ã€ŠChampionã€‹


 Chapter 1

    Chapter 1

    Milo was lounging on a plush couch with his eyes closed when he heard footsteps approaching. He opened his eyes just in time to see Dave enter the room.

    Dave had been his manager since the very beginning of his career. He was middle aged with a balding head, sharp eyes and a prodigious talent for logistics and organisation. The man always knew exactly where and when Milo needed to be at all times, a crucial ability for the manager of the world¡¯s most famous athlete. As always Dave made a show of tapping the ancient timepiece on his wrist.

    ¡°The pre-fight show is nearly done. They''re expecting you on the stage in five minutes.¡±

    Milo stood up and placed a hand on Dave¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°You sound nervous old man, has the realisation that you will shortly be the manager of the world champion finally gotten to you?¡±

    Dave sighed.

    ¡°Please stop playing around Milo, this isn¡¯t some off brand tournament, this is the final match of the world championship. And unless you¡¯ve forgotten, Sebastian beat you the last time the two of you faced each other.¡±

    Milo¡¯s confident smile never wavered despite the reminder of what he considered the biggest failure of his career.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t forgotten, but much has changed since last year¡¯s championship. That oaf barely squeezed out a win, he got lucky, and we both know it, else why has he been systematically dodging every tournament I¡¯ve been a part of this season? No¡­ Sebastian is a man living on borrowed time and tonight his time has run out.¡±

    A fond smile spread across Dave¡¯s face.

    ¡°That confidence of yours really is infectious.¡±

    Milo grinned and grabbed his manager by the shoulder before dragging him towards the tunnel which led up to the stadium.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get going, shall we? It¡¯s time to fulfil my destiny.¡±

    Dave pulled himself loose and gave Milo a light push in the back. While Milo was perfectly fine entering the stadium shoulder to shoulder with his manager, Dave had other ideas, the man was shy in the extreme and was perfectly happy remaining behind the scenes. Just before Milo reached the end of the tunnel his manager said the same thing he always did.

    ¡°Go get them.¡±

    Milo felt an overwhelming sense of calm and surety as he walked up the tunnel and entered the stadium.

    The moment Milo exited the tunnel he was greeted by a deafening roar of cheers. His face drew into a grin and his hand went up in a wave as he took in the 80 000 men and women who had managed to secure one of the ridiculously overpriced tickets for the most anticipated fight of the year. The hype train had truly left the station and every media company on the planet was advertising this as the fight of the century. The stadium announcer introduced him.

    ¡°Ladies and gentlemen, please join me in welcoming tonight''s challenger, Milo Harper!¡±

    Milo made a slow circuit of the stadium making sure to give his most rabid fans the attention they had come to expect from him. His talent for interacting with fans was by no means unique in this sport but none of the other crowd pleasers were anywhere near as highly ranked. After he finished his circuit, he headed towards the stage which served as the focal point of the stadium.

    The stage was currently empty aside from two massive chairs that faced each other. Each chair was covered in sponsorship logos, both personal and corporate and Milo noted with satisfaction that the chair had already been adjusted to his physique. As far as chairs went it looked a lot like a gaming chair except for the chrome and plastic visor hanging from a hook on the headrest. A cluster of wires ran from the top of the visor and down into the stage where the true machinery which powered the visor was housed. He walked over and tapped the visor quickly confirming that it had already been calibrated for his user profile. With a nod and a smile, he sat down in the chair and placed the visor in his lap.

    He had only been seated for a few seconds when the cameras turned in the direction of the tunnel opposite the one he himself had come out of. The two giant screens on either side of the stadium showed a broad-shouldered man that was slightly shorter than Milo. The man had blonde hair and fierce blue eyes and wore an impassive expression that bordered on outright unfriendliness. The stadium announcer¡¯s voice came to life again as the man was greeted by muted applause.

    ¡°Ladies and gentlemen please join me in welcoming the current Arena legends grand champion, Sebastian Lundgren!¡±

    Had the stadium been filled with neutral spectators rather than rabid enthusiast willing to pay a kidney for a ticket Sebastian title alone would¡¯ve earned him thunderous applause. But if there was one thing the fans of this sport had learned throughout Sebastian¡¯s long and storied career, it was that he despised press conferences and would do anything in his power to avoid interacting with fans. He was an executive¡¯s worst nightmare, the champion who refused to play the media game. Milo had a sneaking suspicion that every single person who worked for Cybervision was hoping the brooding blonde would lose tonight.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    As the champion ascended the stage and took his seat opposite Milo, he couldn¡¯t help but smile at his opponent.

    ¡°Ever the crowd favourite eh Sebastian?¡±

    Normally he wouldn¡¯t have risked throwing barbs at another contestant in a public setting but with the sound of 80 000 fans there was zero chance he¡¯d be overheard. As usual Sebastian didn¡¯t take the bait, the swede simply pulled down the virtual reality helmet above his chair and placed it on his head.

    Milo watched Sebastian¡¯s briefly tense before going completely limp. To the uninitiated the process of accessing the virtual reality headset developed by Cybervision almost looked like a person taking their last breath. In reality the visor was simply intercepting the electrical signals in the human brain to grant the wearer access while leaving the signals needed to sustain the physical body alone.

    A few seconds after Sebastian put the helmet on a perfect virtual copy of his body appeared on the stadium screens. The swede was standing in the middle of a giant coliseum. Unlike the coliseum in Rome this virtual coliseum had no benches for spectators and was covered in sponsorship logos.

    Milo pulled down his own helmet and felt his body go limp. His spatial awareness went completely haywire for a few seconds, by the time he managed to reorient himself he was inside the virtual coliseum in a perfect replica of his real body. He flexed his hands and looked across the sands at his opponent.

    Sebastian was seemingly tapping at empty air with his index finger. After a few seconds, a set of heavy plate armour materialised out of thin air around his body. A few seconds later a dagger, sword and shield appeared in front of Sebastian and dropped to the sand.

    The classic weapon combination the swede had chosen also played a factor in his unpopularity. While a fighting style based around a shield and a sword didn¡¯t have to be boring it was by nature a defensive fighting style. And while a true master like Sebastian could pull off fancy moves and make it look good against a less skilled opponent, against someone like Milo he would always play the long game by trying to tire out his enemy and winning by capitalising on small mistakes. That was how he¡¯d beaten Milo during the previous year¡¯s championship, death by a hundred cuts, in the end Milo had bled out before he could deliver a decisive strike.

    Milo pulled up the armour menu and selected a set of lightweight plate armour. The reason for his choice was simple, while lightweight plate armour couldn¡¯t stop a heavy blow from a mace or two-handed weapons, it did an excellent job of providing just enough protection against slashing attacks delivered by a shortsword.

    He switched to the weapons menu and quickly selected a claymore. The sword was huge and while it wouldn¡¯t penetrate the thickest parts of Sebastian¡¯s armour it could easily get through the weak spots that every armour no matter how thick shared. Milo looked up at the menu and saw that he had one point left to spend, just as expected. He scrolled away from the two-handed section until he came to the shield section and selected the item which formed the cornerstone of his plan.

    The crowd gasped and Sebastian frowned as a kite shield dropped to the sand atop Milo¡¯s claymore.

    Now normally Milo would¡¯ve spent his last weapon point on a dagger like Sebastian. Many top matches ended when the combatants became entangled and one of them pulled their dagger to finish the fight. Milo himself was well known for incorporating kicks, punches, dagger thrusts, and even MMA moves into his flashy fighting style, it made him unpredictable and unique. Over his long career around 10% of his match wins had come by dagger, so seeing him without one was not only strange, but borderline bizarre.

    Milo picked up the shield and then strapped the claymore to his back. He looked across the field and saw that Sebastian was watching him like a hawk. Milo shrugged.

    ¡°What can I say, I¡¯ve decided to pick up the shield.¡±

    Sebastian frown deepened into a scowl, no doubt assuming that he was being mocked somehow. But as usual the Swede didn¡¯t reply, instead the stadium speakers crackled to life with the announcer¡¯s voice.

    ¡°Contestants, are you ready?¡±

    They both answered in unison.

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    ¡°Both fighters are ready, the fight will begin in 3¡­2¡­1¡­FIGHT!¡±

    The second the announcer finished speaking Milo was already closing the gap between him and his enemy. Sebastian lowered his stance and set himself, clearly expecting Milo to discard the shield and draw his claymore for a charging strike. Only the top of the blonde man¡¯s face was visible from behind the massive shield, but Milo could still see his eyes widen as Milo slowed and twisted his entire body to throw his shield at Sebastian¡¯s head. The swede ducked just in time for the shield clang harmlessly against the top rim of his own shield. Sebastian immediately popped back up to regain vision but by that time he had already fallen into Milo¡¯s trap.

    Milo roared as he charged shoulder first into the centre of Sebastian¡¯s shield. Normally all a shoulder charge would¡¯ve earned him would be a shield bash into his face and a sword in the back, but Sebastian had yet to firm up his stance after ducking to avoid the thrown shield. Sebastian grunted as his own shield was pushed into his face and he stumbled backwards to land on his ass. The swede recovered with frightening speed, and it was now a race between Milo¡¯s draw speed and Sebastian¡¯s well-honed instincts. Unfortunately for the swede Milo was faster. The claymore descended on Sebastian¡¯s head, and it was only by some miracle that the Swedish champion managed to drop his shield and stop the killing blow with his wrist guard.

    Sebastian grunted and winced as Milo¡¯s sword lodged deep in his wrist bone, even with the pain settings on 5% getting your wrist chopped in half really hurt. Milo knew better than try to free his sword and immediately dropped it to launch a kick into Sebastian¡¯s face. The swede dropped his sword and against managed to protect his face just in time. He then yanked Milo¡¯s claymore free and drew his dagger with his remaining functional hand.

    As expected of a true veteran Sebastian didn¡¯t panic and took up a defensive stance above Milo¡¯s claymore. Milo grinned at the swede and then bent down pick up his discarded shield and sword. In the stadium the crowd was roaring their approval at the fight still thinking that there was more fight to be had. Of course, Sebastian and Milo both knew this was over. The one-handed champion might have had a chance against a less skilled opponent, but against the number two ranked fighter in the world? no, all that remained was to try and salvage some dignity from this loss.

    Milo made a show of circling his opponent while making a few experimental slashes to test his defences. Sebastian reacted perfectly and Milo decided to play along with Sebastian¡¯s dream of an honourable defeat. He engaged the swede in a quick exchange which ended with Milo slamming the rim of his shield into Sebastian¡¯s face. The swede was now bleeding from both his wrist and nose and Milo estimated he had around fifteen minutes left before the match was called due to blood loss. And while he was willing to extend the match for a few minutes there was no way he was going to wait fifteen minutes. He gave Sebastian a wink and then dropped his shield and launched himself at the champion. Although the short sword wasn¡¯t his favourite weapon he was more than proficient with it and easily overcame Sebastian¡¯s dagger. The exchange ended with Milo landing a clean cut on Sebastian¡¯s good hand which immediately dropped the dagger and stopped functioning.

    Sebastian snarled and tried to punch Milo would his maimed hand, but he simply ducked under the blow and then delivered a perfect thrust trough his visor. As soon as the blow landed the virtual environment disappeared and Milo felt his body regaining its senses. The crowd was going crazy as he removed the helmet and looked across at Sebastian¡¯s chair. The swede had just removed his own helmet and was glaring at Milo with true hatred in his eyes. Sebastian stood up and then stormed off the stage completely ignoring the shouts of his manager and the officials from Cybervision who tried to stop him. The man would no doubt face a hefty fine for dodging the post-match festivities but Milo couldn¡¯t truly blame him, he¡¯d lost completely without even landing a single blow in return, a true humiliation.

    The stadium speakers crackled back to life once again.

    ¡°Ladies and gentlemen join me in celebrating, the new grand champion of the Arena Legends world championship! Milo Harper!¡±

    Milo had visualised this very moment hundreds of times ever since his first year as a pro. He was now the world champion of the most popular sport ever invented by humanity. He was figuratively speaking at the very top of mount Everest and he couldn¡¯t help but ask himself the same question countless champions of countless sports before him had asked themselves.

    ¡°What the hell do I do now¡­¡±

 Chapter 2

    Chapter 2

    Milo let out a sigh of relief as he finally arrived back in the preparation area. The post-match interviews and celebration had gone on for nearly two hours and even his ability to play a crowd had been strained towards the end. He pulled off the hoodie covered with sponsorship logos and flopped down on the couch with his eyes closed. He was rubbing at his temples when he heard a strange sound ticking sound, he opened his eyes and saw that every light in the room was flickering. With a sigh he stood back up and mumbled to himself.

    ¡°The world¡¯s biggest and most expensive stadium and they can''t even keep the lights on¡­¡±

    He hadn¡¯t expected anyone to hear him which was why he almost yelped like a little girl when the voice of a woman answered him.

    ¡°It¡¯s not their fault, this always happens when I manifest in this dimension, lightning and me have never been on good terms.¡±

    Milo whirled around to find a woman looking at him. The woman was unusually tall and wore a tight-fitting black dress with red slashes that looked extremely well made. Her eyes were the colour of human blood, and her long onyx black hair framed a striking face that would make almost any man look twice or downright stare at her. What he could make out of her body was so perfectly proportioned that it looked like she had been sculpted in marble by some ancient artist. She was easily one of the most attractive women Milo had ever lain eyes on.

    Now many men would no doubt be happy to find an attractive woman wearing high heels, contacts and dressed in some cosplay costume in their locker room but Milo wasn¡¯t most men. His wealth, fame, athletic physique and decent good looks meant that he was used to attractive women making a pass at him. And this woman was not only cosplaying but also talking nonsense which meant there was a non-zero chance she could be dangerous. Milo slowly backed up to the tunnel and then cupped his hands around his mouth to shout.

    ¡°Security!¡±

    Milo fully expected his five-man team of former elite military soldiers to come rushing down the tunnel at his call, instead he was greeted by complete silence. With a hint of annoyance, he turned back to face the woman who seemed to be satisfied simply observing him. He gave her a fake smile.

    ¡°Alright you just stay right there lady, I¡¯ll be back shortly.¡±

    The unknown woman scoffed but didn¡¯t move.

    ¡°Nobody is coming to arrest me, you and I are completely alone.¡±

    Her words made the alarm bells already going off in his head go crazy. He whirled around and ran back up the tunnel to find his security team. The tunnel was only 100 meters long and he made it to the exit in only 7 seconds. He burst trough the tunnel and immediately located his security team, they were currently watching the tunnel like hawks. He started to say something to their leader and then realised that the man wasn¡¯t moving, at all, in fact none of them were.

    Milo carefully approached one of his frozen guards and inspected the man. The man remained completely still so he tried to poke him. When that got no reaction he spoke to him.

    ¡°Patric, can you hear me?¡±

    No response. Milo was starting to fear the worst, so he placed his finger against Patric¡¯s neck to take his pulse. It took only a few seconds to confirm his worst fear, Patric had no pulse, ergo he was dead, only he didn¡¯t look dead, he looked¡­ frozen. Milo shifted his focus to the rest of the stadium, not a single person was talking and now that he studied them, they were all also frozen in place. His heart was beating faster as his mind offered up two possibilities. Either everyone in the stadium had been murdered and then somehow propped up or something had frozen time for everyone but himself. He slowly turned around and looked down the tunnel. He took a deep breath and then headed back down. When he arrived, the woman was still standing in the exact spot where he¡¯d left her. She smiled at him.

    ¡°Find anything interesting?¡±

    Milo¡¯s eyes narrowed on the woman.

    ¡°What have you done?¡±

    ¡°Nothing extraordinary, I simply created a bubble of frozen time around this stadium so that me and you could talk in private.¡±

    Milo gaped at her.

    ¡°That¡¯s not possible¡­¡±

    The woman arched an eyebrow at him.

    ¡°Oh? You refuse to believe the evidence of your own eyes?¡±

    Milo slapped himself and the woman laughed.

    ¡°No, you¡¯re not asleep, try again.¡±

    ¡°I must be hallucinating?¡±

    ¡°No, and I¡¯m starting to run out of patience young warrior.¡±

    Milo didn¡¯t like the hint of danger which had crept into the woman¡¯s voice. He decided to play along for now.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    ¡°Who are you?¡±

    ¡°I have a thousand names, but you might know me as Kali the destroyer, or Athena the god of wisdom and warfare, or perhaps Freyja the goddess of love, war and sex. But if I had to chose one name to go by it would be Lilith, goddess of the demonic realm.¡±

    Milo couldn¡¯t stop his face from taking on a sceptical expression.

    ¡°You¡¯re a god?¡±

    ¡°I prefer goddess but yes.¡±

    Before Milo could stop himself, his mouth ran away from him.

    ¡°Prove it.¡±

    Lilith spread her arms in a grandiose gesture as if she were moses parting the ocean. At first nothing happened then coils of what looked like liquid shadow snaked up her left arm, a few seconds later coils of liquid flame snaked up her right arm. The two streams of liquid met right above her bosom and then merged to create what looked like a sphere of liquid magma. Lilith placed her hands under the sphere and for a moment Milo expected her flesh to melt away instead she lifted the sphere before throwing it straight up at the roof. Instead of stopping the sphere continued upwards until Milo lost sight of it.

    Now a normal person might have run away at that particular display, but Milo had always been a curious person. He carefully walked over to Lilith and stared up at the perfectly round hole in the roof. As far as he could tell the magma sphere had penetrated trough a nearly a hundred meters of concrete and steel without ever stopping.

    ¡°Huh¡­¡±

    Lilith placed an arm on his shoulder and Milo jumped.

    ¡°I have frozen time and displayed the elements of my realm, do you need further proof of my divinity Milo Harper?¡±

    Something told Milo it would be a bad idea to ask her to repeat the trick twice. Instead, he shook his head.

    ¡°Good, now to business, you are quite possibly the most talented warrior your species has ever produced, and I have great need of you.¡±

    ¡°Really? You¡¯re a god who can stop time and throw unstoppable balls of magma, what exactly do you need me for?¡±

    Lilith smiled in a way that sent chills down his spine.

    ¡°I am powerful, but so are my enemies. My pantheon is about to begin a contest which will decide who of us will rule and who will serve. It is for this contest I have need of you, you will become my champion, and you will lead my armies to glorious victory!¡±

    Milo didn¡¯t quite like how certain this Lilith sounded about his servitude. He decided to slow the conversation down to give him time to think.

    ¡°When you say pantheon what do you mean?¡±

    ¡°Me and my siblings were the first beings ever created; we have been around since the very birth of this universe. Each of us represent one or more elements and it was only after several million years that we discovered we could combine our powers to access creation itself. We began small by making moons and comets, but eventually we learned how to create entire solar systems, each one unique. For a long time, we lived in harmony, delighting in our creations, until we decided to create life.¡±

    Milo could already see where this story was heading.

    ¡°Let me guess, you created life, that life worshipped you and you ended up fighting over worshippers?¡±

    Lilith¡¯s face took on a look of genuine surprise.

    ¡°You are correct, but it was not just our vanity that split my siblings apart. Worshippers are more than just believers in our divinity, they actually generate something called spirit essence for the gods they worship. This essence can be used for raw creation and we soon started fighting over worshippers as we all raced to cut our siblings out of the creation process and become the sole deity to rule the universe.¡±

    ¡°That must have been quite the war¡­¡±

    Lilith grimaced.

    ¡°It was, each of us claimed at least one sentient species and used the spirit essence to create our own divine dimensions. We then fortified our dimensions with fortresses and soldiers and once we had enough troops we attacked the other gods.¡±

    ¡°So, why¡¯d you stop?¡±

    ¡°In the beginning there were so many gods that each element was present in at least a dozen gods. But once our war got out of hand several elements went extinct. Once we realised that the extinction of certain elements meant we would no longer be able to create planets and life in the future a peace was called.¡±

    ¡°You realised that planets and people would eventually die and that without the ability to create more you would eventually lose access to spirit essence forever.¡±

    Lilith nodded.

    ¡°Precisely.¡±

    ¡°So, what¡¯s the tally? How many gods did your war kill?¡±

    Lilith¡¯s grimace returned.

    ¡°There are 52 of us left, we are the strongest and each of us represents two elements, but if any of us were to die¡­¡±

    Milo was starting to understand.

    ¡°So, how do you plan to preserve peace while still deciding whose boss?¡±

    ¡°We considered many solutions, but in the end, we settled on a contest of might and wisdom. Each of us will send a champion to a newly created planet, our champions will fight and whoever wins will assume command of our pantheon.¡±

    Milo frowned.

    ¡°You¡¯re talking about some sort of deathmatch in a giant arena?¡±

    ¡°Nothing so simple. The planet we created for this contest is huge and full of life. Each champion will be dropped at a location chosen by their god, then they will build their armies and fight it out.¡±

    ¡°You want me to conquer an entire world?!¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Milo gaped at the woman.

    ¡°You do realise that I am an athlete, right? I know very little about military strategy and I¡¯ve never actually killed anyone except in a virtual reality. What makes you think I¡¯m your guy?¡±

    Lilith¡¯s face drew into a knowing smirk.

    ¡°Oh, I know exactly who you are, after all I¡¯ve been watching you and other potential champions since you first set foot inside the training grounds I created for you.¡±

    Milo¡¯s eyes grew wide.

    ¡°You¡¯re saying you created the Cybervision virtual reality visor?¡±

    Lilith scoffed.

    ¡°Did you not think it strange how humans went from computer monitors to virtual reality visors within a few years?¡±

    Now that she mentioned it Milo remembered how stunned the public had been by the sudden leap forward in virtual reality tech. Cybervision¡¯s visor had come out of nowhere and had taken the world by storm.

    ¡°I looked at many candidates, but in the end it was between you and Sebastian. And while Sebastian is a formidable force, I always preferred you and your charm to his brooding silence.¡±

    ¡°Why do you need a peerless warrior? Wouldn¡¯t some general with a talent for tactics be a better choice if your champion needs to conquer an entire world?¡±

    ¡°I am the goddess of demons, not the goddess of wisdom and war. My realm is a brutal one, and my people are proud and eager for war, they will not follow some armchair general even if I told them to. My champion needs to be strong above all else, any other traits such as your charm and ability to play a crowd are merely a bonus.¡±

    Milo nodded slowly and then asked the question that really mattered.

    ¡°Alright, not that fighting a divine war doesn¡¯t sound fun but what¡¯s in this for me? It sounds like I¡¯ll be taking an insane risk.¡±

    Lilith had clearly been expecting the question because she answered without thinking.

    ¡°Once we win the contest, I will have access to the collective power of the entire pantheon. With this power I could do nearly anything, including making you into a minor god. You would not only be immortal, but you could do almost anything you want.¡±

    ¡°And if I refuse?¡±

    Lilith¡¯s smile turned feral.

    ¡°Then I would have no further use for you.¡±

    Milo looked up at the hole in the roof and then gulped.

    ¡°How do I know you won¡¯t simply screw me over after I win?¡±

    ¡°Gods do not make idle promises, when we swear something, we do so on our very essence and that promise becomes unbreakable. It is the same method we used to enforce our current peace treaty and how we will ensure that no god meddles directly with the contest once it has started.¡±

    Milo nodded.

    ¡°Then I do believe we have a deal, once you swear an oath to uphold your end I will accept the offer.¡±

    Lilith placed her hands on her chest and started speaking in a strange tone that if Milo didn¡¯t know better, he would¡¯ve called magical.

    ¡°I, Lilith, goddess of demons, swear upon my essence that I will offer my chosen champion, Milo Harper divine ascension as soon as it is within my power to do so.¡±

    The very air crackled and Milo felt an invisible weight upon his shoulders. He was about to ask what was going on when the feeling suddenly vanished.

    ¡°There, it is done. Now it¡¯s your turn.¡±

    ¡°What do you want me to say?¡±

    ¡°I accept this deal of my own free will.¡±

    Milo hesitated a moment before repeating the words. As soon as the words were out of his mouth Lilith stepped forward and placed her right hand on his chest. Her other arm settled on his shoulder in a grip designed to keep him still. Once again, the alarm bells in his mind were going off.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    ¡°Relax, it will soon be over.¡±

    Milo tried to say something, but the words turned to a scream as a sudden flash of heat erupted from Lilith¡¯s hand. He looked down at his chest and watched in horror as her hand melted trough cloth, flesh and ribs. His eyes were wild by the time he felt her hand close around his heart. The heat only increased, and Milo thought he could feel his very bones melt right before he finally passed out.

 Chapter 3

    Chapter 3

    The first thing Milo did when he came to was scream. It took his body a few seconds to realise that his bones and eyeballs were no longer melting. The second thing he did was gape at his taloned fingers and the tiny black scales covering his arms. He stumbled to his feet unsteadily and was dismayed to find a spiked tail and a pair of wings protruding from his back. The room was cast in darkness but to his eyes the room might as well have been bathed in daylight. As far as he could tell the room was made entirely out of some sort of black metal which reminded him of onyx. He searched the room until his eyes landed on a giant onyx throne upon which a familiar figure sat. Lilith had shed her human disguise. Her body was now covered in onyx scales, her head was crowned by black horns and a pair of wings, and a tail were visible behind her back.

    ¡°What did you do to me?!¡±

    Lilith smiled down at him like the goddess she was.

    ¡°You¡¯re finally awake.¡±

    ¡°What the fuck did you do to me!?¡±

    Lilith stood up and then made a few motions with her hands, a few seconds later a mirror set in an onyx frame appeared out of thin air in front of Milo. He studied his reflection with horror on his face. Her voice sounded pleased when she replied.

    ¡°I have remade you into an instrument fit for the goddess of demons.¡±

    Milo groaned and stepped past the mirror to glare up at Lilith.

    ¡°You incompetent idiot, how am I supposed to dominate a competition of champions in a complete unfamiliar body!?¡±

    Lilith rolled her eyes and Milo briefly considered trying to kill the goddess even if it meant his own death. When she answered her voice was dismissive.

    ¡°I am older than the solar system you were born in, do you really think I haven¡¯t considered every aspect of this plan down to the smallest detail?¡±

    Milo looked down at his clawed feet and was about to point at them to contradict her when the claws suddenly vanished into wisps of black smoke. He looked over his shoulder and saw that the same thing had happened to his wings and tail. Still, something was different from his own body. He walked back to the mirror and took in his new visage. The changes were startling.

    His brown hair had turned jet black and his green eyes were now the same deep blood red colour as Lilith¡¯s. Aside from that his facial features were finer and more refined turning him from a decent looking athlete into something akin to a model. He also estimated that he had gained about half a meter in height without somehow losing any of his muscle mass. In short, he looked like some sort of satanic demigod. He walked past the mirror again and stared up at Lilith.

    ¡°You¡¯ve messed with my height and reach.¡±

    Lilith looked surprised at the words.

    ¡°That¡¯s it?¡±

    ¡°You changing my hair and face is not the strangest thing that has happened today, but why mess with my height and reach, I¡¯ll have to adjust my fighting style.¡±

    Lilith stood up and walked down to meet him. He almost flinched when she placed a clawed hand on his shoulder.

    ¡°Your increased mass was unavoidable, merging humans and demons is not easy even for me. I¡¯ve created thousands of hybrids over the years, but you are without a doubt my finest work yet.¡±

    Her hand suddenly slipped away as she sagged, Milo caught her before she could hit the ground. He steadied her but kept his hand around her shoulder just in case she fell again.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you?¡±

    When Lilith answered her voice was slightly strained.

    ¡°I had to draw heavily upon my personal reserves of arcane energy and spirit essence during your creation. Normally such an act would leave my dimension open to invasion but thanks to the temporary peace in place I should be able to recover by the time the contest is over.¡±

    Milo narrowed his eyes at her.

    ¡°The way my body looked when I woke up¡­ you didn¡¯t create just another hybrid, did you?¡±

    Lilith scoffed.

    ¡°If I wanted just another hybrid I would¡¯ve chosen one of my children to champion me. No, you are unique, I made you as close to myself as I possibly could.¡±

    ¡°So those scales and claws and stuff, I can change forms? like you do?¡±

    ¡°Your body is still new; it will take time before it can store enough arcane energy to maintain a full demonic metamorphosis for longer than a few moments. My guess it will take at least a few years before you can maintain the form for longer than a minute.¡±

    ¡°Years you say? And how long do we have until this contest of champions starts?¡±

    ¡°Each god and goddess get a week with their champion.¡±

    Milo groaned, he had always been beyond talented in anything fighting related but a week was not enough time to adjust to a new body. His only hope was that the other champions would be going trough a similar process, thus levelling the playing field.

    ¡°So, what¡¯s next?¡±

    Lilith turned and looked at a shadowy corner at the far end of the room. Milo was wondering what she was looking at when the shadows suddenly moved. A human face with one pale red eye and one blood red eye stepped out of the shadows.

    ¡°Now my dear champion, we introduce you to your troops.¡±

    The unknown woman knelt in front of Lilith.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

    ¡°Lily, tell each order to assemble 50 of their best members in the upper courtyard.¡±

    The woman rose and inclined her head in obedience.

    ¡°As you command.¡±

    Milo expected the unknown woman to walk or perhaps jog from the room. Instead, she vanished into a cloud of shadows. A second later the shadowy cloud was gone along with the woman.

    ¡°Did she just teleport?¡±

    Lilith waved her hand dismissively as if a woman teleporting out of the room was nothing special.

    ¡°Lily leads the order of shadows, that spell is far from the most impressive thing she can do.¡±

    ¡°The order of shadows?¡±

    ¡°One of four orders into which all higher demons are inducted once they reach adulthood. The order of shadows is mainly comprised of scouts, infiltrators, and assassins.¡±

    ¡°And you have the leader of such an ¡®elite¡¯ organisation running errands for you?¡±

    Lilith snorted.

    ¡°I am a goddess, and all my children are mine to do with as I wish. Now follow me and I will show you what kind of warriors you will lead.¡±

    They made their way out of the throne room and into a corridor. A long row of giant hulking figures flanked the corridor on either side. For a moment Milo thought they were statues, then one of them moved its head in his direction and sniffed. The creature looked like somebody had cross bread and a dog and a polar bear. Aside from the giant forwards facing horns protruding from its head the creature looked nothing like Lilith in her demon form. And judging by the ridiculously thick set of plate armour it wore it had no scales under the armour either. Judging by the giant Warhammer and shield the creatures held their strength was many times beyond anything human. Milo pointed at one of the hulking creatures.

    ¡°What are those?¡±

    ¡°An elder demon, their race were my original worshippers, their original home world was lost in the war, but their species remains in my realm. They predate humanity by millions of thousands of years.¡±

    ¡°Elder demon? Does that mean there are more variations of their species?¡±

    ¡°Indeed, unlike my hybrids who enjoy unnatural longevity, pure demons don¡¯t die of old age, and they never stop growing. The ones you see in this corridor are all at least ten thousand years old. As for their variations, they all start out as ¡®workers¡¯ but those creatures are dumb as rocks and need direct supervision to be effective. After a few hundred years of growth workers become large enough to be classified as soldiers, it is this variation which makes up the bulk of my armies and they are barely smart enough to understand direct orders. If a soldier somehow manages to live a few thousand years they will eventually become an elder demon. These hulking brutes are about as smart as a regular human and serve as elite shock troops and leaders of their lesser kin.¡±

    Milo stared back at the elder demons standing guard.

    ¡°They sound like useful creatures, how many do you have?¡±

    Lilith sighed.

    ¡°The war has taken a heavy toll on my troops, there are only a few thousand elder demons left in my realm.¡±

    ¡°What about the workers and soldiers?¡±

    ¡°I create workers with spawning pits, their numbers are infinite as long as I live. As for the soldiers, right now I think there are about half million in my realm, far less than I¡¯d like.¡±

    Milo whistled.

    ¡°And they will all be under my command during this contest?¡±

    Lilith scoffed.

    ¡°Of course not, it would take you at least a year, probably more to gather enough spirit essence to summon all the demons in my realm regardless of how successful you are. No, you will probably be commanding less than a hundred thousand for at least a year.¡±

    Milo was starting to suffer from information overload, still he tried to keep up.

    ¡°I thought spirit essence was something gods siphoned from their worshippers.¡±

    ¡°It is, but for the purposes of the contest we have granted our champions the ability to collect spirit essence in our place. You will be able to acquire it by defeating enemies and many other methods.¡±

    ¡°And I can only use it summon troops?¡±

    Lilith shook her head.

    ¡°You can use it to summon anything from my dimension. Workers, soldiers, food, weapons, armour and even buildings.¡±

    Milo felt like he¡¯d been sort of mislead.

    ¡°You said I was going to lead your armies, but you¡¯re going to send me to this planet on my own aren¡¯t you?¡±

    Lilith rolled her eyes.

    ¡°You will be starting with enough spirit essence to summon a few things in the start, after that it¡¯s up to you to gather more. Yet another concession made to the weaker factions¡­¡±

    ¡°The weaker factions?¡±

    ¡°Not every god has worshippers as martial as mine. I am one of the strongest gods in pure combat, but there are other gods who have only survived by relying on diplomacy and tricks. These gods obviously did not want to send their champions into a contest of pure strength, so we had to add rules to give them a fighting chance.¡±

    ¡°Is there anything else you haven¡¯t told me?¡±

    Lilith¡¯s only answer was a mischievous smile.

    They arrived in the courtyard to find several hundred hybrids waiting for them. The crowd was divided into four equal groups, each standing in orderly ranks behind a single person. Milo recognised the one called Lily in front of a group of men and women wearing dark leather and black cloaks.

    The second group stood behind a giant man in the most beautiful heavy plate armour Milo had ever seen. This man had the same vibrant blood-coloured eyes as himself and Lilith. The group standing behind him was mostly men and every single one of them was wearing plate armour.

    The third group stood behind a tall man with a lean frame. He also shared Lilith¡¯s eyes but instead of armour he wore a magnificent robe covered in red symbols. In his right hand he held a black staff crowned with a glowing ruby. The group behind him all wore robes, they also had the highest ratio of women to men out of all the groups.

    The fourth and final group stood behind a broad-shouldered man in a full set of light weight plate armour. This man also shared Lilith¡¯s eyes and had an air of command about him. The group who stood behind him wore similar armour although a good portion only wore leather with chain mail. They were also the only group with a nearly equal divide between men and women.

    Milo followed Lilith into the centre of the courtyard. The goddess stopped and then waved a hand in his direction.

    ¡°This is Milo, my new champion!¡±

    Milo was so used to crowds applauding when he was introduced that the complete silence which followed felt almost unnatural. Lilith on the other hand continued as if the crowd¡¯s lack of a reaction didn¡¯t matter to her any more than an insect squashed beneath her boot.

    ¡°When you arrive on Archeus you will listen to his commands as if he were me.¡±

    Again, nothing but silence. Lilith pointed at each of the people standing in front of their groups and beckoned them forward. When they were close enough, she continued.

    ¡°The contest begins in one week, it is my intent to provide our new champion with as much training as we can until then. To that end I will let him choose which of you will be his primary instructor.¡±

    None of the four said a word. It was becoming clear by now that Lilith didn¡¯t suffer interruptions or refusals. The goddess indicated Lily with a hand.

    ¡°You¡¯ve already met Lily, like I said earlier she is the master of the order of shadows. They specialise in scouting, infiltrations, and assassination. She has a good grasp of shadow magic, although she tends to focus that mastery on utility spells such as teleportation and concealment. Unfortunately, such spells take a long time to master, and her weapon of choice are daggers and a bow, both weapons which you have no use for.¡±

    If Lily was angry at being told she had nothing of use to teach ¡®the chosen one¡¯ she didn¡¯t show it. Lilith went on, this time indicating the man in the light plate armour.

    ¡°This is Beldan, he is my general and most trusted servant. He is master of the order of war. The order of war specialises in tactics, strategy and logistics, they are the officers of my armies. He can teach you how to lead armies, how to defend and attack fortifications and perhaps most importantly, how to organise the logistics of several conquering armies at once. He has much to teach you but given our limited time I would not choose him as your primary instructor.¡±

    Lilith moved her hand to the man in the robes.

    ¡°This is Seti. He is the master of the elemental order. They harness the elements of my dimension to fuel spells of every kind. Seti¡¯s mastery of fire and shadow is second only to my own. He can teach you everything from how to heal to how to incinerate a small army from a distance. Right now, you are nothing more than a peerless warrior with no magic to call upon. And while I have no doubt you can hack apart anything on Archeus in a weapons duel, you are at a severe disadvantage against magic users.¡±

    Lilith was all but telling him to pick Seti. Normally such heavy-handed prodding would¡¯ve annoyed him, but in this case, he fully agreed with her reasoning. Still, he was curious about the man in full plate. He pointed at the man in question.

    ¡°And him?¡±

    Lilith didn¡¯t sigh but her dismissive tone made it clear that she could barely be bothered to introduce the plated man.

    ¡°This is Nero, he is master of the order of warriors and my former champion. His order specialises in physical combat, they are the elite core of my army, my knights. Normally I¡¯d say he could teach you how to fight against a single foe or many, but we both know there¡¯s absolutely nothing he can teach you.¡±

    As harsh as her assessment was Milo couldn¡¯t help but agree with it. The last thing he wanted was to waste time on was getting fighting lessons from inferior warriors. He turned back to the man in the robes and was about chose him when a fist slammed into his shoulder. The force behind the blow was tremendous and he barely managed to keep his balance as he spun around.

    The big warrior introduced as Nero was glaring bloody murder at him, and Milo immediately assumed a fighting stance. Fighting without weapons was hardly his forte but his martial arts skills were still good enough that he could¡¯ve had a career as a mediocre pro if he¡¯d wanted. And fortunately for him his opponent was wearing heavy plate armour which made him exceptionally susceptible to judo throws and jiu jitsu holds.

    Before Milo could counterattack Lilith stepped between him and Nero. He expected Lilith to perhaps scold Nero or at least stop the fight, but of course that was not her intent at all.

    ¡°Nero, once again you disgrace yourself. If you wish to challenge my new champion, you will do so when he is armoured and armed. Lily, go to the armoury and fetch a full set of lightweight plate armour and a greatsword.¡±

    Nero spat on the ground at Milo¡¯s feet and then held out his hand. A few seconds later black smoke coalesced into a wicked looking black greatsword.

    A normal person probably would¡¯ve been scared off by the sword or the murderous glare on Nero¡¯s face. Milo on the other hand could barely stop himself from frowning at the blade in Nero¡¯s hand. Whatever idiot had designed the sword had gone full out for style over function. Not only did the weapon look unbalanced as hell, but it also didn¡¯t even have a crossguard.

    Lily returned five minutes later with the armour and weapon Lilith had requested. Unlike Nero¡¯s ridiculously ornate armour and idiotic sword, both the armour and sword she had fetched looked ordinary, which was exactly what he had hoped for.

    The broad-shouldered man named Beldan helped Milo into the armour and then everyone except Lilith cleared out of the middle of the courtyard.

    Milo eyed his opponent and had to supress a smirk when he saw just how full of openings Nero¡¯s stance was. Magic, demons, and gods, all of this was new to him, but fighting duels, that was his bread and butter, and he was about to show everyone in the courtyard who was at the top of the pecking order.

 Chapter 4

    Milo and Nero faced each other in the middle of the courtyard. Lilith and everyone else had taken up a position so far away that Milo expected this duel would be anything but mundane. His suspicion turned to reality when Lilith called for the fight to begin, and Nero¡¯s sword immediately caught on fire. The big man charged him with a roar and Milo decided to play defence until he could accurately gauge Nero skill level.

    Nero brought his sword down in a vicious overhand arc so obvious that Milo could¡¯ve deflected it in his sleep. Unfortunately, that turned out to be his first and almost last mistake. Milo expected to be able to deflect Nero¡¯s blade by just angling his sword correctly and applying the correct amount of counter pressure. Instead, Nero¡¯s blow turned out to be so heavy that the man¡¯s sword actually knocked his own sword out of his grip and hit him in the shoulder hard enough to lodge in his bone.

    Milo felt his entire left arm go limp and only his instincts saved him from being decapitated as Nero yanked his sword free with a splash of blood and tried to strike his head off. Milo ducked beneath the blow and picked up his sword with his good hand. Nero whirled back around and launched into a vicious series of strokes each of which he sidestepped or dodged. It was obvious that Nero¡¯s sword wasn¡¯t the only thing magical about the man, he was also somehow enhancing his own strength to ridiculous levels. It meant that trying to parry blows was out of the question, luckily for Milo he was at his best when he went on the offensive.

    The greatsword in his right hand felt like a shortsword thanks to the new body Lilith had forged for him. He waited for Nero to finish his attack sequence and once the final blow came, he simply sidestepped the overly telegraphed blow and bashed the pommel of his sword into the back of Nero¡¯s skull. The big man stumbled forwards with a curse and when he whirled around with a crazed look in his eyes Milo followed up with a perfect upwards slash. The strike was so expertly measured that the very tip of his sword crashed into the bottom rim of Nero¡¯s helmet and knocked it off his head. The blow also left a shallow cut across Nero¡¯s cheek.

    Nero shook his head and then took two steps backwards. His hand went to his cheek and came away with blood, the big man looked at the red smear with disbelief. He briefly considered following up the strike with a lunge, but he had a feeling that killing this man was a mistake. Lilith had clearly been anticipating this duel and probably intended for it to be an exhibition match to show the demons and hybrids how good he was. And while Nero was obviously trying to kill him the objective of this duel for Milo was to humiliate his opponent.

    Milo slashed his sword around in a flashy pattern and then spoke in the most dispassionate voice he could manage.

    ¡°You¡¯re strong, or at least whatever magic your using is, but if you were in the arena with me back on Earth, I would call you a mediocre amateur.¡±

    Milo thought he could hear somebody laugh but he never took his eyes off Nero. The big man¡¯s face turned murderous and once again he launched into a reckless strike, just as Milo had hoped for. Once again, he dodged the blow quite easily and this time he decided to level the playing field. He brought his sword down in vicious overhand arc right onto Nero¡¯s wrist. He expected the blow to break the other man¡¯s wrist or maybe even penetrate a few centimetres. What he didn¡¯t expect was for his sword to cleave trough the appendage.

    The big man howled with pain and Milo stared down at the severed arm with a mixture of horror and some satisfaction. Fighting in real life rather than virtual reality wasn¡¯t new to him, in fact he often preferred to train in real life. Still, that was usually done with blunted weapons and padding, this was the first time he had fought somebody in real life with a real weapon. And clearly, he had not only miscalculated Nero¡¯s strength but also his own.

    He was about to apologise to the man when Nero dropped his weapon and lunged at him with a snarl. Say what you will about Lilith¡¯s former champion, he truly did have the heart of a warrior. Milo dropped his own sword and let the takedown happen. Nero started pounding on his armour with his good hand and even trough all the metal Milo felt the blows. Still, the man clearly didn¡¯t know how to wrestle or do jui jutsu because Milo¡¯s legs shot up and wrapped around his head putting him in a triangle choke. His opponent clearly didn¡¯t know what to do and his face started going red within moments as oxygen was cut off. He made one last attempt to break free with a half-hearted body slay but the damage was minimal. A few seconds later the former champion finally passed out.

    The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

    Milo shoved Nero¡¯s unconscious body away and rose to his feet. As he did so he heard a ringing sound coming from the spectators. He looked over at the assembled hybrids standing behind Lilith, those with weapons were banging them on the cobblestones and those without made do by stamping their feet.

    Lilith and her cadre of teachers approached him. The goddess was smiling at him like the cat who got the cream. And while Beldan and Lily wore impassive expressions he noticed that Seti, the magic teacher was also smiling. Milo was too new to this place to guess at the underlying dynamics of this place, still he had a feeling that Nero was not well liked. When they reached him, Lilith spoke in a voice loud enough to carry across the courtyard to the spectators.

    ¡°Well done my champion.¡±

    Milo kept his voice low so only she and her chosen teachers could hear it.

    ¡°You planned this.¡±

    Lilith laughed.

    ¡°Of course, Nero was going to try to kill you whether I sanctioned a duel or not.¡±

    ¡°And the crowd?¡±

    ¡°Seeing is believing, many of those gathered here probably still doubt your potential, but very few of them now believe they could beat you in a fight. By the end of today every hybrid in my realm will have heard of the peerless champion and his humbling of Nero the oaf.¡±

    Milo pointed down at Nero¡¯s unconscious form.

    ¡°What about him? Not only have I humiliated him in front of his order, but I¡¯ve also crippled him. How is he supposed to lead his order now?¡±

    Lilith looked down at her former champion¡¯s severed hand with something akin to disgust.

    ¡°None of the orders will be taking direction from their former masters after today. As of right now they all follow you and are yours to command as you see fit.¡±

    Lilith made him feel like a clumsy dancer who was deaf to the music. She was obviously playing him exactly as she had planned and there was very little, he could do about it. With a sigh he waved his hand in Seti¡¯s direction.

    ¡°I choose Seti by the way, just like you wanted.¡±

    Lilith nodded.

    ¡°A good choice, Seti is ancient and very powerful, out of all my children he is my favorite. He is also wise, just like his father.¡±

    Milo frowned at the robed hybrid.

    ¡°Father? I thought all the hybrids were your children? They have fathers?¡±

    ¡°Some do, over the years I have given birth to many daughters and sons. All are the offspring of kings, emperors and other men I found interesting. They are also stronger than the rest and are the only hybrids capable of accessing a metamorphosis form.¡±

    Milo remembered the demonic form he had been in when he had regained consciousness.

