the sky. But it wasn’t snarling or fighting the chain.

Instead, the monster was almost eerily looking directly at me. Even though I wasn’t actually there in this corner of my being, its attention was fixed in a direction like it was facing my attention. The beast’s wide, crimson eyes were unblinking as it stared at me, sitting eerily still.

Cautiously, I extended a mental hand to the bestial hound. It didn’t snap or fight me. It just closed its eyes and leaned into the touch.

Connection.

I had the Skill in my grasp now. With hope in my heart, I turned it off.

In the real world, my body was immediately shrouded in corrosive murk, causing Honoka to leap backward from me. But I wasn’t paying attention to her.

I was focusing on my changes.

Thankfully, they weren’t as painful as the initial change had been. None of my bones were rearranging themselves inside of me, and none of my features painfully adjusted position at the cessation of the Skill. I instead immediately shrank in my over-stretched clothes, returning to my previous height. The added musculature that my transformation had granted me disappeared as well, while more drastic changes to my form happened in an instant. My wings vanished, while my scales had thankfully faded away to reveal my pale skin once again.

But…it didn’t feel like everything was gone. My ears on the side of my head felt…heavier than before, while something much more obvious had stuck around on my hands. While I didn’t quite have talons anymore, my nails on my hands and feet were still hardened from their previously normal state. They weren't quite talons, but they weren't human nails any long. I left scratches on the hardwood floor as I clumsily pushed myself back to my feet.

Honoka hissed from between her teeth from across the room from me, drawing my attention. “You’d…better take another look at yourself, Hart,” She said ominously.

My breath catching in my throat, I approached the vanity mirror I had halfway shattered earlier. Looking into it, I could see what had caught Honoka’s attention, and it caused my heart to drop in my chest.

I looked different.

I was still recognizably Nathan Hart, but with a bit…more. As I’d noticed, my ears hadn’t gone completely back to their normal rounded shape. Instead, they were long and tapered now. They stood out from the side of my head at an angle, with an extended flat edge on top that tapered out to a point. Thankfully, they weren’t quite as wide as an Orc’s ear, which would have looked comical on a human.

Instead, they just looked similar to an elven ear. Only…the long flat edge had a tapering of monstrous black scales along the top edge of it. The black of them glimmered in the low firelight.

And that wasn’t the only change from my previous appearance.

My eyes had not only changed shape, but they were glowing. The pupil was slit now, almost as if I possessed the eyes of a Gnoll. My emerald green irises glimmered in the light cast from the fireplace, visibly glowing. As I watched, the slit pupil of my new eyes flexed back and forth to accommodate the lighting conditions.

I shuddered at the sight of it, before another glimmer caught my eye. I raised a hand to my cheek to trace what had caught my attention disbelievingly.

I…think my scars were being overlain with those same black scales as well. The jagged scar that had long stood out on my face from my first fight with a monster all those months ago had grown them as well. The mark that the Blade-Rack Hart had left on me was now overlaid with tiny obsidian scales. Hurriedly, I opened my ratty shirt to look down at my chest, uncaring about Honoka’s presence. Sure enough, I had more of those scale marks visible on my body from every other scar I had ever accumulated. From the smallest accident mark to the largest battle scar, they crisscrossed my body in scaly, obsidian marks.

I just stood there for a moment, feeling bereft.

Was…I even human anymore? Had Rhazal stolen even that from me, with this last curse of his?

I let out a shuddering breath.

“Could be worse,” I heard from behind me. I turned my head to look at Honoka in complete disbelief. I found the older woman looking at me with a considering look on her face, cupping her chin in one hand.

“What?” I said, growing almost irrationally angry. “What the fuck do you mean, it could be worse?! I barely look human anymore!”

“Yes, and that’s a bit of a problem,” Honoka replied, unflinching in the face of my fury. “You’ll probably be mistaken for an elf, now. But as far as permanent Skill-based physical changes go, I’m telling you. I’ve seen worse.”

“Then…this is something that can happen to other people?”

