ã€ŠBook 1: There is No Godã€‹


 Chapter 0 - The Godless Day

    Chapter 0 - The Godless Day

    The clanging of sharp metal against metal, twangs of bowstrings and clamoring wails of fallen soldiers melded into a grand melody of war. A sea of steel-clad men crashed into the walls of the city, wave after wave, slowly making their way up. As the men who were positioned above pushed back each tide, a steel gilded battering ram slowly made it¡¯s way towards the iron gates. The harmonious battle which seemed to be at a standstill immediately changed as the battering ram¡¯s first strike resounded. The slow beating increased with tempo and so did the fervor the men fought with.

    ¡°Push them back! Reinforce the gates!¡± a general barked at the soldiers who grit their teeth and fought with all their might. Their tenacity in the face of overwhelming peril shone through their eyes as they single-mindedly held the line. However their destinies have already been decided.

    ¡°Bwong!¡±

    With a final strike, the iron gates fell. The sound silenced the battlefield for a moment, only to be broken by a soldier yelling ¡°Charge!¡±. The men outside endlessly poured into the city. Seeing the breach of the gates, the men defending the walls faltered for a moment allowing their enemies to assail the walls with ease. Their swords reached their targets, which including the general.

    ¡°They¡¯ve breached the gates! They¡¯ve breached the gates!¡± screamed a few of the weaker willed men as mass panic erupted on the walls.

    ¡°Retreat to the castle! Protect the king!¡± shouted an officer who ran in the opposite direction of the soldiers who were flooding into the city streets.

    Within the castle standing in the throne room congregated various people of the court.

    ¡°Your holiness, what should we do? They¡¯re already sieging the wa-¡± an advisor was cut off by the officer rushing into the room.

    ¡°They¡¯ve made it into the city!¡± he shouted.

    The aged king frowned, adding even more wrinkles and creases to his raisined face. Pensively he scanned his subjects, each looked equally frightened by the grim news. Everyone stood silently, awaiting guidance from their god king.

    The war between the two kingdoms had been raging for a millennium and the people only knew of war. There was a time when the king once led his own armies to war and he had time and time again come back alive out of many desperate situations, mainly thanks to his divine protection. But now with the enemy knocking on his doorstep he couldn¡¯t help to sigh. ¡°Why won¡¯t god speak with me?¡± As the king was pondering this a young boy walked into the throne room.

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    ¡°Father, are we going to be okay?¡± asked the boy with a similarly worried look about him.

    To reassure the boy, the king painfully smiled and said ¡°Everything will be fine.¡± as he placed his hand on the boy¡¯s head and laughed.

    ¡°Black Fox, take him and some of our retainers to a remote place, far from here. Protect my son.¡± ordered the king.

    ¡°Understood.¡± a voice echoed throughout the room.

    A pale elderly man, dressed in a midnight robe, seemed to appear out of the darkness. He extended his boney hand towards the boy and whispered an incoherent chant. He fell unconsciously to the floor. ¡°Wh-what are you doing?¡± asked an official. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you won¡¯t remember anyways.¡± he replied as he repeated the same spell, this time for everyone else.

    Once everyone was laid onto the marble ground the magician started chanting a more complicated spell. Circular patterns started to appear all around the group and started to emit a blue light which grew stronger with each passing moment. Finally at the apex, when the room was drowning in color, the boy, retainers and Black Fox disappeared without a trace.

    Almost immediately after the throne room doors were broken through. The soldiers arrayed themselves in a formation surrounding the king. Slowly the enemy leader walked towards the center and removed his helm. Golden hair flowed out to his back, pointed ears holding it in place and his fierce emerald eyes were fixed on his prey.

    ¡°Nowhere to hide to now, human.¡± he smiled viciously.

    ¡°Even if you kill me, god will return.¡± the frail king smiled back.

    He drew his sword and plunged it through the king¡¯s heart. ¡°Your god is dead.¡±

    With the king now dead, pandemonium ensued as the invaders ransacked the capital. If one wasn¡¯t killed on the spot, they were tied up and shuttled to carts like cattle to be sold at market. This invasion would be seared into the hearts of many, forever remembered as the day that their god had forsaken them: The Godless Day.

 Chapter 1 - Fox Village

    Chapter 1 - Fox Village

    Deep within a wooded forest there were a series of erected huts that seemed to be only held together by dried mud. They looked as if they were made by a child who was missing an arm. These measly huts housed the people of Fox Village.

    Surprisingly, despite the shoddy craftsmanship of the houses, there was primarily middle aged men who lived within the village. There was only one exception, the grandson of the village elder, Arnest.

    ¡°Follow through with your whole body when you swing. You¡¯re too stiff!¡± barked one of the middle aged men.

    In the center of the village, Arnest squarely stood swinging a wooden sword sloppily. For each of his mistakes his instructor, Old Man Vargus, would whack him with a thorny tree branch. All over his body were red marks after hours of grueling torture. As his stance started to fall apart, Vargus whacked him three more times for good measure.

    Finally losing to the pain the twelve year old boy fell to the ground, unable to bear any more punishment. ¡°What do I even need to train for? There aren¡¯t even any dangerous beasts to fight.¡± he cried as his tormentor neared him.

    ¡°When you come of age, you will leave the village and adventure throughout the world. The elder tasked me to train you and so if you¡¯re not ready by then, he¡¯ll surely punish me with something unimaginable.¡± said Vargus, while remembering the first time he met the elder, shuddering.

    ¡°Could you at least stop with the beatings?¡± Arnest pleaded with hateful eyes.

    ¡°No, this is the only way you¡¯ll remember.¡± Vargus said out loud while inwardly thinking ¡°If I can¡¯t beat the elder to death, I can still get revenge on his brat.¡± His mouth curved upwards unconsciously.

    ¡°Y-you smiled!¡± shouted Arnest in anger.

    Realizing his mistake, Vargus quickly regained composure and adopted his usual stone stark face. ¡°What are you talking about? You must be seeing things. Quickly run to your grandfather and ask him to check your eyesight before you start talking more nonsense.¡±

    Begrudgingly he slowly pulled himself off the ground and started limping towards a hut on the furthest outskirts of the village. As he approached the door a voice bellowed out of the hovel, ¡°Whoever it is, I¡¯m busy. Leave.¡± His grandfather was always a bit eccentric and his mood would randomly change. No matter if you were the village idiot, a god or his grandson, he would treat you with the same indifference and lack of care when he was upset. You would think this sort of attitude would incite anger and an uprising among the villagers however this was the village¡¯s sole elder. He was basically their king in this small corner of the world so his word was similar to a divine proclamation, which no one could argue with.

    After being kicked out of his own home Arnest started limping again, this time towards the beach to the south-west of the village. This was usually the place Arnest went to pass time when he wasn¡¯t being beaten by Old Man Vargus. He enjoyed the serenity of the waves gently pressing against the sandy shores and swimming in the crystal waters devoid of the usual punishments he endures.

    Within the hut. In a hidden room beneath the floorboards.

    ¡°The stars of Navul and Salene have crossed each other¡­¡± a ghostly elderly man muttered to himself as he stared deeply into a murky glass ball. Navul is the god of the humans and Salene is the god of the elves. Their stars are two of the four stars in the world of Yzenten and each star represents another race''s god. The other two stars are Mantus and Ulrend, who represent the gods of the demons and dragons respectively.

    ¡°Could this mean another conflict between the gods? The most recent recording of this event occurred a thousand years ago when the great war between humans and elves started¡­ Well, we should be safe here on Lanex. We¡¯re too far away from the mainland for the flames of another great war to affect us.¡± thought the elderly man as he rubbed his forehead with his boney fingers.

    But as he was reassuring himself, a panicked voice rang within his mind, ¡°Elder Black Fox, one of my familiars off the southern coast has detected a small fleet moving in this direction! They have banners with a three-horned elk on it, I think they¡¯re elves!¡±

    ¡°Three-horned elk...the royal family? What are they doing here? Could this be a coincidence?¡± Black Fox was extremely alarmed. The timing of these events were too ominous to be a simple coincidence and then he remembered his grandson. Immediately Black Fox leapt out of his chair and shouted so that all the villagers could hear, ¡°Where is Arnest!¡±

    Unknowingly Arnest continued to wade in the ocean, ignorant to the world around him. Floating on his back half-naked, he stared into the cerulean skies imagining the world outside of his village. The men in his town told him fantastical stories of kings, dragons and the most mystical of all - women.

    ¡°And when the wise king, Maximilian, finally united all the humans under his wolfen banners there was peace. But only two years after the unification he became intoxicated with a woman of immense beauty. It was said that she was so beautiful that all who looked upon her would be stunned; man, elven, and demon-kin would stop for her. With just beauty it was said that she was able to command not only the human king Maximillian, to do her bidding, but also the demon and elven kings. At one point, she convinced all of them to fight to the death for the chance of marriage and sent the world in disarray. The three kings of each race attacked each other with their grand armies, starting the War of Beauty. In the end all three kings ended up dying and the beautiful woman disappeared.¡± Arnest remembered this story that one of the villagers told him a few days ago. What impressed him the most was the power one person had over the entire world. He had never heard of a king, even those with divine powers, who could compare and dragons usually were recluse, sticking to their own continent.

    ¡°What exactly are women?¡± Arnest had asked after hearing the story.

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    ¡°They have long hair, big chests and don¡¯t have a di-¡± the village idiot, Rufus, said before another villager clasped his hands over his mouth. ¡°You idiot! If you teach him anything strange the elder will surely kill you!¡±

    ¡°So if I get long hair and a big chest then I can be powerful like a woman too?¡± Arnest asked innocently. But before he could get an answer, Vargus charged into the hut and dragged him off for a daily beating session. Remembering the beating he got, Arnest¡¯s mind wavered back to reality. ¡°One day, I¡¯ll be powerful like her.¡± he gleefully thought.

    Suddenly there was a change in the once tranquil waters. The calm waves turned into towers of water and crashed into Arnest making him submerge and tumble into the undercurrent. He struggled for a while, trying to reach the surface. When he finally was able to breath, he saw a huge shadow over him. He looked up only to see a giant wooden fortress floating on the water in front of him. Startled, he swam all the way back to shore. He noticed that there were a more of these huge ships about a stone''s throw away from the shore, while few smaller boats were approaching him.

    When they drew closer he was able to make out a few distinct figures. On two of the smaller boats there was mainly soldiers with shining armor and on the third boat, in the middle, stood resolutely a lengthy golden haired maiden. Next to her a man dressed in a suit held a parasol shielding her cream pure skin from the four suns hanging in the sky. A few of the other soldiers held banners with a three-horned elk which billowed in the salty sea wind.

    Arnest held his breath. ¡°Long hair...could this be a woman?¡± he thought to himself. But as the vessels beached along the shore, he was able to see more clearly. Although she had long golden hair and beautiful verdant eyes, her chest was clearly like all the men in the village - flat. Disappointed, but still curious, he walked towards the strange visitors.

    ¡°Halt! You¡¯re in the presence of her majesty, Princess Mirima!¡± one of the soldiers shouted. The rest of the soldiers placed their palms on the adorned pommels of their swords and were alert. This was Lanex, the exiled lands the human kingdom used to send unwanted officials and heinous criminals alike. Although they only faced a young human boy, who would know for sure if he was innocent or a murderous bandit. This uncertainty, his half-naked appearance and the years of bitter war had demonized the humans in the eyes of elves all made them feel naturally hostile towards this perceived threat.

    Confused, Arnest tilted his head to side and said ¡°He isn¡¯t a princess. It¡¯s clearly a man! Look at his chest.¡± Upon hearing this the young girl turned blood curdling red and felt a mixture of embarrassment and anger. ¡°How dare you make fun of me!¡± she screamed.

    ¡°Guards, kill this savage Navulian!¡± and with a simple order, a squadron of four soldiers rushes towards Arnest with silver swords drawn. Seeing this, Arnest runs towards the village with all his might. Weaving through the forest was simple for Arnest since he¡¯s explored almost every inch of it. The soldiers who were chasing were unable to catch up to him initially but one of the smarter of the four took out his bow. He nocked an arrow, pulled back and released. The arrow whizzed through the air and fell short of its mark, piercing Arnest¡¯s right leg instead of his back. Arnest face-planted into the ground instantly and groaned. The four soldiers circled him, blocking off any escape.

    ¡°Die human.¡± one of the soldiers said as he raised his sword up above his head and slashed downward.

    Closing his eyes, Arnest awaited the blow.

    Tens of moments passed but he did not feel any pain. Heavily breathing, he opened his eyes to see a glowing white formation in front of him. The elven soldiers were stunned by the scene. ¡°A magus? In the exiled lands?¡± thought all the soldiers.

    Typically magi, no matter their backgrounds or transgressions, were respected and revered for their craft. The human king wouldn¡¯t have ever sent a skilled magus to Lanex, even if that magus killed his entire family or pillaged his treasury. A magus of this caliber was more precious than a prince or two.

    ¡°Grandfather!¡± Arnest exclaimed, relieved.

    ¡°Tell me, what did my grandson do to offend you travelers?¡± asked Black Fox. He scanned over them and saw the three-horned elk crest affixed to the center of their armor.

    The soldiers winced at the thought of having to offend, let alone fight, a magus who was able to use defensive formations that could block their attacks. Each of them had trained to join the royal guard for the minimum of fifty years and were hardened by thousands of battles. A single one of their sword strikes should be able to split a solid rock in half with ease.

    ¡°Forgive us, lord magus. We did not know you were related to the boy otherwise we wouldn¡¯t have attacked. To be honest, he offended our highness and we were ordered to attack. I¡¯m sure if your noble self spoke with her highness that the misunderstanding between us can be resolved.¡± a soldier nervously said, trying to rid himself of responsibility.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be sure to pay a visit to her highness once I¡¯ve tended to my grandsons wounds.¡± smiled Black Fox.

    ¡°Thank you for your forgiveness, lord magus.¡± The soldier felt as if he just escaped from a dragon¡¯s nest.

    They started to leave but Black Fox said ¡°When did I say I forgave you?¡±, still smiling.

    Shivers ran down their spines as they turned around and with a wave of Black Fox¡¯s hand, a magic arrow flew into the right leg of the soldier with the bow. He fell to the ground and groaned and the other three looked horrified. With another flick of his hand the soldier, who had struck at Arnest with his sword, felt an immense force press against him knocking him back through a tree which snapped in half.

    ¡°You¡¯re forgiven now. Run along to your master.¡± Black Fox voice trailed as he carried Arnest back to the village.

    The two soldiers who weren¡¯t attacked stared at their fallen comrades in disbelief. ¡°So powerful¡­¡± They quickly regained their senses, grabbed the two soldiers who were on the ground and carried them back to the beach.

 Chapter 2 - The Promise

    Chapter 2 - The Promise

    ¡°You failed to kill him?¡± Mirima¡¯s cold expression froze the two soldiers stiff, who had delivered the bad news.

    The tent they were in was lined with colorful tapestries and in the center was a lounging chair which the princess sat on. The man in the suit stood silently next to her, holding a gold gilded serving tray with assorted dry snacks and a tea set. As the soldiers were about to explain, the suited man spoke up ¡°They seemed to have encountered a magus.¡±

    ¡°A magus? How could there be one in these forsaken lands, Jaunde?¡± she asked quizzically.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure about the specifics but I was able to sense a large mana disturbance. Whoever it is, they should at least be a magus master.¡± Jaunde replied unenthusiastically.

    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s true that we encountered a magus. He seems to be the grandfather of the boy. He was able to block one of our strikes and injure two of us with just a wave of his hand.¡± a soldier hurriedly said.

    ¡°He also said he would meet with you, your highness.¡± the other added.

    ¡°The two of you can leave.¡± Mirima waved her hand and the two soldiers exited the tent.

    ¡°Princess, you were just exiled to this place and already gained a powerful enemy. I suggest you try to apologize and gift him a few treasures.¡± warned Jaunde.

    ¡°But that boy deserves to die. I¡¯ve never been so humiliated before.¡± As she remembered what Arnest said, tears began to stream down her porcelain face.

    ¡°And being exiled from your home country due to being an incompetent princess wasn¡¯t humiliating?¡± Jaunde taunted the crying beauty.

    ¡°That was different! Hmph, men from all over the empire revere me as a goddess yet this country bumpkin is truly blind.¡± she surprisingly regained her composure after being called incompetent.

    ¡°Well it¡¯s not like the boy is wrong, you really are lacking in that area.¡± Jaunde muttered under his breath, while looking downward at her chest.

    Fox Village. Inside the elder¡¯s hut.

    ¡°Ahhh!¡± screamed Arnest as his grandfather ripped out the arrow from his leg.

    ¡°Couldn¡¯t you have been a bit more gentle?¡± Arnest said but Black Fox ignored him and took out a blackened green paste and pressed it into his wound. Arnest screamed again, gripping the fur bed he was laying on in pain.

    ¡°It¡¯s your own fault for getting into a fight. If you don¡¯t want to be in pain, don¡¯t pointlessly start them.¡± Black Fox lazily said.

    ¡°It wasn¡¯t even my fault! He just got angry because I said he wasn¡¯t a princess!¡± Arnest bitterly said as he rubbed his now almost healed wound.

    ¡°How would you know if it was a princess or not? You¡¯ve never seen a girl before.¡± Black Fox starting roasting a small hare with his fire magic, completely uninterested with Arnest¡¯s idiocy.

    ¡°Rufus told me that girls have long hair and big chests. Although he had long hair he didn¡¯t even have a tiny bulge.¡± he said defensively.

    ¡°Rufus, you really are the village idiot. I¡¯ll be sure to educate you.¡± Black Fox villainously smiled as he hacked the burnt hare into two portions. Tossing one half to Arnest, he began to explain the intricacies of women and their various biological differences they had compared to men.

    A few days passed by after the fated encounter between the humans and elves. The elven camp was set up on the beach and a small defensive wall was erected, to keep the princess safe. Although this caused some of the villagers to be upset that they now had to go to the beach further away to fish, the heavily armored elves with their sharp swords deterred anyone from voicing their anger out loud.

    When the four suns rose on the fourth day, the guards stationed at the entrance to the elven camp saw two dark shadows emerge from the forest. ¡°Who goes there? State your business!¡± shouted one of them.

    As the silhouettes continued to approach the guards drew their swords. The taller silhouette lowered his hood from his black cloak and revealed his aged, smiling face. One of the soldiers immediately put away his weapon and started to kneel. ¡°Lord magus, right this way. The princess has been anticipating your arrival.¡± Hearing this, the other soldier also lowered his weapon and immediately kneeled.

    It wasn¡¯t long before they arrived at the princess¡¯s tent. A soldier raised his voice and said ¡°Your highness, the esteemed magus has arrived to meet with you.¡±

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    ¡°You may enter.¡± a feminine and regal voice sounded out.

    When they entered the tent, an appealing scent of a foreign flower filled the air. A short, but heavily decorated wooden table was in the middle while there was a few posh sitting chairs. Unreservedly, Black Fox and Arnest took a seat across from Mirima.

    ¡°Thank you for coming, to my humble camp. I wanted to apolo-¡± Mirima started to speak but Black Fox raised his hand and shook his head.

    ¡°I¡¯ve come here with my grandson for mainly one reason. Arnest.¡± he said as he then looked to Arnest.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for being rude the other day, princess.¡± shyly said Arnest, seemingly ashamed. Mirima stared at the boy in disbelief and when she locked eyes with Arnest, he quickly looked away. Flabbergasted at the change in his attitude, she mainly felt elated that he had called her ¡°princess¡± instead of a man. ¡°He finally recognizes my peerless beauty, heh.¡± she smugly thought.

    Once she finished with her own self-delusions, she was fast to say ¡°It was clearly only a misunderstanding! I was in the wrong mostly.¡± while pleasantly smiling.

    ¡°Now that he has apologized, I would also like to make some reparations.¡± Black Fox said while scanning the room. The only one present in the room besides the three of them was Jaunde who looked like a typical servant. Clearing his throat, he asked ¡°I was wondering what would attract a princess of the Tryll Kingdom to the exiled lands? Perhaps I can help you with what you¡¯re looking for. Even the seemingly impossible becomes possible for me, the great Black Fox.¡±

    Jaunde started to frown and whispered into Mirma¡¯s ear ¡°You shouldn¡¯t tell him the real reason you¡¯re here. Tell him you¡¯re here on behalf of the king.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± seeing Jaunde¡¯s reaction, Black Fox also started to frown.

    While still smiling, she replied ¡°I¡¯m here on behalf of the king but I¡¯m not sure I can share details of my mission with others.¡±

    ¡°I can swear a blood oath to the gods if you would like.¡± candidly offered Black Fox.

    Mirima¡¯s face flushed ghost white. A blood oath is done by two or more parties, offering to be completely truthful and honorable to whatever they decide. It¡¯s usually done between a lord and his servants but it isn¡¯t uncommon for it to be done between people trading goods or information. However what is uncommon is a blood oath to the gods. If one were to renege on a normal blood oath they would normally die. Breaking a blood oath to the gods would shatter your soul, preventing you from reincarnating or continuing on into the afterlife. If she were to agree to Black Fox¡¯s offer, she couldn¡¯t lie about being on a mission and would be forced to come clean.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need for that, honorable magus Black Fox.¡± Jaunde said. ¡°If you¡¯re willing to go that far, I¡¯m sure it would be alright to tell you the true purpose of her majesty''s visit to the exiled lands.¡±

    Thinking with his quick wit, Jaunde continued ¡°The king has given Princess Mirima the task of unifying Lanex and making it a vassal state of Tryll Kingdom. If you would humble us with your assistance, we would greatly appreciate your help. Of course, there would be many rewards as well.¡±

    Black Fox wasn¡¯t too surprised by this information. Lanex has always been considered human lands and now that the Tryll Kingdom had conquered the human kingdom, Legati, it was natural that they would continue to expand. The only surprising thing was it had only been five years since the capital city of Legati fell to elven forces. The speed at which they were expanding was truly terrifying.

    ¡°Although rewards are good, I¡¯m worried about one thing.¡± Black Fox replied after a while. ¡°I¡¯ve heard that most of the humans on the Trilantus continent, the ones who were part of the Legati Kingdom, were enslaved. What will happen to the humans who are living here?¡±

    Mirima furrowed her thin brows and glanced at Jaunde. ¡°The princess can abide to a blood oath and swear that if you help her, the humans living on Lanex will be free from slavery.¡± answered Jaunde.

    ¡°A blood oath to the gods?¡± Black Fox stared at the young princess.

    Jaunde whispered into Mirima¡¯s ear again and her face brightened. ¡°Yes, of course.¡± Mirima said.

    ¡°Then I, Black Fox, swear to the gods that I will help Princess Mirima conquer Lanex.¡± and then Black Fox slashed his left hand, blood dripping down his palm.

    ¡°And I, Mirima Edeif Tryll, promise to the gods that when I unify Lanex the humans within our borders will be free and not enslaved.¡± Jaunde handed her a golden dagger and she lightly slashed her left hand as well.

    Black Fox and Mirima clasped their bloody hands together and a faint golden light exuded, signifying the god¡¯s acknowledgement of the pact. And thus the unlikely alliance was formed between humans and elves for the first time in more than a millennium.

 Chapter 3 - Dreams of a Prince

    Chapter 3 - Dreams of a Prince

    After the blood oath was made, Black Fox and Arnest said their farewells and left the tent. Once they were a distance away, Mirima asked ¡°Jaunde, why did you say the unification of Lanex was my mission? Wouldn¡¯t it have been fine if we said we heard rumors of a mystical treasure or something simpler?¡±

    ¡°Think about it, Mirima. If you were to gain control over these lands, your brother will probably decide to allow you to return back to the kingdom.¡± said Jaunde with a sly grin. ¡°Plus it doesn¡¯t hurt to gain a powerful shield in these foreign lands.¡±

    The four suns started to dip downwards into the ocean making the waters glow a brilliant orange. The light seeped into the cracks of the hut exposing the state of disorder it was in. The two fur beds, although comfortable, looked raggedly thrown together and a small table with two decrepit wooden chairs sat along one side.

    Throwing himself onto one of the beds, Arnest felt exhausted for some reason. It wasn¡¯t like he had been beaten half to death by Old Man Vargus so he was confused as to why he was feeling this way. But his eyes started to close before he could think about it any further and as if a spell was cast on him, his mind quieted and fell asleep.

    Black Fox walked towards Arnest and placed his palm on his head. A shadowed apparition then suddenly appeared next to him. ¡°Elder, why did you agree to help the elves?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no other place we can go to hide safely from the elves. However if we give them Lanex, we may be able to sit in plain view with them none the wiser.¡±

    Black Fox started chanting and a greenish hued formation appeared on Arnest¡¯s head. ¡°Release.¡± The air slightly vibrated and the spell dispersed.

    ¡°You need to remember a little bit of your past for the future.¡±

    ¡°Arnest.¡± a deep voice echoed from behind.

    Arnest turned around and there was an old man with peppered white hair sitting in a burgundy chair. Books of all shapes and sizes lined the walls and there were a few of them even stacked up on the marble floors. The grouping of them looked similar to a model of a cityscape, made up of the millennial knowledge of countless predecessors.

    The old man beckoned him to come towards the table. As he approached, he saw a giant topographical map that, when spread out, spilled over the four edges of the large table. There were many different land masses however in the very center, was a backwards crescent continent larger than any other. Pointing to the center of the map, the old man said ¡°This is where we are. The capital city, Legaxis.¡± Again he moved his finger this time towards the north ¡°This is the demon kingdom, Dargren.¡± and finally pointed towards the south, ¡°And this is the elven kingdom, Tryll.¡±

    For an unexplainable reason, Arnest started to feel nostalgic. Although he had heard the names of these kingdoms before from the villagers, he had a familiar feeling. It didn¡¯t feel as though it was familiar because he had heard it before. Rather it was that he had heard these same words in this strange room before. But before he could explore this feeling of deja vu, his vision grew blurry and he fell to the ground.

    Slowly opening his eyes, Arnest saw another familiar scene. There were half naked men grouped in a dirt field. Sweat glistened off of their hardened bodies and occasionally they would grunt or yell out. Most of them were sparring with thick wooden swords.

    ¡°Your highness, are you alright?¡±

    Arnest looked up and saw a bearded face smiling at him, extending his hand towards him. He subconsciously reached out and clasped it and rose to his feet. ¡°I¡¯m alright, Varlan.¡± his mouth seemed to move without thinking.

    ¡°Who¡¯s Varlan?¡± Arnest thought.

    ¡°Good, then let¡¯s continue.¡± Varlan said as he assumed a stance and charged at Arnest.

    But as he charged Varlan¡¯s body seemed to be made of air as it phased through Arnest and the surroundings disappeared into nothingness. Everything was dark, except for a flickering light seeping out a crack of a door. Arnest started to near the light, peering into the room.

    The aged man from before, dressed in noble clothes, sat at a desk in what seemed to be a study. He was staring at a picture frame with one hand stroking it lovingly. ¡°Aryea, forgive me.¡± he said while tears ran down the wrinkles in his face like a stream down a rocky mountain.

    ¡°Father.¡± Arnest could feel his own eyes starting to tear.

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    The tears filled his eyes until he couldn¡¯t see no more and his chest tightened like a bow being drawn. He gasped to breathe and his vision started to dim. Again he returned to darkness and there was nothing. Then there was an intense light. With hurried panting he opened his eyes and saw a thatched roof with a few holes above.

    ¡°Stop making so much noise.¡± Black Fox lazily yawned.

    Arnest felt extremely confused. He realized his eyes were still wet. ¡°Was it a dream?¡± he thought as he climbed out of bed.

    ¡°Todhay ish gwoing to be a boosy day.¡± Black Fox said with his mouth full of heavily charred meat.

    ¡°Why?¡± Arnest was still recovering from the strange dream.

    Swallowing and licking his fingers, Black Fox said ¡°Today we¡¯re going to be strategizing with princess on how to unify Lanex.¡±

    ¡°But what does that have to do with me? I don¡¯t know anything that could help.¡± Arnest said.

    ¡°Think of it as getting some practice. Your training with Vargus will stop for a while starting today.¡± Black Fox started to put on his robes.

    ¡°No more beatings? Really!?¡± he said with a huge smile.

    The two of them then started to head out of Fox Village towards the elven encampment. Now that the news of the magus Black Fox was assisting them in their ¡°royal¡± mission spread throughout the camp, the guards allowed them to freely walk around unobstructed. Arnest noticed that some of the soldiers were sparring with each other. He noted that each strike was powerful, more so than the men in his dreams.

    Walking into Princess Mirima¡¯s tent, they were greeted by Jaunde. ¡°The princess will be here shortly. Please feel free to take a look at the map of Lanex we procured before our trip here.¡±

    On the map was numerous islands. Once counted, they amounted to thirty seven individual islands with six main clusters. Seeing the map, Arnest remembered the map in his dreams. This map looked like the north-eastern portion of the large map.

    ¡°This map is pretty good, probably from the elven royal library, but there is a major flaw. There are more than a hundred islands of Lanex and even I don¡¯t know how many there truly are.¡± Black Fox pointed past the eastern edge of the map. ¡°Towards the east, there are many more islands. They are also many times more dangerous than the western ones.¡±

    Mirima entered the tent in a lime tinted dress that fit her petite body. ¡°Then we should avoid the more dangerous islands to the east and start with the west.¡± she said.

    ¡°No, we should go east first. There are a few small city-states that were created by the natives once their islands were overrun by humans. If we were to gain their support, we could easily take over the other islands.¡± said Arnest, surprisingly.

    Mirima and Jaunde looked at the young boy strangely. Although Black Fox had taken Arnest along they didn¡¯t expect him to also take part of the strategizing. Even Arnest was slightly shocked but he suddenly had a flash of inspiration in his mind. He felt like he knew this was the best plan of action but from where this instinct came from he was unsure.

    Black Fox nodded. ¡°Arnest is correct. Specifically the three major city states, Zanabo, Crul, and Ralom will be our main objectives.¡± Hearing Black Fox¡¯s agreement Mirima and Jaunde chalked it up to local¡¯s knowledge and moved on.

    ¡°Okay, so how should we take over these city-states?¡± Mirima asked.

    ¡°Give my grandson a hundred men and one of your boats. He¡¯ll take their castles. Black Fox said as he patted Arnest on the head.

    ¡°That snot nosed brat? You think I¡¯m an idio-¡± but before Mirima could continue ranting Jaunde interrupted, ¡°What she means to say is that she¡¯s happy to lend a hundred troops to your grandson.¡±

    ¡°Well then, we¡¯ll see you in a while after we capture a few islands.¡± Black Fox said as he lead Arnest out of the tent.

    ¡°Why¡¯d you agree to that! He¡¯s just a little savage, how will he be able to take over those city-states?¡± Mirima was steaming like a boiled tomato. Time and time again Jaunde kept making decisions for her. Was she not the princess of the Tryll Kingdom?

    ¡°Even if he can¡¯t capture the islands with a hundred men, I¡¯m sure that his grandfather will help him out either way. The hundred men is probably for the boy¡¯s protection while the magus goes and takes the cities himself.¡± Jaunde explained.

    Still pouting, Mirima smacked Jaunde. ¡°Even so, stop rudely interrupting me!¡±

    ¡°Yes, your highness.¡±

 Chapter 4 - Departure

    Chapter 4 - Departure

    A week had passed since the strategy meeting. Arnest, who was essentially named general, swiftly ordered his hundred elf soldiers. Half of the group were delegated towards enlisting and training the rag tag bunch of inhabitants of Fox Village. The other half was busy stockpiling food and supplies on the boat. The usually quiet village started to bustle with activity.

    ¡°Marcus, how¡¯re the villagers doing?¡± Arnest asked the elven officer to his right.

    ¡°The fifty men have been taught a basic formation for five men. We¡¯ll be able to have thirty squads if we count all our forces.¡± Marcus replied seriously. Being forced to follow the orders of a young human would usually be a humiliating situation but it didn¡¯t seem to bother Marcus.

    A soldier came running from the direction of the beach. ¡°Lord, we¡¯re finished stocking the boat. We¡¯re ready to sail at any time.¡±

    ¡°Good. Marcus, order the men to board the ship. We set sail at high noon.¡± said Arnest as he walked towards his hut.

    When he opened the door, Black Fox was sitting reading a tattered book.

    Arnest sat down on the chair opposite to Black Fox. ¡°Grandfather, I¡¯m getting ready to leave now. Will you be coming with me?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m getting too old for traveling, let alone a battle.¡± Black Fox snorted, still intently reading his book.

    Silence filled the room for a while. Arnest looked up towards Black Fox. ¡°I will miss you.¡±

    Black Fox was his only family in this world. Arnest had used to ask Black Fox many times about his parents but it would always end with his grandfather slanting his eyes and beating him severely. So despite his yearning to know, he knew to hold back his tongue and stopped trying.

    ¡°Bah, just run along boy. Let me finish my book.¡± he said waving his hands at Arnest, pushing him away.

    Once Arnest was outside of the hut, a small, mahogany and leather bound book hit him squarely on the forehead. ¡°Read that if you get bored.¡± Black Fox¡¯s voice echoed as the door magically slammed shut. While rubbing his forehead, Arnest picked up the book and started walking towards the coast.

    By the time Arnest was on the ship the men had already finished preparing to set sail. The hundred elf soldiers took hold of the oars while the fifty conscripted men were running around the deck, checking each and every knot. ¡°Set sail!¡± Arnest shouted and the sails were loosed and a breeze filled the cloth. The boat started to take off away from the island and eventually shrank past the horizon, out of view.

    ¡°Y-young master.¡± a voice stuttered behind Arnest who was standing at the bow.

    Turning around, Arnest saw a disheveled, beaten face. ¡°Rufus?¡±

    ¡°Yes it¡¯s me. I wanted to apologize for the other day when I told you about women. I didn¡¯t want to mislead you and-¡± Arnest placed his hands on the kneeling village idiot. ¡°Why are you apologizing? I know you didn¡¯t mean any harm.¡± he smiled.

    ¡°Grandfather told me that it¡¯s because you¡¯ve only known men and never had an intimate relation with any woman. It makes sense that you don¡¯t know much about them. He also said something about you liking men in bed? I¡¯m not completely sure what that means.¡± said Arnest trying to reassure the frightened man.

    ¡°Curse you, old devil. First you beat me then you spread false rumors?¡± Rufus muttered under his breath. ¡°Young master, I don¡¯t know what your grandfather has told you but I most definitely do not like men in bed. I would much more prefer a woman or two.¡± he said, trying to dispel his misconceptions.

    ¡°Ah, okay. I will remember that.¡± Arnest then lead him towards the cargo hold to find some medicine for his face.

    After treating Rufus¡¯s face and eating dinner in the galley, he returned to the captain¡¯s quarters. It was larger than the hut and had a neatly prepared bed, a simple desk and chair. Sitting at the desk, he pulled out the small book, that Black Fox had given him, out of his pocket.

    On the cover it had no words so he decided to open it. The first page was drowned in black ink but seemed to have a mesmerizing quality. Arnest stared at it and as more time passed, he could feel himself becoming light headed. His mana seeped out of his body and into the mysterious page.

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    ¡°Thud.¡±

    Arnest fell unconscious off his chair and onto the gently rocking floor.

    The scene before him unfolded into what seemed to be a large bedroom. Arnest sat at an ornate desk with a window overlooking a gardened courtyard.

    ¡°During the Battle of the Beasts, Prince Maximilian and his wolf howlers numbered at a few hundred. Wolf howlers were his elite troops, said to possess the spirit of wolves, who could fight easily against many normal soldiers with ease. But his enemy, the Silver Winged Duke, had at least four thousand troops - a thousand of them were his elite, the silver eagle riders. Against all odds the prince was able to fight them evenly, eventually pushing them back towards his province.¡± A slim man, wearing a pair of glasses spoke like he was giving a lesson to his pupil.

    ¡°How did the prince beat the duke?¡± Arnest asked.

    ¡°There¡¯s many theories, some say that the prince had a powerful magus and others that he bribed the enemy soldiers with coin. But from the accounts I¡¯ve read, I believe he used two main strategies. The first is that the battle was delayed until night due to the wolf howlers being unable to be caught by their chasing enemy. A battle in the dark is heavily beneficial for the wolf howlers because they have a keen eyesight. Although this is true for the silver eagles as well, a majority of the enemy troops were just regular men.¡±

    ¡°And the second?¡± impatiently Arnest said with his eyes glossy interest.

    ¡°The second strategy, is that he lured the enemy into the Warren Forest. Within the maze-like trees, they were able to force the enemy to fight with at most a few hundred at a time. Also the silver eagles could only fly over the dense canopy above the forest, unable to attack from the sky. The wolf howlers led the regular soldiers deeper into the labyrinth and continuously ambushed them. In the end the duke called for retreat after losing half his army.¡± the tutor said as he adjusted his glasses.

    ¡°So to win, Prince Maximilian was able to use his natural surroundings to his advantage and win a seemingly impossible battle.¡± Arnest was able to figure out the crux of the victory instantly.

    The tutor continued to talk but the sound seemed to not come out. His body turned ghostly and then disappeared. The entire world around Arnest also started to fade to darkness.

    And then he opened his eyes.

    ¡°What exactly are these dreams? They feel so real.¡± he wondered.

    Ever since that one night, he¡¯s been having these strange dreams. Sometimes it would be someone teaching him about some war and others would be him being taught how to fight. When he woke up, he would remember the dream vividly and would be able to replicate some of the things he learned in his dreams.

    He felt stiff from laying on the floor, slowly rising up. On the table there was still the book with the first black page open. However there were golden words that were not there the night before. Arnest read the text.

    ¡°Magus Talent: Navulian High Grade. Attribute: Darkness.¡± he murmured.

    Turning to the next page, it was titled [Shadow Step]. There was a simple chant and a few diagrams. ¡°Darkness, embrace me.¡± it read. The diagrams were instructions on how to control the mana. After repeating the chant for an hour and continuously circulating his mana according to the diagrams, he felt his body start to disappear. Arnest melded into the dark corner of the room. Within the darkness, he could move freely but once he neared the light of the candle on the table, he became fully visible again.

    Once learning [Shadow Step] he felt jubilated and was eager to see if the book had any more abilities. But when he turned to the next page, it was blank. Arnest realized that it was the same for the rest of the book, just a series of blank pages. Slightly disappointed, he placed the book back into his pocket. ¡°Grandfather must have given it to me so I could learn magic.¡± he felt a bit homesick already, thinking of Black Fox.

    A knocking on the door made Arnest direct his attention towards it. ¡°Lord, we¡¯ve reached an island!¡± the soldier who was knocking shouted.

    Surfacing to the deck, Arnest saw in the distance a mountain that scraped the sky. The clouds were even lower than the mountain¡¯s peak. A few fishing boats could be seen closer by who were quickly rowing towards the island away from his giant ship.

    Marcus, the elven officer, walked up next to Arnest. ¡°Should we dock at this island? They have a small harbor.¡± he asked.

    ¡°Sure. Let¡¯s make some new friends.¡± Arnest smiled.

 Chapter 5 - Heavens Isle

    Chapter 5 - Heaven''s Isle

    The ship was docked in the small harbor. It cast a shadow over the tiny fishing boats next to it. A group of people started to congregate within shouting distance. Arnest ordered the elf soldiers to wait in the boat¡¯s interior and he took his fifty men from Fox Village with him. As he approached the group he saw an older man who stuck out with his peppered hair.

    ¡°How can I help you?¡± the older man politely asked. Some were nervously eyeing the sudden visitors with fear. There were others further back behind some huts who were peering out of their slightly opened doors. The group that faced him were all men who carried crude weapons, probably a defensive force mustered after the fishermen alerted their village.

    It was perfectly logical that they would be received with some apprehension. Arnest and his men also had sheathed swords around their waists. Their numbers seemed about even and if a fight did break out, it wouldn¡¯t be an easy fight. Men who are defending their families will fight harder then men with no good reason to fight

    ¡°We are travelers. We were admiring your large mountain and decided to pay a visit. I hope you won¡¯t mind.¡± Arnest said with a friendly grin.

    Hearing this, everyone''s expressions started to relax. ¡°Ah, so you were travelers! I welcome you to Heaven¡¯s Isle.¡± The man returned a homely smile, exposing a few of his missing teeth.

    ¡°My name is Rogar, the chieftain of the village.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m Arnest. Glad to meet you, Rogar.¡±

    ¡°Come to my house, friend. I¡¯ll have my wife cook us a meal.¡± Rogar led Arnest back to his village, closer to the base of the mountain.

    Night fell on Heaven¡¯s Isle and a milky moon rose to the sky. The tiny but infinite stars gleamed with a divine splendor. Within Rogar¡¯s hut, a few candles lit up the room. His wife was roasting fish caught that morning on a fire outside while the two inside talked.

    ¡°So where are you heading to, Arnest?¡± Rogar asked as he poured him a drink.

    ¡°I¡¯m not exactly sure yet, but perhaps one of the great cities. I¡¯m just heading west to explore.¡± he answered, while taking a sip, yet it felt like a fire was set ablaze in his mouth. He spat it out almost immediately. ¡°What kind of water is this!?¡±

    ¡°Haha, that¡¯s not water. It¡¯s wine! It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t want it. More for me.¡± Rogar laughed and picked up the wooden cup, downing the entire thing in one chug.

    ¡°Could you tell me a little bit about your village?¡± Arnest said with a slightly pained face. He could still taste the harshness of the wine.

    ¡°Of course. We live simple lives, mostly fishing for food but on the mountain we go collect medicinal herbs. We send a few of our boats each year to sell them at Zanabo, the great trade city. That¡¯s where I got this wine from too.¡± he said while pouring another cup.

    ¡°Would you allow me to explore your mountain? I¡¯m quite curio-¡± Arnest said but Rogar¡¯s wife overheard and ran into the hut.

    ¡°Don¡¯t go onto the mountain! A monster lives there!¡± she screamed.

    ¡°Gretta, stop! You¡¯ll scare the boy with your nonsense!¡± Rogar face turned bloody red in anger. However Arnest¡¯s eyes were gleaming with unconscious excitement.

    Gretta fell to the floor sobbing. ¡°Little Tanya was taken by the monster. Don¡¯t you remember the horrible howling that night?¡±

    ¡°Enough. Drink some nightshade and go to sleep.¡± Rogar picked up his wife and laid her on the bed.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Arnest. I¡¯ll have to take care of my wife for a while. Don¡¯t worry about what my wife said, I¡¯ve personally went up the mountain and collected some herbs the other day. It¡¯s safe.¡± he said while mixing a dark purple herb in some water.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I hope your wife feels better tomorrow.¡±

    Arnest walked out of the hut and saw the three skewers of fish still roasting, now completely black. He grabbed one and bit into the charcoal fish. ¡°She¡¯s a better cook than my grandfather.¡± He smiled as he remembered Black Fox roasting meat for him.

    Looking up to the mountain¡¯s cloudy peak, he thought to himself ¡°I wonder what¡¯s really up there.¡± He took another bite and started to walk towards the mountain at an even pace in the dark night.

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    This was the first place he¡¯s visited, outside of his home in Fox Village. Curiosity overwhelmed him and he felt like his wanderlust was finally able to slightly sated. All the stories he had heard from the villagers, wasn¡¯t he now experiencing an epic tale? A girl taken by a monster up a mysterious mountain. He could be the hero that slays it. This, could be the start of his legend.

    It was fairly easy to climb the mountain. From afar it looks especially steep but once you actually get closer there are gentler paths. Weaving right and left, upwards the path he went. Like Rogar said, there was an abundance of green that could be seen under the moonlight. A suitable place for medicinal herbs to grow.

    After a few hours he arrived at where the clouds were and everything was foggy. Arnest could only see within arms length around him so he slowed down his pace. He thought of perhaps turning back but suddenly he heard a beastly wailing.

    ¡°ARGGHHH!¡±

    Arnest located the yell¡¯s direction and started running further up the mountain. The fog started to clear and he saw a cave and quietly peeked inside. A man was lying on the ground, bloody all over his chest. Another man was standing over him with a clawed hand dripping red.

    ¡°Halphas, after running for all that time, look at you now. I''ll make you watch as I drink her blood and then I will slowly torture you.¡± the standing man sneered. Arnest noticed that behind the man on the ground there was a small girl who was shaking in fear. The bleeding man looked like he was trying to say something but he coughed out blood instead.

    Seeing this, Arnest quickly drew his sword and chanted ¡°Darkness, embrace me.¡± With [Shadow Step] activated he jumped through the darkness, his invisible sword piercing the man in the back through the heart.

    ¡°Eh?¡± the man felt the impact and looked down to see the bloody point of Arnest¡¯s sword sticking out of his chest. In disbelief he fell to the ground and burst into ashes.

    ¡°So it really was a monster.¡± Arnest thought to himself.

    Arnest had already released his mana and was fully visible. He walked towards the man and little girl. ¡°Are the two of you alright?¡±

    But as he drew closers to inspect the heavily wounded man he noticed his pale complexion, dark red eyes and beastly fangs. ¡°Another monster?¡± he thought, drawing his sword to finish him off.

    ¡°Don¡¯t kill him!¡± the little girl yelled.

    Arnest stopped his blade at the monster''s neck. A small trail of red streamed down it. ¡°He¡¯s a monster, right?¡±

    ¡°Halfy is my friend! Save him please!¡± she pleaded.

    He stared at the girl for a while, then back to Halphas. Sighing, he took off his shirt and started ripping it so it formed a long narrow linen. Arnest wrapped the makeshift bandage around Halphas¡¯s abdomen to stop the bleeding.

    ¡°Thank you for saving us. I am in your debt.¡± Halphas said while coughing a little blood.

    ¡°Halfy don''t talk! You''re have a big boo boo.¡± the little girl said while hugging him tightly. Of course this caused him further injuries and the bandage became a bit darker with blood. But Halphas just happily smiled to reassure her.

    Arnest plyed the girl off the injured Halphas. ¡°I''m going to take her back to the village. You should be fine here.¡± he said while dragging her away. Halphas nodded and watched the two of them exit the cave.

    ¡°How did you get caught up in a fight between monsters?¡± Arnest asked

    ¡°I was playing with Halfy and then that other guy came out of no where. Halfy carried me to the cave to hide.¡± she said yawning.

    He carried her in silence for a while and then he remembered. ¡°Hey, is your name Ta-¡± he started to ask but snoring drowned out his voice.

    A sun was starting to peak over the horizon. By the time Arnest had arrived to the base of the mountain with the girl on his back, the villagers were already prepared to go foraging. Seeing the shirtless Arnest they didn''t really pay him much mind but one depressed looking woman noticed the girl on his back.

    ¡°Tanya?!¡± she exclaimed.

    ¡°Aunty?¡± the sleeping beauty woke up in a daze.

    ¡°My silly girl, It¡¯s really you! Where did you run off to?¡±

    The other villagers looked at the commotion and realized the missing girl had returned with the visiting traveler. They all rushed over to welcome back Tanya and her savior.

 Chapter 6 - Repaying Debts

    Chapter 6 - Repaying Debts

    A small feast was being held at the center of the village, around a bonfire. Some of the islanders were merrily singing and dancing. There was log benches for people to sit on while enjoying the festivities or food. Arnest, Rogar, Tanya and her Aunty sat on a bench together.

    ¡°Thank you for bringing back Tanya.¡± Rogar was feeling especially good today. There were quite a few villagers who were worried of a monster lurking in the mountains due to Tanya¡¯s disappearance, including his wife, but now their worries seemed to subside. Now he could get everyone to concentrate on one last united effort to harvest as many herbs as possible before their expedition to Zanabo.

    ¡°Of course. I wouldn¡¯t ignore anyone in distress.¡± Arnest said haughtily.

    ¡°Oh young hero, come dance with us!¡± a few of the older girls called out to Arnest.

    But seeing the girls call out to him, his face stewed until boiling red and he looked down in embarrassment. Rogar started to grin and said ¡°To repay you for saving Tanya, if you would like any of them as a wife I¡¯m sure I could help you arrange it¡­¡± Pulling in closer to his ear, ¡°Young hero~¡± he whispered in a falsetto.

    Arnest jumped back with cat-like reactions. ¡°No, it¡¯s fine, Rogar.¡± he hurriedly said, still beet red.

    ¡°Ha ha! You should learn to not be so shy as a young hero.¡± Rogar continued to tease.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be so hard on the boy, he did save my niece after all.¡± Aunty grinned while lovingly hugging Tanya.

    ¡°Alright, alright.¡± Rogar said while slapping Arnest¡¯s back a few times forcing him to cough out his food.

    ¡°Arnest, I remember you said you were planning on sightseeing at some of the great cities. Would you be interested in sailing with us to Zanabo?¡± he asked.

    Arnest paused for a moment and answered ¡°I don¡¯t see any reason why not.¡±

    ¡°Then we¡¯ll set sail in a few days together. To Zanabo!¡± Rogar shouted while waving his cup in the air, spilling his wine everywhere.

    ¡°To Zanabo!¡± the rest of the villagers cheered with him.

    The celebration lasted well into the night. Arnest managed to slip away after Rogar became exceedingly drunk, so much so that he started to undress. His wife, Gretta, tried to stop him by forcing his clothes back on or physically pushing him towards their hut. When all else failed, eventually she succeeded in luring him home, Rogar still completely naked, with another jug of wine.

    The young hero walked towards his ship silently, where his men had been waiting for him since yesterday. A lazy sentry was lying down on the pier, snoozing away under the moonlight. Feeling the thuds of footsteps on the wooden pier, he awoke sluggishly, rubbing his eyes and looked towards our hero. Realizing who it was, he suddenly stood erect and saluted.

    ¡°Young master, you¡¯ve returned safely. How was your trip up the mountain?¡± Rufus asked while quickly straightening out his clothes.

    ¡°It was pretty fun. Killed a monster, saved a girl. You know, the usual.¡± said Arnest proudly. He pointed towards Rufus¡¯s waist. ¡°Your pockets are inside-out too.¡±

    Rufus immediately stuck both his hands into his pockets. ¡°Sorry young master, I¡¯ll try to be properly dressed next time.¡±

    ¡°And you¡¯ll be standing guard properly as well, right?¡± Arnest''s face was stone cold.

    ¡°Yes, yes of course.¡± Rufus hastily answered.

    Arnest walked past Rufus and climbed onto the deck of the ship. He met with his second-in-command, Marcus, and explained what happened on the mountain. Marcus was quite surprised but was soon even more startled by the sudden appearance of a shadowy figure next to him.

    Phasing out of the darkness, a pale and red eyed face emerged. ¡°Greetings, Arnest.¡± it quietly spoke.

    Unsurprised, Arnest turned towards the face. ¡°Hey mons-, I mean Halphas.¡±

    Marcus started to pull out his saber but Arnest raised his hand to stop him and shook his head. ¡°Speak, why are you here?¡± Arnest questioned.

    ¡°I¡¯ve come to repay you for saving mine and Tanya¡¯s life.¡± he said while the rest of his body started to form out of the darkness. The bandage that Arnest had made was still wrapped around his chest, now with dried blood.