    ¡°Wait, but I have access to that form as well, or I will in the future as you said.¡±

    ¡°Indeed, you are more than just a child of my body, you were recreated by using not only my own blood but also the elements of my realm. If you do not believe me look to your shoulder.¡±

    Milo looked down at the gaping wound on his shoulder, blood was pouring down his arms and onto the cobblestones. The wound looked every bit as gruesome as he had expected, yet there was something missing. He understood what Lilith was getting at.

    ¡°He struck me with a flaming sword, so why is my flesh not burned or cauterised.¡±

    Lilith grinned and then stepped forward and placed her hands above the wound. Wisps of shadow and flame coalesced above the wound and Milo watched with fascination as his flesh started knitting together. The goddess stepped back and then turned to Seti.

    ¡°Please show our new champion what gifts I have bestowed upon him in my generosity.¡±

    Seti nodded and then held up his left hand, wisps of fire coalesced into his hand and formed a sphere of magical fire. He then raised his right hand and did the same with shadow. Once he was done, he flung the spheres into Milo face.

    The magical spheres simply washed over his face as if they were made of water. It didn¡¯t take him long to grasp the implication.

    ¡°I¡¯m immune to fire and shadow magic?¡±

    Seti nodded.

    ¡°Those are the divine elements which make up my mothers very being and realm. You are now connected to this realm in a way only she herself is, you have become a true demigod. I only hope she chose the right man for this honour.¡±

    Milo felt like Seti wanted to say more on the subject, but Lilith cut him off.

    ¡°Enough of this, Seti will see to it that you are educated to the best of his ability in the limited time you have in this realm. I do not expect you to master the elements of my realm in a week so make the best of it.¡±

    With that dismissal Lilith left the courtyard and the crowd dispersed. One of the hybrid¡¯s arrived at Nero¡¯s unconscious body and for a moment Milo expected them to reattach his hand, instead they simply carried him off and left his severed hand behind. Milo was slightly amused that a human surgeon might be able to reattach a hand, but magic clearly couldn¡¯t do the same.

    Seti grabbed his attention by clearing his throat.

    ¡°Follow me apprentice.¡±

    Milo followed Seti back into the castle. Once inside Seti lead him down a side passage deep into the onyx fortress. There were no demonic guards in the deeps of the castle, instead he was led to a giant room full of books and items which were clearly magical in nature. Seti walked into the centre of the room and then turned to face him.

    ¡°Welcome to my library, this is where your lessons in magic will take place over the next week. If you study half as well as you fight, I fully expect to be able to teach you some basic magic by the time you leave.¡±

    Milo rather liked the sound of that. His fighting style had always been adaptive and unique, changing with each passing year as he learned and incorporated new techniques. Adding magic to his fighting style could only make him even more dangerous, especially if Seti could teach him whatever spell Nero had used to enhance his strength.

    ¡°I am ready to learn, where do we begin?¡±

    Seti motioned towards a desk and bade him sat down. Once Milo was seated Seti went off into one of the side rooms and returned a few moments later with what looked suspiciously like a blackboard made entirely out of onyx. Seti had clearly copied this educational tool from Earth and Milo couldn¡¯t help but wonder what other ideas the denizens of Lilith¡¯s realm had taken from his native realm.

    Seti cleared his throat and then started his first lecture on the basics of elemental magic.

 Chapter 5

    ¡°First off, let¡¯s start with what you already know. Lilith is the goddess of demons, but she is also the goddess of fire and shadow. These two elements are the cornerstone of her very being and thus they are the cornerstones of her divine realm.¡±

    Milo nodded and like the good student he was asked the natural follow up question, one he feared he already knew the answer to.

    ¡°And what is this realm called?¡±

    ¡°Hell.¡±

    Milo groaned, he¡¯d feared as much, and frankly he wasn¡¯t surprised after what little he¡¯d seen of this realm so far. Every building he had seen so far had been made out of some sort of black steel and what he thought might be onyx. He¡¯d also caught a brief glimpse of the landscape surrounding Lilith¡¯s castle and it had looked dark and desolate.

    Seti didn¡¯t look pleased with his reaction.

    ¡°Hell¡¯s negative traits has been vastly exaggerated by a certain divine faction whom we share a mortal domain with. I assure you it is not a place where the damned go to suffer for eternity.¡±

    ¡°Really? It looks pretty dark and desolate to me.¡±

    Seti¡¯s eyes narrowed before closing. The man mumbled a few words and a few seconds later a mirror similar to the one Lilith had created earlier appeared at his side. Only this mirror was not reflective, instead it showed what looked like a panorama view from what Milo guessed was a mountain top. The surrounding landscape was indeed dark and desolate, but there was also some light, mainly coming from rivers of magma than ran through the landscape. Seti clearly expected Milo to be impressed by what he thought was the beauty of his birth realm. He decided to humour his new teacher, after all the man was going to teach him magic.

    ¡°Very pretty.¡±

    Seti snorted and the mirror spell vanished. His teacher turned back to the board and continued his lecture.

    ¡°As I was saying, fire and shadow are the elements which sustain this realm. By crossing humans with demon blood Lilith was able to grant her new children the hybrids access to these elements.¡±

    ¡°Demons can¡¯t do magic?¡±

    ¡°Most can¡¯t, in fact only one demon knows how to access the elements of Lilith¡¯s realm and that creature is kept locked away under this very castle, only to be released if all else fails.¡±

    ¡°That sounds ominous¡­¡±

    ¡°Indeed, anyway as I was saying, Hybrids can access the elements of Lilith¡¯s realm but even for us it usually takes years of practise to gain access to even the simplest of elemental spells.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t have years.¡±

    ¡°Indeed, and were you a normal student and I a normal teacher that might be a problem. But unlike a regular hybrid your body is already attuned to the elements, in theory all we have to do is teach you the mental discipline needed to access the power your body already contains.¡±

    ¡°That sounds good, but I have a request if I may?¡±

    ¡°Go ahead.¡±

    ¡°During my duel with Nero he used some sort of strength enhancement magic. That¡¯s what I want, I don¡¯t care about flaming swords, I want access to strength or speed enhancement magic.¡±

    Seti looked him up and down and then shook his head with annoyance.

    ¡°I should have expected this, you know nothing and therefore make requests you do not truly understand.¡±

    It was starting to dawn on Milo that he might have said something stupid. He kept silent hoping that Seti would elaborate, fortunately his new teacher was more than happy to indulge the ignorance of his sole student.

    ¡°First of all, the flaming sword as you call it is one of the first spells every warriors of Lilith learns. It might look like just a flaming sword to you but it is so much more than that. There are nearly a hundred elements and each have their own weaknesses and strength. Now as for fire that element is strong against ice, wood and in some cases death. Let¡¯s assume that you are facing a minion of Leaondrius the god winter, his followers use ice magic to form their defensive spells, including shields. What do you think happens if you ram a regular unenchanted blade into a block of ice?¡±

    ¡°Nothing?¡±Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    Seti smiled as if he had just said something profound.

    ¡°Exactly, now what do you think happens if Nero does the same with his flaming sword?¡±

    Again, the answer was obvious, and Milo didn¡¯t feel particularly clever voicing it.

    ¡°It gets obliterated?¡±

    Judging by the smile on Seti¡¯s face the man was clearly used to dealing with mediocre pupils.

    ¡°Correct, as for your request and the reason it was stupid. Compared to lighting your sword on fire with the fire element, body enhancement magic requires the use of both fire and shadow simultaneously. The spell is very powerful in the hands of a warrior like Nero but it is also difficult and expensive to maintain. Nero is thousands of years old, he has had an ocean of time in which to learn elemental magic and practise it. And even with all that time he can barely maintain the body enhancement spell and the sword of fire spell at the same time.¡±

    Milo nodded, Seti¡¯s words made sense, it looked like he would have to start at the bottom and work his way up to the good stuff.

    ¡°Very well, please teach me the sword of fire spell¡­¡±

    Seti nodded and then went back to his blackboard and started drawing. Milo expected him to write instructions instead he was drawing images of a body and what was obviously the fire element. He studied the pictures and even without Seti saying a word he thought he got the gist of it.

    ¡°You want me to focus my mind on the fire element and then will it to manifest around my sword?¡±

    This time Seti¡¯s smile was genuine.

    ¡°Correct, elemental magic is all about mental discipline and visualisation. This is why one of the main training exercises for elementalists is meditation.¡±

    Meditation was hardly a new concept to him, he would often be engaged in pre match meditation when Dave came to fetch him for the match. He also had habit of running scenarios in his mind while developing plans for a new opponent. He was certainly no master of the art, but neither was he starting from scratch. Milo pointed his sword into the air and then closed his eyes and did his best to follow Seti¡¯s instructions.

    It didn¡¯t take long to realise that something had changed drastically within him. He¡¯d bare finished visualising the flame sword spell he¡¯d seen Nero use when he felt something in his chest respond. He tried make a mental link between the feeling in his chest and the visualised spell and then opened his eyes.

    Wisps of fire had already coiled around half the blade and it was only when he opened his eyes and broke his concentration that they vanished. He looked over at Seti and saw that the hybrid was openly gaping at him. He sounded shaken when he next spoke.

    ¡°H-How?¡±

    Milo thought back to feeling in his chest and quickly came up with a theory.

    ¡°I think I¡¯m cheating, you said that you are drawing upon the elements of Lilith¡¯s realm to cast spells, I assume that means you are drawing fire and shadow into your body before using it?¡±

    ¡°Yes¡­¡±

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m clearly skipping that step since both elements are already present inside my body, actually it felt really responsive, almost as if the elements are eager to obey me.¡±

    Seti looked deep in thought and nearly half a minute went by before he spoke again.

    ¡°My mother would not let anyone but Lily inside the throne room while she was working on your body. Did she tell you what she did?¡±

    Milo thought back to the minutes after his rebirth.

    ¡°She almost collapsed, and she said something about using spirit essence, so much of it that it would¡¯ve left her realm open to attack if not for the peace.¡±

    A look of realisation dawned on Seti¡¯s face.

    ¡°She must have dumped the war reserves into your creation, and with that much spirit essence at her hands¡­¡±

    ¡°What do you think she did?¡±

    Seti hesitated for a moment before shrugging.

    ¡°Only my mother truly knows, but I suspect that you will discover more than a few hidden talents before the contest is over.¡±

    ¡°Any hints?¡±

    ¡°Right now, your body is brand new and so therefore it¡¯s ability to channel the elements is still weak. After all it takes years of repeated usage for the body to adapt. My suspicion is that once your body adapts you will be able to channel more power more often than any other elementalist beside Lilith herself.¡±

    ¡°Even you?¡±

    Seti shrugged.

    ¡°Quantity is not the same as quality when it comes to channelling elements, but yes you will probably be able to channel more powerful spells more often than even me. Of course that will likely take years, but my expectations for this training week have now increased greatly. Let¡¯s continue with the flame sword spell, and once you have mastered it, we will move onto something far more important.¡±

    Judging by the cunning look in Seti¡¯s eye the man was clearly planning something big.

    With a shrug Milo closed his eyes and once again channelled the power within him into the sword. This time he waited until the power was flowing in a steady stream out of him before opening his eyes again. When he opened them again, he was looking at a flaming sword.

    Seti merely shook his head with a bemused look on his face and walked back to the blackboard. His teacher waved his hand across the board erasing all the old images and then began to draw again. This time the process took far longer, and Seti eventually had to fetch a second blackboard to finish up all the drawings. In the end Milo found himself looking at a series of drawing starting with what looked like a copy of him right now and ending in some sort of giant stone demon. Compared to the flaming sword this looked a hundred times more complex, which also probably meant it was much more useful.

    He pointed at the final image.

    ¡°What is that?¡±

    ¡°That my pupil is the final spell variation of the metamorphosis spell.¡±

    The explanation only served to confuse him.

    ¡°Wait, I thought all the hybrids directly born or created by Lilith have the ability to undergo metamorphosis as some sort of ability, but it¡¯s a spell?¡±

    Seti shook his head and then took a few steps forward before suddenly disrobing. Milo was about to ask the hybrid why he was stripping when Seti¡¯s entire body began to change. Scales crept down his arms and legs and a long-spiked tail grew from his back. A pair of uneven small horns grew from his forehead. When Seti spoke, his voice was deeper.

    ¡°This is how I look in my demon form, it is not as pure as Lilith¡¯s and I can only hold it for about 30 minutes, but it is still incredibly powerful.¡±

    Just as he finished speaking the scales, tail and horns all vanished into wisps of black smoke. Seti then closed his eyes and a few seconds later tendrils of shadow and flame coiled around every part of his body. The elemental magic slowly began to solidify into some sort of exoskeleton. By the time Seti was finished his entire body including his head was covered by a layer of what looked like a mix of onyx and volcanic stone. He had no tail, wings or horns, but he did have clawed hands with fingers as long as daggers. This time when he spoke his voice sounded muffled as if coming from behind a helmet.

    ¡°This is the metamorphosis spell, it was designed long ago and was intended to give regular hybrids a taste of the power those of us with access to real metamorphosis have.¡±

    Milo rose from his seat and walked over to Seti, he began studying every part and angle of the exoskeleton. Next, he grabbed his sword and made a few weak slashes into Seti¡¯s arm. The hybrid didn¡¯t react at all upon being attacked so Milo kept going, increasing the power behind his blows. In the end he had to put nearly all the power of his new form behind his attack to hack off a piece of the exoskeleton. He lowered his sword and spoke in a voice of wonder.

    ¡°This is incredible, that exoskeleton covering you is stronger than steel.¡±

    Seti reached out and put his left hand beneath one of the heavy wooden desks Milo had been using to study on. He easily lifted the desk off the ground with only one hand.

    ¡°Tougher than steel and nearly as strong as Nero with a body enhancement spell. Also look at the joints of this exoskeleton.¡±

    Milo did as asked and immediately noticed that the material in the joints seemed to transition between liquid and solid every time Seti moved.

    ¡°Amazing¡­ the vulnerable parts of your exoskeleton are only vulnerable when they are in motion. A warrior who knew how to incorporate that advantage into his fighting style would be nearly unstoppable.¡±

    Seti let the spell dissolve into wisps of fire and shadow. The horned helmet vanished to reveal Seti wearing a feral smile.

    ¡°Good thing we¡¯ve got one of those right here in this room then.¡±

 Chapter 6

    Despite his unfair advantage Milo did not instantly learn the metamorphosis spell. Compared to the flame sword spell which only used one element the metamorphosis spell used both and over much wider area. He kept trying for hours to get the spell working and only gave up when his mental exhaustion ended in a blinding headache. He tried to pinpoint the problem to his eager teacher.

    ¡°This spell feels like I¡¯m trying to build a tower out of rocks but any time I make any progress upwards pieces of the foundation start melting away. I tried holding them in place, but the mental strain is¡­¡±

    ¡°I understand, the metamorphosis spell is advanced even by my standards, only a handful of hybrids know how to cast it and few of those dare use it in battle.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Watch.¡±

    Seti cast the metamorphosis spell and then stretched out his hand, wisps of fire started coalescing in his palm but whatever spell he was casting was taking a long time to finish. It took his teacher a whole ten seconds to produce sphere of fire. Once the sphere was formed Seti dropped the metamorphosis spell and did the same thing again, this time the sphere of fire formed in barely two seconds.

    A theory was starting to form in his mind, and he gave it voice.

    ¡°So, the metamorphosis spell is not only so advanced few can cast it, but those who can cast it are the wrong people. You are an elementalist which I assume means you fight primarily with spells, this spell would only handicap you in a true battle.¡±

    The sphere of fire in Seti¡¯s hand vanished and he nodded.

    ¡°You¡¯ve struck the proverbial nail on the head my apprentice. The creator of the spell belonged to the order of warriors, his intent was for every warrior in the order to learn it. Unfortunately, the creator of this spell was something of a prodigy and very few warriors have learned it over the years. I rediscovered the spell many years ago and taught it to the most enlightened among my order to give them a fighting chance if they are ever facing an elemental weakness such as water or light.¡±

    Milo was nodding along but his headache wasn¡¯t going away and he could barely absorb the information. He would¡¯ve said as much but Lilith had described her people as martial and brutal which made him hesitant to admit weakness in front of one of their leaders. Fortunately for him Seti was perceptive enough to realise when he¡¯d nearly lost his audience.

    ¡°That is enough for today, one of my apprentices will lead you to the bedroom which has been set aside for your use, you will find food and drink waiting for you there. We¡¯ve made much progress today and will continue our lessons tomorrow.¡±

    The words had barely left Seti¡¯s mouth when a woman wearing robes nearly identical to Seti¡¯s entered the room and bowed to him. Her pale red eyes shone with intelligence and the lines on her face and white streaks in her hair spoke of old age. Her voice was cold when she turned to face him.

    ¡°Follow me, champion.¡±

    Milo followed the aged hybrid out of Seti¡¯s library. She led him out a corridor and then down a spiral stairway. Every hybrid they encountered in this part of Lilith¡¯s castle wore robes like Seti and his unknown guide. The awkward silence was killing him, so he decided to ask some polite question.

    ¡°So, what¡¯s your name?¡±

    She stopped and turned to face him.

    ¡°I am Lizbeth, lord Seti¡¯s second in command.¡±

    There seemed be an undertone of resentment in her voice which he couldn¡¯t quite place, perhaps jealousy? He decided to prod her.

    ¡°You don¡¯t sound very happy to talk to me, Lilith told me you were a brutal people, but your master has treated me quite well so far.¡±

    ¡°Seti has always been a generous man, he is often kind even to those who do not deserve it.¡±

    Her voice made it clear she thought he belonged in that latter category.

    ¡°You barely know me, what could I possibly have done to make you resent me?¡±

    Lizbeth¡¯s eyes narrowed.

    ¡°You have taken what is not yours, my master should¡¯ve been Lilith¡¯s champion. He is by far the wisest and strongest of all her children, by taking his place you risk destroying everything.¡±

    Now things were starting to make sense.

    ¡°I thought Nero was Lilith¡¯s champion before I came along?¡±

    Lizbeth¡¯s scoffed.

    ¡°Nero held the title by default as the leader of the order of warriors. It has long been my masters plan to challenge him and claim the title once the contest drew near.¡±

    Milo shrugged.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t seek this out you know, Lilith came to my world and all but forced me to accept the position.¡±

    Lizbeth eyed him up and down, she did not look impressed by what she saw.

    ¡°A child of barely 20 whose only talent is swinging sticks around.¡±

    Milo had never been good at taking insults, despite the ongoing headache he was able to draw his sword and cast the fire sword spell on it in a single motion. The blade rested against her neck, and he ignored the skin on her neck which was reddening from the heat.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

    ¡°You think you¡¯ve seen what I can do just because you watched me whip that talentless brute in the courtyard earlier?¡±

    Lizbeth never flinched either from the blade or the heat from the spell around it. She just replied in that same cold voice as if everything was perfectly normal.

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t take it personally champion, I¡¯ve never met a warrior I respected aside from Beldan. I¡¯m not saying that your skill with a blade is unimpressive, I¡¯m saying that an elementalist should be our leader. We can do things warriors cannot and the last thing we need in this coming war is for some brute with a blade to lead us to disaster.¡±

    Milo killed the spell and withdrew the blade.

    ¡°I get it, but it¡¯s too late, what¡¯s done is done, I am Lilith¡¯s champion for better or worse.¡±

    Lizbeth nodded.

    ¡°Indeed.¡±

    With that final pronouncement she turned and continued guiding him down hallways until they reached a large bedroom. Inside Milo found both food and drink waiting for him as well as clothes. The only thing Milo didn¡¯t find was a clock, and since there was no daylight in this dimension¡­.

    ¡°How will I know when to rise?¡±

    ¡°I will fetch you when my master is ready for your next lesson.¡±

    After Lizbeth left Milo sat down on the dining table and eyed the food on display. As far as he could tell it looked like an assortment of fruits, vegetables and meat. Normally that would¡¯ve done just fine for him, except nearly every food item on display was either black or grey. His eyes settled on what looked like a loaf of black bread and he tore off a chunk to taste. He¡¯d expected it to taste bad, instead it tasted almost like the bread he was used to from Earth. As he ate he wondered where the wheat had come from, it seemed impossible that it might grow in the lightless hellscape Seti had shown him in the mirror during their lesson.

    In the end he sampled almost everything and found it to be mostly decent stuff. After he had eaten his fill, he walked over to the bed and immediately collapsed into an exhausted sleep.

    The sleep which followed was much deeper than normal and Lizbeth had to shake him to wake him. He opened her eyes to find her staring down at him with those cold pale red eyes.

    ¡°My master is waiting for you in his library.¡±

    Once again Lizbeth guided him, and Milo felt mildly insulted that she thought he was too stupid to remember the way. Still, he remained silent until they came to the spiral stairway where a young woman with blood red eyes were waiting for them.

    The woman was leaning against the wall and was eyeing him rather than Lizbeth. His guide simply ignored her and walked past but Milo stopped. her athletic build was easily visible thanks to the tight black leather armour she wore. A hooded cape hung from her back as well as a bow and quiver, aside from that her only visible weapons were a pair of daggers that looked too long for throwing. She pushed off from the wall and blocked his way with a smile.

    ¡°Greetings champion, my name is Ivy, I wanted to introduce myself.¡±

    Milo offered her a handshake which she finally accepted after a few seconds of awkward confusion. Apparently, handshakes were not one of the things the people of Lilith¡¯s dimension had taken from Earth.

    ¡°I¡¯m Milo, I¡¯m¡­ Lilith¡¯s champion.¡±

    Her smile widened.

    ¡°Oh, I know, I watched you humiliate that stupid brute Nero in the courtyard yesterday. Thanks for the laugh.¡±

    Milo thought he recalled somebody laughing yesterday¡¯s duel, apparently this Ivy was the culprit.

    ¡°I¡¯m glad you enjoyed the show, although it didn¡¯t take much effort, Nero is strong, but his technique is amateurish. I guess that¡¯s what happens when you¡¯re so strong that you can win fights by sheer brute force.¡±

    Ivy nodded.

    ¡°I agree but I¡¯d be careful if you ever meet him again, Nero like Seti is a true son of Lilith. And while he is by far the least of her true children, he still has access to a bastardised form of true metamorphosis. He can¡¯t hold the form for long, but you would be no match for him if he managed to catch you in an enclosed space like this.¡±

    ¡°You think he¡¯d try to murder me again?¡±

    ¡°You cut off his arm and choked him out like a child¡­¡±

    Milo grimaced, he truly hadn¡¯t intended to cripple Nero, yet somehow, he didn¡¯t think the man would accept an apology.

    ¡°So that¡¯s it? You just came by to introduce yourself and warn me?¡±

    ¡°Indeed, like Lilith said, you are our leader now, we all answer to you. I figured it was my responsibility as the second highest ranking member of the order of shadows to let you know you were in danger. That¡¯s what we do you know, gather information so that our leaders can make informed decisions.¡±

    Milo looked pointedly at the bow peaking up above her shoulder.

    ¡°You also assassinate people if I remember correctly.¡±

    Lilith laughed in a way that sounded entirely fake.

    ¡°We do, and I suspect you will find all our skills of use once the war begins.¡±

    She looked like she was about to say something more but Lizbeth¡¯s cold voice cut her off.

    ¡°Enough of this, my master awaits above, cease your pathetic attempts to seduce the champion and be gone girl.¡±

    Ivy¡¯s smile slipped and her eyes narrowed as she turned to face Lizbeth.

    ¡°You dare interfere Lizbeth?¡±

    ¡°We might occupy the same rank Ivy, but we are not equals, you are a child, and a clumsy one at that. If you think seducing the champion will further your goals that¡¯s fine but you will do so when he is not busy. Now leave.¡±

    Ivy¡¯s hand was on her daggers and Milo sensed that she was moments away from flying at his guide. He decided to run interference. He stepped between them and smiled at the young hybrid.

    ¡°Thanks for the warning, I will bear it in mind, now if you will excuse me, I am late to my lesson.¡±

    The smile returned and she nodded.

    ¡°Of course, champion, we will speak more later.¡±

    Milo didn¡¯t doubt it, still Lizbeth¡¯s words spoke a warning in his mind. This was not the first time a pretty woman had smiled at and tried to get on his good side. Back on Earth there had been a seemingly endless tide of pretty women who wanted to grab a piece of the most famous athlete on Earth. At the start of his career, he had even revelled in it, but over the years the shallowness of the encounters had sort of turned him off the entire thing. After all, they wanted Milo the famous athlete which was pretty much a fake persona he had constructed for public life.

    He followed Lizbeth and soon found himself in Seti¡¯s library once more.

    The lesson began anew and mostly focused on gradually building the metamorphosis spell piece by piece. Seti refused to let him move on before he had completely mastered the leg section of the spell. By the time his mental exhaustion set a stop to the lesson he could consistently form the leg section of the spell all the way up to the knees. Seti seemed thrilled by the result and once again sent him off to sleep.

    The two of them fell into daily routine where Milo would keep working until he was exhausted. The effectiveness of Seti¡¯s methods was proven when by the third day Milo managed to manifest about 60% of the spell.

    Occasionally between their lessons Milo would explore Lilith¡¯s castle and he would nearly always run into Ivy while doing so. The young hybrid proved an excellent source of information and would share the history of Lilith¡¯s realm as well as intelligence reports which were really just gossip in a non-war setting. He appreciated her company and he could feel her working up to something.

    On the sixth day Milo finally finished the metamorphosis spell. He could barely fight in it and was only able to hold it for 5 minutes, yet Seti proclaimed it one of his life¡¯s greatest achievements as a teacher.

    Something else interesting happened on the sixth day after he went to bed. He woke with a start as he felt something brush him. He opened his eyes to find himself face to face with a completely naked Ivy. He bolted out of the bed with curse.

    ¡°What are you doing?!¡±

    Ivy sat up in the bed and flashed him a confident grin.

    ¡°I think that¡¯s rather obvious.¡±

    Milo walked over to the pile of clothes Ivy had obviously on the floor and retrieved a shirt. He tossed it at her, and he could see true confusion on her face as she looked at it.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re very pretty and all but I barely know you.¡±

    What Milo really wanted to say was: ¡°I know you¡¯re trying to seduce me, and I don¡¯t know why so I have no intention of letting it happen no matter how pleasant it might be.¡±

    Ivy pulled the shirt over her head with a sigh.

    ¡°I told her this wasn¡¯t going to work¡­¡±

    Milo narrowed his eyes at her.

    ¡°Who is her?¡±

    ¡°My mother of course.¡±

    ¡°Who¡¯s your mother?¡±

    Even as the question left his mouth his eyes settled on her deep blood red eyes. The type of eyes both Seti, Nero and he himself had. There was also something about her facial features which seemed vaguely familiar.

    ¡°I can see that it¡¯s dawning on you, yes I am one of Lilith¡¯s true children.¡±

    It was so obvious now that he knew what to look for.

    ¡°Why would she tell you to seduce me? It¡¯s not like I¡¯m going to run off once we get to the contest planet.¡±

    ¡°Seti and Nero have long believed themselves to be my mother¡¯s true champion. They couldn¡¯t be more wrong, there is only one person in this realm who was ever even considered for the position.¡±

    ¡°You?¡±

    ¡°Indeed, since my birth Lilith has shaped me in her own image. Seti and Nero might know how to kill, but they don¡¯t know anything about politics, and unless you are the most accomplished general in the history of this universe there is no way we are conquering an entire planet with just brute force.¡±

    Her words made sense, he¡¯d actually been thinking similar thoughts himself. Still, something was off.

    ¡°So why did Lilith choose me as champion?¡±

    Ivy¡¯s smile turned feral.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you get it? Come on it¡¯s so obvious!¡±

    A chill ran down his spine as the pieces clicked into place.

    ¡°Why have one champion when you could have two¡­¡±

    Ivy jumped out of the bed and walked over to him. She placed her hand on his naked chest with a grin.

    ¡°You are smart, together you and I can do anything.¡±

    He removed her hand gathered up the rest of her clothes and pushed them into her arms.

    ¡°You didn¡¯t need to seduce me, I would¡¯ve accepted you as an advisor if you had just told me all this to begin with.¡±

    Ivy snorted and then shook her head.

    ¡°That¡¯s exactly what I told my mother, but Lilith is ancient and set in her ways. If you only knew how many times she has changed the history of Earth by seducing some king and whispering into his ear.¡±

    She made to go but Milo stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.

    ¡°This place is cold and brutal, I truly have enjoyed our conversations together. I would be glad to have you as my advisor if you¡¯re willing?¡±

    She looked thoughtful for a few moments before nodding and offering him her hand.

    ¡°Deal.¡±

 Chapter 7

    The seventh and last day in Lilith¡¯s realm began much like the others. He spent a few hours practicing fighting in the metamorphosis form. It was still far from perfect but by the end he could not only hold the spell for five minutes but also actually fight in it. Although Seti was far from the best sparring partner the elementalist was surprisingly good in a melee fight. That still didn¡¯t stop nearly every exchange ending with him on his ass.

    As Seti was rising to battle once again Milo saw Lizbeth approach out of the corner of his eye. The old hybrid merely stood there silently but apparently that was signal enough for Seti. He dismissed the metamorphosis spell and Milo did the same.

    ¡°Looks like we¡¯ve come to the end of our lessons, champion. We¡¯ve accomplished much in a short time, and I think you are about as ready as you can be for what comes next.¡±

    Milo arched an eyebrow at his teacher, Seti usually just referred to him as you or apprentice. He¡¯d never once used the champion title. Milo bowed to Seti.

    ¡°Thank you for the instruction, I know you had your own designs on the champion title and yet I don¡¯t think you held anything back during our lessons.¡±

    Seti shrugged.

    ¡°My ambitions were never as strong as you might think, my plan to claim the title had more to do with denying Nero than my own desires. I will however admit that I was concerned you might not have the intellectual capacity to lead an entire race in the conquest of a world. Fortunately, you have proven that you are a curious and diligent student who is not too proud to take advice.¡±

    Milo truly was grateful to the man who had probably increased his odds of survival by a lot. He decided it was time to pay some of that back.

    ¡°I will always be open to council from you Seti, hopefully you will be among the first to join me on Archeus.¡±

    Seti smiled but shook his head.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid summoning me to Archeus will probably take you quite some time. But I have no doubt that you will manage eventually.¡±

    Milo was about to ask more but Seti held up a hand to forestall him.

    ¡°My mother will elaborate and explain how everything will work, she is waiting for you in the throne room with her war council.¡±

    Milo offered Seti a hand and the other man shook it. Then he followed Lizbeth as she guided him to the throne room where Lilith and three hybrids were indeed waiting for him.

    Ivy, Lily and Beldan were standing around a wooden table looking at a charcoal drawing of a map. All three greeted him with nods but it was Lilith who spoke first.

    ¡°The hour has finally come my champion. You have trained well and achieved more than I thought possible in a single week. I have no doubt that you will be a force to be reckoned with on any battlefield and yet there is more to your title than just fighting.¡±

    She motioned for Milo to join the others around the table, and he did so. Then Lilith waved a hand at Beldan.

    ¡°My general will explain your starting position, if you are uncertain about any aspect of the plan, simply ask.¡±

    Beldan cleared his throat and then pointed at the map. Milo followed the direction of his finger to what looked like a mountain.

    ¡°The rules of the contest states that each faction will need to defend an altar of their god. These altars will be static which means that whatever location we choose will need to be defended for the duration of the entire contest. Which obviously means that it would benefit us to choose a naturally defensible location.¡±

    Milo what wondered what the condition for eliminating a faction would be. He¡¯d initially thought each faction would need to be slain down to the last member but of course that meant a faction could stay in the game by simply spreading out and hiding.

    Beldan¡¯s finger moved down the mountain to indicate what looked like a valley capped on either side by a sharp mountain ridge.

    ¡°This is the location I have chosen for the altar, the defenders will have steep impassable mountains at their back and both flanks. Which means they will only have to defend from one direction, this will massively favour the defenders should any siege occur.¡±

    Milo reached up a hand and Beldan inclined his head to acknowledge the interruption.

    ¡°What about magic? Or someone with wings like Lilith and I?¡±

    Not that he could use the true metamorphosis form yet, but he still thought it was worth bringing up.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    ¡°You are correct champion, these mountains and natural fortifications will not stop a powerful elementalist or certain species. But what they will stop are vast ground-based armies. I¡¯m afraid that¡¯s as good as it¡¯s going to get for this war.¡±

    Milo nodded and Beldan continued his presentation.

    ¡°Now, as you know you will have access to spirit essence during the contest. This can be used to summon everything from food to soldiers and buildings. The price of each summon will be proportional to its strength which means that you will have to start with a small team and few resources and then work your way up.¡±

    ¡°Lilith draws spirit essence from her worshippers but I¡¯m not a god, how will I get more spirit essence?¡±

    Beldan looked pleased by the question.

    ¡°The primary method of gathering spirit essence will be to slay native life and the minions of other divine factions. However, you can also get it by adding any sentient species into your faction, gathering worshippers, special events and great deeds.¡±

    The big general hesitated for a moment and look flashed between him and Lilith before he continued.

    ¡°And by sacrificing any living being on your faction altar¡­¡±

    Whatever alarm bells had been dormant since his transformation started blaring in his mind with the force of a tsunami. It was only by some miracle that he managed not take a horrified step back from the group. They were all watching him for his reaction and only Ivy and Beldan looked any degree of sympathetic.

    He turned to face Lilith and tried keep his voice neutral.

    ¡°This wasn¡¯t part of our deal, you told me this would be divine war, you spoke of combat and conquest. Now here we are talking about sacrificing people¡­¡±

    Lilith couldn¡¯t possibly have looked less moved by the horror implied by his statement if she tried. It was easy to forget that she wasn¡¯t just some woman who led a band of demons and hybrids. She was a goddess, born at the start of the universe, ancient and powerful. She had seen countless species and gods born and die, many probably by her own hand. She reached out a hand and cupped his chin.

    ¡°So young¡­¡±

    She released him and sighed.

    ¡°Like my general said there are many ways to earn spirit essence, that does not mean you have to use all of them. That being said, I have a feeling that your aversion to sacrifice will not stand the test of time¡­¡±

    He was studying her ancient face when Beldan cleared his throat and broke the spell.

    ¡°let¡¯s move on, aside from offering natural protection your starting area is near several human controlled areas. Now the humans of Archeus might only have a few hundred years of history and learning to draw upon but that does not mean they are harmless.¡±

    ¡°What level of technology should I expect from them?¡±

    ¡°Here we encounter another rule of this contest. You see the inhabitants of Archeus have been left undisturbed and unwatched since the creation of them and their planet. For all we know the valley we have chosen as your starting position could already be occupied although that is very unlikely given the remoteness of the area. Still as to their technology level I would expect them to have mastered steel and probably some magic.¡±

    ¡°They have access to the elements of the divine realms?¡±

    Beldan looked to Lilith and the goddess took over the explanation.

    ¡°Not directly, but when we created their planet, we also made deep leylines of elemental magic across the planet. The leylines will be difficult to access and their magic will be weaker than ours. Still, I would advise you to keep in mind that a master swordsman is still dangerous even if all he has is a knife.¡±

    Milo nodded and once again Beldan took over.

    ¡°Now, let¡¯s talk about events. As Lilith has already told you each divine faction is unique. Some like ours are martial in nature, others use only magic to fight or rely on illusions or deception. The events are designed to give each type of faction a chance to play to their strengths as a way to level the playing field. And since an agreement on which event should be first could not be reached by the gods that means they will be random.¡±

    ¡°Can I have an example of an event?¡±

    Beldan looked to Lilith and the goddess shook her head.

    ¡°No, the events are kept secret. All I can tell you is that several of them will suit you perfectly while others will place you completely out of your depth.¡±

    Milo didn¡¯t like the sound of that one bit.

    ¡°So, what happens if a bad event comes up first? Are we just screwed?

    ¡°Participation in the events is not mandatory, but by refusing to participate you also forfeit any potential rewards. In general, I would advise you to participate in almost all of them.¡±

    ¡°Really? What happens if I participate in a bad event and die?¡±

    ¡°The events all take place outside of Archeus in separate dimensions, if you die you will simply be returned to your last location on Archeus. In many ways it¡¯s just like the virtual fights you are so used to.¡±

    ¡°And what happens if I die on Archeus outside of an event?¡±

    ¡°You will be resurrected after a time period, and that time period will increase each time you die.¡±

    ¡°How quickly will it become crippling?¡±

    ¡°Immediately. After your first death you will be resurrected after 7 days I believe, next it¡¯s a month and then a year.¡±

    Being quasi-immortal didn¡¯t sound that bad to Milo, at least not until Beldan took it upon himself to elaborate the downsides.

    ¡°7 days might not sound like much to rise from the grave, but keep in mind that during this time our faction will be unable to spend spirit essence on troops, food and other things we might need. Meanwhile the other factions will be earning and spending and growing.¡±

    ¡°So, if I die, I cripple my faction, 7 days is bad, a month is worse, and a year would essentially be a death sentence for any faction¡­¡±

    Beldan nodded.

    ¡°Indeed, now onto the last item of importance. The interface. Once you arrive you Archeus you will have access to an interface which you can use to spend your spirit essence. This interface can be accessed by simply speaking commands out loud. One example would be: Interface show me how much spirit essence my faction has.¡±

    ¡°So that¡¯s it?¡±

    Lilith walked over Ivy and placed a hand on her daughter¡¯s shoulder. The young hybrid didn¡¯t react at all to the touch.

    ¡°Indeed, if there is anything else you need to know you can ask Ivy.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be able to summon her directly by name?¡±

    ¡°No, only Beldan, Seti, Nero and Lily will be summonable by name due to their unique status as order masters. Still, I do have direct control over who answers your general summons for warriors, leaders, elementalists and shadow stalkers. To summon Ivy all you need to do is summon a shadow stalker and I will send her to you.¡±

    Lilith¡¯s direct influence on the summoning order would probably useful. She would presumably send him the cr¨¨me of the crop first, at least he hopes she would. He was still thinking about the matter when a rift in reality itself suddenly manifested right in front of him. He took several steps backs as he looked directly into a window to another world. He turned to Lilith and was about to ask what it was when she sighed.

    ¡°Looks like our time is up, Beldan bring in the equipment.¡±

    Beldan shouted and a few seconds later a stream of hybrids entered carrying food, clothes, armour and just about every type of weapon Milo had ever seen. They organised the items in lines and then left. Lilith walked over to the items and then beckoned him forward.

    ¡°According to the rules you may take as many objects with you as you can carry as long as they¡¯re not magical. Which unfortunately means that the best quality weapons and armour I can offer you are steel.¡±

    Milo walked over and looked down at a set of armour which was so finely made it looked fit for a king. It was obviously a replica of the armour he preferred to use in virtual fights. He looked over the weapons and quickly found a replica of his favourite claymore. Say what you will about Lilith, she certainly knew how to prepare.

    Beldan and Ivy helped him put his armour on, once he was finished, he fastened the claymore to his back along with a bow, quiver and several sacks full of black grain. A brace of throwing daggers in a belt hung down across his chest and six regular daggers were fastened to his belt. With a shield in his left hand and a sword in his right he pressed a bundle of clothes and several waterskins to his chest. By the time he was fully packed he was so loaded that he could no longer see in front of him. In the end Ivy had to guide him to the rift. The last thing he heard before Ivy pushed him trough was Lilith¡¯s voice.

    ¡°Good luck my champion, do not disappoint me.¡±

 Chapter 8

    The metal covering on his boots clanged against rock as Milo stumbled from the smooth floor in Lilith¡¯s throne room onto uneven rock. He immediately dropped the supplies he was carrying and looked back. The rift was already gone and instead he found himself looking up at a giant mountain. His gaze travelled down and then to the sides of the valley. The place looked identical to the map drawing Beldan had shown him aside from a river which originated from the mountain and ran down the entire length of the valley. He followed the river to its conclusion and saw that it ended where a seemingly endless forest began.

    The valley might be the same, but Beldan map hadn¡¯t shown any type of forest nearby. Of course, that map was based on information that was hundreds of years out of date.

    ¡°Mother nature will not be denied ¡­¡±

    He felt sort of silly talking to himself, so he decided it was time to get the plan moving. He cleared his throat and was about to speak the access command for the interface when a giant vortex of flame and shadow appeared further up the valley. The vortex was static and vanished after a few seconds, leaving behind a statue of some sort. Milo dropped the rest of his things and went to check it out.

    The statue in question was a giant representation of Lilith made from a glossy black metal Ivy had told him was called demonsteel. According to her the metal was just steel which had been fused with demon blood and then enchanted. It was supposedly extremely durable and could hold basic enchantments like increased durability. Beneath the giant statue was a ring of stones with magical runes carved into them. The stones circle a large hole. He went closer to take a look at the hole and discovered that the sunlight only reached about a meter in before disappearing into pitch black nothingness.

    When Beldan had spoken about sacrificing people and creatures on the altar of Lilith, Milo had imagined some sort of Aztec stone altar upon which the victim would be tied and then slain. Instead, it looked like they simply had to throw them into the strange dark hole. It did make the act seem less gruesome, and yet he still had serious reservations about using the altar.

    He took a few steps back and then spoke aloud.

    ¡°Interface, show me how to summon¡­ err, everything?¡±

    The words had barely left his mouth when a giant list of translucent red letters appeared in his vision. The list included everything from food, horses, clothes and buildings to various types of demons and hybrids. He decided to narrow it down.

    ¡°Interface, show me a list of summonable beings from Lilith¡¯s realm.¡±

    The translucent red letters reorganised themselves into a much shorter list.

    Troops current available:

    Demon worker ¨C 50 Spirit essence

    Demon soldier ¨C 250 Spirit essence

    Elder demon 0/2783 ¨C 2500 spirit essence

    Ancient demon 0/1 ¨C 1 000 000 spirit essence

    Hybrid warrior ¨C 1000 spirit essence

    Hybrid elementalist ¨C 1000 spirit essence

    Hybrid leader ¨C 1000 spirit essence

    Hybrid shadow stalker ¨C 1000 spirit essence

    Hybrid order master 0/4 ¨C 10 000 spirit essence

    He scanned the list and quickly realised he had no frame of reference for how cheap or expensive something was. Still Lilith had said he would be starting with at least some spirit essence. He decided to try another interface command.

    ¡°Interface show me in a separate window how much spirit essence I currently have.¡±

    A line of translucent red text appeared beside the other list.

    Spirit essence currently available to your faction: 3000.

    Which meant he could summon three hybrids if he spent all he had. Of course, that would leave him without any spirit essence to use on supplies. Rather than pondering further he decided to summon his advisor.

    ¡°Interface, summon one shadow-stalker.¡±

    ¡°Would you like to summon 1 shadow-stalker for 1000 spirit essence? Yes/no.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Another much smaller vortex of shadow and fire appeared a few meters away from him. Again, it vanished after a few seconds leaving behind a familiar face. He nodded at Ivy.

    ¡°Welcome to Archeus.¡±

    Aside from her leather armour Ivy was unarmed, apparently the rules for what the people he summoned could carry was even more restricted than his own had been. Ivy returned the nod with a smile and then swept the landscape taking in every detail. After nearly half a minute of silence she finally turned back to face him.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    ¡°The river and forest are both unexpected, I¡¯d say we got both lucky and unlucky at the same time.¡±

    ¡°Elaborate please.¡±

    She looked up at the mountain and then down at the river which ran down the valley.

    ¡°The river will give us access to fresh drinking water which means we don¡¯t have to waste manpower on locating and transporting water. It will also make any city we build here nearly impossible to starve out as the defenders will have access to water and can supplement food stores by spending spirit essence.¡±

    She shifted her attention to the forest.

    ¡°Now the forest might seem like a boon, and it might be in the beginning, but in the long run it will be a problem. As our city grows in size we will need to clear back a significant portion of the forest to maintain logistics and security. Right now, the forest not only keeps us from growing crops and expanding a future city, but it also obscures any potential threats. Furthermore, travelling trough deep forests with an army is slow and risky.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re saying clearing the forest should be a priority?¡±

    ¡°More like a future goal, right now our only priority is amassing enough spirit essence to summon fortifications and troops enough to defend the altar. We are in an unknown world full of dangers, for all we know we could be attacked tonight.¡±

    He nodded and then read down the troop list for Ivy since only he could see it.

    ¡°We¡¯ve got 2000 spirit essence left, what do we do with it?¡±

    ¡°Neither you nor I know healing magic, which means any injury might be fatal, we¡¯re going to need an elementalist for certain. I¡¯d also like a hybrid leader since they can handle both hybrids and demon troops, unfortunately that would leave us without any manpower.¡±

    ¡°What do we need manpower for?¡±

    Ivy pointed at the forest.

    ¡°That forest might be problem in the future but right now it offers an ideal hunting ground close to our base. There are bound to be all kinds of animals in there and while I can certainly hunt any animal we come across, I can¡¯t hunt and carry the kills at the same time.¡±

    ¡°Makes sense, I¡¯ve never actually seen a demon worker before, how many do we need?¡±

    ¡°Ten, I¡¯d like more but I think that¡¯s the most me and you can handle. Neither one of us knows the demon tongue, we will have to rely solely on body language¡­¡±

    ¡°Which leaves us with 500 spirit essence.¡±

    Ivy scanned the valley once more before replying.