Honoka shrugged and wavered a hand in front of her. “It’s pretty damn uncommon,” She said, dashing my hopes of not being a freak. “But it’s not like it’s never happened. It’s just…most people who’ve been changed so extensively by their Status are much, much higher level than you. You’re only at the cusp of the first breakpoint, after all. But…I think we can spin this.”

I sighed, and walked over to the chair that had been discarded at the start of my transformation. “How so?”

Honoka joined me, sitting in the chair to my right. “Not many people have ever killed a Calamity, Hart,” She said, doing her best to be comforting. Honestly, it just sounded awkward coming from the normally fiery old woman. “People don’t know what you get from the System for doing it. I’m not sure even Grey knows.”

“You get a title called Calamity Slayer that gives you fifty in each Virtue,” I cut in tiredly.

Honoka raised an eyebrow, but continued anyway. “Sure, and that’s pretty good. But we can say it was something else. Like, say…a curse of some kind, from the dying monster. Bam!” She slammed a fist into her open palm. “And that explains your new looks.”

I looked at her almost disbelievingly. “And the activated version of the Skill?” I asked her. “Because I can tell that I can turn back into that…thing. The Skill is still there, waiting for me. Will people believe that came from the System?”

“If we tell them it did, yes,” Honoka nodded, surprising me. She just smirked. “You underestimate the pull that Grey and I have. If we say something like that, people will believe us. And Grey will go along with that. I’ll just have to get to him first, and head this off before it becomes a problem. He and the rest of the Army are only about four days away. I can fly there, fill him in on all that’s happened, and then be back by sundown. Then, he can do something to help Sylvia.” She finished, nodding hopefully at the still comatose form of the Sculpted woman.

I looked at Sylvia as well, a different emotion than hope in my heart. I felt dread, instead.

Would Sylvia even care for me anymore, after I had been cursed like this?

We were interrupted by the sound of banging on the door of the room. Startled, I looked over with Honoka towards it as a muffled voice came from the other side.

“Lady Honoka?!” I heard a man yell through the wood. “Are you okay?! We heard what sounded like a monster from in here!”

Thankfully, even though they were rattling the door handle, they couldn’t get in. Honoka had melted it in her fury, after all.

Said woman looked at me and leaned. “You’ve got to go,” She said hurriedly. “I don’t have a cloak in here to hide your new features, and I don’t know how these guards and soldiers will react, so soon after the massacre. Lay as low as you can before Grey and I can come and find you. We’ll get this sorted out with an announcement when we can.” She finished, shooing me in the direction of the window.

I stood up slowly as the pounding on the door increased. It sounded like the guards were trying to break the door down. Honoka approached it. “Calm down!” She yelled through it, projecting irritation that was believable for her. “I just had a disagreement with someone, that’s all. I’ll fix the damn door,” She said, still motioning for me to leave.

I took the hint and activated Thorn Cloak, slipping the hood of the manifested Skill over my head. Turning away from both Honoka and Sylvia, I only remembered at the last moment to grab my new staff from its resting place near the bed. When I had a firm grip on the staff that had once belonged to Honoka’s deceased husband, I opened the window and slipped out unseen.

Like a proper monster.

<<Chapter 212 | Table of Contents | Chapter 214>>

Chapter 212 - A Bitter Pill

I instinctually froze, pinned from the almost physical force of Honoka’s fury. I felt like a small animal trapped beneath the gaze of an angry tiger, keeping still to try and escape their attention. I turned my head slightly to look at the door I had just come through and considered just bolting for it.

Honoka didn’t like that.

The older woman snarled and lifted one finger to point at said door. A bolt of white-hot flame lashed out and impacted the bronze handle, instantly melting into an unmovable mass of molten metal.

Before I could even speak, Honoka crossed the distance between us in an eye blink. She grabbed the collar of my shirt and yanked me down to eye level with her own comparatively shorter height, Tlazo’s staff clutched tightly in her left hand.

“Don’t even think about it,” She whispered in my face furiously. “First you fail to protect Sylvia, and now you think you can get away from me? Think again. Now answer my question. Where. Did. You. Get. That. Staff?”