    ¡°What could a wounded man help me with?¡±

    ¡°Although I¡¯m not very skilled in many aspects, I¡¯ve noticed that you are a dark magus. I am also one.¡± With a whisper, Halphas¡¯s hands started to turn black and shadow flames emerged. They curved and licked his hands, expanding perpendicularly to the direction of his arms. The shadows solidified into an ebony bow, which he firmly grasped in his left palm, and an arrow in his right. ¡°I can show you how to form a [Shadow Bow] if you¡¯re interested.¡±

    Arnest¡¯s eyes lit up wide with exhilaration. Another spell he could learn! Not only that, but an offensive one as well. Before he could only use surprise attacks or hide away. Now his power would surely rise in leaps and bounds.

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    ¡°Of course! Teach me right away!¡± Arnest said excitedly.

    Halphas started to begin teaching Arnest [Shadow Bow] throughout the entire night. Arnest seemed to not feel tired because he spent his night and well into the early morning, practicing the spell with his new teacher. Marcus watched over Arnest and was slightly wary of Halphas but eventually returned to his quarters to rest sometime in the morning.

    When Arnest finally emerged from his room at midday, his hair was disheveled, eyes strained red and hands pitch black. The soldiers looked at the crazily smiling boy with apprehension. ¡°What is wrong with the young lord today?¡± they all thought.

    ¡°I finally did it!¡± he yelled but his voice slowly trailed off until his body seemed to become jelly, slumping down into the ground. His hands slowly became their normal skin color as he laid on the ground. The excitement he felt had kept him awake but the fact that he had been expending mana throughout the night and that it was definitely past Arnest¡¯s usual curfew resulted in a totally exhausted boy.

    The men all stared at each other, unsure what make of this sudden outburst or the sleeping young lord. Marcus came out of his quarters after being alerted by one of them and ordered ¡°Don¡¯t leave the young lord on the damp floor. Take him to his quarters.¡± Quickly adhering to the order a few men lifted Arnest carefully and carried him off to his bed.

    Arnest, totally unaware of what was going on outside of his dreams, whispered ¡°I did it, father. You don¡¯t have to cry anymore.¡±

    ¡°Who told you to do this, Arnest?¡± the old man of his dreams spoke, slightly unsettled.

    ¡°Mother told me. She said it would make you happy.¡± Arnest happily replied.

    ¡°Arnest, you must understand. Aryea, your mother, went to the greater heavens. She can¡¯t spe-¡± he stopped in the middle of his sentence, realizing something.

    ¡°Arnest. Listen carefully. That was god who spoke to you.¡± the king said.

    ¡°God Navul?¡± Arnest asked.

    The aged man paused. ¡°Promise me. Do not tell anyone of this.¡± he said with a serious and saddened face.

    Before Arnest could promise, his subconscious was pushed back into the back of his mind and he abruptly awoke. He could feel the waves slowing rolling against the boat and looked to his side. Halphas¡¯s shadow was quietly floating in a corner of the room.

    ¡°How long have I been asleep?¡±

    ¡°About half the day.¡± Halphas quietly answered.

    Arnest pondered the dream he just had and slapped his face with both his hands. ¡°Well, no use thinking about it for now.¡± he thought to himself.

    ¡°Let¡¯s continue practicing.¡±

    Halphas continued to help Arnest perfect his [Shadow Bow] for the next few days while the villagers of Heaven¡¯s Isle earnestly worked together to harvest as much as they could before the voyage. The human soldiers also joined in the effort. This newly formed group of herbal farmers worked together, ate together and laughed together. By the end they were able to gather a small fishing boat¡¯s worth of plants.

    While Arnest was working on forming a straighter and more dense arrow, his mind wavered and so did the shadow arrow in his right hand. ¡°Halphas, what was the monster in the cave exactly? What are you?¡± he asked.

    ¡°That monster and I are the same. He is my twin brother. We¡¯re half human and half demon. Vampire, to be specific.¡± Halphas didn¡¯t hesitate to share his origins.

    ¡°My mother was a demon slave who was owned by our father. When she gave birth to the two of us, he forced us out of his house and shipped us away to Lanex. We grew up in a secluded forest away from other humans but one day the nearby villagers discovered our mother and killed her. I was saddened but Haagenti, my brother, was enraged and took it upon himself to kill all the villagers.¡± Arnest was completely absorbed into Halphas¡¯s past, deeply staring at him. Halphas closed his eyes, recounting the rest of his story.

    ¡°I had once met a small child who had shared her food with me after I collapsed in the woods. I felt that not all humans were evil so I tried to prevent him from massacring them all but he overpowered me and attacked the village. When I woke up and saw the destruction, he and I fought to a standstill, with me barely fleeing.¡± Halphas seemed to have a pained face because of reliving the past.

    ¡°I escaped to this island about five years ago and have been living quietly in that cave since I noticed that the villagers would not go past the clouds of the mountain. At least that was true for everyone but Tanya. But Haagenti somehow found me while I was with Tanya and I think you know the rest.¡± Halphas opened his eyes and the room became uncomfortably silent for a while.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for calling you a monster.¡± Arnest said, dejectedly. ¡°Also for killing your brother.¡± he added, almost forgetting that he had killed Halphas¡¯s kin.

    ¡°It¡¯s alright. I¡¯ve been called far worse and as for my brother, he would have killed everyone on the island and myself.¡± Halphas slightly smiled, however the small pained creases on his face exposed his underlying feelings.

    ¡°I¡¯m still sorry. For everything.¡±

 Chapter 7 - One-Eyed Clyde

    Chapter 7 - One-Eyed Clyde

    It was finally time for the people of Heaven¡¯s Isle and Arnest¡¯s unusual group to head out towards the great trade city, Zanabo. Although Arnest had mostly perfected the forming of the spell, [Shadow Bow], he was by no means skilled in wielding it. He had never been trained in archery and had little to no experience handling a bow. Currently he could shoot a still deer from about 50 yards away. Whether or not that deer died to the first shot was uncertain.

    Arnest woke up early and went to the starboard of the ship to stretch under the glow of the morning suns. His short, simple black hair bristled in the briny ocean wind. He saw Rogar and few other men finishing up packing the last fishing boat with herbs they would sell at the market. ¡°We ready to head out?¡± Arnest called out, waving.

    Rogar tied a knot, securing his precious cargo. ¡°All good now!¡± he called back.

    ¡°Then let¡¯s set sail!¡± Arnest shouted and his men started untying the sails and manning the oars.

    The large ship slowly scuttled away from the peer and a dozen small fishing boats followed. The islanders of Heaven¡¯s Isle waved at their departing brothers, husbands and fathers. A teary eyed Greta shouted, ¡°May the gods protect you!¡±

    Arnest watched over the men running around on the deck for a while but after skipping breakfast, he started to crave a burnt fish. He headed down under the deck towards the galley where all the food was stored. Picking through the various boxes which mostly had tropical fruits and vegetables, he heard a strange sound coming from behind.

    ¡°Hiccup!¡±

    He neared the sound and pushed the cargo aside. Arnest mostly expected a stowaway rat. But instead, a tiny little girl with apple stained lips and a mound of fruit toppled out of a box to her side was revealed.

    ¡°Hiya brother Arnest! Hiccup.¡± she said with a huge grin that exposed bits of apple stuck in her teeth.

    ¡°Tanya, what are you doing here?¡± Arnest was surprised.

    ¡°I came to play with Halfy!¡± she said before taking another bite out of an applet.

    ¡°Halphas?¡± he thought outloud.

    As he said that, out of the shadows, Halphas appeared. ¡°Hello again, Arnest.¡± he whispered in an almost incomprehensible voice.

    Arnest pulled Halphas to the side while Tanya continued to dine on his food supply. ¡°What are you doing here?¡±

    He was surprised when he saw Tanya, whose prescence could be an explainable occurrence. Perhaps she was hungry and wanted to eat some of his food. However Halphas¡¯s presence confused Arnest. Didn¡¯t Halphas already teach him [Shadow Bow]? Was he planning on still repaying more of an already repaid debt?

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for not asking before but I was afraid you might refuse.¡± Halphas looked dejected.

    ¡°If I stay on that island, perhaps the villagers will find me and chase me away one day. I thought if I followed you silently I could maybe find a place where I could live without this fear. The city of Zanabo sounds like it could be different from the smaller islands and might accept a half-breed like me.¡± he explained.

    Arnest shook his head and then asked ¡°That¡¯s fine and all. But why did you let Tanya to follow you?¡±

    ¡°She saw me coming down the mountain and wouldn¡¯t leave my side. I tried to tell her to go back home but she insisted. I¡­I couldn¡¯t say no¡­¡± Halphas helplessly sighed. The both of them then stared at the gluttonous girl who continued to munch on apples without a care in the world. Seeing her so happily engrossed, the two deeply sighed together.

    ¡°Give us your valuables or die!¡± an unknown, harsh voice loudly shouted.

    Arnest frowned and went up above to see what was going on while Halphas and Tanya followed. He saw in the distance, about three ship-lengths away was another ship. It was in between the size of Arnest¡¯s ship and the smaller sized fishing boats. It¡¯s shape was long and narrow, with an ornately crafted angel with a blindfold at the front tip. This nautical figurehead seemed to be alive and was leading them with a divine sense, through the waters towards his direction.

    Arnest¡¯s ship was too large and moved quite slowly in comparison to the incoming boat. Within a few breaths, they were already close enough for their oars to touch. The men on Arnest¡¯s side started to ready themselves, drawing their swords, ready for a fight. On the other boat their men had sinful eyes and wore various and seemingly random clothes, whose strange appearance matched the strange weapons a few held.. A few had bronze cutlasses while a majority had these unique weapons Arnest had never seen before.

    ¡°What is it that you want?¡± Arnest shouted.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear me? Terrible One-Eyed Clyde wants your belongings. Bow down or fight and die! Choose!¡± a tall, muscular man walked out of the disorderly crowd towards the boat¡¯s edge nearest to Arnest. He had scars from hundreds of battles riddled over his exposed chest and most notably, a scar through his left eye.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need to fight, Terrible One-Eyed Clyde. We are only poor travelers and can offer you some of our food if you would like.¡± Arnest calmly said. He folded his hands behind his back and signaled towards Halphas. Noticing the gestures, Halphas started chanting and melded into shadows.

    ¡°What about those smaller boats? Surely they must have something.¡± Rogar¡¯s face immediately started to pale when Clyde pointed out towards him.

    These small boats carried extremely precious cargo for the islanders. They could not live completely off of fish for an entire year. Each year they would trade their medicinal herbs for commodities like grain and clothes. Without it, at least a few villagers would starve while others wouldn¡¯t be able to last through the next winter. Rogar, worried, looked towards Arnest.

    ¡°We couldn¡¯t fit all the men on the ship so some are on those boats.¡± Arnest made up an excuse, while hinting at the number of men he had.

    ¡°I don¡¯t like to be threatened, boy. Nor do I believe you don¡¯t have a single valuable, considering your age and bodyguards. Despite your clothing, you look and act like a young lord of a noble house. Maybe I can ransom you for a hefty price.¡± Clyde pulled out a large steel cutlass that gleamed with a sunny splendor.

    ¡°Tie up the boy! Kill the men!¡± Clyde shouted with a husky, yet profound voice.

    ¡°Protect the young lord!¡± screamed Marcus, rallying all the hidden heavily armored soldiers which started to stream out from under the deck.

    Though surprised by the sudden reinforcements, the enemy did not falter and continued to jump onto Arnest¡¯s ship without worry. A few of them carried a khopesh, a sickle-like sword, proficient at hacking and slashing men dead. They raced towards the front of the charge and hacked into the heavily armored elf soldiers. Initially it only slightly dented their armor but within a few whacks their armor was eventually pinching into their skin or completely split, exposing their fleshy parts. Blood sprayed in every direction and the defensive line on Arnest¡¯s ship was being broken by these skilled khopesh pirates.

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    Before the fight broke out, Arnest had already hurried towards the raised deck at the back of the boat. He chanted ¡°Bend to my will.¡±, activating [Shadow Bow] and his hands started to turn black with shadow flames. The shadows formed into a curved ebony bow and an arrow. He took aim at One-Eyed Clyde, aiming for his left side which he assumed was a blind spot due to his scarred left eye.

    Clyde was silently watching over his men cleave their way towards Arnest while also keeping an eye on him. He had already realized what Arnest was doing and was ready. When the shadow was loosed, heading straight for the left side of his head, he slashed upwards with his shining cutlass. The shadow arrow was split in two and dispersed into nothing.

    But this did not worry Arnest. His mouth curved into an ominous smile. His smug face suggested that he had expected this outcome, that everything was within his plans. A cold shock ran throughout Clyde''s entire body, warning him of an impending danger.

    Behind Clyde, shadowy arms reached around Clyde and consumed him. Clyde became one with the darkness and disappeared from sight. A few moments later, Clyde was dragged down into the ocean. He fought with all his strength but the deathly arms seemed to be unbreakable and carried him further down into a blue abyss.

    Clyde¡¯s pirate crew did not seem to notice the missing commander and continued with their ferocity. The battle had only been started around thirty minutes ago however Arnest¡¯s side was in bad shape. Marcus kept calling out to the men, trying to encourage them to hold the line but in the face of an unfamiliar weapon they could only defend themselves at most.

    Now that Clyde was gone and they had lost their leader, Arnest turned his attention towards the advancing enemy. He nocked an arrow, released and it swiftly reached it¡¯s target. A scream was heard as one of the khopesh fighters fell down. Another arrow whizzed through the air, taking out another one. And another.

    Black arrows started to fly out from above until every single khopesh man was laying on the ground, writhing in pain. The other pirates were dazed by the flurry of arrows that incapacitated their elite. But the arrows did not stop there. The pirates regained their senses once they saw the second barrage and started to flee towards the underbelly of their ship to take cover. Arnest¡¯s men sensed the turn of the tide and chased the pirates back to their ship and into their hull.

    After an hour of sieging the quarters of the pirates, they eventually surrendered. All of them were tied up and thrown to one side of their ship. There were quite a number of wounded pirates, still bleeding from the one-sided fight. This included the drenched pirate, One-Eyed Clyde, who was unconscious due to almost drowning.

    ¡°Slap!¡±

    The wet slap rang out into the sky. Another slap sounded out right after. And just like the barrages of arrows, it continued without giving anyone a reprieve. The other pirates cringed when they saw the little boy beating their captain. It didn¡¯t stop until Clyde was woken up and felt the burning pain in his cheeks.

    ¡°Stop! Stop hitting me!¡± he screamed.

    ¡°Why should I? This is the least I could do to repay you for your kindness.¡± Arnest¡¯s stark face showed no pity and he slapped him again.

    ¡°If you want to kill me, that¡¯s fine. I deserve it.¡± Clyde stared daggers at Arnest but failed to affect the young lord.

    ¡°Don¡¯t kill him, please!¡±

    ¡°Let him go!¡±

    A handful of the pirates started begging for Clyde to be spared. Tears welled up in their eyes and many of them had snot dripping out of their noses as they cried. Arnest looked towards one of the calmer pirates who, although looking upset, was not bawling like a newborn.

    The pirate noticed his gaze and said ¡°We are not pirates because we want to be. Clyde is the son of the late village elder. We were attacked by a monster and barely escaped with these villagers. But life outside of a safe island is not without its perils. We met with other monsters, this time of man, who attacked and killed a number of us for amusement. After surviving a second tragedy, Clyde led us to become stronger so we could endure a third if needed.¡±

    Arnest snorted, ¡°You all have probably killed many. I doubt a single one of you is free of sin.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true. However you can say the same of your men. If they were not hardened by killing others, how could they defend against us who have become skilled in killing?¡± the pirate replied.

    Arnest¡¯s confident resolve was shaken. What the pirate said made sense. Though it was not true for the men who came from Fox Village, the elven soldiers have most likely fought in many battles and wars. If he were to punish these pirates for their sin of killing, he should by the same logic kill his men as well!

    ¡°Enough. You can kill me. I just ask that you let my men go.¡± Clyde said while closing his eyes, awaiting judgement.

    Arnest paused for a while, unsure of what to do. Was it wrong to kill these men? Marcus quietly asked, ¡°Young lord, what should we do?¡± His face started to crease, frowning in frustration. And then, it suddenly came to him like heavenly insight.

    ¡°I will allow your men to live. So long as you promise to stop your thieving ways and follow me.¡± Arnest said.

    Clyde opened his eyes, surprised. This boy was truly not simple. A normal young lord of a noble family would be expected to be ignorant of the world but this boy could fight, command men and make decisive decisions. Following someone of this caliber may not turn out so poorly for a desperate crew of pirates. However he is a proud man, no matter how low he had to go to survive.

    ¡°And if I refuse?¡±

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll kill you and the rest of your men.¡±

    Clyde looked to both of his sides, both had sobbing men. ¡°I agree to follow you, my lord.¡± he said after being left with no other option.

    ¡°Good. Ready your men to follow us to Zanabo.¡± Arnest gave his first order to Clyde while cutting him free of his rope bindings.

    ¡°Yes, my lord.¡±

    The small caravan started to organize themselves and sailed east towards Zanabo. The gods must have blessed them with good fortune because the wind was blowing in that direction. With a strong wind and invigorated men, they would arrive at the grand harbor in about three days and begin exploring the mysteries of the great city¡¯s narrow streets.

 Chapter 8 - A City of Coquina

    Chapter 8 - A City of Coquina

    The battle between the former pirates and Arnest¡¯s soldiers resulted in not too many casualties. Ten of the elf soldiers were heavily wounded while sixteen of Clyde¡¯s men were killed. The heavy armor was able to protect the soldiers¡¯ vitals while while the thin cloth that the pirates wore was easily cut through.

    Before Arnest allowed Clyde to go back to his boat he decided to place Rufus, an unlikely candidate, as an observer. His job this time was to keep Clyde and his men in line with Arnest¡¯s orders and to make sure they didn¡¯t go back to pirating.

    Arnest made this decision partly because he felt Rufus would be loyal the true. Despite Rufus¡¯s identity as an idiot, this was mainly due to him being honest to a fault. Whatever he thought, whether it was appropriate or not, he would blurt out whenever he first got the chance. The other reason is that if Clyde decided to betray Arnest, he wouldn¡¯t lose a lot of his fighting force. Rufus proved he wasn¡¯t adept at fighting when he was seen during the last fight, running below deck to hide.

    All together Arnest¡¯s fighting force had swelled from a hundred fifty men to two hundred overnight. Twenty of the new crew were the strange sickle-sword wielding warriors. He didn¡¯t expect to double his men and number of ships when he was first given the elf soldiers from Princess Mirima but he would have to keep at this rapid pace if he wanted to conquer Lanex. However conquering Lanex was still a distant thought for Arnest.

    Three days and three nights had briskly passed since then. White clouds snaked through the sky like albino cobras, constricting around each other. Sometimes fish would shoot out of the water and briefly fly for a moment, before dipping back into the ocean. The atmosphere on the ship was quite good and everyone was excited to arrive at the great city, Zanabo.

    On the fourth morning, when the suns rose from a dark orange to a bright yellow, a giant achromatic white curved barrier was seen in the distance. A khopesh man yelled out, ¡°It¡¯s Zanabo!¡±

    Arnest who was in his cabin was eventually informed by a soldier. When he walked out and saw the majestic walls he had a puzzled look. ¡°What are those walls made of?¡±

    ¡°The legends say they¡¯re made out of giant tortoise shells.¡± answered Rogar.

    After the fight the other day, Rogar had come onto the ship to thank Arnest for protecting his tribe from the pirates. After a light dinner Arnest offered to let him sleep in a spare cot, giving Rogar a good night¡¯s rest. Rogar never wanted to leave the ship after that peaceful night.

    ¡°Zanabo was said to be founded thanks to the hero, Kamu, who went around to different islands slaying their monsters. The giant tortoises were one of these monsters called ¡®Zanas¡¯, which means ¡°fake island¡± in the native tongue. It¡¯s said that for hundreds of years they would sleep and only the top of their shell would be exposed. Then the land would grow on their shells and people may end up settling on them, thinking it was a normal island. But once the Zanas wake up, they would dive deep into the ocean, drowning everyone living with them.¡±

    ¡°So the city is named after a monster. But why are they white?¡±

    ¡°They''re said to be a deep forest green but after years of sun they became bleached white.¡± Rogar said as the small fleet continued to row onwards towards the city of coquina.

    They passed through hollowed out shell that arched over the entrance. A shadow was cast, but only briefly, as a wondrous and bright view came into frame. There were pearly buildings that formed another stunning facade. There were hundreds of ships docked in the bay and a bustling main road directly in the center of the city. Even from afar a person could see the lines of push carts, colorful stalls and a flood of people.

    Arnest had his men dock on the east end of the pier and he jumped off the ship, making a loud thud that shook the dock. His men didn¡¯t seem to notice as Arnest sprinted into a narrow street. He slid his hand against the hard limestone walls of the houses as he passed by. There were speckles of sea shells and each wall looked like a single rock without any seams.

    He meandered through the maze and found the main street fairly quickly. The stall immediately in front of him was selling slices of a full hog, being roasted on a large skewer. His mouth watered when he could smell the crisped skin. Unconsciously he started to near the pig stall and the vendor took notice.

    ¡°Young man, would you like some of Zanabo¡¯s finest hog?¡± he said with an accommodating smile.

    ¡°Yes, I would love some.¡± Arnest said and reached to grab some of the meat.

    The vendor slapped his hand and his face immediately soured. ¡°You have to pay first.¡±

    ¡°Pay?¡±

    ¡°Yes, pay. With money.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t have any money.¡± Arnest looked down dejected.

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    ¡°Then go away! You¡¯re bothering my customers!¡± he shouted and shooed him away with some hand motions.

    ¡°But there isn¡¯t anyone else here-¡±

    ¡°LEAVE!¡± The vendor left the stall and started pushing Arnest away.

    Arnest tried to fight back but a fully grown man would naturally have more strength than a pre-pubescent child. For each inch Arnest pushed back, he was pushed away another. In the struggle, Arnest tripped and fell into the canal that ran through the middle of the main street. He fell straight down to the bottom but soon pushed upwards with his legs. But when he reached the surface, a small canal boat rammed into his head, rendering him unconcious.

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡°Cough! Cough!¡±

    Arnest spewed out water out of his lungs, while violently coughing. Once he regained some normalcy he looked around. There was a sea of people walking on the street around him and vendors yelling compliments about their own wares. To his left side was a young boy crouching above him, curiously staring.

    He wore mismatched patchwork clothes that made him look similar to one of the reformed pirates. His hair was unkempt and grimey but his smile was brimming with white.

    ¡°Are ya okay, mister? Why were you swimmin¡¯ in the canal?¡± the boy asked.

    ¡°I wasn''t swimming. I was pushed in.¡± Arnest said while getting off the ground.

    ¡°Oh. Well maybe they didn''t see ya cause you''re so short!¡± The boy measured his hand up to Arnest¡¯s head.

    ¡°Are you one to talk, shorty?¡± Arnest also raised his hand to measure the boy¡¯s height.

    ¡°My sister said I''ll grow taller when I''m older. You''re already too old to grow!¡±

    ¡°I''m only twelve!¡± Arnest was feeling a bit frustrated.

    ¡°Well that doesn¡¯t matter.¡± the boy started to dust off his pants while standing up. ¡°My boss says to get people to come see the show.¡± He grabbed Arnest¡¯s hand and started to drag him towards a large beige tent that was set up in the town square.

    A jovial tune and cheers could be heard that eminated from the tent. It got louder as the boys approached the entrance. With his free hand, the boy parted the cloth flap to the side and entered with Arnest.

    Inside the tent, the origin of the noise became immediately obvious. There was a huge crowd that was chanting, clapping and celebrating while the performance went on. The musicians sat near the entrance to the left, the crowd had their fun to the right while the rest of the space was for the main show. All sorts of contraptions made of rope and wood were set up and acrobats performed on them. Even though the musicians were mostly adults, the acrobats were solely composed of little children. The young boys and girls were no older than the boy who led Arnest to the show.

    The boy led Arnest to an unoccupied seat and sat him down. ¡°Enjoy the show, mister.¡± he whispered into his ear and then disappeared into the crowd.

    Little children dressed in the same patched clothes spun in intricate twirls and contorted in unthinkable positions. It was quite clear that they had been trained since they were born. Otherwise they couldn''t be this skilled in these inhuman techniques at such a young age.

    A round man wearing a red suit and top hat weaved his way past the jumping acrobats towards the center. ¡°Ladies and gentlemen! Thanks for watching the show!¡± The plump tomato made a deep bow and deftly twirled his hat like he''s done it a thousand times.

    ¡°For the end of our show, we¡¯ve saved the best for last.¡±

    He dramatically raised his hands towards the sky and shouted ¡°I now, proudly present the king of the rope, Shorty!¡±

    ¡°Shorty!¡±

    The crowd all cheered for the next performer. Arnest looked and saw a small figure climbing up a pole towards a tightrope. He was curious to see how the acrobat would safely make it across but he noticed that the figure had similar features to the boy who led him here. And the closer he looked, he realized it was really that little boy!

    ¡°His name is Shorty? How fitting." Arnest thought to himself.

    Shorty swiftly reached the top at the tightrope and started to ready himself. He took a deep breath and took one step forward. The crowd all held their breath. He slowly took another step. Some in the crowd wondered when he would fall and others wished for it. But Shorty steadily walked across the rope.

    When he reached the midway point he wobbled a bit but regained balance soon after. Walking for a bit more, he suddenly stopped.

    He jumped upwards off the rope! Everyone gasped in fright and elation. At the last moment he grabbed the rope and swung himself back on the tightrope. Shorty continued to stand as if nothing had happened. And he then walked to the end of the rope and climbed down the pole.

    Applause and cheers for the king of the rope blasted throughout the tent.

    ¡°Shorty!¡±

    ¡°The king of the rope!¡±

    Arnest looked at the unassuming boy and just clapped along with the crowd. A sudden brilliant idea came to him, making Arnest smile uncontrollably.

 Chapter 9 - Cirqa Efatos

    Chapter 9 - Cirqa Efatos

    The fat ring leader and his troupe of children all bowed as the audience clapped. Arnest was still among the excited crowd and looked over the children. His plan began to be intricately forming and his devious smile seemed to curve endlessly.

    ¡°Come over here to pay for the show! Five coppers from each of you!¡±

    A man in grey overalls and a white tunic was repeating this again and again. The people passing him would toss some copper coins into the bag he was holding. It was filling up fairly fast and the bag became fatter and heavier. But the dimly dressed man was able to easily hold up the now almost fifty pound sack of coin.

    Arnest turned in the opposite direction. The entrance was blocked by the toll so he made a new path. Slipping under the tent¡¯s side, Arnest ran towards the ships to find Rogar.

    On the ship inside the hull sitting around a table was Rogar, Halphas and Arnest.

    Surprisingly Rogar and Halphas had seemed to get along despite being human and demon. This was partly due to Tanya always leading ¡°Halfy¡± around like an oversized pet. Rogar could see how docile and friendly Halphas was with Tanya and felt relieved. He also could relate because he too was once treated as Tanya''s pet a long time ago. Remembering made him shudder a little.

    The other reason was that Arnest had told Rogar more about what happened on the mountain at Heaven''s Isle during his stay. Rogar started to see Halphas more favorably after he heard about how he had protected Tanya. Occasionally they would chat, mostly about the various herbs they both had found on the mountain, until Tanya would pull Halphas away to play.

    ¡°Rogar, I need to ask for a favor.¡± Arnest said with a quite serious face.

    ¡°Anything for you, Arnest.¡± Rogar said enthusiastically.

    ¡°I need to borrow some money. It''s for something important.¡±

    ¡°This¡­¡± Rogar¡¯s face soured when he heard this.

    It wasn''t that he was miserly but this year''s harvest wasn''t bountiful, amounting to half the norm. The winter this year had been harsh and snow covered Heaven''s Isle for two months longer. It took over the spring and by the time the snow melted, they only had one month to gather herbs. Things seemed to be going well then but Tanya disappeared and some of the villagers feared a monster lived on the mountain. After so many setbacks all he wanted to do was protect this year''s meager profits to feed and clothe his village. Arnest saw the soured Rogar and started to worry.

    If he couldn''t get funds from Rogar, it would be unlikely anyone in Zanabo would be willing to lend him money. A young boy, with no background and power, would find it hard to compel people to trust in his abilities. All Arnest had was a few hundred men, half who were not completely well trained. He lacked coin, a trained force and influence. The current Arnest was too far away from his goal of conquering the exiled lands.

    Realizing that Rogar was put in a difficult situation, Arnest was about to retract his request. But Halphas spoke. ¡°How about you sell these and I''ll share some of the profit with you?¡±

    Halphas pulled out a leather sack from under his shirt. He laid it across a table and opened it slowly revealing three plants. One was charred black and was so brittle that a slight breeze might shatter the chrysanthemum. The second was a snowy bundle of grass that emitted a slight coolness. And lastly was a large six petaled flower where its petals were red, brown, green, blue, white and black, emitting a sweet aroma.

    ¡°Manti Chrysanthemum, Snow Grass¡­ and this color and smell¡­ a Navulian Flower? These are all high grade!¡± Rogar exclaimed in shock.

    ¡°Are they rare?¡± Arnest asked. Although he has been learning many things within his dream world, he had only learned about fighting, history and some stratagem. Anything related to herbs like medicine and alchemy were foreign fields for him.

    ¡°Rare? Let me tell you. Any high grade herb would take countless years to grow and for these herbs, they require a specific environment to thrive. To collect these herbs would take a lot of time searching and most importantly luck.¡± Rogar carefully explained with his head filled with thoughts of glittering gold.

    ¡°I found these herbs while traveling to each island. Since I would always find secluded areas I would also unintentionally find to strange flowers. I found the Navulian Flower near the top of Heaven''s Isle and the others on earlier islands.¡± Halphas said.

    ¡°Ha! Why didn¡¯t you tell me you found these legendary herbs? If I had known you were such a skilled harvester I would had already invited you to live at Heaven''s Isle!¡± Rogar slapped Halphas across across his back and Halphas shyly laughed along with him.

    ¡°Thanks. I¡¯ll be sure to repay double what you''ve given me today, Halphas.¡± Arnest said as he grabbed the herbs and went with Rogar to the markets.

    Night fell on Zanabo, a city that still retained its vibrance due to oil street lamps on the main roads and canals. But darkness still loomed and in its darkest corners darted a shadow. It climbed roofs and slipped in and out of alleyways and arrived at a tent in the town square.

    This shadow was precisely, Arnest. He was using his [Shadow Step] spell and silently entered the tent.

    He could see a dim light at the furthest corner away from the entrance. The outline of a wooden structure could be seen thanks to the shadows the light cast. It looked like a storehouse of sorts so he walked towards the light. The closer he got, he could make out two whispering voices. Arnest followed the voices until he arrived at a door that was ajar, letting some of the candle light within the room seep out.

    The voices were now clear enough to be heard.

    ¡°The city lord wants ten percent more of our business.¡±

    Arnest leaned in closer to the door, listening in.

    ¡°He¡¯s already is getting sixty. We can barely survive on what we have now.¡± Arnest looked in and saw the plump ring leader sitting down across of the grey overalled man who handled the money.

    ¡°He¡¯s said he¡¯d take back the slaves we bought from him years ago if we don¡¯t pay. He probably intends to take Shorty.¡±

    ¡°If he takes Shorty, we¡¯ll lose even more silver!¡± The overall wearing man shouted and the ring leader gestured with his index finger to his lips.

    ¡°Don''t wake the kids, Kuriv!¡± the ring leader whispered.

    ¡°Sorry, Jerrei.¡±

    Arnest had heard enough to get a vague idea of their situation. Their plight only served to further help perpetuate his plans. He removed the spell he cast and walked into the room with a friendly atmosphere.

    The two men were startled by the sudden appearance of the young boy dressed in dark, noble attire. ¡°Why are you awake? Go back to-¡± Jerrei paused mid-sentence when he realized Arnest was not one of his performers.

    ¡°Who are you?¡±

    ¡°I am Arnest. I''m here to offer you a chance to work with me.¡±

    ¡°What makes a kid like you think you can work with us, the best circus in Zanabo, Cirqa Efatos?¡± said Kuriv as he stared angrily at Arnest.

    Arnest pulled out a small brown sack out of his side pocket and dropped it in front of Jerrei, the leader of Cirqa Efatos. The sack jingled a bit and then clinked when it hit the ground.

    Jerrei bent over and picked up the sack and pulled on the yellow string wrapped around its top. A gold light shimmered from out of the bag. Five gold coins sat at the bottom, which left the two men flabbergasted. A single gold coin represents a hundred silver coins, while a silver coin is equal to a hundred copper coins. ¡°How could such a young boy be carrying so much money?¡± Kuriv muttered to himself under his breath.

    ¡°What is it exactly that you want for this?¡± Jerrei asked with some apprehension.

    ¡°I just want to borrow your children for a while.¡± Arnest said while his face looked mischievously at them.

    The two of them looked towards each other, then the gold and back, again, at each other.

    ¡°If you need more money, I have more.¡± Arnest tossed a small sack with another five gold coins inside.

    Kuriv looked towards Jerrei and saw his delighted expression. He frowned and leaned into Jerrei¡¯s side and whispered ¡°Are you really going to trust a random kid?¡±

    ¡°What''s your decision?¡± Arnest asked.

    ¡°We don''t have many options left.¡± Jerrei whispered back.

    He then turned towards Arnest. ¡°I''ll agree to lend my performers to you.¡±

    Jerrei lead Arnest further into the wooden complex with a small oil lamp. The light flickered against the narrow corridor. The hall was tight, even for the smaller Arnest so when Jerrei walked his two sides were squeezed between the walls. Eventually they reached a larger opening that was pitch black. When the little lamplight extended out Arnest saw small bodies huddled all over the floor.

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    ¡°Kids, wake up!¡± Jerrei shouted.

    The children all arose in a lackadaisical fashion. There were a few who got up to their feet almost instantly but most were still either sleeping or their bodies were still too tired, refusing to get up. This was quite normal because performances required a lot of work, too much work for children on most days. Their worn out bodies coupled with the fact that it was an ungodly hour made it impossible to expect them to be energetic and ready to start a new tiring day.

    Arnest looked at the four who got up instantly. He had judged three of them were girls and the fourth was a boy based on their hair lengths. The light from the oil lamp illuminated the girls faces from left to right. The first two girls looked like twins. Both had a skinny figure and curly brunette hair. What made them distinguishable from each other was the fact that one had longer hair than the other. The third girl was the tallest of the bunch with dark blue eyes and lime hair. They seemed to be full of energy, especially the tall girl who was bouncing up and down. When the light flickered across his face, he recognized the boy immediately.

    ¡°Shorty.¡± Arnest called out.

    Shorty looked at Arnest, who was clad in a hooded, dark fine clothes. He didn¡¯t know who he was. Many people knew his name and would call out to him on the streets whenever he was sent to attract customers. Arnest lowered his hood and exposed his boyish face.

    ¡°Mister?¡± Shorty said, surprised.

    ¡°You can call me Arnest. I¡¯m here to borrow you and your friends for a special job. Your master already has agreed to lend you all to me.¡± Arnest said.

    ¡°What kind of job?¡± Shorty asked.

    ¡°You¡¯ll know soon. Wait until everyone wakes up first.¡±

    Arnest waited about twenty minutes for every single child to wake up and line up in a single line. There were quite a few who were quite upset but there was little they could do since they were either slaves or working at one of the few jobs that were available to children of this age. Voicing a complaint could result in being beaten or fired, both outcomes that could lead to more dismal results.

    He looked over each of the children, examining them and asking them each for their names. Among the children were some who had anorexic physiques. After passing a few of these sickly kids, he asked one of the boys ¡°Why are you so skinny?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s like asking why are you dressed like a noble. It¡¯s because you¡¯re a rich lord and I¡¯m a poor slave.¡± the boy sneered when he answered.

    ¡°Errard, you don¡¯t have the right to speak that way to-¡± Jerrei was quick to reprimand the boy while removing his belt and raising it, but Arnest motioned to stand in between him and Errard.

    ¡°No, it¡¯s fine. He¡¯s right.¡± Arnest said.

    Errard¡¯s face changed from apathetic to surprised.

    Ever since he was sold to the circus, his freedoms had been all taken away the instant we walked into the tent. No longer were the days he could run around the city freely. Now there was only the circus tent and the main square that he was currently confined to. If his life continued normally, he would live in with the circus and die caged within as well. The hopelessness and anger he felt over this life is completely understandable.

    And normally he would be whipped a few dozen times for speaking rudely, until he started to bleed. It wasn¡¯t that Jerrei is sadisticly savage. Jerrei beating him was just a part of the relationship between a master and slave where insubordination was punished. This was just a fact of life in this world.

    However this situation was different. Not only did he not receive a beating, which Errard had prepared himself for, but was instead acknowledged and given respect. Just a tiny bit of respect, but it was more than what he had received in the past four years since he was enslaved thanks to his family¡¯s debts. His family was quick to give him away to the slavers but Arnest was defending him after Errard had just insulted him. This sort of behavior was extremely unusual.

    ¡°Errard, right?¡± Arnest turned around and stared directly into Errard¡¯s brown eyes.

    He looked up, returning the gaze and nodded.

    ¡°Your mind is quite perceptive. I have the perfect job for you.¡± Arnest said while grabbing Errard¡¯s left hand. He placed a handful of silver coins into his tiny palm.

    ¡°Take this and go find some food for all of you. Feed the skinniest ones first.¡±

    Errard stood there for a while, dumbfounded. He currently had more money than he had ever seen at one time in his hand.

    ¡°Go quickly! Before the stalls close!¡± Arnest shouted and Errard jumped a little. He gripped the coins and ran. They all realized what was going on and chased little Errard. He led the children out to the main street where most of the food stalls were open.

    ¡°We haven¡¯t been able to properly feed them due to the city¡¯s taxes. Thank you, young lord.¡± Jerrei said with his trademarked bow.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I need them full of energy for the work I need them to do.¡±

    ¡°What exactly is this work?¡± asked Jerrei.

    ¡°Follow me and you¡¯ll see.¡± Arnest started to walk out towards the exit and Jerrei, who was curious, followed.

    When they exited the tent, they could see the entire main road and there were the forty four little children scurrying around from stall to stall with meat and fish skewers in hand. They had more than enough money to have a feast and they wouldn¡¯t let this chance to eat pass without taking advantage of it.

    ¡°Boss, I want two octopus skewers!¡±

    ¡°Five red cow skewers for us!¡±

    ¡°Yanon, stop hoggin¡¯ all the food! I¡¯m at least three inches skinnier than you!¡±

    ¡°Yeah! You heard what that rich kid said. Skinny kids eat first!¡±

    The children¡¯s voices expanded over this section of the street and everyone took notice. ¡°Isn¡¯t it past curfew? Where did all these kids come from?¡± thought some of them. But most carried on with their own business and ignored the busy commotion caused by them.

    Arnest scanned the crowd and found who he was looking for. He walked up to him and called out ¡°Shorty!¡±

    ¡°Mmn?¡± Shorty turned around with his mouth full of red cow skewers.

    ¡°So, did you hear anything interesting while eating?¡± Arnest asked.

    Shorty swallowed the meat in one gulp and pointed to a man across the street who was slumped down against a wall. ¡°Well, I heard that uncle over there just got kicked out of his home because his wife found out about his mistress.¡±

    ¡°Hear anything else?¡±

    ¡°One of the city guards said the city lord is holding a banquet to celebrate his second son¡¯s birthday.¡± Shorty grabbed another skewer from the stand and started munching on it with a pensive look.

    And soon after he finished the skewer he remembered. ¡°Oh, and I also heard the vendors over there complaining about the new taxes on imported meat.¡±

    ¡°Okay, thanks Shorty.¡± Arnest walked away towards a quieter part of the street with Jerrei still following.

    ¡°Jerrei. I want you to do what I just did with Shorty. Send the kids out to ¡®play¡¯ and make sure they¡¯re listening for any news of any kind. Truth or rumors, I want all of it.¡± said Arnest as the both of them walked.

    ¡°That¡¯s all you want?¡± Jerrei asked, still feeling some apprehension. The amount of money he was getting didn¡¯t seem to be equal to the task he was given. It was definitely too much.

    ¡°I¡¯ll come see you in a week. I expect to hear some amusing stories.¡± Arnest said smiling as he activated [Shadow Step] and disappeared into the night.

    ¡°He knows magic too?¡± Jerrei started to sweat at the thought.

    At first he had thought he was just from a noble family with too much money and time to spare. But as a magus, and at his young age, what kind of background would you need? He was only the owner of a circus and didn¡¯t have the qualifications to associate with such a figure normally. There was no way that this young boy only intended to use them for his amusement, there was probably something more to it.

    Jerrei thought of canceling the deal but shook his head when he thought more about it. There was a high chance that if he decided to go back on his words, even if he returned the gold, that he would make an enemy out of a young magus. And not only that, but potentially his backer or backers as well.

    ¡°Well, as long as he keeps paying well it doesn¡¯t really matter.¡± Jerrei thought to himself as he walked back towards Cirqa Efatos.

 Chapter 10 - The True Zanako

    Chapter 10 - The True Zanako

    Inside a coastal tea house a ridiculously fat man comically sat at a ridiculously small table, sipping on a cup of three herb tea. Across to him sat a small, black robed boy who covered his face with a hood.

    ¡°Rumors say the city lord, Helvet Aster, is planning on naming his first son the ¡®Zanako¡¯ which means prince of Zanas.¡±

    ¡°So basically he¡¯s naming him the future city lord of Zanabo?¡±

    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s correct.¡±

    ¡°Thanks, Jerrei. I¡¯ll be back tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be sure to bring you some good stories tomorrow.¡±Jerrei said as Arnest nodded and got up from the table. He walked into the crowded street.

    For the past few days since he had gotten Cirqa Efatos to become his own personal information broker, he had learned a lot about the situation here in Zanabo. There are four main factions that are stationed here in the great city. The first is the Aster clan, who rules over Zanabo. They create the laws here and enforce them through a mercenary army. The shopkeepers and traders would be considered the second faction who consolidated their power through the Merchant¡¯s Guild. And finally the last two factions are the people from Ralom and Crul, the two other great cities who stationed their own merchants and armies there to protect their trade.

    All four factions were about equal in power however the Merchant¡¯s Guild could be considered the strongest. The three great cities have not always been in harmony. In the past they waged wars against each other that caused typhoons and waves in Lanex. But the Merchant¡¯s Guild had remained neutral for a long time during the previous wars and amassed a large fortune. With that fortune their own hired mercenary armies and pushed their own officials into the great cities to protect their business interests. Their power at best was able to rival any great city but it was their treasury that was peerless.

    It was only fairly recently, within the past forty years or so, that they had seemed to have created an alliance with the Aster clan. The daughter of the previous guild leader was married to the Aster clan¡¯s current head, Helvet, thus cementing their relationship. There were also rumors that the current guild leader¡¯s youngest daughter would also be betrothed to the next Zanako.

    The guild leader also had an eldest daughter however everyone disregarded her as a possibility. No one has seen her in years but when she was younger, she was famous for having demonic red eyes, aged white hair and being fatter than a pig. If she was this horrifying as a child, one could imagine how horrible her current looks were. Due to this ugly appearance, no one thought that any of the sons of the Aster clan would agree to marry such a woman. Although the youngest daughter was not an earth shattering beauty, she was surely at least considered normal looking.

    It was a little past noon and the four suns were still hanging at the zenith in the sky. Arnest eagerly moved through the crowds towards the northern part of the city. This was the area where the Aster clan members lived, along with other officials of the government. The city lord''s manor also resided here at the very northern tip, a small barred land in between the city and Zanas shelled walls. Eventually reaching the beach area near the mansion, he saw a few guards sitting by petite and yet extravagant boats.

    ¡°So that¡¯s where the banquet is going to be held. Now I just need to find a way in.¡± Arnest thought to himself.

    He sat there scouting out the beach, looking for an easy way to the mansion. However there didn¡¯t seem to be a bridge of any kind or underwater passage nearby. The only way that seemed possible was either swimming across or using one of those fancy boats. Arnest continued to walk along the beach still looking for a possible entrance.

    But one of the guards noticed him and yelled, ¡°What are you doing? You¡¯re not allowed to be around here without permission!¡±

    The guards walked closer and saw that it was just a young boy under the hood. They frowned in anger. Their job was fairly simple but if anyone was allowed to just trespass, the first to be punished would surely be them the shore guards. Knowing that a little brat was causing them trouble, they felt no sympathy.

    ¡°No one is permitted to be near the Zanas Mansion. Trespassers are to be detained and questioned.¡± one of the guards said as he grabbed Arnest¡¯s right arm, dragging him away so he could ¡®question¡¯ him.

    ¡°Wait!¡± Arnest yelled.

    The guard ignored him and continued to pull him across the beach but Arnest pulled out some copper coins. ¡°I¡¯m really sorry! Please take these so I can show my sincerity!¡±

    Now the guard stopped and looked towards Arnest¡¯s outstretched hand full of copper. His eyes were glinted with greed and he smiled. ¡°I¡¯ll accept your sincerity.¡± he said while snatching the coins and counting them.

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    When he let go to grab the coins, Arnest fell headfirst and ate a mouthful of sand. He started to immediately cough out sand but the gritty feeling against his tongue and sides of his mouth remained.

    After finishing counting, the guard looked towards the coughing Arnest who was lying on his side. ¡°What are you waiting for? Get the hell out of here kid.¡± he said while spitting onto Arnest¡¯s face.

    Arnest slowly got up and gave the guard a deathly stare before walking off. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to get you back.¡± he muttered while walking back into the city, covered in sand.

    Later in the afternoon, after cleaning himself, Arnest headed back onto the busy streets. He took a detour off the main road and into a narrow side street. Turning right and left at seemingly random points, he finally arrived at a dead end. There was a thick wooden door with a metal slot closer to the top.

    He walked up to the door and knocked twice quietly then three times loudly. This area was far away from the markets so it was eerily silent. No one responded to the knocking but Arnest stayed still for a while longer.

    ¡°Is this the wrong place? I¡¯m sure Jerrei said two rights, a left and then another right at the well¡­Maybe it was two lefts then a right?¡± Arnest said to himself.

    Suddenly the metal cover on the slot was slid open and two giant blue eyes peered through. It looked for a while but didn¡¯t see anything and was about to close the slot when Arnest called out ¡°I¡¯m down here!¡±

    He paused for a moment, with the cover closed halfway and looked down with now only one eye. The blue eyed doorman saw the top of his black hood and then shut the slot closed. A series of metal clicking sounds could be heard and then the door flung open.

    ¡°Welcome to The Pits.¡± said the doorman as he moved to the side for Arnest to pass.

    Arnest walked in and heard the screams and shouting that were no longer being blocked by the door. There was a spiraling staircase which Arnest went down. When he was about halfway down he could see where the commotion was coming from.

    In the center of a large underground room was a raised platform with a giant iron cage. Inside of the cage were two naked men, fighting with their bare hands. One of them was clearly getting beaten and was panting heavily, trying to defend his face with his arms. The other, who was extremely muscular, kept wailing on him until his knuckles were purple. Around were mostly people jeering at the fighters and smaller cages with more naked men inside of them.

    ¡°Kill him! I bet all my coppers on you!¡± screamed one of the onlookers.

    The man who was being heavily beat fell to the ground and the other jumped on top of him. But when he raised his fist to send out a punch, the seemingly weaker man grabbed with his arms. His skinny arms exploded with power, biceps pulsating and he snapped the other¡¯s arm in half until it bent the opposite way. A blood curdling scream was let out. The prey became the hunter and he jumped on top of the crippled man and squeezed the his throat until the man stopped moving.

    The crowd whined and moaned at the sudden upset. Most of them had bet on the stronger looking guy yet he was beat by a guy three times smaller than him. The only person in the room who seemed to be happy was sitting in a leather chair, drinking red wine. He had disheveled black hair and wore a heavily decorated gown.

    ¡°Congratulations on the win, young master.¡± said a butler who was standing next to the smiling youth.

    ¡°Yeah! You¡¯re amazing, Talas!¡± said another youth who was sitting next to him.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing special, Ralo. I just felt that he was a bit stronger so I bet a few coins on him.¡± Talas said.

    The youth sneered. ¡°Your family personally trained that slave. There¡¯s no way he would be weak.¡± Ralo thought secretly.

    Arnest could see Talas from the stairs. ¡°That must be him.¡± He made his way downstairs towards Talas.

    Talas also noticed Arnest¡¯s mysterious figure coming towards him but didn¡¯t seem to care and continued to drink. When Arnest finally arrived next to him, he didn¡¯t even give Arnest a glance.

    A while passed by, enough time for some of the slave workers to clean up the arena for the next fight. As the next fight was starting, Talas asked impatiently ¡°You¡¯re clearly here for me. What do you want?¡±

    Arenst remained silent which infuriated Talas even more. ¡°Are you deaf? Or perhaps mute?¡± Talas angrily asked.

    People started placing bets and the room got louder and rowdier. Arnest moved towards Talas¡¯s side and quietly whispered so only he could hear, ¡°There can only be one true Zanako.¡±

    Talas¡¯s expression became grim. ¡°Did my brother send you here to kill me?¡±

    ¡°No. I wouldn¡¯t dare hurt the Zanako.¡± Arnest said grinning.

 Chapter 11 - Apples and Mangoes

    Chapter 11 - Apples and Mangoes

    Talas led Arnest to a private room, away from the fighting ring. The room was small but decorated richly with comfortable chairs, a table with a basket of fruits and a few brutal pictures of men fighting. Both of the two youths took a seat opposite to each other so they could speak face to face. It was quiet for a while and they stared at each other, Arnest amicably smiling.

    Still feeling worried, Talas cleared his throat and asked ¡°You want me to be the Zanako?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I believe you¡¯re well suited for it. At least more so than your older brother.¡±

    ¡°Your words are considered blasphemous here, my brother would probably kill you for speaking them.¡± threatened Talas.

    ¡°And what would he do if he learned that you were speaking with me, planning to take the city lordship from him?¡± Arnest¡¯s smile became less amicable and more devious.

    Talas sighed. ¡°You should know, my brother has the support of a majority of my clan. Which includes my father.¡±

    ¡°I knew that already. But you still have a chance otherwise I wouldn¡¯t be here speaking to you.¡± Arnest said as he grabbed an apple and mango, juggling it in the air like a circus performer.

    ¡°Even if you changed my father¡¯s mind, there¡¯s the still the elders who would still make my brother the Zanako.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not thinking of the bigger picture here, Talas.¡± Arnest threw the mango to Talas and he caught it.

    ¡°There is an abundance of fruit here in the city. If your brother has a monopoly on apples, you can just go ahead and sell mangoes.¡± he said and took a bite out of the apple.

    ¡°What does that even mean?¡± Talas looked quizzically at Arnest.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the specifics. I¡¯ll make you the Zanako. I promise you that.¡± Arnest started to walk out of the room.

    At the door, Arnest turned a bit and said ¡°Also, get me an invitation to your brother¡¯s birthday party. I want to pay him my respects.¡±

    Talas continued to sit in the room for a long time, pondering Arnest¡¯s words. Should he trust this random boy? The right answer would be no. It¡¯s impossible to expect someone, especially someone like Talas who has a pretty high status, to expect others to come seeking him with good intentions. Talas was no idiot. He knew people like Ralo just flatter him either due to fear or greed.