    ¡°We¡¯ll still need somewhere to sleep, I suggest we keep 500 in reserve just in case our hunt proves unsuccessful.¡±

    Milo nodded and then accessed the interface again. A few seconds later 11 vortices appeared nearby. When they vanished, he found himself looking at ten squat demons and a woman he had frankly hoped never to see again. With a sigh he walked over and greeted her.

    ¡°Welcome to Archeus Lizbeth¡­¡±

    Like Ivy Lizbeth was unarmed wearing only a robe that looked far less impressive than the one she had worn back in Lilith¡¯s realm. The old hybrid greeted him with a faint nod.

    ¡°Champion, you have need of my services?¡±

    ¡°We needed a healer, we¡¯re about to go hunting for resources.¡±

    ¡°Very well, I shall accompany you.¡±

    Then she turned and to both Milo and Ivy¡¯s surprise started shouting something guttural and nonsensical at the squat toad like demons. After a few seconds they formed up in a line behind the old hybrid. When she turned back to face him, he thought he could detect a hint of smugness on her face, but it vanished as soon as it had appeared.

    They walked back to the spot where Milo had dumped his supplies and started distributing them. The bow, quiver and brace of throwing daggers went to Ivy. He offered Lizbeth her pick of weapon, but the old hybrid refused everything but a dagger. As for himself he decided to stay light and so kept only a pair of daggers and the claymore strapped to his back. He eyed the distant forest.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go hunting.¡±

    They followed the river down to the forest where it ended in an overgrown swamp. The journey only took them five minutes after which they had to spend another few minutes getting around the swamp. The forest itself looked a lot like the ones he had occasionally hiked back on earth. Every now and then Ivy would stop and bend down to inspect a plant of mushroom. Still, none of them were fool enough to try any of the unknown fruits and mushrooms they encountered, at least not voluntarily.

    It took a while for Milo to pick up on it, mostly because Lizbeth and her troupe of demons were in the rear. But he eventually caught her in the act of feeding one of the unknown mushrooms to one of the workers. The demon workers were the very definition of expendable lives, and yet this seemed outright cruel. He must have been glaring because Lizbeth replied to unvoiced accusation without a hint of emotion.

    ¡°Pure blood demons are mostly immune to disease and toxins, as hybrids we are highly resistant to the same. But we could still die if we eat the wrong thing, a demon on the other hand will merely get ill. I am keeping a record of what I fed to which demon, assuming they don¡¯t fall ill we will know that it¡¯s safe for us to try a small amount of the same.¡±

    He noticed that each demon was carrying a sample of what they¡¯d eaten. He hated to admit it but Lizbeth¡¯s taste test made a lot of sense no matter how cruel. He nodded and went back to following Ivy¡¯s trail.

    The shadow-stalker had explained to them her strategy for this hunt. She would scout ahead with her superior stealth skills and shadow magic so that she could more easily hunt without scaring prey away. To mark her way, she would break a twig every dozen meter or so.  Following her wasn¡¯t exactly easy but she had explained that she could always find them again if they ended up getting lost.

    They were about half an hour into the hunt when Ivy returned with her first kill slung across her shoulder. At first glance Milo would¡¯ve called the creature a deer, only deer didn¡¯t have razor sharp teeth or clawed feet. Judging by the red ruin of its left eye socket Ivy had hit the deer in its eye. She dumped the carcass in front of them, it had to weigh at least a hundred kilos. Milo was happy to have some meat to go with the sacs of grain Lilith had sent with him through the portal. He bent down to study the creature and then looked up at Ivy, the hybrid was smiling, clearly pleased with herself.

    ¡°Nicely done huntress.¡±

    She looked like she was about to reply when Lizbeth¡¯s cold voice cut in.

    ¡°Indeed, now stand back and let the workers do their work.¡±

    She had given her dagger to one of the workers, the worker in question walked over to the deer creature and then started gutting it with great enthusiasm. Milo was wondering why the creature seemed so happy until it pulled out the creature¡¯s entrails and started eating them. Within seconds the other works swarmed around the deer gorging themselves on its innards. For a moment he feared they might eat the entire creature, but they clearly knew better than to touch the creature¡¯s meat.

    Ivy left them to it and went ahead once again. Milo was feeling a bit green by the time the demons finished their feast. Still, despite their hunger they¡¯d butchered the big animal to perfection in only ten minutes. The demons cut down a sapling and then used its soft branches to make knot around the deer¡¯s hooves. Two of them carried the suspended carcass between them as they set off once again.

    Another half an hour went by before Ivy returned next, only this time she wasn¡¯t carrying a kill. Her face wore a serious expression he immediately associated with impending danger.

    ¡°Find something?¡±

    ¡°Yes, follow me and stay quiet.¡±

    They followed Ivy for another 15 minutes until they reached a hill bordering a cleared field. The first thing Milo noticed was a dirt road which meant someone regularly travelled trough this area. The second thing was the smoke. Ivy put a hand to her lips and whispered.

    ¡°Stay low and only whisper.¡±

    Then she crept up to the top of the hill a motioned for them to follow her. Milo did his best to keep his armour quiet as he mimicked the way she moved. Lizbeth¡¯s with her robes had zero problems copying the younger hybrid.

    Once they reached the top of the hill they could see the source of the smoke. A large group of tall furry humanoids were sitting around a large campfire. A ring of what looked like abandoned wagons and carriages surrounded the camp. At first, he thought they belonged to the furry humanoids but then his eyes landed on a what he thought might be a patch of dried blood across the side of a wagon. He was trying to piece things together when one of the furry humans walked over to one of the carriages and opened the door. A loud shriek that sounded far too human erupted from the wagon as the humanoid creature reached inside the wagon and dragged someone out before closing the door.

    Milo had trouble making out the struggling figure who was being dragged by the furry humanoid towards the campfire, but Ivy had no such problems.

    ¡°Human male, early thirties.¡±

    ¡°What about the furry creature, do you recognise it?¡±

    Ivy shook her head.

    ¡°No, but their fur hides excellent musculature, they are probably far stronger than a regular human.¡±

    A scream erupted from the struggling man beneath as he was yanked up into the air by the furry creature. The creature shouted something in a guttural voice and then smashed a large wooden spear trough the struggling man¡¯s chest. The furry creatures around the camp were shouting in glee as the impaled human was placed above the campfire to roast.

    ¡°Man eating furries¡­ looks like we¡¯ve found something to kill.¡±

 Chapter 9

    Their little band withdrew back to where Lizbeth had left the demon workers to hold their first war council. Both Lizbeth and Ivy were amateurs at war, so it fell to Milo draw up a proper plan. The first thing he did was clarify what they had at their disposal. He began with Ivy.

    ¡°Ivy, from what little Seti told me about shadow-stalkers I have the impression that you mostly fight with arrows and knives while using shadow magic for concealment and mobility.¡±

    Ivy nodded.

    ¡°That is largely correct, personally I¡¯m better with a bow than daggers.¡±

    Milo moved onto Lizbeth.

    ¡°Seti and I mostly worked on metamorphosis, but he did show me a few spells, can you cast inferno or flame breath?¡±

    ¡°Yes, to all three.¡±

    Seti had indeed said some of his elementalists knew metamorphosis, it did not surprise him that Lilith had sent him one of the few that knew it. Still, Lizbeth like Ivy struck him as primarily a ranged fighter, which was why he had asked about two of the most destructive flame spells Seti had told him about. He moved on and pointed at the dull eyed demon workers who were all looking to Lizbeth for further instructions.

    ¡°I think I already know the answer, but I assume those creatures are useless in a fight?¡±

    Since Lizbeth was the closest thing to an expert on the workers, she took it upon herself to answer.

    ¡°Useless is a strong word, they might be stupid, but they are still quite strong for their size. Historically they have mostly been used to carry supplies and create or destroy fortifications. I do know that they have been used as sentries occasionally and even in one desperate instance as vanguard troops to soak up arrows.¡±

    Milo cast a dubious look at the workers and then with a shake of his made his decision.

    ¡°They¡¯re sitting this one out, we¡¯re going to need them to gather loot after the battle anyway.¡±

    Lizbeth greeted his pronouncement with her regular uncaring expression, Ivy however was quick to agree with him.

    ¡°Your reasoning is sound, but that leaves us with 39 enemy combatants of unknown power and skill. I am no strategist or expert warrior but those seem like poor odds to me.¡±

    Milo thought back at what he had seen.

    ¡°They have no armour, and I didn¡¯t see any other weapons than long knives and spears. We don¡¯t know if they can use magic, but I strongly doubt it.¡±

    ¡°I sensed enhancements of any kind¡± Lizbeth put in.

    ¡°Right, so no magic, no armour and no visible ranged weapons. Now here¡¯s what we¡¯re going to do.¡±

    Milo outlined his plan step by step. It would largely rely on his own fighting skills mostly because Ivy and Lizbeth were unproven factors in a battle as far as he was concerned. Still, they seemed happy enough with what he came up with as it strongly played to their perceived strengths. In the end there was nothing to do but wait for nightfall.

    A big part of his plan relied on the night vision all hybrid¡¯s shared. Much to his annoyance the sun was replaced by the moon which meant there would be more light than he had hoped for. Still, they went ahead with the plan.

    Milo drew his sword and slowly approached the campfire at a crouch, by his estimation about a third of the unknown creatures were now asleep, the rest were still preoccupied with their disgusting feast. He was nowhere near as quiet as Ivy but fortunately for him the creatures were loud. He carefully snuck up behind the largest of the creatures, the very same one which had killed the unknown human.

    Milo took a deep breath and then leap forward with a slash. The creature was growling something at the others when its head suddenly fell from its shoulders in a fountain of blood. The creatures stared at their slain for a second before jumping to their feet with roars. By that time Milo had already slashed his blade left killing a second creature. One of the nearest creatures drew a long knife and lunged at him, Milo deflected the blow sending his opponent stumbling past him. He followed up by slashing the stumbling creature across its hell crippling it, then he turned and ran towards the hill at a sprint.

    The creatures were stumbling over each other in their rush to follow him out into the darkness. He¡¯d expected them to be night-blind from the fire, unfortunately it seemed that he had been mistaken about one of their main advantages. The creatures either had excellent eyesight or sense of smell because they were following him far easier than he¡¯d expected. Once he got to the foot of the hill he stopped and closed his eyes, then fire washed over him and engulfed the creatures in the lead.

    Wisps of fire and shadow coiled up around his legs, chest and arms and a few seconds later his body was covered in the black exoskeleton of the metamorphosis spell. To their credit the unknown creatures didn¡¯t run when Lizbeth bathed them in fire with the flame breath spell, nor did they seem to fear his sudden transformation. They charged him with a howl and Milo grinned as he leapt into them, his sword slashing left and right with incredible speed and strength. Despite their overwhelming numbers the creatures seemed to have no concept of fighting as a unit and therefore got in each other¡¯s way more often than not. He moved between them purposefully dragging them into each other as he slashed and parried. Occasionally one of them would get into a good position and attack him from a blind zone but whenever that happened an arrow coated in shadow magic would strike them down.

    The creatures refused to break even as their numbers dwindled rapidly. In the end only the best of them were left standing, these were obviously veterans of some sort, and they surrounded him in a circle. Every now and then one of the would dart forward and feign an attack while another tried to strike him in the back. By this point Ivy had obviously run out of arrows but Milo was more than happy to play the waiting game. After all, there was a reason why Lizbeth had been quiet since her first spell.

    A sudden light made both Milo and all the creatures look up. For a moment it looked like the sun had risen prematurely, then the giant ball of flame crashed to the ground like a meteor incinerating everything within range.

    Milo walked trough the magical fire unhurt thanks to his immunity. Normally a spell like inferno probably would¡¯ve melted his armour but it seemed the exoskeleton of the metamorphosis spell shared his immunity to fire. He dismissed the spell and whistled as loud as he could. A few seconds later Ivy popped out of a shadowy cloud next to him, he¡¯d seen her use the spell a few times before back in Lilith¡¯s realm and recognised it as shadow blink. Lizbeth on the other hand seemed content to walk down the hill at her own pace.

    Milo bent down and retrieved one of Ivy¡¯s arrows, sadly it had been incinerated by Lizbeth¡¯s spell. He offered her the charred remains with a sad smile.

    ¡°Good shooting, unfortunately I don¡¯t think we can salvage any of your arrows.¡±

    She eyed what remained of her arrow and then shrugged.

    ¡°The demon workers can make me more, all we need is stone, feathers and wood. I saw a few birds earlier and both wood and stone are plentiful in supply in this area.¡±

    The thought back to the massive summoning list he¡¯d seen when he first got to this planet.

    ¡°I guess we could also summon more with spirit essence.¡±

    Ivy shook her head.

    ¡°Only if we absolutely need to, we will need all the spirit essence we can get our hands on.¡±

    Lizbeth finally joined them and the old elementalist acknowledged him with a curt nod. Milo heard a distant grunt and turned to see that a few of the creatures were still alive. A few had been crippled early in the fight and another few had survived partial burns from Lizbeth¡¯s first spell. He walked towards them with the intent of finishing them off when Ivy stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

    ¡°Don¡¯t, we need them.¡±

    He frowned at her.

    ¡°What for?¡±

    ¡°Information.¡±

    Milo had serious doubts that she would be able to interrogate the creatures, but he was willing to let her try. They started searching trough the wagons and carriages and quickly found some rope. As Ivy went to tie up the creatures Milo searched the camp for anything useful. He found several sacks of salt, some sort of ore and what looked like dried fruit. He had just reached the same carriage from which the slain human had been dragged when he heard what sounded like a muffled sound coming from inside. He undid the crude lock the creatures had put on the door and tore it open. Inside he found three terrified human women and a short boy. They screamed when they saw him.

    Milo backed up and held up his hands in a peaceful gesture.

    ¡°Calm down, I¡¯m not here to hurt you.¡±

    The screaming stopped and the prisoners went perfectly still. They looked him up and down with obvious fear but finally one of the women spoke. She had blonde hair, and he put her age at somewhere in her mid-thirties, she was clutching the young boy to her as if they were family.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

    ¡°W-what are you?¡±

    He sheathed his sword across his back and did his best to smile at them.

    ¡°My name is Milo Harper, I am the chosen champion of the goddess Lilith. My race is known as hybrids, we are part human.¡±

    Hearing that he was part human did much to calm them down. He could only imagine what he looked like with his absurdly tall body, deep blood red eyes and jet-black hair. It also didn¡¯t help that his armour was covered in blood.

    The woman who had spoke stumbled out of the carriage and the others followed behind her. The boy was watching him with wide eyes but there was no fear in his eyes. The blonde took in the scene of the battle before speaking again in an awed voice.

    ¡°You killed them all?¡±

    Milo nodded.

    ¡°We did, well we took a few prisoners for interrogation but most of them are dead.¡±

    The blondes head whipped back in his direction as soon as the word ¡®prisoner¡¯ left his mouth.

    ¡°The satyr are bloodthirsty savages, they cannot be reasoned with or spoken to.¡±

    The moment she spoke the word ¡®satyr¡¯ the pieces fell into place for Milo. They did indeed look a lot like the satyrs from Greek mythology. By this time Ivy and Lizbeth had finished tying up the prisoners and had joined him.

    Ivy clearly saw the opportunity for some juicy information because she immediately started interrogating the prisoners. Fortunately, she was one of those few rare hybrids capable of smiling and talking in a pleasant voice.

    ¡°We are new to this area and are badly and could really use some information, please tell me who you are and how you ended up in this place.¡±

    ¡°My name is Indra and this is my son Tim.¡±

    The boy waved at them once his name was mentioned. Then Indra turned to introduce the two women behind her.

    ¡°This is Crystal and Nelly.¡±

    Her name had barely been mentioned when the woman named Crystal sank to her knees and started repeatedly thanking him in between sobs. Indra waited for her to stop before going on with her tale.

    ¡°My husband is¡­ was, a merchant, he was killed earlier today by those fucking monsters. Nelly¡¯s husband was a caravan guard, he was slain in the initial attack. As for Crystal, she is from a nearby town called Willowford, our last place of call, she was travelling with us to Ferdoria, our next stop.¡±

    Ivy wasn¡¯t slow to seize upon what little the woman had offered.

    ¡°Tell me more about Willowford and Ferdoria.¡±

    Indra hesitated for a moment, eyed the blood on Milo¡¯s armour then continued.

    ¡°Willowford is a bordertown that belongs to the Lendorian kingdom. It¡¯s only half a day¡¯s travel from here. As for Ferdoria, it¡¯s a port city state which is famous for its trade. It lies four days travel east of here and you can catch a ship from there to just about anywhere in the world.¡±

    Ivy nodded along as if this was just some friendly talk between new friends.

    ¡°And this Willowford, you say it¡¯s a border town, does that mean there¡¯s no garrison?¡±

    Once again Indra¡¯s eyes were draw to the blood on Milo¡¯s armour and he felt sort of bad bullying a traumatised prisoner for military information. Still Ivy hadn¡¯t lied, they truly did need every scrap of information they could get their hands on.

    ¡°It¡¯s a small town, barely over a thousand people live there, mostly farmers. The local sheriff is a knight, and he commands a dozen or so guards, as for the town it is protected by a wooden palisade.¡±

    Indra made a face when she mentioned the sheriff which made Milo suspect she¡¯d had a bad interaction with him. Still all in all the town sounded almost defenceless, I¡¯ve must¡¯ve thought the same because she asked the most pointed question so far.

    ¡°Assuming Willowford was attacked, how long would it take the Lendorian kingdom to respond?¡±

    Indra snorted.

    ¡°I¡¯d be amazed if they showed up at all, from what Crystal here told me on the road Willowford has been suffering Satyr attacks for months now. They raid isolated farms and drag their victims away before the sheriff can organise the militia.¡±

    The woman named Crystal rose from her kneeling position and seemed to come back to herself now that they were talking about her hometown. When she spoke, her voice was weak but certain.

    ¡°It¡¯s true, the mayor told us he sent for reinforcements from Lordon, but nobody ever came.¡±

    ¡°How far away is Lordon from Willowford?¡±

    Crystal looked deep in thought but it was Indra who answered.

    ¡°A week on foot, three to four days on horseback, but I wouldn¡¯t count on reinforcements from the Lendorian kingdom anytime soon. The rumour is that they are fighting some sort of war in the north.¡±

    Ivy was unable to hide the smile Indra¡¯s information prompted. Still she went on as if she hadn¡¯t just struck gold.

    ¡°And what about this Ferdoria, you said it¡¯s an independent city state. I take it they are well defended?¡±

    ¡°Indeed, the entire city is protected by massive walls as well as an inner keep, they can fall back to if the walls are breached. As far as I know it¡¯s been a long while since anyone tried the city, mostly because they have a solid guard force which they augment by hiring mercenaries when attacked.¡±

    Indra was proving a better source of information than they could¡¯ve hoped for. As a merchant¡¯s wife she was obviously used to trading and Milo had a feeling she was only being so forthcoming because she thought it was the only way to get out of the forest alive. His suspicion was confirmed when she spoke next.

    ¡°Now that I have told you everything, I know I would like to discuss a trade.¡±

    Once again Milo let Ivy lead the conversation.

    ¡°What kind of trade did you have in mind?¡±

    ¡°My husband is dead, as are our horses, which means these wagons are useless to me. I will give you all the gods in our caravan in exchange for safe passage back to Willowford.¡±

    Milo had to admire the woman. It was obvious to everyone that three unarmed women and a boy wasn¡¯t in a position to give away anything. Still, he appreciated the boldness this woman was displaying despite what was probably the worst day in her life. Unfortunately for her Milo had no intention of going to Willowford without enough troops to take and hold it. He was trying to come up with some way to let her down softly when Lizbeth surprised both him and Ivy by stepping forward.

    ¡°I am afraid we will have to decline your most generous offer. However, I am willing to offer you another deal in its place.¡±

    She turned and whistled, a few seconds later the demon workers who had been hiding out of view came rushing over. One of them was carrying what looked like a hollowed-out skull. The skull still had bits of flesh attached to it and Milo realised that the workers had just finished making it out of a satyr skull. Lizbeth bent down and accepted the skull, then she took hold of the creature¡¯s arm and ran her dagger across it. Blood flowed from the demon¡¯s arm into the skull cup. By the time she finished the little spectacle Indra, Crystal and Nelly had all gone deathly pale. Only the boy was looking at the ritual with something akin to curiosity.

    Lizbeth held the cup against the chest and spoke again in that cold voice which never seemed to leave her.

    ¡°I have decided to offer the four of you a gift. You will be allowed to join the service of my lord, in exchange we will offer you food, shelter and protection. Should you accept this deal you will be blessed by Lilith, the goddess of demons, with long life and power.¡±

    Milo looked from the terrified women to the cup filled with demon blood and then up at Lizbeth¡¯s expressionless face.

    ¡°You can make them into hybrids?¡±

    He remembered Beldan talking about people joining their faction as a means of generating spirit essence. Still, he hadn¡¯t expected Lizbeth to be able to turn them into hybrids. As it turned out the reason it sounded to good to be true was because it was.

    ¡°Not quite, I am not a goddess, I cannot recreate their bodies. The best I can do is offer them demon blood and a ritual sealed with a binding vow. They will still undergo a partial transformation. They can expect increased strength, some resistance to sickness and a much longer lifespan. They might even be able to access the elements of Lilith¡¯s realm with training.¡±

    The woman named Nelly stopped backing away and spoke for the first time.

    ¡°How much of an increased lifespan are we talking about?¡±

    Lizbeth shrugged.

    ¡°Probably a few hundred years, maybe even a thousand.¡±

    The woman¡¯s eyes went wide, and she stepped forward, it seemed her sales pitch had worked better than he thought. He looked over at Indra and Crystal. Crystal looked uncertain, while Indra on the other hand looked weary. As the wife of a merchant she was probably used to offers that sounded too good to be true. As for young Tim, he looked as eager as Nelly, he probably would¡¯ve approached as well if not for the death grip Indra had on her son.

    Milo decided to intervene.

    ¡°I take it the rest of you are uninterested in this offer?¡±

    Indra¡¯s eyes switched to him, and she looked closed to running.

    ¡°You¡¯ve spoken of the advantages, but what is the cost of this magical gift you are offering us for free?¡±

    He looked to Lizbeth who much to his surprise answered the question truthfully.

    ¡°You will be bound to my lord and his cause for the remainder of your life. We are strangers in this land and chances are high we will soon be at odds with this Lendorian kingdom and possibly others. We have no intention of making any of you fight for us, but you may get caught in between us and our enemies even so.¡±

    Indra was clearly caught by surprise by the honest answer, but she still didn¡¯t look entirely convinced. Crystal on the other hand nodded and walked up to take her place at Nelly¡¯s side.

    Milo took over.

    ¡°Look, I¡¯m not going to pretend that this is an easy decision, what I will promise you is that you will be treated well. I have no intention of mistreating my subjects, as long as you work you will mostly be left to your own devices. And besides, it¡¯s not like you have a great alternative, you were nearly killed in this forest with guards watching over you. There¡¯s no way you will make it out of this forest alive on foot, I urge you to think of your son.¡±

    Indra¡¯s resolve was clearly faltering as she looked down at her son who piped up in an eager voice.

    ¡°We will live for a thousand years mother, and the lady said we will be stronger. Next time I will protect you from the monsters!¡±

    Indra teared up and Milo could see her reach the only reasonable decision available to her.

    ¡°Very well, but I have a condition of my own.¡±

    Milo arched a curious eyebrow at her. Indra¡¯s face turned in the direction of the bound satyrs and her face filled with murderous hate.

    ¡°I want them dead, by my hand.¡±

    Nelly quickly nodded along.

    ¡°Same, I want vengeance.¡±

    Lizbeth¡¯s face drew into an ugly smile.

    ¡°Deal.¡±

    Lizbeth spent a few minutes carving runes into the skull chalice with her dagger. Once she finished, she closed her eyes, a few seconds later the runes started glowing. She walked over to Nelly and offered her the chalice.

    ¡°Drink, a few mouthfuls will do.¡±

    Nelly hesitated for a moment before following Lizbeth¡¯s instructions. Once she was done Lizbeth continued.

    ¡°Now repeat after me: I willingly bind my soul to the eternal service of Lilith, goddess of demons and her champion on this planet, Milo harper.¡±

    Nelly repeated the oath word for word and the effect was immediate. She gasped as both her brown hair and blue eyes turned black as pitch. The wrinkles on her face smoothed and she suddenly looked 10 years younger. Both Indra and Crystal gasped when they saw the transformation but neither one backed out.

    Lizbeth quickly repeated the process for the other three with identical results. Once they were done Indra was pointedly staring at the dagger on Milo¡¯s belt, clearly eager to collect on her part of the bargain.

    ¡°If you can wait half an hour for your vengeance, I have a place in mind for the deed.¡±

    Indra nodded her agreement.

    Milo organised their little band and they brought as much of the supplies with them as possible. Unfortunately, the prisoners were heavy and so the demons ended up carrying them rather than the trade goods left over by the attack. They decided to return for the rest of the stuff the next day.

    It took them nearly an hour to reach the altar, but thanks to their transformation none of his new subjects were even tired by the time they arrived. Indra clearly felt cheated by the lack of buildings when he announced that they had arrived.

    ¡°This is your base?¡±

    Milo had to admit he probably would¡¯ve asked the same question in her shoes. Still if everything went to plan her disappointment would be short lived. He had Ivy and Lizbeth organise the satyrs by the sacrificial altar and motioned for his four newest subjects to join them. He pointed at the black hole beneath the statue of Lilith.

    ¡°I realise you probably want to skin these monsters alive with a dull knife, but I would be grateful if you shoved them into that hole instead.¡±

    Indra walked up to get a closer look and then turned back with a frown.

    ¡°I can¡¯t see where it leads, what is it?¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s just say that whoever trips into that hole won¡¯t ever be coming back.¡±

    She nodded.

    ¡°Good enough for me.¡±

    Lizbeth and Ivy yanked one of the growling satyrs to its feet and shoved it down on its knees in front of the hole. The satyr tried to get back up, but a shackle of magical fire appeared arounds its feet and hands keeping it from moving. The restraints were burning into the creature¡¯s fur, and it started howling with pain.

    Milo beckoned Indra forwards. The former merchant¡¯s wife never hesitated, she walked up the satyr and shoved it into the hole. The creature¡¯s scream abruptly cut off the moment it hit that invisible barrier right beneath the surface.

    They repeated the process two more times with the same result. He hesitated before offering the same thing for Tim, but Indra declined the offer on her son¡¯s behalf much to Milo¡¯s relief. The satyrs obviously deserved nothing better but having a young boy, not even into his teens participate in a sacrifice struck him as going too far.

    Judging by all the crying and hugging going on the executions had been a very cathartic moment for his newest subjects.

    As for the three remaining satyr prisoners, Ivy came to him with a rather gruesome request.

    ¡°I need their heads for a project.¡±

    Milo gaped at her. Just over a week ago he had been a famous athlete, now people were asking him for severed heads.

    ¡°Care to elaborate?¡±

    ¡°It will become obvious once we move on Willowford.¡±

    He decided that Ivy had earned some leeway. He unsheathed his sword and offered it to her. She accepted the blade and then set about her grizzly task in silence.

    With everyone distracted he decided to scratch out the last thing on his to do list.

    ¡°Interface, show me how much spirit essence I have.¡±

    Spirit essence available: 4300

    ¡°Interface, show me all buildings available.¡±

    Buildings current available:

    Small wooden house - 250 spirit essence

    Small stone house - 500 spirit essence

    Wooden palisade - 1000 spirit essence

    Marble wall with towers and walkways: 25 000 spirit essence

    Demonic keep: 25 000

    Demonic castle: 250 000 spirit essence

    Demonic fortress: 2,5 million spirit essence

    Lilith¡¯s citadel: 25 million spirit essence

    He wasn¡¯t about to splurge on houses that would probably be temporary anyways, so he decided to keep it cheap and simple.

    He purchased a small wooden house expecting to see a large vortex appear just like had happened all the other times. Instead, his vision was suddenly filled with the translucent red outlines of a house. It took him only a few moments to realise that the interface was giving him an opportunity to adjust and place his house where he wanted. He was toying around with it for a few minutes before placing it door out next to the river. The moment he confirmed the position a large vortex appeared in the selected spot. When he dismissed it a perfect copy of the translucent red house he¡¯d been adjusting had materialised.

    He looked over at Indra and saw that she was watching the wooden house with eyes as wide as saucers. She slowly looked from the house and then to him.

    He flashed her a grin.

    ¡°Time to build us a city.¡±

 Chapter 10

    The new wooden house looked like a pristine brand-new log cabin from the outside. He walked down and entered the house, shortly followed by Indra, Crystal, Tim and Nelly. Aside from a stove, dining table, four chairs, a few cabinets and a large double bed the cabin was completely empty. There wasn¡¯t even a single window in the small house and Milo was prepared to declare it ¡®basic as hell¡¯ when Indra gasped.

    ¡°This is great!¡±

    He turned to look at her.

    ¡°It is?¡±

    Crystal and Nelly both nodded their heads in vigorous agreement, Indra walked over to inspect the stove before replying.

    ¡°I¡¯ve only ever seen such well-built houses in the largest cities, for a border region this house is a luxury.¡±

    ¡°So, this will do for you and Tim?¡±

    Indra¡¯s eyes widened.

    ¡°You¡¯d give me and my son this entire house alone? What about the rest of you?¡±

    Milo waved his hand dismissively.

    ¡°I can make more, it¡¯s no big deal, for now I was thinking of starting with four, I¡¯ll take one, Tim and you will share, as will Crystal and Nelly, the same goes for Ivy and Lizbeth.¡±

    Indra was tearing up and she sniffed before replying.

    ¡°Thank you archmage, had I known you were a mage of such power I never would¡¯ve hesitated to join your service.¡±

    Milo briefly considered telling her about the interface but ultimately decided to stay quiet. His leadership over these people was new and untested, them thinking that he was some sort of super mage might prove useful.

    He went back outside and whispered the interface command. Then he summoned another three houses, two on either side of the small river. He let Crystal and Nelly choose which house to claim and they were quick to choose the one next to Indra and Tim. Crystal reappeared a few minutes later with a smile on her face, she held a cooking pot in her hand. She spotted him by the river and walked over. Her voice shook slightly as she addressed him and he wondered if she was simply shy or just completely devoid of confidence.

    ¡°My lord, I know it¡¯s late, but I was thinking that everyone might be hungry, would you allow me to cook you a meal?¡±

    ¡°Of course, are you a good cook?¡±

    Crystal¡¯s face twisted slightly before passing back into a shy smile.

    ¡°Many have said so, my husband used to say that I might not be good at much, but I sure could make him scrape a bowl clean.¡±The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

    The way she said it conjured an uneasy feeling in Milo¡¯s stomach. Indra had said that Crystal was a passenger in their caravan, and that said caravan was travelling away from her hometown. There was obviously more to the story, but he didn¡¯t want to interrogate a woman who had just offered to cook for him.

    ¡°Do you need any help?¡±

    Crystal looked back up to the altar of Lilith where Ivy and Lizbeth had just finished disposing of the prisoners.

    ¡°I saw that you have flour, salt and razor deer, I could make a stew if you would allow me access to it?¡±

    Milo nodded and then followed Crystal up to the altar where all the supplies had been gathered. He helped her carry the deer carcass down to her new house. He was about to go back for the rest when Ivy simplified the process. The shadow-stalker simply picked up a bag of salt and grain in either hand or shadow-blinked down to the house. Before long Crystal was happily humming away as she laid into the deer meat with one of his daggers. She cubed the meat and then coated it in flour. Next, she took the animal fat she had cut away from the meat and popped it in the pot. She rendered the fat down until the pot was covered in oil and then fries the meat cubes in it. Once the meat had been browned, she added water, salt and flour.

    Back on Earth Milo had most of his meals prepared for a professional chef. He was used to good eating, and so he was surprised when the bowl of Crystal presented him with a bowl of stew an hour later tasted far better than he had expected. He dug into the dish with gusto and saw that Ivy and Nelly were doing the same. He waved his spoon in the direction of the pot.

    ¡°This is excellent Crystal.¡±

    She seemed pleased by the compliment.

    ¡°It would be even better if I had some vegetables to add.¡±

    Milo believed her. He hoped Lizbeth¡¯s mushroom and fruit experiment with the worker¡¯s earlier that day would bear fruit. If it did, he was now confident that Crystal would be able to use it to great effect. He thanked her for the meal and then retired to the house he had claimed for himself.

    Once inside he took of his armour and immediately collapsed into the large bed. He was about to fall asleep when he heard the door opening. He sat up and looked over at the door to find Ivy looking at him.

    ¡°Need something?¡±

    She closed the door and placed her bow in a corner. Then she walked over to the dining table and took a seat on one of the chairs.

    ¡°You did well today, far better than I expected.¡±

    Milo nodded.

    ¡°Thanks, you did pretty well yourself.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m surprised you let us take such an active role in things.¡±

    He shrugged.

    ¡°Lilith made it very clear that she would send me the most qualified people she had first. You have training in politics and information gathering. Lizbeth might be a cold fish, but she is extremely intelligent and competent. Only a fool would stop the two of you to play to your strengths when the opportunity arises.¡±

    Ivy looked pleased by his words.

    ¡°In the spirit of your words I would like to forward a plan for consideration.¡±

    ¡°Go on.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve spoken more with both Indra and Crystal and I believe that Willowford is ripe for conquest.¡±

    ¡°With what army?¡±

    ¡°We might not need a true army to take the town if what Crystal has told me is correct. You see it seems that the is discontent brewing in that town, there has even been some talk of open revolt.¡±

    ¡°That sounds too good to be true.¡±

    ¡°And it might be, but I have a plan to stack the odds in our Favor.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s hear it then.¡±

    ¡°The villagers have been plagued by satyr raids for months now. What do you think is going to happen when we march into town with a modest force carrying satyr heads on pikes. We¡¯ll even bring along Crystal, once they see that we rescued one of their own¡­¡±

    Milo thought back to his conversation with Crystal.

    ¡°I think Crystal is a runaway, bringing her back to Willowford might be a mistake.¡±

    Ivy shook her head.

    ¡°You¡¯re too soft, you are Lilith¡¯s champion now, you can¡¯t afford such weakness, it will quite literally be the death of you and all those bound to your cause. Besides Crystal is lucky to still be alive, if her hero tells her to come along to Willowford I think she will obey. She is a crucial piece of my plan, the satyr heads alone might not be enough.¡±

    ¡°You really think a bunch of scary looking demi humans can just roll into town and announce that its under new management?¡±

    ¡°The alternative is to take the town by force, we¡¯ll probably end up killing half the town that way and those who survive will resent us for the rest of their lives. Is that really what you want?¡±

    Milo sighed.

    ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll talk to Crystal, when were you thinking of launching this plan of yours?¡±

    ¡°Tomorrow, we will spend what spirit essence we have left and then set out for Willowford.¡±

    ¡°That would leave the altar completely exposed.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll like Lizbeth here with the workers as sentries, she is powerful enough to defend the altar by herself if it comes to it.¡±

    She had clearly considered every aspect of this plan well in advance and he could only incline his head in agreement.

    ¡°Good, now move over, there¡¯s no way I¡¯m sharing a bed with that old harpy.¡±

    Milo was about to protest when Ivy started stripping down. Some part of him was wondering if this was simply another attempt at seduction but he thought he could discern genuine lust on her face. He wouldn¡¯t share his bed with someone playing an angle, but he truly did enjoy Ivy¡¯s company.

    That was how his first day on Archeus ended, a battle had been fought, new followers gained, and he now he was falling asleep with a gorgeous woman on his arm.

    ¡°I could get used to this¡­¡± he murmured as he fell asleep.

 Chapter 11

    By the time Milo woke next morning Ivy was already up. She was sitting at the dining table eating what looked like bread with cooked beef.

    ¡°Something tells me you didn¡¯t cook that.¡±

    Ivy waved her bread in the direction of the front door.

    ¡°Crystal is an early riser, she had this ready by the time I got up to do a sweep of the surrounding area. I think she¡¯s afraid you¡¯re going to throw her away or something and is trying to prove her worth.¡±

    Milo¡¯s mood dampened immediately.

    ¡°You still insist that she¡¯s necessary for your plan?¡±

    ¡°I like Crystal, and if I had to choose one of our four new subjects to keep it would be her. Unfortunately, her value as a cook is far outweighed by her role as the rescued damsel in distress.¡±

    With a sigh Milo got up, dressed and sat down at the table to eat. Salt beef with bread was hardly a complicated dish and yet Crystal had somehow managed to make it taste good. He could only imagine what she might accomplish with proper supplies.

    ¡°So, this sweep you did, find anything interesting?¡±

    ¡°I went back to the site of the battle, everything is gone.¡±

    Milo stopped eating mid bite.

    ¡°Define everything.¡±

    ¡°The wagons, supplies, carriages and the burned bodies, it¡¯s all gone.¡±

    ¡°Who took it?¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t be sure, whoever did it was careful about leaving tracks, but they couldn¡¯t complete erase the marks left behind by the wagons. If I had to guess I¡¯d say another band of satyr came looking for their friends.¡±

    This morning was starting off poorly.

    ¡°That spot is only forty minutes away on foot, how the hell did we remain undetected?¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s just say that we did the right thing by leaving the wagons behind last night. If I was satyr and I came across that battlefield I¡¯d assume that my friends had been hunted down by the humans of Willowford. Think about it, they have no idea we even exist, but the humans of Willowford are a known factor whom they war with regularly.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t like this, are you sure Lizbeth can hold the altar by herself?¡±

    ¡°Not entirely, but we can¡¯t just stay put in this place while the other factions explore and conquer. We did well yesterday, let¡¯s keep the momentum going.¡±

    He had to admit she had a point. They finished eating and then went outside to find Lizbeth. They found the old hybrid sitting by the altar of Lilith talking with Tim of all people. The boy was relentlessly quizzing the elementalist about magic and much to his surprise Lizbeth was actually answering. Milo cleared his throat to interrupt the weird lesson.

    ¡°We¡¯re heading to Willowford, we¡¯re going to bring Crystal with us, you will stay here and protect the altar until we return.¡±

    He expected her to protest her exclusion from the group, instead she merely inclined her head in acceptance.

    With that settled Milo accessed the interface.

    ¡°Interface, show me how much spirit essence I have.¡±

    Spirit essence currently available: 3800.

    Milo frowned at the number, he had 400 more spirit essence than he had expected. And while that was certainly a pleasant surprise it didn¡¯t make sense.

    ¡°Our spirit essence has gone up by 400 over the night, do any of you know why?¡±

    Lizbeth and Ivy both gave Tim a pointed look and the puzzle pieces finally fell into place.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

    ¡°Interface, show me¡­ show me how much passive spirit essence I¡¯m getting and where its coming from.¡±

    Passive spirit essence income: 400

    Source: 4 converted subjects.

    The numbers were way better than he had expected and did much to reduce the guilt her felt about forcing Crystal to come with him. If they could capture Willowford and convert its people, they would gain an insane amount of passive spirit essence income every day.

    Now truly committed to the plan he pulled up the summoning list for troops and summoned a single hybrid leader. The vortex came and went leaving behind a broad shouldered man in a full set of heavy plate armour.

    The unknown hybrid spent a few seconds taking in the scenery before his eyes landed on Milo. He then slapped a fist to his breastplate in some sort of salute and inclined his head.

    ¡°Greetings champion, my name is Haldor and I stand ready to serve.¡±

    The man sounded earnest, and Milo immediately took a liking to the big hybrid.

    ¡°Welcome to Archeus Haldor, my name is Milo, I summoned you here because I need your advice for a plan.¡±

    Milo nodded at Ivy, and she gave a report of everything that had happened since their arrival as well as the plan she had come up with. By the time she finished Haldor looked impressed.

    ¡°A good start indeed, and I agree with Ivy, taking Willowford by force might be possible in a few days¡¯ time if we go hunting in the forest, but it would be far better to exploit the weaknesses that are already there.¡±

    They were decided then, now all that remained was to work out the last details.

    ¡°We have 2800 spirit essence left, enough for 1 demon soldiers or two hybrids and three soldiers. As I understand it you are a trained military officer, what should I spend it on?¡±

    Haldor looked deep in thought as he considered the question. When he replied with was with certainty.

    ¡°By bringing pure blooded demons to a town which has been raided by monsters for months we risk frightening the locals and turning them against us. I would summon two members of the order of warriors and three demon soldiers. The soldiers will help keep the workers already here in line and allow them to function as sentries.¡±

    Milo¡¯s opinion of this Haldor was climbing every time he spoke.

    ¡°I agree with your assessment general.¡±

    ¡°There is only one general in Lilith¡¯s realm and that is my master Beldan whom I believe you¡¯ve met. My own rank is that of commander.¡±

    ¡°Consider yourself promoted general, you are after all Lilith¡¯s first pick and the only trained military officer here.¡±

    Beldan inclined his head accepting the promotion without protest. Milo accessed the interface and summoned two warriors and three demon soldiers. A few moments later all five had arrived and were looking around taking the landscape in.

    The demon soldiers looked a lot like the squat workers only much larger. Their bodies were protected by scales and leather armour. The creatures also had a lot of natural weapons with their large horns, clawed hands and feet as well as dagger-like teeth.

    His eyes went to the two hybrid warriors he had summoned. Two pairs of pale red eyes stared back at him with something akin to eagerness. Like him they wore light weight plate armour, and their facial features looked almost identical.

    ¡°Twins?¡±

    Haldor nodded.

    ¡°Indeed, Turiel and Turial, they share the position of Nero¡¯s next in command.¡±

    ¡°Are they any good?¡±

    The words had barely left his mouth when the twins charged him with a roar. The twins were unarmed, and Milo could¡¯ve easily drawn his sword and cut them down, instead he let them come at him.

    They came at him from two sides, punching and kicking and Milo was immediately impressed by their teamwork. Their moves were unrefined, and it was obvious that they were self-taught where as Milo had been tutored in kickboxing and MMA by the very best. For every blow they landed he landed three and yet they kept coming. Their pristine faces quickly transformed into a bloody mess of blackened eyes and split lips. The fight ended when one of them finally managed to land a true blow and tagged his face and leaving him with a split lip. At that point he lost his patience and started fighting for real.

    Turiel and Turial lay groaning on the ground as Lizbeth passed a hand over his face, healing his lip. Once she finished she walked over and started working on Turiel¡¯s broken leg. Next she went over pulled Turial¡¯s dislocated shoulder back into place before working on his cracked ribs. Five minutes later the twins were back on their feet. Milo was surprised when they knelt down in front of him and spoke in a respectful tone.

    ¡°Apologies champion, we had to know, many among our order were unconvinced by your fight against Nero.¡±

    ¡°I beat him unconscious and chopped off his arm, how was that not enough?¡±

    ¡°It was suggested by some that you relied on trickery and Nero only lost because he underestimated you.¡±

    Milo sighed.

    ¡°And now?¡±

    ¡°Your skill is superb, you use techniques we have never even seen before, we recognise your mastery and would be grateful if you would share your wisdom with us.¡±

    In the earlier days of his career Milo had made quite a bit of money by making fighting guides. He¡¯d stopped when his career took off, but it wasn¡¯t like he was averse to teaching, especially not when his students were as talented and dedicated as these two.

    ¡°We have a long road ahead of us today, I¡¯ll teach you the basics, but I really am better with a sword.¡±

    With that said there was now only one thing left to do before they could leave. Milo and his little band found Crystal humming to herself and kneading dough in a bowl by the river. He cleared his throat to alert her, and she got up with a shy smile on her face.

    ¡°My lord?¡±

    ¡°Good morning, Crystal, thanks for the breakfast you made.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s the least I could do my lord.¡±

    He hated the trusting way in which she smiled at him, it made him feel like a true villain.

    ¡°Crystal I¡¯m afraid that what I have to say will not be pleasant and for that I¡¯m sorry. But this is a matter of life and death for a great many people.¡±

    He could see alarm in her eyes now and she suddenly looked like a woman who was barely hanging on, just as she had prior to her conversion.

    ¡°My people and I have access to great magic, but that magic requires that my little domain to grows. Right now, the closest town to this place is Willowford. I¡¯ll be perfectly frank with you Crystal, Willowford is too close, I can¡¯t ignore it. I¡¯d prefer for the town to join me willingly, but if they won¡¯t accept¡­¡±

    Alarm turned to fear and Crystal¡¯s face went pale. He held up his hands in what he hoped was a reassuring manner.

    ¡°I¡¯m hoping they will join me if I offer to protect them from the satyrs and maybe cut their taxes or something of the like. Once trust has been built, I will give them the same offer I gave you last night, they will be allowed to join us and live long lives free from decease.¡±

    ¡°What does this have to do with me my lord?¡±

    Her shaky voice made him feel lousy but he forged ahead anyway.

    ¡°You will be our witness, the people of Willowford know you, I¡¯m hoping that once they hear from you how we slew the satyrs and rescued you that they will be more enthusiastic about their new rulers.¡±

    Crystal stumbled back and landed on her rear. To say that she looked frightened would be an understatement. His theory of her being a runaway was rapidly gaining traction in his mind as he analysed her reaction. He was about to go and help her up, but Haldor beat him to it.

    Once she was back on her feet Milo sighed.

    ¡°I can see that you are terrified of something in Willowford, Crystal but I promise that if you do this for me, I will protect you. Nobody is going to harm you or make you stay in Willowford unless you want to. Once our mission is complete you can return to this valley, and I will never ask you to leave again.¡±

    Crystal clung to Haldor¡¯s arm as if it were a life raft and the big hybrid gave her a reassuring smile.