I tensed then, anger growing in me myself. I roughly shoved myself away from the woman, my core a bit surprised that I was allowed to by the much stronger woman. “I didn’t fail anything,” I spat at Honoka, stalking around the woman to get some distance between us. “There was more, much more going on here than anyone knew about. If you’re so fucking angry about Sylvia, then where were you, Honoka?”

Honoka sneered at me. “Watch your tone, you little shit,” She warned me. “I was busy dealing with the largest monster surge this planet has ever seen. We trusted you to look after Sylvia, and now look at her!” She flung one hand in the direction that Sylvia was lying comatose on a bed, almost looking like she was sleeping peacefully. “She’s never been this hurt in her life! I don’t even know what to do to fix this! She’s not like you and me, and someone,” She said with a sharp glare. “Incorporated foreign material into her form! You’d better hope Grey can fix this, Hart. Or you’ll regret it.”

I grit my teeth, my own anger surging out of control with the loss of my middle ring. I slammed one hand down on the surface of a nearby table, barely caring when it splintered in half from the blow. Honoka didn’t even flinch from the crashing of the table onto the floor. “I did that to save her life, you old bitch!” I shouted at her, shaking in rage. I held up my pointer finger and thumb at Honoka, nearly pinched closed. “She was inches from death! I had to make a call on how to keep Sylvia alive because nobody else could! Grey wasn’t there! You weren’t there! I was! You’d think a goddamned Healer would understand how triage works, but apparently not!” I clenched my hands into fists tightly enough that I felt my flesh knuckles pop from the strain. “I had to give my arm to do it, Honoka. My arm. You know, the one that was already made from a dead Sculped in the first place?!”

That finally seemed to pierce Honoka’s rage, as I saw the older woman close her eyes and take a deep breath. She opened them and gave me a short, jerky nod. “Fine. Fine. We’ll…talk about what we can do for Sylvia later,” She said reluctantly, before glaring at me again. Her eyes lingered on my newer arm, almost looking puzzled for a moment, but she didn't comment on it. “But that doesn’t answer my original question. Where did that staff come from? I know the Mana coming from it as well as I do Grey’s. But that man is dead.”

I spent a few moments trying to calm down from the unexpected accusations that Honoka had levied my way. I almost wanted to weep in frustration at how much I missed my middle ring right about now. You truly never knew what you had, until it was taken away. “It was from a dead man,” I said wearily, already sick both mentally and physically from the day. I swear, it felt like I might have caught something from the exertions over the last few days. “He called himself Tlazo-” I mentally fumbled for a minute, trying to remember the full fake name that the Lich had given us those weeks ago. I eventually gave up and just went with the name that Anima had referred to him as. “But I think his real name was Rafael. At least, that’s what I heard a Spirit refer to him as. He was a Lich that had taken up residence underneath Tlatec.”

Honoka deflated then, in a way that I had never seen from the powerful woman. She staggered her way back over to the chair I had seen her sitting in when I entered the room and flopped into it. She gently set the staff down on her legs and gazed down at it mournfully for a moment. “A Lich, then,” She whispered almost brokenly. Slowly, she brought her hands up to face and buried it into them, hiding it from sight. Her shoulders started to shake, but I heard nothing from her.

I sighed then, my own anger and rage evaporating away from Honoka’s obvious distress. Tiredly, I grabbed a nearby chair and dragged it to rest next to the sitting woman, right in front of Sylvia’s bed. I slumped into it, making sure not to look at the softly weeping form of a woman magnitudes more powerful than I was. I stirred after a moment, wincing from the roiling of my stomach. “He said he was an old ‘colleague’ of yours and Grey’s,” I said quietly. “But I’m guessing there’s more going on here.”

That seemed to snap Honoka out of her misery, as I heard the woman snort into her palms and then raise her snot-covered face. Wordlessly, I grabbed a nearby rag from a bedside table filled with various medical supplies and handed it to her. She took it without a word of thanks and scrubbed furiously at her face, and when she was done, just tossed it into the nearby fireplace. “Colleagues my bony ass,” She finally said, bitterness heavy in her voice. “That man was our comrade for centuries. Myself, Greycton, Rafael, and a Gnoll by the name of Arlock. Arlock died some years ago from Core Collapse, and Rafael…” She was quiet for a moment, before getting up from her chair and starting to pace. The staff that had instigated this whole thing was sent clattering to the floor, as Honoka grit her teeth. “I was there when he died, gods dammnit. How is he back?”