    But the boy he just spoke to didn¡¯t seem to be motivated by either. Talas had become fairly socially experienced and gained an ¡®intuition¡¯. At face value Arnest was mysterious and cunning however his intuition told him that he wasn¡¯t trying to gain favors. It seemed more like he was trying to tactfully align his own interests with Talas¡¯s.

    Although this intuition wasn¡¯t a hundred percent accurate and he didn¡¯t know what Arnest¡¯s interests were, he would at least take a wait-and-see approach. If somehow Arnest could really make him a Zanako, he would fully accept it happily. But if Arnest was caught and accused, Talas would easily shift all the blame onto him.

    ¡°Gill, investigate him for me. I want to know as much as possible about him.¡± Talas said.

    ¡°Right away, young master.¡± the butler waiting by the door replied and then disappeared into the darkness.

    Arnest headed back to the harbor to go check on the men. The former pirates who wield khopesh, the sickle swords, had been teaching the other human men how to use them over the past few days. Some of them were getting quite proficient, so much so that Arnest had already commissioned a blacksmith to make some iron khopesh weapons for a them to use in the future.

    The elven soldiers did not want to interact with the other humans under Arnest¡¯s lead and mostly stayed within the boat. When they did go out to get supplies, they would wear plain cloaks in the city. But even then, they seemed to be adverse to being near humans in general. Even though Arnest wished his forces were more cohesive, it was good that the elves acted conspicuously. If the people saw a small army of elves marching through the streets then they would probably fear that it was a sneak invasion by the elves of the mainland. And once that fear reached the great families of the three cities, they would send a punitive force to eradicate them.

    ¡°Put your back into it!¡± barked a khopesh fighter.

    A dozen or so men were practicing sword swings with the sickle blade on the ship¡¯s deck. They were sweating profusely as the suns were slowly setting. With each swing their breath became harsher. Among the men training was a bulky muscular middle aged man.

    When Arnest saw the middle aged man, he thought to himself ¡°I wonder how strong I¡¯ve gotten?¡±

    ¡°Old Man Vargus!¡± Arnest called out to the middle aged man.

    Vargus stopped for a second and stabbed the sword into the ground, leaning on it. Out of breath, he looked towards Arnest frowning.

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    Since the elves came to Fox Village, Black Fox had ordered most of the able bodied men to accompany Arnest, including himself. Initially he didn¡¯t think much of it but Black Fox had also made sure that the daily beatings he had come to enjoy doling out were to stop. The pent up frustration he felt had accumulated over the journey and it only spiraled more out of control when he was forced to train under these pirates. He used to be a revered warrior on his home island but now he has to listen to pirates. So with nowhere to vent his anger he had taken to beating on the men from Fox Village occasionally, as a replacement for Arnest.

    ¡°Let¡¯s spar like we did back on the island, old man.¡± Arnest said enthusiastically.

    ¡°A spar?¡± Vargus¡¯s eyes lit up and his mouth curved widely into a tooth filled grin.

    Arnest activated [Shadow Bow] and conjured it in his left hand. However the appearance of this bow was different from before. It appeared to be more intricately designed. Instead of having a single simple curve, there were three beautiful ones. And at each end of the bow the curve looked like a sharp backwards ¡°C¡±. They almost looked like two glossy blade tips and they gleamed under the sunset light.

    This was the result of Arnest mana training. He realized that sometimes when he controlled the mana, he could make the bow curve more or less with different outputs. So he started experimenting with different variations of mana control and the three-curved [Shadow Bow] was created.

    Vargus lifted his khopesh and assumed a stance similar to that of what the pirates had when they first attacked the elf soldiers. It looked slightly lopsided and unbalanced but somehow Vargus maintained it with ease.

    ¡°As expected, Vargus is really skilled!¡± Arnest thought.

    While Arnest was admiring Vargus¡¯s stance, Vargus evilly smiled as he thought to himself, ¡°That old fox can¡¯t blame me for this. The little brat is basically asking for a beating!¡±

    The other men all moved to the sides of the deck to make way for the fight. All the men knew the prowess that young Arnest had shown, especially during the battle at sea. But they also knew how strong Vargus was and a number of them had personally felt his brute strength. A few of the men started making side bets on who would win. The one¡¯s shouting the loudest were betting on Arnest, cheering him on. And the one¡¯s who bet on Vargus were whispering bets to make sure they didn¡¯t make the mistake of upsetting the little lord.

    ¡°First one to land a strike, wins! Loser gets a hundred lashes!¡± Vargus yelled.

    Vargus made the first move and charged with his sickle sword directly above his head. His plan was to get close to Arnest to prevent him from shooting any shots from a distance. This was a typical strategy close combat fighters used to stop archers and usually worked.

    Arnest remained calm and channeled his mana into the [Shadow Bow]. It glowed a dark purple as he raised it up to block the incoming strike. When the sword clashed with the center of the bow, everyone expected it to just phase through the shadow. But surprisingly it held it¡¯s form and even made Vargus be pushed back a few steps.

    Vargus didn¡¯t change tactics though and continued to press forward. Arnest took the momentum of the block and raised his bow. But instead of setting up to shoot, he held the bow with both hands like a spear and thrust it towards Vargus. The sudden move caught the large bodied Vargus off guard but he already started his down swing. When the sword came down the second time, Arnest dodged to the side and the bow¡¯s sharp point pierced into Vargus¡¯s right arm.

    All Vargus¡¯s strength in his dominant arm disappeared and he could no longer grip the sickle sword. He unintentionally dropped it and it made a small thud when it stuck itself into the ground. His arm started bleeding intensely but his face was still beet red in anger and embarrassment.

    ¡°I lost!¡± Vargus gritted his teeth.

    The little boy he used to beat on somehow had beaten him in a spar. Vargus thought he knew the skill level that Arnest possessed. After all, he did train him for a few years. Never had he taught him how to use a bow or respond in close quarters when using one. All he had done was beat the living daylights out of him day in and day out. But Arnest seemed to know how to perfectly respond and execute a counter attack today. In only a few exchanges, Arnest had beaten him.

    ¡°Where did he learn all of these skills?¡± The more Vargus thought about he, he remembered that everything seemed to have changed when the elves came to the village. ¡°Did the elves teach him?¡± But he discarded this possibility. Arnest was a extremely slow learner and Vargus was able to use the same simple moves to knock him into the dirt. There was no way he was able to learn this fast.

    But before Vargus could continue thinking about why he lost, Arnest said ¡°Thanks for the spar!¡± and walked towards the beach, picking up a thorny branch that was washed along the shore. He came back with the damp branch and smiled. ¡°A hundred lashes, right?¡± he said and Vargus¡¯s face stiffened.

    A shadowed figure up on the roofs close to the harbor was watching the short exchange.

    ¡°He¡¯s a magus. And he modified the [Shadow Bow] as well... Is he an irregular magus?¡± the figure said to himself in a low voice.

    ¡°I must tell the young master about this.¡± said the shadow as it slowly dissipated.

 Chapter 12 - Irregular Magi

    Chapter 12 - Irregular Magi

    After Arnest got a little revenge on his mentor, he went to his cabin. Tired from all the events of the day, he dived into his bed and laid there. He then started to activate his [Shadow Step], transforming himself into a shadow that hung above his bed.

    Adjusting the mana, he first started to only let out a little. The shadow form wavered and became wavy and wobbly, unable to hold a firm form. Then he upped the volume of mana outputted and the shadow became rigid with jagged points. Arnest would go back and forth between these two modes every night until his mana was exhausted, leaving him unconscious.

    Randomly, a thought occurred to him. ¡°What if I direct the mana out of a certain point?¡±

    Until now he had noticed that whenever he used mana, which poured out of his entire body. And if you were able to release mana from every point of your body, if you had enough control you probably could release it out of just a single point - like from your hand or even just your finger.

    So Arnest started to intensely concentrate and directed all his man to his hands. He could feel the surge of energy rushing into his chest, through his arms and then out his hands. The shadow that had encompassed his entire body now only covered Arnest¡¯s arms and hands.

    ¡°So it is possible! It¡¯s just that I don¡¯t have a lot of control yet.¡±

    So with this new theory, Arnest practiced it until the suns disappeared into the horizon.

    A week passed and the entire city seemed to be more lively than usual. This was due to the birthday of the city lord¡¯s son soon approaching. Although not everyone was permitted to join the main party at the Zanas Mansion, there would be a festival that everyone could enjoy. And so everyone busily were setting up decorations and lights that would light up every corner of the Zanabo.

    Talas had also been also preparing. He learned that Arnest was a magus with a small army who seemingly appeared out of nowhere. Finding out which island one came from was usually difficult because there were so many but it didn¡¯t really matter anyways. Only people who came from one of the great cities would have some sort of backing that could threaten one of the city lord¡¯s sons. He also was gathering false witnesses who could testify to Talas disregarding and even condemning Arnest when they first met. With these fake testimonies, Talas could almost certainly be assured that even if Arnest failed, he himself could live on.

    Arnest currently was walking on one of the main streets, Malaren Road. Zanabo was divided by four major streets that created a cross shape starting from the center. Malaren Road is the western street that is home to the centers of trade like the blacksmiths, grocers and butchers, and most importantly, the Merchant¡¯s Guild. The road itself was named after the Malaren family who were the most prominent family within the guild. They usually were the leaders of the guild and if one of them wasn¡¯t the guild leader, the guild leader was most likely married or somehow to a Malaren.

    He walked all the way to the very end, where the coast was. A large towering building was situated there whose size contrasted with the tiny storefronts before it. In large capitalized golden letters, ¡°MERCHANT¡¯S GUILD¡±. The gaudy sign was a testament to the guild¡¯s confidence and probably was meant to convince others of its strength. A squad of four guards stood at the front who wore mundane but serious faces.

    Arnest went to the double doored entranceway and pushed open one of them. Inside, on this first floor, was a quiet and refined atmosphere. There was a sitting area with two lounging couches and a few single chairs and a desk area further towards the back where five clerks were sitting at. There were three men and two women clerks who were all dressed in the same color schemes and material.

    There wasn¡¯t really much difference of appearance between the five, however there were a few personal quirks each had. For instance, the man who was on the furthest right booth was fiddling with a stack of papers and seemed extremely busy. The man who sat next to him was just staring forward into dead space like a puppet without an puppeteer. A woman sat in the middle who was neatly dressed but also had the same dead pan face and stare as the man to her right. The man second from the left seemed fairly alert and had noticed Arnest entering the room while the second lady who sat furthest left was busy fiddling with her hair. He decided to walk towards the clerk who noticed him and the clerk smiled.

    ¡°How may I assist you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m looking for Magus Whitebeard. Can you set up a meeting for me?¡± Arnest asked.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but Magus Whitebeard doesn¡¯t usually see guests.¡± the clerk said still with a hospitable smile.

    ¡°Tell him a fellow magus would like to see him.¡± Arnest said as he activated [Shadow Step] and turned into a shadowy mist.

    The clerk felt surprised, as many people would, at the appearance of this magus and the fact that he was so young. ¡°I¡¯ll send someone to find him right away, esteemed magus.¡± he hurriedly said and went into a back room to find a messenger.

    The woman clerk who was playing with her hair finally took notice of Arnest and when she realized he was a magus, she was quick to try and curry some favor. ¡°Come this way, Mr. Magus. I¡¯ll show you a much more comfortable room you can wait in.¡± she said with a playful voice. Arnest then stopped the spell and assumed his normal appearance.

    The woman clerk led Arnest up a half landing staircase, up a few flights of stairs, until reaching the sixth floor. There was a large corridor with a few rooms that is used as waiting rooms for those of a higher status. She opened up the second door on the left and they entered a quaint room. It had a small sitting area with more expensive furniture than what was on the ground floor. There was even ornately crafted plaster that crowned the ceiling, forming a pattern of an eagle flying through the sky. Although they wouldn¡¯t be used to wait on people from elites of the Aster clan, it was still a well designed room.

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    ¡°This is the Eagle Room. I¡¯ll find some maids to come and serve you while you wait for the magus.¡±

    ¡°No need. I¡¯d rather wait here alone.¡± Arnest flatly refused.

    ¡°Of course, young magus. My name is Felitis, by the way.¡± she said as she left, closing the door on the way out.

    There was a pitcher of water and a few glass cups on a table. Arnest poured himself a glass and sat on a red wooden, heavily padded upholstered chair. He sat there and waited. Minutes passed. Then a half hour. Then another hour. Arnest continued to wait patiently until finally he heard a knocking at the door.

    ¡°Valued customer, it¡¯s the clerk from before, Eloy. I have brought Magus Whitebeard here for you.¡±

    ¡°Feel free to come inside.¡± Arnest said nonchalantly.

    The clerk from before walked into the room with a white cloaked man behind him. ¡°Pleasure meeting a fellow magus. And a talented young magus at that!¡± said the cloaked man. His face was shadowed by his hood so it was hard to make out his facial expressions but he appeared to be pleased.

    ¡°I am only a beginner, I hope to learn something from someone as experienced as yourself, Magus Whitebeard.¡± said Arnest respectfully.

    ¡°Talented and humble! I¡¯m beginning to like you already.¡± Whitebeard said as he lowered his hood, revealing the face of a thirty something year old. He didn¡¯t have a white beard nor did he look aged which one would probably assume from the name.

    ¡°I heard you turned into a shadow. Can you show me?¡± he asked.

    Arnest activated [Shadow Step] once again. Whitebeard rubbed his chin and started analyzing the spell. ¡°I¡¯m a light magus, so I don¡¯t know too much about what spell this is. But it looks similar to the [Light Walker] spell.¡± he said as he activated [Light Walker] and his body turned into a bright white light.

    The two of them activating their spells seemed to counter each other, the light and darkness swirling around, and when they touched it repelled each other. However it seemed that Whitebeard¡¯s spell was stronger than Arnest¡¯s. Arnest¡¯s right hand could be seen while only the tips of some of Whitebeard¡¯s fingers could be seen.

    ¡°Powerful, powerful!¡± Whitebeard happily exclaimed.

    ¡°I know another spell as well.¡± Arnest said as he started chanting [Shadow Bow]¡¯s spell.

    The three-curved [Shadow Bow] appeared in his hand. But instead of just allowing it to form normally, Arnest changed the mana volumes so that way it kept changing forms. It switched from being a three-curved to five, then nine and it kept adding more curves. The size of the bow also changed from small to large to small again. It was like watching a fire be lit, flare up, die and then lit up again. This display of magic was dazzling for the clerk and also for Whitebeard.

    ¡°You¡¯re an irregular!¡± Whitebeard shouted.

    ¡°An irregular?¡± Arnest stopped the mana flow and the bow disappeared.

    ¡°You don¡¯t know what an irregular is? Who taught you magic?¡±

    ¡°My grandfather gave me a book but I don¡¯t know much about magic other than spells.¡±

    ¡°Alright then, I¡¯ll explain so listen carefully.¡± Whitebeard took a deep breath.

    ¡°Spells are usually chants that allow you to commune with the spirits. You have to give mana to the spirits to activate the spell. In particular you commune with the dark spirits and they make those shadow forms appear for you.¡±

    ¡°Typically the spirits will only react in one way and form the spell in a typical way. Your bow for example, would be a single curve and although the curvature may change, the basic shape would remain the same.¡±

    ¡°But an irregular mage is different. They can commune with the spirits in a more spiritual way and based on their will, they can change a spell. You can make your bow have more curves or make it more rigid like a sword. The possibilities are endless, only limited by your imagination.¡±

    ¡°This really must be fate. I, too, am an irregular magus.¡± Whitebeard chuckled and chanted a spell and a light sword appeared. The shape contorted into random shapes, one like a whip, another like a broadsword and many other transformations were displayed.

    ¡°Although we are of different elements, I can still teach you mana control so you can fully take advantage of your status as an irregular magus. I only wonder, are you willing to be my disciple?¡±

    ¡°I am willing.¡± Arnest said, but then paused.

    ¡°But I came here for another reason. I need some help with another matter, I wonder if you can help?¡±

    ¡°Of course. If I didn¡¯t help my student, then what kind of master would I be? Just tell me what you need done.¡±

    ¡°Well¡­¡± Arnest leaned in, cupping his hands and whispered into Whitebeard¡¯s ear.

    Whitebeard scowled and said ¡°That will be a little difficult. I¡¯m afraid I don''t know if I can actually help.¡±

    ¡°All I hope is that you will support me in this endeavor.¡± Arnest said, roguishly smiling.

    Whitebeard didn¡¯t respond for a while as he thought. Eventually he said, ¡°As two fellow irregular magi, I will definitely support you.¡±

 Chapter 13 - White Hair, Red Eyes

    Chapter 13 - White Hair, Red Eyes

    Arnest talked to Whitebeard about the various ideas he had about mana usage while Whitebeard helped to compound them and make more concrete theories. They chatted for hours on this and the conversation seemed animated. The clerk, Eloy, had left fairly early on and arranged for meals to be sent to the two magi a few hours later. But even when the food came they were still discussing different ways to activate spells.

    It wasn¡¯t until late at night when Arnest finally said his goodbyes and left the Merchant¡¯s Guild. He exited the Eagle Room and started walking down the stairs. He was lost in thought, reviewing everything he talked about with Whitebeard.

    But as he turned around the corner he collided with someone who was quickly heading up the stairs. Their heads had hit each other and Arnest fell to the ground, groaning, while the other person was just standing and rubbing their head. Arnest was dazed but only for a few moments as he regained his senses and looked up to see who brought him this misfortune.

    The person was an older girl, about sixteen years old, and was wearing a hooded cloak. The hood would¡¯ve hidden her face but now it was fully exposed. With a petite face, elongated white hair and angry red eyes, she wore a pouting face. Her anger clouded her thinking and she forgot what she was doing, her attention fully on Arnest.

    ¡°Sorry, I wasn''t paying attention.¡± said Arnest apologetically.

    ¡°You really should be more careful. Especially since you''re obviously and inherently, an dimwitted idiot.¡± she said, still irritated.

    Arnest didn''t enjoy being called an idiot but was more concerned about her appearance. Besides her foreign facial features like her white hair and red eyes, he noticed that under the cloak she was wearing a pearled necklace that drooped down into her chest. Additionally upon closer inspection when Arnest shot a small stream of mana towards it, the mana would be repelled. It seemed to have some defensive capabilities towards magic. Someone wearing expensive jewelry and an even more expensive jewelry that had a magical defense wouldn''t be a simple character.

    ¡°I¡¯m really sorry. What can I do to make it up to you?" Arnest tried to be as sincere as possible. He really didn''t want to create more enemies then he had to. He already had to conflict with a majority of the Aster clan in order to make Talas the Zanako.

    ¡°Hmph. Well... I''m feeling a bit bored right now. How about you accompany for the rest of the night? A buffoon like you should know an entertaining parlor trick or two."

    ¡°Alright, until midnight then." Arnest wanted to placate her obvious anger but at the same time he didn''t have time to be spending the entire night and early morning entertaining her. He still wanted to put into practice the methods of mana control Whitebeard had imparted onto him.

    ¡°I guess that¡¯ll have to do.¡± she said with a pouting face.

    ¡°Come with me.¡±

    The girl took Arnest by the hand and pulled him upstairs. They passed the sixth floor where he had stayed at the Eagle Room and went up to the seventh, the eighth, and finally the ninth. The ninth floor was the highest floor of the Merchants Guild¡¯s headquarters, reserved for the guild leader and his guests. Someone who was unknown like Arnest, even if he was an irregular magus, wouldn¡¯t have enough of a status to be able to step onto this floor, let alone enter.

    This was something that Arnest learned about the Merchants Guild through the information network run by Jerrei and Cirqa Efatos. The sixth floor that he was on earlier was specifically meant for guests of the many experts of the Merchants Guild, called Oranens - oranos meaning gold and oranens meaning people of gold in the native tongue. Whitebeard is an Oranen and had been one since fifteen years ago. Arnest specifically wanted to meet and gain his favor to start a relationship with the guild.

    At first Arnest thought that the girl mistakenly went to the ninth floor but she flashed a golden badge of some bird at the guard as they approached the entrance door. Seeing this, the guard quickly moved to open the door for the young lady and her new playmate. This confirmed his suspicions that this girl was an immense character he didn''t want to offend right now. His decision to try and appease this girl was correct. If he had offended someone at the upper echelons of the Merchants Guild then he would it find it even harder to accomplish his plans, here in Zanabo.

    ¡°Who is she?¡± Arnest wondered.

    Both of them entered but all that was there was a small corridor. It wasn''t as narrow as some of the city streets but it definitely made one feel claustrophobic. The girl led Arnest towards a door near the end of the hallway and walked into the side room. It was simply decorated and looked like her bedroom. Compared to the sixth floor, this room didn''t exude the same elegance or wealth.

    The girl jumped onto the bed and pointed towards Arnest. ¡°I can tell you''re not a local. I''m sure you know some interesting stories. Tell me one so I can fall asleep.¡±

    ¡°A story, huh¡­¡± Arnest started to rack his brain, trying to remember a story. He thought immediately of Fox Village but if a simple island knew those stories she probably would have heard them too since she lived in Zanabo, the city where traders come from all over the Lanexi islands. He also thought of Jerrei and the rumors he heard secondhand from him but that still had the same problem as the first idea. But then he remembered a good story from one of his strange dreams.

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    ¡°This is an old story about the gods.¡± Arnest started to retell the story.

    ¡°When the world of Yzenten was still young and there weren''t any living things yet, there was only the four gods - Navul, Salene, Mantus and Ulrend. The four gods were still children and they had many toys to play with. One of these toys was the Heavenly Sphere.¡±

    The girl was listening but didn''t seem to really care that much. Although she didn''t hear this story before, it was related to the gods of the mainland. Natives of Lanex had their own beliefs and the girl didn''t believe in the fairytales of the invaders.

    ¡°One day they were playing catch with the giant ball. It would shoot across the sky like a fireball and make a loud screeching sound as it whizzed by. Navul tossed the ball to Ulrend. Ulrend to Salene. And then Salene to Mantus. But Mantus dropped it into the Yzenten Grand Ocean, making a huge splash. The Heavenly Sphere caused the earth to shake and tsunamis to drown everything. The only large land mass was now the Heavenly Sphere.¡±

    Still uninterested the girl yawned. ¡°This truly is a story that can make people fall asleep.¡±

    Arnest ignored her and continued. ¡°Mantus started to cry, upset that it was him who dropped and broke the toy. His tears covered the entire world but it didn''t flood it with water. His tears were made of mana and it seeped into everything. Soon the land started to grow green and life was created. We call the first beings, demon.¡±

    ¡°The three other gods noticed the strange creatures and began to play with them. Their new toys entertained them for a while but Navul had an idea. He wanted to have some creatures that looked like him and asked Mantus to make them. Mantus easily agreed, thinking it was a good idea, and created humans. Then the other two wanted the same and in the end, elves and dragons were created.¡±

    The story finished but Arnest did not stop speaking. ¡°I''ve always believed that the first humans originated from the mainland but how does that explain the existence of the natives of Lanex? Since coming to Zanabo and meeting you, I''ve noticed there are definitely clear differences between the two of us. For example you have white hair and red eyes compared to the people who come from the mainland, like me, who have dark hair and brown eyes. Perhaps your ancestry is from a people created in another god''s image besides the four gods of the mainland.¡±

    It was only at this moment did the girl feel intrigued. The story finally peaked her interest when it became related to her heritage. She didn''t feel especially attached to her home but the idea of there being random creatures and possibly different types of humans made her blood boil with excitement. She remembered her mother and thought, "Maybe there''s people like me on another island!"

    ¡°How about the other gods? Did they make their own creatures too? And which god do you think I''m created after?" she asked questions a mile a minute, with an enchanting vigor.

    ¡°That could be. As for whose image you were created in, only the gods truly know.¡± Arnest replied.

    She no longer felt like sleeping and was engrossed in a heated curiousity. The two of them talked about the gods of Lanex and the mainland and the strange creatures they had heard about. The girl spoke with such vigor that her red eyes twinkled and her white hair whipped to and fro.

    One of the suns started to rise early in the morning. The two of them were out of breath now but still had more things they wanted to talk about. But it was already past the time Arnest agreed to keep her company.

    ¡°I have to go now. Maybe we¡¯ll see each other another time.¡± Arnest said as he started to walk away.

    ¡°Wait, don''t go!¡± The girl was unwilling to lose her new source of entertainment.

    Arnest turned around and said "We agreed on midnight. I really must go."

    Disappointed, she looked towards the ground. But then she had an idea and joyously looked up. She started reaching into her cloaks pocket.

    ¡°Take this." She threw the golden medallion she used before.

    "You''ll be able to get into the ninth floor. Come by and tell me another story sometime."

    "I''ll make sure to visit you, Miss...I just realized I don''t know your name."

    "My name is Feliti. And yours?"

    "Arnest. It''s been nice meeting you, Miss Feliti." said Arnest as he started to walk down the corridor towards the stairs.

    Feliti closed the door after Arnest left and jumped onto her bed. She gripped one of her oversized body pillows and fantasized about the world outside of the island city, a possible relationship with a god and lastly her mother. As she was about to fall asleep, dreaming of her mother, she remembered what she wanted to do before bumping into Arnest.

    "I have to go see father!" said Feliti as she ran out of the room.

 Chapter 14 - Master of Masters

    Chapter 14 - Master of Masters

    A large room with a windowed view, overlooking the quiet Malaren Road. It was dark outside but inside were some oil lamps that sat on top of a stack of books, an end table near the door and on a desk in the center of the room. The desk was beautifully crafted, with ornate legs and a painted golden bird engraved on the tabletop. A few elderly men and another, who was perhaps two dozen years younger than them, all sat around the desk.

    "Did you hear that that kid, Helvet, is planning to make his eldest son his heir?" asked one of the elderly men. He wore a tall top hat that had a red ribbon that was threaded through the side brim.

    "I heard, but why does it matter, Grand Master Lovell? The boy has a fine head on his shoulders and makes calm decisions. It should be easy to deal with him in the future." said the man to his right, who looked quite fit and much younger than his actual age.

    "Of course it matters! Whoever he chooses might marry little Soozy! That boy isn''t good enough for her." The man to the left the top hat was clearly upset.

    "Shut up, Olaver. You say there''s no one good enough for her except yourself, you sick old man." said the young old man.

    "You''re damn right! Only I am allowed to marry her!" Olaver proclaimed loudly, trying to convince everyone in the room it was true.

    "Enough. I''ve told you, Grand Master Olaver, to not talk about my daughter and Grand Master Relant is right. Whoever becomes the next Zanako has never affected us. Just let the Aster clan handle their own internal matters." the youngest man in the room said in a commanding voice.

    "Sorry for my outburst, Guild Master." Olaver apologized but seemed resentful, probably because of the fact the Guild Master refused to marry off his youngest daughter to him.

    "The three of you may go now." the guild master said and the three of them bowed and left the room.

    The guild master picked up a stack of papers on his desk, reading them. These were the daily reports that the Merchants Guilds'' Grand Master ranked members would write. Grand Masters of the guild would compile their own information in addition to anything their subordinates found. Information would start from the bottom rank with Apprentices, then Talents, Oranens, Masters, Grand Masters and then finally reach the Guild Master. This system would, in theory, easily collate relevant information so that the guild master had a clear picture of the current situation. And using this information he would be able to make predicted moves ahead of their competitors, ensuring the continued prosperity of the Merchants Guild.

    Suddenly a white haired maiden swung open the door and ran towards the desk, throwing her hands up in the air and slamming them onto the desk. "Illius, I need a few medicinal herbs for my master. Also another one of your badges, I lost mine."

    "Feliti, my dear. You know I''ve asked you to call me father." said the guild master, Illius.

    "If you don''t get me those things I''ll tell my master that you refused to help him, Illius." Feliti said, this time accentuating the fact that she refused to call him father.

    Illius sighed and rummaged through his desk drawers, pulling out a golden medallion which was the same that Feliti had given Arnest. He tossed it to Feliti and said "Take care not to lose this Phoenix Badge. Also you can go get some of our people on the second floor to find the herbs for you."

    "That''ll be all then, good night." Feliti waved condescendingly, with her back turned to her father, as she walked out of the room.

    "What am I going to do with that girl?" Illius said to himself, while going back to reading his documents.

    Outside of the guild, Arnest was starting to return back to his ship when a well dressed young man ran up to him, handing him a parchment envelope. "An invitation from his excellency, Helvet Aster." said the man, before running off.

    There was a red seal of a tortoise that sealed the letter. Arnest broke the seal and removed two pieces of paper.

    "This is an invitation to Second Prince''s celebration banquet. Please present this at the Zanas Mansion docks and you will be ferried across to the event..." The first part of the letter was mostly instructional so Arnest briskly skimmed its contents but on the second paper was a personal message from the city lord.

    "Greetings! I welcome you to come see my favorite sons'' birthday to enjoy some fine wine and exquisite foods. This celebration is going to be especially exciting because I have something important to announce and hope you''ll be there to hear it. My sons'' event has been well anticipated in the past few months so I''m fairly confident you''ll be there. Well, until then!" The message was concise and friendly. It also pretty much confirmed the rumors of the eldest son being named Zanako.

    "It''s good that Talas was able to get me an invitation but it seemed to take longer than I expected. I wonder what took him so long." Arnest stuffed the invitation into one of his pockets and continued back to the ship to practice his mana control.

    A few days passed and the awaited banquet was now today, later in the evening. The city preparations had almost all finished and there was only thing to do now was wait for the festival to start. Plenty of the citizens had already used the excuse of celebration to get ridiculously drunk on the local wine. Rogar, although not a local, also decided to get heavily drunk with Clyde, the former pirate captain, and Halphas, both of whom he goaded into a drinking competition. He also tried to convince Arnest but he remembered the last time he tried some of the ¡°fire water¡±. To avoid the unpleasant experience again, he used the excuse that he had to prepare an outfit for the banquet.

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    But this was a lie and Arnest had already went to a high-end tailor to get an outfit made. He did have noble looking clothes, but he wanted something more special to make an impression at the banquet. He asked the tailor to design something for him that a young magus might wear at the city lord¡¯s mansion. What he got was quite strange. It was a normal tailcoat suit, with a white dress shirt, grey trousers and grey coat. But the tailor attached what looked like a cloaked hood to the top. It was meant to look like a magus¡¯s suit but it¡¯s upper half just looked like one of Arnest¡¯s cheap cloaks he got from Black Fox. Arnest didn¡¯t really understand the look either, but decided to wear it anyway. He just assumed the cloak suit was some sort of fashionable trend in Zanabo and went along with it.

    The other thing he didn¡¯t own but needed was a carriage, something that only the supremely rich had. Making a carriage wasn¡¯t expensive, it was just mainly wood and perhaps some other special materials if you wanted to make it look fancy. But what was impossible to get was the horses to drive the carriage. Horses weren¡¯t indigenous to the Lanexi islands and could only be found on the mainland, Trilantus. There used to be some trade between Trilantus and Lanex but that stopped when the human kingdom, their trading partners, was overtaken by the elves. The only remaining horses were bought countless years ago and the rich fought over them, making the price of these scant amount of horses invaluable. A few islands currently are trying to breed them but the climate is not optimal for them to live long lives, either too hot or too cold.

    So Arnest walked through the streets, like he usually did, but this time in his new cloak suit. A few people stopped and stared at the boy wearing a strange outfit but no one really said anything. Just stopped, pointed maybe and whispered to their friends.

    However the festival was going on at this time and there were a few drunk people on the streets looking for the next drink to sate their parched mouths. When one of these drunkards saw Arnest in his get up they called out ¡°Nicee suuuuit keed. Where¡¯d yah get it?¡±, slurring his words.

    Arnest stopped and looked to the drunkard and replied ¡°I had it custom made. I¡¯m glad you like it.¡± Arnest was being his usual polite self and this was mostly because he didn¡¯t really understand what alcohol did to a person¡¯s mind. He did think the slurring was weird but thought perhaps it was some sort of foreign island¡¯s dialect. Arnest didn¡¯t understand what it meant for a person to be drunk yet. After all, he was still a young twelve year old boy.

    ¡°Well, hiccup, I think I¡¯ll order...one... too?¡± The drunkard was completely disorderly and couldn¡¯t think straight and just walked away.

    ¡°It was a good choice getting this made. I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll grab everyone''s attention!¡± Arnest was feeling pretty self-confident and happy.

    When Arnest finally arrived at the shore closest to the Zanas Mansion, he saw the dock and a large crowd. Most of them were guards and ferryman and the rest were well dressed guests who were there to attend to banquet. Arnest got on line and waited for a while. His gaze was scanning the guards, looking for the guard who harassed him last time but couldn¡¯t find him.

    ¡°Don¡¯t think I¡¯ve forgotten you yet.¡± Arnest cursed the guard under his breath.

    One of the guards noticed Arnest¡¯s angry face and mutterings. He approached Arnest and asked, ¡°Sir, is something wrong?¡±

    Arnest¡¯s face quickly switched from anger to a pleased smile and he replied ¡°Everything is fine. I just was thinking about something.¡±

    ¡°Oh, okay then. Don¡¯t hesitate to ask if you need something.¡±

    ¡°Will do.¡±

    Arnest eventually reached the end of the line and was led to a small boat that was upholstered with comfy cushioned seats. It was dark outside so there was an oil lamp that hung from a wooden handle at the ship''s¡¯ front. Arnest was by himself so he sat alone with the ferryman who rowed him towards the mansion.

    When approaching the Zanas Mansion he was able to get a better look than the day he just saw from the shore. Arnest noticed that unlike the buildings in the rest of Zanabo, which were made of cemented seashells, it was made entirely of huge blocks of marble. It was smooth to the surface and there were no hard edges. The builders had carved out these large marble slabs into rounded corners to give the mansion the look of being slightly wavy and rounded. There was only one rigidly straight part of the mansion, which was a tower that shot up from the center towards the sky.

    There were also more unique features to the mansion. There was no shore at the small island that the mansion sat on but rather a dry dock extended around a wide staircase. Some of the boats were already docked while the ferrymen lead guests by the hand and up the stairs. On the top of the staircase was Zanas Mansion, guarded by an also marbled facade. Even the door was made out of marble but was pushed out so that people could enter. Usually the marble door is slid into place, becoming another block of the mansion and making the entrance seemingly invisible from the outside.

    ¡°Hello my apprentice!¡± a white robed man called out from the other side when Arnest was docking.

    Arnest turned to his right side and saw Whitebeard waving at him. ¡°Good evening, master.¡± Arnest said respectfully back, also waving.

    ¡°This way, sir.¡± the ferryman said, leading Arnest by the hand into the mansion. Arnest nodded while feeling slightly nervous. The scene was reminiscent of a child being taken to their first day of primary school.

    ¡°I hope everything works out.¡± Arnest said to himself as he walked into the marble mansion.

 Chapter 15 - First Declaration

    Chapter 15 - First Declaration

    At the entrance a small line was formed and each person had their name and titles announced the by the greeter. Arnest filled in behind an elderly man who wore a suit and top hat, with his feeble shaking arm linked with a much younger womans. Whitebeard who had finished talking to fellow guild members, specifically fellow Oranens, made his way next to Arnest.

    ¡°How about we enter together?¡± Whitebeard said, eyeing Arnest¡¯s new outfit.

    ¡°Sounds like a good idea.¡± Arnest replied.

    ¡°Introducing Talent Jules Hornery of the Merchants Guild and his wife, Valerie Calet.¡± the greeter said as the mismatched couple walked through the door.

    Some people near the entrance turned their heads to see the two but most just turned back to whoever they were talking to and continued their talks. Apparently the Talent Jules Hornery and his wife were not big figures amongst Zanabo¡¯s social circles.

    Once they made their way onto the velvet carpet entrance, they saw a large entrance room. Long tables were set up in the center of the room that stretched from the front all the way to the back. There was platters topped with towers of food, waiters carrying around pristine glasses of wine and beautiful scenic pictures on the marble walls. People were crowded together in different groups, mainly composed of the four major powers of Zanabo - Aster clan of Zanabo, representatives from Ralom and Crul and finally the Merchants Guild.

    The Aster clan and Merchants Guild were the largest groups present and they took up much of the left side while those from Ralom and Crul sat split from each other, on the right side. The Aster clan in particular wore simple clothing and shell necklaces which sparkled under the intense radiant light from the center of the room, which seemed to be produced with magic. Most of the Merchants Guild wore suits with top hats, like the elderly man he saw earlier who was a Talent rank of the guild. People of Ralom were dressed like soldiers, clad in gleaming armor while the people of Crul were dressed like typical nobles. Those who were not part of the four main groups just sat, sparesly alone, at random spots of the banquet table, usually further near the entrance. The end table was reserved mainly for the city lord and high officials of the Aster clan and Merchants Guild.

    The greeter announced, ¡°Introducing Oranen Magus Whitebeard and his Apprentice, Arnest.¡±

    Like before with the couple, a few people from the entrance turned and stared at the two newcomers. Once hearing ¡°Oranen¡±, people from the middle also turned to see who it was. But once they looked, it wasn¡¯t Whitebeard they took notice of but mainly Arnest.

    ¡°What strange clothes are those?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen such a peculiar outfit in Zanabo. Is this a new trend amongst magi?¡±

    ¡°It looks like a botched suit with a cloak attached, trying to cover up a tear.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re an idiot. I saw the famous tailor, Crocker Lewink, stitching it when I went to go see him last week. If he made this suit then it definitely can be considered a work of art, if not a small fortune.¡±

    The onlookers all murmured in hushed voices. They wondered who the apprentice was but not because of his status. An Apprentice rank in the Merchants Guild could be aquired by anyone who was taken in by a Talent rank or higher. In the case of being apprenticed to an Oranen, the chances of that person just being apprenticed to be a helper or free slave was more likely than the apprentice being another magi. But what intrigued the people was the clothes he was wearing. It was beyond strange but still seemed to be a foreign noble outfit. Perhaps it symbolized another new rising power or the fact that this young boy was indeed, a magi. If either of these were true, it would make sense to try and at least strike up a conversation and maybe create a relationship at the very least.

    But before anyone could make a move, Whitebeard quickly pulled Arnest towards the Merchants Guild group towards the left side of the room. When the Merchants Guild members saw Whitebeard, they were all smiles. Whitebeard has been with the guild for decades now and contributed a lot towards the guild. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that Oranens couldn¡¯t rank up to a Master or higher, he probably could¡¯ve at least reached Master rank and maybe even Grand Master status. Everyone in the guild respected Whitebeard for his dedication to the guild and many youths in it looked up to him as a role model.

    ¡°Have you met the Patriarchs of the Hornery and Calet clans yet, Arnest?¡± Whitebeard asked, gesturing towards two elderly men.

    ¡°Hello Apprentice Arnest, I am Patriarch Glade of the Calet clan.¡± said one of the elderly men, who had a crooked nose.

    ¡°Why are you being so formal, Talent Glade?¡± the other man slapped Glade¡¯s back and said, ¡°I¡¯m Master Julas but most people just call me Julas. Only the people of my family call me Patriarch.¡±

    ¡°The pleasure is all mine, Patriarch Glade and Master Julas.¡± Arnest said, deeply bowing with one hand bent on his back and another bent on his front.

    ¡°If I¡¯m not mistaken, you¡¯re related to Talent Jules who entered before us, right?¡± Arnest asked the Hornery Patriarch.

    ¡°Yes, you¡¯re correct! Not many people know but he¡¯s a cousin on my late father''s¡¯ side. Quite perceptive for a youth.¡± Julas said while clasping his hands together.

    Julas turned towards Whitebeard and asked ¡°Where did you find such an interesting talent, Magus Whitebeard?¡±

    ¡°Actually, he came and found me at the guild headquarters.¡± he replied honestly.

    ¡°Oh really? Quite mysterious.¡± said Glade.

    The other higher ranked members of the guild were quietly listening in to figure out what kind of apprentice the esteemed magus would take in. It seemed like his strange clothing indicated some sort of backing. The boy knew at least some information on a minor clan of the Merchants Guild, so what kind of information did he have on the larger ones? That, coupled with the strange clothing all indicated a larger backing than they initially imagined. The boy surely couldn¡¯t be so simple.

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    Arnest and some other guild members all chatted for a while, drinking fine wines and eating good food, just like the invitation promised. The banquet was quite relaxed, there was no merry drinking that would happen out on the streets but a more refined dinner party feel. There was mainly gossip going around. The main topic was, of course, the second son being named Zanako.

    Everyone knew the first son died at a very young age due to a disease. It wasn¡¯t a secret that a lot of time, effort and money was spent on the first son to become the next Zanako. So much so that many people of the Aster clan mourned the death mainly due to the sacrifices they made for him that resulted in such a pitiful end.

    Because soon after his death, the second son was born, the city lord gave him the same name as the deceased child, Kamu. Kamu was also the name of the first hero of Zanabo, who founded the city. Ever since then the expectations the city lord had for his second son was the same a noble father would place on his first born, but taken up a few notches to the extreme.

    From a young age, the city lord hired the brightest and best minds to teach the young lord. It didn¡¯t matter what their backgrounds were, it only mattered how proficient they were in their craft. This was one of the reasons why the Merchants Guild continued to partner with the Aster clan. Most of the experts that were hired were done so through the guild. The business between themselves and the Aster clan resulted in enormous profits and cost them very little, just the time of some Masters and Grand Masters of the guild. This type of training could be comparable to one a prince of a small nation would undergo.

    It had been a long time since Kamu was seen in public since he was so busy being groomed to be the next Zanako. Kamu is considered the second true hero of the Aster clan. The first hero they refer to is the founder but most of the elders think of him as the replacement son for the first son they all felt they had so tragically lost.

    Today was going to be the first time anyone outside of the Aster clan and Merchants Guild has seen the boy since he was fourteen, at least not since his coming of age ceremony. Back then he looked much more aged and serious compared to other typical children of the same age. Instead of being elated at the celebration, he had cold dark eyes. Six years had passed and today he would be twenty. Everyone expected him to be even more cold and possibly have an even more intense darker personality. No one could underestimate the result of the training backed by a great clan such as the Asters.

    ¡°Introducing the city lord, Helvet Aster and his sons, Kamu and Talas!¡± The announcer at the front door yelled the loudest he had done the entire night.

    Now everyone turned towards the front and saw a fifty something year old man, dressed like a king, walking down the steps. To his right was a rigid man, brooding dark eyes with even darker hair. His back was erect as he walked down the steps and almost seemed mechanical when he took each step. To the left of the city lord was Talas, with greased disheveled black hair and a slightly slumped walk.

    ¡°So that must be the competition. I¡¯ve heard that he was a bit somber than most but I didn¡¯t expect him to be so serious. I have to be a little more careful.¡± Arnest thought to himself.

    The contrast between the two candidates was too big. If you had to choose who to back, the diligent Kamu or the laid back Talas, most people would choose Kamu even despite his dark demeanor. He had the entire backing of a great clan and was groomed to be a natural born leader. What did Talas have? All he did was go play in the city using his family¡¯s name at the gambling tables and fighting pits.

    Talas saw Arnest at a distance due to his clothing and just nodded. Arnest also nodded back, acknowledging him. This would be the night they would put their plan into motion. If everything went well, then the two of them would be kings in Zanabo. If it failed, Arnest would most likely end up in the dungeons and his head separated from his neck within a week''s time.

    The city lord pulled out a magical device out of his pocket. It was a about a fist¡¯s sized sphere and he spoke into it. ¡°Everyone! Welcome to Kamu¡¯s birthday banquet! I hope you all didn¡¯t wait too long. Let¡¯s all take a seat and I¡¯ll announce the important news.¡± the city lord¡¯s voice bellowed out with the help of the device.

    Helvet Aster made his way to the far end of the table, towards the back. Kamu and Talas followed, sitting on either side of him while the other guests all took a seat at their respective spots decided by hierarchy. Due to Whitebeard¡¯s status, Arnest was able to sit with him between the middle and end of the table so he was able to clearly see the city lord.

    Kamu and Talas took a seat while the city lord still stood and placed the magical device to his mouth again. ¡°I, Helvet Aster, Patriarch of the Aster clan and Zanako of Zanabo declare that Kamu Aster is to be my heir and the next Zanako!¡±

    An applause rang out throughout the banquet hall and almost everyone was all smiles. The city lord had the biggest grin as he loudly applauded himself and his son. Kamu still had a serious face while Talas just smiled and lifted his glass towards his older brother.

    ¡°Congratulations, older brother!¡± Talas said.

    Kamu just looked at Talas, unmoving, and said ¡°It was inevitable that I would be named the Zanako.¡±

    Talas¡¯s smile cracked a little but tried to keep up the facade. ¡°It doesn¡¯t mean we can¡¯t celebrate it, brother.¡± he said as he drank his wine.

    Further down the table where Arnest and Whitebeard were sitting.

    ¡°Arnest, I¡¯ve set up a meeting between you and the guild leader later this evening after the party. Are you sure you want to do this?¡± Whitebeard asked with a solemn tone

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m sure. Thanks for everything, Whitebeard.¡± Arnest before he grabbed a chicken drumstick and took a bite.

    ¡°Why do rich people not fully cook their meat?¡± Arnest asked, staring at the white meat.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Whitebeard asked, confused.

    ¡°Back on the island, my grandfather would cook the meat until it was fully cooked black. The food here looks and tastes raw.¡±

    Whitebeard sighed and said ¡°I have to teach you a lot more than just about magic, it seems.¡±

 Chapter 16 - Second and Third Declarations

    Chapter 16 - Second and Third Declarations

    Whitebeard tried to convince Arnest that the meat was properly cooked and that his grandfather had overcooked his food. But Arnest couldn''t really bring himself to think poorly of his grandfather and denied Whitebeard''s words, saying that Black Fox was a master at grilling meats. The two of them bickered over the mundane topic.

    While the two of them were arguing over how the chicken should''ve been cooked, Kamu, who had been silent for most of the evening, rose out of his seat in the middle of his father speaking, who was just saying some more flowery words.

    "I would like to also announce something." he said with his usual monotone voice.

    "Since I''ve been named the next Zanako, I would like to inform you that as I begin to take my father''s position, things will start to change here in Zanabo."

    All the guests were now staring at Kamu. Especially the guild leader of the Merchants Guild and his three advisors. Changes? The only thing they could think about was the recent changes in the import taxes placed on traders. Although this had negatively affected some of their business, the Merchants Guild was still prosperous. But if these "changes" Kamu spoke of were even harsher import taxes or maybe internal taxes on the citizens themselves, the Merchants Guild would surely be negatively affected.

    "The first change is going to be a cleansing of Zanabo." Kamu raised his right hand and a few servants started blowing into shell horns.

    A deep toned horn sounded out and numerous mercenary soldiers stormed into the banquet hall. They surrounded the right side of the table, around the representatives of the two great cities of Ralom and Crul. Those from Ralom drew their weapons as well since they were in full armaments but the people from Crul just stared nervously at them. The air in the room became still, tense like a stretched out taut wire.

    "Everyone who comes from Ralom and Crul are no longer welcome in my city. Our men will escort you to ships and you will all have to leave immediately." As he said this, soldiers started to grab onto the representatives.

    One of the representatives from Ralom, who wore a huge feathered helmet, yelled out "How dare you treat us like this. I don''t care if you''re the next Zanako or god, once I tell my king what you''ve done here you will rue your actions today!"

    Kamu just coldly stared at the man and said, "I forgot to mention. I''m also declaring martial law here in Zanabo. Anyone who speaks out against me will be killed on the spot."

    Immediately as Kamu announced this, Zanabonian soldiers shot a dozen arrows at the Raloman man and a few pierced his neck and the rest into his back. The porcupined man fell to the ground and a pool of blood spurted out around him as he shook. After a few moments he stilled.

    "General!" the Raloman soldiers all shouted.

    Those closest to the fallen general ran up and kneeled by his side, trying to stop the bleeding. One of them pulled out the arrows at the neck and even more blood shot out like a fountain. These men were covered in red as they tried to help him but it was all for naught. The general was already long dead.

    All the other Raloman soldiers charged in an enraged fury at the Zanabonians, slashing their way to try to reach Kamu. "An eye for an eye! A general for a general!" they screamed.

    "Kill them all." Kamu said with an indifference that shocked the entire room.

    Even more Zanabonian soldiers rushed in to reinforced the defense between Kamu and the Ralom soldiers. Seeing this, the representatives from Crul all backed away towards the entrance and were ignored.

    The Ralom soldiers fought with all their might, displaying all their practiced skills to the best of their abilities, but their numbers were too little. Within a few bouts the charging Ralomans were starting to be pushed back towards the banquet table, forming a semicircle. Slowly they were easily killed, scrunched up together until they were unable to fully swing their swords. With nowhere else to go some of the soldiers on the losing side started to jump onto the table to tryto escape the encirclement and attack from the left side, but this was anticipated by their enemies. Archers in the back raised their bows and fired. A flurry of arrows rained down onto these routed men and the table was covered in arrows and bodies.

    This fight continued on for a short while until all the people from Ralom were either heavily wounded on the ground or already dead. The stink of blood and the dead filled the room, ruining any appetite one may have had prior to the fighting. At first everyone stared at the fallen men, some weak willed nobles violently vomited at the sight. Even the people from the Merchants Guild looked ghastly, the guild leader with an ashen face. He was staring at Kamu, appalled by this display of dominance.

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    Kamu ignored the stares and walked slowly towards the defeated Ralomans.

    "Please... spare me..." cried a young Ralom soldier who was covered in his own blood.

    "If I allowed you to live, I''m sure you would come back to try and kill me. And if not you, your sons. And not if your sons, your sons'' sons." Kamu said as he pulled out a long dagger from his waist.

    "In order to stop this cycle, you must die here today." Kamu drove his dagger down and through the wounded soldiers heart.

    Kamu looked towards his men and said "What are you waiting for? I''ve already said to kill everyone who defies me."

    There were men among the Zanabo mercenary group that were wavering. For some of them this was their first time in true combat, that resulted in so many casualties. For others, they were from Ralom and trained to be mercenaries. Now they were killing their own kin. But their leader had ordered them and one of the codes of ethics a mercenary had to follow was "Your master is god." And so, although they didn''t all agree with the order, they followed it anyways. Soon none of the Ralom representatives lived.

    The people from Crul all were shaking in fear. The head ambassador of the group nervously said "Righteous Zanako, we are willing to go back to our home city. Please spare us."

    Kamu wiped the blood off his dagger with the tablecloth and looked at the Cruls. "As I said before, my men will escort you all to the harbor so you can leave. Your belongings and assets have all been packed already. You may leave now."

    "Many thanks, kind Zanako." the ambassador said as he started motioning for his people to leave.

    The Cruls were herded out of the mansion by some of the Zanabonian soldiers. The only people who remained in the banquet hall were those from the Merchants Guild and Aster clan.

    Fear and disgust were on the faces of those from the Merchants Guild while the Aster clan seemed calm and collected. The Aster clansmen all devoutly believed in their next Zanako and didn''t even question the reasons for committing such an atrocity.

    "This banquet hall is a little too big for just the rest of us. How about we move further into the mansion towards the garden and continue there?" the city lord asked, still smiling. He had been smiling since the very beginning and continued to do so even in the midst of the wanton slaughter.