    ¡°Our champion is powerful, and you will be surrounded by powerful warriors. I will add my own promise to the champion¡¯s, you will not be harmed, you have my word on it.¡±

    Crystal finally let go of Haldor arm and then gave a shaky nod.

    ¡°Thank you, Crystal, I won¡¯t forget this.¡±

    With that their party was complete, they gathered up some supplies and then set out in the direction of Willowford.

 Chapter 12

    The first thing Milo did once they hit the road was cut down some trees. The trees were then turned into spears so that Turial and Turiel could have something bigger than their daggers. As for Haldor, he had been given the lone shield and shortsword which was all the remained from the weapons Milo had brought with him through the rift.

    The rest of the trip was spent giving the twins and Haldor fighting lessons while Ivy scouted ahead. The twins were eager to learn and drank up every technique and bit of advice he gave them. And while nobody would ever call Haldor a talented fighter, he did pay attention to everything said and did his best to implement it.

    Haldor¡¯s true contribution to their little part however was keeping Crystal distracted from whatever was going on in her head. The big man would joke and speak with her and Milo would often catch Crystal smiling despite them coming ever nearer the one place in the world she didn¡¯t want to be.

    About seven hours into the journey, they arrived at the end of the forest. There they found Ivy already waiting for them at the edge of what looked like a cornfield. Haldor was quick to assume control over the situation just like they had agreed.

    ¡°Report.¡±

    ¡°The town seems calm, I detected no sentries of any kind and the guards at the entrance look poorly equipped. We should be fine to proceed with the plan.¡±

    ¡°Very well, we go the rest of the way together, keep your weapons sheathed and try to keep your body language relaxed and natural.¡±

    Everyone in the group nodded except for Crystal who was looking paler than ever. Yet she still followed them as they approached the town at a slow walk, giving the guards plenty of time to see and prepare for them.

    By the time they arrived at the entrance it was blocked by a shabby looking wooden gate that looked so weak a strong gust of wind might destroy it. There were small holes in the gate trough which they could see faces watching them. The moment they came to stop a voice shouted from within the gate.

    ¡°Who are you and what is your business here?!¡±

    Milo took up position in front of the group and put on the celebrity smile he had spent so much time perfecting back on Earth.

    ¡°My name is Milo, I am the lord of a nearby city and I have come to deliver good news about the satyr menace which has been plaguing your town. I also have one of your citizens with me, rescued from a satyr raiding band.¡±

    A collective gasp went up from behind the gate as Crystal stepped into view.

    ¡°Ancestors save me, that¡¯s Crystal!¡±

    Moments later the gate was opened and six men wearing crude leather armour walked out to greet them. They focused on Crystal while Milo focused on the clubs hanging from their belts, an elite force this was not.

    Most of the guards were looking at Crystal, but one of their number, older than the rest was studying Milo from head to toe, his eyes fixating on the hilt of his claymore.

    After a few moments he spoke in awkward voice.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid we can¡¯t permit you within the city as long as you¡¯re carrying weapons.¡±

    Milo had zero doubts he could cut down these six guards with one hand and a foot tied behind his back. Even so he was reluctant to give up his sword, so he decided to try a compromise.

    ¡°I am a great lord, and I will not disarm for anyone, I will however allow you to disarm my guards.¡±

    In truth it wasn¡¯t much of a compromise, the twins were already nearly disarmed and only Ivy and Haldor had any weapons of consequence.

    The guard captain licked his lips uncertainly and his eyes flicked to Crystal. He walked over to her and addressed her in the polite voice of a loose acquaintance.

    ¡°Your husband has been looking for you everywhere, we thought for certain that you had been taken by the satyrs.¡±

    The mention of her husband made Crystal¡¯s knees shake and Haldor quickly moved to support her. The guard captain went on.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know these¡­ people, will you vouch for them Crystal?¡±

    ¡°T¡­they saved me.¡±

    The words barely came out but that seemed to be enough for the guard captain. He nodded and then returned to Milo.

    ¡°Since Crystal vouches for you, I will allow you to keep your sword, and your guards will be allowed to keep their daggers.¡±

    That was more than he had hoped for. All they had to leave behind was Ivy¡¯s bow which was useless without arrows, as well as Haldor sword and shield and a pair of crude wooden spears.

    The guards formed up on either side of their party as they entered the town of Willowford. The first thing which struck Milo was just how poorly the building were made. No wonder Indra had been amazed by the wooden houses he could summon, most of the houses on display looked close to collapse. The road they were using was also less than impressive, being made out of mud and a few old planks. The curious villagers who came out to watch them wore crude wool clothing which only added to his certainty that he would mainly be dealing with poor peasants.

    This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

    As they arrived at the centre of the town the muddy road gave way to crudely carved stones. The stony ground was so uneven that Milo imagined it would be a nightmare to drive a wagon in this place. The houses in this part of the city looked better but only a few were of the same level as the ones he could summon. The exception was a giant house on the other end of the square. He pointed at the house in question.

    ¡°Who lives there?¡±

    ¡°Laurel Roseway, wife of our former mayor.¡±

    Milo thought he detected an undertone of anger in the guard captain¡¯s tone. He was about to probe for details when the man cut him off.

    ¡°Wait here, I¡¯ll go fetch the mayor.¡±

    With that said he strode off in the direction of one of the nicer houses. By this point half the town had come out to watch them and Milo had a sneaking suspicion that these people didn¡¯t get much in the way of entertainment. He did his best to smile at the crowd and made sure that Ivy still had the sack they¡¯d packed before leaving their base. She saw him looking at the sack and winked at him. She was ready, now all the remained was for him to identify the right moment.

    The moment arrived a few minutes later when a fat red-faced man arrives huffing and puffing. The man was accompanied by a tall man wearing a full suit of cheap looking plate armour. Another six guards followed behind the pair, bringing the total number up to 12. The fat man was looking at him with such hostility that Milo decided the moment had come. He took the sack from Ivy and then leapt up onto a nearby cart.

    ¡°Citizens of Willowford! My name is Milo, champion of Lilith and I have come here today with a great gift!¡±

    He upended the sack and a dozen severed satyr heads rolled across the pavestones. A collective gasp went up from the crowd but they didn¡¯t panic. After a few seconds one of the braver among them walked up and picked up one of the heads and held it aloft.

    ¡°It¡¯s a satyr!¡±

    Uncertainty faded from the crowd, and they erupted into cheers. Milo let it go on for a little while before raising his voice again.

    ¡°Yesterday me and my companions came across a band of satyrs and their prisoners. We slew the satyr and rescued the prisoners, afterwards we learned that one of them comes from this very town!¡±

    Milo felt like an asshole as he pointed at the terrified Crystal, but they had already reached the point of no return.

    ¡°It¡¯s Crystal!¡±

    ¡°Quick! Someone go get her husband and daughter!¡±

    Milo¡¯s eyes flickered to the red-faced man in the robe and saw that the hostility had only deepened. It was time to bring his little show to its conclusion.

    ¡°People of Willowford, I have heard from Crystal how you have suffered from these vicious satyr attacks while your king does nothing to help you!¡±

    The crowd¡¯s murmurs deepened, and he could see many shooting angry glances at the robed man with the red face.

    ¡°You have been abandoned but hope is not lost! I, Milo Harper, Champion of Lilith and lord of this region, offer you the protection of armies! Join me!¡±

    About a third of the crowd was completely swept up and started cheering. It was less than he had hoped for but at least they weren¡¯t attacking or cursing his name. Well, all except for one.

    ¡°Guards! Apprehend him!¡±

    The crowd went silent, and Milo turned to face the red-faced man in the robes. The guards drew they clubs and the man in the cheap plate drew what looked like a bastard sword and pointed it at Milo.

    Milo simply smiled at them.

    ¡°And who are you?¡±

    ¡°I am Kerill, mayor of this town!¡±

    ¡°I would reconsider that order if I were you mayor, I came to this town with noble intentions and have offered your people only friendships and protection.¡±

    Kerill pointed a finger shaking with rage at him.

    ¡°Friendship!? You are trying to incite a rebellion! Lay down your weapons and I promise that you shall have a quick death!¡±

    Milo jumped down from the wagon and Haldor shoved a terrified Crystal behind him. Then he and the rest formed a protective circle around Milo. They were only five and to the red-faced mayor this clearly looked like a winnable fight.

    Milo ignored the mayor and instead addressed the man in the cheap plate.

    ¡°Be warned, I would strongly urge you to ignore that man, I will not allow myself to be attacked.¡±

    The man chuckled and then slammed the visor of his helm down before advancing on them. One of the guards lunged at Ivy and she sidestepped the blow before ramming a dagger into his neck. The guard fell dead on the spot and Milo sighed. Now that blood had been shed there was only one way out of this, still he gave it one more shot.

    ¡°Guards of Willowford! If you want to live, lay down your weapons at once, I will not ask again!¡±

    Milo noticed that the guard captain was lagging behind his men making him possibly the smartest man in Willowford. The guards closed as one and then struck. Had they been armed with spears and shields they might have proved dangerous, but their clubs were clearly designed to beat down regular human peasants, not hybrids. Haldor called orders and the guards were killed, crippled with ruthless efficiency. At this point the only thing that could turn this situation was if the crowd joined the fight but not a single one of them looked tempted. Only three of the guards were left alive when Milo raised his hands and shouted.

    ¡°Enough! We did not come here to slaughter the citizens of Willowford!¡±

    The remaining guards fell back, and the plated man immediately started moving in their direction. Milo wasn¡¯t about to let him put a stop to the little show of disobedience. Milo drew his sword and pointed it at the man.

    ¡°You there, halt! Turn and face me like a true warrior!¡±

    The plated man halted and turned to look at him. Milo pushed past his defenders and settled into a stance. The plated man¡¯s face was covered by his helmet and yet Milo thought he could detect a hint of fear in him. He couldn¡¯t blame him after seeing how easily his bodyguards had dispatched the guards.

    ¡°Fight me or are you a coward!¡±

    The comment immediately got the crowd back on his side and several started cheering while others shouted.

    ¡°Kill him!¡±

    ¡°Kill the bastard!¡±

    Whoever this man in the plate was he was not well liked by the towns people.

    The man roared and then charged Milo with such poor form that he nearly burst out laughing. Rather than killing the man in a single stroke he decided to put on a show. He cast the flame sword spell prompting another shocked gasp from the crowd. Milo deflected the first strike and then stopped in and elbowed the man beneath the rim of his helmet. His opponent¡¯s helm flew off revealing a murderous glare set in ugly features crossed by a long scar running from one end to the other.

    The man lunged at him and Milo deflected the blow into the pavestones before punching the man, breaking his nose in a fountain of blood. The man¡¯s eyes were wild, and he staggered back several steps. He could see the realisation of just how outmatched he was dawn on the man¡¯s face. He looked close to running and so Milo decided to end the fight prematurely. He lunged in feigning a strike on his left before knocking the man¡¯s sword side and delivering a wicked slash across his throat. The man¡¯s head rolled across the ground settling at the feet of the mayor. The man was staring down at the severed head and stammering when Milo approached him.

    ¡°Y¡­y¡­you can¡¯t¡­¡±

    Milo¡¯s smile was feral as he placed the bloodied tip of his sword underneath his chin. The mayor was frozen in place and was barely able to meet his gaze.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid the time of your rule is over Mr mayor.¡±

    He was about to cut the man down when a sharp voice stopped him.

    ¡°Enough!¡±

    He turned to see the crowd part for a grey-haired woman in an elegant dress. The woman looked down at the dead guards with distaste before her gaze settled on the mayor. Milo saw true hatred in her eyes as she walked up to the man and slapped him. The mayor collapsed to the ground in a sobbing heap and Milo sheathed his sword. The woman inclined her head in a greeting.

    ¡°My name is Laurel Roseway, and I thank you for freeing us from this man¡¯s tyranny.¡±

    So, this was the former mayor¡¯s widow, he had to admit she looked far more formidable than the sobbing mayor.

    ¡°Milo, champion of Lilith.¡±

    ¡°Yes, I heard your little speech, you say you¡¯ve come to help us, very well, I ask that you allow me to place the mayor under arrest so he can be tried for his crimes.¡±

    Milo looked down the man in question and back up at Laurel.

    ¡°He¡¯s a criminal?

    Laurel nodded and then raised her voice so that everyone in the square could hear her.

    ¡°He is responsible for the death of my husband! He used his position as a trusted friend and advisor to fabricate false accusations to steal his office.¡±

    Laurel turned to look at the decapitated corpse of the man in the cheap plate.

    ¡°He was aided in his crime by the sheriff who knowingly executed an innocent man!¡±

    Milo was about to reply when angry shouts erupted from the crowd.

    ¡°That bastard raped my daughter!¡±

    ¡°Bullied me into giving him free ale!¡±

    ¡°Demanded I pay him to protect me from the satyrs and then left us to fend for ourselves!¡±

    Milo couldn¡¯t quite believe his luck. He¡¯d killed the most unpopular person in town in a duel, it also explained why nobody had come to the man¡¯s aid during the attempted arrest.

    ¡°Very well, a trial it is.¡±

    Laurel turned and addressed the guard captain who had wisely held back from the back.

    ¡°Jack, bind this maggot and lock him in my potato cellar.¡±

    The guard captain saluted and then gathered the three remaining guards to help him with his task. Laurel watched them drag the sobbing man away with a cruel smile on her face. Once he was gone, she turned to address the crowd once again.

    ¡°Until a trial can be held, I will assume the role of mayor for this town. Now please go back to your homes and I will speak with our new friends about their promises.¡±

    Milo was amazed to see the crowd actually disperse at her words. Laurel was clearly well respected and might just be the key to taking Willowford without any further bloodshed. Once the crowd was dispersed Laurel went on.

    ¡°Follow me, we will speak in my house.¡±

    Milo followed her into the house where Willowford¡¯s fate would be decided.

 Chapter 13

    <u>Six years ago.</u>

    Laurel was sitting at her desk reading a book when her maid stormed into the room. The maid''s face was pale with fear and her voice came it out in the half gasp of somebody who had just been running.

    ¡°Lady! You must come quickly! They''ve taken your husband!¡±

    Laurel dropped the book and rose to her feet with alarm.

    ¡°Was there a satyr raid?! I didn''t hear the alarm.¡±

    The maid shook her head as she panted for air.

    ¡°It¡¯s not the satyrs, the governor is here and he''s taken your husband.¡±

    Taken? What could the governor possibly want with the mayor of an insignificant border town. She rushed out the room and then down the stairs so quickly she nearly stumbled. Normally she would¡¯ve dressed herself up to meet with a noble of the governor¡¯s status but the alarm on her maid¡¯s face told her something bad was about to happen. She rushed out the door without even stopping to pull on her boots.

    A large contingent of armoured men were standing in the middle of the square. A few hundred villagers had come out to watch and they all looked confused by what was going on. Laurel closed the distance and saw that her husband¡¯s hands and feet had been shackled. He was surrounded by armoured guards who kept Laurel back as she tried to get to her husband. She was about to demand to know what was going on when a young man with blonde hair raised his hand and spoke loud enough so that the crowd could hear him.

    ¡°Derrek Roseway, you stand accused of theft and corruption. How do you plead?¡±

    Her husband looked at the young governor with an expression of complete and utter bewilderment.

    ¡°Theft? I¡¯ve never stolen anything in my life, what are you talking about?¡±

    The governor made a hand motion, and a familiar man approached. Kerill had entered her husband¡¯s service several years ago and had become a vital piece of his administration. Laurel considered the affable man a friend of the family and was shocked to see him play a part in whatever this was.

    Kerill handed the governor what looked like a ledger and Laurel recognised it as the tax collection ledger, a book which her husband hadn¡¯t touched for years thanks to Kerill¡¯s help. The governor made a show of opening the book and reading trough it although he obvious already knew what it would say.

    ¡°My clerk has examined this ledger and has determined that the records of tax collected in Willowford does not match the records of what the throne has received. Thousands of gold pieces have gone missing over the years and you Derrek Roseway are responsible.¡±

    Derrek was gaping at Kerill and had no doubt reached the same conclusion as herself, Kerill was the real thief, and he was pinning it on her husband. Laurel finally managed to break trough the guards and raised her voice.

    ¡°My husband has not used that ledger for years! His clerk, Kerill is responsible for collecting and recording taxes, he is the true thief!¡±

    One of the guards moved towards her, no doubt intending to remove her, but the governor waved him away. The man smiled at her and then pulled out a sheaf of letters.

    ¡°When this case was first brought to my attention I was unwilling to believe that a man of such good standing as you husband was guilty of such a base crime. Which is why I demanded proof from the accuser.¡±

    He opened a letter and then held it up side by side with the ledger.

    ¡°As you can see, this is a letter your husband sent me just a months ago asking for soldiers to help defend Willowford from the satyr menace. As you can plainly see the handwriting matches that in the ledger.¡±

    A cold shiver ran down Laurel¡¯s spine as she looked at Kerill. The man had somehow managed to forge her husbands handwriting and had been doing so for years while pretending to be their friend. What exactly was Kerill getting out of this elaborate and perfectly planned plot?

    She tried her best to turn the tide.

    ¡°Handwriting can be forged, what other proof is there?¡±

    A man with an ugly face with a scar running across it stepped up to play his role. The governor indicated the man in question.

    ¡°Jacob here is a knight in the service of the crown, he is responsible for the security of the coin collector who brings the collected taxes from Willowford for Lordon. He has sworn upon his knighthood that he personally overheard your husband bribing the coin collector to keep quiet about shortfalls in the amount collected. The man in question was arrested and admitted to everything when he was put to the question.¡±

    Poor Merill, she wondered how long they¡¯d tortured the old man before he¡¯d told them exactly what they wanted him to say. She looked around at the crowd and saw that several had turned hostile. It was obvious to everyone how this was going to end, the governor of the region hadn¡¯t come here for trial, he¡¯d come for an execution¡­

    Her worst fears were confirmed moments later when the governor pointed at the final actor in this little play. A man with a black hood over his face approached the governor. He carried a wooden stump in his hands which he placed down before her husband. Moments later a young boy handed the hooded man a giant executioner¡¯s axe. The guards pushed her protesting husband down onto his knees. Laurel tried one last time.

    ¡°Governor I am beginning you! Please give us the chance to fight these lies in a proper trial. I swear upon my life and title that my husband is innocent of these charges.¡±

    The governor shook his head with a sad look on his face.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid your husband has already been tried in Lordon and found guilty. All that remains now is to see justice carried out. I will however permit you to say your farewells.¡±

    Laurel rushed forward and hugged her husband of 30 years. He started sobbing into her shoulder and when they finally broke the embrace he looked and sounded resigned to his fate.The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°I truly didn¡¯t do this Laurel, I promise you.¡±

    She smiled at him and then kissed him.

    ¡°I know that my love, I promise that I will clear your name and avenge you, no matter how long it takes.¡±

    Her moment was apparently up because a pair of guards yanked her up and forced her back. Then they forced her husbands head down on the block. Laurel couldn¡¯t watch, instead her eyes were focused on Kerill and the small smile on his face.

    Present day.

    ¡°So, this Kerill not only stole taxes but also plotted to have your husband murdered?¡±

    Her guest had listened to her tale without interruption. His fine features, polite manners and aura of command did much to convince her that he truly was a noble of some sort. She nodded.

    ¡°Kerill and the sheriff planned it together. Once my husband was dealt with Kerill was given the post of mayor and the sheriff got his current posting. Together they ran this town like their own little fiefdom. I don¡¯t know the exact amount of gold they¡¯ve stolen but I fear its a lot.¡±

    ¡°And all this time you¡¯ve been plotting your revenge?¡±

    He sounded impressed but Laurel shook her head.

    ¡°To be perfectly frank I¡¯d given up on the matter years ago. You see shortly following my husband¡¯s death I did what I could. I sent letters to the capital explaining in detail how I thought the plot had gone down. I was certain that if they came to Willowford again and truly investigated the matter they would find incriminating evidence against Kerill.¡±

    ¡°Let me guess, Kerill saw it coming?¡±

    ¡°Indeed, I used every sliver of influence I had and all but begged the capital to send somebody. But by the time they arrived too much time had passed and Kerill was entrenched. He¡¯d long since gotten rid of anything incriminating and I am almost certain the new coin collector like the sheriff is getting a cut from what Kerill steals. I convinced a few of the villagers who had been bullied into giving up gods or money to the sheriff to speak up but by the time the investigator arrived they had been threatened into silence.¡±

    ¡°I think I heard one of the villagers shout something about a rape?¡±

    Laurel¡¯s face darkened.

    ¡°Indeed, once the investigator finished his task and left everything took a turn for the worse. With the investigation concluded I was labelled a delusional old lady and every letter I sent thereafter ignored. The sheriff started showing his true colours short afterwards. Over the years at least a dozen young women have been raped at his hand. The first times it happened their families would turn up at the mayor¡¯s office and demand justice, but they were ignored. A few tried to challenge the sheriff to duel but they stood no chance against a trained knight. He also started charging the farmers who live outside the town palisade to protect them against satyr, but whenever the alarm is sounded for a raid, the sheriff is always late to the scene.¡±

    ¡°What about the guards? Were they in on it?¡±

    ¡°Most, but not all, Jack was made captain of the guard by my husband and was always fond of him. I don¡¯t think he ever bought the story, he also had a first hand seat to the sheriff¡¯s crimes.¡±

    ¡°Which he did nothing to stop.¡±

    ¡°Jack is certainly not completely innocent in all of this, but I do believe he truly feared for his own life and that of his family. Over the years the few guards who have gone against the sheriff somehow always seem to end up dead.¡±

    Her maid entered and offered her guest a tankard filled with water. He accepted the drink with a smile, but his eyes never left her. When he spoke again his voice was curious.

    ¡°So, this trial of yours, what exactly is it that you expect to happen?¡±

    The implication was clear, this man was more than happy to offer her whatever outcome she wanted. What he was really asking her was ¡®what are you willing to pay?¡¯.

    ¡°I want Kerill to openly admit what he did and suffer the same fate as my husband. If you can make that happen, I would be in your debt.¡±

    The man looked over at the only female member of his party. The woman in question had been watching Laurel¡¯s every move like a hawk since they entered the house. Her blood red eyes shone with intelligence and Laurel guessed she was some sort of spy. Her voice was neutral when she answered the unasked question posed by her leader.

    ¡°It¡¯s possible, none of us are experts in torture but there¡¯s a good chance I can get the mayor to admit his sins in exchange for a quick death. Something tells me a man like him would do anything to avoid being drawn and quartered.¡±

    A shiver ran down Laurel¡¯s spine at the casual way in which she spoke of such a gruesome act. Still, she was committed now. The man named Milo nodded and then moved onto the final piece of their deal, his price.

    ¡°We¡¯ve established what we will do for you, now we need to figure out what you can do for me.¡±

    ¡°What do you want?¡±

    ¡°I want Willowford, my domain is as of yet rather small, and this town is exactly what I need to expand. I could of course take it by force, but I¡¯d prefer not to.¡±

    Laurel licked her lips, she decided to be honest him.

    ¡°My respected position in this town is largely a result of the brutality with which the mayor and sheriff ruled over them. I have a lot of pull, but you are talking about seceding from the kingdom. King Lorian is not a forgiving man, and he does not tolerate even a whiff of rebellion.¡±

    The woman with the blood red eyes leaned forward.

    ¡°My sources tell me that the Lendorian kingdom is preoccupied with a war somewhere in the north.¡±

    Laurel might be a social outcast, but she still had a few friends who kept her up to date.

    ¡°Indeed, they are currently dealing with a massive orc incursion. But once they deal with that Willowford will be next.¡±

    The woman leaned back and then pulled Milo¡¯s hand dragging him out into the hallway. A few minutes of awkward silence followed as the two of them spoke in the hallway while Laurel and the rest of her guests waited. When they returned Milo simply nodded at her.

    ¡°The risk is acceptable, my army is growing every day and by the time this king finishes up in the north it will be too late.¡±

    There was clearly more to this than he was willing to tell her. The Laurel of six years ago would¡¯ve told this man to go to hell, that Laurel had believed in the kingdom. Since then, the kingdom had murderer her husband on false charges and had allowed a pair of tyrants to abuse the people of Willowford for their own profit and entertainment. She didn¡¯t want to see Willowford burned but right now her need for vengeance was stronger than any concerns she might have for the town and its people.

    ¡°Very well, I will do my best to hand you the town once our bargain is complete.¡±

    Milo looked at the woman with the red eyes and she shook her head. When he next spoke his voice was slightly awkward.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid we need a little more than that.¡±

    He turned to the doorway and shouted.

    ¡°Crystal! Please enter.¡±

    A woman Laurel barely recognised entered the room. Despite having a maid Laurel would occasionally go to the square to buy things she needed. There were a few bakers in Willowford but none of them made bread half as good as Crystal. Still this woman looked nothing like the Crystal in Laurel¡¯s memory, her brown hair had turned black as had her eyes. The lines on her face had vanished and she looked 10 years younger.

    ¡°Crystal? What has happened to you?¡±

    Crystal looked distracted and kept glancing at the front door. Laurel vaguely remembered a rumour going around about an abusive husband.

    ¡°T¡­they rescued me.¡±

    Laurel pointedly eyed her black hair.

    ¡°It looks like they did more than that.¡±

    The woman with the blood red eyes sat forward with a smile.

    ¡°Crystal is one of us now, she has undergone the ritual and have reaped the rewards.¡±

    ¡°What rewards?¡±

    ¡°As you can tell she looks younger, but she is also stronger, immune to disease and will live far longer than any normal human.¡±

    Laurel¡¯s eyes narrowed on the other woman.

    ¡°I see, and what was the cost for all these gifts?¡±

    Their leader waved Crystal away and the woman left the room. Once the door was closed behind her he spoke.

    ¡°She has entered my service and once that happens there¡¯s no going back. My enemies are now her enemies, my cause is her cause.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s it? She entered your service and now she gets to live for hundreds of years?¡±

    He looked pleased by her reaction.

    ¡°Will you accept?¡±

    Laurel stood and then offered him her hand. He reached out and shook it and looked about to say something when a shout came from outside. Laurel heard the front door banging and moments later her maid rushed into the room.

    ¡°Men at the door!¡±

    Her guests rushed out the door and Laurel followed behind them at a slower pace. She could hear angry shouts and a loud cry of pain. When she reached her front door she was greeted by a scene of chaos.

    Four men were laying on their back on the ground and several had bloodied faces. Beside they lay Crystal, the woman was clutching her stomach in pain and half her face was purple with a giant bruise. The one named Milo had drawn his sword and judging by the murderous glare on his face it looked like he was about to start killing people. Laurel rushed forward and shouted.

    ¡°Don¡¯t!¡±

    The one named Milo halted mid swing. He turned and scowled at her.

    ¡°These men attacked one of my followers.¡±

    Laurel recognised the men as Crystal¡¯s husband and his brothers. It looked like they had broken into her house and tried to drag Crystal out. She had obviously resisted. Crystal¡¯s husband tried to rise and spoke in a snarl.

    ¡°This is none of your business you freak!¡±

    Milo put his boot on the man¡¯s chest and pushed him back down onto his back with ease. Then he turned to Crystal who was being helped to her feet by a broad shoulder man with pale red eyes.

    ¡°Haldor, take Crystal inside, I¡¯ll deal with this.¡±

    The big man nodded and then lifted Crystal into his arms as if she weighed no more than a child. They were nearly back inside Laurel¡¯s house when her husband shouted.

    ¡°Get your hands of my wife you freak! Crystal! Come back here you whore!¡±

    Laurel groaned, Crystal¡¯s husband had always been bad at knowing when to shut his mouth. She watched as the one named Milo beat him into unconsciousness while his brothers watched with wide eyes. By the time he finished Jack and the rest of his small band of guards had arrived. Laurel pointed at Crystal¡¯s husband and his brothers.

    ¡°Jack, put these fools with the mayor, they¡¯ll stand trial tomorrow as well.¡±

    Jack looked like he might protest for a moment but one look at the murderous glare on Milo¡¯s face convinced him otherwise.

    ¡°Yes mayor!¡±

    Laurel sighed and went back inside, she had a trial to plan and she wasn¡¯t about to leave anything to chance.

 Chapter 14

    Milo was shaken awake by Ivy the next morning. The shadow-stalker was already dressed.

    ¡°Time to rise, you¡¯ve got a big performance ahead of you.¡±

    He got up and started dressing, they¡¯d come up with a new plan late last night after Laurel had been kind enough to provide every member of his party with a bedroom. The plan was mostly a work of his own mind and was based on his long experience of interacting with big crowds. Ivy had been sceptical about his ability to follow through but had eventually agreed to it.

    ¡°Is there food?¡±

    ¡°Yes, downstairs in the dining room, Crystal has taken over the kitchen, I don¡¯t think she¡¯s slept much.¡±

    Milo winced at the mention of Crystal¡¯s name. He had promised to protect her and instead had allowed her to be dragged out into the street and beaten. Ivy sighed.

    ¡°It¡¯s not your fault that her bastard of a husband laid hands on her. She didn¡¯t warn you so how could you have seen it coming?¡±

    ¡°Now that I think back on it the signs were all there¡­¡±

    ¡°Well, she¡¯s safe now, Haldor has barely left her side since last night. Once we finish our business in this town, she will never see her husband again.¡±

    ¡°And that¡¯s good enough?¡±

    Ivy¡¯s eyes narrowed.

    ¡°You can¡¯t kill him.¡±

    ¡°Why not?¡±

    ¡°These people are peasants, they won¡¯t understand. The mayor and sheriff abused their positions openly for years building up resentment. Crystal¡¯s husband is different, half of them probably think that he has every right to discipline his wife.¡±

    ¡°So, what, he just gets off with a beating? What kind of example does that set?¡±

    ¡°That you are a benevolent ruler who respects their traditions and culture.¡±

    Milo gritted his teeth.

    ¡°This feels wrong¡­¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s too early to make changes, our hold on this town is tenuous at best. Once the citizens are converted and a garrison is in place you can start changing things to your liking, until then, be patient.¡±

    Milo sighed and with a nod walked down the stairs and found the dining room. Inside he found Crystal and Haldor sitting on one end of the table talking in quiet voices as they ate. Crystal got to her feet with an awkward bow when she saw him.

    ¡°Thank you for rescuing me last night my lord.¡±

    He eyed the purple and black bruise which covered half her face. Next time he would bring a healer with his party.

    ¡°Your gratitude is unnecessary Crystal, it never should¡¯ve gotten as far as it did.¡±

    Crystal sat back down, and she looked close to tears when she asked a question which had clearly been on her mind all night long.

    ¡°What will happen to my husband?¡±

    Milo looked at Ivy and then sighed.

    ¡°He will be paraded around some, and everyone will hear how he¡¯s been abusing you for years. Hopefully the shame of it will humiliate him and maybe even make him an outcast.¡±

    Haldor¡¯s face twisted into a grimace and the general sounded genuinely angry when he spoke up.

    ¡°That is far better than he deserves.¡±

    Ivy took it upon herself to explain.

    ¡°We must be careful here general, one wrong step might turn this entire town against us.¡±

    Haldor grunted but didn¡¯t protest further.

    Milo sat down at the table and started eating, after a few moments Crystal started talking.

    ¡°He wasn¡¯t always like this you know¡­ When we were young, he would bring me flowers nearly every day for months until I promised to marry him. The first few years of our marriage was happy enough, but he was desperate for a son. I had several miscarriages and with each one he grew angrier and angrier. When my daughter was born his anger turned to action and he started beating me. I tried to please him, but it was like everything I said just made him angry no matter what. I finally couldn¡¯t take it anymore and ran away, I even abandoned my daughter¡­¡±

    Crystal started sobbing and Haldor placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. He felt like he owed her something after the way he had treated her, an idea suddenly came to him.

    ¡°Crystal, do you want your daughter back?¡±

    Crystal rubbed at her eyes and the nodded vigorously.

    ¡°More than anything.¡±

    ¡°If you can repeat the story, you just told me during the trial, I might be able to reunite you with your daughter.¡±

    Her words were only half the equation, the towns people would get the other half from the bruise on her face.

    Crystal¡¯s face filled with determination a.

    ¡°I¡¯ll do it, just promise me that we will never return to this place because if we do, I¡¯m certain he will kill us both.¡±

    ¡°I promise.¡±

    They continued eating until Laurel appeared. She was wearing an elegant black dress, and he noticed that her boots were covered in mud. She¡¯d clearly been up and about for several hours already.

    ¡°It¡¯s finished¡± Laurel announced.

    The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    Milo put down his bread.

    ¡°What is?¡±

    Laurel didn¡¯t answer, instead she motioned for him to follow her outside.

    There was already a large crowd gathered, and their attention was primarily directed at a wooden scaffold which hadn¡¯t been there last night. He studied the shabbily built scaffold and then turned to Laurel. The old woman truly was resourceful.

    ¡°Someone¡¯s been busy¡­¡±

    ¡°The carpenter¡¯s daughter was raped by the sheriff 4 years ago and the mayor did nothing. He¡¯s been holding a grudge ever since.¡±

    ¡°Looks like he got half the town to help him build that thing.¡±

    Laurel¡¯s face twisted into a cruel smile.

    ¡°Indeed, it seems even I underestimated just how much hatred our dear mayor has inspired in his subjects¡­¡±

    ¡°Any final notes before we get this show underway?¡±

    ¡°Listen to your woman, killing Crystal¡¯s husband would be a mistake.¡±

    Yet again Milo felt anger welling up inside him, but he knew somewhere inside that they were both right. He intended to humiliate the man and then take his daughter away, he was already pushing what the people might accept.

    ¡°Very well, have the prisoners brought to the scaffold, I¡¯ll be there shortly.¡±

    He went in to gather his party and gave them final instructions. They came back outside just in time to see a bruised a defeated looking mayor being led to the scaffold. Milo looked to Ivy.

    ¡°As far as I can tell He still has all his fingers, how long did it take before he broke during your interrogation last night?¡±

    Ivy snorted.

    ¡°He put up a good front after a few punches to the stomach but as soon as I threatened to gouge out his eye he broke immediately. He confirmed Laurel¡¯s story and that he intentionally covered for the corrupt sheriff. I explained to him that he was already dead and that the only thing left to decide was how it happened. As I suspected he was rather keen on not ending up drawn and quartered and agreed to admit his crimes.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s hope the man was honest for once, I¡¯d prefer not to have to follow through on your threats¡­¡±

    They arrived at the scaffold and each member of his party took their places according to the plan. In the middle of the scaffold waited a wooden stump and what looked like a lumber axe. Laurel and her little band of guards were standing at the back of the stage with their prisoners kneeling in front of them. Milo studied the crowd closely, taking in its mood.

    By his estimation there were nearly a thousand people in the crowd which meant that most of the town had turned out to watch the trial. Many looked angry, and as far as he could tell that anger was mostly directed at the pale looking mayor. But a few were directed at him as well which only underscored just how carefully a crowd like this had to be handled.

    He began by introducing himself again.

    ¡°My name is Milo Harper, I am Lilith¡¯s champion and the lord of a nearby settlement. My people and I are new to this region, but our magic and armies are powerful.¡±

    He thought he could hear somebody in the crowd murmur.

    ¡°Red eyed freaks¡­¡±

    He ignored it and went on.

    ¡°When I discovered a satyr warband with prisoners I acted immediately to destroy the foul creatures. From the prisoners I learned of Willowford and its plight. For years now you have been attacked by these monstrous enemies while your king does nothing!¡±

    The mood of the crowd turned ugly at the mention of their absent king and his failure to protect them.

    ¡°I can see that many of you are angry, and why not? When a ruler claims and taxes a village, is it not his responsibility to protect those he calls his subjects?¡±

    ¡°Bastard king!¡±

    ¡°Thief in royal clothes!¡±

    Milo nodded along with the angry shouts, so far everything was going exactly as planned.

    ¡°Yes, it is clear to all that your king cares nothing for your plight, but I promise the good people of Willowford that I do!¡±

    A few cheers erupted from the crowd at this, and while that was encouraging, he could tell he had not yet reached critical mass.

    ¡°I swear upon my title and lands, that I will bring Willowford into a new and more secure future! I will garrison this town with soldiers to guard you! I will build fortifications to shelter you! And finally, I will cut your taxes to a tenth of what you pay right now, payable in full by foodstuffs!¡±

    The roar which erupted from the crowd was so loud that Milo wondered if Lizbeth could hear it back at their base. As far as a sales pitch went this was the best he and Ivy had come up with. Of course, the deal was nowhere near as good as what the people of Willowford imagined. Due to the complete absence of an economy and trade in his little domain he had zero use for coins. Which meant the only two things Willowford could give him was spirit essence and food. The fortifications and soldiers would serve the dual purpose of keeping the people of Willowford in line while also defending the town from any attempted recapture from the Lendorian kingdom. The deal would wreck Willowford¡¯s limited economy, probably making coins obsolete, at least until Milo¡¯s domain grew large enough for coins to serve any purpose.

    Now that he had the crowd exactly where he wanted them he motioned Laurel forward.

    ¡°You all know Laurel Roseway, yesterday she made serious accusations against your former mayor and sheriff. She will now voice those accusations so that all can hear and judge for themselves.¡±

    Laurel nodded to Milo and then told the crowd the same story she¡¯d told him yesterday. By the time she was finished the crowd was glaring at their former mayor with such hatred that Milo was amazed he didn¡¯t catch on fire. Milo beckoned the former mayor forward and Turiel yanked the man up and shoved him forward.

    ¡°Mayor Kerill, you stand accused of theft, corruption, negligence and murder. What do you have to say for yourself?¡±

    Kerill¡¯s face twisted with indignation and for a moment it looked like he might deny everything. Then he cast a brief glance at Ivy and instead decided to play his part.

    ¡°It¡¯s true, all of it...¡±

    The crowd roared with anger, and somebody threw an amazingly accurate salvo of animal dung and rotten vegetables at the mayor. Milo held up his hand to forestall the assault, mostly because one of the dung missiles had hit his leg.

    ¡°Enough! I understand your anger people of Willowford. Kerill has admitted his crimes and by doing so has earned himself a merciful end!¡±

    Turiel brought forward the wooden block while Turial picked up the axe and readied himself to strike. Turiel forced the mayor down on the block and a quick strike followed. the mayor¡¯s head rolled across the stage before Turiel picked it up by the hair before raising it above his head. The crowd roared with approval.

    Milo waited for the crowd to calm down before beckoning the three other prisoners forward. One by one they were forced back down on their knees. Milo could see the crowd¡¯s jubilation turn to uncertainty as they stared up at their fellow townspeople.

    Milo had Crystal brought to the front of the scaffold and right on que she dropped the scarf she had been using to hide the bruised side of her face. A gasp erupted from the crowd, most coming from the women present.

    ¡°Last night one of my followers, a woman recently rescued from satyr captivity, was set upon by her husband and his brothers. They dragged her into the street and beat her, I ask you now t-¡°

    ¡°The whore deserved it!¡±

    The interruption came from Crystal¡¯s husband. The man¡¯s eyes were bright with rage as he glared at his victim. Milo slapped him hard enough to send him sprawling on the ground.

    ¡°I¡¯m warning you now, I will not tolerate any further interruptions before I am done speaking. When that happens, you will have your chance to say your piece.¡±

    Turiel yanked the man back into a kneeling position with a new hand shaped mark on the right side of his already bruised face. Milo went on.

    ¡°I ask you now to hear Crystal¡¯s tale from her own lips.¡±

    Crystal was shaking like a leaf but a reassuring look for Haldor broke the dam. She told the crowd the same story she had told the rest of them at breakfast. She spoke about the constant abuse and how she finally couldn¡¯t take it anymore.

    As she spoke Milo studied the crowd. There was a clear divide between the sympathetic looks on the women¡¯s faces and the mostly uncomfortable looks on the men¡¯s faces. Ivy had already anticipated this and had warned him it might happen. It still disappointed him to see that the crowd was so split on such obvious cruelty.

    Once Crystal was finished her turned to face her seething husband.

    ¡°You have been accused of disrupting the peace of Willowford and repeated unjustified abuse against your wife. What do you have to say for yourself?¡±

    ¡°The whore is lying! The only thing I am guilty of is disciplining my wife, as is my right!¡±

    It was her word against his, and Milo didn¡¯t like how several men in the crowd were nodding along with the words. This was clearly a no-win situation and almost anything he did either way risked destroying the solid hold he now hard on this town. He felt wrong as he rendered the judgement, they had agreed on beforehand.

    ¡°As the new lord of Willowford, it is my judgement that your marriage with Crystal be dissolved, and her daughter returned to her care.¡±

    The man¡¯s eyes went wide, and his face purpled with rage.

    ¡°Over my dead body you red eyed freak! You have no right to take my family from me! And I promise that if you do, I will hunt them to the ends of the world. And believe me, once I find wherever that whore is hiding I¡¯m going to¡­¡±

    Milo¡¯s hand went above his shoulder to the hilt of his sword. When he spoke, his voice was deceptively calm.

    ¡°Are you threatening a person in my service?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re damn right I am, that whore is mine! My daughter is mine! They are both mine to do with as I wish!

    ¡°I¡¯m warning you, if you call her a whore one more time¡­¡±

    ¡°Whore! Your magic might have turned her hair and eyes black and given her back some youth but inside she will always be that same useless whore!¡±

    Milo¡¯s sword left his sheath so fast that the crowd barely registered the move before the sword thunked into the stage. Crystal¡¯s husband never even knew what hit him. He heard Laurel sigh as the man¡¯s head rolled across the scaffold and over the edge. The crowd were staring at the headless corpse with stunned silence.

    Milo knew he¡¯d just screwed up, but he did his best to salvage the situation.

    ¡°I warned him, I will not allow anyone to threaten or harm those in my service. Now this trial is over. I will be sending soldiers to protect you from the satyrs within days. While I am gone look to Laurel Roseway for leadership, she had proven to be capable and will from now on serve as your new mayor. That is all.¡±

    Much to his relief the crowd failed to turn on him. He¡¯d definitely lost a significant portion by killing Crystal¡¯s husband, but he thought he might still have a majority in favour of his rule. As it turned out lowering taxes and public executions were popular things no matter which world you were in.

    He gathered his party around him, including Laurel. Crystal looked shaken by her husband¡¯s death, but he detected no resentment in her eyes. Haldor on the other hand was looking at him with newfound respect. Ivy and Laurel both shared that same look of vague disappointment, as if they were looking at a naughty boy who¡¯d been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go get Crystal¡¯s daughter, then we¡¯re out of here, Turiel and Turial you will remain here and serve as bodyguards and enforcers for Laurel. I don¡¯t think her rule will be challenged but I could be wrong.¡±

    Neither hybrid looked particularly enthusiastic about their new assignment but neither did they protest.

    Crystal led them to one of the farms outside the town where they collected a young girl with brown hair who Milo judged to be no older than eight. There was an awkward episode when a middle-aged woman rushed out to rescue Crystal¡¯s daughter from the strangers. Apparently, she was married to one of her deceased husband¡¯s brothers. The woman initially protested the kidnapping and even threatened to go get the watch. When they told her that Crystal¡¯s husband was dead and that the watch had been decimated the woman paled and stumbled back inside the farmhouse.

    Despite the ¡®kidnapping¡¯ Crystal¡¯s daughter, whose name was Elise was ecstatic to be reunited with her mother. She was also extremely curious about the strangers and stared at him with an open mouth. Milo resolved to get Crystal and her daughter a separate house just for the two of them once they got back home.

    On their way back past Willowford they were intercepted by Laurel who had taken it upon herself to deliver Willowford¡¯s first tax tithe. This tax took the form of three mules loaded down with sacks of grain and cuts of salted deer. Apparently, Laurel had paid for all of it herself and the idea was to normalise tithes to their new lord, thus securing her own position as well as his own.

    With that done they set out on the road back to their base.

 Chapter 15

    Their journey back home was uneventful aside from one of the mules nearly breaking a leg after getting spooked by a snake. Milo spent most of the journey listening to Crystal and her inquisitive daughter asking Haldor questions about hybrids and Lilith¡¯s realm. The general seemed more than happy to keep the pair entertained with tales although Milo had a feeling the man was cherry picking to keep his tales acceptable for children.

    Every now and then Ivy would return with a bird she¡¯d shot with arrows she had somehow procured from Willowford. She needed their feathers to make arrows of her own, Crystal was only too happy to pluck and butcher the birds, separating the feathers in meat into separate bags.

    When they finally arrived back home the sun had already started to set. They were greeted on the slope of the valley by Lizbeth and her little demon garrison. The old hybrid¡¯s eyes flicked between the mules weighed down with supplies and Crystal¡¯s daughter.

    ¡°I see that you were successful in your mission.¡±

    ¡°Indeed, Willowford is nominally mine, but in order to make sure it stays that way we will need to garrison and fortify it.¡±

    ¡°Can we afford that right now?¡±

    Milo spoke the interface command which displayed how much spirit essence he had.

    Spirit essence available: 16 401

    It was less than he had expected for taking over an entire town, he decided to see where it had come from.

    Converted faction members (4) - 400

    Unconverted faction members (640) ¨C 16 000

    He¡¯d been mostly right about his success in Willowford, a little over half its population now considered him their lord. He did some quick math and then sighed. Apparently, an unconverted follower was only worth 25 spirit essence each day. It wasn¡¯t quite the reward he had hoped for but it was still a lot of spirit essence, and better yet it would keep coming every day as long as he retained control over the town.