I eyed Honoka as she tried to wear a hole in the singed floorboards of the room. “How did he die?”

Honoka cut her reddened eyes my way but didn’t stop her pacing. “It was an expedition that went wrong into the high Aether zones of Indiqua,” She said shortly. “This was back in the days that our little band was still chasing Paragon. But we got in over our heads, and Rafael paid the price for it. We…tried to retreat, but he succumbed to his wounds despite my best efforts. It just gets so hard to Heal someone in our level range. We’re barely flesh and blood any more.” She started to breathe heavily. “I don’t…understand how he can be a Lich right now. Unless…” Honoka went still then, coming to a stop. In fact, she was completely motionless, not even looking to be breathing.

I waited a moment and then spoke up when it looked like she wasn’t. “Unless…?”

Honoka stirred then, but didn’t look at me. “Unless he had already decided to become a Lich back then,” She said quietly. “He just…wasn’t the same, after the death of our daughter.”

I lurched forward at that, incredibly startled. I nearly fell out of my chair. “Wait, what?” I said in shock. “Your daughter?!”

Honoka finally turned to face me then. She had a mirthless smile across her thin lips. The older woman gave me a short, sharp nod. “Oh yes,” She said, old, old grief evident in her voice. “I don’t expect you to know, but…Rafael was my husband. For a long, long time.”

I gaped at Honoka for a moment, forgetting myself in my shock. “But…but, you and Grey…” I said in confusion, before abruptly shutting up when Honoka actually started laughing at me.

She shook her head then, her chuckles dying off. “You and everyone else thinks that these days, but it never happened. Well, not seriously,” She amended. “There was a short, girl-hood fling that happened before you were a sparkle in your great-grandfather’s eye. It never went anywhere, once he became enamored with the moon. Instead…it became about me and Rafael. I won’t bore you with the details, plus it’s none of your damned business,” She said with a sharp look. I held up my hands in surrender before Honoka continued. “But yes, I was married for…a long time. We had our problems, but more importantly, we had our daughter to hold us together.”

“I’ve never heard anything about this,” I said quietly. “Honoka…I’m sorry, I had no idea.”

Honoka rolled her eyes at me, softening. “Of course you don’t. You’re not even from this planet, Hart. Let me tell you something. If you’re interested in starting a family one day, you’d better do it when you’re young and weak. It becomes a flat-out impossibility once you get up there in levels. The organs you need to do it….well. Let’s just say they stop working, the more powerful you get. Because of that, Rafael and I…we only had the one. Our little miracle child. And then we lost her.” She finished bitterly, walking back over and slumping into her chair next to me. “She was…wonderful. She was becoming a real mover and shaker, a true classer. She wasn’t exactly young when we lost her, you know. She was well into her third century at the time and then…gone. She got cocky and wandered into the wrong nest and that was it. The fate of a true classer. Lost to dumb mistakes.”

The bitterness in her voice was deep enough to curdle milk.

Well, if there had been any in the room with us.

I was tempted to lay a hand on her shoulder in comfort, but then I remembered how she had accused me of failing Sylvia. I…understood now, intellectually, that there had been more about that than she was letting on. But I was still a bit bitter about it.

I stayed my hand.

I wasn’t perfect.

I don’t think she noticed as she continued talking, staring off into space. “She died some hundred and fifteen years ago,” She said, almost absentmindedly. I’m not sure she was even talking to me anymore, more than herself. “It…broke Raffy. It broke us, really. We weren’t the same after that, and the both of us threw ourselves into our work in response. It was Grey and Arlock that tried to keep us together more than we did, which is where the expedition came in,” She finally remembered I existed, looking at me from the corner of one orange eye. “If you’re right, and your ‘Tlazo’ is what remains of my husband…then maybe he was planning to die on that expedition. He’d talked about the mechanics of it, you know. Years before losing our daughter, he told me that he knew how to transform himself into a Lich. He just wasn’t interested…at the time.” She sighed then, picked up the staff she had sent clattering to the ground. She rolled the wood of the staff around in her hands, gazing into the amber crystal. When she spoke again, her voice was cracking from long-suppressed grief. “That bastard…how dare he leave me alone like that…”

The room fell into silence once again. I didn’t want to break it, but I did feel an obligation to continue my story. I cleared my throat uncomfortably. “Well…he was dispersed by Rhazal-The Calamity,” I corrected myself, doubting she knew that asshole’s name. “I…briefly spoke to him in the Concord through that staff, and he said he’d be back in a few years. So…he’s not really gone. Just…sort-of.”