    "Thank you for the invitation but it is getting fairly late. My Merchants Guild must start preparing for trading in the early morning so we must go. I hope you won''t mind." the guild leader said calmly but still had a white face.

    "Don''t be in such a hurry to leave. We still have more to discuss now that the Ralomans and Cruls have been expelled. And-" the city lord continued to talk but Kamu interrupted.

    "It''s okay father. The Merchants Guild is truly busy, but I''m sure they''ll make some time to talk soon. You all may go."

    "Ah, yes. You''re completely right. We can meet another time, Illius." Helvet, the city lord, agreed.

    "Yes, of course. We will meet another time." the guild leader, Illius, said while this time eking out a small smile.

    "Let''s go." Whitebeard said, pulling Arnest by the arm.

    The guild members made their way to the exit and walked out carefully, making sure not to step over any of the dead. Doing so was considered a type of bad luck. There was a superstition that the souls of freshly killed people lingered near their bodies and if you were close to one, the soul could overtake your body and shatter your own soul.

    As Illius was about to leave, Kamu called out "I hope you won''t forget what I''ve said tonight. Defy me and there will be consequences."

    "I wouldn''t dream of doing so, my future Zanako." Illius said respectfully and quickly walked outside.

    The boat ride back to the city''s shore was gloomy. The night made the atmosphere feel even more ominous than it already was. Arnest and Whitebeard sat in a boat together, speaking in hushed voices so the ferryman couldn''t hear.

    "Are you still sure you want to do this? You just saw what he just did. Kamu is dangerous." Whitebeard whispered.

    "If anything, this is a perfect time to act. For some reason he''s distancing himself from the other great cities and even the Merchants Guild. I have to take advantage of this situation." Arnest said in an excited tone.

    "If you fail, you must promise me you''ll run away. The Merchants Guild cannot protect you now. You saw how the guild leader acted. The guild won''t act until they''re certain of victory."

    "That''s fine. Although I wasn''t expecting this, I''ve already have an idea of what to do."

    The boat arrived at the shore and the master and his pupil said their goodbyes. Whitebeard headed back towards his residence, which was a small boat house on the harbor, and Arnest walked towards Malaren Road, where the Merchants Guild headquarters was located.

    "Time to meet the guild leader.¡± Arnest said to himself before stepping into the Merchants Guild.

 Chapter 17 - Phoenix Badge

    Chapter 17 - Phoenix Badge

    Arnest arrived at the Merchants Guild headquarters at the dead of night. The festival celebrating the next Zanako and his twentieth birthday was still being joyously held throughout the city. However on Malaren Road, it was silent. Not even the crickets chirped or the bullfrogs croaked. News of what happened at the Zanas Mansion spread quickly to all members of the guild.

    They all feared for their lives or the lives of their friends. The Merchants Guild, allied themselves mainly with the Aster clan over the past years, but they also maintained friendly relations with the other two great cities. There was also people who originated from Ralom and Crul who were members of the Merchants Guild. It was unsure whether they would be able to stay within Zanabo or would also be expelled from the city.

    For the past hundred years, the guild maintained the balance between the three great powers for the longest time, at least until tonight. It was clear the balance was broken by Kamu and that no longer could they all remain neutrally peaceful. Sides were going to have to be taken and guild members didn''t know whether they were still allied with Zanabo or they would switch allegiances to Ralom and Crul. Either side, it was at least certain that Ralom and Zanabo would be at war now since all the Raloman representatives were killed. News of this massacre would easily spread since the Cruls were allowed to leave.

    The guild leader sat at his desk, with his head buried in his hands, contemplating the recent events. "Who taught Kamu to do this? I carefully instructed all his teachers not indulge his dark mind. This clearly is the method of a ruthless ruler." he thought to himself.

    "The Ralomans and Cruls never would''ve allowed Kamu to be taught such methods...Did he come up with it himself? Or maybe he has another teacher we don''t know about?" Illius''s mind jumped around, trying to figure out the cause of everything that happened. But before he could fully explore his thoughts, a servant hurriedly entered the room.

    "Who is it?" Illius asked in an annoyed tone.

    "Master, a boy has come to see you." the servant quickly replied.

    "A boy?"

    "Yes, he carries a Phoenix Badge."

    "I don''t remember giving a boy a badge. Maybe someone''s son?" he muttered but continued to order out loud, "Send the boy in."

    Arnest walked into the room and the guild leader took a moment to recognize him. "You are Arnest, right? Whitebeard''s apprentice?"

    "That''s right, I am Arnest."

    "I do remember Whitebeard setting up an appointment but he didn''t say only his apprentice would be arriving. Also I heard that you are carrying a Phoenix Badge, may I see it?"

    Arnest paused for a moment, trying to figure out what a "Phoenix Badge" was. He remembered the golden medallion of a bird that Feliti had given him and pulled it out. "Is this it?"

    Illius reached out to hold the badge and carefully looked it over. He then was dazed in disbelief. "Did Feliti give you this badge?" he asked.

    "Yes, Feliti gave it to me so I could enter the ninth floor to meet her again and tell her some stories."

    "That girl actually wanted to meet with the same person again? And that person is a boy?" Illius inwardly thought and was appalled.

    He knew Feliti''s temperament. Feliti grew up being attacked for her appearance. Anything that didn¡¯t conform to the norms in Lanex usually was shunned. Having white hair and red eyes made one look more like a demon rather than human. Even Illius did nothing to stop it due to pressure from his advisors. This childhood trauma caused her to become reclusive, unwilling to go outside or talk with anyone.

    It wasn''t until she met her current master that she became a little more outgoing and willing to talk to a few people. Feliti only spoke a few words with himself and he was his father. Illius imagined that the only person she truly communicated with was her mysterious and powerful master. But she gave a badge to an apprentice of the guild. The boy also claimed that Feliti wanted to see him again to hear some of his stories.

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    Illius momentarily forgot all about tonight and focused solely on the boy in front of him. "You may call me Illius. A friend of my daughter is a friend of mine."

    "Feliti is your daughter?" Arnest asked, surprised.

    "She is my daughter, but probably did not tell you. She can be a little shy about matters like these.¡±

    "But you look nothing alike." Arnest wanted to say, but only thought it to himself.

    "So what is that you wanted to meet with me for?"

    "I wanted to talk about the guilds relationship with the Aster clan."

    Illius frowned. He suddenly remembered the grave situation they were in and in the back of his mind, he truly didn''t want to discuss it with this boy who was only an apprentice. He wished his advisors were here so they could try to figure out a solution together because he was at an impasse. But right now all he had was this boy in front of him.

    "After tonight, you should realize that having Kamu in power would be detrimental to the guild. Without Ralom and Crul trading at Zanabo, profits will drastically plummet. Additionally Kamu seems to be hell bent on making himself the strongest power in Zanabo. How long will you wait for Kamu to eventually decide there should only be one power in Zanabo and also expel your Merchants Guild?" Arnest pointed out the main fear Illius felt in just a few breaths.

    Illius sat thinking for a while until finally responding. "There are many things that make up the sea. There are fish, coral reefs, water, men and their ships, but there are also monsters. Monsters that can sink ships with a single whip of their tails or monsters that hunt men for fun in the cities. They are like forces of nature, a typhoon that destroys everything. It cannot be stopped or prevented." said Illius.

    "Kamu is a monster. But he is just one of them. Ralom, Crul and the guild have their own monsters but I''m unsure which are stronger. Whether or not our phoenix can win against the tortoise depends on mainly luck. But like a phoenix, the guild will never truly die. We will weather this storm and rebuild anew once it passes."

    "I know you want me to fight against the Asters and that Kamu, but the guild will not directly fight with them.¡±

    Arnest smiled. "That''s all I wanted. I know the guild is powerful but the Aster clan has been amassing a lot more money recently with their new taxes. It''s obvious that they''ve been preparing for today but what exactly they''ll use the money for is still a mystery for me. To fight them head on without knowing anything would be foolish."

    "For now, I hope the guild will remain as neutral as possible. But remember that it only take a single hero to take down a vicious monster."

    "No wonder Feliti likes this boy. He seems fairly bright and confident for someone so young." Illius thought to himself.

    "So what do you get out of opposing the Aster clan?" Illius asked.

    "Simple. I want to make the third son, Talas, the next Zanako." Arnest said without hesitation.

    Illius was taken aback. He was unused to people, especially new members of the guild, to be so forthright and honest. Usually those who joined the guild were doing so out of self interest but hide their true intentions. That''s why new members are usually treated initially as outsiders however what made Illius treat Arnest so seriously was the fact that he was close to Feliti. Someone Feliti trusted with the Phoenix Badge definitely wasn''t two-faced because someone who lied to her or treated her poorly wouldn''t have gained her favor. Feliti was the kind of person to repay double what she got, whether it was bad or good.

    "Why are you being so honest?"

    "Well, if you do tell Kamu, I''ll just tell him while he interrogates me that you''re the one who actually intends to make Talas the Zanako. Once he hears that, whether or not he believes me, he''ll never trust you and probably find a way to kill you."

    "Manipulative brat. No wonder Feliti likes you so much, the two of you are very much alike." Illius cursed under his breath.

    "If that''s all you wanted to talk about, you can leave now." Illius said.

    "Thank you for meeting with me." said Arnest as he walked out the door.

    "That went well.¡± Arnest breathed a sigh of relief to find that the guild master was more reasonable than he imagined.

    "Now then, I think it''s time to leave Zanabo."

 Chapter 18 - Calm Waters

    Chapter 18 - Calm Waters

    "I''ll entrust the rest to you then, Jerrei."

    "You can count on me." Jerrei thumped his chest with a fist, resembling a salute.

    Arnest waved as the ship started to depart from the dock. Jerrei and the children of Cirqa Efatos waved back. They were all smiles. Even though it had been a short while, their new benefactor had truly treated them well. Whenever Arnest would see the children out on the streets, he would spend some time with them. He would buy them toys, food or just simply play a children''s game because that¡¯s what young kids do.

    By now Arnest knew all their names. Shorty, the leader of the bunch. Errard, a slave yet bright enough to organize the children. Yanon, the boy who could never eat enough. Kela and Sela, the two twins. Gilly, the tall and energetic girl. He could continue listing more of the forty four names but these six were the most well-known and befriended in the circus.

    "When you come back, make sure to buy me some kebabs!" Yanon yelled out.

    "For me too!" Kela yelled.

    "And don''t forget about me!" Then Sela too.

    The children all started shouting demands for Arnest to complete when he returned. But soon enough the ship was already out into the harbor, approaching the huge shelled gateway, too far away to hear them anymore. The only thing that could be heard was the wind rushing into the sails, grunting of men rowing and the sloshing sound oars on water makes.

    "Make sure to turn south east once we exit the city walls." a well dressed man said to one of Arnest''s soldiers steering.

    "Aye, Mr. Navigator."

    "I''ve already told you. Call me Sir Ruk." the well dressed man snapped at the soldier.

    Sir Ruk was a self-made title. No one really knew his origins so whether his title as a knight or name was truly his were all unknown. The only thing they did know is that the man is renowned for being a navigator, his fame being known throughout the three great cities and some of the bigger Lanexi islands.

    Arnest was looking for navigators prior to leaving but was unable to find someone reliable. He was about to just set sail without one but Talas had met Sir Ruk by chance that very day. He told Arnest, they set up a meeting and the famous navigator easily agreed to come along. Arnest didn''t even offer any money and just said he was planning on heading to Ralom and he readily agreed. Although this was strange, Arnest just went along with it because the prospect of having a good navigator in unfamiliar waters was too good to pass on.

    Along with the new navigator, the former khopesh pirates, the men from Fox Village and the hundred elven soldiers were the only forces he took along with him. He had Clyde, the leader of the former pirates, and Halphas stay at Zanabo. The two of them were to watch over and protect Cirqa Efatos while they continued to collect information. As for the people from Heaven''s Isle, like Rogar and Tanya, they stayed in the city to finish selling all the herbs.

    He went to check up on all his men before retiring at the captain''s quarters. Arnest sat on his bed and started practicing his mana control as he would do whenever he had time. It would begin with activating one of his spells, usually [Shadow Step]. Then he would adjust the mana flow, constricting and expanding, with an extreme precision. If you asked him to fill a container halfway with mana, he would''ve been able to do it before learning under Whitebeard. But if you now asked him to fill it up only an ounce and then shape it into a bird, he would now be able to do so perfectly.

    "According to Whitebeard, practicing mana control will cause my mana channels to grow. I feel that it''s at least doubled in size and at most tripled since I started training."

    "It''s much easier to activate spells now compared to when I first learned magic from that book grandfather gave me..." Arnest then thought of the book again.

    "I wonder if there''s something written on the next page now." he reached into his pocket for the leather bound book.

    He had kept it on his person the entire time because it was a gift from his grandfather. If he lost it, he believed he would be severely punished. The last time he lost something his grandfather gave him was a wooden training sword. Arnest had just finished a sparring session with Vargus and went to the beach to relax. It was the afternoon and there was a cool breeze coming off the ocean. He laid down on the cool beach and left his sword next to him. Easily, he fell asleep and when he awoke, half of his body was being submerged by the incoming tide. The sword was gone. It had disappeared due to the rising tide and Arnest swam out, looking for it. However he was unable to find it and by the time he got home and told his grandfather what had happened, Black Fox made him walk across a bed of scalding hot stones.

    That was the punishment for just losing a regular wooden sword. What would happen if he lost a magical book that taught magic spells? Arnest shuddered thinking of the unimaginable pain he''d have to undergo if he lost it but had a sigh of relief when he felt the magic book in his hands.

    Pulling out the book Arnest opened the book. The first page still read "Magus Talent: Navulian High Grade. Attribute: Darkness." The next page was the text and diagrams explaining [Shadow Step]. Arnest turned to the next page and saw a new text and diagram. The page was titled [Shadow Bow].

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    "Oh, so it shows spells that I''ve learned? Even if it''s not a spell that the book taught me."

    Arnest then flipped to the next page.

    "[Dark Mind]"

    The page was titled a new spell but it didn''t have any diagrams. All it had was a single sentence.

    "All I see is darkness." Arnest said the chant out loud.

    Suddenly his vision went black and his body fell lifelessly onto the bed like a ragdoll. This reaction was similar to when the book had absorbed all of his mana however this time was different. His mana had entirely left his body but he still had his consciousness. He was able to sense everything outside of him in an ethereal mana body.

    Arnest floated towards the door while his physical body laid on the bed. He phased through the door like a ghost and could see the soldiers running around the deck and rowing the ship. He reached out to one of the men and his hand phased into him. The soldier stopped running and stood still.

    Images flashed inside Arnest''s head. He was on farmland that had wheat growing in all directions. A small cottage on a hill in front of him, he started flying fast towards it. Inside the cottage was not a peaceful scene but a family, massacred. A woman was strewn across the wall, swords pierced into her limbs which held her up. Two children lay on the ground, bloody and dead. And the man who Arnest had touched walked into frame, crying.

    Then suddenly Arnest was brought back to reality. The soldier now was on his knees crying on the deck. Other soldiers stopped and stared and one of them tried to help the crying man up.

    "What did I just see? Was it real or just a dream?" Arnest thought to himself.

    Arnest could feel his ethereal body growing smaller and starting to dim. His mana was running out. He quickly ran back towards his body, phasing through the wall and touched himself. The mana body and physical body merged together and became one.

    For a while Arnest remained still, unable to move. He was conscious but it still felt like an out of body experience, seeing himself from a third person view. Eventually his mind wavered and all he saw was black again. Then he opened his eyes.

    His eyes were wet, tears slowly dripping down. He felt a sort of mystical empathy, almost as if he felt what the soldier felt. This feeling wasn''t there when he first saw the images, where he felt more removed. Usually such a scene would distress him but his senses were not all transferred from his physical to mana body. While in that ethereal state, he could only feel the mana in other things which slightly repulsed him.

    He wiped his eyes with his shirt and looked towards the book that had dropped to floor when Arnest activated the spell. He turned to the page and it still said the same thing, just [Dark Mind] and the chant that activates the spell.

    "I''ll try asking Whitebeard later about this spell. Maybe he knows what it does."

    Arnest walked outside of his room and saw the soldier still crying and now surrounded by worried others. He walked up to the man and touched him. The soldier stopped crying and stared at Arnest for a long time, without blinking and fully focused on him. He started to scream as loud as he could with random nonsense. It seemed like the man had gone crazed with grief.

    "Take him to his bunk to rest. He seems very tired." Arnest ordered and two other soldiers carried him down below deck.

    "I should be more careful when using spells I don''t yet understand.¡± He understood now that spells were more mystical than just a weapon or tool. This new spell had something to do with the mind and negatively affected one of his men. He felt horrible that he essentially crippled him but perhaps if he continued to practice the spell, he could learn how to revert his crazed mind back to normal.

    The voyage continued on fairly uneventful after this. Seagulls who were migrating flew by overhead. Men chatted with each other and played card games to pass the time. The waters were calm and the only big waves that were made was caused by the ship propelling forward. Sir Ruk was sleeping at the top of the deck near the [steering oar/rutter] since the trip was fairly simple from this point forward.

    But of course things are never truly that simple. Lurking under the waters a huge dark mass was slowly floating towards the surface. One of the men who drank too much was leaning over the side of the boat preparing to relieve his bowels of its contents. Drunk but still conscious he noticed the dark mass.

    "What is that?"

    The dark mass suddenly exited the calm waters and flew into the air. It''s size was huge and was shaped like a whale but its opened mouth showed rows of jagged teeth. The soldier realized that they were in peril and yelled "MONSTER!"

    Sir Ruk was awoken by the scream and the soldiers who were playing their card games looked towards the direction where the scream came from and saw the hump of the monster. They ran towards the deck side and saw its mouth with gleaming teeth and the monster roared. This startled the men and they were knocked onto their backs as they crawled backwards. Marcus, the officer of the elven soldiers, and some others had heard the scream and ran up to see what was going on. They saw the cowering men and the monster.

    Marcus yelled "Alert the others! Prepare for battle!"

 Chapter 19 - Storms Eye

    Chapter 19 - Storm''s Eye

    The soldiers that were below deck all sprang into action. They all moved to climb the ladder but it only allowed a single person to go up at a time. When the first person got up to the top, they froze when they saw the giant monster. Those below waited for a while but started to grow impatient.

    "Move!" the soldier on the ladder yelled as he shoved the first man forward.

    But he soon stopped moving when he too, saw the monster. The monster roared a second time and the air started to get humid. Ocean water started to evaporate before their eyes and a swirl of grey clouds appeared above the ship. The clouds kept spiraling and eventually formed a giant cyclone with the monster and ship at the center. Gusting gales caused giant waves that tilted and spun the boat around and round.

    The men started to move up the ladder a bit quicker but there was always a pause, a moment of fear that overtook them. This monster looked quite normal but it had the ability to cause a powerful storm. Marcus''s face was pale because he knew they were trapped. The only way out was to fight the monster and defeat it, otherwise who knew how long the storm could keep going and whether or not the monster wasn''t able to just ram the ship until it sank.

    "Prepare your bows and get ready to fire onto the monster!" Marcus shouted.

    Sir Ruk jumped to the opposite side of the ship and was trying to lower an escape vessel for himself. A soldier ran up to him and grabbed him by his arm. "Sir Ruk, you cannot go! It''s too dangerous to leave the ship!"

    Sir Ruk shook the soldier off and yelled "That''s a Mamalark! I''m not going to stay on this ship and face it head on, I''d rather take my chances on this dingy!"

    He gave up trying to slowly lower the raft and jumped in. Then he took out his short sword and tried to use it to saw off the rope that held it up. But before he could cut the rope and breakaway from the ship, Arnest grabbed the navigator and pulled him back onto the deck.

    "Tell me more about this monster." Arnest tightened his grip so Sir Ruk couldn''t try and escape again.

    Sir Ruk tried to break free but Arnest had a tight grip, stronger than a normal full grown man, let alone compared to a similarly aged twelve year old. After giving up trying to escape, he sat on the ground cross-legged with a deep frown.

    "If this is going to be my last resting place, so be it. But I¡¯ll be damned if I have to help someone who ended up getting me killed."

    The navigator''s entire demeanor changed from the stately and amicable knight to a resentful deserter. Arnest didn''t really pay it any mind and started to twist his arm. Sir Ruk only winced at first but Arnest continued to increase the pain with more twists. It wasn''t long till the knightly navigator was crying for his mother.

    "Ow ow ow. Stop! I''ll tell you about the monster, just stop!"

    Arnest stopped twisting but still firmly gripped his captive. He gave Sir Ruk a look and the navigator started talking.

    "Mamalarks are a type of monster that uses water magic. They usually target large ships, first entrapping them in a storm and then ramming the boat until it sinks. Men don''t die usually due to the sinking boat but once they fall into the water the monster gobbles them whole."

    "Is that all you know?" Arnest asked.

    "That''s it. Can I go now?"

    Arnest smiled but started to twist his arm again.

    "Ow ow! Okay! I lied, I do know something more!" Sir Ruk screamed in pain.

    "I don''t know if it''s true but there''s a children''s story about Mamalarks. It says the weak spot of a Mamalark is their blowhole located at the top of their body, a quarter down and away from the tip of their nose."

    "That''s all I know, really. Now let me go!" Sir Ruk pulled his arm away but Arnest held on.

    Instead of releasing him, Arnest pulled out his sword and swung down with the backside. It hit the back of Sir Ruk''s head and knocked him unconscious and he fell to the ground. The soldier who was watching just stared at Arnest with a tinge of fear. Arnest turned towards the soldier and said "Please take Sir Ruk away and lock him in his quarters. I feel he has gotten too excited and may need some rest."

    "Y-yes, of course, young lord." the soldier stuttered and ran away. But soon ran back because he forgot to take Sir Ruk with him. He picked up the unconscious knight and carried him below deck.

    ¡°Now then...How to deal with this Mamalark¡­¡±

    The elf soldiers were firing volley after volley of arrows but it couldn¡¯t penetrate through the fat blubbered skin. Most of them bounced off and at best entered into the skin half an inch deep. Swords were useless seeing as the monster kept out of arm''s length distance. So with their two main weapons ineffective the elves were out of ideas. Marcus stood at the front and just kept commanding for the next volley.

    An idea that some of the men from Fox Village was to maybe jump on top of the monster and try using the sickle swords to chop at the skin. If given a few chops, they believed their swords could easily penetrate and cause some serious damage. But the Mamalark did not stay still. It moved around constantly, diving in and out of the water. Each time it roared the winds and rain would get harsher. This idea of directly jumping onto the monster was scrapped almost immediately.

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    Arnest used a modified [Shadow Step] to climb up the main mast to the crow¡¯s nest. Instead of being an nondescript shadowed mass, it had two sharpened points near where his feet would be. It allowed him to grip onto the surface and run up it very quickly.

    Once at the top, he squinted, staring at the Mamalark. It was moving quite fast so it was hard to see all the details of the monster. It had a fat body that was about the same size of the ship, a long fin that stuck out the top even when it was underwater and a coned head. It was only when the monster stopped momentarily to roar was when Arnest saw it. The blowhole. A quarter of the body down away from the tip of the nose. Exactly where Sir Ruk said it would be.

    He activated [Shadow Bow] but again, it was a modified version. The shape of the bow was fairly simple and so was the arrow. However when he nocked the shadow arrow he increased the mana flow and the shaft grew in size, becoming long like a barrel. The string extended far and the tensile strength increased exponentially like the barrel. The arrow also increased in width and became a large cylindrical cone. When the entire spell was complete, it looked like a small cannon.

    Arnest took aim at the blowhole and took a deep breath. After adjusting for the strong winds he released, both arrow and breath. The arrow which was more a cannonball rocketed out towards the monster. His aim was fair and it barrelled towards the blowhole. But the monster saw the huge spell and dove into the water. The arrow slammed into the ocean and a huge explosion thundered. The residual energy caused a misting which turned into a fog.

    ¡°It¡¯s much smarter than a typical beast. Or maybe it has stronger instincts.¡±

    Arnest didn¡¯t falter due to his failure and repeated his chant for [Shadow Bow]. The arrow cannon soon formed again and he looked for the Mamalark. It was darting back and forth in a snakelike fashion.

    ¡°I only can shoot a few of these with my current amount of mana.¡± he reminded himself.

    The monster started beelining towards the ship from under water. It¡¯s large top fin could be seen and slowly became more visible as it rose. Then the monster collided with the ship, causing it to vibrate violently. A few of the men who were on the side of the ship fell off into the ocean. The Mamalark was quick to catch them with its mouth and swallowed them with ease.

    Arnest released another shot, this time aiming a bit lower in case the monster dove again. It saw the point of impact was lower so it instead jumped up into the sky, taking the arrow fire belly up. The arrow shot into the blubber and the impact lasted for a few moments. There seemed to be a deadlock between the monsters defensive skin and the offensive power of the arrow. But in the end the arrow bounced off and was deflected to the side, crashing and exploding again into the water.

    The monster was internally injured but not bad enough to cause it to flee. Instead it started to prepare and ram the ship again. It dove into the water and like last time, slowly rose so that it could hit the ship with a large mass of force. It collided with the ship and this time caused the top portion of the ship to be dented. It was a major part of the ship but it was still able to keep afloat.

    Instead of setting up for another arrow, Arnest jumped down onto the monster. This was a plan that many of his men had disregarded as foolhardy and suicidal but Arnest did it anyway. He was running out of mana, time and options as the monster kept ramming into the ship. Each time it rammed was more damages he would have to pay for the ship to be repaired. But that was also only an issue if they were able to even make it out of the situation alive.

    Arnest activated [Shadow Step] and turned into a shadow. He adjusted the mana so that way the entire form was like a multi-pointed ball. The pricks stuck into the monster''s skin and allowed him to hold on even when it dove under water or made sharp turns. He made his way towards the location of the blowhole. The monster tried to shake Arnest off but the modified spell held on. When he made it to the weak point, he activated [Shadow Bow], modifying it into the cannon and pointing downwards.

    He stared into the blowhole. It was an abyss of darkness.

    Arnest released the arrow and it easily tunneled into the monster. As the arrow made it¡¯s way through the monsters internals, it shot out tiny tendrils that shot in multiple other directions. Like a shotgun bullet, it exploded into multiple tiny little arrows that punctured all the organs on the inside and expanded outwards.

    The Mamalark¡¯s body started to expand as well, until a bloody fountain poured out of a single hole. Then a few more. Then a hundred. A thousand. And so on until the entire body was a macerated pulp and left floating in the water.

    The Mamalark¡¯s storm also ended and the suns light peaked through the remaining clouds. Arnest¡¯s soldiers looked out into the ocean at the mess in awe and disgust. A tiny figure was floating in the middle of the puke inducing sight. He was waving with a giant smile on his face. Marcus folded his hands around his eyes, forming a pair of horrible binoculars, blocking out the sun allowing him to see who it was. It was Arnest.

    ¡°Send out a rescue vessel for the young lord.¡± Marcus told some of the men from Fox Village. There was no way he was sending his fellow elves on such a dirty mission.

 Chapter 20 - Under the Oak Tree

    Chapter 20 - Under the Oak Tree

    The rescue vessel was quickly deployed and the soldiers rowed with great speed. Within a few breaths they were able to reach Arnest. He was lightly treading water, covered in the fish guts of the Mamalark he had just killed. A soldier stretched out his hand and pulled Arnest out of the water.

    Arnest climbed onto the boat and looked up, first seeing the famed idiot of Fox Village, Rufus. The men on the ship fought over who should be sent out to pick up Arnest. No one would want to possibly have to touch any of the smelly remains but obviously at least some of them had to go. Rufus was quickly nominated by the men of Fox Village and before he could argue, he was thrown onto the boat and it was already wading through the mess that Arnest created.

    As for Rufus''s past assignment, which was to oversee Clyde and the other former pirates, it could now be considered completed. The relationship between the villagers of Fox Village and Clyde and his men had improved drastically, thanks to the rough daily training sessions. Although they didn''t really mesh well with the elves, this was to be expected since the elves treated all humans with either indifference or disgust. Arnest now trusted Clyde enough to give him more freedom. So before Arnest left, Rufus had rejoined his party for his voyage to Ralom.

    There were also three others. Two of them were men from Fox Village, younger men who were considered to still be boys. They also were pigeon holed into being sent as the rescue party unwillingly. Both of them had soured looks and they tightly pinched their noses to try and prevent the stench from entering their noses.

    The only person who was willingly there sat at the front, wearing a set of full glimmering armor. It was Marcus. He had volunteered and was the first to join the rescue party once the boat was prepared. He handed a towel to Arnest, saying "Are you alright, young lord?"

    "I''m fine, Marcus. Thanks for coming out here personally. You could''ve gotten some other men to come." Arnest took the towel and wiped the fish gristle off of him.

    "It''s my duty to make sure my lord is alright." Marcus had a strange gleam in his eyes when he said this.

    The vessel then was turned around and it started to move back towards the ship. Although the men couldn''t bear the rotten fish smell, they were still in high spirits. They had survived an attack from a sea monster. The soldiers cheered, pumping their fists into the sky and howling as Arnest returned to the ship.

    After arriving at the ship, the men started to celebrate with abandon. They raided the stockpiles of food and wine and started to eat, drink and sleep. By midnight everyone was drunkenly snoozing and Arnest was back in his room, practicing mana control.

    The fight with the Mamalark inspired Arnest to try and use magic to replicate a natural event like how the monster was able to create a tornado storm. He tried to make his [Shadow Step] create shadow clouds and it seemed to work well. The only issue was making the clouds rain.

    A knocking on the door reverberated through the walls. "May I come in?"

    Arnest stopped his spell and said, "Sure."

    Marcus walked into the room, no longer wearing his armor but now a simple tunic and chaps. His long brown hair and pointed ears were fully visible now that his helm was removed.

    "I wanted to thank you for saving us from the monster. If it wasn''t for you, my brothers and I would have most likely died." Marcus started to kneel on his right knee, like a subject would for a king.

    Arnest didn''t say anything and paused, thinking about something. This wasn''t the first time Marcus had acted strangely. At least strangely compared to the other elven soldiers. They treated him with the same disdain they had for the other humans but it was completely different from Marcus''s attitude.

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    "Marcus."

    "Yes, young lord?"

    "I''ve been wondering about this, but you treat me differently compared to the other elf soldiers. At first I thought it was because you took your job seriously but even though the others don''t respect me, they do take their orders just as seriously as you do. Why is this?"

    Marcus looked towards Arnest with the same strange glint it had earlier today when he had come to rescue him. "I once became indebted to a human. I thought that if I was able to serve you well I could repay that debt. But it seems that I''ve only made myself further indebted."

    Arnest interest was piqued. How could an elf become indebted to a human? The humans and elves were fighting a millennium long war that only ended quite recently. From what he had heard from his grandfather, he knew that most humans were enslaved so what could a mere slave do to help an officer from the elven royal guard?

    "Can you tell me more about this debt?"

    Marcus stared into space, remembering the past. "It was before I was promoted to an officer and was protecting the prince. We were traveling towards the human city, Yale, that had just been captured. It was still human territory so we needed a few scouts to move ahead. The prince personally ordered me to scout ahead."

    "At one point we entered a small mountain range. It seemed normal at first but a mysterious fog descended from the top of the mountain. I lost my sense of direction and fumbled around and eventually fell off a cliff. I thought I was dead when I fell but I only fell unconscious when I landed. When I woke up, I was laying in a bed and my wounds bandaged. It was George who saved me, the human who I owe a debt to. But now it''s impossible to repay him."

    "Why is it impossible?"

    The glint in Marcus''s eyes dimmed and his face became more solemn as he told the rest of the story. "I stayed at his home for a few days, trying to recover. I didn''t know that my comrades were looking for me and when they finally found me, they also found George and his family. We all had been fighting humans for so long, so we are naturally hostile to all humans. They killed him and his family and found me inside the house. After I told them how George saved me they regretted what they had done and we buried them. Under a large oak tree in the side yard." Marcus''s eyes started to water.

    "I''m sorry that he died, Marcus." Arnest started to regret asking him about the debt.

    "It''s alright. That was the past. I now have a life debt to you, young lord." Marcus wiped his wet eyes.

    "I promise to repay this debt to you." Marcus stared seriously at Arnest, saluting by pumping his fist into his chest.

    "Don''t worry about it too much. I would be happy if, at least, the elven and human soldiers could get along. Also you can call me by my name, no more of these young lords." Arnest patted Marcus reassuringly on his shoulders.

    "That should be easier but hard to do. My comrades saw how you were able to take out that monster single-handedly and quite a number of them respect you a great deal more than before. It''s still fairly difficult...but I''ll try my best." Marcus started to head out the door, excusing himself with a bow.

    "It felt good to sit down and talk to you one on one, Marcus." Arnest said while he was halfway out the door.

    "Likewise, young lor.. I mean, Arnest." and he fully exited the room, closing the door behind him.

    Arnest went back to his bed and laid on his back. ¡°Well, I should get some rest. We should arrive by tomorrow.¡±

    And night passed and day broke free from the shadows. Out in the distance, while the men slept and monsters lurked a cityscape came into view over the horizon. It¡¯s walls weren¡¯t as tall as the giant shell walls of Zanabo and they were erected on the land, not in the ocean. A harbor sat on opposite sides, the east and west. To the east there were numerous ships with giant red sails that shone brightly. The western harbor had fewer ships so the men steering decided to dock there.

    It would only be a little while longer until Arnest¡¯s adventure in the great of city of Ralom began.

 Chapter 21 - Eastern Bastion

    Chapter 21 - Eastern Bastion

    When the ship arrived in the harbor of the great city, Ralom, no one notified Arnest. It was still too early and after the battle with the Mamalark, everyone thought it would be best to let the young lord rest. Arnest eventually woke up on his own, stretching out his arms and legs as far as he could, then leapt out of bed.

    He felt that the boat no longer violently rocked as it did in the deep ocean but now gently swayed. Arnest opened his door and the bright sunlight blinded him. Raising his hands to block out the suns, his vision went from white to vibrant reds and browns.

    Towards the city, every building was made out of dark woods, stone walls and red clay tilled roofing. The wood was used as beams and the stone filled in the gaps. The tiles on the roofs were slightly curved so it created waved grooves that directed rainwater down and into the streets. The ground was paved in tiny pebbles that looked like they were just randomly poured into place rather than carefully arranged in patterns.

    Directly next to the harbor was a giant oval well. A large crowd was formed around the well. There were some who had jars tied securely to a pole that they would carry over their shoulders. Others came for a drink or some conversation. Even ragged looking children that had grime all over their bodies were allowed to clean themselves using the well water. There were many buckets tied to a wooden beam that was in the same oval shape and ran across the perimeter of the well.

    It''s quite normal to be parched after waking up so Arnest went towards the well, intending to sate his thirst. The Ralomans noticed the newcomer nearing them and their watering hole. One of the men blocked Arnest''s path and said "This is a Raloman well."

    "Well, of course it is. We are in Ralom after all." Arnest started to move around the man but another man came to block him.

    "This well is for Ralomans only. Ingras can use that well." the new man blocking him pointed towards the far side of the harbor.

    Arnest squinted and saw a few people gathered around the wall. He didn''t know what an ''Ingras'' was but knew that the Ralomans were telling him that only they could use this well. Arnest nodded, not wanting to start a fight over some water, and walked towards where the man pointed.

    When he arrived at the well, the first thing he noticed was the difference in size. The well''s diameter was a little smaller than the distance of Arnest stretching his arms out in opposite directions. There was also only one bucket and the people gathered here were lined up, waiting for the person ahead of them to gather their water. Also the water was significantly murkier compared to the water at the other well.

    All the people using this well seemed to be poorer than the other Ralomans too. Some were missing articles of clothing like a shoe or a pants legging. An older woman who was waiting on line yelled "Hurry it up! You''re hogging the well!"

    A little boy was in front and he was trying to fill a giant jar, twice the size of himself. The jar was about three quarters filled but he was still trying to fill the jar with the tiny bucket. He would quickly drop the bucket but have to pull up the ten pound filled bucket up about twenty feet each time. There were blisters on his hands and he was sweating all over, severely out of breath.

    Arnest walked to the front and the people in line started to get agitated. "Hey, you! I''ve been waiting in line for the past hour. Get in line and wait your turn, like the rest of us." a man yelled.

    He ignored the yelling and stares and grabbed the rope from the little boy. Arnest started to pull the bucket up and empty it into the jar. The little boy looked up at Arnest and also pulled. Working together, they were able to fill the jar within a few minutes.

    Once done, the little boy took the rope straps attached to the jar and lifted it onto his back. He started to slowly waddle away like an obese penguin but suddenly felt the weight significantly decrease. The little boy glanced back and saw Arnest holding up the jar from the back, which relieved a lot of the load for him.

    The two of them started to walk on the road along the perimeter of the western side of the city. And the further away they got away from the harbor, the more dilapidated the houses became. Houses closer to the harbor only had some chipped stone walls or a bit overgrown grass but it soon became houses that had rotting beams or entire chunks of the walls missing, forming holes and broken homes.

    "Thanks.. for helping... me." the little boy said, with some difficulty due to the heavy load he was carrying.

    "Don''t worry about it. Anyways, what do you need all this water for?"

    "It''s.... for me... and my... brother."

    "Why do you need so much water?"

    "Sorry...can''t talk...too heavy." the little boy back slumped a bit, the jar falling but he quickly mustered his strength, lifting the heavy jar of water again.

    They continued to walk without talking and eventually arrived at a row of houses, all bunched up so that the sides of their walls touched. The house that the little boy walked towards was three floors and looked like an tenement complex. Luckily his home was on the first floor. Arnest helped the little boy carry the jar into a one room tenement towards the back of the building.

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    Arnest and the little boy lowered the jar of water and it made a thud on the stone floor. The little boy wiped the sweat off his brow and smiled, happy with himself. He then started to pull out two chairs that were lined against a wall and offered one of them to Arnest.

    Just as they were about to sit down, a painful groan sounded out. It came from outside, its sound traveling through the small open window. "Brother!" the little boy said, running out into the hallway and out the back door. Arnest followed him, to figure out what was going on.

    In the back was a small yard with sprinkled patches of grass but mostly it was small pebbles, the same that are used as pavements in the streets. On the ground was an older boy who looked like he was around sixteen. His face was extremely similar to the little boy''s. There were stone cinder blocks lined up next to him, starting from a small five pound block upwards to blocks weighing about fifty pounds.

    "Brother, what are you doing? You have to rest otherwise your body won''t heal." the little boy said as he tried to lift up his brother.

    "Maarav, you don''t have to worry about me. I''m already healed. I need to start practicing for the exam." but as the brother said this, he started to cough.

    "At least come back to the room, I brought us some water."

    The brother started to frown when he heard this. "Did you carry the big jar?"

    "Yes...But I was able to bring it back here!"

    "I told you not to carry that one by yourself. You should''ve at least waited for me!" the brother was now angry and worried. Angry that his little brother was doing chores because he thought he wasn''t strong enough and worried that his little brother might''ve hurt himself.

    "I didn''t carry it by myself! He helped me." Maarav pointed towards Arnest who was just watching by the gate entrance to the yard.

    The brother looked towards Arnest and noticed his attire. Arnest was currently wearing noble clothes that he usually wore while leisurely walking around. It was had clean cuts and was quite flashy, even when he wore it in Zanabo. This brother, native to Ralom, knew from a glance that Arnest was an Ingras or foreigner.

    "My name is Lajos. Thank you for helping my little brother. I hope he didn¡¯t bother you."

    ¡°I¡¯m Arnest, it wasn¡¯t trouble at all.¡±

    ¡°We can¡¯t offer you much but if you want, you can come drink some water with us. You must be tired after carrying that jar.¡± Lajos said while getting up with Maarav¡¯s help.

    ¡°Sounds good.¡±

    Lajos then led Maarav, by the hand, and Arnest back to the room. There was only two seats so Maarav stood while Lajos and Arnest sat down. Maarav grabbed two wooden cups and scooped water out of the large jar for the two of them.

    ¡°So what are you training for, Lajos?¡± Arnest said as he took a cup from Maarav.

    ¡°There¡¯s an exam coming up for Ingras to become soldiers and citizens of Ralom.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard this term, ¡®Ingras¡¯, before. What is it?¡± The both of them took a sip. Arnest almost spat out the water but he held it in his mouth, swallowed, and put down the cup on the floor.

    ¡°Ingras is the lowest class and rank in Ralom. People like you who just come to the city are all Ingras. They¡¯re considered outsiders and can only live here on the western outskirts of the city.¡±

    ¡°What are the other ranks?¡±

    ¡°After Ingras are Ralomans who are the citizen soldiers. Next would be Lieutenant who lead a group of nine Ralomans, making an unit. Captains lead ten squads, which would make a company. And finally Generals lead ten captains, forming a squadron. Also only those ranked Lieutenant and higher can live in the central city. Even other Ralomans can only live in the western commercial area while enlisted Ralomans have to live in the barracks on the eastern side.¡± Lajos said while pausing a lot in between to drink some water.

    ¡°This might sound rude, but why would you want to be a Raloman?¡± Arnest crossed his arms like he was a boss interviewing a prospective employee.

    ¡°I want to be like my father, who fought for Ralom, and protect my brother.¡± Lajos answered bluntly and honestly.

    ¡°Your father was a Raloman?¡±

    Lajos and Maarav¡¯s faces turned cold sober. ¡°Yes, he was.¡± they both said.

    Arnest realized he shouldn¡¯t have asked and tried to change the subject. ¡°You¡¯ve probably already realized but I¡¯m new here to Ralom. I like to travel to places and learn about the places I visit. Recently I visited Zanabo for a while. If you could tell me anything else interesting about Ralom, I¡¯ll be sure to repay you.¡± he said, taking out his coin purse.

    ¡°I¡¯ve lived here all my life. I can tell you a few things.¡± Lajos¡¯s mind shifted and his mood became slightly better.

    ¡°Since you¡¯ve been to Zanabo, you should already know that it¡¯s famed for being the ¡°Pearl of Lanex¡±. But Ralom is not famous for it¡¯s money like Zanabo, nor famed for religion like Crul. We are the ¡°Eastern Bastion¡±, the protectors of Lanex.¡±

    ¡°Eastern Bastion? Protectors?¡±

    ¡°We protect the west from the monsters that roam in the east. There are even some of our bases further east that help protect those who live beyond the safety of Ralom.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s pretty interesting.¡±

    Lajos kept telling Arnest about Ralom, teaching him some local customs and the rules of the great city. Maarav sometimes interjected with his own wisdoms he learned from the locals, since he was more social than his older brother. The three of them kept talking until the late afternoon and the water jar was half empty.

 Chapter 22 - The Sixth Army

    Chapter 22 - The Sixth Army

    "And then Sixth General Abdiel was swallowed by the serpent monster. All his men thought he was dead but his scimitar blade stabbed through its belly and the general dragged it upwards towards the head. The serpent was cleaved in two and the general climbed out of the monster like a newborn child, covered in slime and blood." Lajos was still telling Arnest about the city of Ralom, now more about the famous people like this Sixth General.

    "If it wasn''t for him, we would''ve lost our base on Tolbe." he added.

    "The Sixth General is amazing! I saw him sparring once. He was like whoosh, bam and pow!" Maarav started to make funny made-up martial arts moves as he was recounting the fight.

    "My older brother is going to be just like the Sixth General!" He said as he continued to make sound effects and poses.

    "Maarav, don''t say things like that. I haven''t even taken the exam yet." Lajos sheepishly rubbed his head, embarrassed.

    Arnest just laughed and said "Your brother is a hard worker, I''m sure he''ll be able to easily pass."

    ¡°You''re pretty strong too!" Maarav pointed towards Arnest.

    "You should join the exam too, just like older brother!¡± Maarav said excitedly.

    Arnest shook his head, "I''m not sure I would be able to pass. Plus I''m still new to Ralom, wouldn''t others think I''m too much of an outsider?"

    "It doesn''t matter who you are or where you come from in Ralom. People respect strength." Lajos said.

    "I''ll think about it then." Arnest said, patting Maarav on the head. "Well, I must be going now. Thanks again for all the fun stories."

    "Wait, you should at least come and see older brother at the exam tomorrow." said Maarav while bouncing up and down.

    It looked like Arnest was about to refuse but Lajos said ¡°You should come. Those who take the exam might be future leaders in Ralom. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be interested.¡±

    Arnest thought for a bit but then said "Sure, let''s meet at the well."

    "Okay! See you later, Arnest!" Maarav waved.

    "Thanks for helping my brother, See you tomorrow." Lajos said.

    Arnest exited the tenement building and headed back towards the harbor. He learned a lot today and confirmed most of the information he had learned back in Zanabo. He already knew about the ranks and heard about the disparity between Raloman citizens and Ingras, but he never really understood it completely. Now that he experienced it first hand, now he had a better feel for Ralom and the pride of its people. Jerrei was able to give Arnest an overview of important and high ranking Ralomans and a map that outlined the bases Ralom had in eastern Lanex.

    "I wonder if this Sixth General is truly as amazing as everyone says." Arnest continued to contemplate and digest all the new things he learned today from Lajos and Maarav.

    Another thing he learned was that Ralomans could pass on their citizenship to their children but sometimes they were expelled or demoted to Ingras. He assumed based on the two poor boys reactions that their father was one of these soldiers. For whatever reason they were now Ingras despite their father being a Raloman. Whether or not they could become citizen soldiers again would depend on their performances at the exam.

    Arnest retired at his ship for the night.

    When morning came, Arnest was already standing by the Ingras well at the port. Lajos and Maarav came a while later.

    Maarav and Arnest were dressed in plain clothes but Lajos was wearing a traditional Raloman soldiers uniform. The uniform was mostly leather with some iron clasps for the wrists. These metal clasps are used for protection of vitals in the arm, some wrist guards are made thick enough to directly block sword strikes. Lajos¡¯s uniform not only had this feature but also a Raloman steel chainmail for his torso. Raloman steel is monsters blood and steel that¡¯s mixed together. It shone a bright crimson off his well defined chest, making Lajos seem like a venerated soldier.

    Usually chainmail is only an option for Lieutenants but he had a chainmail vest. Plus it was made of Raloman steel which is a special material reserved for Captains and higher. Arnest had studied the uniforms of the Raloman army so he knew that Lajos was wearing armaments that were out of his class. Lajos and Maarav lived in an Ingras slum so Arnest couldn¡¯t help but to wonder about where he was able to get the uniform.

    But Arnest just smiled and waved as they approached him. ¡°Hey, Lajos and Maarav.¡±

    ¡°Hey Arnest.¡± the brothers said at the same time and waving with their right hands in the exact same way and tempo.

    The three of them then looked at each other, started making funny faces and finally burst into laughter.

    ¡°You guys definitely are brothers. You¡¯re so in sync.¡± Arnest said, trying to collect himself.

    ¡°If you¡¯re participating or watching the exam, get on the ships!¡± yelled a soldier who was on one of the red colored sail ships.

    These ships were the official Raloman army ships and at the very top would be a banner indicating which of the twelve armies it belonged to. An artistic interpretation of the number ¡°6¡± was weaved with golden thread into the banner at the top of the ships.

    ¡°It¡¯s the Sixth Army! Maybe we¡¯ll see General Abdiel again, brother.¡± Maarav said happily.

    ¡°Maybe. Let¡¯s head to the ships. We don¡¯t want to miss the exam.¡± For a moment Lajos had a worried look but he quickly resolved himself, quick enough that it was unnoticed by Arnest.

    Lajos, his brother and Arnest started to walk towards the long queue that was forming before the Sixth Army¡¯s ships.

    ¡°So do they hold the exam at sea on the ships?¡± Arnest asked while they waited in line.

    ¡°No, the exams are held on an eastern island nearby Ralom. The ships will bring us there.¡± Lajos was feeling quite good right now, confident he¡¯d be able to pass the exams. Arnest didn¡¯t detect any nervousness from the sixteen year old.

    Arnest pointed towards a few boys dressed in soldiers uniforms in the crowd. "Those boys look like Raloman soldiers, are they here to watch?"

    "Some are but a lot of Ralomans take the exam when they become of age to prove they deserve to be Ralomans." Lajos looked towards the Raloman boys who noticed his gaze and recognized him.

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    ¡°Look who came to watch the exam. The Ingras brothers, sons of the famous deserter!¡± a boy who looked the same age as Lajos and wore a soldier''s uniform called out so everyone in line could hear. All eyes now were on Lajos and Maarav.

    Lajos and Maarav were now sandwiched in the middle of the line, nowhere to hide to. The atmosphere became tense at the mention of the ¡°famous deserter¡±. The stares were filled with disgust, disdain and most prevalently anger. Maarav cringed under the pressure, looking away and down trying to avoid the looks. But Lajos straightened his entire body and looked towards the boy who insulted he and his brother.

    ¡°I¡¯m actually here to participate in the exam.¡± he said and kept walking forward.

    The boy just laughed and he was joined by a few others next to him. Another boy chidded while blocking his way ¡°Do you think the army is for cowards? You should go back before you wet yourself.¡±

    ¡°I said, I am here to participate in the exam!¡± Lajos was unyielding and pushed the boy in his way aside, moving forward.

    ¡°You really don¡¯t understand, do you?¡± the boy and his squad of goons surrounded Lajos.

    ¡°Go home. You and your brother will never be Ralomans.¡± the boy said coldly.

    Lajos immediately raised his fists, assuming a martial stance. The other boys also raised their fists, preparing to pummel him.

    Ralomans, especially the younger boys, were always quick to fight. They would sometimes exchange a few words but any disagreement always devolved into a contest of strength. In Ralom, the strong were kings and the weak were beggars.

    They stood there for few moments until one of the goons impatiently threw a punch. Lajos responded by opening his fists, grappling onto the incoming hand and arm and pulled downwards on the attacker. He gracefully flew into the air and was flipped onto his back.

    ¡°Idiot.¡± the leader of the gang muttered and then he yelled to the others, ¡°Teach him a lesson!¡±

    They trampled the idiot on the ground without concern as they rushed towards Lajos. The idiot groaned as each foot crushed into his body.

    ¡°Brother!¡± Maarav screamed with worry.

    Lajos didn¡¯t just let them all jump at him, he started to punch his way through the boys behind him, trying to escape the encirclement. It took quite a few, but a solid uppercut to the jaw knocked one of the boys to the ground and he dashed out. The other boys chased.

    Once out, he ran towards an area where lots of narrow boats were docked all over. He jumped onto one and ran from the back towards the front. Every step rocked the boat and it splashed in the water. When he reached the edge he jumped again, onto another boat. It looked like Lajos was running away.

    The goon squad stopped for a bit when they saw Lajos easily balancing while jumping from boat to boat. They weren¡¯t sure they should chase but the leader screamed ¡°What are you waiting for? Get him!¡± Hearing the order, their Raloman spirits were ignited. They rushed out onto the boats, trying to follow after Lajos.

    If it wasn¡¯t for the narrowness of the boats and if they were slightly larger or more balanced, it would be easy for them to chase. But that wasn¡¯t the case. Most of the boys chasing lost their balance and slipped into the water or completely tipped boats upside-down. Only three boys, including the leader, were able to keep up with Lajos¡¯s pace.

    Lajos stopped running on one of the longer but still narrow boats. He turned around and saw the three boys chasing, out of breath. When they reached the boat he was on, they could only stand in a single-file line. Two of the remaining goons stood in front and their leader stood behind.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to make you regret defying me, Ingras.¡± the leader was smiling wickedly.