    He told Haldor how much they had to spend and then asked the general for his recommendation. It took the man a few minutes to come up with a plan.

    ¡°First of all, we should summon a palisade to protect this valley. We¡¯re also going to need a second elementalist to carry out the conversation rituals in Willowford. Lastly, I¡¯d spend the remainder on an even mix between demon soldiers, demon workers. We need to get working on a proper road between this place and Willowford immediately.¡±

    Milo followed his plan exactly. Minutes later a wooden palisade running from one side of the valley to the other blocked off the bottom part of the valley. Next he summoned an elementalist.

    The hybrid who appeared looked like a mixture between a scholar and a pornstar. Milo heard Ivy and Haldor groan out loud as they laid on eyes on the new arrival. Milo for his part was having a hard time not looking at the new arrivals chest thanks to the overly revealing dress she was wearing that did very little to hide her curves. The woman beamed at him and immediately started towards him, she made it two steps before Ivy yanked her back by the collar of her robe.

    ¡°I¡¯d reconsider whatever plan you might have hatched back in mother¡¯s realm if I were you, Rosanna.¡±

    The woman turned on Ivy and her face turned from seductive to ugly in a moment. She brushed Ivy¡¯s arm aside and for a moment Milo thought a fight was about to break out. Then the woman smirked at Ivy.

    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    ¡°Your mother sent me because only I was suited to the task at hand.¡±

    Ivy scoffed.

    ¡°And what task is that?¡±

    ¡°Seducing the people of Willowford into conversion.¡±

    ¡°Of course I should¡¯ve known¡­ Are you going to bang them one by one you pig of a woman?¡±

    Milo felt like he had just arrived at the second half of a movie. There was clearly a lot of history between this new elementalist and the other hybrids present, hell even Lizbeth was looking at Rosanna with obvious distaste.

    He walked over to Haldor and whispered while Ivy and Rosanna continued trading insults and bickering.

    ¡°Who is this woman?¡±

    ¡°A troublemaker, she¡¯s been locked away in Lilith¡¯s dungeon for the last hundred or so years.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯d she do?¡±

    ¡°She seduced Seti and Nero at the same time and then pitted them against each other. Apparently, she was hoping that Nero would kill Seti thus shortening her path to becoming order master. Lizbeth uncovered the plot shortly before the duel went down, Lilith was quite angry at the time and tossed her in the dungeon. I have no idea why the goddess would inflict this woman upon us.¡±

    A quiet voice spoke behind them and Milo realised that Lizbeth had snuck up on their conversation.

    ¡°Because she is exactly what we need right now. Your hold on Willowford is weak, Rosanna has a way with crowds, especially the male half.¡±

    The pieces fell into place. It was primarily the male half of Willowford¡¯s population he had alienated by executing Crystal¡¯s husband for abuse. Apparently, Lilith¡¯s solution to this new problem was to send him a manipulative seductress.

    With a sigh he continued down the summoning list.

    He summoned two new houses, one for Crystal and her daughter and one for Haldor. Then he spent a good chunk of the remainder on an even mix of workers and soldiers. What remained was spent on woodcutting axes and band saws. Haldor wasted no time in taking command of the new soldiers and the now forty strong work force. Within minutes they were heading towards the treeline with their tools in hand.

    Milo was watching the demon workers bring down tree after tree with brutal efficiency when a large field of translucent red text appeared in his vision.

    A new event is now available to all factions:

    <u>Arena of trials.</u>

    In this event you will a wide selection of opponents in a fight to the death. After each victory the difficulty of your next opponent will increase until you are defeated. Each opponent defeated will earn you a great reward, and whichever champion defeats the most opponents will be given their choice of a powerful reward as well as access to a unique follow up event.

    Each champion may select a proxy to fight in this event on their behalf.

    If you wish to participate in this event, please use the following phrase ¡°I ¡®insert name of participant¡¯, accept this event¡±.

    This event will disappear forever in 59minutes 31 seconds.

    The Concordium.

    Milo stared up at the text with wide eyes. He¡¯d been told to expect events and yet based on Lilith¡¯s description of them he had expected something like a puzzle game. Instead, this event seemed tailor suited to him and his background. Ivy noticed his look and she frowned at him.

    ¡°What''s going on?¡±

    He grinned at her and then read the red text aloud. By the time he finished reading she looked incredulous.

    ¡°What are the odds¡­¡±

    ¡°You tell me, your mother helped make these events, how many variations are there?¡±

    Ivy shrugged.

    ¡°She wasn¡¯t allowed to tell me the specifics but from the crumbs she gave me I think there are at least a dozen, all with different themes. I think about a third of them are combat based, but I would be very surprised if any of the events play harder to your strengths than the current one.¡±

    Milo walked over to a table and picked up some food and a skin of water Crystal had left for him. He ate quickly and then drank his fill. Once he was done, he drew his sword and grinned at Ivy.

    ¡°Wish me luck.¡±

    She scoffed.

    ¡°You don¡¯t need it.¡±

    Milo fell into a ready stance and then spoke the acceptance phrase aloud.

    ¡°I Milo Harper accept this event.¡±

    As soon as the words left his mouth he was enveloped by a silvery vortex. He looked down and saw the black rock change into sand. When the vortex vanished, he was standing in the middle of a huge coliseum. There were no spectators nor any opponents that he could see. The next thing he noticed was that the sword in his hand was gone, as was his armour and even his underclothes. He was in fact completely naked and Milo suddenly glad about the lack of spectators.

    A few seconds later another silvery vortex manifested in front of him. When it vanished a thin humanoid creature with a fishlike head stared back at him. The creature wore a robe which looked like it was made from liquid silver and its grey skin was covered in scales.

    The creature¡¯s relaxed posture and lack of weapons made it obvious that it hadn¡¯t come here to fight. He tried a greeting.

    ¡°Hello?¡±

    ¡°Greetings champion, I represent the concordium, it is my role to inform you about the rules of this event and answer any questions you might have.¡±

    ¡°Ah ok, let¡¯s hear it.¡±

    ¡°This event consists of a progression of increasingly difficult fights to the death. Only soulbound items or magically created items are allowed. You will however be allowed to claim the armour and weapons of your enemies and keep them for the remainder of the event. After each fight you will be given a fifteen-minute period of rest, you may skip this by simply stating ¡®I am ready¡¯. Once you die or forfeit a match by saying:

    ¡®I forfeit¡¯ you will be sent back to Archeus. Do you have any questions?¡±

    ¡°I do, who are you?¡±

    ¡°I am a representative of the concordium.¡±

    ¡°And who are they?¡±

    ¡°We were created to be the arbiters of the divine contest. We have been entrusted to oversee all events and arbitrate any conflicts that might arise between the factions.¡±

    ¡°Ah, you¡¯re the judges of this contest, here to make sure nobody cheats.¡±

    ¡°A crude but accurate statement.¡±

    Milo clenched his empty hands into fists and then nodded.

    ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡±

 Chapter 16

    The words had barely left his mouth when another silvery vortex carried the concordium representative back to wherever he had come from. Moments later the creature was replaced by another vortex which left behind his first opponent.

    His opponent had green skin, sharp teeth and was armed with a rusty looking spear and buckler. The creature might have looked fearsome if not for the fact that it was barely taller than his knees.

    Milo glared up at the sky with indignation.

    ¡°You¡¯re pitting me against children?!¡±

    No answer came from the sky, his opponent on the other hand shrieked with fury and charged. Milo rolled his eyes and easily stepped out of the green childlike creature¡¯s path. Once the creature was past him he kicked it in the back sending it sprawling face first into the sand. Milo bent down and disarmed the struggling creature.

    ¡°Stop fighting! Just forfeit!¡±

    The green creature snarled and tried to bite him. Milo lifted the creature up by its neck and shook it.

    ¡°Give up!¡±

    Another snarl was his only answer. The creature seemed rabid, and he doubted it would give up no matter what he did, with a sigh he broke its neck. The creature went limp, and Milo tossed it to the ground. He bent down and looted the corpse. Aside from the spear he got his hands on a rusty dagger, he tried on the buckler, but the grip was too small for his hands.

    Still naked aside from the crude weapons Milo started the next round.

    ¡°I¡¯m ready!¡±

    Another silvery vortex came and went leaving behind a tall yellow skinned create that was almost of a height with him. Tusks protruded from its lower lip and its body rippled with muscle. It wore a shabby looking set of mismatched leather armour and carried a huge axe in its hands.

    ¡°Finally, someone my own size.¡±

    The creature roared and charged. Milo shifted his grip on the short spear and then spun in a circle gathering momentum for a throw. Unfortunately, the spear was too short and poorly balanced for a killing strike, but his opponent still raised its arms to protect its face. Milo darted forward and lunged with the small dagger extended. The dagger struck home in his opponent¡¯s throat but was too dull and rusty to deliver an instant kill. The creature collapsed to its knees clutching at its bleeding throat.

    Milo kicked the gurgling creature onto its back and then bent down to retrieve the axe. He walked over to his opponent and brought its own axe down on its throat ending its struggles.

    Once again, he set about looting his opponent and this time the yield was far better. His opponent had been broader in chest and shoulders than himself which meant its armour didn¡¯t really fit him. Normally that would¡¯ve bothered him but at the moment he was just happy to have found a solution to his unfortunate nudity.

    Aside from the loose armour the creature¡¯s corpse yielded him with another dagger as well as the axe. Of the two weapons the axe was by far the most fortunate find. Two handed axes might not be as versatile as a greatsword, but to a master like him it was a treasure in his current situation.

    He walked back to his end of the arena and once again gave the ready command.

    A few seconds later he found himself looking at a tall man with blonde hair and pointed ears. The man looked so much like the fantasy elves he was used to from video games and books that there was no way it could be a coincidence.

    The elven man was wearing a full set of glittering steel chainmail with a winged helmet. In his left hand he held a kite shield while his other hand was wrapped around the shaft of a steel tipped spear in the shape of a leaf.

    The elven man looked slightly surprised, almost as if he hadn''t known what to expect upon being summoned. Milo could only imagine what the scene might look like to his new opponent. Across him stood an absurdly tall man with deep blood red eyes wearing a poorly fitting set of leather armour. In his hands rested a blood-stained axe, and on the ground between them lay the decapitated corpse of an orc and a dead goblin.

    To his credit the elven man didn''t panic, instead his face firmed with resolve. The elf clearly didn¡¯t want to be here and yet he looked resigned to his fate. A new and completely chilling thought just struck him.

    He had been operating under the assumption that like him his opponents would be reincarnated once the trial was over. But the look on the elf''s face told a different tale. Milo decided to simply ask the man.

    ¡°Greetings stranger, I don''t suppose you have a moment to chat before we start trying to kill each other?¡±

    The elf looked from the Milo to the dead bodies of the orc and goblin.

    ¡°You mean before you cut me down without taking a single wound?¡±

    Those were the words of an experienced fighter who had assessed the state of his opponent and come to the conclusion that he was hopelessly outmatched. The elf had better eyes than he¡¯d expected.

    Milo shrugged didn¡¯t bother trying to play coy.

    ¡°I understand if you don''t want to talk to me, I was just curious, why are you here?¡±

    The elf never relaxed his guard and for a moment Milo thought he might refuse to answer, then he sighed and with a single sentence confirmed Milo¡¯s fears.

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    ¡°I am here to honour the deal I made.¡±

    This man had come here to die.

    ¡°You made a deal with the guys who arrange this contest? The... Concordium?¡±

    The elf nodded solemnly.

    ¡°If I may ask, what do you get out of this deal?¡±

    ¡°They healed my daughter.¡±

    There was a sob story if he''d ever heard one. Still, that sounded like half the deal.

    ¡°And in exchange you were sent here to fight me?¡±

    ¡°You and two more, If I win all three fights my life is my own once again.¡±

    As far as deals went it was pretty much a death sentence. He knew nothing about the other champions, but he seriously doubted this elf was capable of besting even one of them, much less three. Suddenly Milo wished he hadn¡¯t asked the elf any questions at all. Killing the mayor and Crystal¡¯s husband hadn¡¯t bothered him, they had both been rotten to the core, but this man was here because he¡¯d made a bad deal to heal his daughter.

    For a moment he seriously considered throwing the fight. Then he thought of Ivy and all the rest who were bound to his cause. If he lost the contest they would all die, including himself. This event was likely the best he could hope for in terms of an advantage, giving it up could cost him the entire contest.

    Milo sighed.

    ¡°I''m sorry to hear that, but I''m afraid I can''t let you win, I''ve got people that depend on me.¡±

    The elf didn''t beg for his life, he merely inclined his head in grave acceptance.

    ¡°To the death then, let''s finish this.¡±

    Milo didn''t waste any time, he kicked the goblin¡¯s fallen buckler up into the air and then snatched and tossed it in a single fluid motion. The elf raised his shield to block. The buckler bounced off harmlessly, but Milo¡¯s axe did not. The elf grunted as Milo¡¯s axe cut trough the shield and into his hand. The elf tried to counterattack but Milo knocked the spear aside and then brought his face down into his knee. The elf¡¯s nose crunched, and he fell face first into the sand.

    Milo retrieved his axe and then took a few steps back. The elf groaned and then slowly struggled to his feet. The man was done for, and they both knew it. When he spoke, he sounded far away.

    ¡°Some ''fight'' that was, just who are you?¡±

    Milo saw no reason to deny doomed man a final conversation.

    ¡°I''m the champion of a god, and I was one of the best warriors on my world before I came here. Don¡¯t be disappointed, you never stood a chance.¡±

    The elf didn''t look surprised.

    ¡°They say the deals offered by the concordium are always poisoned...¡±

    Milo couldn''t help but ask the obvious question.

    ¡°Was it worth it?¡±

    The elf smiled.

    ¡°Of course, my daughter will live a full and happy life now, in the end that''s all a father can really ask for.¡±

    He took one last look at Milo''s face and then closed his eyes.

    ¡°I''m ready.¡±

    Milo swept his axe around in an arc severing the elf¡¯s head from his body. As far as death went it was the cleanest, he could offer. He felt slightly sick as the stared down at the corpse of his opponent. The man truly hadn¡¯t deserved to die in this place.

    His guilt didn¡¯t stop him from looting the elf. Most of the man¡¯s armour was too tight to fit Milo except for the leg part. He also took the man¡¯s spear and shield

    His next opponent was a clear step up in difficulty. Milo stared at a huge creature which had the upper body of a man attached to a giant horse. The horse part was covered in chainmail while the human part was covered in heavy plate armour. The creature looked at him with obvious curiosity, but Milo wasn¡¯t about to make the mistake of bonding with another opponent. Instead, he threw the elven spear at the centaur¡¯s head. He expected the creature to block the throw with its armoured arms, or the giant greatsword it carried. Instead, it leapt to the side losing track of Milo.

    Milo cast fire sword on his axe and the magically enchanted weapon swept along the ground into the centaur¡¯s front right hoof. The creature clearly expected its armour to halt the blow because it was already preparing a counter strike. Milo¡¯s axe went through armoured hoof as if it were butter and the centaur collapsed with a shriek. Milo drew his dagger and approached the centaur from behind, avoiding the wild swings of its sword. He then bent down and rammed the dagger into the gap between its neck and helmet. The creature kicked one last time and then went perfectly still.

    Milo started looting the corpse and was overjoyed to discovered that many of the plate pieces fit him quite well. It took him a while to get it all on and once he was done, he felt far better about his chances in this tournament. He was now armoured and had finally gotten his hands on his favourite weapon.

    He stepped back and readied himself for his next opponent.

    Another silvery vortex answered his call. And this time Milo threw the elven spear before it even finished manifesting his opponent. He expected the throw to land and so he was quite surprised when his new opponent deflected the spear with a shortsword.

    The newcomer looked like a cross between a lizard and a human female. Her body was covered in scales, and she had a tail and clawed hands. As for armour she wore leather and in her hands she wielded a dagger and a shortsword. His opponent closed her eyes and a moment later her weapons started glowing with a faint green light.

    This was the first opponent who had used magic and Milo felt certain that the increase in difficulty between this lizardwoman and the centaur was huge. She started circling him and Milo responded in kind. Her hunched stance looked awkward and was clearly unique to her people. He tried a few feints which she completely ignored. Then she tried a feint of her own which he in turn ignored. By this point he knew for certain that he was dealing with an experienced fighter.

    They continued circling each other for nearly a minute before his opponent finally launched an attack. Milo was so surprised by her superhuman speed that he nearly lost in the first exchange. Whatever magic the lizardwoman was using was clearly enhancing her speed and reflexes. In fact he could barely keep up. The exchange ended when the lizardwoman landed a shallow cut on his cheek and she retreated.

    She went back to circling him and as she did so she kept looking at the cut on his cheek. Milo finally realised what was happening. She had cut him with a poisoned dagger and was waiting for the poison to take hold. Unfortunately for her hybrids were highly resistant to poison.

    Milo lunged in and launched a vicious series of attacks which ended when he landed a deep cut in her left arm. She looked down at her arm and then frowned at him.

    ¡°My blade is dipped in nightbloom poison, you should be dead long ago.¡±

    Milo launched himself into another attack and the woman was barely able to keep up with him. She clearly realised that she was outmatched because she did something he didn¡¯t expect.

    Rather than attempting to dodge a strike on her left shoulder she leaned into the blow and landed a counter to his own shoulder. Her blade slid trough his armour and Milo felt his entire left arm go dead. His own blow took her arm off at the shoulder and she went down in a shower of blood. She tried to recover with a roll, but Milo finished her off with a thrust.

    He looked down at his shoulder and saw that her dagger had penetrated trough armour, flesh and even bone. His entire left arm was dead, and he had no way to heal it, worse it was bleeding heavily. He looted the elven warrior¡¯s undershirt and used a dagger to tie a crude tourniquet. Unfortunately, he was unable to completely stop the bleeding which meant he was now on a timer.

    With a sigh he started what would undoubtedly be the last fight of this event for him.

    Another vortex came and went depositing a hulking creature with cloven hoofs and the head of a bull. Its massive body rippled with muscles and aside from a breastplate the creature was completely nude. In its hands it held a giant axe. The creature lifted the axe above its head and roared when it passed the axe was covered in a red glow.

    Milo closed his eyes and wisps of shadow and flame sprang up to surround his body. Moments later his body was covered in the exoskeleton of the metamorphosis spell. Then he raised his sword and cast flame sword on it. The minotaur roared and charged him.

    Milo met the charge and tried to deflect the creature axe with his axe. Unfortunately, he had once again made the very same mistake he¡¯d made with Nero during their duel. Milo¡¯s sword was ripped from his grip and the minotaur¡¯s axe severed the limp remains of his left hand. Even though the arm was dead Milo still screamed with pain. Yet that didn¡¯t stop him from counter attacking. He cast flame sword on his right hand and then punched straight trough the minotaur¡¯s chest plate with his clawed hand.

    The minotaur screamed and its eyes blazed with red magic as it lifted Milo up by his throat. Milo¡¯s hand tightened around the minotaur¡¯s entrails, and he squeezed hoping to do enough dmg to kill the creature. Amazingly the minotaur seemed to ignore the fact that Milo had a literal hold on its guts. Milo felt his feet leave the ground and then suddenly found himself flying. He felt his body break as he struck the wall of the arena with enough force to break every bone in his body despite the protection of the magical exoskeleton surrounding him. His mind was full of mud and by the time he managed to open his eyes the metamorphosis spell had run out.

    The part of him still focused on the fight rather than survival was wondering why the minotaur hadn¡¯t finished him off yet. The answer revealed himself when he finally managed to open his left eye. His vision was partially obscured by blood and yet he was still able to make out the fallen minotaur across the arena. The creature was laying on its back and had a giant red hole in its stomach. Milo tried to laugh but only ended up coughing more blood as he realised what had happened. His opponent had committed suicide by throwing him with such tremendous force while he had a hold of its entrails.

    Milo could feel himself fading and knew he was moments away from death. And yet he still wanted to know what his next opponent looked like. He was barely about to rasp out the words.

    ¡°I..i¡¯m rea¡­ready¡­¡±

    Another vortex came and went leaving behind a tall woman in beautiful white armour. Both her armour and the longsword she unsheathed looked magical even to his unpractised and partially obscured eyes. Their eyes met but before she could make a move his consciousness faded into black.

 Chapter 17

    Milo woke to the feeling of slender hands shaking him, he opened his eyes to see Ivy hovering above him.

    ¡°Are you alright?¡±

    She looked genuinely worried, Milo¡¯s eyes went to his left shoulder and saw that it was back in pristine condition. He was also back in his own armour.

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine.¡±

    Ivy helped him up and then offered him a glass of water.

    ¡°How¡¯d it go?¡±

    Milo hesitated before answering.

    ¡°I took down six opponents, but I have no way of knowing if that¡¯s good or not. Although based on the difficulty of my last opponent I¡¯d be amazed if anyone got much further.¡±

    His eyes focused on his surroundings and immediately noticed that the sun was up. Which was weird since it had been setting when he left. He frowned up at the sun and then looked at Ivy.

    ¡°How long was I gone?¡±

    ¡°Around 14 hours I think.¡±

    Milo gaped at her.

    ¡°I was barely there for an hour!¡±

    She shrugged.

    ¡°It is not unusual for time to pass at different rates in other dimensions.¡±

    Milo huffed with annoyance.

    ¡°Feels like something that fish guy from the concordium should¡¯ve told me¡­¡±

    Ivy nodded.

    ¡°Indeed, we we¡¯re lucky nothing happened while you were away, we will need to take this risk into consideration for the next event.¡±

    ¡°Agreed.¡±

    Milo¡¯s eyes swept down to the forest which had undergone quite the transformation in his absence. They¡¯d cleared such a deep path towards Willowford that the workers were barely visible in the distance. Not only had they cleared the forest, but they had used the logs they cut down create something of a road.

    ¡°It will take them three days to connect with the mud road where we found Indra and the others. Once that happens, they will keep going and improve the road that already exists. Haldor hopes that it will be able to support an army on the march within a month.¡±

    By army on the march, she no doubt meant all the supplies an army needed to bring with it to function. Already he had seen how slow the going was with a loaded mule, he couldn¡¯t imagine trying to bring a wagon or carriage through the woods in its current state.

    He was still staring at the forest with a thoughtful look on his face when his vision was once again filled with translucent red text.

    ¡°Congratulations champion, you have defeated six trials, you may now select your rewards.¡±

    A row of six silvery vortices appeared beneath the text. Experimentally he reached out a hand to touch the vortex furthest to the left. As soon as he touched it another field of translucent red text appeard above it.

    For defeating Kark the dread goblin you are hereby awarded 2500 spirit essence and your choice of the following items:

    Name: Full set of steel chainmail

    Description: A full set of steel chainmail.

    Name: Steel greatsword

    Description: A steel greatsword.

    Name: Barrels of grain

    Description: 40 barrels containing a total of 3 tonnes of grain.

    Name: Herd of cattle

    Description: 20 head of cattle (10 cows and 10 bulls).

    By the time he finished reading Milo''s expression had turned sour.

    ¡°Cows? Grain?¡±

    He couldn''t help but sound bitter, these were the great rewards he had been promised for participating in the events? This is what he had killed for? He was glaring at the text when Ivy snapped her fingers in front of his face.

    ¡°What was that about cows and grain?¡±

    He sighed and then read trough the list again, this time out loud. Ivy clearly shared his disappointment, but unlike him she knew what to do.

    ¡°Wait here, I think I know somebody who can help us.¡±

    She shadow blinked away and then returned five minutes later with Indra in tow. The converted woman looked unsure of herself as Ivy explained why she¡¯d brought her.

    ¡°Indra was the wife of a merchant, if anyone knows what is worth selecting it¡¯s her.¡±

    Milo had to admit her logic made sense, Indra had lived in this world all her life and was used to trading. He read the list aloud again.

    He¡¯d expected Indra to need some time to consider the options, but it took Indra all of two seconds to come up with an answer.

    ¡°I¡¯d go with the cattle.¡±

    ¡°You sound very certain, care to explain why?¡±

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    Indra looked much more comfortable, and it was clear that she was now in her element.

    ¡°Grain is a finite resource, it will never grow unless we have fields to plant them in, which we currently do not. A herd of cattle on the other hand can multiply assuming you have the time and food to make it happen, which we do. They also provide milk and can be slaughtered for meat if we ever lack for food in an emergency.¡±

    As far as explanations went Milo thought that was a pretty good one. He looked to Ivy for her opinion but she merely shrugged.

    Milo tapped the section of text with the cattle and a few seconds later a giant vortex appeared. When it vanished, it left behind twenty mooing cows. The beasts looked mildly panicked by the sudden change in their surroundings.

    Milo decided to move on to the next vortex. He tapped it and a new field of translucent text popped up. He read it aloud.

    For defeating Gergorsh the mauler you are hereby awarded 5000 spirit essence and your choice of the following items:

    Name: Demonsteel plate armour

    Description: A full set of demonsteel plate armour.

    Name: Demonsteel greatsword

    Description: A demonsteel greatsword

    Name: Armoured warhorse

    Description: A trained warhorse armoured in demonsteel chainmail.

    Name: Demonsteel ring of nourishment

    Description: This ring allows its wearer to summon a single loaf of bread every 12 hours.

    ¡°First cattle, and now rings that summon bread, where are all the magical items? Hell, I''d even take a higher amount of spirit essence alone rather than this nonsense.¡±

    This time it was Ivy who replied.

    ¡°I think you underestimate the value of demonsteel.¡±

    Milo made a motion with his hand for her to go on.

    ¡°Demonsteel might be standard issue for hybrids back in Lilith¡¯s realm but that does not mean it¡¯s weak. It can hold elemental enchantments based on shadow and fire, and it just happens that we have the third best enchanter in Lilith¡¯s realm right here in this base.¡±

    Milo looked back up at the small settlement.

    ¡°You¡¯re saying Lizbeth can enchant the sword if I choose that?¡±

    ¡°Indeed.¡±

    With a sigh Milo selected the sword, a few seconds later a sheathed greatsword made of black metal clanged against the rocky ground. He picked it up and the moved to the next vortex.

    ¡°Please no more cows or bread rings, let¡¯s see some of the good stuff¡­¡±

    A new field of text appeared:

    For defeating Eldrid the valiant you are hereby awarded 10 000 spirit essence and your choice of the following items:

    Name: Truesteel necklace of spirit

    Description: The wearer of this necklace gains 500 spirit essence every 24 hours.

    Name: Truesteel crown of domination

    Description: This crown can be used to dominate most animals and other non-sentient beings.

    Name: Knowledge crystal (Fire shield)

    Description: This crystal teaches the user the spell ¡®fire shield¡¯ this spell conjures a static sphere of protective fire around the caster

    Name: 2 Truesteel ring of whispers

    Description: These rings allow their wearers to communicate with each other for 15 minutes every 12 hours.

    Things were finally looking up. The necklace which generated spirit essence would¡¯ve been amazing on his first day, but he felt it had already become obsolete at this point. The crown sounded more useful, but it wasn¡¯t really what he needed to conquer the world. No what really interested him was the knowledge crystal that would teach him a spell and the magical walkie talkie rings.

    He looked at Ivy and then at Indra.

    Ivy was the first to speak.

    ¡°That knowledge crystal is tempting but they only work for one use. I¡¯m not sure how useful a static shield would be for a fighter like yourself. Those rings on the other hand¡­¡±

    Indra picked up where Ivy had left off.

    ¡°Are extremely valuable. I¡¯ve heard of such items and but never seen them in person. If you were to take them to Ferdor for instance you could demand your bodyweight in gold for them and nobody would laugh at you.¡±

    Milo added his own thoughts on the rings.

    ¡°I could send one to Laurel and use them to stay in touch with Willowford.¡±

    It was obvious that all three of them were in agreement and Milo selected the rings. He held out his hand beneath the vortex and as soon as he selected the rings a pair of silver rings with an identical blue stone dropped into his waiting hands. He was tempted to find out how they worked but they would have time for that later, he pocketed the rings and then moved to the next vortex.

    For defeating Marieh, blade of the marshes, you are hereby awarded 20 000 spirit essence and your choice of the following items:

    Name: Mithril greatsword of immolation

    Description: This mithril greatsword allows the wielder to use fire magic on it without depleting their reserves.

    Name: Boots of jumping

    Description: These boots were crafted from the hide of a wyvern and have been enchanted with a double jump enchantment which allows the wearer to jump twice as high as normal.

    Name: Ring of travel

    Description: This ring allows its wearer to mark a spot once every 24 hours. The wearer can activate this ring

    to return to the marked location until a new location is set.

    Name: Amulet of metamorphosis

    Description: This amulet greatly reduces the cost to your reserves and focus required to maintain the metamorphosis spell.

    By the time Milo finished reading the text to himself his grin was so wide it could probably be seen from outer space.

    Ivy whistled.

    ¡°Well, that¡¯s certainly a jump upwards in quality¡­¡±

    Milo didn¡¯t even need to discuss this one, he already knew what to pick. He selected his choice and a fell seconds later a black necklace fell into his waiting hand. A large red ruby served as the focal point of the necklace and Milo immediately put it on. He activated the metamorphosis spell. The result was impressive to say the least. The spell took about half the time to activate, and Milo could clearly feel that the huge drain the spell usually put on his reserves was much lighter. Her estimated that he could probably keep the spell going for fifteen minutes with the amulet.

    Satisfied with his new trinket Milo deactivated the spell and moved onto the last vortex. This one was different from the rest and had a slight golden sheen to it. He tapped it.

    Congratulation¡¯s champion! As the sole participant who defeated the sixth trial the concordium declares you the winner of the Arena trial event. You have earned the following rewards:

    250 000 spirit essence

    Exclusive access to a unique reward which will start one month from now.

    And your choice of the following:

    Name: Sapphir

    Description: A dragonsteel greatsword forged by the great dwarven king Herek Starhammer by using the scales of a sapphire dragon. Sapphire dragons are also widely known as mana dragons due to their strong connection to magic. This sword can be attuned to any magical element. Once the sword is attuned it will greatly increase the holder¡¯s potency with said element.

    This item is soulbound to Milo Harper and may only be summoned and used by him.

    Name: Black tower

    Description: The black tower is home to a powerful archmage who specialises in fire and shadow magic. The archmage is bound to serve the ruler of the city in which their tower resides. The archmage will also provide a random knowledge crystal in tribute to their ruler once every month.

    Name: Egg of the ruby dragon

    Description: This egg contains the last living ruby dragon on Archeu and has been preserved in magical stasis for hundreds of years. Accepting this reward will bind your faction to the ruby dragon line forever. Once accepted the egg will be brought out of stasis to continue its normal hatching cycle. Estimated time until egg hatches: 2 months.

    Name: Champion''s crown

    Description: This crown allows its wearer to access and use summoning lists anywhere on Archeus without penalties or restrictions. This item is Soulbound to Milo Harper and may only be summoned and used by him.

    By the time he finished reading both Ivy and Indra were gaping at him. If the previous set of rewards had been an upwards leap, then this was a rocketship heading for the moon. Even just the 250 000 spirit essence by itself would¡¯ve been a fair reward for winning the event in his opinion. But it was clear that the spirit essence might just be an afterthought compared to the other rewards. He was waiting for Ivy or Indra to weigh in but the first was deep in thought and the second looked shocked.

    He waited patiently for Ivy to finish thinking. This choice could determine the rest of the contest, and he didn¡¯t want to screw it up. Finally, she nodded to herself.

    ¡°I¡¯d go with the crown.¡±

    ¡°Care to explain your thinking?¡±

    ¡°Right now, we have to return to this settlement every time we want to summon troops and other things we need. Spirit essence can only be used in our domain but imagine the tactical implications of this crown. You could summon an army anywhere on the planet. As soon as you get within the walls of any settlement the fight would be over.¡±

    Milo had to admit she was making a lot of sense, yet something about the list was bothering him.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you think this list is strange? The sword, crown and the tower all have very obvious, very powerful uses. And yet one of these things is not like the others.¡±

    Ivy caught on at once.

    ¡°The egg.¡±

    He nodded.

    ¡°It¡¯s supposed to be a reward on level with the others and yet it almost sounds more like an obligation and a responsibility. Which makes me think the true value of the egg is hidden.¡±

    Indra clearly agreed because she was nodding along with words.

    ¡°I agree, and so the choice comes down to this, are you willing to gamble on an uncertain reward?¡±

    Milo was almost tempted, the egg offered a clue and was obviously part of a compelling mystery which might offer fantastic rewards in the future. For that he was willing to give up a spellcasters wet dream of a sword and a tower that produced knowledge crystals every month. The crown on the other hand¡­

    With a heavy sigh and a slight feeling of regret he gave up on mystery and instead made the responsible choice. A black crown fell into his waiting hand. He turned the crown over in his hands studying it. The bottom of the crown was set with small rubies, but what really drew the eye was the giant perfectly cut blood red ruby which served as the crowns centre piece. The entire thing practically radiated magic.

    He tipped the crown up and put it on his head.

    ¡°How do I look?¡±

    Ivy snorted.

    ¡°Like a man who would really rather be wearing a helmet.¡±

    He sighed and then turned to face the settlement.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go find Haldor, we have a lot of spirit essence to spend, and I have a feeling he¡¯s going to have some ideas about how to do it.¡±

 Chapter 18

    ¡°303 500¡­ how?¡±

    Milo had found his general in Crystal¡¯s house, the man had been carving a wooden toy for an eager Elise when they entered. The first thing the general had asked him when Milo asked him for help was how much spirit essence they had to work with. Judging by his wide eyes Haldor hadn¡¯t expected to be working with such a vast quantity so quickly.

    ¡°The event was every bit as perfect for me as we had hoped, so perfect that I suspect it might have been designed by Lilith.¡±

    Haldor asked him to pull up all the summoning lists so that he could get an overview. Milo did as he asked and read them out loud. This time it took the general far longer to come up with a plan. But when he finally did, he rose with certainty.

    ¡°We need to move everyone out of the valley.¡±

    Milo understood what his general wanted and within minutes they were going from house to house telling everyone to move down the valley. The small evacuation took only ten minutes to complete.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s begin with the demonic keep.¡±

    Milo nodded and then bought the keep. A few seconds later his vision was flooded with translucent red lines which covered half the valley. A huge wall surrounded by a moat blocked off the bottom half of the valley and a small keep was now located above the altar. One look at the starting position of the keep made him certain that Lilith had placed the altar in the perfect position to be protected by the keep. He decided not to mess with the strategy of a goddess and instead confirmed the keep¡¯s position.

    A giant vortex sprang up and enveloped half the mountain. This time Milo was inside the vortex and could therefore see what was happening. The translucent red lines were being gradually replaced with real material. Usually, the process took only a few seconds but this time it took nearly half a minute.

    Crystal, Indra, Nelly, Elise and Tim were all staring at demonic keep with wide eyes. The hybrids on the other hand had clearly seen a demonic keep before.

    As a group they walked up to the moat which was currently empty. The drawbridge was down, and Milo entered first followed shortly by the rest. The ground which had previously been covered by uneven black rock had been replaced by perfectly carved cobblestones. The space between the outer wall and the keep was completely empty aside from the six houses which had been relocated to hug the inner wall.

    They continued inward to the keep which contained everything a population as small as theirs could possibly need. There were bedrooms for several hundred people, a kitchen, a throne room. However, the most important feature of the keep was the narrow spiral stairway which led down to a narrow passage which culminated in a locked door. The passage was so narrow that a handful of guards could probably hold back a force ten times their size. Behind the door was Lilith¡¯s altar.

    Once they finished the tour, they returned to the courtyard of the inner keep to finish their spending spree.

    ¡°When you said that Willowford needed a garrison my initial plan was to send them 50 demon soldiers lead by an elder demon and a member of my order.¡±

    ¡°Sounds reasonable.¡±

    Haldor shook his head.

    ¡°It was back when we had limited funds, but now I think we can do better. The demons are foreign and even your new subjects who have lived here for three days are uneasy around them. I suggest that we send a garrison force consisting of only hybrid¡¯s to Willowford. Once we¡¯ve strengthened our hold on the town, we will get them used to pure blooded demons by introducing them to the workers. The workers would help around town and in the fields for free, once they¡¯re accepted, we can start building fortifications.¡±

    Milo¡¯s face drew into a smile.

    ¡°I agree with your assessment; the garrison should consist of hybrids only. But there¡¯s no need to wait with fortifications.¡±

    He tapped the crown on his head.

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    ¡°This allows me to summon anything anywhere, I will use it to summon a marble wall with towers. It will cost us 10 000 spirit essence, but Willowford will be far more secure.¡±

    Haldor studied the crown closely, but it was Lizbeth who commented on his crown.

    ¡°It¡¯s radiating magic nearly on par with the enchanted items Lilith wears into war. You better make sure you don¡¯t lose that, if another champion get¡¯s their hands on it¡­¡±

    ¡°They won¡¯t, it¡¯s soulbound to me.¡±

    Lizbeth looked genuinely surprised.

    ¡°Incredible¡­¡±

    She clearly wanted to drool over it so Milo handed her the crown for inspection while he moved the conversation back on topic.

    ¡°So, fifty hybrids for Willowford, what order should we take them from?¡±

    ¡°Five from the order of war, twenty-five from the order of warriors, fifteen shadow stalkers and five elementalists.¡±

    Milo merely nodded and summoned the troops exactly as Haldor had told him to.

    A few seconds later the courtyard was filled with hybrids. Judging by their surprised expressions they clearly hadn¡¯t expected to be summoned this early in the contest. Milo considered introducing himself but decided to wait for the summoning session to finish.

    Haldor clearly shared his thoughts because he went on.

    ¡°Now that this settlement is visible from deep into the forest, we will need a garrison capable of defending it while you are away. I suggest we summon another fifty shadow stalkers, and twenty-five elementalists, twenty warriors, five leaders as well as the order master of the shadow stalkers, elementalists and the order of war.

    Milo was nodding along until the last part.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know about those last three Haldor, they¡¯re Lilith¡¯s chosen¡­¡±

    Haldor looked to Ivy and the shadow stalker shook her head.

    ¡°It¡¯s too early, we don¡¯t need Seti and Beldan butting heads with our champion about the best course of action. I suggest we summon the master of my order but not the other two, not yet.¡±

    Milo made no effort to hide the scepticism he felt at her statement. He¡¯d seen Ivy¡¯s order master around back in Lilith¡¯s realm. The woman was usually quiet as a mouse unless Lilith gave her orders, and she also had a strange eye coloration with one eye being blood red with the other being pale red.

    ¡°You think your order master will take orders from me without complaining?¡±

    ¡°No, but she will if I tell her to.¡±

    Milo looked at Haldor and the general gave a reluctant nod of agreement.

    ¡°The two of them are as close as sisters, Lily would never go against Ivy. Besides, out of all the order masters she might be the most useful for our current situation.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    Haldor waved a hand at the endless forest.

    ¡°We know very little about the area which surrounds us, the forest is largely unexplored, as is the mountain we cling to. If we give Lily twenty shadow stalkers she could find all there is to find and warn us about any potential threats we need to prepare for.¡±

    Milo held up his hands in surrender.

    ¡°Fine, let¡¯s do it.¡±

    He summoned the exact list Haldor had come up with minus Beldan and Seti. Once again, the number of hybrid¡¯s grew.

    ¡°Is that it?¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯d also like another two hundred workers, a pair of elder demons to guard the altar. Fifty soldiers to guard the wall as sentries and weapons and supplies for all the hybrids.¡±

    With a sigh Milo kept summoning until they were left with only 13k spirit essence. Haldor looked happy to finally be in command of a true army, no matter the cost. He urged Milo on with smile.

    ¡°Excellent, now I do believe it¡¯s time to address your new troops.¡±

    The hybrids had been watching him in silence ever since their arrival in waves. Only a few of them had ever seen him before during his duel with Nero, those who hadn¡¯t weren¡¯t nearly as respectful as those who had. Many of the warriors were giving him hostile looks which seemed to accuse him of being unworthy.

    Milo cleared his throat.

    ¡°My name is Milo Harper, champion of Lilith. Welcome to Archeus!¡±

    No cheer rose to greet his welcome, hybrids truly were a cold and brutal people. He went on.

    ¡°You have been summoned here today for three tasks, some of you will guard our first conquest to make sure it stays ours. Some of you will defend this keep against any threat which might arise. And the rest will scout and map this entire region. Now you all report to my general, he will give you your assignments.¡±

    The only one who moved from the crowd was a woman with mismatching eyes. She shadow blinked over to Ivy and embraced her in a hug that looked genuine. For a moment Milo thought things might work out but then one of the warriors stepped forward. The man drew his sword and pointed it at Milo.

    ¡°I am Herbor, and I don¡¯t recognise your authority to command us!¡±

    Milo looked at Ivy, but she merely shrugged as if to say, ¡°this is to be expected¡±.

    Milo approached the man and as he did, so the man cast fire sword. Milo didn¡¯t even bother drawing his weapon, he simply stared at the would-be mutineer.

    ¡°I¡¯d reconsider if I were you, I don¡¯t react well to threats.¡±

    The man responded by lunging at him with his sword extended. Milo slapped the blade aside and deliver a crushing blow to the man¡¯s windpipe. His opponent went down in a heap clutching at his crushed throat as he made gurgling sounds.

    Another warrior leapt for Milo, and he kicked the man¡¯s sword up before slapping him across the face. When the man rose with fury in his eyes Milo felt something within him activate. Suddenly the rising man went slack and dropped the dagger he had drawn as if he was a puppet whose strings had just been cut.

    Milo stared down at the slack faced warrior with confusion. He looked back at Ivy and saw that both she and Lily were looking at him with shock on their faces. However, it was Lizbeth who took it upon herself to explain what had just happened. She placed his crown back on his head and then looked down at the slack faced warrior.

    ¡°It seems you¡¯ve inherited yet another of Lilith¡¯s potent abilities, the eyes of command.¡±

    ¡°What¡­¡±

    ¡°It allows you to fully control hybrids and pure-blooded demons. It won¡¯t work on any of Lilith¡¯s true children such as Seti and Ivy, but for me and this lot you could take total control and force us to do anything you like.¡±

    She spoke so casually about this new ability to brainwash his followers on demand. He looked down at the slack faced man and tried deactivating whatever he had done but no matter how hard he tried the man refused to go back to normal. Lizbeth pointed at the helpless hybrid.

    ¡°I suggest you give him a command, or he will simply sit there until he dies.¡±

    Unsure of what to do Milo gave the only order he could think of.

    ¡°Defend the altar of Lilith.¡±

    The slack faced man rose to his feet, dusted himself off and then turned on his heel and walked towards the keep. He was given a wide berth by the other hybrid¡¯s as he walked trough them, a living reminder of what might happen to them should they disobey.

    Milo¡¯s gaze was drawn to the hybrid whose throat he¡¯d crushed. The man¡¯s face had gone purple.

    ¡°Heal him.¡±

    Lizbeth inclined her head and bent to carry out her task.

    When Milo looked back at the gathered hybrids all traces of hostility and uncertainty had been replaced by a new and unfamiliar expression, fear.

 Chapter 19

    Hel¡¯kesh, chieftain of the red tooth clan woke to the sound of feet moving through the grass. He had always been a light sleeper, a side effect of the rampant paranoia he had been afflicted with ever since killing the former chieftain. A female entered the tent and froze as his dagger kissed her throat.

    The female paled as several drops of blood ran down her fur. Hel¡¯kesh withdrew the dagger once he recognised his ¡®attacker¡¯ as one of the females who sometimes warmed his bed. His mouth opened in a displeased snarl.

    ¡°You dare enter my tent without permission?¡±

    The terrified female pointed a shaking finger over her shoulder. A large satyr wearing a chainmail vest and plate gloves stood in the opening. Hel¡¯kesh shoved the terrified female to the ground and then growled at the figure.

    ¡°What do you want, son?¡±

    Opal¡¯kesh, second of his sons lowered his head slightly in a sign of submission before replying.

    ¡°The scouts have returned, chieftain, I think you will want to judge their words for yourself.¡±

    Hel¡¯kesh frowned at his son. Opal¡¯kesh had been third in rank in their tribe until, Ilay¡¯kesh, his first born, had disappeared three days ago. Now that he was second in rank, he was expected to rule the clan in his father¡¯s absence, such as when he slept. Him choosing to wake his father and thus give up power could only mean one thing, they¡¯d found Ilay¡¯kesh.

    Hel¡¯kesh followed his son to a campfire where three satyrs were busy eating their fill. He recognised them as the scouting party he had sent out three days ago to look for a raiding party lead by his fourth son. The satyr scouts shot to their feet once they saw him. Hel¡¯kesh face darkened as he saw the charred hand of a dead human fall to the ground. Food for their tribe had been scarce of late and such waste could not be tolerated.

    He glanced sideways at Opal¡¯kesh and his son didn¡¯t miss a beat, he ordered a nearby warrior to take the scout who¡¯d dropped the hand for a lashing.

    Hel¡¯kesh looked at the taller of the two remaining scouts.

    ¡°Speak.¡±

    The satyr looked nervous which likely meant the news was bad. Afraid he might end up being blamed for the bad news the satyr assumed a submissive pose as he made his report.

    ¡°We managed to track down the scent of Ilay¡¯kesh and his raiding party to a place several days northeast. When we arrived, we found several human made wagons and carriages which had been abandoned. We also found the charred remains of several humans and satyr. It was my belief that Ilay¡¯kesh had attacked a trading caravan and was enjoying the spoils of his victory when he was attacked by a superior force.¡±

    Hel¡¯kesh¡¯s growled.