Honoka looked up at me, startled out of her grief. She had an incredibly confused look on her face. “The Concord? What the hell were you doing in there? How were you in there?” She asked me, baffled. She abruptly shook her head. “Oh, whatever. You’d better start from the beginning, Hart. Fill me in.”

And that’s what I did.

For the next half an hour, I talked endlessly.

About how the campaign in Elderwyck had been doing.

About the assault on the warehouse HQ by Longstripe.

About Nerexxa, and Rhazal.

And how they’d been killed.

I tried to include every detail about Tla-Rafael that I could, but there wasn’t much I could say. The Lich hadn’t exactly been talkative about himself.

“…I kind of think his phylactery isn’t here in Elderwyck,” I finished, voicing a suspicion that had been lurking in the back of my mind. “He never said anything about coming back here, while I was in the Concord. It makes sense that he would have stored it somewhere safe away from where he could have been in danger. Even if he had a contract with the Empire, better to be safe than sorry for an immortal bone man.”

Honoka sighed but nodded. “Yes…that sounds like him,” She said tiredly. “I have…suspicions about where he could have stored the damn thing. But, they’ll have to wait until he manifests once again. And I’m going to have questions for that bastard,” She said, glowering down at the amber head of the staff. It might just be my imagination, but I swear I saw a brief green glow in the core of it. Honoka snorted in disgust, before abruptly shoving the staff into my chest. I instinctually took it before looking up at her in startlement. She smiled slightly at my confusion and shook my head. “I don’t want the damn thing. If Raffy entrusted it to you, then you can keep it.”

I blinked. “Uh…he didn’t exactly say I could keep the staff, you know,” I pointed out.

Honoka scowled off into space. “Well, I’m the man’s wife, and I say you can. If that asshole has anything to say about it, then he can damn well speak up about it.”

The both of us looked at the staff for a moment, almost expecting the Liche’s dry voice to come echoing out of the crystal.

Nothing.

Well, alright then.

New weapon acquired, I suppose.

Honoka sighed then, and then looked at me closely for a moment. I resisted the urge to fidget under her assessing gaze. “Well, one good thing happened from this shitshow, at the very least,” She finally said. “If I’m not mistaken, you’re more than ready to break past the first barrier. You’re definitely at least level one hundred.”

I sat bolt upright in my chair at that, having completely forgotten about even checking my gains with…everything.

Honoka cracked a small smile. “Don’t tell me you’re surprised,” She said, almost teasingly. “You killed a damned Calamity after all. That’s worth more than a few levels. Go on. Go ahead and check.”

I smiled back at her. “Ah…yeah, sure. Just give me a second.” I said, leaning my new staff against the bed Sylvia was resting on.

I then focused on Hidden Amidst the Spheres, pulling up my Status. Something felt…off for a moment, but the mental blue box popped up all the same.

You have gained 31 levels!

You are now level 100 (122)-

That was as far as I was able to read before something welled up inside of me.

I abruptly stood up from my chair, my eyes widening as I hunched over, clutching my stomach in pain. My breaths started to come in short, sharp gasps as I tried to process what I was feeling.

It was like the entirety of my being was suddenly on fire. A greasy, smoky feeling was threading its way through something intrinsic to me. The sickness and queasiness that had been lingering since I had woken up in Renauld’s clinic had reached a flaring peak, and now I couldn’t focus on anything else. Dimly I was aware that Honoka was trying to say something to me, but I couldn’t even parse the words.

I slumped to my knees, letting out a short, weak scream of agony as I did so.

It was too much.

And then everything...

Broke.

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