    Lajos no longer cared for words and just charged the goon. He threw his right fist towards the goons face but he dodged down and threw a punch of his own. Lajos dodged as well and they seemed to be in a deadlock, evenly matched. They kept throwing punches, some of them landing but none of them connecting fully.

    The leader started to grow impatient after a while of waiting. ¡°If you can¡¯t beat him, I¡¯ll just handle it myself!¡± He pushed his two subordinates in front of him into the water.

    Although the leader was reckless, Lajos didn¡¯t underestimate him. He waited for his opponent to initiate the fight, hoping to maybe use the momentum against him like he did to the first attacker. But the leader¡¯s next action exceeded his imagination.

    He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small dagger. It glinted under the blazing suns and the leader had an extremely curved smiled. Lajos¡¯s face became grim but he still held his defensive stance.

    The leader stabbed forward with his blade and it reached towards Lajos¡¯s chest. Lajos swung his left wrist and deflected the strike and then started to swing with his right hand. The blade was deflected but it¡¯s direction and angle was deftly changed and it rocketed towards Lajos¡¯s face this time. It reached near his eye but at the same moment he ducked down, the blade only cutting a small lock of his hair.

    After the close shave Lajos no longer tried to attack again. It was clear that his opponent was no novice with a small blade and could counter attack easily. He only concentrated on defense, using his wrist guards to deflect the blade. But this would prove to be pointless because the leader wasn¡¯t only skilled at using a blade.

    The enemy swung with his blade and Lajos defended again. But this was a feint. The leader quickly kicked with all his might, not giving Lajos time to react, and knocked him on his back. The boat rocked back and forth violently when he jumped on top of fallen Lajos, holding his knife to the neck.

    ¡°I want you to remember me. My name is Hagen Layol.¡± he said, digging the knife deeper into Lajos¡¯s neck and blood trickled out.

    ¡°Son of Jack Layol, Captain of the Sixth Army. Your father killed my father. So I will kill you.¡±

    Suddenly a blur whizzed by Hagen¡¯s head. He stopped pushing his dagger down and looked back. He saw a young boy, holding a wooden bow. He was dressed like a common Ingras but the arrow that just passed him only missed by a few inches.

    The young boy started to draw his bow again and Hagen rose to his feet. The boy released and the arrow flew, curving and shaking in the wind.

    ¡°Who dares to-?!¡± Hagen screamed but the arrow pierced into his left shoulder and knocked him backwards off the boat, into the water.

    Lajos got to his feet and stared at the direction from where the arrow came from. He saw Arnest holding a bow and Maarav crying on the docks.

 Chapter 23 - Test of Might

    Chapter 23 - Test of Might

    "Fish those boys out of the water and finish up so we can set sail." an officer of the Sixth Army ordered.

    "Yes, Captain Ramiro."

    After Arnest had prevented Hagen from carrying out his revenge, Captain Ramiro came out to handle the aftermath. It seemed like everyone else of the Sixth Army didn''t care and allowed the fighting but once the Captain came, anyone who further delayed the departure for the exams were punished. Lajos was sent to the medical bay on the ship and received some light bandaging for his neck but his wounds weren''t that serious.

    "Are you alright, older brother?" Maarav was tightly hugging his brother, who was sitting on a cot, unwilling to let go.

    "You''ve already asked five times. I''m okay, alright?" Lajos tried to reassure his little brother.

    Lajos then turned towards Arnest, "I have to thank you again, this time for saving me."

    "I couldn''t just watch one of my friends die."

    Lajos just continued to stare at Arnest and saw his serious face.

    Captain Ramiro walked into the room and looked everyone over before saying "I''m sorry for not stopping the fight before. I hope you''re not too injured."

    "It''s fine." Lajos didn''t really think much of it. He knew the reason why the Sixth Army would allow Hagen and his goons to attack him.

    "Are you still going to take the exam?" Ramiro asked.

    "Yes, I''ve been ready for this for a long time now." Lajos said resolutely.

    Ramiro looked at Lajos, then Maarav and had a serious look. But when he looked to Arnest, he nodded before saying "Good, I''ll send someone to come and get you once we arrive then." Then the Captain left.

    When he was out of the room Arnest sighed. "That man is not so simple."

    "What do you mean?" Maarav didn''t understand what Arnest was talking about.

    "Whenever he looked towards you, Lajos, he would be friendly. But his eyes were angry. You should be careful of him." Arnest warned.

    "Thanks for the warning, I''ll be careful." Lajos said and then laid down on the cot.

    The distance between the island where the exam was being held and Ralom was much shorter than the that of Zanabo and Ralom. It only took a few hours for the ships to arrive at the jungle island. There was a harbor but there wasn''t any buildings near the shore, where most islands usually had their central town area so they could be close to their source of food and water. The trees were mostly thin and tall, with some abnormally large trees that were more thick and stout. But despite the fact that most of them were thin, there were so many trees that it became dense and one would be unable to see what was within. Climate wise the island was more hot and humid than that of Fox Village, so this island was probably the most southern Lanexi island Arnest had visited so far.

    When the ships docked, all the examinees and observers were funneled off the ships through the same small planks they entered on. The Sixth Army arrayed themselves into formation and the rest of the people just randomly stood either on the deck or shore. After everyone was gathered on the beach, Captain Ramiro started to explain the exam.

    "This year, there will be three parts to the exam. Each part will be explained to you at the beginning only once, so make sure to pay attention."

    "Lieutenant Marco, you can tell them the rest."

    "Yes, Captain." a powerful looking man walked to the front of the formation.

    "The first section of this exam will be a strength test. Those who are participating, line up in front of me." Lieutenant Marco said.

    When they lined up, he continued "The first five hundred who can chop down a tree with their bare hands will pass. Anyone who fails to be one of these hundred will fail the first part of the exam."

    "Cut a tree with our bare hands?"

    "Is that even possible?"

    There was a lot of the Ingras who were new to the Raloman exam. The test would change every year but at the core there would be one specific trait that they looked for: strength. A lot of them had heard that the tests were just to see how many boulders you could lift or how fast you could row. But this wasn''t a test they heard about.

    "I forfeit!"

    "Me too!"

    A number of veteran examinees just gave up, not even thinking of trying. They had chopped trees before with their bare hands but this was just the first part of the test. The years when they passed this part of the test, it became increasingly harder in the next parts and to them, the third part of the exam was always impossible. They could do well in the first two parts but they would fail on the third.

    But not everyone gave up so easily. Lajos immediately walked up to a thick, stoutly tree. He began to chop against it with his hands. Others stared at the boy just slamming his hands into the tree. Within a hundred blows, his hands were already starting to scar, becoming bloody, but the tree didn''t seem to even have a dent in it.

    "The deserters son is an idiot! Does he think he can chop down that thick tree with just his hands? It''s obvious that the thinner trees would be easier to chop down." the boy, who was following Reilly before and got knocked to the ground first, remarked.

    The other examinees ears all perked up. He was right! They could go try and chop down the thinner trees and it would take less time and strength to accomplish. So everyone started running towards the thin trees and whacking away, trying to whittle the trees down with just skin and bones.

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    Arnest didn''t immediately run out like everyone else and just stood there. He was still wondering if he even wanted to become a Raloman. On one hand it might be easier to get the generals and possibly the king to listen to him , then he''d gain powerful allies. But if he got closer to the army and they learned that he was a member of the Merchants Guild, the same power that is allied with the Aster clan that just massacred one of their generals and his army, then they might end up thinking he''s a spy and execute him.

    He kept thinking back and forth, unable to decide but he felt someone shove him forward. Arnest turned around and saw Maarav.

    "Don''t worry about being new to Ralom. Like older brother says, all that matters is strength! And you''re strong!" Maarav said.

    Maarav reminded Arnest of what Ralom was all about. It wasn''t like they were just spouting propaganda. It was really true in Ralom. The reason why Ralomans didn''t respect Ingras was not only because they were outsiders but mainly because outsiders didn''t train to fight monsters like they did. They just hid to the west while they defended the world. Even when Captain Ramiro knew that Arnest was Lajos''s friend, someone who he abhorred, he didn''t look at Arnest the same way. Arnest knew Ramiro saw him display his skill with the bow since he saw the Captain watching from the deck. Because he showed strength, Ramiro gave him some respect.

    "I''ll give it a try." Arnest said as he rolled up his sleeves.

    Arnest walked up to a tree that was similar to the one Lajos was hacking away at. The tree was heavily knotted and had vines that looked like they were weaving in and out of the tree. He felt that Lajos wouldn''t just randomly choose a tree, after all, he had been training for this exam for what seemed like his entire life. He must have known about this type of test. So Arnest started chopping away with his bare hands. Of course, he activated [Shadow Step] to appear only around the edge of his inner hand to protect himself.

    A hour came and went and not a single person was able to chop down the tree. Every time they would swing at the tree, since it was thin, it would just bend and absorb the blow. Not a single dent was made in the skinny trees and those who were taking the exam all were out of breath.

    But Lajos kept swinging his arms to a rhythmic beat. There were now five inch deep gaps that were chopped into both sides. The tree was at least halfway cut down. If Lajos put some pressure on one side, it might snap in half. While everyone else was panting on the ground, Lajos was like a well fueled machine. He never stopped.

    Arnest wasn''t making much progress either but compared to the others, he had an inch deep gap. He didn''t train as much as Lajos did on his physical body and also he wasn''t as old as him. It was normal that Arnest didn''t match up to Lajos in a contest of strength. However this logic didn''t occur to Arnest and he saw the large difference between himself and Lajos. No longer caring about playing by the rules, Arnest adjusted his mana flow to his hands, forming sharp shadows on the edges of his hands. It wasn''t visible unless you were examining up close or had the ability to see mana flows, so no one was the wiser as Arnest hacked deeper gashes into the thick tree.

    By the next hour, there was over half of the remaining five hundred spots taken, numbering around three hundred. The first two to finish were obviously Lajos and Arnest, one who used his experience and the other who secretly cheated. When they finished, the others started to understand that just wildly hacking away at any tree wasn''t going to work. Some copied Lajos and chose a thicker tree and although it took a long time to do, it was stiff and didn''t easily bend under a chop, so they were able to chop down their trees. Others chose to use simpler methods like snapping the thin trees in half with brute strength. However which way they did it, there was now forty people who had passed and thousands who were still in the running. Hagen, the leader of the other Raloman boys who attacked Lajos before, was one of the three hundred or so people who finished.

    "You guys are taking too long. Whoever doesn''t finish in another hour will automatically fail the first part of the exam." Lieutenant Marco started the time limit soon after the second hour.

    All the examinees started to pound their hands into the trees even faster when they heard this. Especially the Raloman boys were snapped into gear. Even though they would still be Ralomans if they failed, their pride would undoubtedly be forever tarnished if they didn¡¯t succeed. Ralomans were extremely strict with themselves and they had a saying that embodied this spirit: ¡°Victory or death.¡±

    The third and longest hour for some, passed. ¡°This concludes the first part of the exam!¡± shouted Lieutenant Marco.

    There was only four hundred fifty eight people who completed, a hundred sixty being Ingras and the rest Raloman. Those who failed numbered in the thousands, more than half being Ralomans who came to test themselves. The Ralomans who failed all were sobbing, laying tired on the ground. They thought of the disappointment their ancestors must feel as they looked down on them from the heavens.

    ¡°GET UP!¡±

    A loud voice bellowed out. It was Captain Ramiro who yelled. The Ralomans all stared towards Ramiro but continued to lay down, too tired to move.

    Ramiro¡¯s voice bellowed out again, ¡°IF YOU¡¯RE TRUE RALOMANS, GET UP! STOP CRYING!¡±

    Some of the Raloman boys mustered the last of their strength and got up, wiping their tears. Ramiro walked up to one of the boys who got up and said ¡°A Raloman does not give up until ordered ortil death.¡±

    Ramiro went to the next boy and repeated the same thing. And to the next. And so on.

    One of the boys started to mutter ¡°until ordered or til death...til death¡­¡±

    The other boys joined in, and the all the Ralomans were murmuring the chant. Their volume started to slowly increase, from murmurs to normalcy and then even louder. It wasn¡¯t long til all the Raloman boys were shouting.

    ¡°A Raloman does not give up until ordered ortil death!¡±

    ¡°A Raloman does not give up until ordered ortil death!¡±

    The men of the Sixth Army also joined in, shouting as loudly as their lungs would allow. Ingras, who got swallowed up into the atmosphere, also started shouting. Everyone was now shouting one of the creeds of the Raloman army in unison and it could be heard from miles away. Their voices were so loud that it even reached their ancestors and the gods in the heavens.

 Chapter 24 - Test of Bravery

    Chapter 24 - Test of Bravery

    The unified chanting calmed down and now everyone was trying to rest and recover some strength for the next part of the exam. They all knew that there was three parts of this year¡¯s exam but they didn¡¯t know when or how the next part would come. It could be the next day, next hour or even the next minute.

    ¡°The second part of the exam will start tomorrow when the first sun rises. If you still want to continue, you are to sleep on the island and if you want to give up, you may come on the ship for the night.¡± Lieutenant Marco yelled out.

    ¡°You¡¯re going to keep going, Lajos?¡± Arnest asked.

    Lajos¡¯s hands were heavily bruised and blistered. But Lajos didn¡¯t wince in pain and answered ¡°Yes. I have to become a Raloman.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll keep you company then.¡± Arnest also wanted to see how far he could get.

    ¡°I suggest if you¡¯re going to continue that you start making your shelters now. A storm is coming in fast from the east.¡± Lieutenant Marco warned.

    The examinees looked towards the east and ominous clouds that lit up with lightning were approaching. They ran to their feet, going towards the jungle, hoping to find some sort of natural barrier to shield them from the impending weather. Arnest, Lajos and Maarav headed into the jungle together.

    As they walked Arnest stared up towards the canopy. Fauna that were all the colors of the rainbow, monkeys who hid in between the dense foliage and vines hung from the top branches and were draped all the way down to the forest floor. This scene created a sense of mystery and a fear of the unknown. Each step they took cautiously because they couldn¡¯t see what was under the brushes they walked through.

    After walking for thirty minutes they arrived at an open area. The canopy didn¡¯t extend to this area so the suns and sky could be seen and there was a lack of greenery, only brown dirt patches and some grass was there. The dark clouds from before also could be seen.

    ¡°This place isn¡¯t good to take shelter in, let¡¯s keep looking.¡± Lajos said as he started to move.

    But Arnest stopped him with his hand and said ¡°Wait. I have an idea.¡±

    Arnest activated [Shadow Bow] but shaped it less like a bow and more like a triangular shovel. He started to dig out a pit into the exposed ground and in about ten minutes it was a hole more than large enough for the three of them. He then gathered some loose and fallen branches and covered the pit, creating a thatched roof which he arranged at an angle so that when rain fell it would be directed and not pool at the top. He then looked behind at Lajos and Maarav with a giant smile, proud of his ingenuity but two stone stiff faces stared back at him.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you two?¡±

    ¡°Was that magic?¡± Lajos asked.

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m a magus.¡± Arnest didn¡¯t hide it at all.

    ¡°You can¡¯t show anyone your magic.¡± Lajos said seriously.

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Magic isn¡¯t forbidden in Ralom, but Ralomans hate magi. A magus can never become a Raloman.¡±

    Arnest¡¯s face was now serious too. It wasn¡¯t that Arnest didn¡¯t study Ralom and their customs but he had never heard of this when he was researching in Zanabo. He did know that Ralom didn¡¯t have any magi but he thought it was just because magi were rare. Arnest needed to and wanted to understand the reasons for this hatred.

    ¡°Why do Ralomans hate magi?¡±

    ¡°My father once told me to never trust someone who used magic. He never explained why. I just know Ralomans think magi are evil.¡±

    Arnest thought for a while and then asked, ¡°So do you think I¡¯m evil too?¡±

    Maarav didn¡¯t even hesitate to say ¡°You¡¯re not evil! Someone who was evil wouldn¡¯t have helped me carry that heavy jug of water.¡±

    ¡°Or save a friend in trouble.¡± Lajos added.

    ¡°Thanks for believing in me, Maarav, Lajos.¡±

    The three of them entered the hole. Arnest had also collected some dry tinder to light a fire so Lajos started to scrape some flint and iron against each other and sparks flew. The sparks hit the tinder and started to smolder. Within a few moments there was fire. And with fire, there was warmth.

    A cold front barreled into the island and so did the storm. Torrential rains thundered and gusting gales sieged the hole the three of them had taken shelter in. The roofing was able to hold even against the violent barrage and the heat from the fire combatted the cold winds.

    Suddenly a grumbling sound overwhelmed that of the thunder and rain. Arnest and Lajos looked to Maarav who was beet red.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go find some food for us.¡± Arnest said and he started to exit the hole.

    ¡°I¡¯ll come too. Stay here Maarav.¡± said Lajos as he joined Arnest.

    Arnest and Lajos left the coziness of their shelter and braved the storm in search of food. It wasn¡¯t that terrible though because once they entered the dense canopy the winds and rain was slowed by the natural barrier. In only a few hundred feet, they found what they were looking for.

    At the top of a jungle tree were seven mango fruits all bunched together. Lajos grabbed onto a vine, pulling it with his weight to test its strength. The vine held so he started to slowly climb, careful not to slip on the wet vine.

    He made his way up and when at the top, as he was able to grab onto a mango, a roar thundered out. Lajos and Arnest froze, staring in the direction of the roar.

    ¡°ROOAR!¡±

    Whatever roared did it again. Then they heard wet footsteps, rushing towards them. The sound of rain on leaves, sloshing of puddles and thunderous roars. Lajos hurried down the tree while Arnest found a brush for the two of them to hide in. Once hidden, the source of the roaring revealed itself.

    It was a lion. A lion with with two tails and two heads. The left head roared and then the right one to a steady syncopated beat. Three boys dressed in soldier¡¯s uniforms were being chased by the beast. Each time it pounced its claws into the ground it left a deep imprint and with a powerful leap it propelled itself even faster forward, closer to its prey. They ran towards the direction of the shelter Arnest had dug into the ground.

    ¡°Maarav.¡± Lajos whispered.

    Arnest and Lajos looked towards each other for a moment to confirm what they were thinking and then they knew what they had to do. They jumped out of the brush and chased after the monster who was chasing after the three Raloman boys.

    ¡°Help, save me!¡± one of the boys screamed in terror.

    Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    The two of them reached the clearing where Maarav was still waiting for them. Near the hole shelter the three Raloman boys were on the ground while the double headed lion inched closer, exposing its teeth and licking its lips. Maarav was peeking from under the roof and Lajos breathed a sigh of relief when he realized that he was fine. But Arnest didn¡¯t relax. He knew that the lion¡¯s attention could easily change to Maarav, the smaller and slower target, if he was detected.

    The lion jumped on top of the boy who screamed and the other two scattered away, retreating from the monster. They were not courageous enough to risk their lives to fight against such a terrifying creature. It opened its mouth wide and chomped onto the boy¡¯s right arm. The sound of bone crunching and skin being torn apart echoed out. Two Raloman boys ran when they saw their friend being eaten. The screaming boy no longer screamed and had gone unconscious the moment his arm was ripped away from his torso.

    Arnest jumped out when he saw the lion was distracted. He activated [Shadow Step] and darted behind the lion. Unsuspecting the beast kept chewing on the new toy it just had acquired. Lajos had also left the safety of the brush and quietly moved to get Maarav and bring him to safety.

    Adjusting the output of mana directly to his fists, his shadowed form now only covered his hands. The shadow turned into a floating, giant blunt brick and Arnest raised it so it towered over the head of the lion. The shadow brick grew larger and larger each moment, eventually becoming a shadow boulder. He then released it and let it drop down onto the lion.

    As the shadow boulder dropped, it whistled through the wind, pressing all the air downwards. The lion sensed this and stared up and saw darkness. The shadow boulder crashed into the lion¡¯s two heads and body and was toppled over on it¡¯s side. It twitched a bit but eventually stopped moving while Arnest stopped the mana output so the shadows dissipated. Lajos had already collected Maarav and now walked up to Arnest.

    ¡°We should leave here, who knows if there¡¯s more monsters. It should be safer by the ships where the Sixth Army can protect us.¡± Lajos advised.

    ¡°Good idea, let¡¯s-¡± Arnest started to say but he then saw Lajos and Maarav¡¯s dark expressions.

    Arnest realized the rain that was pelting him had stopped and there was now a shadow that was cast over him. He turned around and saw the lion standing on it¡¯s hind legs over Arnest, getting ready to slam its front paws onto Arnest. Arnest¡¯s narrowed his eyes and he shouted ¡°Run!¡±,

    The lion¡¯s body came crashing down into the ground and Arnest barely dodged to the side at the last second. Arnest tumbled to the side and slammed into a tree, falling to the ground. Lajos saw Arnest on the ground and was about to rush to his aid but Arnest shouted again, ¡°Run to the shore! Run to the ships!¡± Lajos grit his teeth, grabbed Maarav by the hand and ran.

    Arnest started to chant the spell for [Shadow Step] again, forming a protective shell of darkness all around him. He still left his face exposed so that way he didn¡¯t completely disappear and could keep the lion¡¯s attention while Lajos and Maarav got away. The monster kept his four eyes locked onto Arnest, waiting for another opportunity to strike.

    He placed his right hand behind him, forming a small [Shadow Bow] in the shape of a dagger and was the first to charge. Arnest ran towards the left side of the beast and the lion lifted its left paw to strike.

    ¡°Boom!¡± sounded the thunder as they reached each other.

    When the two collided, the lion¡¯s paw clawed at his chest while Arnest stabbed forward with his shadow dagger. Arnest was thrown to the side while the lion balled in pain. Despite the shadow armor, there were three gashes in Arnest¡¯s chest which blood spilled out of. On the lion was a single gash. Specifically it¡¯s left eye of the left head.

    The left head was visibly affected but the right head stared at the other in confusion. But nevertheless it soon recovered. With three good eyes left it was able to clearly see its target and charged Arnest, who was still getting up from the ground.

    ¡°It¡¯s a good thing I told Lajos and Maarav to run. I don¡¯t think I would¡¯ve been able to protect them and myself at the same time.¡± he thought to himself as he rose, getting ready to take the monster head on.

    Arnest still had the shadow dagger in his right hand but switched it to his left. He then rushed towards the right side of the lion and prepared to strike the other head¡¯s eye like last time. However, even though the lion was a beast, it was by no means stupid. It was weary of the strange weapon and dodged to the side first and Arnest passed by. Then it charged from Arnest¡¯s side while he was still midair. There was no way he could stop the charge and he closed his eyes and grit his teeth, mentally preparing himself for the blow.

    The lion pounced on Arnest, knocking him down on his side and hovered over him. Arnest spat out a mouthful of blood when he was hit. Its breath was hot as it smoked across Arnest¡¯s face, saliva dripping down. Licking its lips like it was getting ready for a meal, it neared Arnest slowly with it¡¯s two heads..

    ¡°Sit down, Leo!¡±

    The lion stopped when it heard the yell and the beast looked in the direction of the yell. Lieutenant Marco walked out into the clearing, his hair drowning down his intense face.

    ¡°I said, sit!¡± the Lieutenant commanded again.

    The lion heeded the order, released Arnest and sat down like an obedient pet. Lieutenant Marco walked up towards the beast, petted its heads and handed it a thick cut of meat. Behind Marco was another Raloman soldier, older, who looked like he was a part of the Sixth Army.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry Lieutenant for being unable to control Leo. I don¡¯t know why he stopped listening to me.¡± the Raloman soldier said.

    ¡°It¡¯s not your fault, Domado. It¡¯s much harder to control monsters when it¡¯s raining this hard. We shouldn¡¯t have held the second part of the test until it cleared up.¡± Marco said, still petting Leo.

    Arnest was still on the ground, coughing heavily. Marco glanced over towards the Raloman boy who had lost his arm and was still unconscious on the ground, rain beating against his body. ¡°Domado, bring him to one of the healers on the ship, I¡¯ll handle the Ingras boy.¡±

    Marco walked up to Arnest¡¯s side and stared down. ¡°So, you¡¯re a magus, Ingras boy?¡±

    Arnest continued to cough unable to answer. He was still winded by the previous impact when the lion charged him.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t tell anyone for now. After all, you did risk yourself for a Raloman.¡± Marco said as Arnest¡¯s vision faded to a comatose black.

 Chapter 25 - Test of Insight 1

    Chapter 25 - Test of Insight 1

    Darkness.

    ¡°Ba-dum.¡± the heartbeat sounded once.

    Still darkness with the aroma of a briny air.

    ¡°Ba-dum. Ba-dum.¡± the heartbeat sounded twice.

    Again darkness, but now he could feel his body tingling.

    ¡°Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Ba-dum.¡± the heartbeat sounded too many times to count.

    He awoke, back rising up as he quickly sucked in two lung¡¯s worth of air.

    ¡°Arnest!¡±

    The boy looked to his right and saw two boys, one older and the other younger. They looked like brothers, with their similar facial structures and dark brown eyes.

    ¡°Maarav, Lajos? Where am I?¡± Arnest asked as he looked around. The bed was rocking back and forth and the wooden walls seemed to be moving.

    ¡°We¡¯re on one of the Sixth Army¡¯s ships. Lieutenant Marco found you after you defeated that monster.¡± Lajos explained.

    ¡°I defeated¡­ that monster? I didn¡¯t die?¡± Arnest tried to rack his brain, but the last thing he could remember was the lion suddenly stopping its attack when it had him pinned on the ground.

    ¡°Ah!¡± he exclaimed, remembering Marco¡¯s words.

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ...

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ...

    ¡°So, you¡¯re a magus, Ingras boy?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t tell anyone for now. After all, you did risk yourself for a Raloman.¡±

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ...

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡°Damn, I let someone see me use magic¡­¡± Arnest muttered to himself.

    Lajos and Maarav looked puzzled at Arnest.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Did you catch a fever from the rains last night?¡± asked Maarav as he held the back of his right hand up to Arnest¡¯s forehead.

    ¡°Haha, perhaps. I might have a slight fever.¡± laughed Arnest as he laid back down on the cot.

    ¡°Well you should get ready to rest for the third part of the exam.¡± said Lajos.

    ¡°Third part? What happened to the second part?¡±

    ¡°The monster attack was the second part of the exam. Since you fought the monster directly head-on, you¡¯ve passed and are moving on to the third part.¡±

    Arnest thought for a moment but then he realized what that meant. ¡°Wait, so what about you Lajos? You passed, right?¡±

    Lajos bitterly smiled and said ¡°No. Since I ran away with Maarav, I didn¡¯t pass the second part of the exam.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry Lajos, it¡¯s my fault.¡± Arnest said with an apologetic face.

    ¡°No, it¡¯s fine. If I didn¡¯t protect my little brother, then I wouldn¡¯t be fit to be a Raloman either way.¡±

    ¡°Well said. Well said.¡± Lieutenant Marco said as he walked into the room.

    ¡°Lieutenant Marco.¡± Lajos said as he bowed.

    Maarav just looked at the Lieutenant dumbfounded but Lajos forced him to lower his head too. It was customary to show an officer respect like so when directly facing them, at least if you were an Ingras. Ralomans saluted to their superiors instead but only to those who commanded them. A Raloman didn¡¯t have to salute to another officer who was from another squadron.

    ¡°I need a moment alone with the Ingras boy to talk about the third exam. The two of you should wait above deck for now.¡±

    ¡°Come on, Maarav, let¡¯s go.¡± Lajos pulled Maarav out and up the ladder.

    When the door shut, Marco looked at Arnest. ¡°Why are you taking the Raloman exam, Ingras boy. Or should I call you esteemed magus?¡± he said, accentuating the ¡°magus¡± part.

    ¡°In private, I think I¡¯d rather be called the latter. But in public, you can call me Arnest.¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t answer my first question.¡± Marco¡¯s eyes slanted into two thin serious slits.

    ¡°I just didn¡¯t have anything better to do. Killing monsters sounded like fun.¡± Arnest answered haphazardly.

    Marco gripped onto Arnest¡¯s arm. ¡°Cut the bullshit. Answer me seriously or I will tell the Captain about you being a magus.¡±

    The two of them stared at each other with such intensity that proverbial sparks flew. A few moments passed by when Arnest finally said ¡°I¡¯m here to gather forces to attack the Aster clan.¡±

    Releasing his arm, Marco then started to rub his chin as if he was pensively thinking. ¡°Oh, so you want to join the Raloman army, move up the ranks and by doing so, gain a free army to attack Zanabo?¡±

    ¡°Basically, yes.¡±

    ¡°In order to move up the ranks, you need to be good at killing monsters. And with your skills, you¡¯ll never be able to take down an actual monster without magic. Your footwork is messy and you swing a dagger like an amateur. It should be more like this.¡± Marco pulled out his own dagger and started displaying a few casual swings.

    ¡°Well I¡¯m only twelve, what do you expect?¡± Arnest was feeling quite annoyed.

    ¡°When I was twelve, I could¡¯ve taken down Leo easily.¡± Marco said smugly.

    ¡°Anyways I think I understand you a bit better now. I just came here to feel you out. Also since I¡¯m keeping one of your secrets, you also have to not tell anyone about Leo attacking that kid last night. If the Captain found out then he¡¯d probably execute Leo himself.¡±

    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

    ¡°Fine. As long as you don¡¯t tell anyone about me using magic.¡± Arnest rubbed the arm that Marco had gripped.

    ¡°Glad we could come to an agreement. See you at the next part of the exam then.¡±

    Marco walked out the door and closed it. A Raloman soldier was silently waiting to the side of the door.

    ¡°Lieutenant, did he agree?¡± the soldier nervously asked.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Domado. The Captain shouldn¡¯t find out about your mistake with Leo.¡±

    ¡°Thank you for this Lieutenant. I won¡¯t forget this debt.¡± Domado started kneeling on the ground, sobbing.

    ¡°Oh stop crying you blubbering idiot. Let¡¯s head back up before anyone we came down here.¡±

    A few days passed before the start of the third part of the exam. The second exam had started the night of the storm and the Sixth Army released tamed monsters into the jungle. It was only a test of courage, to see if one would run in the face of overwhelming danger or stay and fight. Those who fought against the tamed monsters would pass and everyone who ran failed. No one was meant to actually have to fight a monster to death, it was just mostly to scare the young boys.

    Of course in the case of Leo, Domado had accidentally lost control of the monster lion and it no longer attacked to scare but instead to kill. Fortunately the only victim was a single Raloman boy who lost one of his arms and Arnest who had tried to fight the beast head on. The Raloman boy was silenced with the promise of being able to pass the second part of the exam. Since he failed the first part, he figured he¡¯d have better chances if he passed the second part. As for Arnest, he exchanged his silence for the Lieutenant¡¯s silence.

    ¡°The third part of the exam is a mock battle. Those who passed both the first and second part of the exam will be Generals. If you passed the second part of the exam you¡¯re a Captain and if you passed the first part you¡¯re a Lieutenant. Anyone who failed both parts are considered regular soldiers.¡± Captain Ramiro started to explain the rules.

    Captain Ramiro lifted up a crimson flag with a golden six weaved into the center. ¡°There are going to be twenty bases that have this flag. If you capture a flag, a general and his entire team will have passed the third part of the exam. And if you pass the third part of the exam, you automatically will be enlisted as a Raloman.¡±

    ¡°Generals can only recruit Captains, Captains can only recruit Lieutenants and Lieutenants can only recruit regular soldiers. There is no limit on how many men you can gather but there is a time limit. By noon tomorrow, when the suns are at their highest point, the mock battle will commence.¡±

    ¡°Remember not to kill anyone, but I understand that fists have no eyes and accidents can happen on a battlefield.¡±

    ¡°I wish you good fortune in your battles to come.¡±

    When the Captain finished, everyone started to hurriedly run around in a frenzy. Anyone who failed the test were trying to appeal to stronger contestants or ones with the largest groups surrounding them. It was like a mob of unemployed laborers suddenly heard of an easy job opportunity that paid extremely well and were clamoring in the streets, hoping that they would be chosen by a winning team.

    However for Lajos, no one seemed to want to ally themselves with him even though he was one of the first to finish the first part of the exam. Lajos just bitterly laughed to himself again. He couldn¡¯t help failing the second part of the exam nor could he help the stigmatism associated with himself and the Raloman army, especially the Sixth Army.

    ¡°Let¡¯s be on the same team, Lajos.¡± Arnest reassuringly patted Lajos on the back.

    ¡°But you¡¯re a General, you can only recruit Captains.¡± Lajos was still feeling downhearted.

    ¡°That¡¯s pretty simple to solve. All I need to do is recruit a Captain and order him to recruit you. Come on, follow me.¡± Arnest then dove into the huge crowd.

    ¡°I¡¯m not smart but I¡¯m strong like an ox!¡±

    ¡°I promise to follow whoever takes me in for life!¡±

    ¡°Please recruit me!¡±

    The people who failed were all yelling out random things in hopes to get noticed and recruited. Arnest and Lajos just kept walking past them. They were looking for some Captains to recruit to make sure that Lajos had a spot on Arnest¡¯s team. Also if they didn¡¯t have Captains, they couldn¡¯t recruit Lieutenants and also they couldn¡¯t get any regular foot soldiers. An army¡¯s heart may be the general but its arms and legs are made up of leagues and droves of soldiers.

    ¡°I assume you¡¯re looking for some Captains.¡± a voice whispered from the side of Arnest.

    He turned and saw a short Raloman soldier. There was a crest with a golden six in his armor. ¡°You¡¯re from the Sixth Army?¡±

    ¡°Yes, Lieutenant Marco sent me to help you.¡±

    ¡°How do you plan to help me?¡±

    ¡°Like this.¡±

    The soldier then took a deep breath and tilted his head to the sky.

    ¡°Wow! You¡¯re Arnest, the guy who fought a Two Headed Lion and lived to tell about it! Please let me join your team!¡± he shouted so that everyone in the crowd could hear.

    Everyone stopped talking and they turned their gazes towards Arnest. They looked like dogs eyeing a juicy slab of steak that just fell into their laps.

    ¡°Names Sabino by the way. You can repay me later when you join the army.¡± the soldier said as he sneaked away.

    A burly teenager, who looked uncharacteristically older than his age, walked up to Arnest. ¡°I am Urbano of the Bosque family. I passed the second parts of the exam and am a Captain.¡±

    Arnest could understand his pride and made the first move. ¡°My humble self is named Arnest, I was lucky enough to pass the first and second part of the exams. I wonder if you would want to team up with me and become comrades?¡±

    ¡°Yes, that sounds fine with me.¡±

    Urbano was not the first to join Arnest that day. Many of the Lieutenants especially wanted to team up with Arnest and when Arnest was crowded with requests, Urbano was the next person they went to when they couldn¡¯t reach Arnest. By nightfall things started to calm down and Arnest had amassed quite a large army for the mock battle the next day.

 Chapter 26 - Test of Insight 2

    Chapter 26 - Test of Insight 2

    Currently it was late at night, indicated by the the moon that floated up in the sky and was hanging at the apex. A boy, who was wearing a Raloman soldier¡¯s uniform, sat on decayed and rotting log that was washed up onto the shore. He was surrounded by similarly dressed and like minded boys. The Raloman boy sitting was brooding. They were all quiet. Waiting with bated breath for the boy who was sitting to say something or anything to break the awkward silence.

    ¡°Hagen, we don¡¯t have enough people on our team.¡± one of the surrounding boys said, looking to his leader.

    The Raloman boy sitting on the log was Hagen Layol, the one who led a small group of thugs to attack Lajos before the exam started. He had passed the first two parts of the exam so he was made a General. The other boys around him were his friends who either passed the first part or second part, becoming a group of Captains and Lieutenants. Because of losing in the fight to Lajos and Arnest, even when they outnumbered the two Ingras, no one really wanted to join up with a team of weak bullies. Maybe if they were stronger then they wouldn¡¯t be in this predicament.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you think I know that?¡± snapped Hagen.

    ¡°How the hell did the deserter¡¯s son and his friend recruit so many of them?¡± Hagen muttered to himself but it was still audible to everyone else.

    Another Raloman boy could be seen running towards them in the distance. Behind him was a larger group of other boys, some dressed like Ralomans and others who lacked the uniform. As they drew closer the crowd grew even bigger.

    ¡°I recruited some people!¡± the Raloman boy leading the charge yelled out.

    His facial features and body type could now be clearly seen. If Lajos was here he would immediately recognize him as the first boy that had attacked him and was thrown to the ground immediately, only to be trampled by his ¡°friends¡±.

    ¡°Retraso, how did you convince all of them to join us?¡± said the boy who had earlier reminded Hagen of the lack of their men.

    ¡°They all came running to me, asking to join! Can you believe it Faunco? They must¡¯ve finally realized Boss¡¯s Hagen¡¯s greatness.¡± Retraso answered with a stupid smile plastered all over his face.

    Hagen didn¡¯t to seem to be that pleased though as he stared at his new prospective team, frowning.

    ¡°You.¡± he pointed towards one of the boys who wasn¡¯t wearing Raloman armor.

    ¡°You¡¯re Ingras, right?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, so what?¡± the Ingras boy became pretty antagonistic once he realized he was probably being discriminated against.

    ¡°I don¡¯t need cowardly Ingras¡¯s on my team. If you¡¯re an Ingras, you can leave.¡± Hagen waved his hand like he was shooing away flies. The Ingras in the crowd started to leave.

    Faunco immediately ran up to the departing Ingras and said, ¡°All of you wait, don¡¯t leave yet. Wait a minute.¡±

    Hagen looked towards Faunco angrily. ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    Faunco moved in closer to Hagen¡¯s side and whispered, ¡°They may be cowardly Ingras but they still have a use. We can use them as fodder on the front lines. Even if they run away they can distract our enemies.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want some dirty Ingras¡¯s to become Ralomans.¡± Hagen would not listen to reason.

    ¡°That¡¯s not a problem. When we win, you can just kick them off our team. Then they won¡¯t get promoted.¡±

    Hagen thought for a moment. Faunco words made sense but he still had his reservations when it came to accepting Ingras¡¯s. But he was right. With the current situation, there was no way he would be able to combat Lajos and Arnest and stop the son of the deserter from being a Raloman. There were twenty flags so there were more than plenty to around to the thirty three Generals and their armies. The only real way to stop them from getting a flag would to be physically confronting them and preventing them ever touching one.

    ¡°The Ingras can stay if they promise to fight.¡± Hagen said after thinking it through.

    ¡°I promise to fight.¡± the Ingras all said in unison.

    After being handed soldiers on a silver platter and some convincing by Faunco, Hagen got the army he so desperately needed. His forces amounted to a force that was about three hundred strong. There was only about six thousand people taking the Raloman exam so this was quite a large chunk. Between thirty three Generals, being able to get just two hundred could be considered good. Three hundred could be considered at least a medium sized army compared to the average.

    ¡°I¡¯ll teach those two not to underestimate us Ralomans.¡± Hagen thought to himself as he dug his fingers into palm, forming a tight fist.

    Meanwhile at Arnest¡¯s camp, his team of about four hundred was soundly asleep. They were all ordered to rest in preparation for the mock battle. Everyone except himself, Lajos, Urbano and the other officers. Arnest gathered them far away from the other teams and Sixth Army, setting up a few small fires that spit and crackled flames occasionally. Arnest was huddled around one of the fires with four others.

    ¡°I finished scouting the north.¡±

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    ¡°I finished the east.¡±

    ¡°The west looks like this.¡±

    ¡°And in the south it curves like this.¡±

    Arnest had split up his team into four, each led by a Captain, to scout the entire island and get a sense of the terrain. Urbano, who was the first Captain Arnest was able to recruit, went to the north. Palben, a Raloman from the Olmos family, took the east. Zenon, another Raloman from the Espina family, took the west. And finally Victoro, the only Ingras Captain on Arnest¡¯s team, explored the south.

    He had them each draw out the island sections they scouted in the sand with sticks. The scene would¡¯ve looked like kids playing in the sand but they seemed much too serious about it. When they finished drawing, the jungle island started to take shape. It was a narrow island, a long beach along the east and west that started out thin near the north, where the Sixth Army had docked its ships, and then thickened the further south you went. The jungle itself wasn¡¯t as expansive as Arnest originally thought and it was actually more dotted and sparse. There were little pocketed areas of clearings, like the one he had earlier made a shelter in, and two major lakes in the most southern quadrant.

    ¡°So where do you think they¡¯ll place the flags?¡± Palben asked, his short cut blond hair fluttering in the night¡¯s breeze.

    Zenon who stood next to Palben, said ¡°Since this is a test for an army, they probably want to see how well we can scout and search for an objective. Where would you hide the flags if you were them?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d place them in the larger jungle forest patches along the island. It¡¯d be harder to search those areas.¡± Urbano answered.

    The four Captains continued to look at the map but one of them just kept a serious face, unmoving and quiet. He was like a steady rock.

    Arnest looked to him and asked, ¡°Hmm, what do you think, Victoro?¡±

    Victoro looked towards Arnest and stared a while before answering, ¡°I agree that they¡¯ll place some flags in the jungle patches but I think everyone who scouted beforehand will also think the same thing.¡±

    ¡°If I were them, I¡¯d also place some flags in areas far away from the jungles where everyone will probably start looking.¡±

    ¡°Oh, like where?¡± Arnest asked, as his eyes sparkled.

    Victoro took his stick and pointed towards the bottom of the island. ¡°The two lakes to the south. There aren¡¯t many jungles surrounding them. I think they¡¯ll place a flag or two here.¡±

    Arnest turned to the other three and asked, ¡°Do you guys agree?¡±

    Urbano was the first to say ¡°I think it¡¯s possible.¡± while the other two nodded in agreement.

    ¡°So it¡¯s settled then. We¡¯ll target the largest lake in the south.¡± Arnest said smiling.

    ¡°But wait General Arnest. I only said it¡¯s possible.¡± Urbano said in a worried tone.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Worst comes to worst and we don¡¯t find anything, we can just take a flag from another army.¡± Arnest said and then giddily laughed.

    ¡°Tell the Lieutenants of the plan and then send everyone to sleep. We need to be well rested for tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Yes, General.¡± the four of them said and then headed towards the other small fires to inform their subordinates of tomorrow¡¯s strategy.

    ¡°I better get some sleep too. I think I¡¯m still a bit sore from fighting that lion.¡± Arnest yawned, laid down on the ground and closed his eyes.

    Morning came and went and noontime was fast approaching. The thirty three armies arranged themselves in neat columns and rows along the shore. Their Generals all stood at the very front alongside their Captains while the rest were in formation, back¡¯s erect and prepared to charge at a moment''s notice. Captain Ramiro and Lieutenant Marco were standing next to each other at the the very front, between the armies and the jungle behind. A third person walked out of the jungle, middle aged with speckles of whitening hair and a flashy golden Raloman officer¡¯s uniform, and stood with the two Sixth Army officers. Arnest had never seen or met this third person but he immediately recognized the officer¡¯s uniform.

    ¡°All of you get on your knees! You¡¯re in the presence of Sixth General Abdiel of the Sixth Army!¡± barked Captain Ramiro.

    There was a momentary pause before the sound of six thousand or so boys, Ingras and Raloman, dropped to one knee. It made a louder commotion than expected, especially when they started whispering excitedly to one another.

    ¡°So he¡¯s the famous general¡­¡± Arnest thought.

    ¡°I bet you¡¯re all itching to start the third part of the exam. So I won¡¯t talk for long.¡± General Abdiel started to talk and everyone raised their heads towards him in anticipation.

    ¡°The rules are simple. All you have to do is hold onto a flag until sunrise and your entire team will pass. You can do pretty much anything but no killing. That¡¯s it.¡±

    General Abdiel briefly explained the rules again and then everyone was silent. No one moved from their kneeling position and a few minutes passed by before Captain Ramiro whispered into his ear, ¡°You haven¡¯t told them they could get up.¡±

    ¡°Oh, right. You all may stop kneeling.¡± he quickly said and the boys slowly rose to their feet.

    ¡°May the third part of the exam begin!¡± yelled Captain Ramiro.

    ¡°Follow me!¡± Arnest yelled and his team started to march at a steady pace into the jungle.

 Chapter 27 - Test of Insight 3

    Chapter 27 - Test of Insight 3

    The thirty three teams all marched into the jungle, searching for one of the twenty flags. Arnest and his group avoided the other teams while trekking southward towards one of the large lakes on the island. Along the way they saw a few of the smaller teams when they exited the jungle patch and entered one of the clearings. They would just stare at each other, sizing the other one up. When they realized that Arnest¡¯s group wasn¡¯t going to attack them they continued to search the jungled areas.

    It was uneventful for most of the afternoon, the only memorable part being when a few of the more excitable boys was spooked by a snake he grabbed onto, mistaking it for a vine. It wouldn¡¯t have been so funny if they didn¡¯t scream so loudly or in such a high pitched voice. These boys were part of Lajos¡¯s unit so he was the one who grabbed the snake and tossed it back into the jungle.

    Behind Arnest¡¯s team were a few Raloman boys who were hiding in jungle brushes, watching.

    ¡°They seem to be heading south towards the lakes, what should we do?¡± one of them asked.

    ¡°Go tell Hagen that they¡¯re heading there and tell him to keep following them. They¡¯ll probably take the shortest path back between the lakes instead of around. If we position right, we can block their exit and send men around to their backs and pincer them.¡± Faunco said and the scouts started scurrying back to their main force.

    A few hours later, after the start of the third part of the exam, Arnest and his team arrived at the western lake in the south. The eastern lake was further south by a mile so Arnest had decided that they would check out this lake first and if there were no flags, they would move on to the next lake.

    Around the lake was mostly open areas but there were forests patches, instead of jungle, that were dotted alongside the lake. The water itself was transparent and you could see small fish and pebbles that covered the entire lake floor. Arnest cupped his hands like binoculars and scanned the lake. Nothing seemed to be on the lake itself, like a small boat carrying a flag or anything like that.

    Arnest then ordered ¡°Search around the lake. Come back here if you find anything.¡±

    His men, or rather boys, split up into three groups. One went around on the eastern side of the lake, the other on the west and the largest portion of the army stationed themselves at the central location they arrived at. Captains Palben and Zenon went to the east and Captains Urbano and Victoro went west. Arnest paired them up according to how he felt they would synergise. To him, it seemed like Palben and Zenon were extremely proud Ralomans and he knew how Ralomans felt about Ingras. They had only joined Arnest after Urbano had convinced them. So the only logical pair for Victoro, an Ingras, would be Urbano who, although very proud, was willing to work with Ingras¡¯s.

    After thirty minutes or so, the entire perimeter was briefly combed over and the army converged into one.

    ¡°We didn¡¯t find a flag in the east.¡± Zenon said.

    ¡°The west was no good too.¡± Urbano added as he scratched his head.

    Palben stood to the side, annoyed. He then snorted, ¡°I knew it was a waste coming here. We shouldn¡¯t have listened to an Ingras¡¯s advice.¡±

    ¡°If you knew it was a waste, then why didn¡¯t you say anything before?¡± Urbano said, also getting visibly upset.

    ¡°Now, now. Let¡¯s not argue. There¡¯s still one more lake we haven¡¯t searched.¡± Arnest said with a friendly smile.

    ¡°What if there¡¯s no flag there? What happens then?¡± Palben questioned angrily.

    ¡°We would be wasting our time then.¡± Zenon answered with his characteristic calmness.

    ¡°Like I said last night, we can just take a flag from another army. We have more than enough time to scout out the next lake. It should only take another hour at most.¡± Arnest tried to placate the worries of his officers.

    It wasn¡¯t that Arnest didn¡¯t understand Palben¡¯s concerns but when he heard Victoro¡¯s theory, he thought it was completely possible and even probable. Arnest wanted to test the theory to either prove or disprove Victoro. If he was wrong, then he would consider his Captain to be just a normal teenaged boy. But if he was right that would mean this teen had a mind for stratagems that rivaled whoever came up with this exam, possibly General Abdiel himself. If he confirmed the latter then he could try and befriend the genius before he grew up to become an even more terrifying monster.

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    ¡°I still don¡¯t agree, we should-¡± Palben started to voice more complaints but Arnest swiftly interrupted him.

    ¡°Palben, you are to continue to the lake. I¡¯m not asking anymore. This is an order.¡±

    Palben stared daggers right into Arnest and then spat at the ground. ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll follow you. I hope you¡¯re confident you can get a flag from another team in the little time we have left.¡±

    And so Arnest¡¯s team continued south and soon reached the next lake. From the eastern side of the first lake you could already see the second lake so it wasn¡¯t a very long distance to travel. That, added to the fact that the land in between the two lakes was completely open, devoid of any forest and brushes.

    Arnest was about to order his men to search but then he saw something on the lake. He squinted his eyes and saw two small makeshift rafts floating in the middle of the lake. On top of them were a crimson flag on each that waved back and forth in the wind.

    ¡°They¡¯re flags! At least two of them!¡± shouted one of the boys.

    ¡°Urbano and Zenon, take a some of the soldiers and swim out to the lake and bring those two flags back here.¡±

    ¡°Right away.¡± Urbano happily said as he then quickly started ordering his subordinates to head out and retrieve a flag.

    Zenon didn¡¯t answer, unphased by the fact that there were actually flags. But he did go to one of his squads and ordered them to head out.

    When the two of them left, Palben and Victoro were quiet. It was normal for Victoro, who usually would close his eyes and meditate, but Palben usually would talk with his Lieutenants and chat with other Ralomans during rests.

    ¡°I... wrong....¡± mumbled Palben.

    ¡°Did you say something, Palben?¡± Arnest turned to him.

    ¡°I was wrong. The Ingr...Victoro was right.¡± Palben said like a child who had just been lectured.

    Victoro then opened his eyes. ¡°You weren¡¯t wrong to worry. I could have just as easily been wrong.¡±

    ¡°Victoro¡­¡± Palben was moved.

    ¡°See, we¡¯re all friends here!¡± Arnest laughed as he slapped both of them on their backs.

    Urbano and Zenon returned in about ten minutes, soaking wet with flags in hand.

    ¡°What should we do now, General?¡± Urbano asked as he stabbed the flag into the ground so it stood upright on it¡¯s own.

    ¡°We can do two things now. The first option isn¡¯t that fun while the second will be really exciting.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the second option then?¡±

    ¡°We go back north and look for more flags and other teams that have flags. Then we¡¯ll see how many more flags we can get.¡± Arnest said with a devious grin.

    ¡°And the first option?¡±

    ¡°We can sit here until daybreak when the exam ends.¡±

    The four Captains stood in front of Arnest, thinking.

    ¡°I vote for the second option.¡± Palben said.

    ¡°Same here.¡± Zenon agreed.

    ¡°Why go looking for trouble when we already have flags and can pass the exam?¡± Urbano asked.

    ¡°The only one who did anything meaningful for the team so far was Victoro. It was thanks to him that we found the flags. I have to at least get one flag for the team.¡± Palben answered while Zenon nodded his head.

    Urbano shook his head, ¡°I still don¡¯t think that¡¯s a very good reason.¡±

    Arnest ignored Urbano and clasped his hands so that it made a loud clap sound. ¡°Then it¡¯s settled. Let¡¯s take a hour break and then head north.¡±

    Arnest¡¯s team then started to make themselves comfortable, either resting on the banks of the lake or swimming.