    ¡°Are you telling me that my son and his entire raiding party was slain!?¡±

    The satyr who¡¯d spoke fell to his knees and put his head against the ground. And when he spoke, his voice was had taken on the whine of a female. It was the ultimate show of submission and one the satyr was unlikely to recover from anytime soon.

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    ¡°Yes chieftain, I could not find the scent of any living satyrs in the area, only the stale scent of satyr blood.¡±

    Hel¡¯kesh¡¯s eyes blazed with sudden magical power as he inadvertently activated his tribal magic. The power had been gift bought with the life of his first-born son so many years ago from the strange scentless being which had come from the strange clan known as the ¡®concordium¡¯. It was also the power he had used to slay the former chieftain and any challengers to his rule since that day.

    ¡°Where did the scent of our fallen kin lead you?!¡±

    ¡°We followed the scent back to the place where the prey lives within their wooden walls.¡±

    Hel¡¯kesh¡¯s murderous glare morphed into a confused frown. He knew very well which town his scout was speaking of. It was part of a large kingdom they occasionally skirmished with. But as far as he knew this particular town didn¡¯t have more than a handful of warriors they could call upon. They had never once followed any of the raiding parties he sent to test the town and its defences. Clearly something had changed.

    ¡°How can you be certain these humans slew Ilay¡¯kesh?¡±

    The satyr gulped audibly and did his best to remain submissive as he delivered the horrible news he carried.

    ¡°When we reached the edge of the forest we found a row of spiked heads, one of the heads bore the scent of Ilay¡¯kesh.¡±

    Hel¡¯kesh howled loud enough to send nearby birds flying into the air. His magic responded to his rage and lashed out to destroy the scout. By the time his howl ended the scout¡¯s body had been reduced to a bloody mess of bones and flesh.

    Hel¡¯kesh whirled upon his son and the other satyr took several steps back in alarm.

    ¡°Gather the clan! We strike at once!¡±

    His son¡¯s eyes went wide.

    ¡°The entire clan? Even the females and the pups?¡±

    ¡°They will follow in our wake, once we eradicate the humans they will share in the feast and our numbers will grow yet again.¡±

    The satyr¡¯s face twisted into a grin and within the hour several thousand satyrs began moving towards Willowford.

    Milo was trying and failing to look confident as he struggled to control his new horse. The beast was one of a handful Haldor had demanded for every leader in their new army. What he had failed to mention however was that breed of warhorse native to Lilith¡¯s realm was famous for their poor temper.

    Ivy snickered as she watched him struggle.

    ¡°I thought you said you knew how to ride a horse.¡±

    Milo glared at her. It wasn¡¯t like he had lied to impress her, he truly did know how to ride a horse, or at least he thought he did.

    ¡°I went on a holiday to Iceland a few years ago, they had these short horses they would use to teach tourists how to ride. I assumed the skills I learned back then were transferable to a warhorse¡­¡±

    Ivy leaned forward and stroked the side of her horse¡¯s head, then she produced an apple which the beast happily gobbled up. She clearly had a way with the animals.

    ¡°Will you teach me?¡±

    Ivy was only too happy to oblige him. He felt a bit silly taking horse riding lessons in front of fifty hybrids who were watching his every move as if he were some sort of evil emperor. Ever since he had used his new brainwashing ability not a single hybrid had even dared to speak out of turn. Only Lizbeth, Haldor and Ivy were still treating him as normal which was why he had brought the latter two with him on his return journey to Willowford although neither strictly needed to come. As for Ivy¡¯s master, the newly arrived Lily, she had given Milo the stink eye before taking her small force of twenty shadow stalkers in hand and vanishing. According to Ivy her master was already busy mapping the region.

    As Ivy taught him the finer points of horsemanship Milo found himself wondering how the people of Willowford would react to the arrival of his little army. He expected lukewarm welcome but foresaw that once he provided their town with a proper wall, they might change their minds, at least that was his hope. And if all that failed, he had also brought along the notorious Rosanna. The curvy elementalist had reacted poorly when Haldor had refused to give her one of the horses and she was currently alternating between glaring at Ivy and Haldor.

    Once again, the journey between their settlement and Willowford seemed like it would go off without a problem. That was until one of the shadow stalkers returned with an arrow in her back on a bloody horse. The woman was one of the scouts Ivy had sent ahead, she collapsed off her horse the moment she reached them.

    Haldor immediately took charge of the situation and started bellowing orders.

    ¡°Warriors to vanguard position! Elementalists to the rear! Rosanna with me!¡±

    Rosanna looked like she might refuse but one look from Milo changed her mind. She rushed forward and started tending to the wounded scout. Haldor didn¡¯t wait for the healing to finish.

    ¡°Report!¡±

    The scout groaned with pain and her voice was weak.

    ¡°Large band of satyr raiders, several thousand strong, they ambushed me just outside Willowford. The town is on fire, I think it¡¯s under attack.¡±

    Haldor rose to his feet and locked eyes with Milo. They were about thirty minutes away from Willowford at best speed. Haldor voiced the cold question Milo didn¡¯t want to ask aloud.

    ¡°The town might already be wiped out by the time we get there, do we turn around?¡±

    Milo looked back at their little army. It was a potent force to be sure, but was it enough to take on what sounded like every satyr in the forest?

    ¡°Can we take them if we get there in time?¡±

    ¡°If this force was all we had at our disposal? Probably not, but your crown opens additional options.¡±

    They had just 13 000 spirit essence left, enough to summon 13 hybrids or 52 demon soldiers. Probably not enough to turn the tide, but they would also be earning spirit essence with every satyr they slew. If they could keep the army from collapsing, he could keep reinforcements coming indefinitely. The longer the fight lasted the more certain their victory would be.

    Milo made his decision and spent every shred of spirit essence left to double their numbers.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do this.¡±

 Chapter 20

    Laurel¡¯s eyes stung from the smoke as she tried to make out how the battle was going. The satyr raid had caught them completely by surprise and by the time the militia could gather half the town was already on fire. She¡¯d done her best to organise the defence by barricading the town square with upturned wagons, tables and chairs. But it was too little too late.

    If it hadn¡¯t been for Turial and Turiel the defences would¡¯ve already failed. Her two hybrid bodyguards were everywhere, every time a breech occurred one of them would cut his way trough the satyrs with a flaming sword until the breech could be closed by the clumsy militia. For a while it had looked like they might win the battle, then a giant satyr with grey fur had joined the fray. The creature had used its magic to maim Turiel and the hybrid was now missing an arm, the only thing which had saved him from bleeding out was that he had cauterised the wound with his own flaming sword spell. As for Turial, he been sent flying into one of the burning houses and had never returned.

    All that was standing between the civilians, and the grey furred satyr was a thinning line of milita wielding pitchforks and wooden spears. Laurel was no military genius, but she knew that was soon as the gravely wounded Turiel fell it would all be over. Already many of the satyrs had broken away to feast on the burned bodies of townspeople. This fight was over and both sides knew it. Laurel felt bitter resentment building in her chest as she thought of their new supposed protector, Milo the champion. The man had promised to return with soldiers, but even if he kept his word, he would be too late.

    Turiel roared and Laurel watched as he once again tried to bring down the satyr leader. The monster seemed to be enjoying itself as it played with their valiant defender. After a while it grew bored and Turiel was knocked away, Laurel waited for their champion to rise but Turiel remained still, either unconscious or dead.

    The civilians gathered around her started crying as they finally gave up. Laurel drew her dagger and was trying to decide between killing herself or trying to kill a satyr when a satyr suddenly went flying above the barricade. The satyr leader followed the trajectory of the flying satyr and then whirled around. The creature barked something and then abandoned its assault. Immediately what little remained of the militia plugged the breech.

    Laurel approached the barricade and despite Jack the guard captain pulling at her sleeve she climbed up to get a better look. What she saw filled her chest with hope. There at the end of the street was a new force of monsters as well as men and women with pale red eyes, the force was led by a giant in strange black stony armour. The giant looked monstrous and yet it was killing satyrs with every slash of its black sword.

    The satyr leader roared a challenge and both forces drew back. Laurel watched as the black giant walked forward to meet the grey furred satyr. Once they were a few meters away they both charged. The giant fought with blinding speed and elegance and even laurel who knew next to nothing about swordsmanship was impressed by his fluid movement. The satyr was no match for him, or at least that was how it seemed until magic suddenly erupted from its body, sending the giant flying into a burning building.

    Laurel¡¯s hope suddenly vanished as the grey satyr roared its victory. But for some reason none of the people who had come with the black giant seemed that concerned. A few seconds later the giant came walking trough the fire as if he couldn¡¯t feel it. Then he lunged and started slashing at the grey satyr with such speed that its entire body was soon covered in wounds. Realising that it had lost the creature roared and its army tried to break up the duel, but the black giant was unmovable. Every satyr that tried to strike him was cut down within moments of getting in range. The grey satyr was trying to crawl away, but the black giant refused to give up on its prey. Finally, it kicked one of the fallen spears a satyr had tried to run him trough with and threw it at the grey satyr. A cheer went up from the black giant¡¯s army as well as Willowford¡¯s militia. The grey satyr might be tough, but it hadn¡¯t survived a spear trough its neck.

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    Once again the black giants army surged forward and the satyr were now caught between Willowford¡¯s barrickades and the army. As she watched, the black giants shell vanished and revealed the man beneath. Laurel cheered with the rest as Milo Harper raised his hands in victory.

    Milo could barely keep his sword aloft as he watched his forces butcher what remained of the main satyr force. Despite his new amulet the metamorphosis spell had drained him completely dry as he had fought his way into the town and then duelled the leader. By the time he finally finished the creature off both his body and mind had been exhausted.

    Haldor took up position next to him.

    ¡°It¡¯s done, our forces are cleaning up what remains. Ivy and her shadow stalkers will track down those who flee. With your permission I will send our elementalists to heal what remains of Willowford¡¯s population.¡±

    Milo had seen Laurel atop the barricade, but he had no idea how many still remained alive. But Haldor probably did.

    ¡°How many did they lose?¡±

    Haldor sounded impressed when he answered.

    ¡°If the report I got from Ivy is accurate then they¡¯ve lost about a third of their population. Which considering the force they were up against I consider a miracle.¡±

    ¡°And our army?¡±

    ¡°About 43 demons and 11 hybrids, but as you know our force is larger than when we started thanks to that crown on your head.¡±

    It had been a close thing in the beginning when they¡¯d encountered the satyr rearguard which had been nearly a thousand strong. A significant portion had been archers and only their elementalists had kept his force from being wiped out in the initial charge. Milo still remembered the static walls of fire the elementalist had conjured above their army as it charged. The fighting that followed had been vicious and savage, but Haldor¡¯s prediction had proven accurate. Every time one of his warriors went down, he would simply summon two more to take his or her place.

    If it hadn¡¯t been for the time limit imposed on them by the Milita¡¯s desperate last stand they probably could¡¯ve gotten away with half the losses. But once Ivy had returned with news that a significant portion of Willowford¡¯s populace was alive and holding Milo had overridden Haldor and ordered a breakthrough charge. He''d led the effort himself after casting the metamorphosis spell.

    Milo waited for the last of the satyrs to be cut down before walking over to the barricade which was already being dismantled. Once he entered the square, he was greeted by wild cheering despite the losses the townspeople had suffered. Laurel herself was kneeling above a pair of unmoving bodies. Milo approached and recognised Turiel and Turial, they were both dead. When she looked up at him her face was filled with tears but there was no anger or blame there.

    ¡°Thank you for saving us.¡±

    Milo nodded at the dead twins.

    ¡°How¡¯d they die?¡±

    Laurel wiped her eyes and stood back up.

    ¡°They¡¯re the only reason we held long enough to be rescued, they went down fighting that grey furred monster you killed, it knew magic.¡±

    The burst of magic which had thrown him into a nearby building had certainly surprised him even if the damage it had done was minimal thanks to the rock-hard exoskeleton which surrounded him. Speaking of which, one of the townspeople had already taken it upon himself to cut off the grey furred satyr¡¯s head and was parading it around on a spear. He was watching the man parade around when Ivy returned to his side in a pop of shadow magic.

    Her leather armour had been liberally splashed with blood in places but as far as he could tell none of it was her own. Since Haldor was busy directing his forces to put out the fires Milo took it upon himself to play the role of general.

    ¡°Report.¡±

    ¡°We followed a small group of fleeing satyrs back into the woods, there are thousands more of them.¡±

    Milo cursed and was about to call for Haldor when Ivy cut him off.

    ¡°They¡¯re not warriors, from what I could tell most of these satyrs are smaller and thinner than the ones we fought here, there are also children. I believe this group mainly consists of their females and offspring.¡±

    She was watching him closely now, and he had a feeling she expected him to announce that women and children were noncombatants. If that was what she expected she was in for a surprise.

    ¡°These monsters are anathema to civilisation, it doesn¡¯t matter that they are children, a monster is a monster. We will not dishonour Willowford¡¯s fallen by letting these creatures escape so they can recover and do this all again in a few years. This ends now.¡±

    Ivy¡¯s face drew into a smile and Laurel looked at him with true respect. There was not a hint of pity in either woman for the satyr race.

    Within half an hour their entire army, now 300 strong was pouring trough the woods cutting down every satyr in their path. By the time the sun went down the woods were quiet, and the ground was soaked with satyr blood.

 Chapter 21

    The final tally after what was now being referred to as ¡®the great battle of Willowford¡¯ by the survivors was both uplifting and depressive as hell.

    402 people were dead with a majority of these being the men who were of military age and had joined the shabby militia. Still the satyr had slaughtered women, children, animals and men alike, often stopping to feed on their victims. Seeing the burned and half consumed body of a human child had completely erased any shred of guilt Milo might have felt about wiping the satyr clan out down to the last child.

    On a positive note, the battle had left him with 203 000 spirit essence even after all the troops he had summoned. Unfortunately, a large portion of this had to be invested in the final phase of his plan to make Willowford and its people his forever.

    A week had passed since the battle and the people of Willowford helped by demon workers were still clearing burned buildings and digging graves. But for every building they cleared Milo would summon a brand-new wooden house to take its place. So far, he had summoned a little over 200 as well as the brand spanking new marble wall which now protected the town.

    Many a hybrid had wondered what he was still doing in the town, but they didn¡¯t know about Ivy¡¯s plan. After the battle she had assessed the town and its people and determined that they were so far into his pocket that they were on the verge of willingly converting. With his troops in place and his status as the town¡¯s saviour he certainly could¡¯ve pushed the issue. Instead, Ivy had decided to rebuild the town so that the people would come asking to join the faction. The first conversion had taken place the very first night and since then a steady stream had been coming each day after rumours started spreading about the long lifespan and other benefits it offered.

    By the end of the week only a handful of people remained unconverted. Rather than going after this handful of holdouts Ivy decided they¡¯d gotten what they came for. They left a garrison of fifty hybrids and a a few hundred demon soldiers under the command of one of Haldor¡¯s favourite commanders, a hybrid by the name of Gurd. They also left behind one half of the communication rings he¡¯d gotten from the event so that Gurd could report any problems. The final and most satisfying thing they left behind was Rosanna.

    ¡°You can¡¯t leave me here in this backwater town!¡±

    Milo stared at her and for a moment considered activating the eyes of command ability. Rosanna must¡¯ve guessed as much because she suddenly paled when he simply kept staring at her. With a theatrical sigh he broke the silence.

    ¡°Turiel and Turial are dead, Laurel needs a new bodyguard, that¡¯s you.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not a bodyguard!¡±

    Ivy decided to join the fray.

    ¡°You¡¯re telling me that you don¡¯t want to be a close confidant of the most important governor in our domain?¡±

    Milo joined in.

    ¡°Just think about it Rosanna, you will be the second most important person in the most important town. Whispering in her ear day in day out, just imagine what someone like you could accomplish.¡±

    The curvy elementalist looked thoughtful and then nodded.

    ¡°I won¡¯t disappoint you.¡±

    Ivy rolled her eyes and murmured under her breath.

    ¡°Impossible, I¡¯ll be happy as long as your somewhere out of the way where you can¡¯t do any damage¡­¡±

    They rode out of the town followed by their 30-person strong escort of shadow stalkers and warriors. He¡¯d initially protested against such a large force following him around before Haldor had pointed out that if he had been killed in a satyr ambush Willowford would¡¯ve fallen.

    About halfway home they came across the first portion of demon workers. These workers were going ahead of the main workforce marking which trees had to be cut down. It was amazing how effective the stupid workers could be under the direct leadership of an elder demon. Milo greeted the hulking full-blooded demon with a wave and got a clawed salute of sorts in return.

    As they drew closer to the settlement the amount of demon workers grew. Already they¡¯d not only cleared about 1/3 of the way to Willowford, but also a huge section around the settlement which would be used for farmland.

    The garrison guarding the keep clearly knew they were coming because Milo was greeted at the gate by Haldor, Lizbeth and Lily. His general had asked for permission to travel home on the second day after the battle to oversee the garrison, Milo suspected the true reason had to do with Crystal. Still, he¡¯d happily granted the request as a general wasn¡¯t really needed to clear burned buildings.

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    Milo dismounted and nodded at the three top ranking hybrids in the settlement.

    ¡°Report.¡±

    He expected Haldor to speak for the group, instead it was Lily who replied.

    ¡°I have finished scouting the region and I believe I have located several opportunities we might exploit.¡±

    That sounded promising.

    ¡°Let¡¯s hear it.¡±

    Lily shook her head.

    ¡°Not here, you never know who might be watching.¡±

    With a shrug Milo lead the group into the keep and finally into the unused throne room. Once the door was sealed Lily produced a large parchment map, she had drawn herself. She spread the map on the table, and they all studied it in silence taking in every detail.

    Five settlements were marked on the map, their own, Willowford, Lordon and Ferdor. Around Lordon and Ferdor were several smaller villages which Lily had deemed of no importance.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go over everything one by one.¡±

    Lily nodded and then placed her finger on their own settlement.

    ¡°First of all, our own settlement, it is well defended in every way, although I would recommend, we upgrade to a demonic castle as soon as we can spare the resources. My scouts have also requested that we give it a name for practical reasons.¡±

    All four of them looked at him clearly expecting him to already have a name picked out. They were sadly mistaken, and Milo¡¯s brain went into overdrive as he struggled to come up with something worthy of the capital of their faction. When it became clear that nothing useful was going to come from him Ivy decided to rescue him.

    ¡°I¡¯ve given the matter some thought, we need a name that strikes fear into our enemies.¡±

    Milo groaned inwardly, certain that she was about to say something stupid, but Lizbeth, Lily and Haldor all inclined their heads in agreement.

    ¡°This place is the ember of a firestorm which will conquer the world. An ember protected on all sides by stone. Emberstone.¡±

    It was hardly the awe-inspiring name he had been hoping for, but neither was it bad. He looked at the others for their reaction and they all looked satisfied with her choice.

    He nodded.

    ¡°Emberstone it is.¡±

    With the name out of the way Lily continued her report by moving her finger to indicate Willowford.

    ¡°Willowford is nearly fully converted and generates a large sum of spirit essence each day, my scouts will continue to keep watch on the area around it so we can reinforce it if it¡¯s attacked again.¡±

    Nobody had anything to add so she moved her finger to a city a week¡¯s travel north of Willowford.

    ¡°Lordon is larger than we were led to believe, yet it was still quite easy to infiltrate due to the low number of soldiers and mages present in the city. We captured and interrogated one of their patrols and learned that the war which has drained the city¡¯s resources and garrison is coming to an end soon. They expect their garrison back in around a month. They have also somehow learned that Willowford has rebelled, although they knew nothing about the king¡¯s reaction to that news. I estimate that we have around two months at worst before the king can do anything about Willowford.¡±

    Haldor followed up on that assessment with his own.

    ¡°Willowford has a large standing garrison and is protected by a true wall now. The forces there should be able to repel any surprise attack even if you estimate is off. But seeing as how the town is our primary source of spirit essence at the moment, I recommend we upgrade the fortifications to a demonic keep and double the garrison. The upgrades will serve to protect the significant investment we¡¯ve made in the town.¡±

    Milo was a little annoyed that he would need to return to Willowford once again and yet he agreed with Haldor¡¯s assessment. Losing the town after all the work they¡¯d done on it would be catastrophic.

    ¡°Consider it done.¡±

    Lily moved her finger to a massive city on the edge of the ocean.

    ¡°Ferdor is also much larger than we were led to believe and far better protected. It proved impossible to infiltrate for the members of my order and so I had to check it out myself. Its defences are formidable, the walls are enchanted stone, and the guard force uses enchanted weapons and armour. They also have trained mages who are nearly of a level with our least skilled elementalists. Taking this city would be a massive undertaking, yet the rewards would certainly be proportional if it could be done.¡±

    Haldor asked the obvious question.

    ¡°How large of an army would we need to take it?¡±

    Lily looked pointedly at the crown atop Milo¡¯s head.

    ¡°In theory all we need to do is breech the walls, once our champion here is inside it should all be over. To accomplish that we would need to build siege engines since few of our elementalists know spells which can breech enchanted walls. We would need a force large enough to defend said siege engines and elementalists, probably around ten thousand. Seti and Beldan will both be indispensable for such an undertaking.¡±

    So, it seemed the time had finally come to summon the rest of Lilith¡¯s chosen. He¡¯d hoped to put it off, but he had to admit that Lily was probably right. Beldan was Lilith¡¯s most experienced general, and Seti was her most powerful spellcaster. If anyone knew spells capable of breeching a wall it would be Seti.

    Milo asked the interface to display how much spirit essence they had.

    Spirit essence available: 291 020

    Haldor shook his head as Milo read the number aloud.

    ¡°That will barely cover a tenth of the forces we need to take Ferdor, and that does not include supplies, armour and weapons.¡±

    ¡°So, we focus on strengthening our position while we wait?¡±

    Haldor grimaced.

    ¡°Normally I¡¯d say yes but I¡¯m afraid that once we give up our momentum, we will fall behind other factions. Inaction could very well be the death of us.¡±

    Milo looked back down at the map and then pointed at the villages surrounding Ferdor.

    ¡°How many humans live in each town?¡±

    Luckily Lily and her scouts had done a thorough job and knew exactly what he needed to know.

    ¡°Between 2-400 in each one, the combined number is somewhere in the region of four thousand.¡±

    A plan was forming in his mind. Some part of him was protesting that it was not only risky but also bordered on outright evil. Still, what choice did they have, Haldor was right, they had to keep the momentum going or they would stall out and die.

    ¡°These people are poor peasants, right?¡±

    Lily nodded.

    ¡°They pay taxes to Ferdor in exchange for protection, but we didn¡¯t pick up on any hostility between them and their protectors. The people seemed happy with their lives.¡±

    It wasn¡¯t what he had hoped to hear and yet it didn¡¯t change the equation.

    ¡°If they¡¯re happy with such an arrangement I suggest we relocate them and copy it. We¡¯ve already cleared a huge section of farmland around this settlement, all we need is some farmers. Those who don¡¯t fancy living here can go to Willowford.¡±

    The plan bordered dangerously on slavery, and he expected at least one of them to point that out. Instead, they were nodding along as if he had just said something very reasonable. Even Haldor only looked slightly uncomfortable, and not enough to voice a protest. Ivy practically jumped on the plan.

    ¡°Master, how large of a force would we need to relocate these peasants?¡±

    Lily looked deep in thought.

    ¡°I think they¡¯ll fight, but if we take each village by surprise before they can warn the others, we could get it done with five hundred or so hybrids, at least a third will need to be from my own order.¡±

    Five hundred hybrids were a massive investment of resources. Yet the potential gain of thousands of new converted followers easily outweighed the investment.

    ¡°Then we are decided, it will take us another week to amass the spirit essence needed for the plan. Once we¡¯re ready I will travel to the area with an escort and summon the troops we need there.¡±

    They spent the rest of the week preparing for his absence. Just as Haldor had recommended, he summoned a demon keep in Willowford and doubled its garrison. Next, he summoned a demon castle in Emberstone. This added another huge wall to the defences and the modest keep grew nearly three times in size. He also doubled Emberstone¡¯s garrison before setting off on a journey which would likely take two weeks in total if they were successful.

 Chapter 22

    At dawn on the eight day of that week fifty riders left Emberstone trough the front gate. Milo rode at the head of the column with Ivy and Lily. The rest of the party were strangers to him although Lily had specifically selected each member based on their suitability for their mission. As for Haldor and Lizbeth they were remaining behind to rule Emberstone in his absence. The mission was expected to last two weeks which meant Emberstone and Willowford would be cut off from the reinforcements and supplies only Milo could summon.

    When they entered the forest a third of their party split off including Lily. It was their job to keep their little army undetected and forewarned about any potential threats. Assuming everything went to plan they would start attacking villages on the fifth day. Lily had specifically brought along every warrior with any trace of skill at non-lethal martial arts. Milo had serious doubts that their mission would be bloodless, yet he fully intended to try.

    The speed at which they were travelling increased as soon as they reached the muddy road which led from Willowford to Ferdor. By the end of the first day, they had already covered a significant distance. Tents were brought out and food was prepared. Milo didn¡¯t miss the stink eye Lily gave him when she saw Ivy slip into his tent. It was clear she disapproved of their relationship but Milo couldn¡¯t care less. His feelings for Ivy had gone from an uncertain ¡°Is she seducing me?¡± to ¡°Thank god she keeps coming back every night¡±. She was by far the brightest spot in his new life on this brutal world where danger and conflict seemed to be hiding behind every corner.

    The second day was pretty much a repeat of the first day. It wasn¡¯t until the fourth day something unexpected happened. It was about mid-day when Lily suddenly popped back into reality right next to them. Unlike Ivy, Lily could shadow blink across vast distances and could even bring her horse along for the ride. It made her by far the most mobile hybrid on the planet. The master of the shadow stalker order was all business as she gave her report.

    ¡°I detected a large group of several thousand humans about an hour¡¯s travel northeast of this position. Several of them are wearing a tabard with Ferdor¡¯s city icon.¡±

    Milo cursed, so much for the crucial element of surprise.

    ¡°How the hell did Ferdor spot us so far from our target?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think they did, aside from several hundred guards, many of whom are wounded, the rest appear to be civilians. Based on their obvious exhaustion and lack of possessions it is my assessment that they are refugees.¡±

    ¡°Refugees? What are they running from? If it was us, they wouldn¡¯t be going in the direction of Willowford.¡±

    ¡°Unclear, I thought it best to inform you so that you can decide what to do about them.¡±

    Milo nodded.

    ¡°Good, go back and see if you can find out who is chasing them, I need more information.¡±

    Lily vanished in a pop of shadow magic and Milo turned to Ivy.

    ¡°What do you think?¡±

    ¡°I think that this is a golden opportunity.¡±

    ¡°You want to intercept these refugees despite not knowing what we¡¯re walking into?¡±

    ¡°If these civilians can outrun whatever¡¯s chasing them, I doubt whoever it is can catch us on horseback. Besides if these people are refugees there¡¯s a good chance, they¡¯ve left their homes behind. I don¡¯t know about you, but I think it will be far easier to convince a few thousand refugees to start new lives in Emberstone than our original plan to abduct a few thousand peasants.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not that simple, abducting a few thousand peasants meant pissing off Ferdor, a city state with no standing army. The threat they posed to Emberstone was negligible, these refugees are clearly fleeing a superior force. For all we know we¡¯re about to interfere in the business of vastly superior enemy.¡±

    Ivy shrugged.

    ¡°It¡¯s a risk, but we can always reconsider once we learn who this potential enemy is.¡±

    Milo wasn¡¯t entirely sold on the idea, but he still ordered his little army on an intercept course.

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    Nearly an hour later Lily returned just as the refugees came within view. The shadow stalker¡¯s face looked more serious than Milo had ever seen her.

    ¡°Undead, a vast of horde of undead, I think it belongs to another divine faction.¡±

    Judging by the uncertain look on Ivy¡¯s face she was no longer confident that this mass of refugees was an unexpected gift which had fallen into their laps.

    ¡°Only two factions practise necromancy, one is a middling power but the second¡­¡±

    Lily instantly agreed.

    ¡°We should leave, if this horde belongs to the death faction we are in big trouble.¡±

    Milo felt like he was working with half the puzzle pieces.

    ¡°What is the death faction?¡±

    Ivy looked genuinely worried as she explained.

    ¡°The death faction serves the god of death Enox, like our own faction they are extremely martial in nature. They practise death and shadow magic which can be combined for necromancy. Lilith has warred with them on several occasions and every time the war ended in a stalemate. Necromancy can¡¯t be used on beings with demon blood, unfortunately this advantage is largely cancelled out by the fact that the undead give reduced spirit essence when they are destroyed.¡±

    Lily added her own concerns.

    ¡°It would be the height of foolishness to take on another divine faction without first gathering every shred of information we can about their status. By engaging them know we will reveal our presence in this region which might lead to our discovery. Emberstone is strong, but it is not yet unassailable.¡±

    The mass of human refugees had spotted them, and a small group of armoured figures were heading in their direction. The small group of what he guessed to be guards wore tabards with what looked like a golden harbour on them. They looked desperate as they approached with weapons clutched in their hands. Once they were within speaking distance a middle-aged man with a magnificent Mustache took up position in front of the group and spoke.

    ¡°Greetings strangers, I am Kellor, guard captain of Ferdor¡¯s southern district, who are you?¡±

    Milo looked at Lily and then Ivy, with a shrug he urged his horse forward and introduced himself.

    ¡°Milo Harper, champion of Lilith, lord of Emberstone and Willowford.¡±

    Kellor¡¯s jaw dropped.

    ¡°Your strange eyes tell me that you are not a Lendorian noble, yet you claim to be the lord of Willowford, how can this be?¡±

    ¡°I helped the people of Willowford depose their corrupt mayor. I also defended them from a horde of satyr when the monsters burned half their town to the ground. They have seceded from the kingdom and now enjoy my protection as my willing subjects.¡±

    Kellor looked genuinely shocked, and Milo could practically hear the man redoing whatever calculation had led him to set course of Willowford. After a few seconds he looked over his shoulder and Milo followed his gaze to the front ranks of a vast army.

    ¡°My lord, will you allow me and my people to pass unmolested? We are pursued by a relentless foe who seek to destroy us.¡±

    Milo decided that an interrogation was in order.

    ¡°I can see that, why don¡¯t you tell me how you ended up in this situation, who knows, maybe I can help you.¡±

    Milo could see a hint of hope kindle in Kellor¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°We were attacked by the undead two days ago, they rose from the ocean and by the time we realised what was happening they had already taken the docks. We tried to push them back into the sea, but then small boats and rafts started arriving carrying thin people in black clothes. Each of these strange people seemed to be a mage and they used their magic to raise our own dead against us. Once I realised that the city was lost, I gathered what survivors I could find and led them away from the city. At first it looked like we were going to get away but then the dead started following us. They never tire and are difficult to kill, we¡¯ve been running ever since.¡±

    Ivy urged her horse forward and leaned in next to him to whisper.

    ¡°His description of the enemy matches the death faction, we should leave at once.¡±

    Milo¡¯s eyes took in the vast horde of undead approaching in the distance. There were at least ten thousand of them. Then his eyes fell on the refugees, he estimated their numbers at around four thousand. A sudden realisation dawned on him and he whispered back.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid that¡¯s no longer an option.¡±

    Ivy gave him a questioning look and he explained.

    ¡°The death faction has captured Ferdor and slain most of its population. If I were to take a wild guess, I¡¯d say they probably have tens of millions of spirit essence waiting to be used right now. But to use this spirit essence they must return to their base.¡±

    Ivy finally caught on.

    ¡°They¡¯ve overextended themselves chasing these refugees, we need to wipe them out before they can get back home and spend their spirit essence or their army will be so large we can¡¯t possibly win.¡±

    It was clear they needed to fight, but Kellor didn¡¯t know that and so Milo decided to try something.

    ¡°Guard captain Kellor, after hearing your tragic story I have decided to offer you and your people sanctuary in my lands.¡±

    Kellor took in the fifty hybrid¡¯s waiting behind Milo and he could practically hear the man thinking ¡°you and what army?¡±. Still, he clearly wasn¡¯t about to turn down the only sliver hope available to him.

    ¡°And what do you want in exchange for this protection?¡±

    ¡°You and your people will become citizens of my lands, I currently have more land than I do citizens.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s it? We become your subjects and in exchange you will protect us and give us free land?¡±

    The man was no fool, he clearly realised that there was more to this deal than I seemed. Yet Milo wasn¡¯t about to muddy the issue by explaining that all the refugees would need to convert.

    ¡°Indeed.¡±

    Kellor cast another look over his shoulder at the approaching army and then nodded.

    ¡°Deal.¡±

    ¡°Very well, now urge your people to hurry up and then assume a rear-guard position with your guards. My army will handle the fighting.¡±

    Before Kellor could protest Milo accessed the interface and started summoning.

    The first two to arrive were Seti and Beldan, Lilith¡¯s favourite son and most trusted general. Seti smiled at Milo but Beldan was all business as he noticed the army rapidly closing in the distance.

    ¡°The death faction?¡±

    ¡°Indeed, they¡¯ve overextended themselves chasing these humans. We need to destroy them before they can return to their base and use the spirit essence they¡¯ve accumulated.¡±

    Beldan understood his role immediately.

    ¡°Very well, since we are facing undead, we will rely on demon soldiers and elementalists. Undead are weak to fire and have difficulty killing hardened targets like a demon soldier.¡±

    Milo had 382 000 spirit essence left to work with. He began by summoning 1100 demon soldiers. Next, he summoned ten elder demons, ten hybrid leaders and finally 72 elementalists.

    Beldan wasted no time in taking charge of this army. The big general arranged his forces in a double line with the elementalist in the rear. Seti took personal command over the elementalists and was waiting for them to come in range when something strange happened.

    The enemy army suddenly stopped and then a lone rider on a skeleton horse rode trough the front ranks. The rider wore a white robe and carried a skeleton staff, he kept going forwards until he was at the halfway point between both armies. Beldan explained what was happening.

    ¡°Looks like they want to negotiate.¡±

 Chapter 23

    Milo urged his horse forward. He still hadn¡¯t quite mastered the art of horse riding, which was why he had no idea what to do when his horse started freaking out as soon as it caught the scent of the undead army. Not wishing to look like an idiot he dismounted and let the horse run off.

    The robed figure waiting for him was watching him with scorn when he reached talking distance. The man beneath the robes was gaunt to the point that he looked starved, had pale white eyes and stubby ears. He looked so close to human that he might have passed for a starving man back on earth. His voice was devoid of emotion when he spoke.

    ¡°I am Rostrian, champion of Enox, lord of death and master necromancer.¡±

    ¡°Milo Harper, champion of Lilith.¡±

    Rostrian looked past Milo up at his much smaller army, he did not look even slightly impressed by the sight.

    ¡°You have come between me and my prey, I offer you one chance to leave this place with your army intact, refuse and you will be destroyed.¡±

    The offer surprised Milo. Unlike his faction which got huge payoffs for converting the native citizens, the death faction probably got their main income from slaying and reanimating them. For such a cold and brutal faction to offer him a chance to leave must mean that Rostrian realised how overextended he was. Fighting here was a risk, and not one Rostrian wanted to take if he could avoid it.

    Milo plastered a fake smile on his face and inched a few steps forward.

    ¡°A generous offer indeed.¡±

    Rostrian remained unmoving and his eyes narrowed as Milo inched forward half a step at a time. When Rostrian spoke again he sounded impatient.

    ¡°Well?¡±

    Milo stole another half step as he beamed up at the other man.

    ¡°Normally I would accept, but you¡¯re quite far from home.¡±

    Rostrian¡¯s eyes suddenly focused on Milo¡¯s feet and he could practically see the alarm bells going off in his head. His staff was lowering in Milo¡¯s direction, but it was already too late. Milo lunged forward and drew his claymore in one smooth motion. Rostrian¡¯s undead horse made no sound as Milo¡¯s flaming sword swept through its neck. The horse fell apart as if it had been glued together and Rostrian landed on his shoulder with a grunt. The dazed champion opened his bleary eyes just in time to see Milo¡¯s sword smash into his skull. Flesh blood and bone exploded in a shower of gore as Milo¡¯s strike obliterated his opponent¡¯s head.

    Milo looked up at the undead army, he¡¯d hoped that killing its leader might sever whatever spell animated the undead. Unfortunately, the army remained just as large as before as it charged across the ground towards him. Milo started running in the opposite direction just as fire spells started hitting home.

    By the time Milo made it back to their lines spells were flying in both directions in such numbers that it was hard to tell who was winning. Fireballs, inferno spells and even a meteor shower went one way while lances and huge orbs of green magic went the other. The magic from the other side looked to be coming from a large group of men and women in white robes who were hiding within their massive army.

    Milo could hear Beldan shouting orders.

    ¡°Archers fire at will!¡±

    Arrows surrounded by shadow magic joined the spells, but Milo could see at once that they were having nearly no effect on the dead. Beldan must have seen the same because he changed tactics.

    ¡°Archers switch to melee and focus on taking out their mages! Infantry prepare to charge! Charge!¡±

    The demons started running and Milo was impressed by the speeds they reached before the front lines struck the undead horde. Skeletons and zombies literally went flying as demons ploughed through them. The undead responded by swarming any demon which got separated from the line. What they lacked in strength, armour and creativity they made up for with numbers.

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    Milo lacked the understanding to tell how the battle was going but Beldan took time to fill him in.

    ¡°Looks like we got lucky, I think the champion you killed was also their general. Good job by the way, even if we lose this battle, we might still win the war since their champion is now out of business for 7 days.¡±

    Milo watched as the battle started to stall. Both sides were taking heavy losses which he was failing to replenish thanks to the low number of spirit essence the undead gave per kill. Already they¡¯d lost about a fifth of their troops. Still Beldan clearly thought they could win because he took personal command of the small force which was guarding the elementalists. The general lead them in a wedge straight into the undead army¡¯s flank and towards a group of hostile mages. With the reserve committed their army was now well and truly all in.

    To neutral observer it might look strange that Milo was holding himself back from the battle. But his instincts told him this wasn¡¯t the full power of their enemies. He was proven right a few minutes later when Lily returned to his side. She pointed to the west and Milo saw something moving. A large force of riders on skeleton horses dressed in black was approaching at a gallop. With Beldan and the reserve committed the elementalists were almost defenceless. They were trying to cut down the riders, but every spell seemed to hit a shimmer green shield of some variety. The rider had clearly identified Seti as the most important person in the group because they were heading straight for him.

    Milo activated the metamorphosis spell at the same time as a handful of the elementalists did the same. Seti on the other hand was pulling no punches and had activated his far superior true metamorphosis form. Milo watched as his teacher launched himself at the riders, his claws and spiked tail wreaking havoc. Milo followed in Seti¡¯s wake and the entire thing devolved into the most chaotic battle of Milo¡¯s life.

    Milo tried to stay close to Seti but the two of them kept getting separated by their enemies, most of whom had dismounted by now. This unknown race didn¡¯t possess the same strength of body as the hybrids but what they lacked in raw strength they made up for with magic. Milo¡¯s exoskeleton had so many holes in it that he was certain the spell would¡¯ve failed if not for his amulet. On a positive note, these enemies were worth a lot more spirit essence than their undead minions. Every now and then Milo would pause, check his spirit essence and summon what he could. Still even with reinforcements they were vastly outnumbered, and Milo kept stumbling over dead hybrid elementalists.

    When he finally caught up to Seti the elementalist was still in his true metamorphosis form and was going toe to toe with a giant in black armour whose sword was surrounded by a green sheen of magic. One glance was all it took for Milo to tell that while Seti was far stronger and faster than his opponent, he was hopelessly outmatched in terms of skill. The fight ended when Seti was smashed into the ground and reverted back into his hybrid form. The black knight raised his sword for a killing strike and Milo barely managed to get there in time.

    The black knight staggered back as Milo deflected his sword and followed up with a side kick to his knee that would¡¯ve crippled an ordinary man. The black knight recovered and launched a vicious attack which Milo fended off with ease. His opponent seemed to sense that the scales had turned and must have cast some sort of spell because his body started to change. Wings of bone erupted from his back and his sword morphed into a giant scythe. When he next attacked the strength and speed behind it was completely different.

    Milo struggled to keep up with his opponent. The scythe as a weapon was completely alien to him and this particular scythe was so large it shouldn¡¯t have been an effective weapon. Yet his opponent moved the weapon as if it weighed nothing. In addition, Milo kept having to deflect strikes away from Seti who was all but defenceless now that he had run out of magic and his true metamorphosis form was spent.

    The black knight roared, and its scythe took on a green glow, once again Milo blocked the blow but this time he knew at once that he should¡¯ve dodged or deflected the blow. The force of the blow sent him flying across the field and he was certain he would¡¯ve been dead if not for the exoskeleton surrounding his body. He still felt a little dizzy as he got back to his feet, unfortunately there was now nothing between Seti and the black knight. Seti bared his teeth in a snarl as he stared up at his death.

    The scythe went up and then came down in a flash.

    Seti cast some spell at his left arm and tried to block the scythe but the weapon went straight through it and cut deeply into his shoulder. Milo was already running but he could tell that he was going to be too late. The scythe descended again but just before it landed a shadow passed over the black knight¡¯s head. A clawed hand covered in shadow magic punched straight through the black knight¡¯s throat and out the other side. The black knight fell to the ground dead and Milo stared at its killer.

    A tall woman with one blood red eye and one pale red eye stood over the black knight. Her right foot, leg, arm and chest was covered in tiny black scales and a single wing poked up above her right shoulder. The other side of her body was completely normal. Lily raised her clawed right hand into the air in victory, then her true metamorphosis form vanished.

    Milo had always suspected that Lily was more than just a regular hybrid, her one blood red eye was a dead giveaway. And yet Lilith had gone out of her way to not mention Lily as one of her children. There was a mystery there, and one of the clues was her tight bond to Ivy. Whatever the truth it was a mystery that would have to wait.

    Milo checked his spirit essence reserves and noticed that it had spiked with the black knight¡¯s death. Forty demon soldiers arrived on the field and Milo ordered a knot of them to protect Seti. The elementalist was badly wounded and was missing his hand and half his shoulder.

    Still even with Seti down they were about evenly matched. With Seti down the enemy switched to trying to kill him. They kept coming in wave after wave and Milo was worried his metamorphosis spell would run out before the onslaught ended. The only reason he hadn¡¯t been brought down yet was because Lily was guarding his back. The two of them were fighting in tandem so perfectly that Milo knew Lily had specifically trained for it.

    By the time Milo¡¯s metamorphosis spell finally ran out the battle had turned in their favour. What remained of Ferdor¡¯s city guard had clearly determined the same because they finally left their rear-guard position and charged into the fight. Despite being hopelessly outmatched they provided a valuable distraction, and the fight turned to butchery.

    Milo could barely stand by the time the last of the riders was cut down. Only a handful of the elementalists remained alive and the guard force from Ferdor had lost half their number. He ordered his troops to flank the main undead army and Lily lead them into the final battle herself. Just like their own force of elementalists the enemy¡¯s mages had been heavily reduced by Ivy and her fellow shadow stalkers. Even someone as untrained in strategy and tactics as himself could see that the battle was now over.

 Chapter 24

    Milo surveyed the battlefield with a grim expression on his face. To call the battle costly would be the biggest understatement of his life. Only a little over 500 troops remained which might sound like an impressive number for an army taking on a force ten times its own size. At least until you realised that nearly half that number were reinforcements summoned during the battle. Even worse, nearly ten percent of their forces had been heavily wounded or outright maimed like Seti and his missing hand. Even now what few elementalists remained alive were struggling to keep the death toll from rising.

    Lily, Beldan and Ivy were studying the field with him, of all of them Beldan looked and sounded the most pleased with the outcome.

    ¡°Their champion is slain and their forces wiped out, we now have 7 days to finish them off.¡±

    Milo arched an eyebrow at the big general.

    ¡°How exactly are we supposed to accomplish such a feat? Our forces are depleted, and we have four thousand refugees to escort back to Emberstone which I remind you is a seven-day journey on foot.¡±

    Beldan looked over at where Seti was being healed. The elementalist was pale but he was still lucid.

    ¡°I suggest we split our forces, Seti will return to Emberstone with the refugees and our wounded. A few hundred should suffice for the task. The rest of us will spread out around Ferdor and locate the death faction¡¯s base.¡±

    As far as plans went Milo felt this one went past bold and firmly into the territory of recklessness. Beldan could see that he remained unconvinced and so he explained his reasoning.

    ¡°You yourself deduced that our enemy likely has at least ten million spirit essence after destroying a city where nearly half a million people lived. At our current rate of around 40 000 spirit essence a day it would take us 250 days to match them.¡±

    It was a good point, and yet it was not entirely accurate.

    ¡°You¡¯re not counting the refugees, once their numbers are added we will probably earn more than 100 000 a day.¡±

    ¡°As you yourself have pointed out it will take our refugees at least seven days to reach Emberstone. By the time that happens the death faction¡¯s champion will already be back in action and will drown this region with endless armies of undead. He knows we¡¯re here now, frankly I¡¯d be amazed if he didn¡¯t have scouts watching us right now. By the time he comes back he will probably know the location of Emberstone.¡±

    Lily inclined her head in agreement.

    ¡°The general is right, I fought several opponents during the battle who used similar shadow magic to our own. We should assume that Emberstone¡¯s position is compromised, we need to finish them off before they can act on it.¡±

    Milo looked to Ivy for her reaction.

    ¡°I agree, we¡¯re committed now, either we finish them off or they will destroy us.¡±

    With a sigh Milo walked over to Seti and informed the elementalist about his new mission. Seti accepted his new role without protest.

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    Enix scowled as he watched the enemy champion talk to his most powerful spellcaster.

    He¡¯d watched the battle from afar despite every fibre of his being telling him to ignore his orders and join the battle. But Rostrian had been clear, his task was to follow any survivors of the battle back to their base so that they would know where their next target was located. Everything had been going as planned right until the enemy champion cut Rostrian down in the middle of a negotiation.

    Normally general Exor would¡¯ve assumed command, but Rostrian had made a point of assigning their most seasoned commander and warrior to a group of riders with orders to flank. Enix had watched in horror as the demon army cut its way into the heart of their army and started killing their necromancers one by one. Despair had been taking hold when general Exor finally arrived with his force and attacked the demon army¡¯s mages. For a few moments victory had seemed certain, then the casters had started transforming. General Exor never having laid eyes on the enemy champion before the battle had mistaken their most powerful mage for the enemy champion and had tried to slay him in a duel. The true champion had intervened until a fellow practitioner of the shadow arts had assassinated the general with a perfectly executed strike. Once Exor was slain the battle had gone from bad to worse.

    The moment it became obvious that the battle was lost Enix made his move. He used his magic to sneak up the mass of refugees who were watching the battle and when one of them broke away to relieve himself he slit the man¡¯s throat and activated his ring of perfect mirror on the corpse. The ring had been a gift from his lord and was the second most powerful item his lord had gotten from the event. It allowed the wearer to take on the visage of a dead person and would last until he deactivated it or switched to a different corpse. For a master scout and assassin such as himself it was a powerful weapon.

    Enix wandered back into the horde of refugees and watched the final act of the battle. Once it was over the refugees started cheering. Enix wondered if they would still be cheering if they knew that they had just exchanged a merciful death for lifelong servitude under the demons. Their first taste of their new obligations came in the form of an order by the powerful elementalist who introduced himself as Seti. He ordered the refugees to loot the field of anything valuable.

    As Enix joined the others in looting his own people, he watched the enemy champion ride away in the direction of Ferdor. And while his army was much smaller now, Enix knew that was just a trick, somehow the champion had gained the ability to summon troops outside his settlement. If he had to guess, he would say the champion was looking for their base. Enix chuckled and a few of the other refugees turned to look at him. The champion would never find their base, the god of death had made damn sure of that.

    He was looting one of the necromancers when he felt a blade pressed against his neck.

    ¡°Don¡¯t move.¡±

    The voice was icy and female. He remained perfectly still as somebody grabbed his hands and tied them behind his back. Once he was restrained, they turned him around. A pair of women were watching him with Icy stares, one had two blood red eyes while the other had one pale and one blood red eye. The woman with the mismatched eyes spoke.

    ¡°Your illusion spell is powerful, but not enough to fool an elementalist of Seti¡¯s quality.¡±

    She looked past him and he followed her gaze up to see Seti watching him. The elementalist was pale and looked like he was struggling to stay on his feet, yet the satisfaction on his face was unmistakable.

    ¡°It¡¯s not a spell, it¡¯s an enchanted item.¡±

    The young hybrid with the blood red eyes ran her hands down his body searching for items. A few moments later she found the ring on his finger. She yanked it off and held it up in front of him. The ring was made of bone with a green gem at the centre. She handed the ring to Seti, and he held it up to the light.

    ¡°Ring of perfect mirror, it let¡¯s the wearer copy the visage of a dead person. Quite potent, I dare say it would¡¯ve probably fooled even Lizbeth.¡±

    Enix was shoved to the ground and woman with the blood red eyes drew a dagger. She placed the tip against his manhood.

    ¡°Tell me where your base is, or I will start cutting off parts.¡±

    Enix remained silent, he was already dead, the only thing left to decide was if he would die a traitor or a loyal servant. The woman made good on her threat and started cutting. Every now and then Seti would heal him and then the woman would start anew. This went on for nearly an hour before the woman with the blood red eyes threw down her dagger in disgust.

    ¡°There¡¯s no point to this, they obviously have anti interrogation training just like we do.¡±

    By this point the champion had returned to join the interrogation. The man had looked uncomfortable with the brutal torture on display, but he had done nothing to intervene. Now however he bent down and stared into Enix¡¯s eyes. Then he stood back up with a nod.

    ¡°Agreed, let¡¯s switch plans, bring me one of the demon soldiers, Seti you can perform the conversion ritual, right?¡±

    The elementalist arched an eyebrow at the champion.

    ¡°I can, but we can¡¯t force him to convert, he has to consent.¡±

    The champion¡¯s face drew into a cruel smile.

    ¡°I have an idea.¡±

    A few minutes later the woman with the blood red eyes returned with a demon soldier in tow. The elementalist cut the demon and filled a cup with its blood. Then they forced the cup and its contents down Enix¡¯s throat. Enix could feel the blood start to change his body from within and yet there was no way they could force him to complete the ritual.

    The champion bent down, and his eyes suddenly flashed with a torrent of magical power. Enix felt something reach out through him and touch the blood within him. His mind suddenly went blank as he lost all control over his body.

    ¡°Now, tell me, where is this base of yours?¡±

 Chapter 25

    When Milo had first seen the starting position of his faction he had been quite impressed by Lilith¡¯s foresight. What he realised after using his eyes of command ability on the death faction infiltrator to make him talk was that their starting position sucked.

    ¡°A god damn giant sea cavern which is only accessible at low tide! We could¡¯ve searched around Ferdor for a hundred years and never found it!¡±

    Beldan nodded.

    ¡°I should¡¯ve thought of something similar for our faction¡­¡±

    Milo popped a piece of razor deer jerky into his mouth and sighed.

    ¡°So how do we assault it?¡±

    ¡°Now that we know where it is we can try to tunnel inn through the roof, but I fear that might take more than seven days. No, I fear a frontal assault is our only chance, which means we need to build rafts. It might be doable in time if we keep the rafts simple and there¡¯s no bad weather.¡±

    Milo didn¡¯t like the sound of that plan.

    ¡°They¡¯ll see us coming from miles away¡­ I was hoping to use the element of surprise to cut my way to their altar and destroy it before they could rally.¡±

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t rule out that plan quite yet champion, according to our prisoner the garrison is weak, barely a few thousand strong. They¡¯ve also lost two out of three leaders and the one who commands the garrison is an elementalist, not a general. It will be extremely costly, but we might be able to distract the garrison while you make a break for the altar.¡±

    Milo and Beldan continued bandying ideas back and forth for the rest of the day. Neither one of them was particularly hopeful about their chances, but that all changed on the second day when Lily returned with interesting news.

    ¡°An army?¡±

    ¡°Around ten thousand strong, they are a tall and thin people with golden hair and pointed ears.¡±

    ¡°Elves, I met one in the arena event.¡±

    Milo asked Lily to lead him to the unknown army. He was impressed by what he saw. Their armour was identical to the elf he¡¯d faced in the arena with nearly all wearing what looked to be standard issue chainmail shirt and skirt. About two thirds of the elves carried a spear and shield, while the rest were armed with bows. It was a formidable force, and it was currently heading in the direction of Ferdor.

    ¡°Ferdor must have sent a messenger to ask for help before it fell¡­¡±

    It was the only explanation he could think of.

    Lily shrugged.

    ¡°In which case they will be disappointed when they arrive to find a city filled with undead. According to our prisoner Ferdor is better defended than their base. This army is impressive for a native species, but I doubt they have the power to take Ferdor.¡±

    A huge smile was spreading across Milo¡¯s face.

    ¡°Indeed, they really are heading in the wrong direction¡­¡±

    By the time they returned to the rest of their little army Milo had already worked this unknown army into his plans.

    ¡°Beldan you will remain here with all our demon forces. You are to shadow the elven army wherever it goes. I will send Lily with further instructions when the time is right.¡±

    There were only around fifty hybrids left in their army and Milo gathered them together.

    ¡°You will pretend to be my honour guard, be as friendly as possible and learn everything you can.¡±

    He turned to Ivy.

    ¡°And you will play my queen, now come let¡¯s greet this army of liberators.¡±

    Beldan looked like he wanted to protest but once Milo filled him in on the rough outlines of the plan he instantly agreed. The risk was significant, but if everything went as planned, the death faction would be destroyed within the week.

    Milo approached the elven army with a white flag flapping on a pole. As soon as they caught sight of him the army halted and started deploying into ranks. For a few moments it looked like everything would go wrong, then a rider on a giant razor deer emerged from the army with an escort that was identical to his own in number. The rider wore magnificent light plate armour engraved with vines and leaves and had a spear with a golden leaf tip slung across his back.

    Milo beamed at the elven rider.

    ¡°Greetings friend, my name is Milo Harper, champion of Lilith and lord of Emberstone.¡±

    The elf looked anything but impressed by his titles.

    ¡°I am Landrian, lord emissary of king Valar, I have never heard of Emberstone.¡±

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    Milo ignored the obvious hostility in the elf¡¯s voice.

    ¡°Emberstone is mighty, but it is far from this place.¡±

    ¡°Indeed? Then what is your business in this region?¡±

    ¡°I was on my way to Ferdor for trade talks when I came across a large group of refugees from that very city. They informed me that the city has fallen to the undead.¡±

    Landrian stiffened and his eyes narrowed.

    ¡°You are certain of this? The city is lost?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what the refugees told me before I sent them to my lands yes.¡±

    Landrian looked over his shoulder at the elven army, his gaze seemed to be focused on a point surrounded by several standards. After a moment of hesitation he turned back, and his voice lost some of its hostility.

    ¡°Wait here, I must speak with my king.¡±

    The elf turned and rode back to his army, five minutes later the army started making camp and Landrian returned.

    ¡°If you would follow me Lord Milo, my king would like to speak with you.¡±

    So far everything was going according to plan, but they were now about to enter the phase which carried the highest risk. Still, he followed Landrian as the elf lead him to a large silk pavilion which had been hastily erected for the meeting.

    Milo and Ivy entered the pavilion and found a large group of elves seated around a table so large it had obviously been conjured with magic. At the head of the table sat an elf with sharp eyes and a crown upon his head. The rest of the seats were also filled with elves, all except two. One seat directly opposite the elven king had been left empty for him, as for the other seat it was currently occupied by a tiny man sitting atop a small mountain of cushions. The small man looked almost like the goblin he¡¯d fought in the arena except his skin was white. Milo must have been staring because the small man suddenly spoke in a shrill but angry voice.

    ¡°What!? You¡¯ve never seen a gnome before?¡±

    Milo opened his mouth, but it was Ivy who replied.

    ¡°Apologies, we are new to these lands, my lord meant no offense.¡±

    The gnome looked like he was about to reply but the elven king cut him off in a voice full of authority.

    ¡°None taken, our gnomish allies are an unusual sight in most places of this world. I am king Valar of the emerald forest, and I am most grateful for any information you might provide us with on Ferdor.¡±

    Ivy all but shoved Milo into the empty seat and then took up a position slightly behind the right side of his chair.

    ¡°I am lord Milo of Emberstone, and I would be happy to share what I know. As I told your emissary, two days ago we came across a large group of refugees from Ferdor. They claim the city has fallen after it was attacked by undead from the ocean. Now normally I would be sceptical if somebody told me a city of Ferdor¡¯s size had fallen, but this group was being pursued by an undead army. I engaged the army at great cost and was barely able to defeat it.¡±

    The elven king looked thoughtful but after a few moments he nodded.

    ¡°This story would explain why we haven¡¯t heard from Ferdor¡¯s council ever since the emergency spell was sent to our capital.¡±

    Milo¡¯s face took on a grave look.

    ¡°Am I right in thinking that this army was intended to aid in the defence of Ferdor?¡±

    ¡°Indeed, Ferdor might be a human city but many cities in this region depend on its trade routes. We entered into a mutual defence pact with the city a few decades ago.¡±

    He decided to strike while the iron was hot.

    ¡°And now that you know the city is lost, what will you do?¡±

    Several of the elves seated around the table suddenly turned hostile and judging by their reactions they clearly thought he¡¯d overstepped. Yet the king answered without hesitation.

    ¡°We will capture Ferdor and restore the city to its former glory, it will become the jewel of my kingdom.¡±

    Milo could well understand the temptation the elven king must be feeling. Ferdor¡¯s value was almost incalculable even without any people to convert. It would open up the ocean and he was almost certain that the death faction was not the only faction which hid their altar near or in the ocean. The last thing Milo wanted right now was for this elven army to go to Ferdor and potentially capture the city. It was time to steer the conversation in a new direction.

    ¡°What do you know about the army which captured Ferdor?¡±

    The king looked at Landrian and the emissary replied.

    ¡°The emergency message said they were under attack by the undead lead by a large number of necromancers.¡±

    ¡°Have you fought the undead before?¡±

    Landrian shook his head.

    ¡°They¡¯re not like other enemies, their mages have the ability to raise the dead, which means that every time one of your soldiers die, they will rise again and fight for the enemy.¡±

    Landrian sounded annoyed by the explanation.

    ¡°We might not have faced these monsters before, but we do know what a necromancer can do.¡±

    ¡°Of course, I merely mention it because Ferdor¡¯s enchanted walls are still intact, and the city is defended by a large garrison. Your army is mighty, and you may very well prevail, but the cost will be heavy.¡±

    The king took over.

    ¡°How do you know this?¡±

    ¡°I interrogated one of the enemies, he told me about Ferdor¡¯s garrison and where their true base is located.¡±

    The king¡¯s eyes narrowed dangerously.

    ¡°What true base?¡±

    ¡°Two days ride north of here is a cavern by the ocean which can only be accessed at low tide. Within this cavern lies the true power centre of our common enemy. Destroy this base and the magic animating the undead currently occupying Ferdor will simply cease functioning. According to our prisoner this base is lightly held compared to Ferdor.¡±

    The king clearly knew he wasn¡¯t telling him the whole thing, but the lure was tasty to ignore. He looked at the gnome and spoke.

    ¡°Hervix, show our guests to the cook fires and make sure they are given food and drink. I must discuss what our new friends have told us with my war council.¡±

    Milo stood up and inclined his body in a shallow bow to the king, he got a respectful nod in return. The gnome muttered something and then climbed down from the tower of pillows that was his seat. The small gnome led them from the tent as Milo grinned. The meeting had gone almost exactly as he had hoped, Ivy clearly agreed because she whispered in an excited voice as soon as they left the tent.

    ¡°That was well done, I¡¯d be amazed if they don¡¯t demand to know exactly where the death faction¡¯s capital is.¡±

    The gnome must have overheard them because he snorted loudly.

    ¡°You¡¯ll be lucky if the king doesn¡¯t beat it out of you at the tip of a sword. I¡¯d tread carefully if I were you, these elves are not the graceful and benevolent allies you imagine them to be.¡±

    The gnome sounded bitter, and Ivy immediately pounced on the opportunity for some information. She motioned for their hybrid bodyguard to close in around them thus cutting off any would-be eavesdroppers.

    ¡°You speak from experience?¡±

    Hervix looked back over his shoulder up at Ivy, his face had twisted into a scowl at the question.

    ¡°I do.¡±

    That was all the gnome would say on the subject, but the reason for his bitterness soon became obvious for anyone with even a hint of perceptiveness. Every time they came across a one of Hervix¡¯s people the gnome in question would be busy tending to clothes and armour, cooking or moving supplies. They were also always overseen by at least one elf who watched over their work. The scenes reminded Milo of ancient paintings of Egyptian slaves, all that was missing was the overseer¡¯s whip.

    Hervix lead them to a part of the camp where several hundred gnomes were working on what looked like siege weapons. Milo vaguely recognised the machines as a scorpion, a type of large crossbow which would shoot large bolts across vast distances. Hervix grabbed a bunch of bowls and bade them sit down by a cookfire.

    The gnome was watching him closely, no doubt hoping to gauge his reaction to the obvious mistreatment of his people. Milo let nothing slip, instead he let Ivy dig for more information.

    ¡°How long have your people been guests of these noble elves?¡±

    Hervix¡¯s sharp eyes turned to Ivy, and he didn¡¯t miss a beat.

    ¡°My people encountered the king and his people eleven years ago, in the beginning we traded with them freely but eventually they grew tired of paying for our goods. We¡¯ve been guests ever since.¡±

    ¡°How wonderful, and how does he ensure you stay guests? Is he keeping your friends and family as guests as well?¡±

    ¡°You guess correctly, the king has been quite clear that if we don¡¯t behave as good guests should then an accident might befall our town.¡±

    It was obvious to even the worst military tactician that the gnomes were hopelessly outmatched in physical combat by their elven overlords. He guessed their chances of successfully rebelling were close to zero.

    Milo noticed a few elves trying to discreetly listen in and decided to change the topic to something less risky. He pointed his spoon at one of the scorpions.

    ¡°That is an impressive creation, did your people invent it?¡±

    Hervix nodded.

    ¡°My people have always had a talent for creating toys, buildings and machines of any kind. That particular invention is quite new and was created upon the insistence of king Valar for the upcoming siege.¡±

    Milo doubted a few dozen scorpions would help the elves take Ferdor, but it definitely couldn¡¯t hurt their chances.

    ¡°We will also be making siege towers once we get to our destination, or at least that was the plan until you stumbled into camp.¡±

    They were recalled to the king¡¯s tent before they could finish eating. King Valar looked resolved as he bade Milo sit.

    ¡°After consulting with my war council, I have decided that you will lead us to this hidden base of our common enemy. You will also tell my general everything he needs to know about the capabilities or these undead armies. Once we deal with the vermin, we will share the loot and go our separate ways, until then you will remain my guests.¡±

    Milo inclined his head in agreement with a fake smile. Based on what had happened to the king¡¯s last guests Milo had serious doubts that he would be free to leave once the battle was over. At best the elves would hold him for ransom, at worst they wanted to destroy or enslave a potential competitor.

    ¡°I will be happy to be your guest.¡±

 Chapter 26

    The king¡¯s general turned out to be a haughty elf by the name of Jerill and the man took his job extremely seriously. Their ¡®briefing¡¯ which was really just an interrogation lasted for four hours and once it was over the general assigned his party to the gnomish section of the army camp. Placing them with the slaves was no doubt meant to be an insult but Milo wasted no time in exploiting the opportunity for everything it was worth.

    ¡°Hervix, say theoretically somebody had the power to destroy this army and free your people, would you be willing to relocate?¡±

    Hervix¡¯s eyes narrowed, and he looked around as if fearing they would be overheard but the sound of the marching army and Ivy¡¯s wall of bodyguards made it next to impossible to listen in on their conversation.

    ¡°Not if it meant exchanging one benevolent master for another.¡±

    Milo waved his hand dismissively.

    ¡°I have no need of slaves, in my experience people work more effectively and with far more enthusiasm without the threat of a sword hanging over their necks. The only thing I would require of your people is that you undergo the ritual of conversion, afterwards you may do as you like on my lands.¡±

    ¡°Define conversion.¡±

    Hervix was too intelligent to be easily fooled so Milo told him the whole truth.

    ¡°It is a magical ritual which would change your people, it will add to their lifespans, make them resistant to illness and it will even make them stronger. In exchange you would be bound to my cause, although I don¡¯t expect you to fight in my armies.¡±

    Hervix looked thoughtful, then he looked over at the fifty or so Hybrids who were ringing them in. He studied their weapons and then shook his head.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have the power to deliver on your side of this deal.¡±

    Milo just grinned at the gnome.

    ¡°Are you certain of that?¡±

    Hervix hesitated and Milo could practically see the calculations in his mind being made in real time. When he next spoke, his voice was low.

    ¡°You need to sweeten the deal, it is not enough to destroy this army, you need to take their capital, Oakcrown. My people will never be able to move on with our lives unless we know for certain that the elves will never again plague us.¡±

    Truth be told, his short interaction with the king and his advisors had already convinced him that the elves would need to be converted at the tip of a sword. He was therefore quick to agree to Hervix¡¯s request.

    ¡°Done.¡±

    ¡°Just like that?¡±

    ¡°Just like that.¡±

    ¡°Fine, I agree.¡±

    Once the alliance was agreed to Hervix was quick to expose every weakness the elves had.

    ¡°Their magic is powerful but relies on wood as a raw material.¡±

    This revelation did much to impress Ivy.

    ¡°They have mastered transmutation magic?!¡±

    Milo was still a complete novice when it came to magic and so Ivy hurried to explain when she saw the blank look on his face.

    ¡°Transmutation magic is the art of manipulating elemental matter into the desired form. You yourself have recently encountered an example of this when you fought the black knight, his sword changed into a scythe, remember?¡±

    Milo did remember, that huge scythe had been a nightmare to deal with. He quickly filled Hervix in on the encounter and once he was finished the gnome spoke again.

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    ¡°I¡¯ve seen them shape branches into arrows, weapons and huge trees into siege towers, although the siege towers have to be assembled by my people after the elves make the parts.¡±

    Ivy added to the explanation.

    ¡°That¡¯s because the created object can never exceed the mass of the raw materials.¡±

    Milo thought he understood the essentials.

    ¡°Meaning they can turn a giant tree into a long spear, but not into a house, which means their mages are useless once they run out of raw materials.¡±

    Both Hervix and Ivy confirmed this with nods. Then the gnome continued his lecture on elven weaknesses.

    ¡°They are also quite arrogant and see all other races as lesser than their own. Time and again I¡¯ve seen them underestimate my own people and the humans they trade with. They don¡¯t know it, but the human traders have been taking advantage of this to swindle them for years, it has long been a source of amusement for my people. It is also why they will never see the rebellion coming until it¡¯s too late.¡±

    Milo hoped Hervix was right, his current plan had a lot of moving pieces and points of failure. If even a single gnome in the know screwed up, they would be cut down before the assault on the death faction even began. Which was why Hervix had only shared his new allegiance with a handful of his most trusted people.

    <hr>

    They reached the ocean two days before Rostrian would be resurrected. Had Milo been here with his own army there was no way they would¡¯ve been able to build enough boats in time. Fortunately, the elves were so proficient with their transmutation magic that boats were being produced at a staggering rate. In the end it took them only a single day to build enough boats to transport the entire army. Unfortunately, a spell of bad weather meant they had to postpone the launch by another day.

    When the weather finally cleared only twelve hours remained until Rostrian would be resurrected. The elves wrongly believed they had all the time in the world, but Milo had managed to convince their king to rush the attack before reinforcements could arrive. The king clearly knew he was hiding something, but he¡¯d ordered the attack anyway.

    Milo stepped into the boat and was followed by Hervix and Ivy. They were among the last to board the boats along with the rest of the gnomes and his hybrids. Apparently being in the rear of the army was a peak insult among the elves, yet it suited Milo¡¯s plan perfectly. Milo watched as one of the few elves who had stayed behind to watch the king¡¯s guests attached a rope to the boat, at the end of the rope was a huge wooden log floating in the water. He looked in the distance and saw that each boat was towing a giant wooden log behind it, along with the boats these logs would serve as fuel for the elven mages.

    Their destination was only fifteen minutes away by boat and by the time Milo and his group arrived the king had already launched his attack. Milo watched with fascination as the elven vanguard advanced into the cavern. As soon as they passed beyond the mouth of the cave green spells started raining down on them. Milo recognised the spells from his own battle with the death faction. The elves kept rowing and as soon as they reached land they started dragging the huge logs they had been towing ashore. The logs were then transmuted into a static barrier of wood which did a remarkable job of stopping the death element spells.

    ¡°The elves don¡¯t know it but they are using the life element to power their magic, it is anathema to the death element.¡±

    Sure, enough the elementalists defending the cavern switched to shadow spells and once again the death toll started rising. Yet the elves just kept coming and once enough boats reached land they started returning fire. Huge lances of wood started flying towards the defenders whom Milo still couldn¡¯t see from his position at the rear.

    Finally enough boats had entered the cavern that it was Milo¡¯s turn. As soon as his boat reached the mouth of the cavern he whistled.

    Not only did the death faction have a fantastic starting position but they also had an amazing fortress. The fortress in question was a combination of white stone and bone. Like Emberstone it was situated with the cavern at its back and both flanks secured by the cavern wall. Yet this fortress was also protected from above by the cavern roof. It looked almost unassailable, and he knew at once that there had been zero chance of his own army taking it without the elves.

    ¡°What a marvellous structure, it must have taken decades to build¡­¡±

    Hervix sounded genuinely happy to see such a beautiful piece of architecture.

    Milo led their party ashore just in time for a giant ball of shadow magic to strike him in the face. Luckily everyone around him had thrown themselves to the ground and had thus avoided getting hit. Milo made a brushing motion on his shoulder and winked at a wide eyed Hervix.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±

    The elves had already moved their wooden barrier closer to the fortress and most their mages had switched to making siege ladders and components for two siege towers. A red-faced elf came running down to meet Milo¡¯s group and screamed at Hervix.

    ¡°Get moving you lazy bastards you have siege towers to assemble!¡±

    Milo could see Hervix gripping his crossbow so hard his knuckles turned white. He stepped in front of the gnome and addressed the screaming elf.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry sir, I¡¯ll get them moving.¡±

    For a second it looked like the elf would scream at him but then his eyes took in the fifty scowling hybrids standing behind Milo. His hybrid bodyguards had genuinely done their best to get on friendly terms with the elves, unfortunately the elves had treated them with disrespect at every turn. They were now having trouble supressing their obvious hostility towards what he had heard several refer to as a magically stunted upstart race.

    The elf huffed.

    ¡°See that you do, or the king will hear of it.¡±

    Milo led the gnomes and his people up to the siege camp. He watched as Hervix and his people started assembling siege ladders and siege towers. Watching them made him feel like a kid playing with puzzles, each piece was part of a complex whole.

    It took the gnomes half an hour to produce the first siege ladders. Milo was expecting the king to wait until the towers were ready, but the king launched an attack as soon as the ladders were ready. Milo observed the attack but even he with his limited understanding of siege craft could tell that the attack was doomed from the start.

    The elves streamed up four giant ladders. The leftmost ladder was pushed away from the wall right before the first elf reached the top. The two ladders next to it were bathed in burning oil. As for the final ladder, a pale man in white robes with a bone staff leaned out above the ladder and pointed his staff down. A huge spear of pure shadow magic obliterated ten elves before breaking the bottom half of the ladder exploded into wooden shrapnel.

    ¡°Well that went poorly¡­¡±

    Nobody disagreed with him, but Ivy looked worried.

    ¡°This is going too slowly, Rostrian will be resurrected in four hours, at that point this cavern becomes a death trap.¡±

    Milo walked over to Hervix.

    ¡°How long until the towers are ready?¡±

    Hervix looked around and then replied in a low voice.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been slow walking it so that more elves will die, I could have them working in three hours if I really wanted to.¡±

    ¡°Work as fast as you can, in four hours our enemy will receive reinforcements, we need to have won by then.¡±

    Hervix narrowed his eyes.

    ¡°What are you not telling me?¡±

    ¡°Trust me, I will deliver you and your people to freedom. All you have to do is get me into that city before its too late and everything will work out.¡±

    Hervix sighed but he gave the orders, and the gnomes started working faster. A little over two hours later both siege towers were ready. As soon as the elves learned that the towers were ready they arrived, led by the king himself.

    King Valar¡¯s smile was cold as he greeted Milo.

    ¡°Lord Milo, I think it¡¯s past time you and your people join this siege.¡±

 Chapter 27

    King Valar probably thought he was being clever by putting Milo and his people in danger but what he didn¡¯t know was that the time limit on this whole assault was nearly up. Milo was more than happy to take the rightmost siege tower while the elves took the other.

    The towers had barely started moving before the defenders switched their focus to this new threat. To combat this Milo had placed his only three elementalists at the top of the tower with orders to shield it. They weren¡¯t able to completely protect the huge tower but they blocked enough spells that the defenders soon started focusing on the leftmost siege tower. The elves erected wooden screens but their shields simply didn¡¯t have the same coverage as those made by his own elementalists. Still they served their role as a distraction and managed to keep the enemy¡¯s attention until Milo¡¯s siege tower reached the wall.

    ¡°Alright listen up! Their altar will be somewhere inside the keep, our objective is to clear a path to the keep, now let¡¯s go!¡±

    As soon as he gave the signal the ramp crashed down onto the wall. Milo had already activated his metamorphosis spell and lead the charge. Shadow spells struck him from every angle and washed over him without any effect. A few of the enemy casters switched to death spells but by that time Milo was already engaged with their own troops, meaning they¡¯d have to fire on their own soldiers to hit him.

    The defenders turned out to be of far better quality than he had expected. Over half their number were made up Rostrian¡¯s pale and gaunt race. They¡¯d formed a formidable shield wall around the siege tower once they realised it couldn¡¯t be stopped. And despite Milo wrecking his way trough their ranks his bodyguard was dwindling with each passing moment. It didn¡¯t take a genius to realise that he would never make it to the keep.

    ¡°For king Valar!¡±

    Milo finished off his opponent and turned towards the shout. He was surprised to see the elven king himself leading a force of elves into the battle. Clearly the king wasn¡¯t willing to risk losing the battle by completely sacrificing Milo and his small force. As soon as the elves joined the battle the lines stabilised. The elves and Rostrian¡¯s people looked about evenly matched in physical combat. Milo pulled his people back as soon as the elves pushed past him. Only 33 now remained alive.

    ¡°Form wedge!¡±

    The hybrids did as ordered and Milo turned to the four elementalists at the back of the group. They¡¯d been duelling the enemy elementalists to a standstill, but for this battle a standstill would mean a loss.

    ¡°Clear us a path to keep!¡±

    The elementalists dropped their shields and then started casting fire spells in a direct line towards the keep. Two of them went down to enemy spells but not before they¡¯d cleared a path.

    ¡°Charge!¡±

    Milo and his wedge rushed into the open path even as the enemy tried to close ranks again. They proved too slow but by the time Milo¡¯s little force arrived at the keep only 9 hybrids were left. Victory was so close Milo could practically taste it, of course that¡¯s when everything went wrong.

    ¡°Ha ha hahahaaaaa, I have risen!¡±

    A white vortex suddenly formed in the middle of the square, moments later Rostrian was standing there. The man didn¡¯t waste any time and soon the square was filled with undead and more of his people. Rostrian somehow picked out Milo from across the square and their eyes met. The man¡¯s face twisted into a smile and a few seconds later a vortex enveloped half the cavern.

    It had been a while since Milo had last watched a Godzilla movie, yet he felt fairly certain that the giant bone monstrosity he was now looking up at would¡¯ve been a worthy foe for the fictional lizard monster.

    The bone monster had giant tattered wings and carried a scythe the length of a large ship. Green light shone beneath it¡¯s bony body and the creature radiated death magic. A few of the elves unlucky enough to be close to the monster when it arrived simply fell dead.

    ¡°That lunatic¡­ he actually summoned a faction prime¡­¡±

    Milo looked at Ivy.

    ¡°A what?¡±

    ¡°Remember the summoning list for our faction? There was one entry which cost significantly more than the rest.¡±

    Milo pulled up the list and saw what she meant.

    Ancient demon 0/1 ¨C 1 000 000 spirit essence.

    ¡°Each faction has a faction prime, they are the first creation of every god, immortal beings who draw their power from the very elements of their god¡¯s domain.¡±

    The undead monstrosity swung its scythe and a hundred elves were reduced to smears of blood on the ground.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me about this sooner? These creatures are obviously a win condition, had I known I could summon something like this I would¡¯ve started saving up.¡±

    Ivy shook her head.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t tell you about it because faction primes are a double-edged sword. Their creators can barely control them, and it takes all their will to do so.¡±

    The bone monstrosity turned, and its scythe obliterated a few hundred undead and a huge chunk of the fortress wall. Milo was starting to understand, this creature was an unstoppable force and Rostrian had just let it loose inside his own base, the man really was insane.

    Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

    Milo turned and cast flame sword, then he hacked the closed door of the keep apart. The hole was barely big enough for him to pass and already he could see a force of Rostrians people heading for them. Once inside what remained of his bodyguard stayed behind to guard the breech. He felt sort of guilty that he didn¡¯t know any of their names since they were about to sacrifice themselves to buy him time.

    Some part of Milo had hoped that the internal architecture of Rostrian¡¯s fortress would be identical to Emberstone¡¯s castle. Unfortunately, that proved not to be the case. The first room they arrived at was the empty throne room. They kept going and found the kitchen, some sort of library and a bedchamber suitable for am emperor. They were just about to leave the bedchamber when Milo noticed marks on the floor near the rear wall. He walked over and bent down to study the marks, then he ran his hand up the wall until one of the stones sunk into the wall. There was a handhold just beyond the sunken stone and Milo pulled with all his strength. A section of the wall swung outwards, perfectly matching the marks on the ground.

    The secret passage revealed a deep dark tunnel. They could hear shouting somewhere behind them and Milo knew they didn¡¯t have long before Rostrian¡¯s forces caught up with them. They rushed down the tunnel heedless of any potential traps. The tunnel ended at another door which was guarded by pair of men in black plate armour. Milo engaged them and was holding both at bay until Ivy used shadow blink to get behind. She punched her dagger trough the back of one enemy¡¯s throat and Milo cut down the second one.

    Once again, he cast flame sword and tried to destroy the sealed door. He was barely able to dent the door and had to resort to casting metamorphosis again. He knew he only had a few minutes left of the spell before mental exhaustion would set in. It took him nearly a minute to create a hole big enough for them to enter and by that time the shouting was coming closer. As soon as they climbed trough the hole Ivy took up a guard position.

    ¡°Go, I¡¯ll hold them back.¡±

    Milo nodded and ran into the middle of the chamber. The room was surrounded by giant bone sculptures, and he searched frantically for the altar he knew had to be there. His eyes had just settled on a giant skull with emerald eyes when the bone sculptures suddenly moved. He took an involuntary step back as ten giant skeletons wielding scythes converged on him from every direction.

    He knew at once that there was no chance in hell he¡¯d be able to defeat the giant skeletons in combat, so instead he tried to break trough to the altar. The skeletons realised what he was doing at once and veered off to form a wall around the altar. Milo tried to break trough but all it earned him was a short flight into the wall. His metamorphosis spell ran out just as he got back to his feet. They were going to fail, he was certain of it, his priority shifted at once and he was about to call for Ivy to escape without him when he saw that she was gone. A pop of shadow magic drew his attention to behind the skeletons. Ivy roared and her body changed into a nearly perfect copy of Lilith¡¯s true metamorphosis form. Shadow magic surrounded her clawed hand as she plunged it into the skull with the emerald eyes.

    ¡°Ivy!¡±

    Milo screamed as the skull exploded in a wave of death magic and bone shrapnel. Ivy rolled across the floor and came to a stop right in front of one of the giant skeletons. The skeleton raised a giant axe but then froze mid motion, the green light in its eyes went out and the skeleton collapsed into a pile of bones. The same thing happened to all the other skeletons, furthermore the shouting coming from the tunnel beyond had completely stopped.

    Milo ran forward and bent down to inspect Ivy, she was back in her hybrid form and aside from a nose blood and bloodshot eyes she looked intact. She groaned with pain.

    ¡°I can only hold my metamorphosis form for ten seconds, I got lucky that the explosion hit me before it ran out.¡±

    Milo helped her to her feet and grinned at her.

    ¡°You did it, you saved us.¡±

    She grinned back, although he could tell she was one weak shove away from collapse.

    ¡°Good thing we had two champions, eh?¡±

    They both started laughing, they were still enjoying the moment when a field of translucent red text appeared in his vision.

    Congratulations, for destroying another faction you are rewarded with the following:

    250 000 spirit essence.

    One death faction reward of your choice.

    As soon as he finished reading it a small green vortex appeared. He tapped the vortex, and another field of translucent text appeared he read it out loud:

    Choose one of the following rewards:

    Name: The blighted lady

    Description: This storied ship is the flagship of the death god¡¯s armada. This ship is a floating fortress with enough room to carry a whole army. Its undead crew is made up of dead sailors from every race who will never tire and are blindly obedient to their captain.

    This ship is soulbound to Milo Harper and can only be commanded and summoned by him.

    Cooldown on summoning: 7 days.

    Having his own personal ghost ship which he could summon anywhere on planet did sound quite useful. Especially now that Ferdor was within his grasp, still he read on curious about the other options on offer.

    Name: Seppirox the undying

    Description: Seppirox the undying is the faction prime of the death faction. This ancient being wields death and shadow in its endless hunger for the destruction of all life. This reward will add Seppirox to your summoning list at half its usual cost. It also comes with a ring of command which will allow you to control Seppirox for half an hour each day.

    ¡°Oh hell no! I¡¯ve seen enough of that monster for a lifetime!¡±

    Ivy was in total agreement, and he kept reading.

    Name: Deathbringer

    Description: This lichsteel greatsword was forged by Enox the god of death for his only son, Kalifor. This weapon has been enchanted to steal the souls and life energy of those it slays. The wearer of this sword may call upon the stored souls and energy within to empower their spells and body.

    This sword is soulbound to Milo Harper and may only be summoned and used by him.

    He had barely finished reading when Ivy shouted.

    ¡°That¡¯s it!¡±

    He looked at her.

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°That sword, you need to choose that sword.¡±

    Ivy was the last person he would¡¯ve expected to choose a sword over a giant ghost ship which could be summoned anywhere on the planet. He felt like an explanation was in order.

    ¡°Why are you so insistent?¡±

    ¡°Kalifor is legendary, even among other factions like our own he is widely recognised as the most powerful mortal to ever live. He is known to have slain entire armies and there is even a rumour that he slew several gods in personal combat. He was only brought down when a dozen factions allied and invaded the death realm, even then he was nearly victorious. That sword is the most powerful weapon you will ever see, it¡¯s more powerful my mother¡¯s spear.¡±

    Milo looked back up at the description of the sword and then frowned.

    ¡°All it does is steal the souls and ¡®life energy¡¯ of whoever I kill, it hardly sounds like the earth-shattering object you¡¯re making it out to be.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s because the description is wrong!¡±

    ¡°How can a description be wrong?¡±

    ¡°The descriptions are clearly written by the concordium, but this one is out of date. You see lichsteel is a metal that feeds on souls and life energy, but what most people don¡¯t know is that the metal can evolve beyond its initial properties if it is sufficiently fed. Deathbringer was Kalifor¡¯s sword when he killed gods! There¡¯s no way it didn¡¯t evolve.¡±

    ¡°Seems like a bit of a gamble, but seeing as how you¡¯re the one who destroyed the altar¡­¡±

    He selected the sword and a few seconds later it fell into his waiting hands. Milo groaned as he studied the blade. The blade was made out of some sort of green metal with a grey serrated edge. Runes of some sort ran down the blade to a skull shaped hilt. The sword was beautiful to be sure, but it was far too ornate for his tastes.

    He lifted the sword and was studying it at an angle when he felt something brush against his mind. He shook his head to clear it and whatever it had been vanished, a few seconds later it returned, only this time it was far more insistent. Milo felt something try to access his mind. It was only thanks to his eyes of command ability that he realised what was happening, because this felt like the inverse of whatever he did when he accessed that ability.

    His hand clutched at his head and Ivy gripped his shoulders.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?!¡±

    Milo screamed and threw every bit of mental power he had left at the intruder. He felt the intruder shatter into a thousand pieces as it was obliterated. His headache vanished along with the mysterious presence. When he opened his eyes he frowned down at the sword, there was now that had been a coincidence.

    ¡°I think the sword is infected somehow, something tried to seize control of my mind as soon as I held it.¡±

    Ivy looked worried, but it also confirmed what she had claimed.

    ¡°You see, that description is wrong, who knows what abilities that sword is hiding.¡±

    Milo hoped whatever other abilities it was hiding were of a more beneficial nature. He was about to say as much when a group of elves stormed into the chamber. Their armour was covered in blood and several were wounded, yet they were looking at him as if he were a peasant.

    ¡°Come with us, the king wants to see you at once!¡±

    It did not sound like a request.

 Chapter 28

    As Milo followed the elven guards back up to the courtyard, he couldn¡¯t help but notice how tense they were. Every now and then one of them would glance at him as if afraid he might try to escape whatever their king had planned.

    The scene which greeted them in the courtyard was one of complete destruction. The entire courtyard was covered in dead elves, collapsed skeletons and what remained of Rostrian¡¯s people. Like the skeleton knights guarding the altar, Rostrian and his people had simply fallen over dead as soon as the altar was destroyed. Milo made a note to increase the security around their own altar so the same didn¡¯t happen to his faction.

    He tried his best to count how many elves were left standing and arrived at around three thousand. Yet they looked quite pleased with themselves as he was led to their king. King Valar gave him a cruel smile.

    ¡°I saw you run away from the battle Lord Milo, I should of course expect no better from one the lesser species.¡±

    Milo shrugged.

    ¡°I had something important to do.¡±

    King Valar¡¯s eyes went to the sword in his hands, one of his mages leaned in and whispered something to the king. When the king spoke next his voice was cold.

    ¡°I see you¡¯ve looted the enemy¡¯s treasury, but seeing as how your army is destroyed and you yourself deserted the battle, I¡¯m afraid you¡¯ve forfeited any right to the treasure.¡±

    The king took a step forward and then yanked the sword out Milo¡¯s hands. He raised the sword above his head and shouted.

    ¡°Now it is time for your punishment deserter, Landrian see to it that this coward is strung u-¡±

    The king was interrupted when green flames erupted from the sword. The man screamed as he was lit up like a match, within seconds his flesh turned black, and he collapsed to the ground dead as a doornail. The elves stared at their dead king with wide eyes as Milo bent down to pick up his sword.

    ¡°He really shouldn¡¯t have touched my stuff.¡±

    Landrian¡¯s eyes filled with rage, and he was about to order attack when Milo cut him off.

    ¡°Look behind you emissary.¡±

    Landrian turned towards the outer wall and finally noticed the demon soldiers. Behind them stood Hervix and his people, their scorpions aimed at the elves. And at their head was Beldan and Lily, their hair still dripping with sea water. The elf turned back around just in time for a thousand vortices to finish delivering a new batch of demon soldiers.

    ¡°You are surrounded lord Landrian, surrender or I will kill you all.¡±

    Despite the death of their king, exhaustion and wounds Landrian never hesitated.

    ¡°Kill them all!¡±

    The elf tried to lunge at Milo but he batted the clumsy strike aside and knocked him unconscious with a blow. Then a chaotic melee broke out as the elves tried to avenge their king. Despite the hopelessness of their cause, they gave a decent accounting of themselves and one of them even managed to land a cut on Milo¡¯s cheek. This cut uncovered yet another one of Deathbringer¡¯s hidden properties when it closed right after he slew an elf. It seemed the so called ¡®life energy¡¯ the sword stole from its victims could be used to heal wounds, but that was no all. Every dent and scratch on his armour vanished as his kill tally rose. He was certainly very glad that Ivy had been so insistent about the sword, with this blade he would be unstoppable.

    The elves finally gave up after they had been reduced to about five hundred. Milo had his army disarm them and then woke Landrian with a bucket of cold water. The elf stared up at him with hatred which faded to uncertainty when he saw how many of his men had died thanks to his foolish order.

    ¡°You¡¯ve had your fun lord Landrian but try something like that again and there will be no mercy for neither you nor your people back in Oakcrown.¡±

    Landrian¡¯s eyes went wide at the mention of their capital city and Milo could see true fear on his face now.

    ¡°Yes, I know about your capital, which is now defenceless without its king and army. Now your people have committed great crimes and yet I am not ungrateful for your assistance with this siege. I am willing to offer you the opportunity to join my empire.¡±

    Stolen novel; please report.

    Milo heard Hervix curse, but he ignored the gnome.

    Landrian didn¡¯t quite seem to appreciate the opportunity he¡¯d been handed.

    ¡°We will never serve you!¡±

    The elf spat the words, and Milo rewarded him with a backhanded blow which sent him to the floor.

    ¡°Landrian, listen to me closely, right now you hold the fate of your entire people in your hands. Look around at this butchery and know that there will be no mercy for your people if you turn me down. My armies are endless and if you decide to oppose me you will be slaughtered down to the last child.¡±

    ¡°We will not be your slaves!¡±

    Milo sort of admired the man¡¯s blind courage, so he decided to offer him an out.

    ¡°I don¡¯t keep slaves, your people will be allowed stay in Oakcrown and will continue to rule it under my overlordship. Those of you who wish to travel to the other provinces of my empire will be allowed to do so. The only thing I require from you are your people is an oath of fealty.¡±

    One of the newly summoned elementalists approached with a skull cup recently carved from the remains of an undead. The elementalist filled the cup with demon blood and then offered it to Landrian. Milo provided an explanation.

    ¡°Drink the contents of this cup and then repeat the following words ¡®I Landrian, willingly swear myself to the service of Lilith and Milo Harper, Champion of Lilith¡¯. Do that and you and your people will live, refuse me and you will be erased from this world.¡±

    Landrian hesitated for far longer than he had expected and when he finally took the cup it was with a glare. With a final sigh he downed the contents of the cup and said the words. The elves gasped as Landrian¡¯s skin and hair turned black as midnight. When he looked at Milo it was with eyes so pale with red that it was barely visible.