    At the southern banks of the first lake stood two boys.

    ¡°They seem to be resting.¡± Faunco said.

    ¡°You said they got two flags?¡± Hagen raised his eyebrows because he couldn¡¯t believe the report.

    ¡°Yes, they don¡¯t need to go searching anymore. They might just set up camp here and return after sunrise.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯ll have to go north sooner or later and they¡¯re probably going to go through the middle of the two lakes. Even if the exam ends, we can attack them and just say we got the flags before fighting them. The only thing that concerns me is that I think they have more soldiers than us¡­¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that. I hear my cousin didn¡¯t find a flag yet. I should be able to convince him to come and fight with us and we can split the two flags between our two teams.¡± Faunco smugly smiled as he started walking north towards a forest.

    ¡°When can his army get here?¡± Hagen said, following Faunco.

    Faunco then walked into the forest and behind the screen of trees a huge group of Raloman boys was revealed.

    ¡°They¡¯re already here.¡±

 Chapter 28 - Test of Insight 4

    Chapter 28 - Test of Insight 4

    ¡°Get into formation everyone!¡± Lajos yelled the order to nine Ingras boys.

    Six of them were snoozing on the ground fast asleep while the other three were tossing around a rock they had casually found. When they heard the order, the three of them looked to Lajos but ignored it and continued on with their game while the others continued napping. This kind of attitude was pretty much taken up by a majority of the Ingras on the team because they had already found two flags.

    Even if they lost a flag, they could all still pass and become Ralomans. Also they were so far away from the other teams that they did not fear any confrontations. They had been ignoring the orders for a few hours and were able to force the army to halt at the banks of the southern lake, unable to move. Victory was within sight. Only about six more hours until it was dawn.

    Only the Ralomans on Arnest¡¯s team supported and followed the order to head north to fight other teams and take their flags. But his army was made up of mostly Ingras¡¯s and the Ralomans, although they had their pride, understood that without numbers they wouldn¡¯t be able to fight other teams let alone pose an even minute threat. The Ralomans tried to convince the Ingras to follow orders but they were all ignored.

    This situation, where neither side would listen to the other, was not uncommon between the two factions. Ingras and Ralomans, although they lived in the same city, grow up in two completely separate and different worlds. Ralomans are trained starting from birth to become great warriors of the highest status, taught by the best military minds and most importantly, are provided with immense wealth. In contrast, Ingras¡¯s grow up in the slum outskirts of Ralom, barely eeking out an existence. The divide between Ralomans, who discriminate against the Ingras, and the Ingras, who envy the Ralomans, had grown impossibly wide.

    ¡°Get into formation or I will make you get into formation.¡± Lajos said in a low and deep voice.

    ¡°How do you plan on doing that?¡± one of the Ingras boys said as he crossed his arms.

    Lajos slowly walked up to his subordinates and drove his fist into the Ingras boy¡¯s face. He fell flat on his back, dazed.

    ¡°W-what the hell are you doing?¡± stuttered another Ingras boy who helped him up.

    ¡°Consider yourself lucky, Atoni. Ralomans who disobey orders can be punished with death.¡±

    Atoni, who was the one who just got punched, got onto his feet and spat out a little blood. ¡°I don¡¯t need to follow Raloman rules because I¡¯m still an Ingras! You¡¯re one too so you don¡¯t have the right to punish me either!¡±

    The shouting woke the other six who were sleeping. Lajos remained quiet and Atoni grinded his teeth when he didn¡¯t get a response.

    Without stopping, Atoni started angrily shouting again, ¡°Those Ralomans don¡¯t give a shit about us so why should we risk our futures just so we can make a bunch of stuck up assholes feel better about themselves?!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re right, we¡¯re still Ingras. But if you guys keep thinking like that you¡¯ll never be able to become true Ralomans. You¡¯ll always stay low class soldiers. From what I¡¯ve learned, even a lot of Ralomans find it hard to survive and some even choose to join one of the bands of mercenaries to support their families. It¡¯s only the officers who truly can prosper. So if you do end up passing the exam and become a Raloman, don¡¯t expect it to be easy sailing.¡± an unknown speaker chided them as they walked up from behind.

    ¡°Arnest.¡± Lajos said, recognizing the voice.

    ¡°You¡¯re our team¡¯s General?¡±

    Like a majority of the team, not many had actually seen their General close up. They could see and hear him from a distance but most of them only knew the Lieutenant who recruited them and possibly a Captain or two they had seen in passing. So this was the first time the boys of Lajos¡¯s unit had ever seen Arnest.

    Atoni knew the name ¡°Arnest¡± and was surprised at his General¡¯s obvious youth. He also felt immediate animosity towards him, the one who had ordered himself and the rest of the team to do something unreasonable.

    ¡°Since you¡¯re here, I want to ask you... what the hell are you thinking giving us an order like that?¡±

    Arnest started to throw punches at an invisible adversary. ¡°I just thought it would be fun to spar with the other teams.¡±

    Atoni and the other Ingras boys were put in a daze and became slack jawed when they heard the reason.

    Pausing his jabs, he continued ¡°But I do understand that not everyone agrees so the Captains and I are going around asking everyone whether they want to come with us or not. If you do, then we¡¯ll head north but everyone who doesn¡¯t want to will stay here and protect one of the flags.¡±

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    ¡°You¡¯re splitting the team up?¡±

    ¡°Well I¡¯m not going to force people who don¡¯t want to follow me. I¡¯m not unreasonable.¡±

    Atoni became even more baffled now. It was strange for a General to give his men options like this, usually it was a ¡°follow me or die¡± kind of mentality that they had. But it must be because this General was not a Raloman, he¡¯s an Ingras just like himself. Also it seemed the General had some kind of mental disability because who would risk failing the exam just to have some fun.

    Added to Atoni¡¯s befuddlement was fear. Arnest was giving them two options. Either hope to not be detected by another team and wait here or take their chances fighting other teams further north. In either case splitting up the army would weaken them and increase the chances of them failing the exam. Both options were extremely bad scenarios but now these disobedient Ingras boys would have to pick their poison and live with it.

    While they thought, Arnest added ¡°If you decide to stay here, I will consider our ties to be ended after the exam. But if you all decide to come and fight with me then we¡¯ll all become brothers through combat and I¡¯ll help you in the future.¡±

    ¡°Ha, what can you help us with? You¡¯re just a snot nosed kid!¡± The Ingras boys all started to grip their stomachs unable to contain their laughter.

    ¡°I may be younger than most of you but who¡¯s the kid that became a General and who¡¯s just a little foot soldier?¡±

    Their laughter stopped and they all frowned, deep creases burrowed into every face. A couple of the Ingras boys started to walk towards Arnest with clenched fists. One of them raised his right fist and then swung, but Atoni grabbed at his arm and stopped it before it reached Arnest¡¯s face.

    ¡°I¡¯ll fight with you.¡± Atoni said with some indignation.

    Arnest¡¯s lips curved upwards and then opened, ¡°What about the rest of you? What do you want to do?¡±

    Anger turned into confusion and the boys just looked at each other with puzzled looks. Atoni wasn¡¯t their leader by any means, but since they¡¯ve all met each other, he was the most outspoken and well liked amongst the unit. His words carried some clout within their small group. Did he actually believe in the words of this smugly conceited brat?

    ¡°Well I only came over to tell you guys your options. The rest of the team will be leaving in thirty minutes.¡± Arnest then started to walk off towards another unit.

    The thirty minutes came fast and the two teams were formed. Unsurprisingly only about a third of the entire army decided to follow Arnest while everyone else chose to stay. Urbano volunteered to stay as well to ensure that the team would pass no matter the outcome of the ¡°sparring¡± Arnest planned to do in the north.

    Arnest ordered the boys to march and they finally listened, stepping in step to the same tempo while Palben led them in singing a cadence call.

    The song reverberated through the multitudes of forested patches and alerted their inhabitants. Birds flew into the vast blue sky to escape the sound while monkeys scurried into bushes and peered at the group of humans passing by.

    After the first few times hearing it, Arnest started to actually listen to the lyrics. ¡°Is this song actually a marching song?¡± he asked, staring at Palben.

    Palben¡¯s face reddenned a bit and before he could say anything, Zenon answered ¡°This song is something like his family¡¯s motto. His old man probably only taught him this one song and it¡¯s meant for singing before going to war.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not true! I know lots of cadences! I just¡­ can¡¯t think of any right now¡­¡± Palben¡¯s face was now completely red after being so quickly exposed.

    Soon enough they made their way to the pass between the two lakes. Still proudly singing they entered.

    Palben stopped singing midway when he saw something out in the distance. It took a few moments for everyone to also stop both their mouths and feet. The team was now situated directly in the center of the two lakes and the entrances, when they saw a huge army moving straight towards them from the north. The three Captains, Palben, Zenon and Victoro went into battle mode, shouting out orders to prepare for a fight.

    ¡°Who would¡¯ve thought someone would follow us all the way here?¡± Arnest said lowly while furrowing his brows.

    Victoro walked up to Arnest and said, ¡°General, we¡¯re ready.¡±

    ¡°Well it¡¯s too late to think about why. Let¡¯s just keep things simple...EVERYONE! CHARGE!¡± he shouted.

 Chapter 29 - Test of Insight 5

    Chapter 29 - Test of Insight 5

    ¡°CHARGE!¡±

    The ground rumbled as Arnest¡¯s army ran forward and slammed into the enemies that blocked their path back north. The Ralomans of Arnest¡¯s army had swords and spears but the Ingras only had their fists. Luckily most of the well equipped members of his team were standing at the forefront of the charge.

    It wasn¡¯t a clean fight, especially when the undisciplined and untrained Ingras were added to the mix. Ralomans would try to use their practiced skills but achieved little due to the lack of space to swing swords and thrust spears. Attacks were usually directed towards weak points like eyes and crotches and anyone who fell down was indiscriminately trampled on by friend and foe alike. It was a free for all with no side having a clear advantage. Both sides could, at most, have twenty boys stand side by side so there were even odds of either side winning.

    Arnest watched from a distance with his three Captains.

    ¡°Should we ask Urbano and the others to help and reinforce us?¡± asked Palben, who was sweaty from shouting orders.

    ¡°No.¡± Arnest answered without hesitation.

    Arnest turned to Palben. ¡°They should already be able to see we¡¯re fighting from where they are. If we are able to beat them, they might change their minds and come up north with us afterwards.¡±

    ¡°And if we do ask for help, they¡¯ll probably refuse and want us to run further south to hide until sunrise tomorrow.¡± Zenon said while Arnest nodded.

    ¡°Well what should we do then?¡± Palben said while scratching his head and tapping his foot impatiently.

    ¡°We¡¯re fairly even right now, we can just-¡±

    ¡°PREPARE YOURSELVES, INGRAS BOY AND SON OF THE DESERTER!¡±

    Arnest and his Captains looked up and saw a figure standing on top of a branch on a tall tree. It was above the canopy of the forest so he was easily visible from a distance.

    ¡°I, HAGEN LOYAL, HAVE COME!¡±

    Arnest squinted his eyes and focused onto the boy shouting. ¡°Oh so it¡¯s him.¡±

    ¡°Who is he?¡± Zenon asked while Palben and Victoro also looked equally confused.

    ¡°That¡¯s not really important but now that I know who he is, it changes things.¡±

    A Lieutenant who was stationed at the rear guard came running up to Arnest. ¡°General, look behind!¡± he said with exasperation.

    The four of them turned around and saw another mob of boys running towards them from the south. This group was much larger than the northern forces they were currently fighting, at least double the amount of soldiers.

    ¡°So he got some more help. He¡¯s smarter than I thought.¡± Arnest chuckled to himself.

    The Lieutenant looked at his General like he was a mad man. What sane person would laugh when they were caught in a trap with no way out? ¡°General, what do we do?!¡±

    ¡°Let them come.¡±

    ¡°But General! We don¡¯t have enough-¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I have something planned.¡± Arnest interrupted and then paused for a bit to think.

    ¡°Palben and Zenon, take command of the rear guard while Victoro holds the front.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    And so they split up the team again, a majority of the forces sent to fend off the new attackers while a small portion was left to stop Hagen from pushing too far south. When the rearguard was reinforced it was able to hold out against the south fairly easily since they were at a chokepoint. However on the northern front there was an issue cropping up. They were no longer able to maintain formation and were slowly being pushed back in the center.

    If Hagen managed to breach the thinned defense then he would be able to rush in and flank the rest of Arnest¡¯s army. Once that happened, pandemonium would surely break loose and commanding the army would be impossible. They had to hold the line.

    Unfortunately they couldn¡¯t. Their fears soon became reality. Hagen¡¯s forces broke through in no time, pouring into the opening in the middle between Arnest¡¯s northern and southern forces and chaos ensued.

    ¡°Kill them all Leave none of them alive!¡± yelled Hagen, face red and veins popping out of this neck.

    ¡°General Abdiel said not to kill anyone.¡± one of Hagen¡¯s lackeys, Retraso, reminded

    ¡°I¡¯m your General, you listen to my orders. If you don¡¯t like it I can just kick you off my team.¡± Hagen growled back.

    Retraso went quiet for a while and then proceeded to charge mindlessly forward.

    Back towards the south Arnest was by himself now, overlooking the battle. He saw Hagen¡¯s soldiers come in and they were attacking viciously, kicking people who they forced to the ground with the intent to kill. If they had actual weapons they were aiming for vitals rather than to disable them of their weapon, as you would in a friendly spar.

    ¡°I better end this farce before someone gets more than a few bruises.¡±

    Arnest removed his white shirt and twisted it up into a thick whip. Then he climbed the biggest boulder along the lake''s shore he could find. When he reached a good height, he started waving it back and forth like he was offering his surrender. Some of his men looked to the waving white flag and thought the skirmish was over and they lost. But they wouldn¡¯t be allowed to relieve themselves of fighting that quickly. Hagen would never allow it.

    This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    ¡°Kill anyone who stops fighting! I don¡¯t care what team they¡¯re on, kill everyone!¡± Hagen roared and scared a few soldiers to keep fighting.

    But most of Hagen¡¯s army ignored the order and stopped. Even the southern team led by Faunco¡¯s cousin, Federico, ordered his army to stop once he saw the white flag. Most of the boys on Arnest¡¯s team breathed a sigh of relief when the attacks ceased and they could finally relax. They all threw themselves onto the ground, breathing heavily and trying to regain some normalcy of their bodies.

    However no one expected what Hagen¡¯s army did next. All the Ingras boys of Hagen¡¯s team pulled out sharpened sticks that were hidden under their clothes. They turned around, makeshift daggers in hand, and stabbed at their own comrades.

    ¡°What the hell?!¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?!¡±

    The Ralomans of Hagen¡¯s team, which were extremely few, were instantly overwhelmed. They first had their legs stabbed so they couldn¡¯t run and then were pummeled with fists until they were knocked out. When stabbed they would cry out and it caused a horrible sound to imprint itself on the minds of everyone here on the battlefield.

    Hagen stared at the scene in disbelief as all of his team either defected or was incapacitated. He fell onto his back in shock and couldn¡¯t even think straight, only able to keep asking himself in his mind, ¡°Why?¡±

    Soon enough his soldiers eventually reached him. The leader of the unit, who found Hagen on the ground, walked up to him and bent down to say, ¡° Remember me?¡±

    Hagen looked up and muttered with a crazed look, ¡°You?¡±

    He recognized the Ingras boy. He was the one whom he had asked if he was an Ingras when they first met and then quickly told to get lost when he heard the answer.

    ¡°I¡¯m one of the cowardly Ingras. Here to beat the shit out of you.¡± he said and then punched him in the face.

    The other Ingras boys surrounded Hagen and started to beat the living daylights out of him until he was unconscious and even for a while longer after, until they were satisfied. This was the first time they were able to thrash a Raloman, especially one who so openly discriminated against Ingras. With every punch and kick they remembered when they were insulted by a Raloman just because they were Ingras, fueling their unbridled rage.

    Arnest¡¯s soldiers were also in a daze but quickly regained their senses when Arnest shouted, ¡°Everyone go to the south and push the enemy back!¡±

    The army reorganized, picking themselves up off the ground and forming along the south. They were still outnumbered but with the added defectors of Hagen¡¯s defeated army, they were just slightly weaker than Federico¡¯s army. It was a bitter fight but the boys held their ground, neither side giving up an inch.

    After an hour the fighting subsided and the two armies separated from each other, setting up camps. Prolonged fights were not something young boys could really participate in. They were not warriors hardened by a hundred battles nor were they practiced martial artists. Even if they ran for hours every day, their stamina would not be enough to sustain this kind of strategy. And so night came, darkness covering the entire island and the once noisy chaotic battlefield became a quiet, scenic visage.

    Arnest, his Captains and Lajos sat around a fire.

    ¡°How did you convince them to betray Hagen?¡± Victoro asked, his eyes shining. He saw the futility of the situation only to be turned around by Arnest waving his shirt around and was amazed by him.

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say they betrayed Hagen. I had ordered them to join his team.¡±

    ¡°Ordered them?¡± Zenon and Palben were confused too. They never were told about this before.

    ¡°Arnest offered a lot of the Ingras a deal. That if he signaled with a white flag that they could decide to join his team if they wanted to.¡± Lajos explained.

    ¡°Just how many teams did you plant spies in?...¡± asked Zenon while adding kindling to the fire.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I talked to a lot of people, even those who joined teams already. Whether or not it works is up to luck.¡±

    Palben¡¯s face started to contort into unnatural curves. ¡°Luck? You put us in this situation because you believed we would get lucky?!¡±

    ¡°Well it¡¯s not all luck, at least with Hagen. Hagen has an immense hate for Ingras. With his personality I assume he treated all the Ingras on his team poorly. Also like I said, I ordered Ingras from our team specifically to join him so the chances of them betraying me were even lower.¡±

    Zenon then realized something while Arnest was talking. ¡°Wait, so does that mean there weren¡¯t any Ingras on the team to the south then, since they didn¡¯t join our side?¡±

    ¡°Who knows? Maybe they just didn¡¯t want to join us.¡±

    ¡°Right now they have more soldiers than us, but if we somehow send a messenger to Urbano, we would have the upper hand.¡± Lajos said.

    ¡°That won¡¯t be necessary I think. I have another idea.¡± Arnest then got up and started walking south towards the enemy, waving his shirt above his head.

    Victoro got up and grabbed Arnest by the arm, stopping him. ¡°Where do you think you¡¯re going?¡±

    ¡°I just thought I¡¯d say hello to a fellow General.¡±

    Everyone¡¯s mouths dropped as they stared at their General, thinking like most people who hear him talk, ¡°Is this guy crazy?¡±

 Chapter 30 - Raloman Boy

    Chapter 30 - Raloman Boy

    ¡°We¡¯re running out of time. We should either attack now or try and find a weaker team that has a flag.¡±

    Faunco was pacing back and forth while Federico just sat cross-legged quietly, staring into the fire.

    ¡°Cousin, we need to do something. Sitting around won¡¯t accomplish anything!¡±

    Federico turned his gaze towards him. His eyes were a veiny red and Faunco heard the sound of grinding teeth. The fierceness of his gaze made Faunco stiffen immediately.

    He growled in a low voice. ¡°You came up with this plan and it failed.¡± He got up and took out a silver knife and pressed it against Faunco¡¯s throat. ¡°Now you want me to continue taking your advice?¡±

    Faunco gulped and a trickle of sweat cascaded down the edges of his face. He tried to extend his voice out but the blade was slowly cutting into him and blood streamed down. ¡°F-forgive me, Federico. Aren¡¯t we family?¡±

    But Federico didn¡¯t retract his hand and continued to glare at him, contemplating what to do next.

    ¡°General.¡±

    A nameless soldier from Federico¡¯s army walked up to him, seemingly unperturbed by the tense situation. Behind him was another unknown boy who was smiling, despite the hostility in the air.

    Federico didn¡¯t turn to see who was interrupting. ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°This kid says he¡¯s Arnest, the General of the army we¡¯re fighting.¡±

    ¡°What?!¡± Now he turned to verify for himself.

    Arnest waved towards Federico who was still holding a bloody knife against his cousin¡¯s neck.

    Federico grabbed Faunco¡¯s head and twisted it towards them. ¡°Is this really Arnest?¡±

    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s him!¡± Faunco hurriedly said.

    ¡°Hey, General. I was hoping we could talk.¡± Arnest started to walk over to get closer to the agitated General.

    ¡°Hah¡­ Why should we talk when I can just take you hostage now?¡± Federico had a sadistic grin that was unnatural for a young teenager to have.

    ¡°Well, I figured you¡¯d rather I give you my flag. But if you¡¯d have me instead then I¡¯ll be quite flattered.¡± Arnest slightly blushed.

    Federico¡¯s mouth flattened and face becoming serious at the mention of a flag. ¡°I¡¯m sure you won¡¯t give it to me for free.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I want to make an alliance with you.¡±

    ¡°An alliance?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you a flag now if you come help fight with us towards the north. In return, any future flags we get will be mine.¡±

    ¡°What are you going to do with the flags?¡±

    ¡°I just wanted to see how many I can get.¡±

    Federico stared at Arnest like he was an idiot. But despite that, after thinking a bit, he said ¡°Give me a flag and I¡¯ll help you.¡±

    You only needed one flag to pass anyways, so what would more flags do? You didn¡¯t get any benefits from getting more flags so it was pointless either way. At least that¡¯s how Federico saw it.

    The unnamed soldier pulled out a flag from his pants and handed it to Federico, who stood still in confusion. ¡°Who the hell are you?¡±

    ¡°Victoro.¡±

    ¡°Not your name, who are you?!¡±

    ¡°I think he¡¯s one of Arnest¡¯s Captains.¡± Faunco said.

    ¡°How did you two get here past my defenses then?¡± Federico was in complete disbelief.

    ¡°We walked in.¡± Victoro said in a matter of fact tone.

    Arnest shrugged his shoulders, offering an explanation. ¡°It¡¯s dark so they probably thought we were on their team.¡±

    Federico smacked his head in frustration. ¡°Those idiots¡­¡±

    ¡°Anyways, we should start heading out soon. I want to get at least a few flags before the exam ends.¡± Arnest started to walk back towards his camp to prepare the army.

    Once the two teams came to an agreement, they were quick to march north. Combined they were about eight hundred strong and were moving fast since they had all just rested. A few hours passed and they had met their first enemy, with even fewer hours remaining until daybreak.

    Arnest started waving his white shirt to signal to any Ingras who may want to defect and it worked. Very little time passed before the enemy General had surrendered however they didn¡¯t have a flag. This happened again and again. The first couple of teams didn¡¯t find a flag, so their members quickly defected to Arnest¡¯s side.

    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    It wasn¡¯t until the fifth enemy team that they¡¯d met, that the signal didn¡¯t work. Instead they used their overwhelming numbers to overpower them. Arnest¡¯s and Federico¡¯s armies rammed into the center and, like a spear, drove hard into the central area wreaking havoc. Seeing the futility of the battle, many deserted and a small group of Lieutenants stole the flag from their General and offered it to Arnest. At the end of the battle, the General and his officers were all captured and corralled to the side.

    ¡°Hey, General!¡± Arnest walked up to the enemy who was tied up, kneeling on the ground.

    The enemy General stared at the ground, ignoring Arnest. He was regretting recruiting those Lieutenants that betrayed him. Although he also knew that defeat would¡¯ve been inevitable, with or without the betrayal.

    ¡°Hey~, you there?¡± Arnest knocked on his head with his knuckles.

    Looking up, he had dead fish eyes. ¡°You¡¯ve won. So go ahead, humiliate me all you want.¡±

    Arnest took out a simple knife. ¡°I¡¯m not here to humiliate you,¡± he said as he cut his bindings. ¡°I¡¯m here to offer you an opportunity.¡±

    A dubious smile grew on Arnest¡¯s face. ¡°I¡¯ll give you back your flag, if you help me fight against the other teams.¡±

    And with this strategy, Arnest kept gaining ¡°allies¡±, increasing his combat strength many folds over. Each victory became easier and easier as their numbers increased. Now no one was a match for Arnest at this point and more than half of all the examinees were part of his huge army.

    Day came, light illuminating the night. The exam was finally over.

    A majority of the boys were laying down on their backs, arms and legs outstretched, gasping for air. They had been running ragged, trying to avoid the monstrous army that stretched itself all over the island. It was a large island so they never expected that they wouldn¡¯t be able to flee but Arnest had cornered many teams towards the beaches or surrounded them in a forest. There was nowhere to hide and if the exam was allowed to continue like it was, Arnest probably would¡¯ve conscripted every single army under his banner.

    General Abdiel leaned over the edge of a ship, jovially laughing. ¡°Looks like you kids had a lot of fun!¡±

    The boys just stayed on the ground, not having the energy to acknowledge him.

    ¡°GET ON YOUR FEET AND SHOW THE GENERAL SOME GODDAMN RESPECT!¡± Captain Ramiro screamed from up above on the ship.

    The shout jolted them up, and they all arranged themselves into neat lines, standing at attention.

    General Abdiel leaned into Ramiro¡¯s side, ¡°You really don¡¯t have to yell at them like that.¡±

    ¡°If they don¡¯t show you respect, how can I expect them to respect any of the other officers?¡±

    The General sighed and then climbed down. ¡°Congratulations on finishing the exam! If your team got a flag, have your General wave it up in the air and an officer will collect it!¡±

    Arnest lifted his flag up into the sky and vigorously swayed it back and forth, just like all the other Generals who either joined with Arnest or survived his onslaught. Crimson flags billowed across the sand tinted beaches and officers came out one by one off the ship. Lieutenant Marco didn¡¯t follow the ordering and went directly straight towards Arnest.

    ¡°Knew you¡¯d make it.¡± Marco said, taking the flag and patting him on the back.

    ¡°So what happens now?¡±

    Marco started to fold up the flag in an orderly triangle. ¡°You¡¯re a Raloman now. When we get back to the city they¡¯ll assign you to one of the armies or something.¡±

    ¡°Maybe even send you to an officers school since you did so well gathering all those kids together.¡±

    Arnest¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°You were watching?¡±

    ¡°Of course,¡± he said while tucking the flag into his satchel. ¡°We were all watching. Even Captain Ramiro and General Abdiel started to personally observe you, closer to the end. I think they were pretty impressed.¡±

    ¡°Anyways, here.¡± Marco handed Arnest a small notebook and a piece of lead. ¡°Write down the names of everyone on your team and hand this in to me when we arrive at Ralom.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s officer¡¯s school like?¡±

    Marco started to walk away. ¡°Sorry, we can talk later. I have to go now, to check on the others.¡±

    A few paces out and waving his hand, Marco turned his head slightly to the side. ¡°See you back home, Raloman boy.¡±

 Chapter 31 - Barracks

    Chapter 31 - Barracks

    Once the flags were collected, everyone jumped onboard the Sixth Army¡¯s ships and they scuttled out into the vast ocean to return back home. It was still the early morning when they arrived at Ralom and the streets were a figureless void. Only the incessant squawking of seagulls welcomed them back after their tiring experience. But despite this, after enduring the long trials, they felt a sense of jubilation and accomplishment.

    Even before the ships were tied down, boys quickly hopped off and on top of the wooden docks. The sound of feet colliding into hard woods made a series of ¡°thuds¡± that was reminiscent of a drummer learning to keep tempo for the first time.

    ¡°Follow me to the barracks if you¡¯ve passed the exam!¡± yelled an officer as he ran through the mob and up ahead of everyone else.

    They all listened and started to chase after the running officer. Singing and laughter filled the streets as they passed. These Ingras were finally Ralomans.

    It meant that no longer did they have to live in disheveled and broken homes. No longer would they have to face discrimination for being born either in the outer city or another island. And no longer would their lives in Ralom be dead ends with no means to gain upward mobility.

    It was only now, that the inhabitants of the city started to take notice of the arrival of the Sixth Army. People peered out of their multi-floored windows and opened their doors. When they saw the horde of boys running towards them from the harbor, they all knew what it meant.

    A woman, who was in her mid-thirties, smiled as she stood near a window and looked down at the crowd. She turned herself around, towards where a man was sitting down at a table topped with plates of food, in the small room.

    ¡°Darling, look outside! There¡¯s more of them this year!¡±

    ¡°Come and finish breakfast, Isabella.¡± he said, as he picked up a sausage with his fork.

    ¡°But Celso, you should see how happy they are! Some of them might even become your students.¡±

    ¡°From the sound of it, they sound like Ingras boys.¡± Celso took a bite and lifted his glass full of wine, staring through it at a purple tinted Isabella.

    ¡°The chances of them coming to my school are too low.¡± he said and then drank.

    Arnest was currently running along with Lajos and Victoro. Urbano, Palben and Zenon were already Ralomans so their sights were set higher. They wanted to become officers so they headed back to their homes to start preparing for the officer exams. This was usually the case for most Ralomans so the boys who were heading to the barracks were mainly Ingras.

    They ran through the inner city and all the way towards the eastern side where a huge wall welcomed them. It wasn¡¯t beautiful nor crude. Just a simple stone wall that was a few stories high.

    It surprised Arnest that this was the wall wasn¡¯t as impressive as those in Zanabo. Weren¡¯t these walls meant to hold back monsters? If a Mamalark attacked here, these walls would probably be toppled over by a single storm. Or what if the legendary Zanas just walked onto the shores? It would probably just walk over the wall like it was nothing and crush the Ralomans who were hiding behind the wall.

    The officer of the Sixth Army walked up to the wall. A man was standing at attention at the top and looked down at the officer who pulled out a small parchment paper. The guard nodded, yelling out orders to the other side of the wall, and the entrance started to slowly creak open.

    What laid behind the walls was a mystery for most of the boys. Some expected ornate buildings built atop lush fields. Others expected to see a fleet of monstrous ships and Ralomans lined up in their signature armaments. What splendor and wonder must the Raloman army be?

    Their faces were all stupid grins as they stared intently at the opening, trying to see what laid beyond. And within minutes the gates were fully opened. Everything exposed, for every one of them to finally see what they were working so hard for.

    The ground was a deep brown, not a single patch of green in sight. Dirty red tents littered the field in a disorderly fashion. Raloms pride and joy were, only now, waking up and when they exited their haphazard tents, their bare feet sloshed through the mud. They also wore cheap undergarments instead of a fancily engraved armor and sleek swords.

    In the muck that was the barracks, the single thing that exuded a sense of the grandeur usually associated with Ralom, was the fleet. When comparing the Sixth Army¡¯s ships to the ones they saw in the distance, the Sixth Army was clearly lacking. Specifically there were five or so ships that were embossed and gilded with gold. At their forefronts was a huge figurehead that reached from over the bows, of a busty woman with flowing auric hair. Like a diamond found in a mud pit, it glowed with an uncanny brilliance in an unlikely home.

    ¡°These are the barracks?¡±

    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.¡°We¡¯re going to have to live here?¡±

    ¡°This shit¡¯s worse than where I already live!¡±

    The boys started to question and yell, so much so, that their voices ended up getting lost in the mix. It just became even more rambunctious as some of them started to scramble towards the opposite direction, back to the western slums. The officer who led them here just had an unresponsive stark face.

    After a while, he said ¡°I¡¯ll take you guys to see the recruiters,¡± and started to walk past the gate.

    Not everyone heard him so they continued to complain amongst themselves, however a number of them decided to follow. Arnest, Lajos and Victoro were close enough to hear the officer but Arnest looked out with some apprehension.

    ¡°Should we follow him?¡±

    ¡°Yes. We must follow because we¡¯re Ralomans now.¡± Lajos said, serious as always.

    Arnest sighed. ¡°That¡¯s not a good reason to follow someone.¡±

    But Lajos ignored him and just moved forward. Victoro didn¡¯t say anything but followed Lajos. Arnest looked at their backs for a while, before sighing again. ¡°I guess we¡¯ll see what happens,¡± he said, following Lajos.

    They tried to follow the officer but he was walking fast, without worries of getting dirty, unlike the boys who were taking off their shoes and rolling up their pants. So when they realized they were falling behind they hurriedly chased after him, splashing and kicking up mud on each other and themselves. It was impossible to stay clean trekking the field at his pace.

    The officer stopped at a stone white building that was more brown than white. There were more than a dozen other men who were standing in front. Unlike the other soldiers, they were wearing their official Raloman officer armor, and stood with poise.

    Standing about ten in front of the other officers the Sixth Army officer ordered,¡°Form loose columns of twenty, starting here.¡±

    In a short few minutes, the boys aligned themselves accordingly. Arnest, Lajos and Victoro stood next to each other in the same column. They stood at attention, awaiting further orders.

    Now that they were in their positions, the officers started to methodically walk in between the boys, inspecting each one. They would stop in front of one, tilt their head up and down and finally stare directly into their eyes. A lot of the boys fidgeted a lot when they were subjected to such a strange inspection.

    This continued for a while until an officer slammed his palm on top of one of the boys heads. ¡°This one¡¯s joining the Ninth Army!¡±

    ¡°This one¡¯s joining the Eleventh!¡±

    ¡°This one¡¯s a Seventh Army boy!¡±

    The officers just started yelling out declarations and directed them to stand to the side. Twelve groups started to take form, one for each of the Raloman armies. But Arnest noticed there was more than twelve recruiters. The twelve army recruiters were quite recognizable because they were shouting but that also made the other officers stand out more. They were more aloof, serious faces and didn¡¯t say a single word.

    One of these officers who was just quietly inspecting, suddenly changed in personality. His eyes widened and a smile covered half his face. Placing his hands on the boy in front of him, he asked, ¡°Would you like to join the Euqata School?¡±

    The boy was confused but nodded his head. He knew enough that any Raloman school was meant for military training. Usually it was to train boys to join a specialized unit like the vanguard or a naval unit. It could even mean that they¡¯d be given the opportunity to become an officer. So either way, it was best to not let the opportunity not slip away.

    The other quiet officers broke their silence as well, starting to invite boys to join their schools. But even then, at this point there were still a lot of boys left to be inspected. Arnest and Lajos waited for a while, officers passing by them. Specifically when they looked at Lajos, some of them scowled and muttered some curses before moving on.

    Finally a school officer recruiters stopped right in front of Arnest. Sacks pooled under his eyes, wrinkles covered his face and he had patches of white hair around his head with a bald spot in the middle. Everything about him screamed ¡°old man¡± but he had such an animated smile that it made him look years younger.

    He patted Arnest¡¯s shoulders with both hands. ¡°I¡¯ve heard about you from Abdiel. He said you¡¯re quite the little schemer.¡±

    ¡°The Sixth General?¡±

    ¡°If you want to become something more than a sailor, follow me.¡± the elderly man said, as he walked off.

    Arnest turned around to Lajos and Victoro. ¡°I¡¯m going to follow him for now. Let¡¯s meet up after we get our assignments.¡±

    ¡°Alright.¡±

    Arnest then headed over to the elderly man who was standing to the side. He led him northwards, past the tents and towards another stone building. However unlike the one from before, this one was pristine. It was such a perfect white that it reflected the rising sun¡¯s rays making it look that more extravagant. Also it was much bigger than the one from before and looked more like an apartment complex.

    The recruiting officer wiped his boots on a mat placed at the front, and opened the door.

    ¡°Welcome to Guardia, the best officer¡¯s school of Ralom.¡±

 Chapter 32 - Guardia

    A/N: Sorry for the lack of an update, but I''ve been thinking a lot about how to write this next arc. I feel like I now have a good basic idea of where to continue from here, so hope you will enjoy it.

    _________________________________________________________________

    ¡°Welcome to Guardia, the best officer¡¯s school of Ralom.¡±

    Arnest followed behind the recruiter, an arm¡¯s length distance between them.

    The entrance hall of the school was nothing but white, except for a few benches and the wooden staircase.The stairs were centered in the room, and branched out along the sides of the room, in a boxed spiral upwards. There were a few young men, who wore officers uniforms, standing at a corner of the room talking. Arnest stopped and looked up. He could see the windowed ceiling in the opening between the stairs, which made it seem like a staircase to heaven.

    The recruiter turned around when he noticed the lack of footsteps tapping behind him. Looking at Arnest, he smiled and said, ¡°Impressive, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Arnest didn¡¯t avert his gaze and continued to stare upwards. ¡°¡®Yes, it is.¡±

    ¡°This is Guardia¡¯s barracks, where all our students live.¡±

    ¡°How many students are there?¡±

    ¡°Twenty nine. Or actually thirty, if we include you.¡±

    ¡°Thirty?¡± It was only now that Arnest looked down and faced the recruiter with a bit of shock.

    The recruiter chuckled a bit, as one who saw this type of reaction too many times to count. ¡°There¡¯s at least a single floor reserved for each student and their units.¡±

    He then beckoned to Arnest and said, ¡° Come, follow me so I can show you to your living quarters.¡±

    The recruiter led Arnest to the upper levels, which took qutie a while. Everything along the way looked extremely uniform. At the top of every two stair levels was a plain wooden door, with no decorations or fixtures on the walls. On each door was a wooden number, signifying the floor.

    They arrived at a door with the number ¡®74¡¯ nailed to its facade, when the recruiter finally said ¡°Here it is.¡±

    Arnest placed his hand on the knob, turning right and pressing forward.

    The door swung open and dust puffered all him and the recruiter. They started to uncontrollably cough, both shaking themselves clean of the unwelcome surprise.

    When Arnest¡¯s eyes were dusted, he peered into the room. It was a large room with rows of cots and a few sitting areas, equipped with chairs and tables. However everything was covered in a layer of grey particles, while cobwebs adorning the ceiling. A dim light was obscured by tattered curtains that illuminated pockets of the dismal living quarters.

    ¡°Why is it so dirty?¡± Arnest felt like he should¡¯ve known better, considering the surprise he got when he first saw the barracks outside.

    ¡°Well, we haven¡¯t had a new student in a while.¡± The recruiter walked into the room, pulling a chair out from the table. ¡°Just think of cleaning this room as your first assignment.¡± he said as he sat down.

    One of the chair¡¯s legs immediately gave out under the weight, and crumbled into a pile of tinder.

    ¡°Haha, well I guess you¡¯ll need to get a new chair too.¡± he said as he got up, unaffected by the fall.

    Arnest blankly stared at him. Apathy seeped out of his expression.

    Ignoring him, the recruiter said, ¡°After you clean this room, come find me on the first floor. I¡¯ll give you your next assignment.¡± and then he walked out of the room.

    Arnest stood silently for a while before sighing. ¡°I guess I¡¯ll get started,¡± he said, pushing up his sleeves.

    First he pulled down the ragged curtains from the windows and opened the windows. A breeze swept in, causing little dusty hurricanes to form. Arnest was, once again, quickly covered in dust from head to toe. Wiping himself down with the inside of his shirt, he proceeded to shake off the dust from the cots, chairs and table.

    In the middle of cleaning, a young man who looked to be in his twenties walked into the room. Arnest was too engrossed in the task to notice, until he said ¡°Hey, you must be the newbie.¡±

    Arnest stopped what he was doing and looked up. He was a ghostly grey, covered in all the dust. It contrasted heavily with the young man''s sleek officers uniform that shone a bright crimson.

    ¡°Yeah, I just joined today.¡±

    ¡°My name is Zorr Bosque. What¡¯s your name?¡± he asked with a calming smile.

    ¡°Arnest.¡±

    ¡°Allow me to welcome you to Guardia, Arnest.¡±

    ¡°Thanks¡­¡± Arnest looked wearily at the young man. The young man radiated the aura of a native born Raloman. But then he remembered, ¡°Are you related to Urbano Bosque?¡±

    ¡°That would be my younger brother. Have you met him?¡±

    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

    ¡°We were on the same team during the exam.¡± Arnest started to feel a little more relaxed.

    ¡°A friend of my brother¡¯s is a friend of mine.¡± Zorr said, extending his arm out towards Arnest.

    Arnest took his hand firmly and shook, both of them grinning. ¡°So, are you just here to meet a new student? Or maybe you¡¯re here to give me a hand with cleaning this room?¡±

    ¡°I was just wondering who would be able to get Instructor Maest out of retirement.¡±

    ¡°Instructor Maest?¡±

    ¡°You walked into the school earlier with him, right?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, he never told me his name.¡± Arnest went back to cleaning.

    Zorr sat down on one of the clean chairs, this time maintaining its structure. ¡°I¡¯m surprised you didn¡¯t recognize him. He¡¯s a legend around here.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s so special about that old man?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s a veteran General, who taught most of the current Generals. At least everyone except the First General.

    ¡°That¡¯s interesting.¡± Arnest said as he started to connect the dots. It made a lot more sense now, the reason why he was sent to the best Raloman officer¡¯s school, even though he was an Ingras.

    ¡°Well I just wanted to say hello, but I have to get ready to head out now. I¡¯ll see you later.¡± Zorr said as he bowed and exited the room.

    It took another hour or so until the room was finally devoid of dust. Even when cleaned and reorganized, the room wasn¡¯t anything special but at least Arnest could breath now. He headed down the seventy four floors and reached the first floor. Knocking twice, he opened the door.

    Unlike the room he was assigned to, the door opened up to a corridor with a series of other doors that lined up along the sides. In the center of the corridor was a desk that tightly scrunched up next to the wall. An older man, wearing a pair of jet-black glasses, was sitting behind the desk reading a small book. His legs were kicked up on top and he had a scrunched up face as he squinted at the lines of words. Arnest looked at the man, but he didn¡¯t seem to notice or care much about him. He started to walk down the corridor looking for the old man¡¯s room.

    As he passed the desk, the man grunted, cleared his throat and said ¡°Instructor Maest is the last door, to the east.¡±

    ¡°Thanks.¡± Arnest said, continuing down the corridor.

    He reached the end, turned towards the right and looked at the door. There was nothing special that would indicate this was an instructor¡¯s room, let alone Instructor Maest¡¯s, but he opened the door anyway.

    The old man sat on a padded rocking chair, staring out a window. It was around noon, so the brightness illuminated all the crevices on his aged face but his eyes sparkled with an uncanny vigor. His reaction to Arnest was delayed, but when he turned to him he started to chuckle. Arnest had tried to clean himself, but the dust was stuck to his clothes and in his hair. Even the flavor of dirt found itself in his mouth and he was unable to find a way to easily get rid of it.

    Maest reached over to the end table to his side, picking up a bottle with purple-filled liquid. ¡°You look just like Abdiel did, thirty years ago.¡±

    ¡°Instructor Maest, did General Abdiel recommend me to you?¡±

    He stared at the bottle, took a swig and let out a satisfied sound. ¡°You really should try some of this, it¡¯s really good!¡±

    ¡°Sorry, I¡¯m not very fond of alcohol.¡±

    ¡°This is a special type of wine.¡± Maest took another drink before saying, ¡°It has a little something extra mixed in.¡±

    Maest smiled and looked at Arnest. ¡°You¡¯re pretty smart, right? Take a guess what¡¯s in it.¡±

    ¡°Is it made from some type of special herb?¡±

    ¡°No, this is mostly normal grape wine.¡±

    Maest continued to look at Arnest, who was silently perplexed by the question. Before he could continue thinking about it, Maest said ¡°There¡¯s monster blood in this.¡±

    Arnest¡¯s face became even more puzzled. ¡°Why would you drink monster¡¯s blood?¡±

    ¡°Power.¡± Maest¡¯s mouth and eyes flattened and he no longer looked like a jovial old man.

    ¡°When you drink a monster¡¯s blood, a few things can happen.¡±

    ¡°One, you will become physically stronger.¡±

    ¡°Two, you can gain some of the special abilities or attributes of the monster.¡±

    ¡°And three, the most important reason, it¡¯ll allow you to sense where other nearby similar monsters are.¡±

    Maest lifted the bottle again and brought it up in front of Arnest. ¡°So let me ask you again, would you like to try some of this wine?¡±

 Chapter 33 - Recollection

    Chapter 33 - Recollection

    The seemingly simple bottle, held in the old man¡¯s thin-veined hand, was now suddenly all the more alluring. Arnest hadn¡¯t noticed it before, but there was a sweet fragrance that wafted out of the opening and perfumed into the surroundings. Usually the wines he had tried before all had a sharp, unrefined scent that triggered his gag reflex, but this smelled more like the nectar of an unknown fruit.

    Arnest inched closer to Maest, inhaling the intoxicating fumes. Within breathing distance of each other, Maest placed the bottle in Arnest¡¯s hands. He took one last investigative sniff, before sipping a little bit.

    After a few moments of letting a couple drops to linger on his tongue, Arnest¡¯s eyes widened. The burning sensation found in most wines was completely mellowed out. There was only the flavor of grapes with a strange sweetness added to the mix that danced on his tastebuds. He quickly took another swig.

    This time he felt a familiar sensation. The same feeling he gets when he manipulates spells. Mana rushed into his stomach and stretched out from the center of his torso, towards his limbs. His entire body felt ghostly, lacking any form or weight. He touched himself to confirm he was still there.

    ¡°How does it taste?¡±

    ¡°Strange¡­¡± Arnest said, looking at the bottle, ¡°but delicious.¡±

    ¡°Good. Then drink the rest of it.¡±

    Arnest proceeded to down the rest of the wine.

    When Arnest was done, Maest then pointed towards himself. ¡°Look at me and try to sense something.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    Maest clicked his tongue, saying ¡°Just do it, you¡¯ll understand soon.¡±

    Arnest directed his gaze towards the elderly man. In seconds, the bright room suddenly bled into nothingness and became a white void.

    ¡°Can you hear me?¡±

    The question sounded out in Arnest¡¯s mind in the same voice and tonality as his inner thoughts.

    ¡°Hello? Anyone there?¡± This time the voice sounded different and all the same while, recognizable.

    ¡°Who are you?¡± Arnest called out aloud.

    ¡°Young lord, it¡¯s me! Marcus!¡± A silhouette of the elven officer¡¯s body formed. Pointed ears, armor and all.

    ¡°Marcus? How are you talking to me right now?¡±

    The silhouette didn¡¯t answer, but instead morphed into a tall robed figure. ¡°Apprentice, are you doing well?¡±

    ¡°Master Whitebeard?¡±

    The silhouette changed forms again, into another robed figure but this time much shorter. It¡¯s body seemed quite thin and it¡¯s hands looked like the end of a crooked branch. ¡°Why haven¡¯t you finished taking over Lanex, Arnest?¡±

    ¡°Grandfather?¡± Arnest reached out towards the shadowed figure. When he was about to touch it, it disappeared into the blank void.

    Another familiar voice sounded out behind Arnest. ¡°I think I understand you a little better now.¡±

    Arnest turned around and saw Instructor Maest, who was still sitting in his chair, with his hands calmly clasped together on his lap. ¡°So you¡¯re planning on taking over Lanex for some elven princess?¡±

    Anxiety filled Arnest¡¯s face and beads of sweat started to form along his forehead. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to play dumb.¡± Maest held up another bottle filled with the purple tonic and said, ¡°This Mente Wine allows you to read other people¡¯s minds, among a few other things.¡±

    Arnest boiled red. ¡°Instructor, it¡¯s not as bad as you think.¡± he said, trying to salvage the situation.

    If people knew that he was helping the elves, he knew it¡¯d probably not end up well. It¡¯s one thing to be a human who aspires to conquer Lanex but to do so for the elves, who already conquered the humans in the mainland, carries an entirely different meaning. They enslaved those humans, so if the elves took over Lanex, they¡¯d probably think they¡¯d become slaves too.

    ¡°I already know what you¡¯re thinking.¡± he said, pointing at the bottle. ¡°Frankly I don¡¯t really care what you want to do.¡± Maest downed the bottle.

    He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and said, ¡°I just want you to promise that you¡¯ll always remember to do what¡¯s best for Ralom.¡± Maest then smiled and continued, ¡°After all, you¡¯re a Raloman now, even if it¡¯s only been a short while.¡±

    Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    Arnest hurriedly answered, ¡°I promise.¡±

    ¡°Now that¡¯s settled¡­¡± Maest said, pointing to the lower wall, behind Arnest. ¡°There¡¯s a case of Mente Wine over there. Take it back to your room and make sure to drink one bottle a day.¡±

    Arnest walked over to the crate and lifted it up. He then walked towards the doorway but turned around, parting his lips but before the words could come out, Maest said, ¡°I know what you want to ask, but it doesn¡¯t really matter right now. You need to concentrate on honing the power of the Mente Wine. Once you can read someone¡¯s mind, come see me.¡±

    Nodding his head, Arnest started to walk out but Maest called out again. ¡°Also, remember to keep the wine a secret. You¡¯re good at this sort of thing, aren¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    Arnest headed back up the dozen by dozens stairs and eventually reached his quarters. He dropped the wine crate down on top of the table, before throwing himself on top of a cot. Pulling over the covers, Maest¡¯s words resonated in his mind, reminding him of the wine. Arnest unwillingly rose out of bed, grabbing the crate and shoved it in towards the unseen corner of a closet. Then he finally allowed himself a moment''s reprieve, laying into his cot, and mind drifting off into dreams of a void.

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ .... ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ .... ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ....

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ .... ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ .... ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ....

    ¡°Can you hear me?¡±

    ¡°Hello? Anyone there?¡±

    Arnest thought to himself, ¡°Is Maest testing me again?¡±

    The darkness bloomed into a botanists paradise, a lush open field surrounded by a forest, with a sun at it¡¯s apex. Arnest was on his back, watching smoky clouds pass by. A young girl leaned over him, blocking half of his view.

    ¡°Arnest!¡±

    Her hair was long and seemingly black, however under the bright rays of the sun, it revealed it was a shade of the darkest browns. Arnest blinked a few times and stared into her sky clear eyes.

    ¡°Marie?¡±

    ¡°What are you doing here? I¡¯ve been waiting all day for you!¡±

    Arnest recognized her voice and appearance but he couldn¡¯t remember anything past the name. The same could be said about this landscape however he couldn¡¯t say how he knew about the cave half a mile north from where he was or that there was a small creek a short walk to the east. Arnest had come to realize this was another one of his strange dreams, which had been a recent occurrence since leaving Fox Village.

    ¡°Why are you spacing out? Don¡¯t you want to go watch the tournament?¡±

    Marie grabbed Arnest by both his hands, and with all her strength, lifted him up onto his feet. She started running and sloppily dragged Arnest along. The greenery quickly turned into a dark tunnel with a bright light at the exit, as they ran towards the shouting and cheers.

    ¡°Hurry! Before the tournament ends!¡± Marie shouted, increasing her pace.

    Blinded for only a second, the scene changed instantly again. Arnest was sitting down, overlooking the stadium from a studio area up above, and still holding hands with Marie who sat next to him. People were roaring with an intense vigor, spraying their drinks and dropping bits of any food they waved in their hands.

    ¡°Young majesty, the final round has begun,¡± a suited man from behind said, informing them.

    Arnest¡¯s gaze drifted down to the center of the ring, where two naked men were fighting. At least from a distance they looked like men, but after looking for a while, Arnest was able to make out their characteristics. A lightly paled skinned man, with golden hair and pointed ears defended with a short sword while a muscular ebony toned man continued to bash with a kite shield. The elf was obviously not a man but the other fighter could¡¯ve passed for being human if it wasn¡¯t for the long thick pointed tail that ran down from his spine.