    ¡°Fascinating¡­¡±

    The words came from Ivy, and he turned to look at her.

    ¡°His race must be highly susceptible to magical alterations, far more than humans, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if he¡¯s gained access to the elements of Lilith¡¯s realm.¡±

    Landrian opened and closed his hands and when he spoke, he sounded more confident.

    ¡°Yes, I feel strong, like I could run all day.¡±

    Milo had no doubt the elf was thinking of how to screw him over, but he had no intention of letting it come to that. He locked eyes with Landrian and activated his eyes of command ability. Landrian stopped flexing his hands and went limp.

    ¡°You will never betray me and never work against me in any way. You are my servant from now until your death, all you care about is making sure my wishes are obeyed. Now return to normal.¡±

    Life seemed to flood back into Landrian¡¯s eyes, and he shook himself as if waking from a dream. He looked at Milo for a second and then bowed. When he spoke, his voice was full of reverence.

    ¡°My lord, what can this humble servant do for you?¡±

    ¡°Convince the rest of these people to undergo the ritual of conversion.¡±

    Landrian nodded and then started giving orders, one by one the elves underwent the ritual. Every time one of their mages or war council members were converted Milo would use his eyes to do to them what he had done to Landrian. His hope was that a small group of leaders could keep the rest in check.

    Once they were done with the elves Hervix approached, before Milo could ask what the gnome wanted, he yanked the skull cup from the nearest elementalist¡¯s hand.

    Milo arched an eyebrow at the gnome.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to do it right now, our bargain remains incomplete.¡±

    Hervix looked around at the carnage surrounding them and then up at the now obedient Landrian. He poked the elf and when the man did nothing to retaliate, he snorted.

    ¡°Think of it as a show of good faith, so far you¡¯ve kept your word, and while I really would¡¯ve preferred to wipe the damn elves out, I can¡¯t deny that it¡¯s amusing to watch them grovel before you.¡±

    The other gnomes followed Hervix¡¯s example. Their transformation was a lot like that of humans, their eyes and hair turned black but aside from that everything remained the same.

    By the time Milo lead his forces out from the cavern not even one of them remained unchanged. As soon as they got back to shore he had some of the elves put up their dead king¡¯s tent and called a war council.

    Attending the meeting was Landrian, Beldan, Ivy, Lily and Hervix.

    Milo began by clapping for Beldan.

    ¡°Bravo General, when Lily snuck into camp last night and told me you were confident you could swim to the cavern, I thought she was joking. I see now why Lilith placed such trust in you.¡±

    Beldan inclined his head in acceptance.

    ¡°Thank you, champion, you did quite well yourself.¡±

    Milo waved a hand at Ivy.

    ¡°I played my part, but it was Ivy who destroyed the altar.¡±

    Lily¡¯s face turned from impassive stare into a smile and Beldan looked genuinely surprised. Still, he was quick to congratulate her.

    ¡°Well done, you always did have great potential.¡±

    She waved her hand embarrassed at the praise.

    ¡°Yes, we all did a good job, but I suggest we shift our attention to the future.¡±

    Lily nodded and then produced a map, the map showed the location of Oakcrown, Ferdor and someplace called Vixiville. Landrian frowned at the map.

    ¡°How did you get your hands on this map? It was supposed to be destroyed in the event our army was in danger of being wiped out.¡±

    Lily didn¡¯t answer but Milo had a strong suspicion that she had killed whoever¡¯s job it had been to destroy the sensitive map. Hervix drew a dagger and pointed it at the place named Vixiville.

    ¡°That is my village, around three thousand of my people live there, they are currently under guard by a garrison of a few hundred elves.¡±

    Beldan tapped the edge of the map and then nodded to himself.

    ¡°I have taken the measure of these elves, a force of a few hundred demon soldiers should be able to free the village. Especially if the gnomes rise up at the same time.¡±

    Landrian was quick to speak up.

    ¡°There is no need to spill blood, I will simply order the garrison to leave and once they see what we have become they will join us.¡±

    Milo looked at Beldan and the general shrugged.

    ¡°I suggest we send Hervix and his people as well as a small force of demon soldiers just in case they refuse to listen.¡±

    Milo nodded.

    ¡°Done, now what about Oakcrown?¡±

    Landrian¡¯s face grew uncertain.

    ¡°Our capital is lightly held, but the garrison is formidable, and our city is well defended by walls and tall trees which can be used to rain down spells and arrows on an attacker. I might be able to get the city to surrender but I fear the royal family will resist me.¡±

    Ivy clearly sensed an opportunity because broke in at once.

    ¡°How good is your claim to the throne of Oakcrown, Landrian?¡±

    ¡°I am sixth in line to the throne, behind the king¡¯s daughter and cousins.¡±

    ¡°And what would happen if they were to be found dead in their beds just become you arrive at the head of a small army of converted elves?¡±

    ¡°Assuming a few of the other key people in the town were also found dead I believe my family has the influence needed to proclaim me king.¡±

    Milo nodded again, it was all coming together.

    ¡°Lily you will join Landrian along with fifty shadow stalkers. You will advise him in my place and help him liberate Vixiville. Once Hervix¡¯s people are liberated you will send guides with them who will bring them to Emberstone. Once the gnomes are away safely you will do everything in your power to make sure Landrian captures Oakcrown and stays in power.¡±

    Lily inclined her head and Milo¡¯s finger went to the city of Ferdor.

    ¡°The rest of us will go to Ferdor and rebuild the city and make sure it has a garrison large enough to hold it.¡±

    With that settled the army split in two, each heading for their new destination.

 Chapter 29

    It took his army only half a day to reach Ferdor. Normally it would¡¯ve taken longer but Beldan was quite insistent that they push as hard as they could. The general was worried that such a crucial piece of real estate would not long remain unoccupied. As it turned out his fears were not entirely unjustified.

    The sun was shining as Ferdor¡¯s outer walls came within view. The city looked massive even from a distance and Milo certain it would play a crucial role in his conquests. From a distance the walls looked empty but as they drew closer, they could see some movement. Ivy vanished in a pop of shadow magic and returned a few minutes later to report.

    ¡°A few hundred humans, most likely survivors who hid, or they could be survivors from the surrounding villages.¡±

    Beldan squinted at one of the humans who kept sneaking peaks at them before ducking back down.

    ¡°Threat assessment?¡±

    ¡°Non-existent, I could probably take the walls by myself.¡±

    Milo motioned for the rest of the army to stop and then rode the rest of the way alone. He cupped his hands to his mouth.

    ¡°I am¡­ Emperor Milo, champion of Lilith, ruler of Emberstone, Willowford, Oakcrown and Ferdor, open the gate!¡±

    The emperor title had been Ivy¡¯s idea, apparently the lord or king title didn¡¯t quite have the same oomph as the emperor one.

    A human head peaked down at him from the top of the gatehouse. The man looked and sounded terrified.

    ¡°N¡­n¡­never heard of you!¡±

    ¡°I am new to this region, but my empire is growing rapidly, and as you can see I¡¯ve brought my army with me. Don¡¯t be afraid, you will be allowed to stay in Ferdor as long as you want, but I need to fortify and garrison the city.¡±

    ¡°Go away! The city is ours now!¡±

    Milo sighed and then made a hand motion in Ivy¡¯s direction. Ivy and six other shadow stalkers vanished and reappeared atop the wall. He could hear what sounded like panicked shouts as Ivy forced her way into the gatehouse. Less than a minute later the gate started rising.

    Milo waved the rest of their army forward and marched into Ferdor. Inside they were greeted by a cluster of terrified humans armed with pitchforks and shovels. Milo glared down at them.

    ¡°I am emperor Milo of Emberstone, and this city is now mine, stand down! I will not ask again.¡±

    The humans took in the army of demons and hybrids following in his wake and promptly threw down their weapon. A few seconds later Ivy approached him, she was towing a terrified man behind her by the collar of his shirt. She shoved the man in front of him.

    ¡°Are you the leader of these people?¡±

    The terrified man nodded.

    ¡°Who are you and where did you come from?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m Herbert, and I come from Joldan village milord, only half of us managed to get away before the dead things attacked. They burned our village to the ground and we¡¯ve hiding ever since. Then yesterday we noticed that the patrols suddenly stopped so we came to investigate the city, we found it empty and so we decided to claim it.¡±

    ¡°As I said, you will be allowed to stay in this city provided you help us clean it up. I will even offer you citizenship in my empire should you wish it. I will provide you with all the tools you need, and I will also supply you with food and protection.¡±

    Milo¡¯s long-term plan was to move the people who had moved to Emberstone from Ferdor back to their city. By now they would all be converted and would serve him far better in Ferdor where they could take up their trades once again. He had some hopes that there might be some blacksmiths and woodworkers among the lot which would save him the expense of having to summon weapons and armour for his warriors.

    Herbert looked over at his fellow villagers and several of them nodded at him.

    ¡°I accept.¡±

    Milo smiled at the man.

    ¡°Good, now lead us on a tour of this city, I¡¯d like to know where everything is.¡±

    Herbert did as he was asked and lead them into the city proper. The architecture was completely different from Willowford with a heavy emphasis on stone over wood. The choice made him certain that Ferdor either had access to a stone quarry or had gotten so rich from trade that they¡¯d been able to build with whatever material they wanted. He tried to ask Herbert, but the man simply replied that he was just a farmer and had no idea.

    Ferdor¡¯s choice of stone over wood also meant that the fire which had started during the undead attack had done limited damage to the city¡¯s living quarters. The true damage however became obvious when they reached the docks. The docks were not only massive in scope but had also been mainly constructed from wood. About a third of it was simply gone and would need to be rebuilt.

    Their final destination was the keep which was so well defended Milo wondered how the city had fallen so quickly. It was also mostly untouched by the attack and Milo even found a soup bowl still half full of the owner¡¯s last meal. They also found the treasury which was filled to the brim with silver and gold. He had very little use for money at the moment but that would change as soon as trade could be reestablished.

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    With their tour done they returned to the courtyard of the inner keep. At Beldan¡¯s insistence Milo pulled up the summoning list for buildings. Apparently, the general thought Ferdor was important enough to consider upgrading the keep.

    Wooden house ¨C 250 SE

    Stone house ¨C 500 SE

    Wooden palisade ¨C 1000 SE

    Stone wall ¨C 5000 SE

    Marble wall with towers ¨C 10 000 SE

    Demonic keep - 25 000 SE

    Obelisk of death ¨C 50 000 SE

    Demonic castle - 250 000 SE

    Demonic fortress - 2.5 million SE

    Lilith¡¯s citadel - 25 million SE

    Milo frowned at the list.

    ¡°That wasn¡¯t there before¡­¡±

    He¡¯d read the list aloud for Beldan¡¯s benefit and the general had clearly caught the same thing as he had.

    ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of or seen an obelisk of death in Lilith¡¯s realm.¡±

    Ivy, ever the cleverest of their numbers was already smirking.

    ¡°I know where it came from.¡±

    They both looked at her, she chuckled and then looked pointedly at the sword slung across his back. Milo followed her gaze to the demonsteel sword and finally understood. Since Deathbringer could be summoned at any time and didn¡¯t come with a scabbard he had dismissed the sword. He held out his hand and swirls of green energy materialised into the legendary sword.

    ¡°Now, access the interface and say: ¡®Show me any new additions to the summoning list¡¯.¡±

    Milo did as she asked, and the list shrunk until only one entry was visible:

    Obelisk of death ¨C 50 000 SE

    Milo sensed that the Obelisk was merely the first stop on a deeper rabbit hole, it was the same feeling he¡¯d had when he¡¯d been offered the Ruby egg as a reward. He summoned the Obelisk and a few moments later a giant tower covered in skulls appeared in his vision. He placed the tower in the middle of the square and confirmed the purchase.

    The obelisk was made from the same white stone as Rostrian¡¯s fortress had been. It was covered in the skulls of several hundred different species. At first glance the Obelisk was utterly pointless as a building, which was why Milo was certain it would lead him to something new. He accessed the interface and repeated the same words. This time the list grew rapidly.

    Summoning options added by Obelisk of death:

    Troops:

    Name: Death knight (0/4)

    Cost: 25 000 spirit essence

    Description: The death knights are drawn from the mightiest souls slain by the current wielder of Deathbringer. Their souls are bound to Deathbringer, granting the owner of the sword absolute control over them.

    Items:

    Name: Death''s kiss

    Cost: 250 000 spirit essence

    Description: This ring allows its wearer to raise and control one being regardless of race or elemental affinity. Any being animated by this ring will serve its wearer with absolute loyalty until it is released or destroyed.

    Set (1/3): Every undead being bound to the wearer of this set will retain their personality, memories and all abilities they had when they were alive.

    This item is soulbound to Milo Harper and may only be summoned and used by him.

    Name: Death''s vanguard

    Cost:350 000 spirit essence

    Description: This set of lichsteel plate armour was forged by Enox for his only son Kalifor. This armour shares a connection to the sword Deathbringer and feeds on life energy to repair itself.

    Set (1/3): Every undead being bound to the wearer of this set will retain their personality, memories and the abilities they had when they were alive.

    This item is soulbound to Milo Harper and may only be summoned and used by him.

    Name: Death''s embrace

    Cost: 250 000 spirit essence

    Description: This pendant siphons and converts a portion of elemental energy from anyone it¡¯s wearer slays. The wearer can draw upon these reserves to fuel their own elemental magic.

    Set (1/3): Every undead being bound to the wearer of this set will retain their personality, memories and the abilities they had when they were alive.

    This item is soulbound to Milo Harper and may only be summoned and used by him.

    Milo whistled.

    ¡°For only 850 000 spirit essence I can become unbeatable!¡±

    He¡¯d meant it as a joke but both Beldan and Ivy wore thoughtful expressions on their faces. Beldan asked the obvious question.

    ¡°How much spirit essence do we currently have?¡±

    Milo checked.

    Spirit essence available: 973 002

    He repeated the number aloud but before he could add that most of that spirit essence would need to go towards securing Ferdor Ivy spoke up.

    ¡°Do you remember the message you got after the arena trial event?¡±

    At first Milo didn¡¯t understand the point of the question but then he remembered that one of the rewards had been set in the future.

    ¡°Exclusive access to a unique event which start one month from now...¡±

    Ivy nodded.

    ¡°And that was¡­ 29 days ago?¡±

    ¡°Which means that it begins tomorrow¡­¡±

    ¡°Last time you were dropped in naked and yet as I recall you said the rules permitted summoned items. These items you just unlocked might cost the same as an army, but they are all soulbound items you could bring with you into this next event.¡±

    Milo looked at Beldan.

    ¡°But what about Ferdor? You¡¯ve barely got 800 demons and a hundred hybrids under your command.¡±

    He¡¯d expected Beldan to agree with his assessment but the general simply pointed at the crown on his head.

    ¡°That crown was the final reward for the final stage of the trial you reached, correct?¡±

    ¡°It was.¡±

    ¡°I am old, and I¡¯ve been trough most of Lilith¡¯s library, I¡¯ve read about more enchanted items than you can dream of. In the hands of a leader that crown on your head is in its own way even more powerful than Deathbringer, a legendary sword used to slay gods. Just imagine what other rewards you might get if you can make it further in this event.¡±

    Milo had to admit Beldan made a good point, the crown was ridiculously powerful and had played a key part in every single one of his victories. It was sort of flattering how they were willing to gamble it all on his skill with a sword, yet wasn¡¯t that why Lilith had chosen him?

    Milo summoned the three items and then spent the remainder on soldiers and supplies. The armour was magnificent and looked a lot like his sword, green with grey edges. Both the amulet and ring were made of the same metal and an emerald served as their focal point. Milo tried to wear both amulets at the same time but as soon as he tried to cast the metamorphosis spell, he realised he could only have one at a time. He took off the amulet and gave it to an elementalist who knew the spell.

    The next day Milo was geared up and ready when the event popped up just as expected.

    A unique event is now available only to you.

    <u>Trial of the champion</u>

    In this event you will face a wide selection of elite opponents in a fight to the death. After each victory the difficulty of your next opponent will increase until you are defeated. Each opponent defeated will earn you a great reward.

    If you wish to participate in this event, please use the following phrase ¡°I ¡®insert name of participant¡¯, accept this event¡±.

    This event will disappear forever in 59minutes 31 seconds.

    With regards

    The Concordium.

    Milo said the words and vanished from the streets of Ferdor.

 Chapter 30

    Once again Milo found himself back in the same arena he had competed in last time. This time no fish person came to greet him, but Milo still remembered the rules from last time. Just like last time he was completely naked but this time he wasn¡¯t about to go into battle that way.

    He started summoning all his equipment and just as he had hoped, green swirls of energy surrounded his body as his armour, amulet, ring and sword manifested. The only thing he hadn¡¯t summoned was the crown.

    ¡°Too bad it doesn¡¯t work in this place¡­¡±

    Even as he said the words aloud a sudden thought came to him.

    ¡°Or will it?¡±

    He summoned the crown and then checked his spirit essence.

    Spirit essence available: 20 303

    Experimentally he tried to summon a worker, his face drew into a smile when a small vortex appeared. A few seconds later a single dim-witted demon worker was staring at him waiting for instructions. Once again, the crown had solidified itself as the most useful thing he owned. Still, with only twenty thousand spirit essence to spend there wasn¡¯t that much he could do. After all which if any of the troops he could summon would be of any use in such a high-level arena fight. The answer came to him as he scrolled down the list. A plan was rapidly forming in his mind as he stared at the entry for order master for the order of warriors.

    ¡°He probably won¡¯t be happy to see me¡­.¡±

    Truth be told he¡¯d planned on leaving Nero to rot in Lilith¡¯s realm until the competition was over, and yet in this place he might prove useful if he could be controlled and Milo just happened to have the perfect leverage.

    He summoned Nero and the hybrid warrior arrived naked and unarmed. The one-armed man blinked rapidly as his eyes readjusted to the new setting, then his eyes landed on Milo and filled with murderous hate. Milo was certain that if he hadn¡¯t been naked and unarmed, Nero would¡¯ve attacked him.

    Milo raised both hands in a peaceful gesture.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t summon you here to fight me, I have need of your services.¡±

    Nero snarled.

    ¡°I recognise this place, this is an event, the arena trial one, I was able to spy on mother when she designed it several hundred years ago. How am I even here?¡±

    Milo tapped his crown.

    ¡°This was a reward from the previous arena trial, it allows me to summon anything and anyone with restrictions. Apparently, that extends to troops inside during events as well.¡±

    Nero scoffed.

    ¡°You¡¯ve just wasted a lot of spirit essence then, I won¡¯t fight for the man who usurped my role and cut off my arm. In fact, I¡¯d rather kill you.¡±

    Milo summoned a set of demonsteel plate armour and a demonsteel sword. The items landed in front of him, and he took several steps back.

    ¡°Like I said I didn¡¯t bring you here for another duel, I summoned you to make you an offer.¡±

    Nero looked down at the armour and weapons and then back up at Milo, his hatred was still clear in his eyes, but he was still listening.

    ¡°Go on.¡±

    Milo decided honesty was his best chance with this man who hated him.

    ¡°After our little duel I¡¯d made up my mind to let you rot in Lilith¡¯s realm, after all why summon a warrior who hates me. This remained true even after I gained the eyes of command ability, after all you are one of three hybrids who can¡¯t be controlled.¡±

    Nero¡¯s eyes narrowed at that revelation, he clearly thought Milo was bragging, he hurried on.

    ¡°This event offers us a unique opportunity; I am about to face the strongest opposition I have ever encountered in my life. If I am successful the rewards will probably play a huge role in the rest of the contest, but you don¡¯t care about Lilith winning the contest, do you?¡±

    ¡°Not anymore.¡±

    ¡°Right, so what can I offer the man who hates me and has no interest in the contest? The answer is obvious, I¡¯ll summon you to Archeus after this event is over, then I¡¯ll give you your own army and send you off to make war, anything you conquer will be yours to rule on my behalf.¡±

    Nero was suddenly looking far less hostile, yet he was not quite convinced.

    ¡°I¡¯d be your errand boy, one whose army you could seize control of with your eyes of command ability at any time.¡±

    It was a fair point, so Milo decided to offer another big truth.

    ¡°Already my little empire is stretched nearly beyond my ability to rule, and while you might not be my better with a sword you are an experienced leader. The truth is I need men like you, and you are currently without a purpose. Are you really going to sit out the war alone in Lilith¡¯s realm while I summon the soldiers you trained to make war?¡±

    For several minutes Nero just kept staring at him, then finally he snorted and walked over to pick up the equipment Milo had summoned for him. Once he was armed and ready he took up a position next to Milo. Milo raised Deathbringer and shouted.

    ¡°I¡¯m ready!¡±

    A silvery vortex came and went on the other side of the arena, depositing a tall woman in beautifully crafted white armour. She drew a slender bastard sword and pointed it at Milo.

    ¡°I am princess Miria of the Valkir empire, and you will not escape me a second time!¡±

    Milo vaguely remembered this woman from his last trial, she¡¯d arrived just before he¡¯d died of his injuries.

    He was about to reply when she placed her sword between her hands and her entire body shimmered with what looked like water. A few seconds later two identical clones split off. Milo had no idea what had just happened, fortunately Nero did.

    ¡°Water and light elementalist, she¡¯s going to be an expert with illusions, although I¡¯d wager anything those clones do real damage. The drain on her body most be immense from using such a powerful spell, either her equipment is enchanted to enhance the spell, or she will run out juice very quickly.¡±

    As if to confirm his analysis their opponent didn¡¯t waste any time in attacking. She came at them from three different angles with two of her clones focused on Milo. Her movement were so clean and precise that she caught him completely off guard and he soon struggled to keep both of his opponents at bay. Miria likewise looked surprised that he was able to keep two of her clones at bay.

    Milo caught a brief glimpse of Nero¡¯s fight and saw that it was going much worse than his own, already the big hybrid had several dents in his armour. He clearly knew he was losing because he roared and then fire erupted from his body and washed over his own opponent as well as the two attacking Milo.

    Miria¡¯s clones vanished as soon as the inferno spell hit them but she herself was now protected by a layer of syrupy water. She waited for the spell to finish and then once again multiplied. Milo engaged her as Nero switched to throwing spells, for a dedicated warrior he knew a surprisingly large number of fire spells. Yet every time he would destroy her clones she would simply resummon them, Milo strongly suspected Nero had been right about her equipment.

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    Milo swapped tactics and instead of trying to land lethal blows he went for her equipment. As soon as she started accumulating dents her fighting style switched from offensive to defensive. Her skill with the blade was beyond anything he had expected to find on this planet, it was probably even good enough to break into the top 50 back on Earth. Yet with him and Nero working in concert she was slowly being overwhelmed. She clearly knew this because her impassive face twisted into a defiant snarl.

    ¡°You are better with the sword, but I am a princess of Valkia, I will not die like a cornered dog!¡±

    Her body multiplied once, twice then three times, then each copy was surrounded by a water shield as they rushed forward. Milo cursed as he suddenly had to fend of four Miria¡¯s, and he cast metamorphosis for some extra protection and speed. Nero on the other hand was faring far worse, fire kept erupting from his body but the clones were now protected, and he was quickly accumulating wounds.

    Milo was down to two clones by the time Nero grunted with pain, he spared a single glance at his partner and saw that he had just been impaled by three of his opponents. Milo was about to make a break for him when every clone suddenly vanished. It was now only him and the original and he had a clear advantage in skill, speed and strength with his metamorphosis spell. As he pushed her back, he was wondering why she wasn¡¯t summoning more clones when the realisation hit him. She¡¯d exhausted herself by spamming the clone spell along with the shield spell. Again, Nero¡¯s prediction proved right, she had run out of juice.

    Milo kept pushing until Miria was cornered, by then her eyes were wild with the realisation that she was about to die. To her credit she didn¡¯t try to plead for her life, instead she simply launched herself in one last reckless attack. Milo deflected her sword, tripped her and then finished her off with an impaling blow between her shoulders.

    As he withdrew Deathbringer energy flowed from the sword into his armour, erasing the scars and dents Miria¡¯s clones had left earlier in the fight. He then walked over to Nero who was barely alive and summoned an elementalist.

    The bewildered elementalist looked around at the arena with confusion and his eyes went wide when they landed on Milo. He pointed down at Nero who was rapidly dying.

    ¡°Heal him.¡±

    The elementalist set about his task and within a few minutes Nero was somewhat back to normal. The big hybrid coughed and a bit of blood leaked down into his beard.

    ¡°S¡­she was strong, far stronger than I would¡¯ve believed.¡±

    Milo nodded.

    ¡°Her skill with a blade was so good there¡¯s a very high chance she would¡¯ve killed me if I¡¯d been alone in this fight.¡±

    Nero struggled to his feet.

    ¡°Let¡¯s finish this shall we?¡±

    Milo nodded but before he gave the ready signal walked over to Miria¡¯s corpse and used his Death¡¯s kiss ring to raise Miria. The woman rose to her feet quite nimbly for someone who had recently been impaled. Her eyes had turned green and were glowing with the magic which animated her. She picked up her sword and raised it in a salute.

    ¡°I stand ready to serve you master!¡±

    Milo nodded.

    ¡°Cover my left flank, Nero you take my right.¡±

    After a brief pause, he remembered the elementalist and turned to address him.

    ¡°And you stay out of this, you¡¯re only here to heal.¡±

    The elementalist walked to the far end of the arena and took up position side by side with the demon worker he had summoned at the start. The two of them made for quite the funny pair, but Milo doubted they¡¯d survive whatever came next.

    ¡°I¡¯m ready!¡±

    Another vortex came and went.

    This time his opponent was a beautiful woman with grey skin covered in a green dress made of leaves. Her hair was full of flowers and even a few butterflies and bees. In her hand she carried a wooden spear that radiated magic even to Milo¡¯s untrained eyes. She looked around the arena and then her eyes focused on Milo, as soon as she laid eyes on him her features twisted into a scowl.

    ¡°You stink of death.¡±

    Milo raised his sword in a salute and her eyes flickered to the blade.

    ¡°That sword is an abomination; I shall bury it where no one can ever find it after I¡¯ve disposed of you.¡±

    Once again Nero provided an analysis.

    ¡°I think she¡¯s a dryad, they have an extreme affinity for life and earth, she is probably the most powerful spellcaster you¡¯ve ever laid eyes on except for my mother. Be ready for anyth-¡±

    Milo barely saw the dryad move before she hurled her spear at Nero. He tried to deflect the flying missile, but it was far too fast, it struck Nero and nailed him to the arena wall just beside the elementalist and demon worker.

    Milo had no idea if the hybrid was alive or not but he wasn¡¯t about to miss this opportunity.

    ¡°She¡¯s unarmed, get her!¡±

    Miria cast her cloning spell and charged the Dryad with him. The dryad made a motion with her arm and vines suddenly materialised out of thin air to form a barrier between her and her opponents. Miria¡¯s charge was completely stopped but Milo cast flame sword on Deathbringer and tried to hack his way past the wall. The dryad shrieked as fire burned her vines and for a moment it looked like he might get through. As soon as he broke through the wall the dryad waved her hand in the direction of the arena stands and giant pieces of stone broke free and shot towards Milo with incredible speed. One of the largest pieces hit his chest directly and he was launched across the arena to land next to Nero.

    When Milo regained consciousness, he was laying a few meters away from Nero. The hybrid was quite dead despite the elementalist trying to save him, whatever he was doing wasn¡¯t working. Milo tried to tell the elementalist to heal him instead, but he was having trouble breathing. Fortunately, the elementalist finally came to the conclusion that healing Nero was futile and switched targets to Milo. Milo could actually feel his punctured lunge and ribs restore themselves as the elementalist worked on him. Amazingly it only took the elementalist a minute to get him back on his feet.

    Normally a minute¡¯s downtime would¡¯ve been a disaster against an enemy as powerful as the dryad, but Miria was doing an amazing job of stalling her opponent. Milo had assumed that being raised as an undead would make the raised person weaker, it seemed the set bonus on his equipment was far more powerful than he had expected. Miria had a dozen clones up and didn¡¯t seem to be running out of steam, she was more dangerous than she had ever been alive.

    Milo tried to catch the dryad in a pincer movement from the back but as soon as he got within a certain distance, she turned in his direction. Vines exploded and pieces of the arena started flying towards him, this time he was ready and managed to dodge. He took a few more steps forward when the butterfly in the dryad¡¯s hair flew in his direction and then grew several thousand times in size. He cut the butterfly¡¯s wing off and the dryad screeched at him with true rage.

    He was only a few steps away from the Dryad when she reached out her hand in Nero¡¯s direction. The spear which had not only impaled him but also made him unhealable flew back into her hand. With a screech she launched herself into wild series of melee attacks and by doing so made her first real mistake.

    The dryad was absurdly fast and strong, but her actual skill with the weapon was that of an amateur. In many ways she was a lot like Nero, her naturally enhanced strength and speed meant she¡¯d never seen the need to work on her technique. Still, if Milo had been alone, he had no doubt this creature would¡¯ve slain him already, and even with Miria on his team he was barely winning. The dryad must have realised the same because she changed tactics yet again.

    ¡°Enough!¡±

    A wave of vines exploded from her body and then looped back to surround her. Within seconds she was surrounded by a cocoon of vines, the cocoon started glowing and then grew upwards until it was as tall as the roof of the arena. When the dryad reemerged, she was nestled inside some sort of giant tree mecha.

    ¡°Die!¡±

    Milo had been gaping at the sight, but her shout drew him back to reality. He struggled to avoid blows as she lashed out with her giant arms and feet. There was no way he could kill her like this, at least not alone.

    Milo spent every shred of spirit essence left to him and 8 elementalists appeared around the arena.

    ¡°Fire spells!¡±

    The elementalists didn¡¯t hesitate and the dryad shrieked as fire struck her from every direction. Her magic was incredibly powerful and yet her biggest weaknesses was clearly fire, the element his faction specialised in. The dryad tried to shield herself with her hands, but the concentrated fire was too much and sections of her wooden mech started collapsing. She howled as she went down in a shower of burned wood.

    When she emerged from the ruins of the mech her eyes were furious, but Milo and Miria were ready, they attacked her from every direction at the exact same time. The dryad struck out with her spear and finally managed to strike Miria¡¯s true body. Whatever her spear did it instantly severed the spell reanimating Miria who fell dead to the ground like a puppet who¡¯d just had its strings cut. Milo¡¯s sword blazed with fire as he struck the dryad through the heart.

    The dryad looked so confused when she looked down at the sword in her chest.

    ¡°Five hundred years, and this is how it ends¡­¡±

    The words had barely left her mouth before life left her eyes.

    Milo walked over to Miria and tried to resurrect her with the ring, but it wasn¡¯t working. He looked down at the dryad¡¯s spear, it was clearly a weapon of incredible power. Not only had it somehow poisoned Nero, making him immune to healing magic, but it had made Miria¡¯s body unable to be reanimated. Fortunately, the same wasn¡¯t true for the dryad. Milo used his ring on her and the spell actually flickered and stuttered before taking effect.

    The dryad got to her feet but only one of her eyes were glowing green. Her face shifted between a look of subservience and utter horror.

    ¡°H¡­how did y¡­ not pos¡­possible¡­ w¡­why?.... R¡­release me!¡±

    Milo picked up the spear and handed it to her.

    ¡°What is your name dryad?¡±

    The dryad moaned and the spear in her hand moved towards her own leg, she was clearly trying to break the spell reanimating her. The spear was only a few inches away from her own flesh when her second eye turned green. She whirled the spear up into a salute.

    ¡°I am Petal, guardian of the emerald forest, I live to serve, master.¡±

    ¡°Really? The emerald forest? Do you know king Valar?¡±

    ¡°A curse upon the king of elves! He is a usurper, his grandfather stole Oakcrown from my people many years ago!¡±

    ¡°Ah, well he¡¯s dead now, I killed him.¡±

    The dryad¡¯s face drew into a malevolent smile and whatever shred of defiance was left in her vanished.

    Milo felt like his chances were pretty good now that he was teamed up with the dryad. He couldn¡¯t have been more wrong.

    ¡°I¡¯m ready!¡±

    The vortex which appeared this time covered the entire arena. When it vanished, it left behind a giant dragon with emerald scales. The dragon took one look at him, the dryad and the others in the arena and then breathed green flames at everyone and everything.

    When the dragon finally stopped breathing fire everyone except for Milo had been reduced to lump of charred flesh. Even Petal the mighty dryad had been obliterated by the flames. As for Milo, the flames hadn¡¯t so much as torched a single hair on his head.

    The dragon stared down at him with the most confused look a member of his species had ever worn. Milo readied his sword for a charge and was promptly smashed into the ground when the dragon pinned him with its left claw. Milo heard his armour creak and felt breath leaving his lunges as the dragon pressed him into the floor of the arena with the weight of an airplane behind it. The dragon kept going until Milo¡¯s armour started to crack and death was imminent. Then its eyes flashed, and something brushed against his mind. Once again Milo threw everything he had at the invader but this time it was different, whoever this attacker was it wasn¡¯t trying to take over his mind but rather to communicate.

    ¡°H¡­how d¡­did you¡­ resist?¡±

    The voice echoing in his mind sounded ancient and noble and he realised that the dragon was talking to him.

    ¡°I am dragonproof.¡±

    The dragon made a point of putting additional weight on him thus cracking a few of his ribs.

    ¡°False, you are breaking beneath my claws easily enough.¡±

    This was clearly an interrogation and seeing as how this situation could only end in him giving up information to a vastly powerful enemy, he decided to goad the dragon into killing him.

    ¡°True, you are quite fat.¡±

    The weight increased further, and Milo¡¯s body broke even further, then the drake pulled back its claw.

    ¡°You will answer my questions, if you do, I will give you a reward.¡±

    Unable to move Milo stared up at the dragon.

    ¡°What kind of a reward?¡±

    ¡°I will heal you and give you a single blow for free.¡±

    ¡°What do you want to know?¡±

    The dragon repeated its first question.

    ¡°How did you resist my fire?¡±

    ¡°I am the champion of Lilith, I am immune to the elements of her realm, one of which is fire.¡±

    ¡°So, the gods have finally begun their war¡­¡±

    ¡°Indeed, what about you, whose side are you on?¡±

    ¡°My own, I rule my kind and will continue to do so regardless of your little war.¡±

    After seeing what the dragon could do Milo was more than happy to leave the creature alone. He was also having serious second thoughts about not accepting the ruby egg. Having his own personal dragon sounded like grandest of ideas to him right now.

    The dragon¡¯s eyes narrowed.

    ¡°You were just thinking about a ruby dragon egg, explain.¡±

    Oh shit, Milo realised that the mental connection went both ways, the damn dragon was reading his mind. He tried to conceal his thoughts, but the dragon would not be denied.

    ¡°Offered as a reward for this contest, you did well to not accept it, the ruby line was destroyed years ago by myself. I will not allow it to be revived, had you tried I would¡¯ve burned you and your cities to the ground.¡±

    This dragon was learning far too much, he needed to get out of here before it learned where Emberstone was. He cast metamorphosis on himself and used his mind to move the exoskeleton. His body moved oddly but he managed to charge the dragon, at the last moment he jumped and put his full weight behind Deathbringer. The dragon didn¡¯t move, it simply sat there as Deathbringer struck one of its scales which made a horrible screeching sound as the sword slid across the scale leaving a shallow groove behind.

    Milo stared at the minimal damage he had managed to inflict with his most powerful blow. The dragon pinned him to the ground once again and was clearly intent on carrying on with its investigation. Before it could do so Milo decided to try one last thing.

    ¡°I forfeit!¡±

    The last thing he was before the arena vanished was the dragon¡¯s furious eyes.

 Chapter 31

    When Milo reappeared in the courtyard of Ferdor¡¯s keep it was with a smile on his face. He¡¯d beaten two trials and was confident he¡¯d gotten away from the dragon without revealing anything too sensitive.

    His smile vanished as soon as the vortex disappeared, and the stench of death hot him. The entire courtyard was carpeted with the dead bodies of demons, hybrids and humans above all else. His first conclusion was that Ferdor was under attack, but something didn¡¯t quite fit that narrative. He bent down to inspect one of the dead humans, the man wore cheap leather armour and judging by the dried blood he¡¯d been for hours. A chill ran down Milo¡¯s spine, in the event of any attack Ferdor¡¯s keep should¡¯ve been the last place to fall since it was the most defensible.

    His mind was swirling with a thousand possibilities when a voice reached him. It was male and the speaker was laughing and talking casually. He could just barely make out the words as whoever it was drew closer.

    ¡°Our prince sure showed those red eyed monsters what was up!¡±

    Another series of laughs answered the words.

    ¡°Indeed, I was there when he took the keep, he offered their leader to become his concubine! When she tried to flee his majesty¡¯s mages caught her and killed her so quickly you wouldn¡¯t believe it!¡±

    Milo was still naked as he approached the owner of the voice. A group of twenty or so human men in leather armour were approaching the keep from outside. They were dragging wagons behind them and had Milo¡¯s mind been less focused on the possible implications of the words he had just heard he would¡¯ve called them a cleanup crew of some sort.

    The men saw him and immediately drew their weapons. Swirls of green sprang up around Milo¡¯s body and manifested into his equipment. Milo pointed Deathbringer at the man in the lead.

    ¡°You! Tell me what happened here!¡±

    The man laughed and then made a few hand motions, the rest of the group spread out to flank Milo. Then they charged as one. Milo was in no mood to play games, he never stopped moving towards the leader even as he effortlessly butchered his men. By the time Milo reached the leader the man had fallen onto his ass and was looking at Milo¡¯s blood covered face with true terror. Milo reached down and yanked the man up by his throat.

    ¡°WHAT HAPPENED HERE!?¡±

    The man struggled in his grip and liquid ran down his trousers to his boots as the man soiled himself.

    ¡°Tell me or I will flay you alive piece by piece!¡±

    The man nodded and Milo sat him back down on the ground. He looked behind himself and seeing no help in sight stuttered out an explanation.

    ¡°Prince Malkir and his fleet arrived at mid-day to answer the people of Ferdor¡¯s request for help. When we arrived, we found the city occupied by red eyed freaks and monsters. The prince ordered the attack, and we overwhelmed our enemy, we pushed them back into the keep and killed them when they tried to escape.¡±

    ¡°All of them?¡±

    Milo¡¯s thoughts were of Ivy, with her ability to shadow blink away there was no way they could have stopped her from fleeing a lost battle, right? The man¡¯s words stripped whatever hope Milo was clinging onto away.

    ¡°Yes, some tried to use magic to escape but our mages caught them, they fought like cornered dusk wolves, but our numbers were too great. It took a while, but our mages were able to kill their leaders, they nailed them to the unnatural thing in the courtyard.¡±

    Milo looked over his shoulder at the obelisk of death, something had broken the building off right above the base and yet he could make out two shapes nailed to it. Even from a distance he recognised both at once, Ivy and Beldan.

    ¡°You¡¯ll let me go now, right?¡±

    Milo¡¯s hand moved without thinking and Deathbringer cut the man¡¯s throat as if it were butter. Then he dropped the sword and staggered over to the obelisk as if he were a drunken man. Tears filled his eyes as he stared up at Ivy¡¯s corpse, a dozen black spears of some kind had been used to impale her against the obelisk.

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    For months he¡¯d shared his bed and all his thoughts with her, she¡¯d been his right hand since the very beginning. What had started out as a partnership of necessity had become true love somewhere along the way. He brushed his tears away and a feeling of overwhelming hatred bubbled up inside him.

    Somewhere inside him an invisible dam broke and his body started changing as he walked out of the courtyard. His lichsteel armour shifted to accommodate his new form as a pair of wings and a giant spiked tail erupted from his back. His hands were clawed and a pair of horns protruded from his head. He stopped only once to pick up Deathbringer before heading straight for the docks.

    He encountered several patrols on his way to his target, each group would do their best to kill the ¡®monster¡¯ and once they realised the futility would try to run. Milo hunted each soldier down, not letting a single one escape his sword. With each soul claimed by the sword he could feel something within the sword answer, whatever it was, it was hungry.

    Sometime around the hundredth kill a haunting voice spoke in his mind.

    ¡°Yes¡­ kill them all¡­ reap their souls and fuel your vengeance¡­ ultimate power is within your reach¡­¡±

    The voice was the answer to a mystery which had started when something had tried to take control of his mind the first time he¡¯d summoned Deathbringer. Whatever it might be Milo was too far gone in grief and hatred to care, all he wanted right now was to obliterate whoever had stolen Ivy from him.

    Just as the docks came within view the alarm finally went up. Milo could see several hundred huge ships docked at the harbour, men and women in armour were streaming from the ships down the docks towards him. For the most part they were armed in simple leather with spears, shields and bows. They came at him in a mass several thousand of them at a time.

    Unfortunately for them they were mere humans, and with his true metamorphosis form active they could barely even register the speed of his sword before they died. With each kill Milo felt Deathbringer steal life energy which was then stored in his amulet and used to sustain his true metamorphosis form. As long as he kept killing, he could maintain true metamorphosis forever.

    Every now and then an arrow or a spear would strike him but with his body protected by a double layer of scales and lichsteel plate armour he was practically invulnerable from mundane weapons. They kept coming and he kept killing them until the entire docks were covered in blood. He¡¯d killed several thousand when the voice in his mind spoke again, this time it was clear and sounded almost normal.

    ¡°Well done child of Lilith, my name is Kalifor and I have awoken once more! Now draw upon the sword and I will lend you my power.¡±

    Milo too far gone to wonder why the legendary Kalifor, son of the death god Enox was trapped in his own sword. Instead, he listened to the voice and drew upon the sword¡¯s power, green flames spread from the hilt up the blade and then erupted into a wave which incinerated everything in a thirty-meter radius around him. Milo pointed his sword at a group of archers and the fire responded to it as if alive. Men and women screamed with agony as they were burned alive by the green flames.

    Milo turned his attention to the ships, he was certain that whoever had killed Ivy would be on one of them. The flames responded to his wishes and started spreading amongst the ships. Sailors screamed and jumped into the bay to extinguish the flames as their ships burned. Milo had set nearly a hundred on fire by the time the voice spoke again.

    ¡°You must leave at once, I detect a large group of powerful elementalists approaching, you will not overcome them alone.¡±

    Milo ignored the voice and turned to face a large group of humans approaching him from the very end of the docks. A few thousand men wearing beautiful white armour he recognised from his fight with Miria was approaching him in a shield wall formation. Behind them came several hundred men and women in white robes with staves in their hands. They were obviously elementalists and he charged them with a roar.

    The front ranks of the shield wall burned, and Milo was just about to break trough when water surrounded him. His feet left the ground as he was lifted into the sky within a sphere of water. The flames went out as soon as their connection to him was severed and Milo found himself suspended in the air. Seti had told him about combination spells and how they were extremely powerful when performed by a large number of elementalists.

    Milo glared down at the elementalists and their ranks parted to reveal a cold-eyed man with a crown upon his head who looked a lot like Miria. The man looked up at Milo with a smirk.

    ¡°Well well, you must be this champion your people kept going on about as they were slaughtered. They promised us that you would destroy us all unless we withdrew.¡±

    Milo glared down at him from his watery prison, the water kept him from replying, not that he had anything to say to Ivy¡¯s killer anyway.

    The man chuckled and then turned to face the elementalist.

    ¡°Get on with it, we have fires to put out.¡±

    The elementalists waved their hands and giant black spears surrounded by water started flying at him with incredible speed. Each time one would strike his body Milo would flinch, and the reservoir of life energy stored within Deathbringer would drop. Even with the vast reserves his murder spree had built up it was draining rapidly. About four minutes into the attack one of the spears struck his sword arm and he dropped Deathbringer.

    Suddenly all the wounds Deathbringer had been keeping closed started bleeding and Milo knew he was seconds away from death. The last thing he saw before his vision went black was the prince bending to pick up Deathbringer. Milo died with a smile on his face.

    Lily watched from the shadow of an alley as her sister¡¯s killer picked up Deathbringer and was immolated. The elementalists gathered behind him tried to save the man but he was already dead by the time the first water spell hit him.

    The elementalists all backed away from their fallen prince and the champion¡¯s body, apparently nobody was fool enough to touch either. Lily shadow blinked back to the keep and walked over to her sister¡¯s body. After a few minutes of yanking spears out she carried the body with her to the city wall and then several miles away. After a brief scan of the area, she finally let her tears fall.

    The two of them had been close since childhood, and what a pair they had made, Lilith¡¯s heir and the abomination. Yet despite the sins of her parents Ivy had befriended her and treated her like a sister, forcing others to do the same. She was the sole reason Lily had gone from outcast to a respected member of Lilith¡¯s inner circle. And now she was dead, killed by some human princeling while her lover was away.

    Lily couldn¡¯t quite explain how, but she¡¯d known something was wrong and had sought out her sister at once. But she¡¯d arrived too late, by the time she¡¯d reached the city the champion had been knee deep in blood and flames in his quest for vengeance. She¡¯d briefly considered trying to talk some sense into him but one look at him had told her that he was beyond reason. He truly had loved her sister, and thus they now shared a bond, a bond of vengeance.

    Lily buried Ivy and then returned to Ferdor, one by one she started snatching guards, nobles and elementalists. And one by one she interrogated them with a coldness that would¡¯ve shocked even Lilith. By the end of the day, she would not only know exactly who was responsible for her sister¡¯s death but also where they and their families lived. And then, she would return for the champion¡¯s resurrection and provide him with exactly what he needed to honour her sister¡¯s memory.