    After a strong blow, the elf tripped and fell onto his back, while the ebony tailed demon slowly walked towards him.

    ¡°KILL THE ELF!¡± screamed the entire stadium.

    Marie, who was sitting at the edge of her seat, joined in, screaming ¡°Kill the elf!¡±, which made Arnest turn towards her in surprise.

    The demon lifted his kite shield and dropped the pointed end onto his neck, severing the head from torso. Blood splattered all over the ground and the elf¡¯s head rolled to the side as his lifeless body twitched. Everyone started cheering even louder, a deafening dark delight filling the air with a slightly relieved anger.

    Marie looked towards him, smiling ear to ear.

    ¡°Wasn¡¯t that fun to watch, Arnest?¡±

 Chapter 34 - Perception

    Chapter 34 - Perception

    Arnest jumped up in his cot, slightly moistened by a cold sweat and rapidly rasping in air. His hands were tightly gripping the single burlap sheet and his entire body was taut like a twisted towel. It took some time before he could start to relaxedly release the built up tension once he realized he was no longer dreaming.

    He looked out to the window on his right as a warm orange glow filled the room. It was still early, at latest the end of dawn, so Arnest wasn¡¯t feeling especially wanting for food. But as he got out of bed, his dry lips and parched throat left him with a longing feeling for something to drink. Remembering the Mente wine, he ducked into the lower closet and pulled out a bottle. Soon after finishing half the bottle, Arnest felt much better, as a calming sensation filled his insides and his mind settled down.

    Another glance out the window and Arnest thought to himself, ¡°Might as well go back to sleep.¡±

    A few hours later, Arnest was awoken by Zorr, his senior classmate whom he met with before. He offered to show Arnest around Guardia which he happily accepted. Zorr took him to see the library, dining hall, and his own room which was on the thirty third floor. After spending quite a bit of time in Zorr¡¯s room, it was getting late so they said their goodbyes and Arnest retired to his quarters.

    This type of day repeated itself for about two weeks, where Arnest would relive the strange dream of the tournament, drink a bottle of Mente wine, and spend the rest of the day with Zorr within the confines of Guardia¡¯s barracks.

    ¡°So Arnest, what¡¯s Instructor Maest like?¡± Zorr asked, as he scraped the edge of his sword against a whetstone.

    Arnest looked at Zorr who was grinding the sword with such strength that forced sparks.¡°I¡¯m not really the person to be asking,¡± he said, before looking up and away. ¡°I only met with him twice.¡±

    Zorr paused the sharpening, inspecting the blade against his thumb. ¡°Even so, there must have been something that was interesting about him.¡±

    ¡°Well¡­¡±

    Arnest started to think about what happened during their last meeting and remembered how Maest told him to keep the wine a secret. Zorr diverted his gaze towards Arnest with a steady anticipation.

    ¡°He¡¯s old, I guess.¡±

    Zorr looked down, back at his sword with a self-deprecating smirk. ¡°I¡¯m a fool, for thinking he¡¯d tell me anything useful.¡± Zorr¡¯s voice rang in his ears, yet his mouth was closed shut.

    ¡°Did you say something just now?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡± Zorr had a puzzled look on his face. ¡°I didn¡¯t say anything.¡±

    ¡°Did I accidentally say that aloud?¡± Zorr¡¯s voice clearly rang out again.

    This time Arnest didn¡¯t shrug off his intuition. He concentrated all his attention towards Zorr.

    In an instant, the room and Zorr disappeared into a bright void. Zorr¡¯s figure reappeared, but there was something off about him. One of the most off putting parts about him was the fact that he was now the same height as Arnest, however the Zorr he knew was at least two heads taller than himself. His facial features were also proportionally larger, making him look more youthful compared to the sharp eyes and small mouth Arnest remembered.

    Arnest recognized this place as being the first floor, right before the door which lead to where the instructors were. Zorr entered and passed the attendant who sat at the front desk, with his stanch black glasses and a small book in hand. The two of them ignored each other as Zorr headed down to the end of the hallway, turning towards the eastern door.

    ¡°Why is he heading to Maest¡¯s room?¡± Arnest thought.

    Zorr knocked twice and entered the room. Inside was the rocking chair that Arnest had seen Maest sitting in, however now there sat a much younger man, who looked to be in his mid-thirties. His hands were clasped together, resting on his lap, as he stared out of the window.

    The man turned towards Zorr. ¡°I am your new instructor. My name is Celso Maest. You may call me Instructor Maest.¡±

    ¡°My name is Zorr Bosque. It¡¯s a honor to be your student, Instructor Maest.¡± Zorr said, while bowing.

    ¡°Let me ask you something, Zorr Bosque...¡± Celso said, while rising and picking up a sword that was leaning against the wall next to him.

    ¡°Is it a honor to be my student?¡± he said while raising his sword, ¡°Or to be the student of the son of the famous Instructor Maest?¡± Celso asked, whilst pressing the sword against Zorr¡¯s neck.

    Zorr didn¡¯t flinch, saying in an unhurried tone ¡°To be your student, is a honor. Instructor Maest.¡±

    Silence filled the room as Celso continued to press the blade on Zorr. The bowing student eventually raised his own head, forcing the two of them into a staring contest. Zorr kept a stern appearance that was neither defiant or submitting. Both parties were unnaturally calm. So much so that an onlooker might mistake this menacing situation as a quiet discussion between a new pupil and their mentor. At least if it weren¡¯t for the threatening sword that was slowly slicing off a thin layer of Zorr¡¯s skin.

    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.With a laugh, Celso threw the sword to the side and it clanged when it hit the ground.

    ¡°Either answer would¡¯ve been fine. I¡¯m just wondering what kind of person my student was.¡± Celso said.

    Zorr rubbed his neck, which was nicked red. ¡°So what kind of person am I?¡±

    ¡°Well,¡± Celso leisurely fell back into his rocking chair, continuing ¡°It¡¯s obvious you¡¯re a liar who wouldn¡¯t hesitate to flatter your superiors to get what you want.¡±

    Celso started to smile deviously. ¡°I had a feeling from the moment I saw you. You really are my ideal student.¡±

    The scene suddenly changed back to Zorr¡¯s room, where he was still pressing his blade against the whetstone in an uniformed repetition. Arnest looked around the room and quickly got up.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Zorr asked.

    ¡°Nothings wrong¡­¡± Arnest said, thinking of an excuse. ¡°I just remembered I have to go see Instructor Maest today.¡±

    ¡°Oh, okay. I¡¯ll see you later then.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, sometime soon.¡± Arnest eked out a small smile before leaving.

    Arnest headed down to the first floor and walked into the hallway, where the spectacled clerk glanced over at him before returning to his book. He headed the Maest¡¯s room and knocked on the door.

    ¡°Come in.¡±

    The door slowly creaked open and Arnest peaked in, head first. ¡°Instructor Maest.¡±

    Maest glanced over at Arnest for a moment and immediately closed his eyes. ¡°So the wine seems to be showing its effects.¡± he said, opening his eyes and muttering ¡°Good¡­Good¡­¡±

    Arnest figured Maest had invaded his mind again somehow. He could also sense a strange sensation when Maest closed his eyes. The feeling of his head being vigorously massaged quickly subsided but unlike before, he didn¡¯t have to relive the memories.

    ¡°Instructor Maest¡­¡± Arnest said, looking down. His hands were tightly balled up and he unconsciously grit his teeth.

    ¡°Hmm?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t¡­¡± Arnest paused before raising his head and finishing, ¡°I don¡¯t think I want to know what¡¯s inside other people¡¯s minds.¡±

    ¡°Has that Bosque boy¡¯s thoughts scared you?¡±

    ¡°I thought we were friends but now I¡¯m pretty sure he was just using me to get information on you.¡± Arnest¡¯s eyes started to slightly dampen and his slouched figure was downcast.

    Maest smiled with a grandfather¡¯s charm. ¡°Don¡¯t you think you¡¯re being a hypocrite? Didn¡¯t you come to Ralom to use its people to your advantage?¡±

    ¡°No relationship starts out with one person kindly helping another with no other intentions. There has to be some give and take. An exchange of sorts.¡± Maest said, holding up his small leather change pouch.

    Maest removed a bronze coin from the purse. ¡°Some people want wealth.¡± He played with the coin, twirling it across his boney fingers. ¡°Other¡¯s are looking for a good time.¡±

    ¡°Think of what Zorr Bosque has helped you with. If he just wants some information on an old man like me, why not just give it to him?¡± Maest tossed the russet coin back into its pouch.

    Arnest wiped his tears with his sleeve, ¡°Is this really okay?¡±

    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s fine. You can go see him later today, but right now, we need to discuss what comes next.¡±

    ¡°Since you can hear other¡¯s thoughts, you¡¯re ready to go on your first mission.¡± Maest reached for a rolled up parchment that was tied closed by a brown string.

    He unravelled it and spread the paper across the table. ¡°I¡¯m going to send you to the Kille islands to practice subjugating monsters.¡±

    Arnest recognized the parchment as a map of the surrounding area. Ralom was situated at the western side of the map and Maest was currently pointing to a nearby series of islands that was in the north eastern quadrant.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to teach me any fighting techniques or how to use the powers from the Mente wine?¡± Arnest asked.

    ¡°You may have heard the saying that ¡®Ralomans are born Ralomans¡¯. Here at Guardia we say ¡®Officers are born after leading a hundred battles.¡¯, so it¡¯s better if you start fighting monsters sooner than later.¡±

    Arnest frowned, protesting with ¡°But I don¡¯t know how to fight monst-¡±

    Maest interrupted, explaining ¡°Your subordinates will all be veterans so they can teach you how to fight. As for the other effects of the Mente wine, you¡¯ll learn about them naturally in due time.¡±

    ¡°Go talk to Damon about getting some soldiers and supplies.¡±

    ¡°Who¡¯s Damon?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s the principal of Guardia. You should¡¯ve seen him before coming in here¡­¡± Maest held up his hands like binoculars to his face. ¡°He wears glasses like this and is always reading books.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s the principal?¡±

    ¡°I say principal, but he¡¯s more like a quartermaster and watchful eye sent here by the King. Guardia is supported by the royal family after all.¡±

    ¡°But what about the-¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you another two cases of Mente wine for your trip. It shouldn¡¯t take longer than a few weeks so you should have more than enough.¡±

    ¡°But-¡±

    ¡°Just go already!¡± Maest yelled, shoving Arnest out of the room and slamming the door.

    Arnest turned back to the unwelcoming shut door and back towards the empty and dead quiet hallway. He continued down the corridor, thinking of his third meeting with Instructor Maest until stopping in his tracks when he realized something.

    ¡°Why couldn¡¯t I hear his thoughts?¡±

 Chapter 35 - Initiation

    Chapter 35 - Initiation

    Arnest¡¯s eyes started to uncomfortably wander towards the floor as the man in front of him leered. He placed his book on the table so that the pages were pressed against the top, forming an impromptu bookmark. The man also removed his glasses, folded them, and then tapped the thin metal frame against the book¡¯s hardcover. Eyebrows furrowed into sharp daggers that shot out an aggressive glare that one might aim at a pestering fly.

    ¡°Go away. Go away. Go away.¡± sounded out, repeatedly like an echo, but Arnest figured it was just the principals internal hopeful mantra.

    After a while of the man staring and inwardly screaming, he heaved a heavy sigh, put on his glasses, and pulled out a giant book that looked like an archaic encyclopedia. He skimmed the pages and stopped at a quarter of the way into the book.

    ¡°The only company that¡¯s suited for fighting in the Kille Isles are the Larks, so that''s what I''m giving you. As for provisions, you can collect three weeks worth of rations from the supply depot by the docks.¡±

    Principal Damon started scribbling something on the corner of a heavily creased piece of paper, ripped it out and handed the torn chicken scratch to Arnest. Looking at the undecipherable writing, The letters were recognizable but their groupings didn¡¯t form any words that were familiar to him. Unable to make sense of it, he just stood there dumbfounded, with the scrap of paper in hand.

    ¡°I¡¯ll send someone to inform the Lark company to arrive here, tomorrow morning.¡± said Damon who paused for a moment, staring Arnest down before continuing, ¡°You should be fully aware that the Killean people are heavily connected to Ralom. If anything happens because of your negligence, I will hold you fully responsible and you will be severely punish-¡±

    ¡°Umm¡­¡± Arnest interrupted, glancing up to the principal with a small smile and a little optimism. He lifted the note up, getting ready to voice a question, but the annoyed principal didn¡¯t need to drink Mente wine to know what he wanted to ask.

    ¡°What, you can''t even read the most basic Raloman code yet? Has Instructor Maest taught you anything over the past two weeks?¡±

    Arnest awkwardly shook his head and Damon started muttering angry curses as he reached into a desk drawer. A small book was pulled out into view and thrown at Arnest, whom barely caught it before it hit him squarely in the forehead. On the top of the cover was written ¡°An Introduction to Cryptography¡±. His eyes traveled down the plain binding and reached the author¡¯s name, Alto Maest.

    ¡°Did Instructor Maest write this?¡± Arnest asked, making an educated guess.

    ¡°Are you an idiot? Who else could have written it?¡±

    The displeasure oozed out of every word and Arnest wasn¡¯t daft enough to miss it. That, and the principals thoughts were becoming evidently angrier. He said his apologies and expressed gratitude for the help, expediting the process of getting out of the irked principals¡¯ presence. Damon yelled ¡°Don¡¯t slam the door!¡± as Arnest was leaving so he became even more careful, making a mental note to do the same for any future visits.

    Once out, Arnest rushed up the stairs. He wanted to also apologize to Zorr and maybe figure out how to help him, whether that meant talking about Instructor Maest or anything else that he could possibly do. But by the time he reached the thirty third floor and knocked on the door, there was no answer. Arnest waited for a hour and only a few other students passed by. There was no sign of Zorr and daylight was disappearing each passing minute.

    ¡°I¡¯ll see him tomorrow.¡± Arnest thought to himself and he started to climb up the stairs towards his floor.

    He wanted to stay and wait, but his easy going life was starting to change. The slip of paper given to him by Principal Damon was still in his pocket. He assumed it was an official document, that probably would allow him to get his soldiers and begin his journey to the Kille islands. The second Arnest entered his room, he sat at a table and opened the text written by his mentor. Pouring over the boundless words, he eventually got some sense of how to decipher the code.

    ¡°Near the Killean Isles, rally forward towards dark storms,¡± is what the note translated into.

    ¡°Another code¡­¡± Arnest thought, scratching his head.

    The sun was setting at this particular time however Arnest did not first think of sleep, but rather continued to read the cryptography text until there was no longer natural reading light. By this point, when everything was pitch black, Arnest retired to a cot. Tired, yet excited, he found himself imagining a grand future. He replayed scenes conjured from the stories he remembered from Fox Village and wondered how many similar experiences he might have or if he could outdo them entirely.

    After a while, as Arnest was finally ready to sleep, his mind slipped to the past. He thought of those he left behind: the children of Cirqa Efatos and their leader, Jerrei. Clyde and his former band of pirates. Halphas, the shy half demon. Those of Fox Village. And finally his grandfather whom he hadn¡¯t seen for months now.

    ¡°I wonder how Grandfather¡¯s doing right now....¡± he thought, before dozing off.

    Morning came and a thunderous banging shocked Arnest out of his slumber. It was the door that was being pounded, trembling under the violent knocking. Arnest eased out of his cot, the disturbance willing him towards the door. Quickly opening the door, a fist found itself knocking on Arnest¡¯s head instead of the hardwood.

    This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.

    ¡°Ouch...¡± Arnest sleepily mumbled, rubbing his slightly dented head.

    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry!¡± the attacker said, bowing over and over again.

    ¡°Why were you knocking on my door so loudly?¡± Arnest asked loudly, examining his assailant.

    He was neither a young boy nor a man, so somewhere in-between. There was not a single strand of hair on his clean head that shined under the morning suns and he wore a common Raloman uniform. However Arnest didn¡¯t concentrate on his unusual balding but rather the bronze crest, which appeared to be of a whale, that hung from his right breast.

    The in-between boy-man stopped bowing, straightened out his back and saluted. ¡°Student Officer Arnest, I am Cato of the Lark Company. I was ordered by Captain Nemo to come here and inform you that we are awaiting orders in the main lobby.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll come down in a little while then.¡± Arnest said, moving towards the closet to grab something to eat and drink.

    He opened the closet door and started rummaging, pulling out some preserved meats and a stale loaf of bread. With jerky stuffed in his mouth, he turned around and started moving towards a table when he noticed Cato still standing by the doorway, saluting.

    Arnest, realizing what was going on, said ¡°You can go back downstairs now.¡±

    Cato let out a relieved sigh of relief and relaxed his stance, heading back down to his comrades.

    After a while, Arnest started to make his way to the Lark Company who were presumably still waiting for him. As he made his way downstairs, he casually took in his surroundings one last time.

    ¡°I guess I won¡¯t be back here for a while, huh.¡±

    ¡°Student Officer Arnest!¡± Cato exclaimed when he saw Arnest coming down the stairs.

    The rest of the soldiers looked up and saw Arnest. They quickly assumed their stances and salutes in respect to his position.

    When Arnest arrived at the foot of the stairs a muscularly defined officer walked up to him. He wore the same insignia as Cato, but this metal whale was golden. Saluting, he said in a natural and fluid voice, ¡°Captain Nemo, at your service.¡±

    ¡°A pleasure to meet you, Captain Nemo.¡± Arnest extended his hand out towards him.

    A simple handshake was made before Arnest quickly asked, ¡°So when do we head out?¡±

    ¡°Whenever you¡¯re ready,¡± Captain Nemo said, still saluting.

    ¡°Then let¡¯s leave right now then.¡±

    Captain Nemo turned around towards his subordinates and yelled, ¡°Lark Company, move out!¡±

    The Lark Company started to march out of Guardia¡¯s front doors and headed towards the docks. By the time they reached their ship, they were all muddied by the trek. They all looked like beggars now. but at the same time there was a cheery quality about them.

    ¡°Cato, I heard you hit the student officer?¡± asked one of the soldiers.

    ¡°I-I didn¡¯t mean to hit him.¡± Cato nervously stuttered.

    ¡°I heard that he insulted your mother so you smacked him across the face.¡± another soldier said.

    A soldier to his left also chimed in with, ¡°Oh, I heard that too!¡±

    ¡°Good job, kid!¡± said another, who heartily slapped Cato¡¯s back.

    ¡°That never happened! I said I didn¡¯t mean to hit him!¡± Cato protested.

    The company exploded in laughter and started to head onto the ship. It was a modest ship, no gilded exterior or fanciful busty nautical figureheads, but it had the signature Raloman crimson sails. The size of the ship was probably designed with the size of the company in mind since it had just enough space for each of its soldiers.

    Once settled, at around noontime, Captain Nemo walked up to Arnest who was watching from the top deck.

    ¡°Student Officer Arnest, will you come with me for a moment?¡± he saidwith a friendly smile.

    ¡°Sure.¡± Arnest agreed, without thinking too much about it.

    Captain Nemo started to walk down to the central deck where a majority of the company was situated. ¡°Men, as you know, we will be hosting the respectable Student Officer Arnest here on our ship. the Alastair, as a honorable guest.¡±

    ¡°Aye!¡± a good number of them responded.

    ¡°It¡¯s been awhile since we last hosted someone, so I wonder if any of you Larks remember¡­¡± Captain Nemo continued to walk until he was in the middle of the crowd. ¡°What do we do with honorable guests?¡±

    A hundred voices sounded out in Arnest¡¯s head all at the same time. The soldiers next to Arnest grabbed ahold of his limbs and effortlessly lifted him up in the sky.

    Arnest started to yell, ¡°What¡¯s going on, Captain Nemo?!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s just a little celebration!¡± Captain Nemo laughed.

    Voices continued to ring in Arnest¡¯s head, giving him a headache. The Larks, who were carrying Arnest, moved towards the port of the ship. With a ¡°heave¡± and a ¡°ho¡± they tossed his small figure into the water. Arnest flopped against the surface of the water, belly first, and slowly sunk into the ocean slowly submerging.

    It took a few moments before Arnest was able to collect himself and swim up for air. When he reached oversea, he was ready to start yelling again but the soldiers were crashing into the water like cannon fire. Looking up at the deck¡¯s edge, Arnest saw Captain Nemo proudly standing atop the railing.

    ¡°Glad to have you as a part of the Lark Company, Arnest!¡± he yelled before joining the other Larks and splashing into the ocean.

 Chapter 36 - Divination

    Chapter 36 - Divination

    After the ¡®welcome party¡¯, Arnest was hauled back onto the Lark Company ship. Their clothes were still drenched in an ocean musk as they promptly continued their journey to the Killean Isles. Led by Cato, Arnest followed the timid boy towards his quarters. As Arnest passed soldiers along the deck, none of them paid any attention to him. The soldiers of the bantering company had suddenly become solemn crowd. Almost as if they were all part of a funeral procession, with slow but diligent strokes of the oars. Their faces looked like the churning water below them, uneased creases flowing out.

    Arnest stopped in his tracks, behind Cato. ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Cato replied with another question, while turning around.

    The student officer pointed to the rest of the company behind his back. ¡°Everyone''s become so serious all of a sudden.¡±

    ¡°Oh right, this is your first subjugation mission, so you wouldn''t know.¡±

    ¡°Know what?¡±

    ¡°Whenever you are far east of Ralom¡­¡± Cato paused, with a grim look on his face. ¡°You have to be ready for anything.¡±

    ¡°You mean monsters? Aren''t there monsters west of Ralom as well?¡±

    Yes, there are monsters everywhere. But that''s not the only thing you should be worried about.¡±

    ¡°What else would you have to worry about?¡±

    Cato started to tense up. ¡°There¡¯s worse things than monsters out here. You can at least see a monster coming at you.¡±

    They resumed their steady pace into the ship as Cato quickly shut his mouth, yet his voice continued, ¡°You should worry about what''s you can''t see.¡±

    The two of them soon arrived at the back of the interior ship where a common wooden door was. Cato knocked once and waited for a response. It was all silent but for the ship creaking as it rocked back and forth. A while passed and when no answer came, Cato finally opened the door.

    ¡°The captain should be here,¡± Cato¡¯s voice sounded out in what seemed like a vacant room.

    The room was quite large in comparison to the corridor and it was well furnished. A velvet lounge chair lined one end and on the other was a desk with an executively carved chair behind and two smaller, modest chairs in front. Arnest unceremoniously plopped himself down onto the sofa while Cato said, ¡°I¡¯ll be right back.¡± and left the room.

    Alone in the room, Arnest sprawled out on the velvet sofa. He let his head hang upside down, off the edge, which directed his gaze towards the desk. Arnest hadn¡¯t noticed initially because the chairs were blocking it but now the Lark Company crest was clearly visible, etched into the entire front of the desk.

    Arnest got up and crouched down to look at the engravement. It was soon obvious that the pins that the soldiers wore were nothing in comparison to the detail that was expertly carved into the wood. The ¡®whale¡¯s¡¯ body curved into the shape of a crescent moon, jumping out of the oak waves of the edifice, and its mouth was wide open. Jagged teeth filled the opening and a terrible scar was scored across the eye. Small little figures, carrying spears and swords, topped the beast.

    The door flew open without warning and Arnest swiftly twisted his head around. Captain Nemo casually stood at the door.

    ¡°I see you¡¯re admiring the Mamalark.¡± Captain Nemo said, adjusting his scabbard.

    ¡°So the name ¡®Lark¡¯, is just short for Mamalark?¡±

    Captain Nemo neared Arnest and kneeled down on one knee, next to Arnest. ¡°That¡¯s right. All companies specialize in killing at least one type of beast andthat becomes their name and crest.¡±

    The two of them stared at the carving together for a while, before Arnest asked ¡°Are there many Mamalarks around the Killean Isles?¡±

    ¡°What makes you think that?¡±

    ¡°Well since the Lark company is good at killing Mamalarks, I don¡¯t see any other reason why I would be grouped up with your company.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re pretty smart for a boy. As expected of a student officer from Guardia.¡± Captain Nemo said as he softly patted Arnest on the head.

    Arnest backed away from the captain and said in a serious tone, ¡°Captain Nemo, please do not treat me like a child.¡±

    The captain started to laugh, ¡°Haha, are you not a child?¡±

    ¡°Your company was given to me to lead, so I¡¯m your superior right now. You threw me into the water and now you treat me like a child. Is this the respect a Raloman shows to his superior officer?¡±

    Captain Nemo stopped laughing and instantly became grimly solemn. In a seconds flash, he charged Arnest and flipped him onto his back, pressing his muscular girthy arm against his neck.

    ¡°Listen here boy. You may be my superior, but that¡¯s only a title.¡± he said, increasing the pressure.

    Almost unable to breath, Arnest managed to let out a gasping, ¡°Get off me of me¡­¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve been a captain of the Larks for twenty years and have fought with hundreds of Mamalarks. The only monster you¡¯ve probably seen was a trained monkey during the Raloman exams.¡±

    Captain Nemo leaned into Arnest, his fishy breath seeping into Arnest¡¯s nostrils with unfiltered purity. ¡°Do you think you know better than me, superior student officer Arnest?¡±

    A single wooden knock and Cato opened the door.

    ¡°C-captain? What are you doing?¡± Cato nervously asked.

    Releasing Arnest, Captain Nemo got up and brushed himself off. ¡°I was just having a friendly wrestling match with the student officer.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that right, student officer?¡± he added, staring at Arnest.

    Arnest didn¡¯t respond and shot back an icy glare. The student officer and captain had a staring match, neither blinking or saying a word. Cato, the third wheel, didn¡¯t know what to do but then remembered what he originally meant to do when he came here.

    Hurriedly Cato said, ¡°Captain, we¡¯ve arrived at Edr of the Killean Isles.¡±

    Captain Nemo was the first to break the contest of endurance, turning towards Cato with a smile. ¡°Gather the men and tell them to get ready to disembark.¡±

    ¡°At home at last,¡± Captain Nemo¡¯s voice rang inside Arnest¡¯s mind.

    It took half an hour for the sails to be tied up and ship to be anchored to the dock, but the Lark company disembarked soon after enmasse. The people of Edr Island formed a small gathering along the docks. Children were bouncing around and young woman cheered at the men, all trying to garner some attention. Captain Nemo was the last to leave the ship, right after Arnest whom he seemed to be keeping a close watch over. Cato also kept close to Arnest and Captain Nemo, but mainly to try and disparage any more fighting started by his captain.

    The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

    An elderly woman, dressed in a grey robe and seashell ornaments, approached Arnest and the captain. ¡°I see Neptus has protected you.¡±

    ¡°As you always say, Neptus is kind to his believers.¡± Captain Nemo said, quickly embracing her.

    ¡°I¡¯m back home, mother,¡± he lovingly whispered.

    ¡°Welcome back, Primum.¡± she said, tightening her thin arms around him.

    Arnest stood behind the reunited mother and son as a mute. He hadn¡¯t said a single word since his fight with Captain Nemo, which was still a fresh encounter in his mind.

    Captain Nemo eventually left the embrace and caught Arnest in the corner of his eye. ¡°Mother, before I forget, let me introduce you.¡± he said, motioning towards Arnest. ¡°This is student officer Arnest. He¡¯s here to accompany the Larks on our next mission.¡±

    ¡°A pleasure to meet you, student officer of Ralom.¡± Captain Nemo¡¯s mother nodded towards Arnest.

    Again, Arnest gave no response and continued a look of apathy tinged with slight disdain that was directed towards the captain.

    Captain Nemo ignored it and continuedas thoughnothing was wrong, ¡°And Arnest, as you can probably assume, this is my mother, Secuna Nemo. The chieftain of Edr.¡±

    The boisterous Lark company served as a backdrop and contrast to the awkward silence between the four of them. Cato eventually came up with an excuse and interjected with ¡°Captain, why don¡¯t you allow me to show the student officer around Edr?¡±

    ¡°A great idea, Cato! You can go explore for awhile, at least until mealtime, alright?¡± Captain Nemo said loudly so that his voice would be heard over the Larks and native islanders.

    Cato grabbed Arnest¡¯s hand and brought him away with the swiftness of a fleeing fish in water. The two of them disappeared into the village that was comprised of mainly small huts and a single wooden longhouse.

    ¡°Primum, come with me.¡± Secuna said, walking in the same direction that Cato led Arnest, towards the village.

    ¡°Yes, mother.¡±

    Secuna Nemo led her son past an array of small huts, into the forest backdrop and towards a small creek. On the edge of the creek laid another small hut, yet it was slightly larger than the common ones in the village. The two of them entered into the enclosure.

    The hut was filled with numerous odd ends and trinkets. Bubbling clay jars were circling a fire and strange herbs were tied along string that hung along the high ceiling. Secuna sat down and Captain Nemo positioned himself across from her.

    ¡°It has been far too long since your last fortune.¡± she said, mixing one of the boiling pots with a long wooden spoon.

    She pointed towards one of the pots in front of Captain Nemo. ¡°Drip your blood in there.¡±

    Captain Nemo obliged her, removing a small dagger from underneath his shirt and slightly slicing the palm of his hand. Holding his fist over the pot, his blood dripped into it and started to boil more ferociously. A few minutes passed by and then the blood stopped flowing, so he sat down next to the pot intently staring.

    ¡°How long will it take for it to be ready?¡±

    Secuna kept stirring the mixture inside the pot. ¡°The older you get, the less time it takes for Neptus to work the nectar.¡±

    The flames reflection flickered in Captain Nemo¡¯s eyes. ¡°So how long?¡±

    ¡°A day or two. Maybe a week at the longest.¡±

    __________________________________________________

    __________________________________________________

    Cato hurriedly dragged Arnest through the village, past the forest and onto a deserted beach. When they arrived, he turned around and nervously looked all around. After confirming there was no one in sight, he sighed in relief and fell on his back into the sand. Arnest remained silent, still thinking back about what happened on the ship. The sun was neither at the zenith nor on the horizon, but somewhere in the middle.

    Cato stared out at the monotonous approaching and receding waves before speaking out, ¡°You know, the Captain means well.¡±

    Arnest didn''t respond, remaining silent.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know why you both were fighting¡­¡± he said, picking up what looked like a plank of a crashed ship.

    ¡°But I know the Captain really cares about us.¡± Cato started to swing the piece of debris around.

    ¡°Most of the Lark company is made up of people from the Killean Isles. Captain Nemo and I are from this island, and a lot of us knew each other even before we joined Ralom.¡±

    A brief silence consumed the space. Even the waves quieted and the wind died down, as if they were listening into this one sided conversation with baited anticipation.

    ¡°The last student officer that was assigned to the Lark company gave a bad order and a lot of us died.¡±

    It was only now that Arnest turned around towards Cato. ¡°What was the order?¡±

    ¡°He wanted us to chase a Mamalark. Captain Nemo was against it but the student officer was in charge so we followed his orders. In the end, we were led into a swarm of Mamalarks...¡±

    Cato¡¯s shoulders started to slouch and his head was downtrodden. ¡°A lot of my friends died that day.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for your loss.¡± Arnest said.

    ¡°It¡¯s been a long time since then, so don¡¯t worry about it.¡± Cato said, plunging the plank into the sand upright. ¡°But I¡¯m sure the Captain still thinks about it.¡±

    ¡°When we returned to Ralom, he got really angry and told everyone what happened. Other companies and even a few Generals rallied together to persecute the student officer. Eventually the king agreed to holding a trial and he was exiled. The king even promised Captain Nemo that he wouldn¡¯t have to deal with another student officer again.¡±

    ¡°Then why were the Larks assigned to me?¡±

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not too sure. Captain just said he was doing someone a favor.¡±

    Cato picked up a rock, got up and skipped it across the water. ¡°Anyways, I hope you won¡¯t think too badly of the Captain.¡± He turned around towards Arnest, with a tiny smile. ¡°If you can, please forgive him.¡±

    Arnest looked at Cato and then looked back out to the horizon, where the sun was slowly falling out of view. ¡°We should go back now, it¡¯s almost dusk.¡±

    Arnest started walking back in the direction from where they came from and Cato followed. Along the forest path, Arnest murmured, ¡°I¡¯ll try at least.¡±

    ¡°What? Did you say something?¡± Cato, who was unable to make out the words, asked.

    Arnest shook his head. ¡°Nevermind, let¡¯s hurry back,¡± he said, increasing the pace. ¡°I can barely see in front of me because it¡¯s so dark.¡±

 Chapter 37 - Confrontation

    Chapter 37 - Confrontation

    The people of Edr and the Lark company were pre-arranged around small fires in the center of the village, slurping hot seafood stews and drinking cool ales. Some of the Lark men around a fire, nearest to the forest entrance, saw two shadowed figures fast approaching.

    ¡°Cato, where¡¯ve you been?¡± called out one of them.

    Cato and Arnest entered the illumination of the fire and slowed their brisk run to a stop.

    ¡°Giving a tour of the island for student officer Arnest.¡± Cato said, beet red from being forced to run.

    ¡°Ah yes, a tour of the island. Many good hiding places for two young boys to find themselves¡­¡± said another Lark, pausing before continuing, ¡°and each other,¡± accentuating the ending in an overtly flamboyant tone.

    The men around the fire started roaring a hollering laughter, with knee slapping, gum smacking, and eye watering joy. Others paused their own conversations and looked towards their direction and grew interested, walking over to see what started the commotion.

    ¡°What¡¯s so funny over here?¡± asked one of the Edr villagers, with a friendly tone.

    ¡°Young Cato and student officer Arnest came here late, from the direction of the woods. We were just wondering what two curious young men would be doing in the forest at night, that would make them late for this great feast.¡±

    The villagers and other Larks had smiles growing on their face when they understood the innuendo.

    ¡°Yes, what could two boys be doing late at night, alone in the forest?¡± said an older Edr villager whom feigned ignorance.

    Almost everyone started chiding in, men and women, children and elderly alike. Pretty soon it just became a contest between them all to see who could come up with the best jokes and force the others to their knees in uncontrollable laughter.

    A young girl walked up to the front with teary eyes. ¡°Cato¡­ I thought you said you loved me. Why would you do such a thing with another, let alone a man?¡±

    ¡°Wait, wait! Aurora, I never did anything like that with anyone! Especially not student officer Arnest. Guys, tell her you¡¯re just joking around! Please!¡± Cato shouted loudly so he could be heard over the drunken jokes and laughter.

    ¡°But you were alone in the forest with him! What else could you have been doing?¡± Aurora cried.

    ¡°Nothing happened! I was just showing Arnest around because Captain Nemo ordered it!¡± Cato said, looking around, trying to find more excuses. His frenzied gaze fell upon Arnest and he quickly said in a hushed voice, ¡°Tell her the truth! Tell her nothing happened!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s true, Cato was just showing me around and took me through the forest to a beach. He taught me a lot and we came to understand each other better.¡± Arnest said.

    Everyone quieted their laughter and started to murmur amongst themselves.

    ¡°Taught me a lot¡­¡±

    ¡°Understand each other better...¡±

    The Lark soldier who started it all walked up to Cato and placed his hand on his shoulder and whispered into his ear. ¡°Cato, to be honest, I was just joking at first. But after hearing what the student officer just said, are you sure nothing happened?¡±

    ¡°I swear to Neptus and all the other gods, that nothing happened!¡± Cato screamed into the night sky with all his might.

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    A week passed after this night and the rumor concerning Arnest and Cato had become fact in a matter of days. News of the couple spread like wildfire, perpetrated by the villagers mainly. There had even been a number of Edr men who offered their vows of love and devotion to the duo who were warded off with Cato¡¯s screams of denial and Arnest¡¯s confusion. The running joke had run its due course with no signs of stopping.

    Captain Primum Nemo in the meanwhile did not pay any attention to the matter and continued to spend most of his time within his mother¡¯s hut, awaiting for the nectar to be ready. On the morning of the seventh day, it finally bubbled its last and despite being constantly heated, had a stilled red glow instead of a fiery boil.

    ¡°Mother, the nectar has calmed down.¡± said Captain Nemo who had been staring at the pot since early dawn.

    ¡°Neptus has finished blessing the pot. Child, quickly bring it over to me.¡±

    Secuna hurried over to the other side of the hut and grabbed a small ladle and walked over to what looked like a box covered in a highly detailed rug. Pulling the cover off, it revealed a wooden cage that made squawking sounds. She flicked the latch out, opened the cage and with lightning reflexes, grabbed a hen by it¡¯s neck and shut it in the same instant. Captain Nemo carefully placed the steaming pot next to Secuna who dipped the wooden ladle into the nectar and extracted a small bit. Then, with force, she clamped the cornish hen¡¯s mouth open and dripped the boiling nectar down its throat.

    The hen screamed in pain because of the temperature of the nectar but it soon subsided after it was inside its stomach. Secuna dropped the hen onto the ground and it walked around a bit, trying to remember why it was feeling so uncomfortable. But then the effects of the nectar exploded inside of the hen. The casual strut became an agitated flurry of feathers and squawks. The bird flew around the hut and tried to hurl out the nectar from its body to no avail. Captain Nemo and Secuna just watched the hen for a while until it fell to the ground with a dead silence.

    Secuna grabbed the still hen by the feet and held it up in the air, plucking the feathers. When all of them were removed, the pink fleshy skin was exposed. But unlike a typical chicken, this one had strange markings all over it. It was a combination of simple shapes like circles, squares, lines and dots but combined made an eerie piece of art. She inspected the strange red markings intently, frowning ever so more slightly in each passing moment.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Captain Nemo asked when he saw his mother¡¯s expression.

    ¡°Primum, we have to get ready to leave Edr. Get your people to pack up the nectar and my hens and gather everyone on your ship. We must leave now.¡±

    ¡°Why mother?¡±

    ¡°If we do not leave, a great tragedy will befall everyone here on Edr.¡±

    ¡°Alright, your prophecies have never been wrong. I¡¯ll gather the men.¡±

    Soon enough, without any warning, Captain Nemo ordered everyone to gather on the ship. No one really fought the order, since Captain Nemo had protected the Edr people for a long time and the Larks always indiscriminately obeyed their commanding officer. It took some time but eventually everyone was crammed in, except for Secuna and Arnest, who were allowed to stay inside of Captain Nemo¡¯s quarters. Captain Nemo was atop the deck, ordering the Larks so they could depart at the quickest speed, which left the two of them alone.

    Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    Secuna was fiddling with her hens while Arnest sat upright on the couch. The two were diametrically opposed to each other, silently but surely opposed. She eventually closed the cage and threw the tapestry on top of the chicken crate, sitting in Captain Nemo¡¯s chair. Tapping her fingers so that they rapped against the wooden tabletop in a bored fashion, caused Arnest to be unable to contain his annoyance.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry to ask, but could you stop that?¡±

    Secuna continued to tap her fingers, one after another. ¡°Stop what?¡±

    ¡°Nevermind. Forget I asked.¡±

    Silence ensued and the two of them just listened to the tapping on the desk and men running across the top deck. It continued for only so long before Arnest thought it would be better to fill the void with talking.

    ¡°Do you know why Captain Nemo has decided we should leave Edr?¡±

    ¡°He hasn¡¯t told you?¡± Secuna asked, stopping the tapping.

    ¡°No, he hasn¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Our god, Neptus, warns of a calamity that will strike Edr. We must leave before it is too late.¡±

    ¡°How do you know Neptus is warning you?¡±

    ¡°We have made the nectar of Neptus and it has divined this truth.¡±

    ¡°Is the nectar in that pot over there?¡± Arnest asked, pointing towards the pot that was in Secuna¡¯s hut.

    ¡°Yes, that would be it.¡±

    ¡°Could you show me how it works? The nectar, that is.¡±

    ¡°There is only so much nectar and wasting it to show you would be nothing short of blasphemy.¡± said Secuna, her scorn showing through her face.

    Arnest paused for a bit, thinking. ¡°You say that your god, Neptus, gives you these prophecies right?¡±

    ¡°Yes, Neptus is all knowing.¡± Secuna¡¯s face started to relax.

    ¡°Is it possible for prophecies to change?¡±

    ¡°Well yes, it¡¯s possible.¡±

    ¡°Then if the prophecy said it was dangerous to be in Edr, and then we all got onto a ship, couldn¡¯t that mean that it changed? Couldn¡¯t it be possible that it wasn¡¯t dangerous for us to be in Edr, but it was dangerous because of a specific person who was in Edr that was related to the danger?¡±

    Secuna started to frown again. ¡°Yes¡­ that may be.¡±

    ¡°So it¡¯s probably best if you use the nectar for another prophecy right now, before we face a tribulation.¡± Arnest said, smiling.

    Secuna sighed and started the process of divination. She took her ladle and hen, scooped up some nectar and forced it into the chicken¡¯s belly. Arnest watched intently as the hen sat on the ground with some normalcy. Yet it didn¡¯t take long for the bird to run around mad, flapping it¡¯s wings and feathers flying everywhere. Within moments it was dead, Secuna plucked it, and revealed the strange markings.

    ¡°Did you really have to kill a chicken?¡± Arnest asked.

    ¡°I could¡¯ve had you drink the nectar instead, but you¡¯d be dead instead of the chicken.¡±

    There were still simple markings but this time there was a new marking. Red arrows that pointed towards the back of Captain Nemo¡¯s quarters. Arrows pointing straight at Arnest who sat in the middle of the plush sofa.

    ¡°So what¡¯s Neptus¡¯ divine wisdom telling you?¡± Arnest asked.

    Secuna¡¯s forehead started to sweat as she said nothing, and quietly exited the room. Arnest sat on the sofa dumbfounded but didn¡¯t think much about it. ¡°Must have been pretty bad then,¡± he thought to himself.

    It wasn¡¯t long until Secuna reached Captain Nemo and told him of the divination.

    ¡°Are you sure that¡¯s what the prophecy said?¡± Captain Nemo asked.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure, Neptus wouldn¡¯t lie.¡± Secuna replied in a serious tone.

    Captain Nemo furrowed his brows and started to self reflect, weighing his options. ¡°Even if this is true, I can¡¯t leave him to die. If he does, I would be blamed and the entire Lark company would be punished by Ralom.¡±

    ¡°What good does being loyal to Ralom when it will just end up getting you all killed? Remember the last student officer? I told you he was cursed and you didn¡¯t believe me! Remember what happened to your other men!¡±

    ¡°I remember, mother... ¡° Captain Nemo¡¯s face became even more pained, ¡°But I made a promise to someone to protect him.¡±

    ¡°Please listen to my words, Primum. Neptus is all knowing and would never tell a lie. That boy is cursed!¡± Secuna begged.

    ¡°Mother, I just can¡¯t-¡±

    ¡°Mamalark to the east!¡± a Lark man shouted, interrupting the captain.

    Captain Nemo turned to his side and saw the giant beast approaching. ¡°Ready your stations men! Hide the Edr villagers underneath in the hull!¡±

    ¡°Mamalarks coming from the west!¡± shouted another Lark.

    ¡°What?!¡± Captain Nemo turned towards the west and saw at least four more coming from that direction.

    ¡°Mamalarks behind us, at least seven!¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re coming from the north¡­¡±

    ¡°Captain, we¡¯re surrounded¡­ I don¡¯t think we have enough men to fight them off,¡± Cato, who was next to him, warned.

    ¡°It¡¯s too late to run, we have to take them head on.¡±

    ¡°Primum,¡± Secuna gripped onto Captain Nemo¡¯s shirt. ¡°We still have a chance, throw the boy into the sea and they¡¯ll take him instead of us.¡±

    ¡°Mother, not right now. I have to prepare to fight.¡±

    ¡°Primum! Listen to me, please!¡±

    ¡°Cato, take my mother back to my quarters.¡±

    ¡°Primum, please!¡± shouted Secuna.

    ¡°Yes Captain.¡± Cato answered.

    ¡°Listen up, Larks!¡± Captain Nemo shouted as his mother was screaming, being dragged away.

    ¡°I know things look grim¡­ We¡¯re surrounded by monsters on all sides and we¡¯re stuck on this small boat. But we¡¯re the Larks! Every single one of us have been bred and trained to be Ralomans, the monsters of the human race! Today we will see who is the stronger monster, Mamalarks who aimlessly charge or us Larks, who have fought hundreds of these stupid creatures!.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re with you, Captain!¡± shouted the Larks.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take out at least four of these beasts so all of you better kill at least one, that¡¯s an order!¡±

    ¡°Aye, Captain!¡±

    ¡°Kill them all!¡± Captain Nemo roared.

 Chapter 38 - Insurrection

    Chapter 38 - Insurrection

    ¡°Lieutenants, set-up defenses around the ship!¡± shouted Captain Nemo

    ¡°Yessir!¡±

    The ten Lieutenants arranged themselves in a circle, straining their faces as they placed their hands outwards, and concentrating on the scene before them. In an instant, giant vortexes formed along the sides of the ship that stopped the first advance of Mamalarks that was fast approaching. The swirling tempests spun the ship in a circle as well however their practiced placement kept the ship spinning in a central point.

    While the Mamalarks were kept at bay by the Lieutenants, Captain Nemo yelled out, ¡°Bring out the spears!¡±

    Hand-drawn carts of long, jagged steel tipped harpoons was pulled out into the center of the ship. Quickly, the Larks grabbed spears and started hurling them out at the first Mamalark they saw. The beasts wailed as they were deeply penetrated by tens of spears, forming a school of porcupines rather than angry whales. These screams preceded the ocean being stained a rosey color, turning the blue ocean into a red sea.

    ¡°Keep throwing spears, don¡¯t stop until all of them are dead!¡± screamed the Captain as he leapt into the ocean with his sword drawn.

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    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    Meanwhile below deck and within the Captain¡¯s quarters, Cato was blocking Captain Nemo¡¯s unwilling mother, Secuna, from leaving the room.

    ¡°I need to speak with my son!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but Captain Nemo ordered me to keep you here.¡± Cato looked at her, apologetically.

    Cato knew Secuna very well. Everyone of Edr knew her. She was their leader, physically and spiritually she led them. If this was the past, he asked himself if he would be able to derive the willpower to refuse this once seeming omniscient mother. The only thing that gave him the power, or so he thought, was the immense strength of Ralom and what it represented.

    ¡°I heard lots of shouting and running. What¡¯s going on above?¡± Arnest asked, who was sitting on the couch unperturbed.

    Cato kept his attention on Secuna and said, ¡°We were attacked by Mamalarks, right now Capt-¡±

    ¡°Mamalarks are attacking because you¡¯re a bad omen!¡± Secuna interrupted with her scream, pointing a shaking finger at Arnest.

    ¡°Me?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s just as you said before, there is danger following someone on this ship¡­ and according to your prophecy I divined, the Mamalarks are targeting you.¡±

    Cato¡¯s face sullied the second he heard this. He grew up adhering to Secuna¡¯s prophecies and never had she been wrong. One of the most telling of these divinations was the one done for his parents, who so desperately wanted a boy to send to Ralom. Secuna directed his mother to abide by some strange practice and to copulate on the night of a full moon, which resulted in his own birth, who eventually joined the Raloman rank and file as prophesied. Everyone of Edr village could retell a personal recounting of how Secuna¡¯s prophecy had helped them or saved their life.

    ¡°Mother Secuna, is this true?¡± Cato asked.

    ¡°Yes child, it¡¯s true. We¡¯re all going to die if we don¡¯t get rid of this boy.¡±

    The room got eerily quiet while the three of them contemplating what was just said.

    ¡°Wait a moment, are you sure that¡¯s what the prophecy foretold?¡± Arnest calmly asked.

    ¡°Yes, we¡¯re all going to die because of you if you don¡¯t get off this ship.¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that your divination said danger was following me?¡± Arnest jumped out of his seat and stood angrily upright. ¡°How did that escalate to all of us dying?¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t is obvious that when there¡¯s life threatening dangers, that people will die?¡± Secuna snapped.

    ¡°Not necessarily, and even if that¡¯s the case, your son leads these men on every expedition into life threatening circumstances. They don¡¯t die every time they face a calamity, now do they?¡±

    ¡°This time is different, Neptus would not lie! All of us will die because of you if we don¡¯t do something to change our fate!¡±

    ¡°Mother Secuna, I know you¡¯re worried, but I think we should believe in Captain Nemo. Surely we¡¯ll get out of this alive.¡± Cato said, rubbing her on the back. ¡°Come with me for some wine to help you relax,¡± he continued, pulling her out of the room.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry about this, student officer Arnest. Please forgive her.¡± Cato smiled as he left with Secuna.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

    Arnest sighed and fell back into his seat. There wasn¡¯t much more use getting angry over the issue since she was out of the room. Also he didn¡¯t hear any foreboding thoughts from Cato, who seemed to be keeping the angry and violent thinking Secuna at bay. With no one to argue with, Arnest remembered the beginning of the conversation. The promise of Mamalarks lured Arnest out of the quarters and rushing up top on the deck.

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡°Mother Secuna, please drink some of this.¡± Cato offered a small cup of wine.

    Secuna smacked the wooden cup across the room, the wine spraying across the floor and walls. ¡°Cato, listen to me. When have any of my prophecies been wrong?¡±

    Cato weakly smiled and then said, ¡°It¡¯s not that I believe in you... and Neptus, of course, Mother Secuna¡­ It¡¯s just that if student officer Arnest is right, that there is danger following him, especially if it¡¯s only Mamalarks, then I believe that Captain Nemo will be able to overcome it.¡±

    Picking up the cup, Cato dipped it into the wine barrel again and handed it to Secuna. ¡°Please drink.¡±

    Secuna looked at Cato, then the cup, and took a drink. She felt resigned to the fact that she couldn¡¯t change Cato¡¯s mind but then a thought struck her. ¡°What I told that boy was a lie. The true prophecy is that he¡¯s a bad omen and anyone who is close to him will die.¡±

    Cato grimaced. ¡°Why would you lie?¡±

    Thinking fast again, Secuna said ¡°Because Neptus told me to lie to him the first time. Neptus may not tell lies but he may change the truth. Everything he does is for good reason. If i had told the boy of the true prophecy, he may have been more on guard and we wouldn¡¯t be able to stop this prophecy from becoming true.¡±

    ¡°We need to get rid of him now, before it¡¯s too late.¡±

    Cato¡¯s facial expression became even more grotesque, unable to decide.

    ¡°Cato, I have nothing against the boy. This is for the greater good or our people.¡± Secuna added.

    Cato looked down for a while and then rose his head with a sense of absolution.

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    Arnest grabbed one of the many spears and tossed it out. It went fairly far, but no where close to where he aimed it, and fell short of a Mamalark that was already probably dead. He went to go get another spear when one of the Larks stopped him.

    ¡°Student officer Arnest, let us take care of this. Go back to the Captain¡¯s quarters.¡± he said.

    Arnest frowned, ¡°I was given the Lark company to practice fighting monsters, not hide away in the Captain¡¯s quarters.¡±

    ¡°Captain Nemo¡¯s orders.¡± the Lark said, gripping Arnest by the arm.

    ¡°Where is Captain Nemo?! I want to speak with him then!¡± Arnest shouted.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid that isn¡¯t possible.¡±

    ¡°Why not?!¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s out in the water, fighting those beasts. Said he¡¯ll kill at least four of them. So let¡¯s go back to the quarters before you get yourself hurt.¡± the Lark said, dragging Arnest away from the battle.

    As Arnest struggled, a voice called out to the two of them. ¡°It¡¯s alright, Captain sent me to find him.¡±

    The Lark turned around and saw Cato. ¡°Ah, the Captain¡¯s errand boy.¡±

    ¡°Yup, I¡¯m here to take Arnest out to where the Captain is, with the help of a Lieutenant,¡± Cato said, pointing towards a man next to him.

    ¡°Alright, take him then.¡± the Lark said, tossing Arnest over to Cato.

    ¡°Thanks.¡± Arnest said, rubbing his arm.

    ¡°No need for thanks, let¡¯s hurry to where the Captain is.¡±

    A small boat was lowered into the water, carrying Arnest, Cato and a Lieutenant. The Lieutenant used his powers, derived from what one could only assume to be Mamalark blood, and deftly directed the boat through the tempests. The fight was entirely visible, even from this lower position. It seemed to be so one-sided, where the Mamalarks were just target practice for the Lark company. As the trio left the spiraling waters and stormy airspace, they arrived in front of a half-dead Mamalark.

    ¡°Is this where Captain Nemo is?¡± Arnest asked.

    The Mamalark glanced over at the nearing boat with a death stare. It¡¯s eye glossed over the three of them, but stopped when it reached Arnest, lighting up with an intense vigor.

    ¡°AROOGHHH¡± it wailed as it charged the small boat.

    ¡°Where is Captain Nemo?¡± Arnest asked, once again.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯re almost to where he is.¡± Cato replied.

    The charging Mamalark opened its giant mouth, screaming all the while. The Lieutenant concentrated, pushing the boat faster towards the beast. As they neared each other, Cato grabbed Arnest.

    ¡°Cato?!¡± Arnest yelled in protest.

    When the Mamalaks¡¯ fish-stenched breath covered them, Cato pushed Arnest into the mouth of the beast, Arnest¡¯s head diving into the sharp rows of teeth first. Once landing inside, the Mamalark snapped its jaw shut and swam out into the opposite direction, screeching another tune. The other Mamalarks, who heard the call, also fled into dizzying opposite directions until none were left surrounding the Lark company ship.

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    Captain Nemo was all bloody from fighting the Mamalarks head on. He had actually ended up butchering five Mamalarks already, in the short time that had passed. It was fairly easy for him to clean up the half-dead Mamalarks that were just sitting around trying to rest after being skewered by the rest of the company. When the Mamalark that he was fighting ran off, he tried giving chase to no avail, so he eventually returned to the ship. When he arrived back, he was met with grim news.

    ¡°Student officer Arnest died?¡± Captain Nemo asked, shaking his head. ¡°How?¡±

    ¡°Mother Secuna prophesied our demise if we kept him on the ship so we threw him to the Mamalarks.¡± Cato said.

    The entire company became quiet. Cato said ¡°we¡± but in reality it was only him, one Lieutenant and Secuna who knew of the plan. Captain Nemo started to shake in anger and yelled, breaking the silence.

    ¡°WHOEVER WAS A PART OF THIS, LINE UP IN FRONT OF ME, NOW!¡±

    Cato and the Lieutenant looked at each other and then lined up in front of the Captain. He stared down the two of them with an intense glare that one might show for a child who had committed some sort of horrible crime.

    ¡°Tie both of them up and keep my mother in my quarters. We¡¯ll see how the Ralom courts decide to deal with traitors.¡±

    ¡°Captain, please! I did it for the good of Edr!¡± Cato pleaded.

    ¡°You may have done it for the good of Edr, but what about the good of Ralom?¡± Captain Nemo retorted.

    ¡°Did you think once about what might happen to the Lark company if they find out we killed a student officer who we were supposed to protect?¡±

    Cato resolutely looked forward as he was being tightly bound, ¡°They would understand! The Killean Isles, especially Edr, has a lot of influence in Ralom!¡±

    ¡°We may have influence but do you have more influence than the legendary Instructor Maest of Guardia Academy?¡±

    ¡°But-¡±

    ¡°Or how General Abdiel of the Sixth Army?¡± Captain Nemo said, nearing the two traitors.

    Captain Nemo screamed directly into Cato¡¯s face, ¡°WHO DO YOU THINK WAS BACKING THAT STUPID BRAT?!¡±

    ¡°I-I, didn¡¯t know!¡±

    ¡°I know you didn¡¯t know, you idiot!¡± Captain Nemo slammed his fist into Cato¡¯s head, knocking him unconscious.

    ¡°You didn¡¯t need to know... All you had to do was follow my orders¡­¡± Captain Nemo murmured.

 Chapter 39 - And Life Goes On

    Chapter 39 - And Life Goes On

    A small girl dressed with a simple grass skirt and burlap top, typical islander garb, happily ran across the street to and from stalls. Her bristling skirt bounced with every step she advanced and her smiling face captured the essence of a quintessential bliss ridden youth. Behind her followed a dark figure, cloaked by a solemn robe and hood that hindered a view of its face.

    ¡°Halphy, look at all the shiny stuff!¡± said the girl, grabbing the pearly necklaces with both hands and letting them run through her hands like dry sand.

    ¡°Don¡¯t run off too far by yourself, Tanya.¡± Halphas warned as he caught up with her.

    ¡°I know!¡± Tanya said as she continued to play with the jewelry.

    The merchant who was dealing with another customer, turned his head when he heard Tanya and saw the little miscreant tossing his merchandise like they were a child¡¯s toy.

    ¡°Kid, if you can¡¯t afford it, don¡¯t bother touching it!¡± he yelled, snatching the necklace that was in Tanya¡¯s hands.

    ¡°Mister, why do you have to be so mean?¡± Tanya started to pout, ¡°It¡¯s not like I was going to break it...¡±

    He gave her another look over and scoffed, ¡°A poor ignorant kid from some faraway island should know better not to mess with me, Zavi of the Merchant¡¯s Guild!¡±

    At this point, Halphas couldn¡¯t help but to step into the conversation. ¡°Excuse me, Zavi of the Merchant¡¯s Guild."

    Zavi looked to Halphas and tried to steal a peek of what was beneath Halphas¡¯s hood. All he saw was the extremely pale chin and purple lips, but it was enough to be off putting.

    ¡°Who are you?¡±

    ¡°I''m her father.¡± Halphas said with practiced authenticity.

    Zavi looked at the pearl necklace in his hand and frowned, ¡°Do you see this?¡± he said, pushing and pointing to a single pearl.

    Halphas leaned in and lowered his hood so that his entire ghostly face became visible to Zavi. The sudden surprise made him aghast but the merchant was able to hold his tone. ¡°She scratched my necklace. How do I sell this now?¡±

    ¡°Halphy, I promise I didn¡¯t scratch it! My hands are nice and smooth, see?¡± Tanya said, rubbing her hands against the front of Halphas¡¯s face, adding a tinge of rosey blush to his pale face.

    Halphas slowly pushed Tanya away and carefully held the pearl to inspect it. ¡°I don¡¯t seem to see a scratch,¡± he said.

    ¡°Are you calling me a liar?¡± Zavi said, pocketing the pearls.

    ¡°Maybe.¡± Halphas said while he moved around the front table until he was less than a meter close to Zavi.

    ¡°Pay me a hundred gold right now or I definitely will make sure you both get sent to either the gallows or the slave market!¡± Zavi yelled loudly, in a frenzied voice.

    Halphas parted his cloak and reached into his pocket, feeling for something.

    ¡°W-what are you doing?!¡± asked the nervous merchant.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need to yell, Zavi of the Merchant¡¯s Guild.¡± Halphas said as he pulled out a golden medallion.

    Zavi recollected himself when he realized it wasn¡¯t a weapon and stared intently at the feathered crest. ¡°The Phoenix Badge?¡± he thought to himself, realizing he just threatened the wrong person.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know you were a good friend of the guild leader,¡± Zavi said, immediately dropping to the ground to do a full body bow.

    ¡°I¡¯m extremely sorry for my disrespect, please forgive me.¡±

    Halphas continued to stare at him with his blood red eyes which caused Zavi to sweat. With some quick thinking, he pulled out the necklace from before and cupped it in his hands. ¡°Please take this pearl necklace as an apology gift.¡±

    Halphas turned to Tanya, while picking up the necklace, and asked, ¡°Tanya, do you want this?¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t he say it had a scratch on it? I don¡¯t want that thing anymore!¡± Tanya said with a hurt look.

    Halphas then turned back to Zavi who was able to read the situation. ¡°Of course, my sincere apologies, young lady. Please take these instead!¡± he said, picking up random jewelry on display and pushed it into Tanya¡¯s hands.

    Tanya took the jewelry and started placing them on her wrists, fingers and neck while smiling like a mischievous child who was able to grab a cookie out of the jar before supper. Halphas looked at the happy girl and chided her with a ¡°Now what do you say?¡± to which she responded with a ¡°Thank you, mister!¡± before they walked off. Zavi watched the two of them walk off and made a mental note of their appearances for future reference.

    ¡°So that was a bad man?¡± Tanya asked as she fiddled with a sapphire ring.

    ¡°Yes, he tricks people into paying for things they ¡®broke¡¯ or overcharges for cheap goods. He¡¯s also one of the Zanako¡¯s supporters.¡± Halphas said, pulling the hood back over his face.

    ¡°Are all of the Zanako¡¯s people bad men?¡± she asked inquisitively.

    ¡°No, but typically the rich ones are.¡±Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

    ¡°How many more do we need to find today?¡±

    ¡°Two more down the street and another five on the other side of the city.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to walk all the way¡­ Carry me, Halphy!¡± Tanya exclaimed selfishly.

    ¡°Okay,¡± Halphas easily agreed, picking her up and placing her on his shoulder as they walked down the street.

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    Within the dark confines of a secluded room, far off from wandering curious eyes, stood four boys around a single one, kneeling on the ground. Blood smears covered his clothes and under their simple frayed exterior was purplish bruised skin. However despite his weak appearance, his arms bulged and contracted like a bull frog¡¯s neck and his eyes shined with unwavering tenacity. The boys around him were heavily panting but mostly unscathed in comparison. The one of the ground coughed a few times and started to rise.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to hurt you guys.¡± he said, steadying himself with his right hand as he got up from his knees.

    ¡°Shut up, traitor!¡± yelled one of the four, as he sent his fist flying out.

    In an instant the fist was in front of the ¡®traitor¡¯ and accelerating faster with each passing millisecond. But instead of a smacking sound, of skin and bones colliding, a cool crackling sound calmly echoed out.

    ¡°AHHH!¡± the boy who threw out the punch screamed.

    His fist was about an inch from his intended target but was caught by a casual block. The defender squeezed and squeezed until the fist turned into an octopus shape, fingers disfigured and twisting in uncommon directions. The other three slowly backed away for a moment in shock.

    ¡°You bastard!¡± one of them screamed after regaining some courage and charged in. The other two hesitated but quickly made up their minds and followed in. The last boy, who had his hand mangled was still wailing, pushed off to the side and out of the impending fray.

    The swinging of arms and legs caused enough force to extinguish the single candle that was the only light source of the room. Shouts and curses rained down and punches and kicks followed. When the noise settled to a dull silence, a door creaked open and light poured in. Four boys laid on the ground, mournfully groaning and writhing in pain. The victor looked back at them, shook his head, and walked out into the hallway.

    ¡°How many did ya beat up today, Lajos?¡±

    To the right was a man, dressed in a Raloman officer''s uniform, leaning against the wall. He pulled out a cigarette and quietly lit it with a match, placing it inbetween his thin lips.

    ¡°Captain Traid, I¡¯m sorry for breaking the rules and fighting my fellow comrades. I¡¯ll accept any punishment.¡± Lajos said, bowing.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, I¡¯m not as serious as the others in the Twelfth Army.¡± Captain Traid said with the cigarette still in his mouth, patting Lajos on the back reassuringly. ¡°I won¡¯t do anything to ya.¡±

    ¡°It was those four idiots who started the fight anyways.¡± he muttered, plopping the cigarette out of his mouth and spitting onto the floor.

    Lajos remained silent and didn¡¯t respond, keeping at attention in front of his superior officer.

    Captain Traid raised his eyebrows as he looked at Lajos. He then plopped the cigarette out of his mouth and into his hand, releasing a puffy cloud of toxic fumes soon after. ¡°Ya don¡¯t have to be so serious, kiddo. Loosen up.¡±

    ¡°Is that an order, Captain?¡± Lajos asked, still looking forward and not directly at him.

    ¡°Sure, if that¡¯ll get that stick out of your ass,¡± Captain Traid laughed.

    His eyes darted toward the captain with even more sternness than before, but Lajos placed his arms naturally to his side and relaxed his stance so that his feet didn¡¯t look they were clasped together by an invisible force. ¡°As you command, Captain.¡±

    The captain rapped his fingers against the wrist guard of his sword, smiling. ¡°I like ya gusto, Lajos Obedie.¡±

    He inhaled the cigarette again and then released a puff of toxic smoke. ¡°Would you like to be a Lieutenant?¡±

    Lajos seemed to break character and shock filled his eyes. ¡°Why me?¡±

    ¡°Why not you?¡±

    ¡°Because no one in the Twelfth Army, let alone Ralom, trusts me.¡± he answered bluntly.

    ¡°That¡¯s true. But it¡¯s not up to everyone in the Twelfth Army. Or Ralom.¡± Captain Traid said, then pointing to himself. ¡°It¡¯s up to me.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°Years ago the guys up top, like the King and his guys, all chose who was what in the armies but the King got lazy and started to let officers pick their own people. But then some armies got upset so he changed it back to the old ways.¡±

    ¡°So why do you get to decide then?¡±

    ¡°Cause General Ezoso is lazy too and he liked the idea. So us officers of the Twelfth Army still get to decide what to do with your sorry asses.¡±

    ¡°And I. Want. You.¡± Captain Traid pointed at Lajos.

    ¡°With all due respect, I don¡¯t think this is a good idea, Captain.¡± Lajos replied, walking away.

    Captain Traid grabbed Lajos by his shoulder and spun him around. ¡°It¡¯s up to me to decide if it¡¯s a good idea and also, don¡¯t go thinking I¡¯m doing this for you for free. You gotta do me a favor first.¡±

    ¡°A favor?¡±

    ¡°I need you to take care of a problem.¡±

    ¡°Is this a mission?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Is it an order?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    Lajos turned around and started to walk away again, until Captain Traid started to yell ¡°Wait, wait!¡±

    ¡°Okay, what if I ordered ya to do it?¡± he asked, as he caught up.

    ¡°If was an official order, I would have to obey.¡±

    ¡°Then¡­ I order you to kill my wife, Yvea Oros.¡±

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    A thought undulated in his mind, ¡°Am I dead?¡±

    Looking around there was nothing to see. It was pitch black. The only things that existed in this space was the smell that was reminiscent of week-old fish, the damp feeling that comes with being in a regularly flooded cavern and a eerie rumbling sound that intermittently alarmed. The dry taste of salt coated his tastebuds but no amount of squinting would allow the eyes to make full use of its senses. There was only darkness. No light existed here, that was at least, for certain.

    ¡°You¡¯re quite alive.¡± echoed out a voice in his mind.

    ¡°God, is that you?¡± he asked in his heart.

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Then who is this?¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t recognize my voice? Well it has been quite a while since we last spoke and you were just a newborn... My name is Leale of the Polaras. I am your father.¡±

    ¡°Father?¡±

    Suddenly warmness embraced him, what felt like two arms wrapped around his body. A quiet murmur in some indescribable language could be heard and what appeared to be tears, dripped onto his cheek.

    The voice echoed out again, ¡°It has been too many years, my son.¡±

 Chapter 40 - Belly of the Beast

    Chapter 40 - Belly of the Beast

    ¡°It has been too many years, my son.¡±

    ¡°Are you really my father?¡± Arnest sent his thought back towards the person embracing him.

    ¡°Oh right, I almost forgot.¡± The man stepped back and continued, ¡°I¡¯ll lower my aura so you can sense our blood connection.¡±

    An instant after the thought entered Arnest¡¯s mind, he could hear the Mamalark¡¯s murderous thoughts. The only thing it kept repeating in it¡¯s mind was ¡°I want to eat,¡± and it grew in intensity with each passing moment. Then he could sense the tiny fish swimming by, who were fleeing the large predator in their midsts. And finally, he could sense the man in front of him.

    ¡°Can you feel it?¡±

    Trying to ignore the killing intent of the Mamalark, Arnest concentrated on the man. A sweeping sensation filled him and made him want to gravitate towards the man. This attractive force pulled him forward ever so slightly and he had to steady his feet against the leathery tongue below him.

    ¡°Yes, I can feel it.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good¡­ I have to rest now.¡±

    ¡°Wait, if you¡¯re my father then where have you been all my life? Why am I only meeting you now?¡±

    ¡±I can¡¯t answer right now¡­ must rest. The Mamalark will take us to Polaras. We can talk then...¡±

    Arnest sensed the man¡¯s steady breathing and slowed beating of his heart. Even though it was pitch black, as a darkness magus, he had the ability to see a bit better than the average person in the dark. He squinted his eyes and peered in front of him, searching for the man. On the ground he was, clearly laying down on the damp grooved tongue with his eyes closed. Arnest plopped himself on the ground and threw himself down on his back in frustration.

    ¡°I might as well get some rest too.¡±

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡°Halphy, Halphy! This fishy is so big!¡±

    Halphas looked at Tanya patting her hands in drum-like fashion against the monstrous belly of a fish that probably could swallow a few full grown men with ease. Its fins fanned out, hanging over the edge of the boat and dipping into the shallow banks of the ocean. Other boats along the coast also carried these strange fish, but most were unbalanced and tilted to one side. The only thing that seemed to keep them from sliding overboard was the ridiculous amount of burlap rope tied to them, holding them in place.

    ¡°Tanya, don¡¯t touch the fish.¡± Halphas said, picking up her up from under her arms and away from the fish.

    A man holding a frayed folded up net came walking by. ¡°You can let the girl play with it,¡± he said as he tossed the net into the boat. ¡°We¡¯re not selling these anyway.¡±

    Halphas lowered Tanya, who quickly moved to the fish and drummed against it in a nonsensical rhythm. ¡°Sorry about this.¡± he said as he turned to the fisherman.

    The fisherman wiped his hands against his shirt. ¡°Cute kid you got. Reminds me of mine when she was little.¡± he said, looking towards Tanya with a gleam in his eyes.

    ¡°So you said you¡¯re not selling the fish?¡±You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

    ¡°Yeah, the Zanako got all the fishermen part of the Merchant¡¯s Guild to pick up a bunch of dead fish in the middle of nowhere.¡±

    He pointed towards a few horse-drawn carts that were lining up on the beach. ¡°Those guys are gonna load up the fish and take them to the Zanas Mansion.¡±

    Halphas waited for Tanya to finish with her fun until pulling out a silver coin. He then handed it to the fisherman. ¡°Thanks for letting her play with the fish.¡±

    ¡°Thanks, mister!¡± Tanya said.

    ¡°No problem kiddo. Don¡¯t make too much trouble for your daddy.¡± the fisherman smiled.

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    People were running in all different directions to a dizzying degree. Up and down flights of pearly stairs and through corridors of marble, there were busy people at work. Within the center of a grand room that had ceilings that stretched dozens of feet upwards, stood a single man whose straight blackened hair flowed out to his back. He was unmoving, purveying over the whole situation like a hawk waiting for a chance to strike.

    One of the attendants ran up to the statue of a man. ¡°Zanako, the fishermen have arrived with the Devillefins. Where would you like us to put them?¡±

    The unmovable man didn¡¯t avert his attention, but parted his lips, ¡°Take them to the underground chambers.¡±

    ¡°Right away.¡± the attendant said, before scurrying off into the direction he came from.

    Another man, but this time at least twice as old as the attendant, walked up from behind. ¡°Kamu, how is everything going?¡±

    ¡°Well, father.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good to hear. If you need anything, know that the entire Aster clan is here to support you.¡±

    ¡°If only the Merchant¡¯s Guild showed the same loyalty.¡± Kamu said as he watched the monstrous fish being carried in by the fisherman.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. They can¡¯t refuse us much longer, especially after we grow our army.¡±

    ¡°The Merchant¡¯s Guild won¡¯t ever be truly loyal, even when we conquer Lanex...¡±

    Helvet Aster looked to his son whose fists were clenched.

    ¡°But it won¡¯t matter by then since we won¡¯t need them.¡± Kamu added.

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    A loud groaning sound echoed in the cavernous atmosphere. Opening his eyes and lifting himself up, an awesome scene unfolded. Contrast between yellow glowing plants that were growing out of the walls and the sapphire crystalline ceiling that diffused the bright sunlight into a subdued navy blue. It was almost like being placed in a glass dome at the bottom of the ocean, where the waves of azure light danced back and forth.

    Arnest turned to his side and saw a man lying to his side and a thought started echoing in his mind. ¡°LET ME EAT!¡± it screamed which shocked Arnest¡¯s memory. He looked forward and saw flat ground, so he quickly jumped out of the Mamalarks mouth and onto safety. But then he looked back at the Mamalark and saw the man still there.

    ¡°Should I go back into the Mamalark¡¯s mouth?¡± Arnest muttered to himself, shuddering at the thought.

    He started scratching his head in ambivalence. After a while, he grit his teeth and hopped back into danger to carry the man out. The Mamalark¡¯s thoughts raged on and encouraged Arnest to complete his task as fast as possible. Less than a minute passed before Arnest and the man were out of the beast.

    Heaving a sigh of relief, he laid on his back exhausted. Physically it wasn¡¯t that much of a chore but mentally he was pushed to the brink. Being betrayed by Lajos and the Larks and meeting a man who claimed to be his father contributed to this strain but the biggest factor was being inside the belly of a hungry Mamalark, whose thoughts he could hear.

    ¡°Who are you and what are you doing with Concilis Leale?¡± a thought undulated in Arnest¡¯s mind.

    Arnest turned around and saw a crowd of people. ¡°My name is Arnest and this is my father.¡±

    The people¡¯s faces went ghastly white and thoughts shouted out.

    ¡°Did you hear what he said?¡±

    ¡°What language was that?¡±

    ¡°He must be a human!¡±

    ¡°A human? Why would Concilis Leale bring one here?¡±

    ¡°We have to get rid of this human quickly!¡±

    The mob of people started to enclose around him. Arnest started to panick and turned back around to escape. But when he turned the rank breath of the Mamalark pressed against him. ¡°Time to eat, time to eat.¡± the beast thought to itself, as it started to figure out the situation. Arnest turned back around to his sides to look for an escape but he was already surrounded.

    ¡°Wait!¡±

    Everyone turned and saw Leale standing, steadying himself against a tall rock. ¡°That boy is my son, none of you are allowed to harm him!¡±

    ¡°His son?¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t his son get killed by the humans ten years ago?¡±

    The people looked at each other in disbelief.

    ¡°Sense his bloodline and mine. They are one and the same.¡± Leale said, reaffirming his claim.

    One person¡¯s face lit up in shock. ¡°He¡¯s right! Their blood is the same!¡±¡¯

    They started to whisper amongst themselves but Arnest wasn¡¯t able to understand anything of the strange language. It all sounded like garbled words, heavy with consonants and one too many syllables.

    ¡°Arnele, quickly come with me.¡± Leale said, beckoning to Arnest.

    ¡°Me?¡± Arnest thought to himself.

    ¡°Son, come.¡± he beckoned again.

    Arnest abided, briskly walking through the crowd that parted with surprised faces.

 Chapter 40 - Belly of the Beast

    Chapter 40 - Belly of the Beast

    ¡°It has been too many years, my son.¡±

    ¡°Are you really my father?¡± Arnest sent his thought back towards the person embracing him.

    ¡°Oh right, I almost forgot.¡± The man stepped back and continued, ¡°I¡¯ll lower my aura so you can sense our blood connection.¡±

    An instant after the thought entered Arnest¡¯s mind, he could hear the Mamalark¡¯s murderous thoughts. The only thing it kept repeating in it¡¯s mind was ¡°I want to eat,¡± and it grew in intensity with each passing moment. Then he could sense the tiny fish swimming by, who were fleeing the large predator in their midsts. And finally, he could sense the man in front of him.

    ¡°Can you feel it?¡±

    Trying to ignore the killing intent of the Mamalark, Arnest concentrated on the man. A sweeping sensation filled him and made him want to gravitate towards the man. This attractive force pulled him forward ever so slightly and he had to steady his feet against the leathery tongue below him.

    ¡°Yes, I can feel it.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good¡­ I have to rest now.¡±

    ¡°Wait, if you¡¯re my father then where have you been all my life? Why am I only meeting you now?¡±

    ¡±I can¡¯t answer right now¡­ must rest. The Mamalark will take us to Polaras. We can talk then...¡±

    Arnest sensed the man¡¯s steady breathing and slowed beating of his heart. Even though it was pitch black, as a darkness magus, he had the ability to see a bit better than the average person in the dark. He squinted his eyes and peered in front of him, searching for the man. On the ground he was, clearly laying down on the damp grooved tongue with his eyes closed. Arnest plopped himself on the ground and threw himself down on his back in frustration.

    ¡°I might as well get some rest too.¡±

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡°Halphy, Halphy! This fishy is so big!¡±

    Halphas looked at Tanya patting her hands in drum-like fashion against the monstrous belly of a fish that probably could swallow a few full grown men with ease. Its fins fanned out, hanging over the edge of the boat and dipping into the shallow banks of the ocean. Other boats along the coast also carried these strange fish, but most were unbalanced and tilted to one side. The only thing that seemed to keep them from sliding overboard was the ridiculous amount of burlap rope tied to them, holding them in place.

    ¡°Tanya, don¡¯t touch the fish.¡± Halphas said, picking up her up from under her arms and away from the fish.

    A man holding a frayed folded up net came walking by. ¡°You can let the girl play with it,¡± he said as he tossed the net into the boat. ¡°We¡¯re not selling these anyway.¡±

    Halphas lowered Tanya, who quickly moved to the fish and drummed against it in a nonsensical rhythm. ¡°Sorry about this.¡± he said as he turned to the fisherman.

    The fisherman wiped his hands against his shirt. ¡°Cute kid you got. Reminds me of mine when she was little.¡± he said, looking towards Tanya with a gleam in his eyes.

    ¡°So you said you¡¯re not selling the fish?¡±The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    ¡°Yeah, the Zanako got all the fishermen part of the Merchant¡¯s Guild to pick up a bunch of dead fish in the middle of nowhere.¡±

    He pointed towards a few horse-drawn carts that were lining up on the beach. ¡°Those guys are gonna load up the fish and take them to the Zanas Mansion.¡±

    Halphas waited for Tanya to finish with her fun until pulling out a silver coin. He then handed it to the fisherman. ¡°Thanks for letting her play with the fish.¡±

    ¡°Thanks, mister!¡± Tanya said.

    ¡°No problem kiddo. Don¡¯t make too much trouble for your daddy.¡± the fisherman smiled.

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    People were running in all different directions to a dizzying degree. Up and down flights of pearly stairs and through corridors of marble, there were busy people at work. Within the center of a grand room that had ceilings that stretched dozens of feet upwards, stood a single man whose straight blackened hair flowed out to his back. He was unmoving, purveying over the whole situation like a hawk waiting for a chance to strike.

    One of the attendants ran up to the statue of a man. ¡°Zanako, the fishermen have arrived with the Devillefins. Where would you like us to put them?¡±

    The unmovable man didn¡¯t avert his attention, but parted his lips, ¡°Take them to the underground chambers.¡±

    ¡°Right away.¡± the attendant said, before scurrying off into the direction he came from.

    Another man, but this time at least twice as old as the attendant, walked up from behind. ¡°Kamu, how is everything going?¡±

    ¡°Well, father.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good to hear. If you need anything, know that the entire Aster clan is here to support you.¡±

    ¡°If only the Merchant¡¯s Guild showed the same loyalty.¡± Kamu said as he watched the monstrous fish being carried in by the fisherman.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. They can¡¯t refuse us much longer, especially after we grow our army.¡±

    ¡°The Merchant¡¯s Guild won¡¯t ever be truly loyal, even when we conquer Lanex...¡±

    Helvet Aster looked to his son whose fists were clenched.

    ¡°But it won¡¯t matter by then since we won¡¯t need them.¡± Kamu added.

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    A loud groaning sound echoed in the cavernous atmosphere. Opening his eyes and lifting himself up, an awesome scene unfolded. Contrast between yellow glowing plants that were growing out of the walls and the sapphire crystalline ceiling that diffused the bright sunlight into a subdued navy blue. It was almost like being placed in a glass dome at the bottom of the ocean, where the waves of azure light danced back and forth.

    Arnest turned to his side and saw a man lying to his side and a thought started echoing in his mind. ¡°LET ME EAT!¡± it screamed which shocked Arnest¡¯s memory. He looked forward and saw flat ground, so he quickly jumped out of the Mamalarks mouth and onto safety. But then he looked back at the Mamalark and saw the man still there.

    ¡°Should I go back into the Mamalark¡¯s mouth?¡± Arnest muttered to himself, shuddering at the thought.

    He started scratching his head in ambivalence. After a while, he grit his teeth and hopped back into danger to carry the man out. The Mamalark¡¯s thoughts raged on and encouraged Arnest to complete his task as fast as possible. Less than a minute passed before Arnest and the man were out of the beast.

    Heaving a sigh of relief, he laid on his back exhausted. Physically it wasn¡¯t that much of a chore but mentally he was pushed to the brink. Being betrayed by Lajos and the Larks and meeting a man who claimed to be his father contributed to this strain but the biggest factor was being inside the belly of a hungry Mamalark, whose thoughts he could hear.

    ¡°Who are you and what are you doing with Concilis Leale?¡± a thought undulated in Arnest¡¯s mind.

    Arnest turned around and saw a crowd of people. ¡°My name is Arnest and this is my father.¡±

    The people¡¯s faces went ghastly white and thoughts shouted out.

    ¡°Did you hear what he said?¡±

    ¡°What language was that?¡±

    ¡°He must be a human!¡±

    ¡°A human? Why would Concilis Leale bring one here?¡±

    ¡°We have to get rid of this human quickly!¡±

    The mob of people started to enclose around him. Arnest started to panick and turned back around to escape. But when he turned the rank breath of the Mamalark pressed against him. ¡°Time to eat, time to eat.¡± the beast thought to itself, as it started to figure out the situation. Arnest turned back around to his sides to look for an escape but he was already surrounded.

    ¡°Wait!¡±

    Everyone turned and saw Leale standing, steadying himself against a tall rock. ¡°That boy is my son, none of you are allowed to harm him!¡±

    ¡°His son?¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t his son get killed by the humans ten years ago?¡±

    The people looked at each other in disbelief.

    ¡°Sense his bloodline and mine. They are one and the same.¡± Leale said, reaffirming his claim.

    One person¡¯s face lit up in shock. ¡°He¡¯s right! Their blood is the same!¡±¡¯

    They started to whisper amongst themselves but Arnest wasn¡¯t able to understand anything of the strange language. It all sounded like garbled words, heavy with consonants and one too many syllables.

    ¡°Arnele, quickly come with me.¡± Leale said, beckoning to Arnest.

    ¡°Me?¡± Arnest thought to himself.

    ¡°Son, come.¡± he beckoned again.

    Arnest abided, briskly walking through the crowd that parted with surprised faces.

 Chapter 41 - Polaras

    Chapter 41 - Polaras

    A small brass kettle slowly bubbled over a small fire in the center of the cavernous room. The light danced against the cobalt pale walls and cast two long shadows that sat close to each other. Crackling tinder smoldered while the flames spread towards their unburnt inside, trying to follow a path that led to survival, no matter how short lived it may be.

    ¡°What have you been doing in the human world, these past ten years?¡±

    Arnest looked to his side where Leale sat cross legged, feeding bits of kindling to the insatiable fire.

    ¡°I lived in a small village until a few months ago, when my grandfather sent me out to explore the rest of Lanex.¡±

    The kettle started to faintly whistle and Leale took out a metal rod to unhook the hanging pot from over the fire, onto the cold ground. Steam exploded when the two contrasting temperatures contacted each other and slowly billowed into nothingness. A minute or so passed and Leale lifted the kettle from it¡¯s handle and poured it into two bronze cups.

    ¡°Are you happy?¡± he transmitted to Arnest as he passed one of the warm cups to him.

    Arnest took a sip while sending back his response, ¡°I wasn¡¯t eaten by that Mamalark or killed by the mob out there, so¡­ happy enough.¡±

    Leale started to chuckle. ¡°They may have not given you the most heart warming welcome, but they still are your kin. Everyone in Polaras are Neptus¡¯s children.¡±

    Arnest frowned, ¡°Do you get prophecies from Neptus?¡±

    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s how we knew where to look for you.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s funny, because according to an angry old woman, Neptus said I would bring misfortune to everyone I meet.¡±

    ¡°Is that why the humans threw you overboard?¡±

    ¡°I would assume so. But for some reason I couldn¡¯t read their minds.¡±

    ¡°Well, Neptus works in strange ways. As for why you couldn¡¯t read their minds, that probably would be because of my aura.¡±

    ¡°You mentioned this ¡®aura¡¯ thing before, but what is it?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s a story we tell the children that says Neptus¡¯s first children always fought because they knew what the other was thinking. So he gave them auras to prevent each other from hearing their thoughts.¡± Leale then placed his cup down to his side, ¡±It might be just a story but that¡¯s what I like to believe, anyways.¡±

    ¡°Do I have an aura?¡±

    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s fairly strong for someone your age.¡±

    Arnest took a sip from the now cold cup. ¡°Are you really my father?¡±

    ¡°Blood does not lie.¡± Leale smiled.

    The fire crackled one final time before the flames burst and then imploded into itself, becoming nothing but glowing embers.

    ¡°So what happens to me now?¡±

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­

    ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!

    A myriad of strangely shaped crucibles and racks of thin vials covered the wide tabletop. Every square inch of space was filled and every vessel contained a mysterious compound. A greyed man with a lanky build hovered over a smoky cauldron off to the side and would periodically peer over to the desk, taking note of any minute changes that might have occurred while he was preoccupied.

    Knocks rapped against the door, but caused no response or care from the man who thrusted his entire head over the cauldron and directly into the smoke. He inhaled with a deviant smile as he caressed himself in a lonely embrace.

    ¡°Yes, this is it! There¡¯s no mistaking this tantalizing aroma¡­ he hee¡­¡± he said, sucking in as much smoke as he could like a nicotine addict having his first cigarette after a year of abstinence.

    The door swung open and an unamusing man walked in onto the other who was having his moment of ecstasy. A brief look of disgust was quickly replaced by apathy and the visitor knocked heavily onto the desk a few times in an attempt to garner some attention. Everything shook with each knock and one of the containers that was filled to the brim tipped over to the side. In an instant, the lanky strange man caught it with both hands and tried to catch all the liquid as well. With a surprising dexterity, he was able to save his precious pot and mixture and carefully placed it back into it¡¯s original spot.

    ¡°Ah, Zanako. What bring you here?¡±

    Kamu picked up a half filled purplish vial and swirled it in his hand like a fine wine. ¡°How much progress have you made, Krill?¡±

    ¡°The purity of the Devillefins¡¯ glands are quite amazing! I knew the concentrations would be greatest after their mating season, but I honestly didn¡¯t think it was going to be this high!¡±

    Krill grabbed a damp burlap sack and pulled out a bloody ball of what looked like intestines. ¡°See the dark red coloration? A clear indication of its¡¯ fiery nature!¡±

    Pinching his nose, Kamu glared at him and his hand dripping in blood. ¡°Isn¡¯t that just blood?¡±

    ¡°No no no. This is the juice of the fish¡¯s glands. Very explosive nature and just a little bit of flame can erupt into a wildfire,¡± Krill said as he slowly dipped and then dropped the gland into the cauldron. It started to smoke even more violently, even without a fire roaring below it.

    ¡°Also has been said that drinking it is good for matters of the bedroom, but I¡¯m sure you don¡¯t have problems there, he hee¡­¡±

    Kamu continued to glare at the eccentric alchemist, ¡°So when will it be ready?¡±

    ¡°Just another gland¡­¡± Krill said, as he dropped in more ingredients, ¡°and a bit of newt¡¯s dust to balance the fire water¡­ and DONE!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll send some men to come gather the fire water later then,¡± Kamu said as headed out of the room with unprecedented speed.

    Krill chased after Kamu before he could leave and grabbed him by the wrist. ¡°Wait! Zanako! What about the pixie wings and wyrm hearts I asked for?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll receive those when my men come by to gather the fire water.¡± Kamu then pulled his arm away and rubbed his wrist, ¡°If that¡¯s all, I¡¯ll need to go now. I¡¯m very busy.¡±

    ¡°Ah yes, yes...Sorry to bother you, exalted Zanako, he hee¡­¡±

    The door slammed shut and Krill ran towards the cauldron, returning to being absorbed into monitoring the faint changes in the fire water¡¯s aroma.

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    The moon hanged upside down from overhead, frowning at the city of nearly empty streets. Along a cobblestone road, walked a lone figure whose face was obscured by a wide hat. The figure deftly traveled across the path, stepping in an orderly line parallel to the buildings that were on both sides. All the houses along the street followed a similar theme: tall narrow doors in the center, windows with at least one small balcony on every level and planter boxes on windowsills. They pressed up against each other forming barely passable walkways between them and even the road itself, that lay between the columns of houses was also fairly tight with only enough space for two medium-sized carts to travel side by side.

    Arriving in front of its destination, the figure stopped and looked at the nameplate on the front that was illuminated by a street candled lamp. ¡°Traid Family¡±, it read.

    Pulling out a key from a pants pocket, the door was easily opened. The entranceway was quaint and narrow, just like the outside of the building itself. Sparsely furnished with a high table that held up a simple pot of an aster bouquet. One the left side was a hallway that presumably led to a living room and to the right a staircase leading up to the upper levels of the Traid¡¯s house.

    The figure headed up the stairs to the third and very top floor, and reached a narrow corridor. Each step taken was carefully pressed against the floorboards, like a unfilial husband sneaking into bed with his wife before she notices he was gone. At the end of the corridor was only a door blocking the path. With the same consideration as with the figures footsteps, it turned the glass knob ever so slightly until the gears turned and it opened.

    A cool breeze hit the intruder¡¯s face, coming from an open window. The white thinly woven curtains waved back and forth with the wind and the figure took a few steps into the room. This room was much more furnished and with higher end materials, such as a mahogany dresser and a intricately casted golden mirror that sat on top of it. To the left and centered in the room was a king sized bed, where a sleeping woman slept with the covers tightly gripping her body.

    The intruder couldn¡¯t help but think about how beautiful she was, even as she was only sleeping. But it was soon replaced by a sense of higher purpose and remembering what had to be done.

    Removing a dagger from a belt buckle, his hand shook but he used his other hand to steady himself. Gripping tightly, the intruder drove the dagger through her chest and in moments her chest stopped moving. Not even a small yelp was let out. ¡°She probably didn¡¯t feel any pain,¡± the intruder said to himself.

    He then wiped the dagger clean and moved towards the dresser, opening up the drawers and tossing clothes and other loose articles all over the room. The intruder had become a murderer and now a thief as well, taking a golden chained bracelet and a few fanciful looking rings. After he was done, he started trashing the entire room, throwing things to the ground and breaking everything that seemed breakable. This process was repeated throughout the entire house until nothing was left unturned or untarnished.

    As he was about to leave the house, a man wobbled into the front entranceway. The stench of booze and piss covered him in a thick must of putridness, but that didn¡¯t seem to deter him from having a merry mood. The intruder froze for a moment but after looking at the newcomers rosey face, he became less tense.

    ¡°Captain Traid, you shouldn¡¯t be here right now.¡± he said, removing his hat.

    ¡°Oiii, is that ya Lajos? Whattaya doing in my home?¡±

    ¡°Do you remember what today is?¡±

    ¡°You got some nice lookin¡¯ jewelry in your pocket so¡­ is it my birthday? Did you come here to bring me a present, ya good ole bastard?¡± Captain Traid started to wheeze in laughter.

    ¡°Today¡¯s the day you ordered me to do something¡­¡± Lajos quietly answered.

    ¡°What didja say? Couldn¡¯t hear ya!¡±

    ¡°Please don¡¯t yell, Captain.¡± Lajos said, this time a little louder.

    ¡°I¡¯m just messing with ya, boy. I know why ya¡¯s here, that¡¯s why I got so drunk!¡±

    Captain Traid laughed again, hiccuped and then patted Lajos on the back. He leaned in close and asked, ¡°So¡­ is it done?¡±

    ¡°Yes¡­ It¡¯s been done.¡±

    ¡°Good, good. Go ahead and keep all that jewelry and do whatever you want with it. But a friendly reminder, her jewelry were all crafted with the Oros¡¯s secret marks and shit so if you sell it on the market, the Oros Family will probably find you, torture you and then kill you if you¡¯s lucky.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡± Lajos said, putting on his wide hat again, making his way towards the door.

    ¡°Well, have a good night, future Lieutenant Lajos,¡± the captain waved.

    ¡°Good night, Captain Traid.¡±

 Chapter 42 - Council

    Chapter 42 - Council

    ¡°You¡¯ll first need to be introduced to the Council before we do anything else. I¡¯m sure news of your return has already been communicated to them, but let me check first.¡±

    Leale closed his eyes and placed his fore finger against his temple. A few moments passed before he opened them and smiled.

    ¡°If you¡¯re rested enough, they are all ready and waiting in the meeting area for us.¡± Leale said telepathically, before climbing up out of his sitting position.

    ¡°Is there anything I should be worried about?¡±

    ¡°They will probably only probe your aura to see if you are actually my son and then ask you a few questions.¡±

    ¡°Then alright.¡±

    Leale led Arnest out of the cavern and back towards the center of Polaras. Along the way they passed through small rocky igloos, with hanging dried fish racks and a series of clay pots in front of each of them. The light from the crystalline ceiling was slowly dimming into a refracted dark blue. The crowd that had formed from before when they had first arrived, seemed to had all dispersed, possibly hiding out in these hobbles. After passing a few more rock houses, Arnest started to slowly realize something.

    ¡°Wait, where are we headed?¡±

    ¡°To the meeting area.¡± Leale answered, turning around at Arnest with a slightly confused face.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t this in the direction of the Mama-¡±

    But before Arnest could finish his thought, they had already arrived. This time however, there wasn¡¯t only the one Mamalark that kept inwardly screaming about how hungry it was, but now dozens of these monstrosities were calmly wading in the water. Some of them were even twisting and turning, dipping in and out of the water like a herd of baby seals. Small little high pitched shrieks echoed in the cavern as they bounced into each other playfully. One Mamalark opened it¡¯s mouth, revealing four figures sitting around in a circle. Leale quickly approached and climbed into it¡¯s mouth without a moment¡¯s thought while Arnest stood to the side, paralyzed.

    ¡°You can¡¯t expect me to get inside another monster¡¯s mouth again.¡± Arnest thought to himself.

    ¡°Arnele, come.¡± Leale beckoned from inside.

    Arnest swallowed the lump of apprehension in his throat and tried to reassure himself. ¡°If they¡¯re sitting in there, it must be okay,¡± or so he thought.

    As Arnest neared closer at his turtle¡¯s pace, a masculine voice echoed inside his head. ¡°Don¡¯t be so worried, son of Leale! Lucy doesn¡¯t eat little boys, only fat, juicy men!¡±

    ¡°How do you know he¡¯s really his son?¡± another voice, this time definitely more feminine.

    ¡°He wouldn¡¯t bring some other man¡¯s son here. He¡¯s not an idiot.¡± sounded out the same reassuring male voice.

    ¡°Leale has always made irrational decisions, so I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if he did.¡±

    ¡°Shut up, Lyga. Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re still jealous that Leale didn¡¯t end up marrying your daughter?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t really care about who he married, that was his choice. But it definitely proves he¡¯s an idiot, or makes poor decisions at the very least.¡±

    ¡°Wedel, Lyga. Why don¡¯t you have your lover¡¯s quarrel at some other time?¡± a new voice sounded.

    ¡°Froli, mind your business why don¡¯t you?¡± said the male and female voice at the same time.

    ¡°Let¡¯s not fight everyone. Let¡¯s wait and see Leale¡¯s ¡®son¡¯ before we debate any further.¡± said a calmer voice.

    ¡°Thank you, Concilis Rihte.¡± Leale sent out, as Rihte nodded with a smile.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    By now, after all the bickering, Arnest finally mustered the courage to enter the ¡®meeting area¡¯. Although at the moment he was feeling not only some hostility from the Mamalark but also from the elderly woman who sat diametrically opposed to him. Next to her was a similarly aged man, frowning initially but upon seeing Arnest started to loosen a grin. The two men on the outer edges were comparatively much younger, however past the age of young adults. The one to the furthest left was casually smiling like one would when hosting a fanciful banquet while the other to the right wasn¡¯t afraid to show his discontent like a spoiled teen forced to be here by his overbearing parents. Despite their differences, all of them wore seaweed strewn garments that sort of looked like textured green robes, which seemed to be the only thing that unified the Polaras Council.

    ¡°I have returned, Concillisi, with my son, Arnele.¡± Leale said, taking a seat within the circle.

    He motioned towards Arnest with his hands and brought him center stage, in the middle of the five of them. Right when Arnest was surrounded, the Mamalark shut it¡¯s mouth closed and it became pitch dark.

    ¡°Hmm, what do you think Rihte?¡± Froli¡¯s voice sounded within their minds.

    Rihte closed his eyes and concentrated both his hands around his temple. ¡°His aura is very strong, which makes this difficult¡­ but I¡¯m fairly certain that I can sense Concilis Leale¡¯s bloodline within him.¡±

    ¡°Ha, I told you Lyga! It really is my grandson!¡± Wedel started to tear slightly.

    Lyga continued to squint at Arnest for a while before sighing. ¡°You¡¯re lucky to have a grandson with such a strong aura.¡±

    ¡°Of course he¡¯d have a strong aura! He¡¯s got mine and Leale¡¯s bloodline flowing through him.¡±

    ¡°We should hurry and ask our questions. I can sense a large crowd forming outside, they must be very interested in Leale¡¯s son.¡± urged Rihte.

    ¡°I¡¯ve already asked a few questions, but I¡¯d like to ask them again so that all of you can hear,¡± Leale said.

    ¡°What were you doing in the human world all this time?¡±

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    ¡°Did you hear?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Captain Traid¡¯s wife was killed a few days ago by some house thief.¡±

    ¡°Really? Is that why he hasn¡¯t been around? I just thought he was too hungover from that one night.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Apparently he came home drunk and found her stabbed to death.¡±

    ¡°Well shit, did they find the bastard who did it?¡±

    ¡°No, not yet.¡±

    ¡°I hope they catch the guy soon.¡±

    Nearby the two Raloman¡¯s, sat another who was pale as a ghost and had formed a void around him. Not a single person sat next to him and even the two Raloman¡¯s sat on the edge of their seats, trying to create as much distance between them. The ghostly, plagued boy got up from his seat, leaving behind a half eaten loaf of bread.

    ¡°I don¡¯t get why they let that deserter¡¯s bastard into the Twelfth Army!¡± one of the Raloman¡¯s shouted, so that everyone, especially the one leaving could hear.

    ¡°Idiot, don¡¯t be so loud¡­¡± whispered the other.

    ¡°Why? He¡¯s a disgrace to the Raloman name!¡±

    ¡°Captain Traid recently promoted him to Lieutenant¡­¡±

    The Raloman immediately shut up, covering his hands over his mouth. Waiting until Lajos left the vicinity, he slowly parted his fingers and whispered, ¡°Why would he make him a Lieutenant?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but remember, he was talking about it that night we went out for drinking. We all thought he was just joking but just last night it became official.¡±

    ¡°D-do you think he¡¯ll take revenge on us?¡±

    ¡°Us? I¡¯m not the idiot who was yelling insults.¡±

    ¡°Oh shit, what should I do? Help me out!¡± pleaded the Raloman, on his knees with his hands in a prayer position.

    ¡°Well, knowing him, he probably won¡¯t do anything to you unless you attack him. But you probably should say sorry or something.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re right! I¡¯ll go do that now!¡± the Raloman said, running in the same direction after Lajos.

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    Arrows rained down like a torrential downpour, poking a million holes in the side of both sides ships. On one side waved crimson banners with the number ¡°3¡± gilded and sewn into it. For the other, a pearl shell on a yellow background represented their smaller but more numerous ships. Only closer to the point of conflict did the ships ram into each other and then their occupants jumped out of the safety of cabins and hull, to charge each other¡¯s decks with melee weapons. Neither side seemed to have an edge over the other in this long drawn out conflict but because there was no clear victor, neither side was willing to give up. Whether it be for honor or coin, neither side had a reason to leave the fight, because there was still a chance to preserve their interests.

    On the furthest outskirts of the battle, on the seashell flags side, was a singular ship with various instruments on it¡¯s lower deck. Wide leatherback drums with muscular men pounding rounded pointed sticks against them and golden bells that were more grandiose than a cathedral¡¯s. were all sounding out as a backdrop to the mayhem.

    ¡°Ring twice and beat four times!¡± shouted one of the men on the upper deck.

    Soon after, two rings of the bell and four beats were drummed out in quick succession.

    ¡°Now one ring then five beats!¡± shouted another and the players followed the instructions flawlessly.

    One of the men walked up to a young, black haired man, who was peering through a long telescope that was directed towards the battle. ¡°Zanako, our western ships are pushing through and will soon be able to flank...¡±

    ¡°...However, our eastern side is being¡­ slightly, pushed back¡­¡± he added, inching backwards as if to avoid a verbal lashing.

    Kamu frowned, then turned towards the drums and bells. ¡°Ring the bell six times!¡±

    The bell run six times, but Kamu continued to frown. ¡°Don¡¯t stop ringing! Ring it six times every few minutes!¡±

    Once the bell¡¯s ringing was heard by the front lines, the mercenaries ran below their decks in droves. Soon after, they pulled out barrels and tossed them overboard into the water or if they were next to a Raloman ship, they tossed the barrels onto the enemy¡¯s decks. The barrels exploded when they hit the wood and liquid of some sort splattered and seeped into the wood. Initially they assumed this liquid was some sort of oil however the putrid stench of urine permeated the air.

    ¡°Did they just toss their piss buckets on us?!¡± screamed one Raloman, veins popping out of his head.

    The Ralomans, in a fury, picked up javelins and started firing them down on the Zanabonians. Most of them ended up dying, mostly due to the fact that they no longer were protected within the confines of the deck but men being pierced by these five-feet javelins did not deter most. Anyone who was able to survive the initial volley, grabbed their bows and lit the ends of their arrows on fire.

    They steadied themselves, waiting for the right moment, and on the sixth bell they loosed their flaming arrows. These fireballs screamed through the air and when their reached their marks, whether they be the water or on the boats, the entire horizon became ablaze.

    Screams filled the air as men burned alive, jumping into the water seeking to douse the fire only to find themselves within another sea of flames. From afar, Kamu could see their skin turn black and their bodies crumple up like kindling. Even from so far away, even the death cries could be heard from Kamu¡¯s ship, which caused the musicians to pause their ringing and drumming. They listened in horror, paralyzed in fear.

    ¡°Keep ringing!¡± Kamu shouted, snapping a few of them back into playing the bell.